Flyleaf Books

Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon

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Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon
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I love to sip morning coffee and page through a cookbook looking for dinner inspiration, so when it’s as much fun to READ a cookbook as it is to cook and eat from it, I’m in heaven. Hetty Lui McKinnon’s Linger offers up not just healthy recipes for salads (think both hearty and delicate) and desserts (think healthy and easy) but her tips on making food ahead, entertaining and creating community with food- in a warm and engaging style that will have you trying new things even on weeknights. Bonus! Her daughter has short essays about music and food with accompanying playlists (via QR code).

Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon, (List Price: $40, Knopf, 9780593804193, October 2025)

Reviewed by Jamie, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Sparks Fly by Zakiya N. Jamal

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Sparks Fly by Zakiya N. Jamal
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A late bloomer romance where 1) they meet at a sex club, 2) the plot critiques the use of genAi in entertainment & news, 3) the friendships get plenty of attention outside of the romance plot. I ate this debut adult romance right up.

Sparks Fly by Zakiya N. Jamal, (List Price: $19, Berkley, 9780593953839, December 2025)

Reviewed by Alex Reinhart, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino

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Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
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Meet your new favorite anti-hero, Margot. She’s smart, she’s accomplished, she’s driven … but she’s also stressed and desperate for a forever home, which seems truly impossible in today’s cutthroat housing market in DC. Margot’s monomaniacal for all the trappings of a normal life…maybe because she’s far from normal herself. If you like stories that make you laugh and cringe in equal measure, this is the perfect appalling tale for you!

Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino, (List Price: $27.99, Celadon Books, 9781250400543, November 2025)

Reviewed by Maggie Robe, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Don’t Eat Eustace by Lian Cho

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Don't Eat Eustace by Lian Cho
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Lian Cho is such a talent! Her art’s personality can be seen from a mile away, with Eustace trying to desperately convince his captor that he should NOT eat him! The storybook panels and Eustace’s creativity make this the type of fable where you can’t predict what is coming next. The script was flipped way before you even realized it. (Bear is such a cutie I want 20 of him please, “Bear Town Party” next?)

Don’t Eat Eustace by Lian Cho, (List Price: $19.99, HarperCollins, 9780063321847, October 2025)

Reviewed by Jamie Kovacs, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Cat Nap by Brian Lies

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Cat Nap by Brian Lies
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Cat Nap is probably the most artistically creative book I have ever seen! Lies did a spectacular job at balancing their respect for the original art and the fun storytelling of Kitten. The amount of effort and dedication that went into recreating these pieces was massive, and adding Kitten while staying true to the original? That’s talent.

Cat Nap by Brian Lies, (List Price: $19.99, Greenwillow Books, 9780062671288,September 2025)

Reviewed by Jamie Kovacs, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones

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The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones
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The 1619 Project from Nikole Hannah-Jones asserts that to truly understand America today – politically, socially, culturally- and to begin to make repairs, you must move the timeline back to 1619, when the first enslaved people from Africa arrived in Jamestown. In this book—which is 50% more material than the original New York Times project—we hear from all the people who should have been included when we were initially taught American history and social studies. Herein lies a star-studded collection of thinkers, writers, poets and artists and an attempt to fully understand America’s origin story. Required reading for all who care to create a more just America.

The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones, (List Price: $25, One World, 9780593230596, June 2024)

Reviewed by Jamie Fiocco, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone by Gideon Sterer

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If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone by Gideon Sterer
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If you make a call on a banana phone, a gorilla will probably answer. What will happen next??? Well, over a long, happy day of telling jokes, asking questions, and sharing secrets, you might learn that a friend can be made across ANY distance. A sweet little fable about how to approach others with kindness and curiosity, this book is silly, warm, and beautiful to look at!!!

If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone by Gideon Sterer, (List Price: $19.99, Clarion Books, 9780063375222, September 2025)

Reviewed by Charlie Monroe, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Recess by Lane Smith

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Recess by Lane Smith
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Another SPECTACULAR entry from Lane Smith, all about our favorite subject, recess! Its colorful imagery and interactive elements make this the perfect back-to-school read for elementary school classrooms.

