ADULT “Whalefall,” by Daniel Kraus
Jay Gardiner has given himself a fool's errand: to find the remains of his deceased father in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Monastery Beach. When the dive begins, a sudden appearance of a giant squid puts Jay in very real jeopardy, made infinitely worse by the arrival of a sperm whale looking to feed. Suspenseful and cinematic, Whalefall is a thriller about a young man who has given up on life… only to find a reason to live in the most dangerous and unlikely of places.
“So Late in the Day,” by Claire Keegan
Celebrated for her powerful short fiction, Claire Keegan gifts us three exquisite stories, newly revised and expanded, together forming a brilliant examination of gender dynamics and an arc from Keegan's earliest to her most recent work. Each story probes the dynamics that corrupt what could be between women and men: a lack of generosity, the weight of expectation, the looming threat of violence. Potent, charged and breathtakingly insightful, these three essential tales will linger with readers long after the book is closed.
“Lessons for Living,” by Phil Stutz
There are issues, and there are issues — love, loss, success, failure, hope, regret, life, death. How can we even begin to think clearly about dilemmas so universally confounding? Phil Stutz has spent his life pondering the big challenges that we all face, and this profound book puts the conclusions he's reached at your fingertips. Lessons for Living addresses realworld circumstances, such as the needs of children, rising above envy, defeating your bad habits, the positive side of anger and facing insecurities, offering a new way to think about life itself.
“Emperor of Rome,” by Mary Beard
Drawing on more than thirty years of teaching and writing about Roman history, Beard turns to the emperors who ruled the Roman Empire, beginning with Julius Caesar and taking us through the nearly three centuries — and some 30 emperors — that separate him from boy-king Alexander Severus. Emperor of Rome goes directly to the heart of Roman fantasies (and our own) about what it was to be Roman at its richest, most luxurious, most extreme, most powerful, and most deadly, offering an account of Roman history as it has never been presented before.
YOUNG ADULT “Skyward,” by Brandon Sanderson
Spensa's world has been under attack for decades. Now pilots are the heroes of what's left of the human race, and becoming one has always been Spensa's dream. Since she was a little girl, she has imagined soaring skyward and proving her bravery. But her fate is intertwined with her father's--a pilot himself who was killed years ago when he abruptly deserted his team, leaving Spensa's chances of attending flight school at slim to none.
No one will let Spensa forget what her father did, yet fate works in mysterious ways. Flight school might be a long shot, but she is determined to fly. And an accidental discovery in a long-forgotten cavern might just provide her with a way to claim the stars.
“The Godhead Complex,” by James Dashner
In the newest release in the Maze Cutter series, Sadina and the islanders are up against both man and nature as they navigate their way to Alaska. There, they hope to meet the mysterious Godhead, unsure of what separates myth from truth. But the Godhead, now led by Alexandra, is fractured. Within the cracks of their sacred trinity, secrets are revealed that blur the lines of good and evil forever. After a devastating discovery, Isaac and Sadina are forced to split up. Minho holds the rest of the group together, but it's his beliefs that are slowly falling apart. What once drove Minho to join his sworn enemies is causing him to question everything. When Sadina finds a clue in The Book of Newt, her mission to meet the Godhead becomes even stronger. Isaac and Old Man Frypan come across an enigmatic traveler and learn that the cure isn't what it once was. They are shaken to the core when they realize that the immunes aren't as immune as they should be, and the world as a whole is evolving in a dangerous new direction. In Alaska, The Godhead and the sacred site of the Maze face something that no generation of Pilgrims before them has ever witnessed. Beliefs will change, futures will be rewritten, and not even the Godhead knows what will happen next.
The Rules by Stacey Kade
Five simple rules. Ariane Tucker has followed them since the night she escaped from the genetics lab where she was created, the result of combining human and extraterrestrial DNA. Ariane's survival — and that of her adoptive father — depends on her ability to blend in among the full-blooded humans, to hide in plain sight from those who seek to recover their lost (and expensive) project. But when a cruel prank at school goes awry, it puts her in the path of Zane Bradshaw, the police chief's son and someone who sees too much. Someone who really sees her. After years of trying to be invisible, Ariane finds the attention frightening — and utterly intoxicating. Suddenly, nothing is simple anymore, especially not the rules.
CHILDREN’S “Endlessly Ever After,” by Laurel Snyder, illustrated by Dan Santat
If you love “Choose Your Own Adventure” and fairy tales, this is the picture book for you! Laurel Snyder mashes up multiple famous tales including Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Snow White, and Hansel and Gretel. You start off as Rosie (a.k.a. Little Red), and your choices along the way will determine who you meet and how your story evolves. Kids will want to revisit this one again and again, especially if (and when) their fairy tale ends in hilarious disaster.
“The Last Cuentista,” by Donna Barba Higuera
The winner of the Newberry and Pura Belpré Awards and featured on the Texas Library Association’s Lone Star reading list, this futuristic novel that combines Mexican folk tales with sci-fi is a must-read for grades 5 and up. After sleeping in stasis for more than 300 years, Petra finds that the rest of her companions on a spaceship have been programmed to forget their memories of Earth; now, her memories of her abuelita’s stories may be the only thing that can save them from the sinister Collective. The Last Cuentista is a powerful reminder of the importance of stories to shape our world (and maybe even worlds beyond ours).
“Sam and Dave Dig a Hole,” by Mac Barnett, illustrated by John Klassen
Mac Barnett & John Klassen are the go-to creators for picture books that are slyly funny and a little odd in the best way. In this one, Sam and Dave dig a hole, looking for something spectacular. But the illustrations show that every time they are about to encounter that one “spectacular” thing – they change direction! With plenty of literal and figurative twists and turns, and storytelling through details that only the most observant readers may catch, this deceptively simple picture book is a whole lot of fun and is a spectacular gift that keeps on giving.
