Staff Picks
Liberty's Picks
I'm here because I love books! I lean towards the grim and strange, but, really, I'll read anything. Bukowski, Vonnegut, and Atwood are my all-time favorites, and I've recently enjoyed reading McCarthy, Stephenson and Brockmeier. I speak geek pretty well, too - science fiction and graphic novels are my favorite sections. When I'm not working with books and deciding what to read next, I'm reading. When I'm not reading, I'm either asleep or wondering why Chip Kidd doesn't return my calls.
Notes From the Underwire
This is the most hysterically funny collection of essays I’ve read. Quinn Cummings can’t help but be funny, whether talking about her pets, her daughter or her house. Even when tackling more serious subject matter, she knows laughter will get you through the tears. I laughed out loud through the whole thing. And remember: “We don’t use Mommy’s toothbrush to get the cat looking her best.”
Let the Great World Spin
This book is simply gorgeous. McCann tells intertwining stories revolving around the day Philippe Petit walked between the World Trade Center towers. Beautiful tales, full of love, loss and anguish. This is my favorite book of 2009 (so far).
The Forever War
Fans of old-fashioned hard science fiction will love Haldeman’s 1974 classic, finally back in print. Private William Mandella is sent back into space to help head off a possible alien attack. What follows is a a war that takes him through space and time, spanning thousands of years. A brilliant commentary on war and the repercussions of fear and ignorance.
The Little Stranger
I think Sarah Waters is the greatest living historical fiction writer, and with “The Little Stranger,” she has outdone herself. Not only is it a wonderful period piece about war, class and privilege, IT IS A REALLY SCARY GHOST STORY! 500 fantastic pages of simmering terror that will have you sleeping with the lights on.
Brooklyn
What is it about books written about NYC by Irish authors in 2009?* They’re all fantastic!“Brooklyn” is the sweet tale of Eilis Lacey, an Irish immigrant living in Brooklyn in the 1950s.Working in a department store to send money home to her family, Eilis is just getting over her homesickness and finding love in the States when tragedy strikes at home.Tóibín’s writing is precise and lovely, and “Brooklyn” is a masterpiece. *See “Let the Great World Spin”
Fifth Business
Want to read someone crazy-influenced by Charles Dickens who is not John Irving? Take a deep breath and read Robertson Davies’ refreshing classic about the little things in life and how the smallest of actions can bring the entire course of you life crashing down around your ears. Funny and wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
Wintergirls
Before you buy this book, there are a few things you should know: this book is not easy. It is ugly, often disturbing and quite shocking.That said: this book is amazing! It is haunting and brave, and Anderson gives Lia an incredibly powerful voice. Raw and unforgettable.
Disquiet
120 pages of gorgeously written, deeply,deeply, disturbed behavior. I loved it. Leigh cannot write fast enough for me. This is only her second book in ten years. I WANT MORE!!
Emmy & the Incredible Shrinking Rat
Unlike Harry Potter, Emmy still has parents—it’s just that they stopped noticing that she exists. Could this be the work of her evil nanny? With the help of her new friend Joe and an incredibly sarcastic shrinking rat, Emmy sets out to solve the mystery and win her parents back before it’s too late.
Slapstick
When people ask “What book do you wish you could read again for the first time?” without a doubt, it’s “Slapstick.” Vonnegut is my favorite, and to be able to experience his genius anew would be mind blowing. “Slapstick” tells the story of freakishly large twins who embark on a campaign to end loneliness in America. Bizarre, sad and sweet. Not necessarily his best, but certainly my favorite. You never forget your first.
Nobody Move
Denis Johnson is one of the most incredible living American authors—and “Nobody Move” doesn’t disappoint. Think “No Country for Old Men” meets “The Sopranos,” as imagined by Raymond Chandler. Funny, vicious and ridiculously fast-paced, like a really awesome punch to the cerebellum.
The Hunger Games
A post-apocalyptic “Survivor” television show, where children from twelve different villages are chosen once a year to compete in a battle to the death. The victor’s village is then showered with food for a year. Food, which is scarce, hence the title. Action-packed with non-stop thrills! (And the sequel, which comes out 9/09, is just as awesome!)
The Sorrows of Young Werther
I love love love this book. For anyone who has ever experienced unrequited love. Or had their hearts torn from their chests still beating. And then run across with a cheese grater. And set on fire. You get the picture.
Werther wanders the countryside, awash in misery as he pines for Lotte, his (unattainable) heart’s desire.
Goethe’s tale of young love and torment made Goethe one of the first literary rock stars, and compelled dozens of young men to emulate Werther’s actions.
I cannot stress enough how much I love this book. It's comfort food for a wounded heart, delicious disturbedness for a weak spirit. It's gut-achingly wonderful.
Did I mention how much I love this book?
The Forest of Hands and Teeth
Love means never having to say you're sorry… for trying to eat your brains.
