January isn't a big publishing month, so only a handful of hardbacks to talk about. Robert Gates did a helluva pre-publishing publicity tour for Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War. Based on the interviews I saw, Gates was a conflicted man who did a hard job the very best he could. From reports so far, the book is living up to the hype. Sue Monk Kidd's The Invention of Wings became Oprah's next book club pick before it even had time to hit the shelves. Paige read and enjoyed this story that follows a young Charleston girl and her handmaid (a birthday gift) for 35 years. Ransom Riggs is back with a follow-up to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, a YA title that jumped the fence into the adult market. Hollow City picks up right where the first title ended and follows the cast of characters to London. Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce novels did the reverse and jumped from the adult shelves into the hands of a lot of YA readers. The latest in this series about the aspiring 11 year old chemist is The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches.
Artis Henderson's memoir Unremarried Widow is a tender love story that gives the reader an inside look at what life is like for a military spouse. Henderson's husband is killed in a helicopter crash in Iraq, widowing her at almost the same age that her mother was widowed when her father died in a plane crash. I really appreciated her honest writing style. Norma Bowe teaches a class at Keene University called The Death Class. It has a three year waiting list. Writer Erika Hayasaki wanted to know why, so she took the class and proceeded to tail Norma for a time, documenting her life. What ensued is a great book called The Death Class: A True Story About Life. What Bowe teaches- perspectives on death- isn't all found in books. Some of the most important lessons she gives her students are on living with compassion and grace. Amazing woman, very interesting book.

A few discoveries over the holidays to pass along: I was gifted Breakfast With Buddha, Roland Merullo's delightful novel about  Otto, a man tricked into traveling cross country with his 'wacko' sister's guru- an improbable berobed holy man who speaks in riddles that somewhere along the way start to make sense to Otto. This book is entertaining and enlightening- good food for the mind and soul. My 19 year old promptly borrowed it and took it back to college to finish but I have beseeched him to bring it back because I know I am going to want to give it a second read. Anxious to check out the sequel, Lunch With Buddha. Much thanks to fellow bookseller, Lynne Reed of Misty Valley Books in Chester, Vt, for gifting it to me! Hey Lynne!

Matt Price brought the surf book Welcome to Paradise Now Go To Hell to our attention. Chas Smith documents the high stakes of big wave surfing on Oahu's North Shore which is overrun two months of the year by surfing triple crown contenders and 'mainlanders' who transform paradise into a lawless, sometimes violent, strip of beach. 

Had time to read Provence 1970 by Luke Barr. I love food writing and this was a perfect fix. In the winter of 1970, culinary world icons MFK Fisher, Julia & Paul Child, Simone Beck, James Beard, Richard Olney and Judith Jones all found themselves in Provence. Many a meal was shared as different groupings found themselves at various tables-cooking, talking, and arguing about the future of French and American cuisine. MFK captured the conversations in her letters and journals which were later discovered by her great nephew, the author. A wonderful book with which to while away a winter weekend. Just make sure you have a fully stocked pantry- you're gonna want to cook something when you're done!

December 31 may have signaled the end of 2013, but it brought out a LOT of books in paperback. Non-fiction releases included Wave, Sonali Deraniyagala's memoir of surviving the 2004 tsunami, a catastrophic event that swept away the rest of her family- parents, husband and her young sons. Has been making book club rounds lately. Tap Dancing to Work will please Warren Buffett fans as it is a compilation of the best Buffett articles published by Fortune magazine from 1966 to 2013. Happier at Home, by Gretchen Rubin, is a great title to start a new year with- this time, the author of The Happiness Project tackles making the homestead a more pleasant place to live- call me inspired! US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's memoir, My Beloved World, is now available in paperback as is Becky Aikman's Saturday Night Widows which follows six women who have found themselves all in the same state- widowed- and join together in rewriting their journey forward. (another title with good book club potential)

Two novels of 2013 that I absolutely LOVED are now available in paper: Benediction, by Kent Haruf, is beautiful. Haruf's style is spare and simple as he lovingly tells the story of the last days of a good man. Dad Lewis, resident of a high plains town in Colorado, is the owner of the local hardware store, a man people like and depend on. Diagnosed with terminal cancer, he makes peace with the life he has led as those who love him come to help with his last journey. HIGHLY recommend it. I also thoroughly enjoyed The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker, a somewhat fantastical tale set in turn of the century New York. The title characters are both mythical creatures who have found themselves in the world of humans through the selfish acts of others. Amidst the backdrop of a gritty, muddy city they find each other and thus this title- a combination of fantasy and historical fiction- adds another element- love story. Double thumbs up.