A Annie and Snowball and the magical house
Non-Fiction
New Items ~ January 2020
FICTION
Africaville by Jeffrey Colvin. Set in a small Nova Scotia Town settled by former slaves, this depicts several generations of one family bound together and torn apart by blood, faith, time, and fate.
After Kilimanjaro by Gayle Woodson. Medical fiction of this kind is rare – it’s not a thriller or tearjerker, but a thoughtful novel about doctors, the work they do, and the impact that has on their patients.
The Andromeda evolution by Michael Crichton. In this sequel to the techno-thriller that started it all, the threat returns in a gripping sequel that is terrifyingly realistic and resonant. The Evolution is coming.
Arapaho summer by Kinley Roby. In 1867 two Union veterans and two Arapaho women they rescue from a Lakota war party set off on the Oregon Trail in search of a new beginning.
Bloody genius by John Sandford. Virgil Flowers will have to watch his back – and his mouth – as he investigates a college culture war turned deadly.
The confession club by Elizabeth Berg. An uplifting novel about friendship, surprising revelations, and a second chance at love.
Crossroad by Bill Cameron. On a desolate road in the Oregon high desert, an apprentice mortician stumbles upon a horrific crash – and into a vortex of treachery, long-buried secrets, and growing menace.
Dread journey by Dorothy Hughes. On a transcontinental train, a starlet fears her director may be trying to kill her.
The family upstairs by Lisa Jewell. Libby Learns the identity of her parents and inherits a London mansion, but this comes with a mystery of multiple murders.
Genesis by Robin Cook. This takes on the ripped-from-the-headlines topic of harnessing DNA from ancestry websites to catch a killer.
Guilty, not guilty by Felix Francis. The husband and brother of an unstable woman who’s been strangled get into a battle royal over which of them will get the other convicted of her murder.
The innocents by Michel Crummey. Orphaned and alone in 1800s Newfoundland, a young brother and sister contend with the dire hazards of their coastal surroundings.
The kill club by Wendy Heard. A desperate woman at the end of her rope is drawn into an intriguing, but deadly, scheme. Just try to put this one down.
A minute to midnight by David Baldacci. When Atlee Pine returns to her hometown to investigate her sister’s kidnapping from 30 years ago, she winds up tracking a potential serial killer.
Nothing more dangerous by Allen Eskens. In a small Southern town where loyalty to family and to “your people” carries the weight of a sacred oath, defying those unspoken rules can be a deadly proposition.
The off-islander by Peter Colt. A Boston-born Vietnam vet and P.I. is hired to find a missing father – but my find far more than he bargained for…
The rise of Magicks by Nora Roberts. This closes out the trilogy “Chronicles of the One”.
Swede Hollow by Ola Larsmo. A riveting family saga immersed in the gritty, dark side of Swedish immigrant life in America in the early 20th century.
Stuck in Manistique by Dennis Cuesta. Two troubled lives intersect in a novel combining cozy mystery, comedy, and reflections on fractured relationships. A hypnotic tale of family secrets that also features delightfully silly humor.
NEW DVDs
The Crown: the complete second season (2019) starring Claire Foy, Matt Smith, Victoria Hamilton, Vanessa Kirby, and John Lithgow
It: Chapter two (2019) starring Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy
Never too late (1965) starring Paul Ford and Connie Stevens
NONFICTION
A Bookshop in Berlin by Francoise Frenkel. A rediscovered, prize-winning memoir of a fearless Jewish bookseller on a harrowing fight for survival across Nazi-occupied Europe.
Dynamic dames by Sloan De Forest. Celebrate 50 of the most empowering and unforgettable female characters ever to grace the silver screen, as well as the artists who brought them to vibrant life!
Eightysomethings by Katharine Esty. A practical guide to letting go, aging well, and finding unexpected happiness over the age of 80.
Finding Chika by Mitch Albom. A moving memoir of love and loss. You can’t help but fall for Chika. A page-turner that will not doubt become a classic.
Here all along by Sarah Hurwitz. Finding meaning, spirituality, and a deeper connection to life – in Judaism (after finally choosing to look there).
Hymns of the Republic by S.C. Gwynne. An engrossing history of the final gasps of the Civil War, a year in which Americans mourned their fathers and brothers and sons but also the way their lives used to be, the people they used to be, the innocence they had lost.
If you tell by Gregg Oslen. A shocking and empowering true-crime story of three sisters determined to survive their mother’s house of horrors. A story of murder, family secrets, and the unbreakable bond of sisterhood.
Letters from an astrophysicist by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. This is like a scientific Dear Abby advice column that talks about black holes, extraterrestrial sightings, and human predicaments.
