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Weekly Words about BooksJANUARY 12, 2014
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It's True - New Nonfiction Paperbacks Hit Bestseller List
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Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala. A story that begins with the description of a family killed in a tsunami may not be for everyone, but this unforgettable memoir is more than a tale of unimaginable tragedy. On the morning of  December 26, 2004, on the southern coast of Sri Lanka, Sonali Deraniyagala lost her parents, her husband, and her two young sons in the tsunami she miraculously survived. The account of that life-altering event is harrowing and horrifying, but it's not nearly all of the book. Deraniyagala has written an engrossing, unsentimental, and remarkably poised account of her long journey since - from early struggles to deal with her losses to learning over the years to remember and find joy in the rich life she had previously built.
Philomena: A Mother, Her Son, and a Fifty-Year Search by Martin Sixsmith. Originally published in England in 2009, this title is definite ly benefiting from the success of the movie out now with Judi Dench and Steve Coogan. The film focuses largely on Philomena's search for the son taken away from the then-unwed mother and put up for adoption 50 years earlier by the Catholic church. While also recounting that search, the book gives much more detail about Philomena's son, Michael Hess - his life as a closeted gay Republican lawyer in the first Bush administration and his time spent vainly seeking out his mother in Ireland.
Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by
Lawrence Wright. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author and New Yorker staff writer d ishes the dirt on Scientology in an exhaustively researched and well documented piece of investigative journalism. Wright gets behind the scenes with hundreds of interviews that reveal the secrecy, paranoia, and incredible wealth of the organization. He also makes every effort to present a fair picture, but the excesses, abuses of power, and overall creepiness of Scientology are difficult to ignore. At times, it's hard to believe this is a true story, but it's more compelling than any science fiction that founder L. Ron Hubbard wrote.
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New in Paperback -
Here Comes the Judge
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The first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor has become an instant American icon and was treated like a rock star while on tour for the book when it was first released earl y last year. Fortunately, the memoir was critically well received as well, helped by Sotomayor's candor and willingness to talk about her troubled childhood in a Bronx housing project with an alcoholic father and overwhelmed mother. While she recounts her determined journey to become a lawyer, it is her openness about her juvenile diabetes, the hardships she faced as a second-generation Puerto Rican immigrant, and a failed marriage that make her story all the more interesting. Cool lady.
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WHERE TO
FIND AN INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE
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.
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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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