plastic is an engaging, epic workplace poem based on Rice’s own experiences as a factory worker. As the night progresses Rice references coworkers, the music on the factory floor, and his tattered copy of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. —Caitlin Baker, Island Books, Mercer Island, WA Discover the epic in the everyday at Island Books and …
Jane Eyre meets Shirley Jackson (think: We Have Always Lived in the Castle) in this Victorian horror-comedy. In the movie in my mind, Tim Burton is the director. Upon arriving at Ensor House, the new governess informs the reader with casual cruelty that, “It is early fall, the cold is beginning to descend, and in three months …
Buckle up! You’re in for a wild ride. No Place Left to Hide is a gripping thriller full of twists and turns, both figuratively and literally. –Aly, Beach Books, Seaside, OR Aly’s recommendation was selected by the American Booksellers Association for the January/ February 2025 Kids’ Indies Next List. Find this and more recommended books …
Here is Willy Vlautin’s The Horse, which is the story of Al Ward, a man in his final years, who finds a horse on his doorstep one morning. He’s not sure if the horse is a hallucination, but its presence triggers a lot of contemplation of life—the one he had and the one he didn’t …
Egan weaves together these seemingly disparate characters and storylines into a stunning ending. The Candy House is about family, connection, legacy, technology, and so much more. It is her best work yet. — Ariana Paliobagis, Country Bookshelf, Bozeman, MT Pick up fresh paperbacks from Country Bookshelf and other independent bookstores.
SLAY is so much more than just another book about video games: it’s about a girl who carves a space in the world for herself and completely owns it, and it’s about the microaggressions and the can-I-touch-your-hairs and all the things that come with being one of a handful of black kids in a school. …
Haunting and surprising yet immediately relatable, Palm’s striking memoir sinks its roots deep into readers and holds fast. Everything ordinary, Palm reveals, is extraordinary–tragic, profound, amusing, brutal–when examined up close. In reflecting on her own formative years, growing up ‘between points on the map’ in small-town Indiana, Palm paints a measured, unforgettable portrait of the …
Hood offers the parallel stories of Ava, who is struggling to build a new life after the end of a long marriage, and her daughter, Maggie, living in Paris and descending into addiction. Ava is invited to join a book club whose members each suggest the book that matters most to them. In Ava’s case, …
When journalist Lo Blacklock sees someone throw a woman’s body over the side of a small cruise ship, it should be clear that a crime has been committed. The problem? No one is missing. This is far from the travel magazine assignment that brought Lo on board, but she can’t just give up. Something happened …
Painted Horses was chosen by independent booksellers as the #1 Indie Next book for August— the book booksellers were most excited about. Cheryl McKeon, now of Book Passage in San Francisco but formerly of Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, WA, wrote the blurb chosen to explain what readers love about Painted Horses: “Brooks sweeps …
