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Weekly Words about BooksJULY 14, 2013
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It's No Mystery Why
These Three Are Popular
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THE LIGHT IN THE RUINS by Chris Bohjalian. I first heard about this prolific New England novelist when Oprah chose his Midwives as one of her Book Club picks in the late Nineties. I was first introduced to his writing when I read Tran-Sister Radio, a story about a woman who loves a man who decides he's really a woman and pursues a sex-change operation. The topic was timely and a bit daring, and I was impressed by Bohjalian's ability to create empathy for the characters.
Bohjalian is not known as a mystery author, but his new book, The Light in the Ruins, is a compelling literary thriller that underscores his range as a writer. The novel opens in Tuscany in 1943, where we meet the aristocratic Rosa ti family who live in a walled-in villa, sheltered from the war. Until, that is, two soldiers arrive asking to see an old burial site, with the Nazis arriving soon thereafter to take over the Rosati's home, turning their sanctuary into a prison.
Twelve years later, we meet Serafina Bettini, an investigator with the Florence police department, who is tracking a serial killer targeting the remaining Rosati family members. As Serafina struggles with her own postwar nightmares, she must figure why the killer hates the Rosatis enough to kill them one by one in order to stop him from completing his deadly vendetta.
THE ENGLISH GIRL by Daniel Silva. He'd already written three books, but Daniel Silva hit the jackpot when he wrote The Kill Artist, which introduced art restorer and Israeli secret agent Gabriel Allon. Thirteen novels later, both Silva and Allon are household names to fans of espionage and international  intrigue. One such reader, former president Bill Clinton, has been quoted as saying, "Gabriel Allon is my favorite fictional character."
In Silva's newest book, Madeline Hart, a rising star in Britain's governing party, has been kidnapped and her abductors know her deep, dark secret - she is the lover of the Prime Minister. Fearful of a scandal that will destroy his career, the British leader decides to handle the matter privately rather than involve the British police.
Enter our hero Gabriel Allon, who has seven days to bring Madeline home safely. His mission takes him from the criminal underworld of Marseilles to an isolated valley in the mountains of Provence to the stately if faded corridors of power in London - and, finally, to a pulse-pounding climax in Moscow, where there is a long list of men who wish Gabriel dead.
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THE BAT by Jo Nesbo. After the success of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the Scandinavian crime thriller became a hot new genre. Jo Nesbo was already a bestselling author in Europe, even before Larsson created Lisbeth Salander, but the Norwegian writer wasn't translated into English and published here until four years ago. His first big splash was made with Nemesis, which introduced U.S, audiences to angst-ridden, rule-bending, alcoho lic Oslo homicide detective Harry Hole who, despite his shortcomings, is a savvy, if unorthodox, crimesolver.
Nemesis is actually the fourth Harry Hole mystery out of series of 10 (so far). Subsequent books in the series have been translated and published to great acclaim and sales success but, until now, the book that introduced Harry was not available. That oversight has been corrected with the paperback publication of The Bat, which finds a younger, more loquacious Harry Hole in Sydney, Australia, to assist in the murder investigation of a young Norwegian woman. Readers of Nesbo's books will not be disappointed and will enjoy learning Hole's back story, while first-timers can discover this terrific crime series from the beginning.
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Crayons Have Their Gripes in New Picture Book for Kids
| | Debut children's author Drew Daywalt and old pro illustrator Oliver Jeffers have delivered a great new book for young children - THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT. It's a cute, funny story about a boy  named Duncan who opens his box of crayons, ready to color, only to find a slew of letters from the crabby and disgruntled sticks of wax, all on the verge of quitting. Beige Crayon is tired of playing second fiddle to Brown Crayon. Black wants to be used for more than just outlining. Blue needs a break from coloring all those bodies of water. And Orange and Yellow are no longer speaking - each believes he is the true color of the sun.
What can Duncan possibly do to appease all of the crayons and get them back to doing what they do best? You'll have to read and see, but parents will enjoy engaging their kids in solutions of their own as they peruse the clever missives written by Daywalt and brought to colorful life by Jeffers.
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A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME
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My name is Hut Landon. I'm a former bookstore owner who now runs the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) in San Francisco.
My goal with this newsletter is to keep readers up to date about new books hitting the shelves, share what booksellers are recommending in their stores, and pass on occasional news about the book world.
I'm not into long, wordy reviews or literary criticism; I'd like HUT'S PLACE to be a quick, fun read for book buyers.If you have any friends who you think might like receiving this column each week, simply click on "Forward this email" below and enter their email address. There is also a box in which to add a short message.
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WHERE TO FIND A BOOKSTORE
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Many of you already have a favorite local bookstore, but for those of you without such a relationship, this link will take you to a list of Northern California indie bookstores by region.
If you live or work elsewhere, you can click here to find the nearest indie bookstore by simply entering your postal code.
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