The Phoenix Review February 2010
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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!
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FEBRUARY EVENTS
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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 10th from 6:00-8:00 pm. All 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.
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THE CAFE AT PHOENIX
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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.
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ON THE SHELVES
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Stories to Curl Up With
The 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...
The 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 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.)
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SCI FI PICKS
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Escaping the Daily Grind, on Planets Far, Far Away
Search 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 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.
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NONFICTION PICK OF THE MONTH
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Paris Under Water, by Jeffrey Jackson
"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.
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YOUNG ADULT PICK OF THE MONTH
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Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher
"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
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BOOK CLUB PICK OF THE MONTH
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Lowboy, by John Wray
Early 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.
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