Mockingjay
by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic, $17.99)

At long last, the hotly-anticipated conclusion to Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games Trilogy. Against all odds, Katniss has twice survived the challenges of the Games -- and now the Capitol, and the President, want to finish things for good. No one is safe.

"Perfect pacing and electrifying world building."
- Booklist, Starred review

Freedom
by Jonathan Franzen (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $28)

And speaking of hotly-anticipated... Franzen's new novel Freedom, his first in the nine years since his landmark work The Corrections, will be released next Tuesday (8/31). Franzen just graced the cover of Time magazine, and when President Obama was on vacation at Martha's Vineyard last week, the good folks at Bunch of Grapes Bookstore snuck him an advance reading copy of Freedom. No word yet on Barack's review, but according to our sources, Freedom might be better than its predecessor: "Simply, one of the most compelling, flawlessly written novels that I have ever read. A genuine literary page-turner -- I read 350 pages on a lazy Sunday." - Chris, Longfellow Books

"[Franzen] proves himself as adept at adolescent comedy as he is at grown-up tragedy; as skilled at holding a mirror to the world his people inhabit day by dreary day as he is at limning their messy inner lives... Mr. Franzen has written his most deeply felt novel yet—a novel that turns out to be both a compelling biography of a dysfunctional family and an indelible portrait of our times.”
- Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

Juliet
by Anne Fortier (Ballantine, $25)

In Fortier's novel, Julie Jacobs travels to Siena, Italy in search of her lost heritage, only to uncover a secret she never expected. Descended from Giulietta Tomei (the historical Juliet of Romeo and- fame), Julie begins a search to uncover the true history of her ancestors (and stop a centuries-old feud). Anne Fortier takes a big chance in her debut by repurposing such a canonical tale, but Juliet succeeds beautifully.

"Juliet is one of those rare novels that has it all: lush prose, tightly intertwined parallel narratives, intrigue, and historical detail all set against a backdrop of looming danger. Anne Fortier casts a new light on one of history's greatest stories of passion. I was swept away."
- Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants

Baby We Were Meant For Each Other
by Scott Simon (Random House, $22)

Scott Simon, host of NPR's Weekend Edition, is the adopted father of two girls. Baby, We Were Meant For Each Other is his story of the extraordinary journey -- from his first glimpse of a tiny picture of his two future daughters to the family that Scott, his wife, and their children forged. It is a tribute to the miracle of children, the struggles of parenting, and the power of family.

"Scott Simon's writing is funny, compassionate, and wise. His own story is shared by many other people whose lives have been touched by adoption. He has made this the subject of a hundred beautifully told anecdotes. Every page offers up some hilarious, heartfelt, or heartbreaking moment. This is a surprising, powerful, and important book.”
- John Lithgow

Becoming Animal
by David Abram (Pantheon, $26.95)

David Abram, author of Spell of the Sensuous, brings some much needed insight to bear on the growing dichotomy between Man and Nature. For all of our tweeting, facebooking, and other cyber-activities, we're still animals. We still have bodies, and we are still very much a part of the natural world, despite what the veil of technology would otherwise suggest. Abram helps rekindle an appropriate level of amazement at the workings of the natural world and our place within it.

"This book is like a prehistoric cave. If you have the nerve to enter it and you get used to the dark, you'll discover things about storytelling which are startling, urgent and deeply true. Things each of us once knew, but forgot when we were born into the 19th and 20th centuries. Extraordinary rediscoveries!"
- John Berger, author of Ways of Seeing

Sound of a Wild Snail Eating
by Elisabeth Tova Bailey (Algonquin, $18.95)

A mysterious infection left Maine author Elisabeth Tova Bailey bedridden, and after a friend brings her a small pot of violets (with a little garden snail stowaway), Bailey spends her quiet hours of recovery marvelling at the exploits of her tiny bedside companion. A beautiful meditation on the simple wonders of life.

"With warmth and intelligence, Bailey observes this little mollusk at her bedside. Readers will find her mental journey remarkable and her courage irresistible. I am very taken with this small book.”
- Maxine Kumin, author of Where I Live

New in Paperback!

The Gate at the Stairs
by Lorrie Moore (Vintage, $15) Now in Paperback!

Lorrie Moore's first novel in more than a decade is now out paperback. The Gate at the Stairs is the story of a small town girl going off to college, Though she's best known for her short fiction (Birds of America, Self-Help, and others), Moore's longer prose reveals the same singular talents her fans have come to revel in.

