The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

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Spotlight on: Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

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Jenny Jackson, photo credit Sarah Shatz

“In March 2020, when COVID-19 shut down New York City, my husband and I packed up our apartment on Pineapple Street, buckled our kids into their car seats, and drove to northwest Connecticut, where my in-laws live deep in the woods. We stayed with them for six months—six months that were scary, strange, and, at times, very, very funny.

Living in someone else’s house turns you into a bit of an amateur anthropologist, deriving meaning from the closets full of ski jackets, tennis rackets, and twenty years’ worth of Sky & Telescope magazines. I found a letter, sent home from summer camp, that read “Camp is good. They made me write you so I could get ice cream.”” ―Jenny Jackson, Letter to booksellers

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

What booksellers are saying about Pineapple Street

  • Pineapple Street is family drama at its finest – and its most decadent. Told through the eyes of three women in an elite Brooklyn family, the novel is witty and insightful and a thoughtful commentary on class, wealth, and society. These characters equally shocked me and endeared themselves to me; you can’t help but root for happy endings all around. This story will be a best of 2023 for me; I can’t wait to see what Jenny Jackson writes next!
      ―Beth Seufer Buss from Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC | Buy from Bookmarks

  • I loved this juicy, complicated family drama! Pineapple Street tells the story of the Stockton family, part of the uber-rich one percenters living in New York City, through the perspectives of two of their daughters and one daughter-law. You won’t be able to help falling in love with each of these characters in spite of their first world problems. Touching and zany, Pineapple Street is perfect for fans of Amy Poeppel and Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney.
      ―Jessica Nock from Main Street Books in Davidson, NC | Buy from Main Street Books

  • I couldn’t put down this novel that explores loyalty, class, family and love. It was zippy and readable while also not shying away from important conversations on privilege.
      ―Lillian Kay from Novel in Memphis, TN | Buy from Novel.
  • Welcome to Pineapple Street, where the Stockton family reigns with old money and even older traditions. The three Stockton siblings, Darley, Cord and Georgiana, all face their monied background with varying degrees of guilt. Sasha, Cord’s wife, is the bohemian artist to the wealthy clan and always finds herself on the outside looking in. Jenny Jackson has created a funny and sharp behind the scenes look at New York’s elite. These characters remind us that what we see on the outside is never quite the same as what is happening on the inside.
      ―Mary Jane Michels from Fiction Addiction in Greenville, SC | Buy from Fiction Addiction

About Jenny Jackson

Jenny Jackson is a vice president and executive editor at Alfred A. Knopf. A graduate of Williams College and the Columbia Publishing Course, she lives in Brooklyn Heights with her family. Pineapple Street is her first novel.

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Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

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

On the Savage Side by Tiffany McDaniel

I honestly can’t think of another novel that had quite the emotional impact on me that reading On The Savage Side did. Searing, brutal and unflinching in its portrayal of addiction and the devastation that it wreaks, the novel ripped my heart out and stomped all over it. In telling the story of identical twins Daffy and Arc, McDaniels gives voice to countless marginalized women, and her beautiful, lyrical prose reveals the humanity among the wreckage of lives, hopes and dreams lost to drugs.

On the Savage Side by Tiffany McDaniel, (List Price: $29, Knopf, 9780593320709, February 2023)

Reviewed by Jude Burke-Lewis, Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi

When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn

A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

When Sea Becomes Sky is a book that needs to be read spoiler free, but what I can tell you is that this is Gillian McDunn at her finest. The intersection of science and art is a perfect complement to the interpersonal relationships in the book, every single detail adds a layer and a complexity the story that makes this one to sit and think about. I love how careful McDunn is with her characters and their emotions – and the experience of her readers. Bex and her family will stay in my heart for a very, very long time.

When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn (List Price: $16.99, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 9781547610853, February 2023)

Reviewed by Beth Seufer Buss, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

The Kindest Red by Ibtihaj Muhammad

So often, when people are asked what they would wish for, they reply “World Peace.” In The Kindest Red, Faizah wishes for “World Kindness,” and isn’t that really the first step to world peace? This simple picture book with a big message is just perfect for families or classrooms looking to celebrate diversity and personal responsibility.

The Kindest Red by Ibtihaj Muhammad, (List Price: $19.99, Bloomsbury YA, 9780759555709, February 2023)

Reviewed by Angie Tally, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

Beatrice Likes the Dark by April Genevieve Tucholke

What a beautiful unfolding of sisterly love! Beatrice Likes the Dark reinforces the wisdom so difficult to impart on young hearts: It is what makes us uniquely different, that also makes us uniquely lovable. The book is sitting on my Grandma shelf–ready to share with my own darlings.

Beatrice Likes the Dark by April Genevieve Tucholke (List Price: $18.95, Algonquin Young Readers, 9781643751573, September 2022)

Reviewed by Annell Gerson, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

Meredith, Alone by Claire Alexander

Meredith is a completely lovable and complex character that has faced and survived some unspeakable things. Claire Alexander beautifully creates characters that exude resilience in their own ways. I found myself cheering on Meredith, Fee, Celeste, and Tom…and hoping for their happiness. Meredith, Alone is a quick read that explores the hardships of life and the value of community, family and friendships. While some of the topics are quite heavy, there is also joy and hope and laughter and triumph. I thoroughlyloved this book and have already started recommending it to folks who loved Eleanor Oliphant and Where’d You go Bernadette!