Mary is a young woman growing up in a fenced-in village surrounded by zombies, never having known life without them.
Her attempts at love and normalcy are thwarted when the fence is breached, forcing her and others to flee.
Awesome - part “Handmaid’s Tale,” part “28 Days Later.” Action- packed and tons of fun!
Darling Jim
Think “Grimm Fairy Tales” for adults. A postman in Dublin realizes he hasn’t seen one of the women he delivers mail to on his route for a while, so he goes to investigate.
What he sees when he peeks through the mail slot in her door had me sleeping with the lights on!
But don’t worry—it’s not all scary. Moerk has woven a spellbinding tale of three sisters and love, lust and revenge.
Be wary of handsome strangers.
Cutting for Stone
The story of twin surgeons, born in Ethiopia to an Indian nun and a British doctor.
Rich with history and amazing medical details (Verghese is himself a doctor), “Cutting for Stone” is a love story to the beauty and horrors of human nature.
Simply marvelous.
Still Life with Woodpecker
Robbins is at his finest with a tale of redheads, aliens and mad bombers. Leigh Cheri, a deposed (and scandalized) princess, falls in love with eco-terrorist Bernard and meets aliens, while on vacation in Hawaii.
As her mother, Queen Tilli, would say: uh oh, Spaghetti O’s.
Fabulous fun and highly recommended reading for redheads.
84, Charing Cross Road
What a delightful little book!
The real-life correspondence between an American woman searching for a rare book and a bookseller in London.
A simply lovely, uplifting, little slice of life
The Silver Swan
Like “Christine Falls,” its predecessor, “The Silver Swan” is so lovely and beautifully written, the book becomes less about the mystery and wraps you up in the setting and time period.
You can almost smell the scotch and hear the rasp of nylon stockings as you read it.
(Benjamin Black has other amazing books under his real name, John Banville.)
Hello, Cupcake!
Whoever put “creations anyone can make” on the cover has never met me. I attempted the puppy cupcakes—they came out looking more like water buffalo in heat.
However,
this book is so colorful and fun and filled with great ideas, I can’t help but still look through it al the time. The cupcakes are AMAZING!
Perfume
A serial killer on par with Hannibal Lector!
Super-creepy Jean-Baptiste has the ability to capture people’s essence—but how he goes about doing it is not very nice…
Whip-smart and wild!
Dating Your Mom
Ian Frazier is so funny (and I’m not just talking about his ponytail.)
From discussions on the Bloomsbury group to, yes, dating your mom, Frazier’s essays are snort-inducing.
And watch out for the poisonous Mexican spitting mice!
Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed
Who says mole rats have to be naked? Wilbur likes wearing clothes, much to consternation of the other naked mole rats in his den.
The pictures are so cute! And of course, there’s a lesson about being yourself. But mostly, it made me think of the age-old question: why didn’t Donald Duck wear pants?
The Eyes of the Dragon
Forget everything you know about Stephen King—this is a dark, magnificent fantasy of love, betrayal and revenge.
An almost-fairy tale he wrote for his daughter when she was young, it’s fast-paced, imaginative and so descriptive you can practically smell the castle walls.
Duma Key
My interest in King’s recent books has waned, but this book has shown him to be 100% back to his fabulous old self.
Interesting, scary and fun - possibly the first time I read a King book and found it to be the perfect amount of pages.
Let the Right One In
Twilight,Schmilight— want an original, SCARY story for grown-ups?
THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!
Creepy, creepy, creepy and super smart, it’s as chilling as the Swedish winter where it takes place.
Plus, it will make you miss your Rubik’s cube.
Disgrace
I love books that bloody my lip, and this one tops the list—it’s a full-on head butt to the frontal lobe.
A disgraced teacher moves in with his grown daughter in Africa. It’s the gutwrenching and beautiful story of the wonders and horrors of humanity and how he tries to make sense of it all.
The Plague Dogs
Fascinating fantasy tale of two dogs that escape a science lab (sporting the wounds of the experiments) and strike out across the countryside in search of a better life.
Heartbreaking, in a really good way.
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Incredibly original and wonderfully realized. Diaz does an amazing job bringing geeky loner Oscar and his family to life. Simply magnificent.
Tepper Isn't Going Out
Can’t a guy just sit in his car and read his newspaper in peace. That’s all crumudgeonly Tepper wants.
Love, love, love this book—completely harmless fun!
Anathem
Brilliant fun!
If you love insanely smart, funny writers, and can trust them to drop you into an alternate world with strange customs and words, this is the book for you.
Stephenson once again shines with his brilliance. So smart it makes my brain hurt.
Samaritan
Fans of HBO’s The Wire are sure to love “Samaritan,” a fast-paced, gritty whodunit.
Price’s attention to detail, from police procedural to people’s last grasps at hope and humanity, are jarring and beautiful.
