The Phoenix Review
March 2010
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Dear Friends,
Is it just our imagination, or is spring in the air? In Vermont, March is a capricious month, masquerading as lion and lamb in turn. But whether you're hankering after the green of a garden, forty shades of green, or green living, come on in and we'll find the title to keep you going through March's more predatory moods.
Below, we've listed a slew of books for all ages and interests, as well as a note from our cafe and this month's event schedule - featuring iconic Vermont author Howard Frank Mosher and Newsweek war correspondent Michael Hastings. See you there!
Sincerely,
The staff of Phoenix Books
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| MARCH EVENTS
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Featuring H. F. Mosher's Civil War Novel: M. Hastings' Modern War Memoir
Our Open Mic Night will take place on Wednesday, March 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.
We're excited to announce that Howard Frank Mosher will be visiting Phoenix for a book signing, on Saturday, March 6th between 11:00 am and 12:30 pm. Come
get an autographed copy of Mosher's latest novel, Walking to
Gatlinburg, a story of survival, wilderness adventure, mystery, and
love during the Civil War.
 Knit Night (Crocheters, too!) will take place on the usual second Wednesday, on March 10th from 6:00-8:00 pm. All skill levels welcome.
On Thursday, March 25th at 6:30 pm, Michael Hastings will visit Phoenix to speak about his new memoir, I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story.
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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An Authentic Espresso and Wine Bar
Our menu features a little something for
everyone & every budget. Pair a satisfying breakfast option with
one of our custom coffee/espresso beverages & you've got yourself
the perfect start to your day! Later on, how about an affordable vacation-in-a-cup? Stop by
for a sweet coconut latte to warm up from the inside out or kick back
with a taste of the tropics with a mango smoothie!!
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NEW FICTION
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Love, Ambition, and Matters of Perception
 Eternal on the Water, by Joseph Monninger
"[An] eloquently rendered tale." --Booklist
From the day Cobb and Mary meet kayaking on Maine's Allagash River
and fall deeply in love, the two approach life with the same sense of
adventure they use to conquer the river's treacherous rapids. But rivers
do not let go so easily...and neither does their love. So when Mary's
life takes the cruelest turn, she vows to face those rough waters on her
own terms and asks Cobb to promise, when the time comes, to help her
return to their beloved river for one final journey. (Paperback. By a local author!)
 A Fortunate Age, by Joanna Smith Rakoff
"Mesmerizing." --Booklist
Rakoff 's richly drawn and immensely satisfying
first novel details the lives of a group of Oberlin graduates whose
ambitions and friendships threaten to unravel as they chase their
dreams, shed their youth, and build their lives in Brooklyn during the turn of the twenty-first century. Set
against the backdrop of the vast changes of the
era - from the decadent age of dot-com millionaires to the sobering
post-September 2001 landscape - Smith Rakoff's deeply affecting
characters and incisive social commentary are reminiscent of the great
Victorian novels. (Paperback)
 Little Bee, by Chris Cleave
"Ambitious and fearless." --The Guardian
"Most days I wish I was a British pound coin instead of an African girl.
Everyone would be pleased to see me coming. Maybe I would visit with you
for the weekend and then suddenly, because I am fickle like that, I
would visit with the man from the corner shop instead - but you would
not be sad because you would be eating a cinnamon bun, or drinking a
cold Coca Cola from the can, and you would never think of me again. We
would be happy, like lovers who met on holiday and forgot each other's
names." So begins this stunning novel that defies description. (Paperback)
 Alice I Have Been, by Melanie Benjamin
"Benjamin offers a finely wrought portrait of Alice that seamlessly blends fact with fiction." --Publishers Weekly
Few works of literature are as universally beloved as Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland. Now,
we meet the young girl whose bright spirit sent her on an unforgettable
trip down the rabbit hole - and the grown woman whose story is no less
enthralling. A love story and a literary mystery, Alice I
Have Been brilliantly blends fact and fiction to capture the passionate
spirit of a woman who was truly worthy of her fictional alter ego. (Hardcover. An Indie Next pick!)