Meredith, Alone by Claire Alexander, (List Price: $28, Grand Central Publishing, 9781538709948, November 2022)

Reviewed by Lynne Phillips, Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, Arkansas

Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro

The story of family and how lives intersect over time, Signal Fires is a quiet portrait of neighbors who lived near a 500-year-old oak tree during a large chunk of their lives. How those in the two families live and people chose to intersect or not to, choose to acknowledge weakness or tragedy- or do not- as they move through lives stages and across the country are central to this novel.

Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro, (List Price: $28, Knopf, 9780593534724, October 2022)

Reviewed by Kimberly Daniels, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

Beatrice Likes the Dark by April Genevieve Tucholke

Far and away one of my favorite picture books of the year! Beatrice Likes the Dark is a beautifully illustrated, sweet story of sisterhood. Each page is full of heart and whimsical detail. Your inner baby goth or any year-round halloween lovers in your life will need to own this one!

Beatrice Likes the Dark by April Genevieve Tucholke (List Price: $18.95, Algonquin Young Readers, 9781643751573, September 2022)

Reviewed by Cristina Russell, Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida

Accomplished by Amanda Quain

We all know about Lizzie Bennet and Darcy — but what about Darcy’s sister, Georgiana, and her sordid history with Wickham? If you’re a Pride and Prejudice fan, you’ll recognize several characters in this contemporary spin, but Georgiana Darcy gets the main character treatment. She has to deal with what Wickham did last year that almost got her expelled from prestigious boarding school Pemberley, a brother who’s both more and less absent than he should be, and everyone in school hating her for various reasons. Her one saving grace is her band friend Avery, who is the only one who doesn’t treat her as an outcast and so might be able to help her with her mission to get her life back on track. A fun take on Pride and Prejudice that is familiar enough to be enticing but new enough to keep your attention.

Accomplished by Amanda Quain, (List Price: $18.99, Wednesday Books, 9781250817815, July 2022)

Reviewed by Melissa Oates, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina

Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore

Subatomic super particles, string theory, parallel worlds, metaphysical, OBE—out-of-body-experience and different dimensions…. not many authors take their readers on such a tale as this paranormal story of a magician disappearing during a performance. Violet Volk disappeared a decade ago right in front of her audience and hasn’t been seen since. Her sister Sasha and Violet’s followers are still looking for answers. Is she alive? Was she really a psychic spy for the CIA? Does she exist in another dimension? Readers will not be able to put down this book as they read about the family situations and the magic that entwines this story.

Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore, (List Price: $27.99, Flatiron Books, 9781250815064, July 2022)

Reviewed by Nancy Pierce, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

French Braid by Anne Tyler

Families are messy and imperfect and Anne Tyler has spent a lifetime telling the stories of the most interesting of families. French Braid is no exception and in it we follow the Garretts from the 1950s to the present pandemic. This is a family whose individuals sacrifice and are also selfish, care deeply and chose to ignore. Tyler creates beautifully complex characters that you may not love, but you’ll definitely remember.

French Braid by Anne Tyler (List Price: $27, Knopf, 9780593321096,  March 2022)

Reviewed by Rachel Watkins, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia

Not Our Summer by Casie Bazay

Becca and KJ are cousins, both about to graduate from high school. But because their mothers are estranged, they don’t know each other at all. When their maternal grandfather dies, they have to come together for the reading of his will. In it, their grandfather has given both of the girls and both of their mothers a nice sum of money. The only catch is that the girls must complete a five-part bucket list before they get the money. The list is a set of things the grandfather always wanted to do, but his mounting agoraphobia wouldn’t let him. I LOVE that we have a story that, at its root, is about friendship. And while there’s a smidge of romance, it’s FAR from the main plot. It took me a moment to warm up to the two girls, but in the end, I enjoyed them, flaws and all.

Not Our Summer by Casie Bazay (List Price: $17.99, Running Press Kids, 9780762472291, 5/11/2021)

Reviewed by Jennifer Jones, Bookmiser, Inc. in Marietta, Georgia

One of the Good Ones by Maika Moulite, Maritza Moulite

Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite have done it again, and more, with their sophomore novel, One of the Good Ones. This book kept me up into the early morning hours, furiously flipping pages, needing to know where things would end up for the Smith sisters. The story takes you on a real journey, jumping through history and back again, dissecting race relations in America with an unflinching eye; it is beautifully written, heartbreaking, disturbing and yet, ultimately, hopeful. I can’t recommend it enough.

One of the Good Ones by Maika Moulite, Maritza Moulite (List Price: $18.99, Inkyard Press, 9781335145802, 1/5/2021)

Reviewed by Cristina Russell, Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida

Consent by Annabel Lyon

In Vancouver, two women are innately connected by the sources of their grief. What at first begins as separate family tableaus–of Sara’s and Saskia’s parents and young adulthood and strife in defining themselves as individuals beside their siblings–slowly and masterfully braids into a mystery led by these two protagonists, haunted by the apparitions and very memories of those for whom they cared. Peppered with the lush descriptions of decadent textures, jewel-like alcohols and olfactory notes so accurate you can almost sense them, Consent is a sensual and sophisticated-yet-blunt story of grief and retribution that I couldn’t put down.

Consent by Annabel Lyon (List Price: $25.95, Knopf, 9780593318003, January, 2021)

Reviewed by Cat Chapman, Oxford Exchange in Tampa, Florida

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