The lie by William Dameron. A candid memoir of denial, stolen identities, betrayal, faking it, and coming out.
On flowers by Amy Merrick. Lessons from an accidental florist. Merrick is a rare and special kind of artist who uses flowers to help us see the familiar in a completely new way.
On the plain of snakes by Paul Theroux. Legendary travel writer Theroux drives the entire length of the U.S.-Mexico border, then goes deep into the hinterland on the back roads to uncover the rich, layered world behind today’s brutal headlines.
Unexplained by Richard Smith. Real-life supernatural stories for uncertain times and not for the easily frightened.
A warning by Anonymous. A senior official in the Trump administration offers an assessment of the president and makes a moral appeal.
What we will become by Mimi Lemay. A mother’s memoir of her transgender child’s odyssey, and HER journey outside the boundaries of the faith and culture that shaped her.
The witches are coming by Lindy West. In this wickedly funny cultural critique, the author exposes misogyny in the #MeToo era.
You are awesome by Neil Pasricha. How to navigate change, wrestle with failure, and live an intentional life.
NEW CHILDREN’S BOOKS
PICTURE BOOKS
Aalfred and Aalbert by Morag Hood
Around the table that grandad built by Melanie Heuiser Hill
Astro girl by Ken Wilson-Max
A big bed for Little Snow by Grace Lin
The Christmas tree who loved trains by Anne Silvestro
A day for skating by Sarah Sullivan
Freedom soup by Tami Charles
Good morning, snowplow! by Deborah Bruss
How to hide a lion at Christmas by Helen Stephens
Just in case you want to fly by Julie Fogliano
Little fox in the snow by Jonathan London
Making a friend by Tammi Sauer
The serious goose by Jimmy Kimmel
Small Walt and Mo the Tow by Elizabeth Verdick
The snowflake mistake by Lou Treleaven
Sofia Valdez, future prez by Andrea Beaty
Telling time by David Adler
This is not that kind of book by Christopher Healy
CHAPTER BOOKS
Beverly, right here by Kate DiCamillo
The forgotten girl by India Hill Brown
Night of the new magicians by Mary Pope Osborne
The Princess in Black and the bathtime battle by Shannon Hale
Two dogs in a trench coat go on a class trip by Julie Falatko
Wings of Fire: the poison jungle by Tui Sutherland
GRAPHIC NOVELS
Dog Man. Fetch 22 by Dav Pilkey
Sunny rolls the dice by Jennifer Holm
Welcome to Wanderland by Jackie Ball
NON-FICTION
Can I eat a mammoth? by Madeline King
Do penguins have emotions? by World Book
Greek myths and mazes by Jan Bajtlik
Why are monkeys so flexible? by World Book
Notes from Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Library Journal, and New York Times Book Review.
New Items ~ December 2019
FICTION
Agent running in the field by John Le Carre. A seasoned solitary figure, in a desperate attempt to resist the new political turbulence swirling around him, makes connections that will take him down a very dangerous path.
All this could be yours by Jami Attenberg. A timely exploration of what it means to be caught in the web of a toxic man who abused his power. It shows how those webs can tangle a family for generations and what it takes to – maybe, hopefully – break free.
Blue moon by Lee Child. Jack Reacher comes to the aid of an elderly couple and confronts his most dangerous opponents yet.
The bromance book club by Lyssa Adams. A baseball player attempts to heal his marriage with the help of his team’s romance-novel book club.
The deserter by Nelson DeMille. This features a brilliant and unorthodox Army investigator, his troubling new partner, and their hunt for the Army’s most notorious – and dangerous – deserter.
Find me by Andre Aciman. In this exploration of the varieties of love, the author of Call Me By Your Name revisits its complex and beguiling characters decades after their first meeting.
Ghoster by Jason Arnopp. A razor-sharp thriller for a social-media obsessed world. Prepare to never look at your phone the same way again….
Holding on to nothing by Elizabeth Shelburne. Brings us a present-day Appalachian story cast without sentiment or cliché, but with a genuine and profound understanding of the place and its people.
I lost my girlish laughter by Jane Allen. This delicious satire of old Hollywood, originally published in 1938 and largely unknown even by cinephiles, gets a welcome reissue.
Kiss the girls and make them cry by Mary Higgins Clark. A journalist sets out to share a #METoo story from her past and discovers that her abuser has become a powerful businessman who will do anything to keep her quiet.
The night fire by Michael Connelly. Harry Bosch and Renee Ballard return to take up a case that held the attention of Bosch’s mentor.
Ninth house by Leigh Bardugo. After mysteriously surviving a multiple homicide, Galaxy Stern comes face to face with dark magic, murder, and more at Yale University.
