Alabama Bookstores

The Witching Wind by Natalie Lloyd

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The Witching Wind by Natalie Lloyd
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Natalie Lloyd’s books are the literary equivalent of your grandmama’s blueberry crunch cobbler fresh out of the oven. They’re warm, a little bit magic, and a whole lotta heart. Roxie and Grayson will tug at your heartstrings with their inner strength and innate kindness, even when the world is throwing hard things at them. And that pilfering Witching Wind will definitely steal your heart and fill it up with hope, though not before sending you on a whirlwind first.

The Witching Wind by Natalie Lloyd, (List Price: $17.99, Scholastic Press, 9781338858600, September 2024)

Reviewed by Candice Conner, The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, Alabama

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Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi

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Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi
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This shattered my poor heart into a million pieces. The third Alharthi novel I’ve read and now, my favorite. Easily the most insightful novel on female friendship of the decade. Perfect for Ferrante and Rooney fans, for anyone who’s lost a friend and searched for her in every shadow of their life. A haunting and dazzling story.

Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi, (List Price: $27, Catapult, 9781646222070, August 2024)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya

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The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya
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A perfect book. So original, with an astounding use of multiple narratives that keeps you on your toes until the very last page. The writing is gorgeous and ethereal; the power of tone makes the reading experience feel like you are sitting in a dark theater one minute, climbing a volcano the next, it’s all-encompassing. Hamya makes constructing a revelatory novel look easy; this is what contemporary literature should be in every sense, a gift I would be hard-pressed to forget and will be so excited to put in the hands of all my favorite friends and readers.

The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya, (List Price: $26, Pantheon, 9780593701034, August 2024)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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The Tyranny of Flies by Elaine Vilar Madruga

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The Tyranny of Flies by Elaine Vilar Madruga
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This really took me by surprise. Incredibly funny, in a way so unique to its horror and its political and familial commentary, that it feels almost illegal to laugh but also impossible not to. A marvelous portrait of juvenilia and madness, thick with a mania unlike anything I’ve read before.

The Tyranny of Flies by Elaine Vilar Madruga, (List Price: $18.99, HarperVia, 9780063330733, June 2024)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

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Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
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The rarest triumph–a novel that tackles the weightiest subjects without withholding joy! An odyssey to understand death emerges as a shockingly powerful affirmation of life, love, and belonging. Cyrus Shams is a protagonist that felt immediately iconic–boldly morose, exuberantly weird, hilarious and frustrating and exceptionally human. Akbar has written a book that defies neat categorization, one that you’ll want to hand to any person in your life who “gets you” and say, read this, and let’s talk.

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, (List Price: $28, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 9780593537619, January 2024)

Reviewed by Kristen Iskandrian, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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The Search Party by Hannah Richell

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The Search Party by Hannah Richell
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This is a spooky camping excursion dominated by missing children, adult friendships and their complexities, and Cornish storms. I couldn’t wait to figure out who was missing, who was involved, and where the red herrings were leading me astray.

The Search Party by Hannah Richell, (List Price: $17.99, Atria Books, 9781668036068, January 2024)

Reviewed by Lady Smith, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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Where the Body Was by Ed Brubaker

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Where the Body Was by Ed Brubaker
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I am a huge mystery fan and love graphic novels, so I was immediately interested in Where the Body Was. I was immediately drawn into the initial story when you are introduced to the neighbors on the street. Can I just say, “Poor, Toni!” I almost would have appreciated a story just about the neighbors rather than the murder. That being said, I really enjoyed this story and if this author does another mystery/graphic novel then I will definitely read it!

Where the Body Was by Ed Brubaker, (List Price: $24.99, Image Comics, 9781534398269, January 2024)

Reviewed by Kait Layton, The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, Alabama

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The Book of Ayn by Lexi Freiman

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The Book of Ayn by Lexi Freiman
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The rare book that will make you laugh out loud, gasp with disbelief, cringe, and ultimately, cheer. A book that reminds us to have fun, that restores “fun” to its rightful place as a virtue of reading. Anna’s descent into a Randian abyss is spiked with so much humor and insight, you’ll almost forget whose side you’re on. Freiman is a writer of breathtaking talent, and fans of her first book will adore this one.