“Moore cannot write a bad sentence, cannot create poor characters, cannot tell flat, ho-hum stories. When she's good, she's very, very good; when she's bad, she's good.”
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Origins of the Specious
by Patricia O'Conner & Stewart Kellerman (Random House, $15) Now in Paperback!

A funny, free-wheeling tour of modern English, and the many rules and reasons we've come to learn -- and why they're wrong. O'Conner and Kellerman dig deep into the sometimes fuzzy history of language to uncover the misuses, mispronunciations, and mistakes that we've come to make on a daily basis.

“Every bartender in the land should have a copy of this vastly amusing and highly informative book. Then when some tipsy bore declares that posh derives from Port Out, Starboard Home, or that you must never say disinterested when you mean uninterested, he can bring it out from behind the jar of cocktail cherries, and smack him on the head with it.”
- Simon Winchester, author of The Professor and the Madman

A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge
by Josh Neufeld (Pantheon, $16.95) Now in Paperback!

Josh Neufield's critically acclaimed graphic novel is an account of five Hurricane Katrina survivors, during the days leading up to and following the storm. Honest, compelling storytelling and images both beautiful and chilling make this a fitting tribute.

“The people's history of Katrina. A work of literature, or high art, and of reverence for nature and humanity.”
- Los Angeles Times

The Greatest Show on Earth
by Richard Dawkins (Simon & Schuster, $16.99) Now in Paperback!

In the words of Richard Dawkins, "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection." And sure, Dawkins is a smart guy, but you don't have to take his word for it: The Greatest Show on Earth is a wide-ranging testament to the jaw-dropping and awe-inspiring realities of the natural world. He'll have you convinced, but more than that, he'll have you marvelling at life itself.

“Brilliant, detailed, anecdotal and immensely readable... Dawkins lays out evidence with such fascinating detail that the book is both scientifically exciting and completely convincing.”
- San Francisco Chronicle

The Town
by Chuck Hogan (Scribner, $16) Now in Paperback!

From Chuck Hogan, winner of the Hammett award for crime writing, comes The Town, the story of a bank robbery gone wrong. The robbery itself is no problem for Doug MacRay, a career criminal from the streets of Boston -- what he hadn't planned for was falling for the bank manager he took hostage. After the heist, with the FBI on his trail, is it worth risking everything for the one treasure he can't steal?

“There's no doubt about Hogan's ability to blend weighty emotions with riveting shoot-outs as he depicts a complicated man, noble and villainous by turns, trapped in a life he desperately wants to change.”
- Booklist, Starred Review

Our Summer Pick

Father of the Rain
by Lily King (Atlantic Monthly, $24)

Stuart and Chris rarely agree on books, but Father of the Rain is one of their favorite reads in a long time. King's new novel was also chosen as an IndieBound Favorite and an Oprah Magazine Best Summer Read.

Early in Father of the Rain, 11-year-old Daley experiences a moment she'll treasure for decades: "My father grinning his biggest grin and looking at me like he loves me, truly loves me...." Never mind that he's high on martinis and the thrill of pulling a stunt that humiliates his wife and insults her dinner guests. Lily King's luminous novel centers on a child's blinding hunger for a parent's affection. King makes this well-worn theme seem fresh with her vividly drawn characters—especially Daley's father, Gardiner, a narcissistic alcoholic with an ugly temper and a magnetic charm—and a clear eye for the details of their singularly messed-up relationships. Set in the affluent East Coast seaside town where Gardiner was raised, in a world of Wasp privilege he takes for granted, the novel covers three decades starting in the mid-'70s. Daley's mother leaves Gardiner, but Daley can't give up hoping he'll change. "You want the daddy you never got," her boyfriend says. Obvious? Maybe to us. The uplifting ending comes as Daley finally sees for herself what's been clear all along. - O, The Oprah Magazine

“Lily King’s Father of the Rain is one of the most richly satisfying and haunting novels I've read in a long time.”
- Richard Russo

Perfect for the Beach!

Lit
by Mary Karr (Harper, $14.99) Now in Paperback!

Mary Karr has won awards for both her poetry and her prose, garnered widespread acclaim from critics, and published several bestselling books - but success didn't come easily. In Lit, Karr's third memoir after The Liar's Club and Cherry, she illuminates her life struggles (family, marriage, motherhood, alcohol) the way only she can.

"Mordantly funny, free of both self-pity and sentimentality... A master class on the art of the memoir."
- New York Times

Eating the Dinosaur
by Chuck Klosterman (Scribner, $15) Now in Paperback!

As usual, Klosterman's work defies description, but it's safe to say this is more of the oddball writing you've come to expect from Chuck. Witty, incisive and irreverent essays on the strange and ever-changing world of popular culture. This book will make you think. And laugh. And laugh some more.

