An October Read This Next! Book
Erica Waters never disappoints with her dark and queer tales. I loved every bit of this dark academia story. I was on the edge of my seat and couldn’t stop reading. Don’t let this one pass you by!
All That Consumes Us by Erica Waters, (List Price: $19.99, HarperTeen, 9780063115965, October 2023)
Reviewed by Katlin Kerrison, Story on the Square in McDonough, Georgia
An October Read This Next! Book
There are two things I expect from a Bryan Washington narrative: food rendered so exquisitely I could lick the page and an emotional excavation so expansive it swallows the book and me with it. Family Meal delivered on these expectations and more. It’s propulsive and harrowing, the brittle edges of its characters encapsulating a world and giving way to its perfectly tender center.
Family Meal by Bryan Washington, (List Price: 28, Riverhead Books, 9780593421093, October 2023)
Reviewed by Miranda Sanchez, Epilogue: Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
An October Read This Next! Book
This is a stunning picture book — Jason Reynolds has a way with words that maybe no one has had SINCE Langston Hughes. Poetic yet approachable; his style is unique. The illustrations by Pumphrey make Reynolds’ words dance, jump, and soar on the pages as you go through a story that is in part bio, part resistance, part celebration of a man whose contributions to literature are still reverberating all these years later.
There Was a Party for Langston by Jason Reynolds, (List Price: 18.99, Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, 9781534439443, October 2023)
Reviewed by Jamie Southern, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
An October Read This Next! Book
History, family, community, and the all encompassing power of life in the face of brutality are abundant in Ward’s work, no less here in Let Us Descend. I was floored by the story of Annis, a young woman enslaved and sold down to a Louisiana plantation. Through her connections (both physical and spiritual), Annis builds a life and a future beyond loss. With a slight twist of magical realism and always brilliant prose, Jesmyn Ward has delivered another amazing novel and gift to readers.
Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward, (List Price: 28, Scribner, 9781982104498, October 2023)
Reviewed by Michelle Cavalier, Cavalier House Books in Denham Springs, Louisiana
An October Read This Next! Book!
In Comfort of Crows, Margaret Renkl has given us a remarkable gift. With keen observations of nature in her backyard, she helps us become better observers in our world. With wise commentary, she gently challenges us to become more caring of the wildlife around us. With beautiful writing, she engages us in an important conversation about conservation. And with stunning illustrations, the book becomes the perfect gift for nature lovers and environmentalists in our lives. It will be one of our top handbells for the holiday season and I can’t wait to put this book in the hands of our customers as a gift for themselves or for the people they love.
The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl, (List Price: 32, Spiegel & Grau, 9781954118461, October 2023)
Reviewed by Lia Lent, Wordsworth Books in Little Rock,, Arkansas
A September 2023 Read This Next Book!
This review is just me screaming to anyone who will listen what an absolute joy it is to read KJ Charles. The newest Doomsday book has us returning once again to Romney Marsh and cheering like crazy for Luke and Rufus to get their well deserved HEA. Hijinks, hilarity and heart stopping charm, Charles is a must read for historical romance lovers.
A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles, (List Price: 16.99, Sourcebooks Casablanca, 9781728255880, September 2023)
Reviewed by Katie Garaby, Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee
A September 2023 Read This Next Book!
Andrew Joseph White’s phenomenal debut, Hell Followed With Us, would seem like a tough act to follow but White’s fans won’t be disappointed: The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is just as incredible. White tackles the overlapping ways in which misogyny, transphobia, and ableism manifest in society through a ghost-infested finishing school where protagonist Silas Bell must work with the spirits of deceased students to expose the school’s medical and psychiatric abuses and break free of the system’s tyrannical rule. Gut-wrenching yet gorgeous, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is a necessary and impressive addition to both LGBTQ and horror lit.
The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White, (List Price: 19.99, Peachtree Books, 9781682636114, September 2023)
Reviewed by Charlie Williams, Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi
A September 2023 Read This Next Book!
I dressed up as Sally Ride in the fourth grade after visiting the Johnson Space Center, and I’ve been a fan ever since! I have spent hours reading books and watching documentaries about all things NASA for years of my life, but I still learned so many new things reading this book. The new insight that Grush brings to this era of NASA history is fascinating; by telling the story though the perspectives of the first six women astronauts she situates the space shuttle in a way I have not seen before. She also has a knack for explaining complicated engineering or scientific concepts in very clear, short paragraphs, which I really appreciated! This will be a great addition to any space fan’s library.
