Underground Books

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay Chapman

, ,
Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay Chapman
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

FAX news is brainwashing our nation. Noah Fairchild no longer recognizes his parents. Literally. Did he really just unhinge his dad’s jaw by shoving the remote control down his throat sideways? “The Great Reawakening” has invaded far-right news and social media in the most terrifying way possible as family turns on family, neighbor on neighbor. Part apocalyptic but mostly slap-you-in-the-face metaphorical, this book is 1000% my jam! If I am looking for grotesque, shocking, controversial, skin-crawling imagery, then I have to look no further than the modern horror master, Clay McLeod Chapman.

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay Chapman, (List Price: $24.99, Quirk Books, 9781683693956, January 2025)

Reviewed by Suzanne Carnes, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay Chapman Read More »

Didion and Babitz by Lili Anolik

, ,
Didion and Babitz by Lili Anolik
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

“Art, my God, Joan, I’m embarrassed to mention it in front of you, you know, but you mentioned burning babies in locked cars, so I can mention Art.” Eve Babitz to Joan Didion, 1972. In this blazing memoir, one feels like they’re out for drinks discussing ’70s Hollywood sleaze, female chauvinist pigs, and Charles Manson with your wildly messy and entertaining friend. Anolik’s powerful storytelling and adept reporting remind one of Eve Babitz, the “secret genius of L.A.” Oscillating between moments of unbelievable grief, Didion-esque cold distance, and the hot it-girl urge to push it all away, this memoir is a testament to artists, their craft, and the lovers’ spat between two of the greatest Californian writers of our time.

Didion and Babitz by Lili Anolik, (List Price: $29.99, Scribner, 9781668065488, November 2024)

Reviewed by Joshua Lambie, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Didion and Babitz by Lili Anolik Read More »

Darkly by Marisha Pessl

, ,
Darkly by Marisha Pessl
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

5 STARS!! This YA mystery thriller is an unforgettable adventure with a fast-paced plot, buried secrets, hidden symbols, and intriguing puzzles. After winning a chance to intern at Darkly, a game-making empire, Dia and six other teens from all across America land in England and are taken to an abandoned island where they are thrown into a twisted game called Valkyrie that has never before been released to find the game’s presumed first victim, a teen boy. There were so many unexpected twists, and the shocking ending leaves you wanting more.

Darkly by Marisha Pessl, (List Price: $19.99, Delacorte Press, 9780593706558, November 2024)

Reviewed by Sandra Pinkney, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Darkly by Marisha Pessl Read More »

The Glass Girl by Kathleen Glasgow

, , , ,
The Glass Girl by Kathleen Glasgow
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

Everyone deals with problems differently. Fifteen-year-old Bella chooses alcohol to solve hers. Her home life sucks, she gets dumped by her boyfriend, and she is spiraling. After a terrifying blackout and a trip to rehab, she slowly takes the steps of rebuilding her shattered life. This is a heartbreaking story of a girl who has hit rock bottom and must make the choice of life or death.

The Glass Girl by Kathleen Glasgow, (List Price: $21.99, Delacorte Press, 9780525708087, October 2024)

Reviewed by Suzanne Carnes, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

The Glass Girl by Kathleen Glasgow Read More »

The Universe in Verse by Maria Popova

, , ,
The Universe in Verse by Maria Popova
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

Fifteen short essays on science and nature, intended to inspire a sense of awe and wonder, are each paired with the work of a brilliant poet and a beautiful illustration. Popova’s extraordinary collection is a poignant, beautiful little gift book perfect for reminding us of how strange and wild it is that we get to exist and perceive this most mysterious universe at all!”

The Universe in Verse by Maria Popova, (List Price: $22, Storey Publishing, LLC, 9781635868838, October 2024)

Reviewed by Josh Niesse, Underground Books in , Georgia

The Universe in Verse by Maria Popova Read More »

The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer

, ,
The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

Can a book be cozy, loving, encouraging, compassionate, AND a threat to the brutal and cutthroat consumer capitalism of our era? I present to you Robin Wall Kimmerer’s first book since her surprise mega-bestselling sleeper hit Braiding Sweetgrass. The serviceberry is a bushy, underappreciated fruit tree native to Eastern North America that Kimmerer uses as inspiration to muse broadly on “abundance and reciprocity in the natural world.” The tree embodies the values of gratitude, interconnectedness, and mutual aid. Strikingly, the serviceberry’s broad and generous distribution of its wealth ensures its own flourishing! Let’s all read this small, beautiful, and powerful little book and talk about how we can reimagine modern economic life to be a little more sane and humane!

The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer, (List Price: $20, Scribner, 9781668072240, November 2024)

Reviewed by Josh Niesse, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer Read More »

Snake Oil by Kelsey Rae Dimberg

, ,
Snake Oil by Kelsey Rae Dimberg
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

Snake Oil is a dark literary thriller about Radical, a wellness company centered around holistic remedies. Dirty secrets about the company start coming out as Rhoda, the CEO, begins to lose her iron-tight grip on her precious company, causing loyalties to be tested and murder to occur. Snake Oil is gripping and nail-biting, showing the horrendous truth about the wellness world and the ugly underbelly of running a cutthroat business.