Nothing to see here by Kevin Wilson. A moving and uproarious novel about a woman who finds meaning in her life when she begins caring for two children with remarkable and disturbing abilities.
Olive, again by Elizabeth Strout. The author continues the life of her beloved Olive Kitteridge, a character who has captured the imaginations of millions of readers.
The revisioners by Margaret Sexton. Here is a bracing window into Southern life and tensions, alternating between two women’s stories set nearly 100 years ago.
Secret Service by Tom Bradby. What if the next British Prime Minister was really a Russian agent?
When she returned by Lucinda Berry. Kate vanished from a parking lot 11 years ago, leaving behind her husband and young daughter. When she shows up at a Montana gas station, clutching an infant and screaming for help, investigators believe she may have been abducted by a cult.
NEW DVDs
The haunting of Hill House (2019) starring Carla Gugino and Elizabeth Reaser
Nevada Smith (1966) starring Steve McQueen and Karl Malden
Discovery of witches (2019) starring Matthew Goode and Teresa Palmer
Ellen – the complete season one (1994) starring Ellen DeGeneres
NEW CDs
Country Music – a film by Ken Burns: the soundtrack
Lover by Taylor Swift
Cuz I love you by Lizzo
NONFICTION
All blood runs red by Phil Keith. The incredible story of the first African American military pilot, who went on to become a Paris nightclub impresario, a spy in the French Resistance, and an American civil rights pioneer.
Blood by Allison Moorer. The singer/songwriter’s memoir may serve as solace for those who’ve faced abuse, a signal for those in it to get out, and an eye-opener for others.
Catch and kill by Ronan Farrow. In a dramatic account of violence and espionage, investigative reporter Farrow exposes serial abuse and a cabal of powerful interests hell-bent on covering up the truth, at any cost.
Good husbandry by Kristin Kimball. Kimball describes the delicious highs and sometimes excruciating lows of life on Essex Farm – a 500 acre farm that produces a full diet for a community of 250 people.
Home now by Cynthia Anderson. In this detailed, sensitive portrait of Lewiston’s revitalization by African immigrants, Anderson expertly captures the multi-layered dynamics between Lewiston natives and African immigrants. The result is a vivid and finely tuned portrait of immigration in America.
If you lived here you’d be home by now by Christopher Ingraham. The hilarious, charming, and candid story of a writer’s decision to uproot his life and move his family to Red Lake Falls, Minnesota, population 1400 – the community he made famous as “the worst place to live in America” in a story he wrote.
In the dream house by Carmen Machado. A revolutionary memoir about domestic abuse. Tracing the full arc of a harrowing relationship with a charismatic but volatile partner, Machado struggles to make sense of how what happened to her shaped the person she was becoming. A revolutionary memoir about domestic abuse.
Janis: her life and music by Holly George-Warren. This blazingly intimate bio establishes the Queen of Rock & Roll as the rule-breaking musical trailblazer and complicated, gender-bending rebel she was.
The less people know about us by Axton Betz-Hamilton. In this true crime memoir, an identity theft expert tells the story of the duplicity and betrayal that inspired her career and nearly destroyed her family after their identities were stolen.
Lonely Planet’s best in travel 2020. It really is a big deal. International Travel publisher, Lonely Planet, has featured Maine as one of this years “Best in Travel” places. Bring on the international tourists !
The movie musical ! by Jeanine Basinger. An in-depth look at the singing, dancing, happy-making world of Hollywood musicals, beautifully illustrated – an essential text for anyone who’s ever laughed, cried, or sung along at the movies.
Running to glory by Sam McManis. A moving account of a champion cross-country team made up primarily of teenager from migrant-worker families.
Scream by Margee Kerr. Kerr takes readers on a journey on which they will experience the world’s most frightening and terrifying places firsthand. As she explores places that make people tremble, she shares her personal dread on each of these destinations, which makes the book ever more captivating.
Sitcommentary by Mark Robinson. From I Love Lucy to Black-ish, sitcoms have often paved the way for social change. It has challenged the public to revisit social mores and reshape how we think about the world we live in.
Touched by the sun by Carly Simon. A chance encounter at a summer party on Martha’s Vineyard blossomed into an improbable but enduring friendship between Simon and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
The vagina bible by Jen Gunter. OB/GYN, writer for the New York Times and Self magazine, Dr. Jen now delivers the definitive book of vagina health, answering questions you couldn’t find the right answers to.
Vanity Fair’s women on women. These essays about women by women pack a feminist wallop, underscoring the combative resilience of notable women who never gave in to what was expected of them.
Notes from Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Library Journal, and New York Times Book Review.