April 2022: Indie Next Picks, Our Bestsellers, Author Readings & More!

April 2022: Indie Next Picks, Our Bestsellers, Author Readings & More!
 
And check out the latest New & Upcoming Releases:
 
New Releases
by Tieghan Gerard
Out Now!
 
The millions of fans of the Half Baked Harvest blog and bestselling books have fallen in love with Tieghan Gerard's recipes for their wholesome decadence, unfussy approach, and smart twists on comforting favorites. Written and photographed in the stunning mountains of Colorado, inspired by her big, unique family, and focused on what you'll want to eat day-in-day-out, Half Baked Harvest Every Day delivers more than 120 all-new recipes that will feed your body and soul. For Tieghan, feel-good food isn't about restrictive eating. It's about enjoying real food with lots of flavor, and the satisfaction of sharing it with those you love. Finding balance is about giving your body and your cravings what they need, whether that's a light, vegetable-packed dish or a big ole plate of something comforting. In this collection, there are plenty of plant-forward favorites, like Chipotle Cheddar Corn Chowder and Spinach and Pesto–Stuffed Butternut Squash. Tieghan also shares flavor-packed family go-tos, like Pizza Pasta with Pepperoni Bread Crumbs, Crispy Carnitas Taquitos, and Spicy Pretzel Chicken Fingers with Hot Honey. And to keep a smile on everyone's face, you'll find luscious desserts, like Chocolate Olive Oil Cake and a Lemon Tart with Vanilla Sugar, made with a focus on wholesome, minimally processed ingredients. Whether it's breakfast, lunch, snack time, dinner, or dessert, this book has tried-and-true recipes that will make you feel good about sharing them at your table.
Whereabouts (Paperback)
by Jhumpa Lahiri
Out Now!
 
Exuberance and dread, attachment and estrangement: in this novel, Jhumpa Lahiri stretches her themes to the limit. In the arc of one year, an unnamed narrator in an unnamed city, in the middle of her life's journey, realizes that she’s lost her way. The city she calls home acts as a companion and interlocutor: traversing the streets around her house, and in parks, piazzas, museums, stores, and coffee bars, she feels less alone. We follow her to the pool she frequents, and to the train station that leads to her mother, who is mired in her own solitude after her husband's untimely death. Among those who appear on this woman’s path are colleagues with whom she feels ill at ease, casual acquaintances, and "him," a shadow who both consoles and unsettles her. Until one day at the sea, both overwhelmed and replenished by the sun's vital heat, her perspective will abruptly change. This is the first novel Lahiri has written in Italian and translated into English. The reader will find the qualities that make Lahiri's work so beloved: deep intelligence and feeling, richly textured physical and emotional landscapes, and a poetics of dislocation. But Whereabouts, brimming with the impulse to cross barriers, also signals a bold shift of style and sensibility. By grafting herself onto a new literary language, Lahiri has pushed herself to a new level of artistic achievement.
by Sonja Thomas
Out Now!
 
Signed copies are available; please specify any personalization requests in the order comments box when you place your order.
 
From the Desk of Zoe Washington meets Ways to Make Sunshine in this heartfelt middle grade novel about a determined young girl who must rely on her ingenuity and scientific know-how to save her beloved cat. Twelve-year-old Mira's summer is looking pretty bleak. Her best friend Thomas just moved a billion and one miles away from Florida to Washington, DC. Her dad is job searching and he's been super down lately. Her phone screen cracked after a home science experiment gone wrong. And of all people who could have moved into Thomas’s old house down the street, Mira gets stuck with Tamika Smith, her know-it-all nemesis who's kept Mira in second place at the school science fair four years running. Mira's beloved cat, Sir Fig Newton, has been the most stable thing in her life lately, but now he seems off, too. With her phone gone and no internet over the weekend at her strict Gran’s house, Mira must research Fig's symptoms the old-fashioned way: at the library. She determines that he has "the silent cat killer" diabetes. A visit to the vet confirms her diagnosis, but that one appointment stretched family funds to the limit—they'll never be able to afford cat insulin shots. When Mira's parents tell her they may have to give Fig up to people who can afford his treatment, Mira insists she can earn the $2,000 needed within a month. Armed with ingenuity, determination, and one surprising ally, can Mira save her best (four-legged) friend before it's too late?
by Jacqueline Winspear
Out Now!
 
