Staff Recommendations, Week of July 30, 2024

 

It's the last Tuesday of July. Let's wrap up the month with some good books. Here are the Boswellians' picks this week.

Oli Schmitz suggests a bit of space opera this week with Navigational Entanglements, a novel by Aliette de Bodard. Oli says: "Aliette de Bodard's latest packs action, political intrigue, and strong character work into a vibrant and enthralling space opera that you can devour in a day. I found the two main characters incredibly endearing and especially appreciated the inclusion of a point-of-view character that reads as neurodivergent, the dual-POV narrative providing a potent representation of how different minds approach and process the same world, events, and interactions. I picked up this book for the promise of sapphics and space drama, and Navigational Entanglements delivered!"

And now we head to the kids section for our next couple of picks. First, it's Jen Steele with The Night Librarian, a middle grade novel by Christopher Lincoln. Jen says: "Twins Page and Turner decide to bring in their dad’s prized edition of Dracula for appraisal at the New York Public Library, but they wind up losing it and discovering a whole other side to books. Characters are jumping out of their stories and wreaking havoc in the library. It’s up to the night librarian to wrangle these magical mishaps, but there’s a staffing shortage so the twins step up to volunteer duty to help her out. Along the way, they meet many heroes and villains from some of their favorite books. The Night Librarian is a fantastic graphic novel mystery about the power of books in our lives and finding your voice." Recommended for ages 8 and up.

Another middle grade novel coming out this week gets nods from Jen and Tim McCarthy. That's Fowl Play by Kristin O'Donnell Tubb. From Jen: "Fowl Play is a charming, heartfelt, and funny middle grade mystery. Chloe's larger than life uncle and best friend Will has died suddenly. Now Chloe's family must attend the reading of Will's last will and testament. Chloe expects the reading to be just like you see in the movies; what she doesn't expect is to inherit Uncle Will's African Grey Parrot named Charlie. Grieving the loss of her uncle and trying to make sense of it all, Charlie starts saying words like murder! And cyanide! So, Chloe decides to investigate and find the truth about Uncle Will’s death. With the help of her brother, grandma, and Uncle Frank, they will get to the bottom of what really happened to Will. I adored this book about family and grief and seizing the day!"

And from Tim: "Fowl Play opens with Chloe and her mom, grandma, Uncle Frank, and brother Jacob arriving at a shabby lawyer's office to hear the settlement of her beloved Uncle Will's estate. He was always full of surprises, including his rapid fall to illness and the way he disappeared from them at the end, but the family is not prepared for his final act. Uncle Will delivers his Last Will and Testament directly to them on video cassette! And Chloe is completely unprepared for the one thing she inherits from him. I’ll just say that her inheritance is alive, it seems to share her immense grief over Uncle Will, and it can talk. Chloe's inheritance is quite a character! And it’s starting to say things that reveal a life changing mystery surrounding Uncle Will. This is a wonderfully told, thoughtful, and highly entertaining story of a busy family whose priorities have just been radically altered, and the story of a girl whose middle school life seems to be coming undone. Chloe needs to figure out what it really means to achieve Uncle Will’s number one goal: “Seize the day!" (Just a final note: Chloe’s inheritance is an endangered species, in large part because they’ve been turned into pets. Uncle Will and Chloe weren’t at fault, but you can’t own one of these beautiful creatures today without a permit.)" This one is also recommended for ages 8 and up.

Late addition alert! Here's Jen's rec for The Black Bird Oracle, by Deborah Harkness, which came out last week, but is just as good this week! Jen says: "Deborah Harkness brings us back into the lives of Diana and Matthew. Diana never knew her father's side of the family; she was raised a Bishop, and that's all there was to it. All of that changes when Diana receives a summons from her great-aunt telling her it's time to come home. Family secrets are unearthed, powers are unleashed, and bonds are made when Diana and her family arrive at Ravenswood and meet the Proctor family. Another great edition to the Discovery of Witches series!"

And now we go on to the week's paperback picks. We've got just one for you, and it's a legacy rec from former Boswellian Madi Hill. She's on to a new state and new adventures, but she leaves behind her recommendation for Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Imposter Behind the World's Most Notorious Diaries. From Madi: "Unmask Alice by Rick Emerson is a debunking of the infamous 'real life' diaries that began with Go Ask Alice and the woman that was responsible for their creation. While the title alludes to the more recognizable Alice journal, Emerson spends more attention on its successor, Jay's Journal, that was one of the largest powder kegs to set off the Satanic Panic. After a Utah teen commits suicide, his mother turned to Alice author Beatrice Sparks to spread awareness of teen suicide and the need to focus on mental health, but instead, she created a false diary which became a smear campaign that destroyed the teen's family. This is the true story behind a relentless fraudster who was desperate for recognition and used falsehoods and fear to get it. Unmask Alice is the perfect read for the casual true crime reader that prefers to avoid the gory details. Just remember to check your sources."

Those are the recs of the week. See you back here next time with more recommendations. Until then, read on.