The Six by Loren Grush, (List Price: $32.5, Scribner, 9781982172800, September 2023)
Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
A September 2023 Read This Next Book!
Full confession, I adore Lauren Groff, her writing and subject matter are exactly my cup of tea, so it is unlikely that I would not like this book. That said, I was a little skeptical, I kept turning the pages wondering when she was going to be rescued, live happily ever after with her Native husband? This is not that story. What this is, is an amazing meditation on what it means to be alive, to want to stay alive, and the big question, why do we live at all. What if everything you have learned about life in your time on earth is stripped away and you are left with a more beautiful and brutal understanding of God and the world? (I also love that she wrote a draft in iambic pentameter just for fun and to get into the rhythm of the language of the time, it makes my nerdy heart go pitter pat!). Thank you Lauren Groff for writing books for book lovers like me.
The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff, (List Price: 28, Riverhead Books, 9780593418390, September 2023)
Reviewed by Jessica Osborne from E. Shaver, bookseller in Savannah, GA
A September 2023 Read This Next Book!
Reading this book felt a lot like moving through a dream. The surreal horror and red-soaked imagery stuck with me long after finishing the book. Mona Awad does an excellent job making commentary on beauty standards and the beauty industry in a very unique way. Plus, Tom Cruise!
Rouge by Mona Awad, (List Price: 28, S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books, 9781982169695, September 2023)
Reviewed by Hallee Israel, Pearl’s Books in Fayetteville, Arkansas
An August 2023 Read This Next! Book
The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass is a middle grade mystery that celebrates the power of a good book. Evan has grown up in a town without a library and none of the adults talk about the fire that destroyed such a beloved place. A librarian, a cat, a few ghosts, and a handful of mice put in motion an unraveling of a collective puzzle that may make you gasp! Highly recommend.
The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead, (List Price: 17.99, Feiwel & Friends, 9781250838810, August 2023)
Reviewed by Rachel Watkins, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia
An August 2023 Read This Next! Book
In Pottstown, PA in 1972 a skeleton is found at the bottom of a old well. McBride takes us back more than four decades to tell the story of a community of Black and Jewish characters in the Chicken Hill neighborhood, along with the white characters who run the town (and march in the annual KKK parades.) It’s hard to think of a more compassionate writer than McBride. This story is captivating, funny, exciting and absolutely wonderful.
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride, (List Price: $28, Riverhead Books, 9780593422946, August 2023)
Reviewed by Christine Lavigna, Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, North Carolina
An August 2023 Read This Next! Book
This is the most "un-put-downable" piece of non-fiction I’ve ever read. A brash and well-written account that -without being trivial- allows hope and redemption to spring from addiction, incarceration and shame, liberally sprinkled with the power of the written word to empower and invoke change. Looking forward to discussing this work as it also shines a harsh light on the injustice system and one can hope, bring more of us to seek improvement. Truly an important and unique book, much applause!
The Many Lives of Mama Love by Lara Love Hardin, (List Price: 28.99, Simon & Schuster, 9781982197667, August 2023)
Reviewed by Shari Stauch, Main Street Reads in Summerville, South Carolina
An August 2023 Read This Next! Book
Ann Patchett does it again! Tom Lake is so good it’s like eating a favorite dessert. Do you gobble it up quickly, or slowly savor it so that it lasts longer? I would give a million stars to this one. I loved it so much. Everyone should read this book. It is gorgeous. Tom Lake is a heartwarming tale about a woman recounting her youth to her daughters who see her as their mother, not as a girl who navigated the trials of early love, the temptations of Hollywood, and the love of a man who became a star. It explores family bonds, parental love, sisterly love, and the very events that make us who we are. A fantastic read for parents and young adult children alike. You will see yourself in many of the characters. Absolutely delicious.
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett, (List Price: 30, Harper, 9780063327528, August 2023)
Reviewed by Monie Henderson, Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi
An August 2023 Read This Next! Book
In a debut as profound as it is strange, Emily Habek explores what happens when a newlywed couple is split apart by a strange mutation–one of them is turning rapidly, limb by fin, into a great white shark. With imagination and heart, Habek startles the reader awake with the questions we all have living in us: can I survive loss in my life? How do I remain open when I am suffering? What does it mean to learn myself again?
Shark Heart by Emily Habeck, (List Price: 28, S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books, 9781668006498, August 2023)
Reviewed by Julia Paganelli Marin, Pearl’s Books in Fayetteville, Arkansas