The Lost City of Z
Holy smokes, this book is exciting! Bugs, snakes, crocodiles, piranhas, cannibals—adventure galore!
David Grann has done an amazing job reconstructing Percy Fawcett, a real-life Indiana Jones. His extensive research really paid off.
This is going to be the Into Thin Air of 2009.
Close To Shore
Need another irrational fear? Read Close to Shore, about the 1916 shark attacks that Peter Benchley based “Jaws” on.
Not only incredibly scary, but also amazingly rich with history.
And, again,
SCARY!
Bathtubs are now the only safe bodies of water as far as I’m concerned.
The Executioner's Song
A fictionalization of the life of Gary Gilmore, the last man to be executed by firing squad in the United States. Mailer did such an amazing job with this story, it is impossible to think that this is a work of fiction. (The book received the Pulitzer.) Fierce and haunting, cruel and breathtaking, you can almost imagine Gilmore is a character Mailer made up. The fact that he was real will make your blood cold.
The Wasp Factory
A young boy lives in seculsion with his widowed father, where he lives in his own little fantasy world, blowing things up and tormenting small creatures. Meanwhile his (also) disturbed older brother has escaped from an institution and is making his way home. Delightful, deeply disturbing deliciousness.
In Cold Blood
This is the scariest book I have ever read. The true story of the murder of a family in a small town. This chilling classic is flawless. Lock all your doors and turn on all your lights before you hunker down to read Capote's masterpiece (that haunted him the rest of his years.)
Downtown Owl
Inertia and apathy in the early 80s' Midwest. A cross between early Douglas Coupland and Tom Drury's The End of Vandalism (another staff favorite). The reconstruction of the time period is spot on, the town of Owl is brilliant and the characters are wonderfully developed, living lives as white and cold as the approaching snow storm. A lovely little sleeper.
Choke
A young man swindles everyone around him as he tries to find money to care for his ailing mother. This is my favorite Palahniuk. Victor is a despicable deviant and the situations are ludicrous, but, boy, is it FUNNY. And the ending is fabulous. Proves that the protagonist doesn't have to be a good person (or even mildly well-behaved) to make a book great. Super twisted fun!
We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Merricat lives in seclusion with her sister, Constance and her uncle Julian. A few years before, Constance poisoned the rest of their family, and now they live in their big house, hiding from the judgemental eyes of the neighbors and trying to keep the world from getting in. Jackson is the queen of creepy, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle is her best.
Heart-Shaped Box
Give the new name in horror a big wet kiss: Aging rock star Jude Coyne purchases a 'haunted suit' over the internet to add to his macabre collection. What he also gets is a vengeful ghost who begins to wreak havoc on his home, making for good, bloody fun. Or, bloody good fun. Either way, the operative word is fun.
The Secret History
A close-knit group of classical Greek students, most of them living the high, privileged life, get involved in a murder. One of those great books where they tell you what happens on the first page and proceeds to describe the events leading up to that point. Chillingly wonderful.
The Poetry of Pablo Neruda
Reading Neruda makes me wish I knew Spanish, his native language. If his poems are this magical and wonderful in English, they must by twice as fantastic in Spanish. Be sure to check out what I am certain is the greatest poem about socks ever written.
Deadeye Dick
It's hard to pick just one Vonnegut - they're all fabulous- so I'll go with the one I re-read most recently. Nuclear annihilation and murder spearhead Vonnegut's usual 'laugh while you can, we're beautifully doomed' narrative.
As She Climbed Across The Table
Fresh, inventive love story. Boy meets girl. Boy gets girl. Boy loses girl to a void. A romantic triangle between a boy, a girl, and ...nothing. Lethem is wonderful, and this is tops.
Jamestown
Delicious and inventive settling-the-country, post-apocalyptic, weirdness. It's the settling of Jamestown in the future, where everyone has a cellphone and Pocahontas's onscreen name is CORNLUVR. Fantastic, bizarre fun.
A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories by Flannery O'Connor
Every word in these stories is perfect; painstakingly chosen and stunning. Reading the title story made me feel like all the blood drained out of my body and was put back in with a shovel. (That's a good thing.)
Snow Crash
One cannot read this and not realize that this book actually influenced our future. Hiro Protagonist, the, um, protagonist, is a pizza delivery boy by day, virtual world hero by night. Stephenson pretty much predicted Second Life and Google Maps back in 1992. So much fun (and funny.)
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
I cannot rave about this book enough! A retelling of Hamlet, with a mute boy who grows up on a dog farm. Pure, achingly beautiful, heart-wrenching genius. My prediction for the 2008 Pulitzer--it's THAT good.
Staff Picks
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- 3/10/10It's warm and sunny outside today. Okay, warmish... Anyway, hadn't updated the site in awhile as we clawed our way through the holidays and the dark winter months.
