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Letter to a Stranger by Colleen Kinder

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Letter to a Stranger by Colleen Kinder
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As the season changes, I find myself drawn to books that I can pickup, read however much I want whether it be a page or fifty, and then put back down and not worry about losing my spot or anything like that. I want digestible, but not fluff, I still want the grit and strong storytelling. This book is the cure for this predicament. Colleen Kinder sent out an email to authors everywhere, simply asking them to write a letter to a stranger who haunts them. The result is this intimate collection of letters from some of the most beloved authors of our time, and perfect is an understatement. The book is broken up by emotional prompt, which I like but was wary as books similar to this can be sort of repetitive with the themes of stories in them, but this next level. The sections are symmetry, mystery, chemistry, gratitude, wonder, remorse and finally, farewell. This is what makes this book so strong, it’s not just emotions of love or pain, it’s so much more than that. It’s funny, startling,and at times heartbreaking. A book that has earned a permanent spot on my bookshelf, and one I do not think I will ever get tired of skimming through.

Letter to a Stranger by Colleen Kinder, (List Price: $19.95, Algonquin Books, 9781643751245,  March 2022)

Reviewed by Grace Sullivan, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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The Big Reveal by Jen Larsen

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The Big Reveal
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Addie is a fat dancer, and proud of it–not letting her peers or anybody else allow her to feel shame or inferiority because of her body. She has a group of truly excellent friends, who throughout the book are self-affirming, endlessly supportive, and outright hilarious. I wish I’d had anything close to these friends when I was in high school. Scratch that, I wish I had these friends now. Together, they hatch a plan to financially support Addie’s potential post-graduation job with a dance company in Milan that involves an underground burlesque show, and through it, Addie discovers the self-affirming and body-positive power of burlesque, which she and her friends had previously cast aside as creative stripping. But she also has, and does, stand up to misogyny, slut-shaming, and fatphobia from her peers and superiors, and Larsen is truly excellent at illustrating exactly how internalized bigotry can hurt you even when you think you love who you are, just because we live in a world where anything that isn’t the default is constantly assumed to be aberrant. The best YA I’ve read all year!!

The Big Reveal by Jen Larsen, (List Price: $17.99, 9781250252173, December 2021)

Reviewed by Akil Guruparan, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Disorientation by Ian Williams

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Disorientation
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Disorientation is a book to be read slowly and with care. Ian Williams best-selling author of my staff favorite novel Reproduction (remember the amazing cover???). I also really loved his collection of poetry Word Problems from last year. Using his formidably flexible writing chops, Williams invites us to an urgent conversation on race and racism in this collection of essays that draw directly from his experience of life as a Black man. He covers all subjects from the merely annoying to the tragically deadly aspects of racism from a worldwide perspective having lived in Trinidad, Canada, and the U. S. This book is approachable for all readers and is intended to be a civil conversation about the ugliest of subjects. It’s illuminating, dizzying, and intensely personal. I can’t recommend it highly enough. Also, exceptional in audio: read by the author.

Disorientation by Ian Williams, (List Price: $19.95, 9781609457396, November 2021)

Reviewed by Kelly Justice, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Between the Lines by Uli Beutter Cohen

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Between the Lines
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From the creator behind Subway Book Review, this is the newest Humans of New York, but for book lovers. This is a collection of short interviews Cohen conducted on the subway of New York City, documenting not only everyone’s reading list but also creating a conversation and connection. From beloved classics to niche dog-eared, worn books, this covers just about every genre you could think of. What I really love about this book is that it could’ve just as easily been a book full of tiny book reviews, but it’s something much more intimate. Cohen does a great job of telling these people’s stories all in about 400 words each. There’s representation of everyone; queer, trans, all races, all occupations. It’s raw, gorgeous and executed so flawlessly I can’t get enough of it.

Between the Lines by Uli Beutter Cohen, (List Price: $24.99, Simon & Schuster, 9781982145675, October 2021)

Reviewed by Grace Sullivan, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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A Killer by Design by Ann Wolbert Burgess

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A Killer by Design
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You probably know the names of John Douglass and Robert Ressler, the mind hunters of the FBI. But it was Ann Burgess who helped develop a more scientific way to interview serial killers and serial rapists in order to catch future criminals. Burgess caught the eye of the FBI because of her groundbreaking research into rape offenders, and she brought her analytical mind to what is now the Behavioral Science Unit. A must read for any true crime buff, and a fascinating look into the early days of profiling.

A Killer by Design by Ann Wolbert Burgess, (List Price: $28.00, Hachette Books, 9780306924866, December 2021)

Reviewed by Kate Towery, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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I’m Dreaming of a Chris for Christmas by Robb Pearlman

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I'm Dreaming of a Chris for Christmas
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Winning the award for most asked for stocking stuffer on the Fountain staff! Not just coloring Chrises, but Chris crosswords, Chris mazes, connect-the-Chrises, and more! PG-rated, this collections brings together Chrises from Hollywood, music, and sports. Obviously Hemsworth, Evans, Pine, and Pratt, but also Rock, Rinaldi, Jericho, Walken (in-a-Winter-Wonderland), and more! Seriously, I’m cracking up just looking at it.