Recess by Lane Smith, (List Price: $19.99, Harry N. Abrams, 9781419776892, July 2025)

Reviewed by Jamie Kovacs, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Shark Heart by Emily Habeck

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Shark Heart by Emily Habeck
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Shark Heart is one of the most tender and unusual books I have ever read. Wren and Lewis are only beginning to settle into their married life when Lewis is told that he is rapidly turning into a literal great white shark. This book blurs the line between fiction, romance, and magical realism. It’s a story of love as persistence through uncertainty. Its short chapters read like the script for a play. Shark Heart is going to be one of my favorites for a long time.

Shark Heart by Emily Habeck, (List Price: $18.99, S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books, 9781668006504, June 2024)

Reviewed by Kat Baltisberger, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Shark Summer by Ira Marcks

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Shark Summer by Ira Marcks
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A group of friends set out to create a short film uncovering the truth about the Martha’s Vineyard phantom shark and win the youth film contest, however, they uncover some secrets that are tough to deal with. Suspenseful and heartwarming, with relatable characters, Shark Summer is a winning graphic novel!

Shark Summer by Ira Marcks, (List Price: $12.99, Little, Brown Ink, 9780316461443, May 2021)

Reviewed by Jen Minor, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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The Aliens Do NOT Want to Go Home by Adam Gustavson

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The Aliens Do NOT Want to Go Home by Adam Gustavson
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There’s something so fun about playing with your friends, I wouldn’t want to go home either! These silly aliens do such a good job at illustrating a kid’s big feelings about going home. So if you have a squirmy, crabby, playtime-loving alien, try reading this book with them.

The Aliens Do NOT Want to Go Home by Adam Gustavson, (List Price: $17.99, Charlesbridge, 9781623544942, June 2025)

Reviewed by Jamie Kovacs, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay

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Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay
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Everything We Never Had will bring you on an in-depth journey of generations you’ll never want to leave! These stories weave together in the most beautiful way, allowing you to jump between decades so naturally and feels, in a way, magical. This book offers the reader a look into the past with the true historical context, and a look into the future, as the reader is able to find themselves in one, or all, of the characters. Flip through these pages and allow yourself to become inspired by Francisco’s dreams. Surprise yourself with your understanding of Emil. Or find a personal memory in Enzo’s experience of the COVID pandemic. Read along to watch this exceptional set of characters find their way in the world, and with each other.

Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay, (List Price: $18.99, Kokila, 9780593461419, August 2024)

Reviewed by Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy

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Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy
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This is an excellent young adult fiction about six Muslim teenagers who got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. They have to fight against discrimination to earn justice and decide whether to save themselves or expose their secrets for a chance to free them all. I love that this book highlights the major effects and unfairness of discrimination in our world, and the bravery it takes to fight back and uncover the truth.

Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy, (List Price: $12.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316564601, September 2025)

Reviewed by Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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The Corruption of Hollis Brown by K. Ancrum

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The Corruption of Hollis Brown by K. Ancrum
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At a crossroads within a dying, haunted town, Hollis Brown agrees to help and house Walt, a strange boy he’s just met. This promise is far more literal than it seems, and Walt settles within Hollis’s bones, taking control of his life. With gritted teeth and righteous fury, Hollis has to figure out how to make peace with the spirit who lied to him and now lives within him. And all too quickly, their relationship blooms into something far more dangerous and cascading than a mere possession. This was an achingly romantic story that I had no choice but to devour all at once, at any and all costs. An instant favorite.

The Corruption of Hollis Brown by K. Ancrum, (List Price: $19.99, HarperCollins, 9780063285835, April 2025)

Reviewed by Jordan April, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett

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A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett
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Away from the walls of the Empire is the port city of Yarrowdale, a quasi-Empire outpost responsible for processing the reagents behind powers like Din’s engraving. And here occurred a murder even more vexing than the last, where a Treasury official vanished without a trace. What Ana and Din begin to unfurl are the cascading consequences of a top-secret program, infighting to sustain a dying monarchy, and a murderer at the center of it all who can seemingly predict their every move. A Drop of Corruption probes at the tantalizing false promises of autocracy, the thankless job of justice, and the oft-stifled battle cry of a society worth fighting for. Even with all the dangers within every page, Bennett has crafted a world I’d love to live in, with characters as fascinating as the leviathans themselves.

A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett, (List Price: $30, Del Rey, 9780593723821, April 2025)

Reviewed by Jordan April, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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