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Happily by Sabrina Orah Mark

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Happily by Sabrina Orah Mark
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Subtitled "A Person History –with Fairy Tales," this collection of essays refracts Mark’s fears, losses, family, and more through the prism of fairy tales. There are plenty of jagged edges and tales torn into for new meanings and few happily ever afters. Incisive, probing, Mark gives herself to the stories and leave readers a wealth of questions.

Happily by Sabrina Orah Mark, (List Price: $27, Random House, 9781250835208, March 2023)

Reviewed by Jan Blodgett, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The Faraway World by Patricia Engel

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The Faraway World by Patricia Engel
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Arrow-sharp and unsentimental renderings of some deeply emotional experiences, all centering unique experiences across the Latin American diaspora, but certainly focusing on individuals who have moved to the US. Engel is a brilliant writer. Her stories snap tight with tension, but she’s also deft at stirring up soft spots and infusing her plots with fairy tale-like twists.

The Faraway World by Patricia Engel, (List Price: $26, Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster, 9781982159528, January 2023)

Reviewed by Adah Fitzgerald, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

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Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
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A March 2023 Read This Next! Title

Hello Beautiful is perfect for readers who enjoy emotionally tender stories about complicated families. Quiet and solitary William Waters is an only child raised by emotionally unavailable parents who finds solace in basketball. He meets bright, headstrong Julia Padavano in college where she decides he is the man to help put her on the path towards her diligently planned life. Along with Julia are her three sisters, with whom she is incredibly close. Tragedy strikes, creating a rift that reverberates within the Padavano family for generations. With themes of grief, mental illness, forgiveness, and loyalty, Hello Beautiful is about the cost of being true to oneself regardless of the consequences, and the gift of those who love us for who we truly are. If you enjoyed Ask Again Yes, you will love this one. I cannot wait to recommend this to my customers.

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano, (List Price: $28, The Dial Press, 9780593243732, March 2023)

Reviewed by Jessica Nock, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

What Remains of Elsie Jane by Chelsea Wakelyn

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What Remains of Elsie Jane by Chelsea Wakelyn
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I don’t usually like sad books, and yet this one became a fast favorite! It’s the writing. It’s just so good. Like being a fly on the wall of her mind. Elsey Jane is a widow grieving the loss of her partner who died of drug poisoning. Her actions and thoughts—often bizarre, delusional, and reckless—are sometimes incongruous with the expectations of someone grieving. At other times the agony and suffering and consumption she experiences are completely spot on of what we’d expect. This book is so absurd at times, I laughed, cringed, and tearing up all within minutes. It’s a beautifully written, complicated, intimate story that’s as weird as it is honest—just as grief often is. I highly recommend!

What Remains of Elsie Jane by Chelsea Wakelyn, (List Price: 19.99, Rare Machines, 9781459750845, February 2023)

Reviewed by Andrea Jasmin, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka

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The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka
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Brilliant, sublime and surprising. On my forever favorite shelf. Julie Otsuka has the mystical gift of telling just as much of a story with what she doesn’t say. Reader, treat yourself with care if you have or have had a loved one with dementia…but I think The Swimmers is more than worthy of the heart ache.

The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka, (List Price: $16, Anchor, 9780593466629, January 2023)

Reviewed by Jessica Nock, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The Wise Hours by Miriam Darlington

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The Wise Hours by Miriam Darlington
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Owls, for all their popularity in myths and Harry Potter movies, are elusive and difficult to observe in the wild. But the wild, the reality is what Darlington is seeking and what she brings to this thoughtful account. Her careful descriptions of eight species are deepened by reflections on how much humanity loses when we lose true awareness of the wild. A call for more care of the natural world, protection of spaces needed by our fellow creatures, and a willingness to live with uncertainty, this book offers heart and soul as well as natural history.

The Wise Hours by Miriam Darlington, (List Price: $27.95, Tin House Books, 9781953534835, February 2023)

Reviewed by Jan Blodgett, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

Zig-Zag Boy by Tanya Frank

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Zig-Zag Boy by Tanya Frank
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A harrowing memoir about a mother doing all she can to help her son as he navigates a psychiatric diagnosis. I could feel author Tanya Frank’s desperation and determination to help her child, and I was left feeling her frustration over our flawed mental healthcare system.