"Klosterman's relentlessly thoughtful prose makes a case that our arts and entertainment are more suffused with meaning than ever before. Even as he's fretting over the direction of the culture, his writing stands as an eloquent defense of it."
- Wall St. Journal

The Anthologist
by Nicholson Baker (Simon & Schuster, $15) Now in Paperback!

Maine author Nicholson Baker has some pretty eclectic interests, as his literary catalogue (Vox, Mezzanine, Human Smoke, etc) will attest. His novel The Anthologist unleashes Baker on the world of poetry, as he follows an old poet, Paul Chowder, charged with introducing a major new anthology. Luckily for the reader, Chowder is hopelessly distracted by a string of engaging tangents that make for a memorable reading experience.

"Baker writes like no one else in America."
- David Gates, Newsweek

Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It
by Maile Meloy (Riverhead, $15) Now in Paperback!

Chosen by the New York Times in 2009 as one of the Ten Best Books of the Year, Meloy's latest story collection wowed readers and critics alike. Set primarily in her home state of Montana, Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It takes on a diverse group of characters who share that all-too-human dilemma: choice, and its consequences.

"After two well-received novels, Meloy returns to the short story, the form in which she made her notable debut and to which her lucid style is arrestingly well suited."
- The Atlantic

The Hunger Games
by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic, $8.99) Now in Paperback!

The first book in Collin's young adult series has become a cult favorite for the 12-and-up crowd. In Hunger Games, the not-too-distant future stars a nation in disrepair, and the annual Hunger Games where each region sends two children to compete in a nationally televised battle for survival. You can expect to be fully engrossed in Collin's alternate future, so here's the good news: Mockingjay, the third and final installment of the series, is due out at the end of August.

"Collins's characters are completely realistic and sympathetic as they form alliances and friendships in the face of overwhelming odds; the plot is tense, dramatic, and engrossing."
- School Library Journal, Starred Review

"Impressive world-building, breathtaking action and clear philosophical concerns make this volume, the beginning of a planned trilogy, as good as The Giver and more exciting."
- Kirkus

A moving story about the power of books by one of our favorite young adult authors. DiCamillo won this year's Indies Choice Award for Most Engaging Author at Book Expo America.

Kate DiCamillo's Acceptance Speech - May 26, 2010

"When I was in second grade, I fell in love with Abraham Lincoln. The Clermont Elementary School library had a series of books called Notable Young Americans. And in this way, through these books, I met George Washington and Helen Keller, Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison, Amelia Earhart and Booker T. Washington. I met them and I liked them. But it wasn't until Abraham Lincoln that I fell in love.

Something about his story (the poverty, the death of his mother, his love of words and books) resonated with me, moved me. I came home from school and told my mother everything that I had learned about the young Abraham Lincoln. I told her that I wanted to learn more. My mother took me to the Cooper Memorial Library in downtown Clermont. They had there many books about Honest Abe, but there was nothing for a reader my age. And so my mother checked out a thick volume on the life of Abraham Lincoln written for adults. The text was impenetrable. After a few pages, I gave up on it and contented myself with looking at photographs of the man, his sad and hopeful face.

That year, for my eighth birthday, my mother gave me a hardcover biography of Lincoln called Meet Abraham Lincoln by Barbara Cary. It was written at my reading level. There were wonderful illustrations, and I was smitten with the man anew. Where had my mother found that book? At Porter's Stationery and Gifts in Eustis, Florida. Eustis was the next town over from Clermont, thirty miles away. At Porter's, they had looked for a book about Lincoln that was at my reading level and they had special-ordered it for my mother, for me. Also, they had told my mother that there was another book I might like. It was called The Cricket in Times Square.

And so, in addition to a book about a poor, lonely boy who went on to become President of the United States, I also received the story of a small cricket who loves music, a cricket who sings so beautifully that people stop to listen. Who was that bookseller who thought, "Here is an almost-eight-year-old girl who loves Abraham Lincoln. What other book will she love? Oh, yes. This book about a cricket."? There was nothing logical about that decision. It was a leap of faith. Those two books changed me. Together, they cemented an idea in my eight-year-old heart. That idea was this: It doesn't matter how small, how lonely, how broken or sad or poor you are. There is a way to make yourself heard. There is a way to sing. A bookseller put those books into my mother's hands, and my mother put them into mine. Sometimes we forget that this simple, physical gesture can change lives. I want to remind you that it does. I want to thank you because it did."

- Kate DiCamillo, May 26th, 2010