 The Theory of Light and Matter, by Andrew Porter
"...honors the history of the short story form while blazing a new trajectory all its own." --Atlanta Journal-Constitution
These ten stories take us across the country - from rural Pennsylvania
to Southern California to suburban Connecticut--and deep into
characters struggling to find meaning in their day-to-day lives. "Porter's collection of short stories explores aspects of life in
American suburbia, including the effects and subtleties of loss, grief,
and sacrifice. They're beautiful and evocative," -- Bridget. (Paperback)
 Shades of Grey, by Jasper Fforde
"Fforde has built a complex, engaging, and unique world full of
surprises, serious ideas, and serious fun..." --Library Journal
"At once an inquiry into a fabricated caste system (based on which part
of the visible color spectrum one can see) and a love story that defies
these rules. Fforde is a masterful writer. His words are a delight to
read; clever, soulful, funny, and surreal. I truly enjoyed this book." --Bridget
(Hardcover)
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MYSTERY AND MAGIC
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Cures, Codes, and Strange Behavior
 The Girl with Glass Feet, by Ali Shaw
"...romance
and tragedy in a melancholic yet whimsical British debut." --Kirkus Review
Strange things are happening on the remote and snowbound archipelago of
St. Hauda's Land. Unusual winged creatures flit around the icy bogland,
albino animals hide themselves in the snow-glazed woods, and Ida
Maclaird is slowly turning into glass. Ida is an outsider in these
parts, a mainlander who has visited the islands only once before. Yet
during that one fateful visit the glass transformation began to take
hold, and now she has returned in search of a cure. (Hardcover/Fiction.)
 Bellfield Hall, by Anna Dean
"...a sure bet for fans of historical mysteries." --Booklist
1805. An engagement party is taking place for Mr Richard Montague, son
of wealthy landowner Sir Edgar Montague, and his fiancee Catherine.
During a dance with his beloved, a strange thing happens: a man appears
at Richard's shoulder and appears to communicate something to him
without saying a word. Instantly breaking off the engagement, he rushes
off to speak to his father, never to be seen again. Distraught with
worry, Catherine sends for her spinster aunt, Miss Dido Kent, who has a
penchant for solving mysteries... (Hardcover/Mystery.)
 The Puzzle Lady vs. the Sudoku Lady, by Parnell Hall
"Acerbic Cora...is always good value,
especially for puzzle fans who delight in the requisite crosswords and
sudokus." --Kirkus Review
It's the battle of the century when Minami, the Sudoku Lady, shows up
in Bakerhaven, Connecticut, to meet Cora Felton, the Puzzle Lady, whose
sudoku books have just edged Minami's off of the Japanese bestseller
list. Before the rivals have a chance to square off, a killer strikes,
and a sudoku puzzle is found at the scene of the murder. Now it's a
fight to the finish to see who can unmask the killer. (Hardcover/Mystery.)
 David Falkayn: Star
Trader, by Poul Anderson
The second volume in the first complete
edition of Poul Anderson's
Technic Civilization saga.
The Polesotechnic League of star
traders was prospering, and Nicholas
Van Rijn, its most flamboyant member, was prospering most of all. But
not all League members played
fair when trading. Van Rijn could not be everywhere, and relied on
his representatives, foremost among them his young protege, David
Falkayn, and the members of David's trader team: Adzel, a large
dragon-likr being who practiced Buddhism, and Chee-Lan, a brilliant but
hot-tempered felinesque extraterrestrial. (Paperback/Sci Fi.)
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NONFICTION PICKS
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Health and Medicine, from Daily Choices to Credit Due
 The Butcher and the Vegetarian, by Tara Austin Weaver
"A very human exploration, from heart-searching to heart-gladdening." -Kirkus Review
Tara never
thought she'd stray from vegetarianism. But she found
herself in poor health, and a doctor
finally ordered her to eat meat. Tara embarks upon a sometimes hilarious, sometimes
frightening whirlwind tour that takes her from slaughterhouse to chef's
table, from urban farm to the hearthside of cow wranglers. She meets an unforgettable cast of characters who all seem to take
a vested interest in whether she opts for turnips or T-bones. (Hardcover.)
