Most recent staff pick: Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa
"This book is remarkable. Author Susan Abulhawa weaves an engaging story complete with complex characters and gorgeous language. The story follows Nahr, a fiery and determined Palestinian refugee, as she navigates a world that regularly devalues and displaces her kin. Her relationships are intricately woven and believable. The descriptions of Kuwait, Jordan, and Palestine are detailed and immersive. The prose is written with a deep resonance that leaves you feeling both filled and emptied all at once. It's just so good. I urge you to read it!"
"The best way I can describe this novel is fable-like. Miller's writing is captivating and atmospheric. As a reader, you feel wrapped up in the town's stories and the outcome of a single impulsive action. One of my favorite fiction reads to date!"
"In this remarkably powerful book written with clarity and honesty, Lacy Crawford recounts her sexual assault while at a prestigious New England boarding school and the dramatic ensuing efforts by the administration to silence her. This memoir is gripping and important. I was floored by her candor and perspicuity."
"Fascinating history and a well-argued premise, this book is a winner, especially in the current climate. Gallagher presents a thorough and readable account of the post office, starting even before the Declaration of Independence. And curve-ball: there are daredevil characters reaching out of moving trains and flying the earliest airplanes!"
This book will leave you with your heart in your throat, tears in your eyes, and hope in spite of it all. It’s poignant, affecting, devastating, extraordinary, masterful. I struggle to outright recommend it because it’s such a unique and powerful book, but it will likely not be everyone’s cup of tea. Still, it remains one of the most moving and memorable books I have ever read.""
"A fascinating look at the 2008 crash / housing crisis as delivered by Ryan Dezember who was both reporting on real estate for the Press-Register and experiencing the rollercoaster first-hand as a homeowner on the Gulf Coast. Interspersing a well-researched report with personal anecdotes, Dezember paints a thorough picture of both the speculation frenzy and the devastation of the crash on Average Joe homeowners. This book was well-written and well-research, terrifying, and wild."
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"This book is remarkable. Author Susan Abulhawa weaves an engaging story complete with complex characters and gorgeous language. The story follows Nahr, a fiery and determined Palestinian refugee, as she navigates a world that regularly devalues and displaces her kin. Her relationships are intricately woven and believable. The descriptions of Kuwait, Jordan, and Palestine are detailed and immersive. The prose is written with a deep resonance that leaves you feeling both filled and emptied all at once. It's just so good. I urge you to read it!"