A series of possible attacks on British pilots leads Maisie Dobbs into a mystery involving First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. October 1942. Jo Hardy, a 22-year-old ferry pilot, is delivering a Supermarine Spitfire—the fastest fighter aircraft in the world—to Biggin Hill Aerodrome, when she realizes someone is shooting at her aircraft from the ground. Returning to the location on foot, she finds an American serviceman in a barn, bound and gagged. She rescues the man, who is handed over to the American military police; it quickly emerges that he is considered a suspect in the disappearance of a fellow soldier who is missing. Tragedy strikes two days later, when another ferry pilot crashes in the same area where Jo's plane was attacked. At the suggestion of one of her colleagues, Jo seeks the help of psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs. Meanwhile, Maisie's husband, a high-ranking political attaché based at the American embassy, is in the thick of ensuring security is tight for the first lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt, during her visit to the Britain. There's already evidence that German agents have been circling: the wife of a president represents a high value target. Mrs. Roosevelt is clearly in danger, and there may well be a direct connection to the death of the woman ferry pilot and the recent activities of two American servicemen. To guarantee the safety of the First Lady—and of the soldier being held in police custody—Maisie must uncover that connection. At the same time, she faces difficulties of an entirely different nature with her young daughter, Anna, who is experiencing wartime struggles of her own.
The Committed (Paperback)
by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Out Now!
 
The long-awaited follow-up to the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Sympathizer, The Committed follows the man of two minds as he arrives in Paris in the early 1980s with his blood brother Bon. The pair try to overcome their pasts and ensure their futures by engaging in capitalism in one of its purest forms: drug dealing. Traumatized by his reeducation at the hands of his former best friend, Man, and struggling to assimilate into French culture, the Sympathizer finds Paris both seductive and disturbing. As he falls in with a group of left-wing intellectuals whom he meets at dinner parties given by his French Vietnamese "aunt," he finds stimulation for his mind but also customers for his narcotic merchandise. But the new life he is making has perils he has not foreseen, whether the self-torture of addiction, the authoritarianism of a state locked in a colonial mindset, or the seeming paradox of how to reunite his two closest friends whose worldviews put them in absolute opposition. The Sympathizer will need all his wits, resourcefulness, and moral flexibility if he is to prevail. Both highly suspenseful and existential, The Committed is a blistering portrayal of commitment and betrayal that will cement Viet Thanh Nguyen's position in the firmament of American letters.
by Donna Leon
Out Now!
 
What role can or should loyalty play in the life of a police inspector? It's a question Commissario Guido Brunetti must face and ultimately answer in Give Unto Others, Donna Leon's splendid 31st installment of her acclaimed Venetian crime series. Brunetti is approached for a favor by Elisabetta Foscarini, a woman he knows casually, but her mother was good to Brunetti's mother, so he feels obliged to at least look into the matter privately, and not as official police business. Foscarini's son-in-law, Enrico Fenzo, has alarmed his wife (her daughter) by confessing their family might be in danger because of something he's involved with. Since Fenzo is an accountant, Brunetti logically suspects the cause of danger is related to the finances of a client. Yet his clients seem benign: an optician, a restaurateur, a charity established by his father-in-law. However, when his friend's daughter's place of work is vandalized, Brunetti asks his own favors––that his colleagues Claudia Griffoni, Lorenzo Vianello, and Signorina Elettra Zorzi assist his private investigation, which soon enough turns official as they uncover the dark and Janus-faced nature of a venerable Italian institution. Exploring the wobbly line between the criminal and non-criminal, revealing previously untold elements of Brunetti's past, Give Unto Others shows that the price of reciprocity can be steep.
by Phillip Margolin
Out Now!
 
