September 2024 Staff PicksLike this list

19 items

• Alien 3

  Cadigan, Pat, 1953-

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  Pat Cadigan's Alien3, based on an old original screenplay by William Gibson that, unfortunately, didn't make it to screen, puts to writing unaddressed governmental enigmas from the Alien films for fans to piece together as they wish. How did people…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• American Rapture

  Leede, CJ,

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  There's no way to know exactly when the world will end. For Sophie, the end of the world came swiftly after finishing her penance and coming home to find that her parents have become infected by a mysterious new disease, colloquially known as…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Autocracy, Inc.

  the Dictators Who Want to Run the World /

  Applebaum, Anne, 1964-

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  Democracy was riding high during the 1990s. The Berlin Wall had fallen, and states of the former Soviet Union seemed to be moving toward open, democratic societies. Western democracies, most notably the United States and Great Britain, viewed the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Axeman's Carnival

  a Novel

  Chidgey, Catherine, 1970-

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  New Zealand novelist Chidgey's extraordinary latest features an unusual narrator: Tama, a magpie. Settle in, readers, because Tama has quite the tale to tell in this clever, suspenseful domestic drama. Marnie rescued Tama as a chick and sets him up…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Becoming Earth

  How Our Planet Came to Life

  Jabr, Ferris, 1987-

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  In science writer Jabr's debut book, he roams throughout billion of years of Earth history to help us appreciate just how active a role life takes in quite literally shaping the environment. Across three sections covering rock, water, and air, he…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Blue Sisters

  a Novel

  Mellors, Coco,

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  The Blue Sisters were always one of four until their sister, Nicky, is found dead in the family's NYC apartment. We meet the remaining sisters (Avery, Bonnie, and Lucky) a year after Nicky's death. Each sister has escaped the reality of their…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Butcher

  Father of Modern Gyno-psychiatry

  Oates, Joyce Carol, 1938-

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  Not for the squeamish, Oates's new novel out-gores the most extreme horror. Based on actual medical diaries, it tells of the rise and fall of Silas Weir, the father of what was known as "gyno-psychiatry." A violent and disturbing look at the way…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Dead Cat Tail Assassins

  Clark, P. Djèlí,

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  Eevee is dead. Or, to be more clear, she is undead. She has no memory as to who she was in life. All she knows is that she signed her soul away to the goddess of assassins and is bound to serve in death. Supernaturally powerful and agile, she moves…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dogland

  Passion, Glory, and Lots of Slobber at the Westminster Dog Show

  Tomlinson, Tommy,

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  Did you know that show dogs barely generate any income? Did you know that show dogs really do not do much, mostly standing doing nothing? Did you know that show dogs essentially attend boarding school with trainers just as the children of the elite…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Friday Afternoon Club

  a Family Memoir

  Dunne, Griffin,

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  Dunne's entertaining and poignant memoir of his privileged childhood among the Hollywood elite is dishy while exhibiting surprising depth. Griffin, the son of Dominick Dunne, nephew of Joan Didion, and best friend of Carrie Fisher, as well as an…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Liars

  a Novel

  Manguso, Sarah, 1974-

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  Manguso's searing novel about a collapsing marriage resembles a sort of diary following the relationship the narrator, Jane, has with John, both working artists when they meet. She's a writer; he's a filmmaker and painter. The red flags begin almost…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Night Guest

  Hildur Knútsdóttir, 1984-

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  Every morning, Iðunn wakes up completely exhausted. She is young and doesn't push herself physically, yet no doctors are able to diagnose her severe fatigue, sore muscles and aching feet. To gain some semblance of control over her situation, Iðunn…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Nosy Neighbors

  Sampson, Freya,

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  When Dorothy Darling spies a new younger resident, Kat, moving into Shelley House, her apartment building, she senses trouble. Dorothy, after all, knows everything that happens at Shelley House after documenting all the activity of its residents for…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Sandwich

  Newman, Catherine, 1968-

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  Empty nester Rocky is eagerly anticipating her family's annual vacation at a beloved beach cottage in Cape Cod, and simultaneously can't help dreading its inevitable end. A 54-year-old writer, Rocky is joined at the cottage by her aging parents, her…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Sorceress Comes to Call

  Kingfisher, T.,

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  Cordelia has lived a sheltered life. Kept mostly at home by her mother, her only real friend is their work horse, Falada. Spending her days toiling away in their tiny house, Cordelia can't even close a door and have a moment to herself without being…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Truth According to Ember

  Nava, Danica,

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  Ember Lee Cardinal has a seemingly simple dream: to become an accountant and quit her job at the bowling alley cleaning the often-clogged men's room toilets. But, time after time, her applications for corporate jobs are denied. At the end of her…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Undue Burden

  Life-and-death Decisions in post-Roe America /

  Luthra, Shefali,

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  At turns heart-breaking, enraging, and inspiring, this is a necessary book for anyone looking to gain a greater understanding of the current status of abortion rights and women's healthcare in America, and how we got here. The author intersperses…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Weird Black Girls

  Stories

  Cotman, Elwin, 1984-

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  Cotman's second short story collection is masterfully written, but the title is a bit of a misnomer. Many of his stories are surrounding Black men, not girls, but "weird" is definitely the right word to describe the stories contained in these pages…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• You Like It Darker

  King, Stephen, 1947-

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  This collection of short stories by Stephen King is proof that the author keeps getting better with age. Varying in length from just a few pages to a novella, each tale explores the unsettling side of things thought previously to be mundane. "On…Read moreRead more of this annotation