Henry Cole, "Unspoken: A Story of the Underground Railroad" (Scholastic), Wednesday, February 20 at 7 pm

  

In this wordless children's book, author/illustrator Henry Cole uses gorgeously    rendered soft, dark pencils to tell the story of a young girl's courage when she discovers a runaway slave hiding in the barn.  Unspoken gifts of humanity unite the girl and the runaway as they each face a journey: one following the North Star, the other following her heart.  This is visual storytelling at its best, and Cole's unusal and original drawings of the Underground Railroad speak directly to our deepest sense of compassion.  Cole is the author and/or illustrator of numerous children's books, including A Nest for Celeste, Big Chickens Go to Town, and I Know a Wee Piggy, among others.  He has illustrated books for Pamela Duncan Edwards, Leslie Helakoski, and Alyssa Capucilli.

  

Gary Small, "The Alzheimer's Prevention Program: Keep Your Brain Healthy for the Rest of Your Life" (Workman), Monday, February 25 at 7 pm

 

   In this updated paperback edition, New York Times bestselling author Gary Small provides an easy-to-follow regimen based on the latest comprehensive research into Alzheimer's disease, and especially the critical connection between lifestyle and susceptibility.  Small's prevention program is for anyone with a family history of Alzheimer's and the 80 million baby boomers who worry whenever they forget someone's name.  He addresses questions of how to incorporate brain-protecting foods into your diet, how to cross train your brain, and how to reduce stress.

 

Randy Wayne White, "Night Moves" (Putnam), Saturday, March 9 at 7 pm

 

While trying to solve one of Florida's most profound secrets, Doc Ford is the target of a murder attempt by someone who wants to make it look like an accident.  Or is the target actually Tomlinson?  Whatever the answer, the liveaboards and fishing guides at Dinkin's Bay on Sanibel Island are becoming increasingly nervous, after a near-poisoning, a plane crash, and an explosion make it apparent that Ford and Tomlinson are dangerous companions.  What their small family of friends don't know is that their secret pasts make it impossible for the two of them to go to the law for help.  There is an assassin on the loose, and it is up to them to find the killer, before he or she finishes the job.  This is White's twentieth Doc Ford novel.

Melanie Neale, "Boat Girl",  Tuesday, March 12 at 7 pm

Local author Melanie Neale has written a heart-breaking memoir of growing up aboard a sailboat. Throughout the 1980's and 90's, Melanie's family lived aboard a 47-foot sailboat, spending their summers along the US East Coast and their winters in the Bahamas. But the cruising life was not all fun in the sun. The family had to work hard to pay for their way of life. They dodged hurricanes, overzealous federal agents and bullying land-kids. And they endured a boatload of family drama. As an adult, she lived aboard her own 28-foot sailboat and had several relationships trying to find someone who wasn't intimidated by her stubborn independence and free-spirited lifestyle. Neale's book weaves all this together into a story about a girl who, once all is said and done, simply wants her own boat and her own life.   

T. D. Alllman, "Finding Florida: A True History of the Sunshine State" (Atlantic Monthly Press), Monday, March 18 at 7 pm

At once an exuberant media dream and the political pivot of the nation, the state of Florida plays an essential role in 21st century America.  Taken in the grips of multiple conquests and then sold as a resort paradise, Florida has emerged as a multicultural mirror of our nation as we know it today.  Allman reassembles the extraordinary story of Florida that has suffered distortion throughout decades of rupture and healing.  As provocative as it is genuine, this fascinating, comprehensive history of our fourth most populous state takes us from its Eden-like beginnings to the sidewalks of today's South Beach and everything in between.  Finding Florida has a myth-busting spirit that promotes honesty and gumption rather than the sugarcoating that has left cracks in Florida's, and our nation's history.

"Rona Recommends", Wednesday, March 20 at 7 pm

Each year, The BookMark partners with the Jacksonville chapter of NOW to celebrate Women's History Month.  Rona Recommends has become a tradition.  Rona will recommend books by and/or about women in honor of this month-long celebration.  NOW provides light refreshments.  We invite you to find out about great books and  enjoy some good conversation.

Harlan Coben, "Six Years" (Dutton), Saturday, March 23 at 7 pm

New York TImes bestselling mystery author Harlan Coben once again delivers a shocking page-turner that deftly explores the power of past love and the secrets and lies that such love can hide.  Six years have passed since Jake Sanders watched Natalie, the love of his life, marry another man. Six years of hiding a broken heart by throwing himself into his career as a college professor. Six years of keeping his promise to leave Natalie alone, and six years of tortured dreams of her life with her new husband, Todd.  But six years haven't come close to extinguishing his feelings, and when Jake comes across Todd's obituary, he can't keep himself away from the funeral. There he gets the glimpse of Todd's wife he's hoping for...but she is not Natalie.  Everything Jake thought he knew about his life is turned completely inside out, and no one has seen Natalie in years.

 Linda Greenlaw, "Lifesaving Lessons: Notes from an Accidental Mother", (Viking), Monday, March 25 at 7 pm

America's only female swordfish-boat captain (and "perfect storm" survivor) returns with a straightforward account of the challenges she faced in becoming the legal guardian of a sexually abused teenager and in balancing unexpected motherhood with her reclulsive lifestyle on a tiny island off the coast of Maine.  Greenlaw (the bestselling author of Seaworthy) and her community were disturbed to learn that a pedophile resided on the island, and that 15-year-old Mariah needed rescuing.  Always a happy loner, Greenlaw found herself in a new role as mother.  She skillfully draws parallels between life at sea and her new role as a parent.

Jeffrey Spear, "The First Coast Cookbook" (In Good Taste Press), Tuesday, April 2 at 7 pm

 This cookbook is a collection of recipes influenced by the ingredients and foodways of the indigenous Indians as well as the Spanish, French, British, and African settlers who inhabited the First Coast from 14,000 BC to 1821 (when Florida became a U.S. Territory).  What may be surprising is how many of the foods we take for granted today did not exist prior to the arrival of European explorers and settlers.  Ultimately, the style of cooking we enjoy as Southern cuisine now is the delicious and enduring legacy of the past.  April 2 marks the 500th anniversary of the landing of Juan Ponce de Leon and the claiming of La Florida for Spain.  Join us to celebrate this historic occasion, and enjoy some tasting samples from the book.

Andrew Gross, "No Way Back", (William Morrow), Thursday, April 4 at 7 pm

Early in this fevered stand-alone suspense novel from bestseller Gross (15 Seconds), Wendy Gould, a married woman with two stepchildren and literary ambitions, meets Curtis Kitchner, a handsome freelance journalist, in a Manhattan hotel bar. Against her better instincts, Wendy accompanies Curtis up to his room, where an intruder shoots Curtis dead. Wendy manages to kill the intruder in self-defense, but she goes on the run after a badge on the man's body identifies him as a Homeland Security agent. Wendy's fate becomes entwined with that of Lauritzia Velez, a pretty 24-year-old Mexican woman being hunted by vicious killers employed by drug cartel honcho Eduardo Cano as part of a vendetta against Lauritzia's father. Wendy's frantic attempts to avoid being captured or killed before she can discover a way to exonerate herself are somehow tied to the efforts to murder Lauritzia.