 The Decision Tree, by Thomas Goetz
Taking Control of Your Health in the Era of Personalized Medicine
A new strategy for
thinking about health applies cutting-edge technology and
sound science to put us at the center of the equation. An individual's
Decision Tree begins with genomics, where $400 and a test tube of spit
provides a peek at how your DNA influences your health. It taps
self-monitoring and collaborative health tools, and turns to
new screening techniques. Full of
thoughtful, groundbreaking reporting on the impact personalized medicine
will have, The Decision Tree will show you how
to take advantage of this new frontier in health care. (Hardcover.)
 The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot
"Skloot tells a rich,
resonant tale of modern science...and how
easily it can exploit society's most vulnerable..." Publishers Weekly
Scientists know her as HeLa. She was
a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave
ancestors, yet her cells - taken without her knowledge - became one of
the most important tools in medicine. HeLa cells were vital for developing
the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom
bomb's effects; and have been bought and sold
by the billions.
Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown - buried in an unmarked grave - until now. (Hardcover.)
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RAISING PASSIONATE READERS
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Picks for All Ages
 The Easter Egg, by Jan Brett
"A satisfying, gentle tale..." -Booklist
Jan Brett's lovable bunny hero, Hoppi will enchant readers as they pore over illustrations filled with
dazzling Easter eggs.
If Hoppi can make the best Easter egg, he will get to help the Easter
Rabbit deliver the eggs on Easter morning. But it is not so easy.
Discouraged, he goes into the woods to think when a blue robin's egg
tumbles out of its nest. Hoppi keeps it safe and warm until the baby
bird hatches, and when the Easter Rabbit arrives, he chooses the empty
blue eggshell to reward Hoppi for his kindness. (Hardcover/Picture Book.)
 Frankie Pickle and the Pine Run 3000, by Eric Wight
"The black-and-white illustrations make the text 'woooosh' along just like the fast-paced race scenes..." --School Library Journal
Meet Frankie Pickle...the kid with the world's most amazing imagination! It takes him on adventures. It helps him save the day. And sometimes...it gets him into trouble. If
he wants to move up in rank with the other Possum Scouts, Frankie must
win the model car derby known as the Pine Run 3000. He dreams up the
slickest speedster ever, but when he tries to build it on his own, his
creation crashes and burns! Will Frankie get left in the dust before he
gets to the starting line? (Hardcover/Beginning Reader.)
 The Night Fairy, by Laura Amy Schlitz
"This finely crafted and unusually dynamic fairy story is a natural for
reading aloud." --Booklist
What would happen to a fairy if she lost her wings and could
no longer fly? Flory, a young night fairy no taller than an acorn and
still becoming accustomed to her wings is about to find out. What she discovers is that the
world is very big and very dangerous. But Flory is fierce and willing to
do whatever it takes to survive. If that means telling others what to
do -- like Skuggle, a squirrel ruled by his stomach -- so be it. Not
every creature, however, is as willing to bend to Flory's demands. (Hardcover/Middle Grade.)
 Finnikin of the Rock, by Melina Marchetta
"Magic, romance, intrigue, and adventure all play their parts as this
dense, intricate epic unfolds, and flawed, memorable heroes fight for
their kingdom's redemption." --Publisher's Weekly
Finnikin was only a child during the five days of the unspeakable, when
the royal family of Lumatere were brutally murdered. Finnikin, now
on the cusp of manhood, is compelled to join forces with an arrogant
and enigmatic young novice named Evanjalin, who claims that her dark
dreams will lead the exiles to a surviving royal child and a way to
pierce the cursed barrier and regain the land of Lumatere. (Hardcover/Young Adult.)
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BOOK CLUB PICK OF THE MONTH
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Born Under a Million Shadows, by Andrea Busfield
 Ever the optimist, Fawad hopes for a better life, and his dream is
realized when Mariya finds a position as a housekeeper for a charismatic
Western woman, Georgie, and her two foreign friends. The world of aid
workers and journalists is a new one for Fawad, and living with the trio
offers endless curiosities for the wickedly observant boy - including
Georgie's destructive relationship with the powerful Afghan warlord Haji
Khan, whose exploits are legendary. Fawad grows resentful and worried,
until he comes to learn that love can move a man to act in surprisingly
good ways. But life, especially in Kabul, is never without peril, and
the next calamity Fawad must face is so devastating that it threatens to
destroy the one thing he thought he could never lose: his love for his
country. (Paperback.) 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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