I’m Dreaming of a Chris for Christmas by Robb Pearlman, (List Price: $14.95, Smart Pop, 9781637740200, November 2021)

Reviewed by Kelly Justice, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Yes, You Can Wear That by Abby Hoy

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Yes, You Can Wear That
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I am forever in search of great body-positive reads and Abby Hoy nails it. This book is a perfect combination of pictures and her memoir. It is inspiring and confidence-building and I immediately followed her on social media to get more gorgeous outfit ideas and self love. Every body is a good body and yes, you CAN wear that!

Yes, You Can Wear That by Abby Hoy, (List Price: $24.99, Tiller Press, 9781982155582, November 2021)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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American Christmas Stories by Connie Willis

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American Christmas Stories by Connie Willis
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So grateful for this collection of 70 diverse and extraordinary stories from our friends at Library of America and editor Connie Willis. This collection features voices from across the American experience an centuries and contains stories of mystery, horror, western, inspirational, fantasy, humor, and more! This would make a great gift and is long overdue. Shirley Jackson and Jack London, Amy Tan and Ray Bradbury, Mark Twain and Nalo Hopkinson. Very excited to put this into the hands of those who celebrate.

American Christmas Stories by Connie Willis, (List Price: 29.95, Library of America, 9781598537062, October 2021)

Reviewed by Kelly Justice, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia


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There Are Trans People Here by H. Melt

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There Are Trans People Here
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H Melt’s poetry collection talks about pivotal moments in trans and queer history and honors those who came before them. Beautiful and touching, this collection shows another side to the struggles trans people continue to face.

There Are Trans People Here by H. Melt, (List Price: $16.00, Haymarket Books, 9781642595727, November 2021)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten

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An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed
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Maud is back and better than ever in this second tale of murder and revenge! This collection of stories takes us back to her youth and how she became who she is–and what happened to those left in her wake! Picking up where we left off in her previous collection, Maud is trying to evade the authorities that won’t leave her alone. This pocket-sized book is perfect for the mystery lovers in your life!

An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten, (List Price: $14.99, Soho Crime, 9781641291675, October 2021)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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The Way She Feels by Courtney Cook

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The Way She Feels
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Cook shares her journey with Borderline Personality Disorder and how it affects her life in a funny and heartbreaking graphic novel memoir. She talks about the symptoms and diagnosis in a way that feels so sincere and touching, I had to find and follow her on social media. You will feel for her and root for her, while learning about a disorder that most people “grow out of” as they get into adulthood. This is a beautiful read to understand people that aren’t exatly like ourselves.

The Way She Feels by Courtney Cook, (List Price: 18.95, Tin House Books, 9781951142599, 2021-06-29)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Trust by Domenico Starnone

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Trust by Domenico Starnone
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This beautifully translated book, written by Domenico Starnon, picks up after a tumultuous love affair between Teresa and Pietro comes to an abrupt end. Just before their breakup, Teresa gets the idea for them to share their deepest secret, something that could ruin their life if exposed. Their love peacefully ends a few days later. Pietro quickly finds a wife whom he finds extremely different from his past flame. As he gains success as a writer, teacher, and politician, he also has to live with the conflicting fear that at any moment, his life could end if Teresa shared his secret. Pietro will forever and privately be attached to both the person he was with Teresa and Teresa herself. It’s a poignant novel about love and the lengths someone will go to uphold a public persona that contradicts views of one’s own self. I love it, and I think lovers of trauma-bond romance novels should run to order this!


Trust by Domenico Starnone, (List Price: $17, Europa Editions, 9781609457037, October 2021)

Viana Martinez, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia


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Strange Folk You’ll Never Meet by A.A. Balaskovits

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Strange Folk You’ll Never Meet by A.A. Balaskovits
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Strange folk populate these dark tales, fevered nightmares, and twisted fairytales. Readers beware, things most definitely go bump in the night here, and sometimes they bite. Lots of body horror and lots of gore, but if you like your stories fairly bloody, this book is for you!

Strange Folk You’ll Never Meet by A.A. Balaskovits, (List Price: $14.95, Santa Fe Writer’s Project, October 9781951631130)

Reviewed by Kate Towery, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia


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Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

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Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
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A Fall Read This Next! Selection

This tiny gem is destined to be a Christmas classic. Think in terms O’Henry’s The Gift of the Magi. Alice Munro and Raymond Carver also come to mind. Based on actual events in Irish history only recently brought to light, the story follows Bill Furlong, a coal merchant, husband, and father to five daughters, and his discovery of a coverup by the church. The town is largely controlled by the church in this 1985 setting, but he still risks his livelihood, reputation, and marriage to right a wrong. Readers who enjoy stories of characters confronting their pasts, embracing hope, and being quiet heroes will find much to love here. When I first read it I thought: “good story”. But I have picked it up over and over again, read and reread it, marveling at its depth charge emotional impact.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan, (List Price: $20, Grove Press, 9780802158741, November 2021)

Reviewed by Kelly Justice from Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, VA


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