Phoenix Books and Cafe


The Phoenix Review

February 2010


Dear Friends,

February isn't everyone's favorite month, but the days are getting longer and brighter, and we'll see tomorrow whether Punxsutawney Phil and his fellow prognosticators declare the winter to be nearly over.  While it lasts, we're relishing the perfect conditions to curl up with a book - whether at home or over a bowl of oatmeal from the Cafe at Phoenix.

Below, we've included a selection of great reads, from literary fiction to wacky fantasy to nonfiction and young adult picks.  You'll also find this month's events, which include a special author appearance that will appeal to avid and armchair skiers alike.  See you among the shelves!

Sincerely,
The staff of Phoenix Books

PS:  Looking for the perfect card and gift for your favorite Valentine?  Come on by and check out our in-store Valentine's display!

FEBRUARY EVENTS
  Calling All Ski Divas, Yarn Mavens, and Stars of the Stage

Our Open Mic Night will take place on Wednesday, February 3rd, from 6:00-8:00 pm.  Come check out the local talent at your local, independent bookstore!  Want to be the local talent?  Call 872-7111 and ask for Michael to sign up.

Knit Night (Crocheters, too!) will take place on the usual second Wednesday, on February 10thWendy Clinch from 6:00-8:00 pm.  AllDouble Black skill levels welcome.  See you there!

We're also excited to welcome Wendy Clinch, author of the new Ski Diva Mystery series, with her first novel, Double Black, on Friday, February 19th at 7:00 pm.

Visit our website for more info.  Events at Phoenix are free and open to the public.

CAFE THE CAFE AT PHOENIX
   Now Serving Breakfast!

Starting today, Monday, February 1st, Phoenix Books & Cafe is offering light breakfast options! There's something for everyone, ranging from a simple bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar & dried fruit to a Phoenix Omelet - with many scrumptious choices in between. Breakfast will be served until 11:30am, we'll continue to offer our popular lunch items throughout the rest of the day.
FICON THE SHELVES

  Stories to Curl Up With

The Lock ArtistThe Lock Artist, by Steve Hamilton
"Intense and involving." --Booklist
Michael, now eighteen, is no ordinary young man. Besides not having uttered a single word in ten years, he has discovered the one thing he can somehow do better than anyone else: Whether it's a locked door without a key, a padlock with no combination, or even an eight-hundred pound safe - he can open them all. It's an unforgivable talent, one that will make Mike a hot commodity with the wrong people and push him ever close to a life of crime - until he finally sees his chance to escape...



Lost Books of the OdysseyThe Lost Books of the Odyssey, by Zachary Mason
"...consistently surprises and delights." --Publishers Weekly
Zachary Mason's brilliant and beguiling debut novel reimagines Homer's classic story of the hero Odysseus and his long journey home after the fall of Troy. With brilliant prose, terrific imagination, and dazzling literary skill, Mason creates alternative episodes, fragments, and revisions of Homer's original that taken together open up this classic Greek myth to endless reverberating interpretations. The Lost Books of the Odyssey is punctuated with great wit, beauty, and playfulness; it is a literary page-turner that marks the emergence of a daring new talent. (Release date: February 2nd.)


Everything Ravaged, Everything BurnedEverything Ravaged, Everything Burned, by Wells Tower
"Outstanding." --Library Journal
Viking marauders descend on a much-plundered island, hoping some mayhem will shake off the winter blahs. A man is booted out of his home after his wife discovers that the print of a bare foot on the inside of his car's windshield doesn't match her own. A boy runs off to the carnival after his stepfather bites him in a brawl. Wells Tower's version of America is touched with the seamy splendor of the misfit: failed inventors, boozy dreamers, hapless fathers, wayward sons. With electric prose and savage wit, this is a profound new collection of stories. (In paperback February 2nd.)



SCISCI FI PICKS

  Escaping the Daily Grind, on Planets Far, Far Away

Search for the Star StonesSearch for the Star Stones, by Andre Norton 
By the first woman to be named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America!
Murdoc Jern's father, murdered by outlaw competitors, left behind an odd ring. With his companion Eet, a feline mutant with phenomenal mental powers, Murdoc soon discovers that the stone in the ring is actually a Zero Stone - an alien device left behind by an ancient vanished race, and the key to unimaginable powers. Murdoc and Eet must solve the secret of the Zero Stone, before the people seeking it decide a second murder is in order...
 



Honor of the ClanHonor of the Clan, by John Ringo & Julie Cochrane
Duty.  Honor.  Country.
Three words that resound in the heart of the warrior. But what is duty when country is gone? Where does honor lie when allies are revealed as enemies, when friends are not who they seem and when enemies are the ones we love? For Cally O'Neal and the O'Neal Bane Sidhe, underground fighters against the tyranny of Earth's Darhel "allies." duty lies in the overthrow of the established order. For Major General Michael O'Neal, her father, duty lies in maintaining that order to prevent a reinvasion by the dreaded Posleen. When O'Neal battles O'Neal, the only sure outcome is fireworks.



NONFICTION PICK OF THE MONTH

  Paris Under Water, by Jeffrey Jackson


Paris Under Water"An engrossing narrative." --Library Journal

In the winter of 1910, torrential rainfall and faulty engineering created a perfect storm of conditions that soon drowned Parisian streets, homes, businesses, and museums. Given the Parisians' history of deep-seated social, religious, and political strife, it was questionable whether they would collaborate to confront the crisis. Yet while the sewers, Metro, and electricity failed around them, Parisians of all backgrounds rallied to save the city and one another. On the hundredth anniversary of the flood, Jackson captures here the drama and ultimate victory of man over nature.


YOUNG ADULT PICK OF THE MONTH

  Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher

Incarceron"Incarceron" is a prison so vast that it contains not only cells, but also metal forests, dilapidated cities, and vast wilderness. Finn, a seventeen-year-old prisoner is sure that he came from Outside Incarceron. But very few prisoners believe that there is an Outside. Then Finn finds a crystal key that allows him to communicate with Claudia, the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron...

"This gripping futuristic fantasy has breathless pacing, an intelligent story line, and superb detail in rendering...environments. Fisher's characters are emotionally resonant, flawed, determined, and plagued by metaphysical questions. With some well-timed shocking twists and a killer ending, this is a must-have." --Booklist

BOOK CLUB PICK OF THE MONTH

  Lowboy, by John Wray

LowboyEarly one morning in New York City, Will Heller, a sixteen-year-old paranoid schizophrenic, gets on an uptown B train alone.  Will is on a mission to save the world from global warming - to do it, though, he'll need to cool down his own body first.  And for that he'll need one willing girl.  Lowboy tells the story of Will's odyssey through the city's tunnels, back alleys, and streets in search of Emily Wallace, his one great hope.  (In paperback on February 2nd.)
 
"The novel has a thriller-like pace, and Wray keeps us riveted and guessing, finding chilling rhetorical and pictorial equivalents for Will's uniquely dysfunctional perspective . . . The suspense is expertly maintained, straight through the novel's dreamlike climactic encounter and heart-wrenching final paragraph.  The opening pages recall Salinger's Holden Caulfield, but the denouement and haunting aftertaste may make the stunned reader whisper 'Dostoevsky.' Yes, it really is that good." --Kirkus (starred review)

Did you know?  Book clubs are eligible for a 15% discount on books ordered from Phoenix!  At least five copies must be ordered, and all copies must be purchased through your book club's coordinator, for discount to apply.

hours
Phoenix Books at the Essex Shoppes & Cinema
802.872.7111 * www.phoenixbooks.biz
Mon-Fri 9-7; Sat 10-7; Sun 11-5