October 2022 Staff PicksLike this list

16 items

• Afterlives

  Gurnah, Abdulrazak, 1948-

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  Set against the backdrop of European colonialism in early twentieth century East Africa, the latest novel by Abdulrazak Gurnah (2021 Nobel Prize for Literature winner) tells a story of family and entrepreneurship disrupted by war. Khalifa is a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Bangalore Detectives Club

  Nagendra, Harini,

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  Newlywed Kaveri is adjusting to her new life as a doctor's wife in 1920s Bangalore, while also keeping up her math studies in hopes of becoming one of the first female students at the local university. When a man is murdered on the grounds of the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Crying in the Bathroom

  a Memoir

  Sánchez, Erika L.,

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  Whether it's dealing with Imposter Syndrome as the daughter of Mexican immigrants on a MacArthur Fellowship in Spain, or how large she feels her mouth is, Sanchez serves it up with no chaser. She has a wicked sense of humor, and woe betide racists,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Devil Takes You Home

  a Barrio Noir

  Iglesias, Gabino,

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  Blending several sub-genres of horror, Iglesias's latest barrio-noir packs in the blood, guts, and highly disturbing, sometimes supernatural violence, including several instances of torture. After suffering through his four-year-old daughter's…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Dowry of Blood

  Gibson, S. T.,

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  This dark re-imagining of the brides of Dracula is a story of love, loyalty, jealousy, abusive power dynamics and freedom. Constanta lies dying in the mud when a mysterious stranger pulls her from the brink of death and makes her his vampire bride.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Ducks

  Two Years in the Oil Sands

  Beaton, Kate, 1983-

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  In her first full-length graphic novel, Kate Beaton (Hark! A Vagrant) shares her post-graduate experiences working in the Alberta oil industry. Beaton's memoir touches on many things both natural and unnatural, including isolation, trauma, and the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Eating to Extinction

  the World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them

  Saladino, Dan, 1970-

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  Over the past few decades, advances in science and technology, along with globalization, have led to a drastic reduction in the variety of foods that humans eat. While it may seem like our food choices have never been greater, the variety of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Golden Enclaves

  a Novel

  Novik, Naomi,

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  The wait for the final book in the spectacular Scholomance trilogy is finally over. El is possibly the most dangerous dark wizard in a generation, except she doesn't actually want to spend her life enslaving armies and setting off super volcanoes.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Hester

  Lico Albanese, Laurie, 1959-

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  This imagined backstory of Nathaniel Hawthorne tells the story of Isobel, a young seamstress from Scotland who emigrates to 19th century Salem, Massachusetts. Arriving in a New England still haunted by its past with witch trials and its ties to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• If I Survive You

  Escoffery, Jonathan,

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  In this debut collection of linked short stories (nominated for the National Book Award for fiction), Escoffery brings to life a proud Jamaican-American family in the Miami area. Trelawny, the bookish son, struggles to find a place. After Hurricane…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• I'm Glad My Mom Died

  McCurdy, Jennette, 1992-

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  With unflinching honesty and wry observation, Jennette McCurdy's memoir explores the complicated relationship she had growing up with an abusive mother and her journey of recovery. Pushed into acting as a six-year-old because it was her mom's dream,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Natural History

  Stories

  Barrett, Andrea,

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  Barrett has carved out a special niche in American letters, writing a dazzling series of interconnected novels and short stories about fictional scientists throughout history. Her latest collection covers the Civil War era through today, focused…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Our Missing Hearts

  a Novel

  Ng, Celeste,

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  Best-selling author Ng returns with a new novel illuminating the deep roots of family separation in American history. Set in the aftermath of the rise of a xenophobic and authoritarian government regime, a renowned poet and dissident is forced to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Seeking Fortune Elsewhere

  Stories

  Bhanoo, Sindya,

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  In eight jewel-like short stories, author Sindya Bhanoo gracefully captures the immigrant experience of diaspora in a collection bursting with fresh story ideas and executed with masterful skill and fluid prose. A widow in Tamil Nadu adjusts to life…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Stay True

  a Memoir

  Hsu, Hua, 1977-

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  At Berkeley in the 90s, Hsu was the kind of student who poured love into his zine, labored over mixtapes as the ultimate expression of love for friends, and obsessed over punk and indie music as he cultivated an outsider identity. He first wrote off…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Witch and the Tsar

  Gilmore, Olesya Salnikova,

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  Yaga has been misjudged for hundreds of years, known across 'Rus as the infamous and nefarious witch Baba Yaga. Contrary to popular belief, while she does live in a hut with giant chicken legs, Yaga does not eat children or fly around in a large…Read moreRead more of this annotation