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New and loved at WORD
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Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron. Reading this book is like reading a meld of Little Bee and Born to Run--it's a novel about a Rwandan runner headed to the Olympics, a Tutsi runner at a time when the Tutsi and Hutu are on the verge of violence. The opening chapter is one of the strongest, most gripping, I've read in a long time. Also, it's a Bellwether Prize winner, which for me is always a good sign. (Jenn)
Believing Is Seeing by Errol Morris. A startling look at and meditation on the power of photographs and photographers to shape and manipulate our understanding of truth. (Simone)
Handheld Pies by Sarah Billingsley & Rachel Wharton. A pie in the hand is worth two in the pie plate! A fantastic collection of both sweet and savory tiny pies, from freeform to structured to baked in a jar. (A pie with a lid! Why did humanity take so long to figure this out?) In addition, the book is sprinkled with articles featuring handheld pie makers all over the country, all of whom run bakeries that'll have you planning your next vacation around pie availability. (Stephanie) The Third Reich by Roberto Bolaņo. This completed, never-before-published, novel was found among Bolano's papers after he died in 2003. Written in 1989, this haunting story describes one man's descent into madness while on vaction in a small resort town in Spain. As a huge Bolaņo fan, I was delighted by just how great this "lost" book is. A worthy addition to an already amazing canon of work! (Cree)     It Chooses You by Miranda July. It's always exciting for me when Miranda July comes out with something new. From back in Olympia Washington days when she was performing downtown making music or presenting slide-shows incorporating herself in curious ways, I appreciate her idiosyncratic view of how things work and what's possible. This new collection puts faces and stories to ads in the Pennysaver. What would have been perhaps too far-out in fiction is delicious as a slice of life. (Simone)
Cinder by Marissa Meyer. Meet Cinder, a teenage cyborg mechanic living in New Beijing with a mysterious past and a city to save. Cyborg Cinderella! This new series puts me very much in mind of The Hunger Games--big on the action and concept, and a plotline that has been known to induce uncontrollable texting to fellow readers. Ahem. Don't say I didn't warn you! I have my suspicions about the next fairytale character Meyer has in her sights, so when you're done reading, email me. We'll discuss. (Jenn)
The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson. Even in an age of information overload, North Korea remains a mystery to those of us in the United States. In this novel, Johnson has taken the bizarre Kim Jong Il anecdotes and the horror stories of defectors and combined them into a book that reminds us that behind the lives we can barely imagine, there are people who want the same things we do. Johnson's story is one of those times where fiction might come closer to the truth than non-fiction. (Stephanie)
The Monster Returns by Peter McCarty. The sequel to the fantastic Jeremy Draws A Monster does exactly what a good picture book sequel should: it continues the story in a totally unique and funny way, while making us love the first book even more. When his monster returns, Jeremy gets smart and has his friends draw the monster some playmates. We read both these books in succession each night, and we laugh out loud each time. (Adrian and Christine)
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Staff picks
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The Big Burn by Timothy Egan. I like my history books on a human level, but big in scope. In The Big Burn, we're ostensibly learning about a wildfire in the mountainous west. But through this story we get at the roots of the conservation movement in the U.S., and look into the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. (Simone) Clandestine in Chile by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. A good friend, knowing well of my One Hundred Years of Solitude obsession, got me this for Christmas. I didn't even know it existed! Behold--Marquez is basically the interlocutor for filmmaker Miguel Littin, who braved an exile sentence and made a secret film during Pinochet's dictatorship. I can pretty much guarantee that at the end of this you'll not only want to watch Littin's films, but you'll have a new appreciation for Marquez's politics. (Jenn)
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. After Bacigalupi's first science fiction novel The Wind Up Girl (also highly recommended) won the Hugo and the Nebula in 2010, he followed it with this young adult science fiction novel, which appeals to a broad spectrum of readers. While both books share themes of environmental destruction, climate change brought on, in part, by human nature, and evil corporate greed, Ship Breaker also shares something in common with young adult classics such as Ender's Game, Hatchet, and even Huckleberry Finn. In the end, it is a coming-of-age/action/travel/adventure story about a young boy born into the very low rungs of a dark and desperate future world. (Cree)Castle by J. Robert Lennon. Over my vacation I finally read In The Woods by Tana French after having so many people come into the store and tell me they loved it. I'm glad I did---and not just because it was fantastic---but also because it gives me a new way to recommend Castle, which is one of the creepiest and most enthralling mysteries I read last year. If you liked In The Woods, this is definitely a book for you. And either way, it's a mystery that's dark and haunting in the most unusual ways and not to be missed. (Stephanie)
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Did you get a fancy ebook-reading gadget over the holidays? Are you starting to worry about whether the gadget and WORD are compatible? Never fear, there's a good chance they are! Learn more about how to buy ebooks from WORD on our website. Remember, Google ebooks can be read on any smartphone and reader except the Kindle (with the exception of the Kindle Fire; our friends at Changing Hands can help you set that up with these easy instructions!). Let us know if you have any questions about how to set up your account or access your books. And try out these deals while you can:
The Coming and Going of Strangers by Simon Van Booy (FREE until 1/30!). Really, the only thing better than Simon Van Booy is Simon Van Booy for FREE. If you haven't downloaded a Google ebook from WORD yet, this is such a fantastic chance to do so that we can barely believe we're writing about it.
Bad Monkeys by Matt Ruff (99 cents until 1/30!). This has long been a favorite of mine, and is sure to please anyone who likes their thrillers a little absurd and full of conspiracy. (Stephanie)
And Then He Kissed Her by Laura Lee Guhrke (99 cents until 1/30!). Our romance-writer-in-residence Sarah MacLean recommends this one, saying: "Laura Lee Guhrke's Victorian working girl books are really fun reads...this one is a His Girl Friday-style romance that will entertain anyone who loves those fabulous classic Bogart/Bacall Tracy/Hepburn movies."
Accounting for Non-Accountants by Wayne Label ($1.99 until 1/31!). Let's face it, if you're on a bookstore newsletter email list, odds are good that you're not an accountant. But that doesn't mean you don't need accounting, sadly. Here's a chance to finally learn a few basics, or at least learn some vocabulary that will impress other non-accountants.
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This has been another production of the book-lovin' fools at: WORD 126 Franklin St Brooklyn NY 11222 Open for your reading needs from: 11am to 9pm, seven days a week Available during those hours at: 718.383.0096 And always open at: www.wordbrooklyn.com |
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