Zig-Zag Boy by Tanya Frank, (List Price: $28.95, W. W. Norton & Company, 9780393531886, February 2023)

Reviewed by Jessica Nock, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylväinen

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The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylväinen
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Fascinating setting and wonderful characters. This place – where Sweden, Finland, and Russia converge – is defined by the intensely cold climate. The church is converting indigenous Sapmi families, the government is imposing its colonizing laws, and this ensemble cast of characters is wrestling with who they are and how they fit in as change slowly sweeps through. Great writing, wonderful characters, and I learned so much about the cultures and some of the politics of this place during this era.

The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylväinen, (List Price: $28.99, Henry Holt and Co., 9781250822901, January 2023)

Reviewed by Adah Fitzgerald, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

Grocery Shopping with My Mother by Kevin Powell

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Grocery Shopping with My Mother by Kevin Powell
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This will inspire sobbing and a phone call to your mama. Deeply accessible, beautiful work.

Grocery Shopping with My Mother by Kevin Powell (List Price: $24, Soft Skull, 9781593767433, December 2022)

Reviewed by Aimee Keeble, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw

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A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

This is an absolute gem of a book! Part science-fiction, part romance, Shea Ernshaw delivers another YA novel that is a delight to read. For lovers of stars and post apocalyptic literature!

A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw (List Price: $19.99, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 9781665900249, December 2022)

Reviewed by Hallie Smith, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

A Consuming Fire by Laura E. Weymouth

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A Consuming Fire by Laura E. Weymouth
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I will automatically consume anything Laura Weymouth writes after this book, because WOW. Romance, adventure, intrigue, suspense, and a very cute dog: all that and more are found in A Consuming Fire, which showcases Weymouth’s ability to leave you hanging on the edge of your seat for 400 pages.

A Consuming Fire by Laura E. Weymouth (List Price: $19.99, Margaret K. McElderry Books, 9781665902700, November 2022)

Reviewed by Hallie Smith, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The Do-Over by Lynn Painter

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The Do-Over by Lynn Painter
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Newsflash: Lynn Painter is The Queen of the YA rom-com! She has grabbed a hold of this reader’s heart and will not let go. The Do-Over brings us Emilie Hornby, an over-achieving people pleasure who is ready for The Perfect Valentines Day. She has her checklist ready to seize her perfectly planned agenda. Things get off to a rocky start when she wrecks her car on the way to school and has to bum a ride with broody Nick Stark, her chemistry partner. Her day goes off the rails when she spots her perfect-on-paper boyfriend kissing another girl. The nerve! The only thing that could make this day worse is to have to re-live it….and the next morning she wakes up to another Valentine’s Day and so it goes. I enjoyed Lynn’s signature witty banter and sweet love story. The Do-Over will be perfect for any YA Rom Com reader and fans of closed-door romances.

The Do-Over by Lynn Painter (List Price: $19.99, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 9781534478862, November 2022)

Reviewed by Jessica Nock, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

The Luminaries by Susan Dennard

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The Luminaries by Susan Dennard
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This dark, twisty fantasy makes the monsters that roam the forest seem to jump straight off the page! I loved the journeys the characters took and this should immediately be given to anyone looking for a fantasy that is filled with tension, intrigue, a little romance, and just overall creepiness. I will be waiting on the edge of my seat for the second book!

The Luminaries by Susan Dennard, (List Price: $18.99, Tor Teen, 9781250194046, November 2022)

Reviewed by Hallie Smith, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

Boldly Go by William Shatner

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Boldly Go by William Shatner, Joshua Brandon
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I love William Shatner but for reasons other than his literary talents. Which he has! This memoir is adorable. He’s got a David Attenborough save the planet kind of vibe, with like, a grandpa who can’t use Zoom twist. You’ll read this in an afternoon. His incredulity and his sense of wonder is infectious, although there’s only so far the reader can go before they hit their head on the Successful Elderly White Man Door. A short, sweet read. He’s just so ridiculous and wonderful.

Boldly Go by William Shatner, Joshua Brandon, (List Price: $28, Atria Books, 9781668007327, October 2022)

Reviewed by Aimee Keeble, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem

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Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem
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A Syrian kid living through the Syrian civil war decides to interview other kids his age using his phone to document what’s going on. He shares it on social media like YT Tw and FB. He felt like he was being targeted by bombs for his news videos. Tense, informative, serious, sad, but also has happy moments. Read it all in one sitting. Hard to put down.

Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem, (List Price: $12.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780759556904, September 2022)

Reviewed by Eliza, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

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