The Book of Ayn by Lexi Freiman, (List Price: $27, Catapult, 9781646221929, November 2023)

Reviewed by Kristen Iskandrian, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson

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School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson
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Totally unlike any poetry collection I’ve ever read before. The harsh descriptions of World War I, in lyric conversation with the innocence and virtue of a schoolboy, make this collection so sublime and reverential.

School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson, (List Price: $26, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 9780374610265, November 2023)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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System Collapse by Martha Wells

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System Collapseby Martha Wells
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If you already love Murderbot, you’ll continue to love it. This newest installation still has the wonderful mix of snark, action, and Murderbot struggling with being a construct of free will. This book in particular, Murderbot is processing the trauma and learning to deal with its own extreme emotional responses. My only criticism of the book is that I wish I would have reread Network Effect before I read this one, because this book takes places immediately after and heavily leans on events that happened in that book. Overall, though, I loved it!

System Collapse by Martha Wells, (List Price: $21.99, Tordotcom, 9781250826978, November 2023)

Reviewed by Kelly McLeod, The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, Alabama

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Absolution by Alice McDermott

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Absolutionby Alice McDermott
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There’s so much I could say about this epistolary novel set in 1963 Saigon and confessing to the lives of two American wives in Ho Chí Minh’s Vietnam, but for now, I’ll say: Alice McDermott is (maybe) my favorite living novelist, and Absolution is (maybe) her best novel yet.

Absolution by Alice McDermott, (List Price: $28, Farrar, Straus and Giroux , 9780374610487, 2023-10-31)

Reviewed by Laura Cotten, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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We Are Too Many by Hannah Pittard

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We Are Too Many by Hannah Pittard
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We Are Too Many is a memoir of the end (and beginning) of a marriage. Told hilariously over three parts, Hannah Pittard invites readers to follow her through ten years of time-jumped remembered conversations. Her story is written with a refreshing amount of honesty as she leads the reader through her discovery that her husband and best friend have had sex, along with what came before and after. Unfinchingly honest and hilarious, Pittard seamlessly blends fact with fiction to make an unforgettable memoir. I finished this in one afternoon. I could not put it down — nor did I want to. A gem for anyone who loves memoir, language play, a book that reads like a documentary, or a delightful and entertaining read.

We Are Too Many by Hannah Pittard, (List Price: 26.99, Henry Holt and Co., 9781250869043, May 2023)

Reviewed by Deva, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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This Is Salvaged by Vauhini Vara

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This Is Salvaged by Vauhini Vara
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This collection feels so alive. It’s not just the memorable characters set spinning toward questionable ventures, it’s the sense of play and fun that pervades each story, each line. In never taking any moment too seriously, Vara accomplishes the serious work of truth-telling that actually feels true.

This Is Salvaged by Vauhini Vara, (List Price: $26.95, W. W. Norton & Company, 9780393541731, September 2023)

Reviewed by Kristen Iskandrian, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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The Road to the City by Natalia Ginzburg

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The Road to the City by Natalia Ginzburg
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Like all of Natalia Ginzburg’s excellent works, The Road to the City feels like something so fresh, tender, and intimate, you can barely breathe until it’s done and can barely believe it could ever be over.

The Road to the City by Natalia Ginzburg, (List Price: 17.95, New Directions, 9780811234757, July 2023)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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Sunshine Nails by Mai Nguyen

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Sunshine Nails by Mai Nguyen
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Jessica Tran returns home from LA after a bad breakup hoping to get back on her feet, but things are just as crazy at home: her parents’ nail salon is facing competition from an Instagram-worthy gentrified salon across the street. All five Tran family members — Jessica, her workaholic brother, her immigrant parents, and recently-arrived cousin — get POV chapters as they try to figure out what’s next and how to keep Sunshine Nails afloat. With a light tone, stylized characters, and page-turning short chapters that read faster than quick-dry polish can set, Sunshine Nails is a fun read, even if the ending feels a little rushed and smudged.

Sunshine Nails by Mai Nguyen, (List Price: 26.99, Atria Books, 9781668010495, July 2023)

Reviewed by Melanie, The Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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