August 2017 Staff PicksLike this list

13 items

• Anything Is Possible

  Strout, Elizabeth,

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  In this haunting collection of interlocking stories with the emotional heft of a novel, Strout revisits small-town Illinois, the world that the heroine of My Name Is Lucy Barton fled in order to become a writer. Some stories feature characters a few…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

  Tyson, Neil deGrasse,

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  With his inimitable gift for explaining scientific concepts for the layperson, Tyson walks us through various profound mysteries of the universe, explaining the latest in scientific understanding in elegant, clear and engaging prose. Tyson, director…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Child

  Barton, Fiona,

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  When the bones of a baby are found at a London construction site, journalist Kate Waters can't resist investigating. Her search for the truth entwines with the story of two women, one missing a child and another holding on to a secret that haunts…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Death and Life of the Great Lakes

  Egan, Dan,

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  According to Egan's important new book, the biggest threat to the Great Lakes is the thousands of gallons of seawater brought in on foreign vessels every day, including invasive species which can overwhelm the lakes' natural order. There have…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Defectors

  a Novel

  Kanon, Joseph,

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  Joesph Kanon's intricately plotted novel opens with two brothers meeting in Moscow in 1961. Frank Weeks has been living in Moscow with his wife since his defection from the United States in 1949 when it was revealed he was a Soviet spy. His younger…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

  Honeyman, Gail,

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  Charming and matter-of-fact Eleanor Oliphant isn't looking to be the life of the party. She's content with her daytime office administrative job and spending time alone at night. Yet when she and her co-worker Raymond witness an accident together,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

  Jaswal, Balli Kaur,

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  Nikki is no proper Sikh girl. She's a bartender in West London and has always resisted what she sees as her family's restrictive immigrant culture. But after her father's death leaves her family in need of money, she takes a job teaching creative…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Essex Serpent

  a Novel

  Perry, Sarah, 1979-

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  In 1890s England, an independent and educated London widow crosses paths with a village vicar and sparks fly, affecting the lives of everyone in their circles. Cora is drawn to the area because of her scientific interest in rumors of a local sea…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Golden Hill

  a Novel of Old New York

  Spufford, Francis, 1964-

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  1740s New York City comes alive in acclaimed British writer Spufford's debut fiction. When a mystery man named Smith arrives from London, claiming he's owed a vast amount of money but refusing to explain his agenda, he instantly becomes the talk of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Hostage

  Delisle, Guy,

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  Hostage is an illustrated account of Christophe André's 1997 kidnapping. A French humanitarian aid worker, André, has only been in Nazran, Ingushetia, in the Caucasus, for three months when he is dragged from his bed by unknown assailants. He is…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Magpie Murders

  Horowitz, Anthony, 1955-

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  Magpie Murders is a delight. It manages to be both a love letter to traditional British mysteries and a gentle parody of them. Horowitz gives the reader two complete mysteries in one immensely readable novel. When editor Susan Ryeland settles in to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Readymade Thief

  Rose, Augustus

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  Lee, an invisible 16-year-old runaway from Philadelphia, steals, deals drugs to her classmates, and is sent to a juvenile detention center after a "friend" turns her in to the police. After escaping, she ends up in the Crystal Castle, a coop of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Revolution of the Moon

  Camilleri, Andrea,

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  In the 1600s Sicily was governed under Spanish rule. When a viceroy dies, it turns out he's named his wife to take his place as the head of local government. This sets up a glorious showdown between the just and noble Dona Eleonora and a corrupt and…Read moreRead more of this annotation