Snake Oil by Kelsey Rae Dimberg, (List Price: $30, Mariner Books, 9780062867957, September 2024)

Reviewed by Anna Anabseh, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Snake Oil by Kelsey Rae Dimberg Read More »

Bog Myrtle by Sid Sharp

, , , , ,
Bog Myrtle by Sid Sharp
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Two sisters, friendly oddball Beatrice and fiercely unhappy Magnolia, seek something special from the forbidden forest, come face to face with its magic silk-spinning monster, Bog Myrtle, and learn about environmentalism, labor rights, and anti-capitalism along the way, in this creepily-cute and razor-sharp fable that has all the old-school deadly morality of the Brothers Grimm. A challenging (in both content and vocabulary), dark, yet adorable picture book for fans of Jon Klassen’s The Skull.

Bog Myrtle by Sid Sharp, (List Price: $19.99, Annick Press, 9781773218922, October 2024)

Reviewed by Megan Bell, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Bog Myrtle by Sid Sharp Read More »

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir

,
The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

A fast-paced and terrifying tale of a woman who loses control over her body. Is her uncontrollable sleepwalking caused by an undiagnosed medical problem? A mental illness left untreated? The ghost of her drowned sister? Read it and find out.

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir, (List Price: $19.99, Tor Nightfire, 9781250322043, September 2024)

Reviewed by Joshua Lambie, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir Read More »

The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton-Walker

, ,
The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton-Walker
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

A cathartic, hair-raising, gruesome, and sometimes delightfully campy collection of horror stories by authors of color. Featuring a slasher prom committee, a Wendigo curse, a sapphic demon slayer, and a post-apocalyptic water world, this YA collection of stories is wildly bloody and entertaining.

The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton-Walker, (List Price: $20.99, Tor Teen, 9781250861269, July 2024)

Reviewed by Joshua Lambie, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton-Walker Read More »

Smothermoss by Alisa Alering

, , ,
Smothermoss by Alisa Alering
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

A hauntingly eerie tale about two sisters, Shelia and Angie, set in the 1980s Appalachia. When two hikers turn up brutally murdered, Shelia and Angie get roped into hunting the killer. The imagery in this novel is raw and creepy. I haven’t looked at rabbits the same since finishing this book. Angie draws creepy tarot cards with images you would see in your worst nightmare. This is a weird novel but a fun one, trust me!

Smothermoss by Alisa Alering, (List Price: $17.95, Tin House Books, 9781959030584, July 2024)

Reviewed by Anna Anabseh, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Smothermoss by Alisa Alering Read More »

Reading the Room by Paul Yamazaki

, , , , , , , ,
Reading the Room by Paul Yamazaki
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

This pocket-size book takes just an hour or two to read, structurally spans a day and a night, but holds half a century’s wisdom about bookselling. Paul Yamazaki has been the principal book buyer at Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s iconic City Lights bookstore in San Francisco for 50 years. This brief but complex and consequential collection of interviews with a venerable bookseller of color who’s experienced so much is a gift to all who love bookstores.

Reading the Room by Paul Yamazaki, (List Price: $13.95, Ode Books, 9781958846698, May 2024)

Reviewed by Megan Bell, Underground Books in Carrollton , Georgia

Reading the Room by Paul Yamazaki Read More »

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio

, , , , ,
The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

A wonderful romp of a debut novel. Lauren’s search for “the right man” becomes hilarious drama when she discovers her attic has the magical ability to spit out one “husband” after another for her to “try on.” She sends one man after another back up the attic stairs, hoping the next one will be that “perfect man.” Every page is both fun and funny and the suspense for how she’ll finalize things will keep you reading.

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio, (List Price: $29, Doubleday, 9780385550611, April 2024)

Reviewed by Patience Allan-Glick, Underground Books and Hills & Hamlets Bookshop in Carrollton, Georgia

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio Read More »

James by Percival Everett

,
James by Percival Everett
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

A young boy and an enslaved man escape together and travel the river together on a raft. Sound familiar? This book lovingly reimagines Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn from the view of Jim, who in this version becomes James as he and Huck get a second chance at life. Thought-provoking, full of adventure, and thoroughly original!

James by Percival Everett, (List Price: $28, Doubleday, 9780385550369, March 2024)

Reviewed by Patience Allan-Glick, Hills & Hamlets Bookshop in Carrollton, Georgia

James by Percival Everett Read More »

Where the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek

, ,
Where the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.
Get the audiobook

Meet the darker, gothier little sister of Uprooted and The Bear and the Nightingale—with a hint of Howl’s Moving Castle! Rooted in Polish folklore and set in a wickedly magical wood full of dangers and wonders alike, this grim yet romantic young adult fantasy marks the debut of a writer to watch.

Where the Dark Stands StillWhere the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek, (List Price: $19.99, Margaret K. McElderry Books, 9781665936477, February 2024)

Reviewed by Megan Bell, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

Where the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek Read More »

Scroll to Top