New in Hardback
Early Warning by Jane Smiley
From the Pulitzer Prize-winner, the second installment, following Some Luck, of her widely acclaimed, best-selling American trilogy, which brings the journey of a remarkable family with roots in the Iowa heartland into mid-century America. But Early Warning also stands entirely on its own as an engrossing story of the challenges–and rewards–of family and home, even in the most turbulent of times, all while showcasing a beloved writer at the height of her considerable powers.
The novel opens in 1953 with the Langdon family at a crossroads. Their stalwart patriarch, Walter, who with his wife, Rosanna, sustained their farm for three decades, has suddenly died, leaving their five children, now adults, looking to the future. Only one will remain in Iowa to work the land, while the others scatter to Washington, D.C., California, and everywhere in between.
My Struggle: Book Four by Karl Ove Knausgaard
Continuing six-volume memoir-novel, Knausgaard confronts his late teens, in which he moves to a tiny fisherman’s village in the far north of the arctic circle to work as a school teacher. No interest in the job itself, his intention is to save up enough money to travel while finding the space and time to start his writing career. Initially everything looks fine, but life soon takes a darker turn. His writing repeats itself, his drinking escalates to some disturbing blackouts, his attempts at losing his virginity end in humiliation and shame, and to his distress, he also develops romantic feelings towards one of his students. Along the way, there are flashbacks to his high school years and the roots of his current problems. Ever present is the long shadow cast by his father, whose own sharply increasing alcohol consumption serves as an ominous backdrop to the author’s lifestyle.
Peru: the Cookbook by Phaidon
One of the world’s most innovative and flavorful cuisines, Peruvian food has been consistently heralded by chefs and media around the world as the “next big thing.” Peruvian restaurants are opening across the United States, with 20 in San Francisco alone, including Limon and La Mar.
Acurio guides cooks through the full range of Peru’s vibrant cuisine from popular classics like quinoa and ceviche, and lomo saltado to lesser known dishes like amaranth and aji amarillo. For the first time, audiences will be able to bring the flavors of one of the world’s most popular culinary destinations into their own kitchen.
Big Gay Ice Cream: Saucy Stories & Frozen Treats: Going All the Way with Ice Cream by Bryan Petroff and Douglas Quint
Welcome to Big Gay Ice Cream’s debut cookbook, “a yearbook of ice cream accomplishments–all the recipes you need to create delicious frozen treats. Along the way, you can enjoy Bryan and Doug’s stranger-than-fiction stories, cheeky humor, vibrant photography and illustrations, and plenty of culinary and celebrity cameos (including an introduction by Headmaster Anthony Bourdain).
Julie’s Pick of the Week! “This is the most fun you will ever have reading a book about ice cream. I love the way they formatted the whole thing like a high school yearbook. You get both stories from Big Gay Ice Cream journey from food truck to multi-city brick & mortar AND a ton of recipes. You probably really definitely need this book.”
No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
When Stephanie moves to the notoriously cheap Perry Bar neighborhood of Birmingham, she’s just happy to find an affordable room for rent that’s large enough not to deserve her previous room’s nickname, “the cell.” Until she starts hearing things in the night. Feels them. Things…or people…who aren’t there in the light. Concern soon turns to terror when the voices she hears and presence she feels each night become hostile. It’s clear that something very bad has happened in this house. And something even worse is happening now. Adam Nevill’s No One Gets Out Alive will chill you straight through to the core — a cold, merciless, fear-inducing nightmare to the last page. A word of caution, don’t read this one in the dark.
New in Paperback
Personal: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child
Thirteen Days in September: Carter, Begin, and Sadat at Camp David by Lawrence Wright
One of The New York Time’s “10 Best Books of 2014,” Wright reveals an extraordinary moment of lifelong enemies working together.
In September 1978, three world leaders–Menachem Begin of Israel, Anwar Sadat of Egypt, and U.S. president Jimmy Carter–met at Camp David to broker a peace agreement between the two Middle East nations. During the thirteen-day conference, Begin and Sadat got into screaming matches and had to be physically separated; both attempted to walk away multiple times. Yet, by the end, a treaty had been forged–one that has quietly stood for more than three decades, proving that peace in the Middle East is possible.
The Children Act by Ian McEwan
One of the Best Books of the Year according to The Washington Post, NPR, Vogue, and BookRiot. Fiona Maye is a leading High Court judge who presides over cases in the family division. She is renowned for her fierce intelligence, exactitude, and sensitivity. But her professional success belies private sorrow and domestic strife. Should the secular court overrule sincerely expressed faith? In the course of reaching a decision, Fiona visits Adam in the hospital–an encounter that stirs long-buried feelings in her and powerful new emotions in the boy. Her judgment has momentous consequences for them both.
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Above the East China Sea by Austin’s very own Sarah Bird
A Seattle Times Best Book of the Year! Okinawa, present day: Luz, a teenage military brat, has moved to the island’s U.S. Air Force base with her mother, a no-nonsense sergeant. Luz’s mother hopes that the move will reconnect them with the Okinawan branch of their family–and help them heal from the death of Luz’s beloved older sister. The book tells the entwined stories of two lives connected across time by the shared experience of loss, the strength of an ancient culture, and the power of family love.
“Compelling. . . . Bird deftly captures the unique, era-appropriate voice of each girl. . . . Revelations are at once heartbreaking and uplifting, and reinforce an Okinawan expression uttered by many of Birds’ unforgettable characters: ‘Nuchi du takara.’ Life is the treasure.” — The Seattle Times
Hard Choices by Hillary Rodham Clinton
The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
New in YA: The Buzz Book For May!
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
A “deft, polished debut” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes is a thought-provoking, heart-wrenching and pulse-pounding read. Set in a rich, high-fantasy world with echoes of ancient Rome, it tells the story of a slave fighting for her family and a young soldier fighting for his freedom. Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free.
“A setting inspired by ancient Rome; a fierce battle for freedom in the face of tyranny; and a villain who makes Cersei Lannister and Dolores Umbridge look like a pair of pathetic amateurs . . . An Ember in the Ashes is at the top of our must-read list for 2015.”–MTV.com
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Reblogged this on blogforaslob and commented:
these ladies are awesome