Defense attorney Robin Lockwood faces an unimaginable personal disaster and her greatest professional challenge. Robin is an increasingly prominent defense attorney in the Portland community. A Yale graduate and former MMA fighter, she's becoming known for her string of innovative and successful defense strategies. As a favor to a judge, Robin takes on the pro bono defense of a reprehensible defendant charged with even more reprehensible crimes. But what she doesn't know—what she can't know—is how this one decision, this one case, will wreak complete devastation on her life and plans. As she recovers from those consequences, Robin heads home to her small town of Elk Grove and the bosom of her family. As she tries to recuperate, a unique legal challenge presents itself—Marjorie Loman, a surrogate, is accused of kidnapping the baby she carried for another couple, and assaulting that couple in the process. There's no question that she committed these actions but that's not the same as being guilty of the crime. As Robin works to defend her client, she learns that Marjorie Loman has been hiding under a fake identity and is facing a warrant for her arrest for another, even more serious crime. And buried within the truth may once again be unexpected, deadly consequences.
by Karen Joy Fowler
Out Now!
 
From the author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves comes an epic and intimate novel about the family behind one of the most infamous figures in American history: John Wilkes Booth. In 1822, a secret family moves into a secret cabin some thirty miles northeast of Baltimore, to farm, to hide, and to bear ten children over the course of the next sixteen years. Junius Booth—breadwinner, celebrated Shakespearean actor, and master of the house in more ways than one—is at once a mesmerizing talent and a man of terrifying instability. One by one the children arrive, as year by year, the country draws frighteningly closer to the boiling point of secession and civil war. As the tenor of the world shifts, the Booths emerge from their hidden lives to cement their place as one of the country's leading theatrical families. But behind the curtains of the many stages they have graced, multiple scandals, family triumphs, and criminal disasters begin to take their toll, and the solemn siblings of John Wilkes Booth are left to reckon with the truth behind the destructively specious promise of an early prophecy. Booth is a startling portrait of a country in the throes of change and a vivid exploration of the ties that make, and break, a family.
by J. Kenji López-Alt
Out Now!
 
López-Alt's debut cookbook, The Food Lab, revolutionized home cooking, selling more than half a million copies with its science-based approach to everyday foods. And for fast, fresh cooking for his family, there's one pan López-Alt reaches for more than any other: the wok. Whether stir-frying, deep frying, steaming, simmering, or braising, the wok is the most versatile pan in the kitchen. Once you master the basics—the mechanics of a stir-fry, and how to get smoky wok hei at home—you're ready to cook home-style and restaurant-style dishes from across Asia and the United States, including Kung Pao Chicken, Pad Thai, and San Francisco–Style Garlic Noodles. López-Alt also breaks down the science behind beloved Beef Chow Fun, fried rice, dumplings, tempura vegetables or seafood, and dashi-simmered dishes. Featuring more than 200 recipes—including simple no-cook sides—explanations of knife skills and how to stock a pantry, and more than 1,000 color photographs, The Wok provides endless ideas for brightening up dinner.
by V. E. Schwab
Ages 13 & Up
 
Everything casts a shadow. Even the world we live in. And as with every shadow, there is a place where it must touch. A seam, where the shadow meets its source. Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for Girls, and all she has of her past is her mother's journal—which seems to unravel into madness. Then, a letter invites Olivia to come home to Gallant. Yet when Olivia arrives, no one is expecting her. But Olivia is not about to leave the first place that feels like home; it doesn't matter if her cousin Matthew is hostile, or if she sees half-formed ghouls haunting the hallways. Olivia knows that Gallant is hiding secrets, and she is determined to uncover them. When she crosses a ruined wall at just the right moment, Olivia finds herself in a place that is Gallant—but not. The manor is crumbling, the ghouls are solid, and a mysterious figure rules over all. Now Olivia sees what has unraveled generations of her family, and where her father may have come from. Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere, but will she take her place as a Prior, protecting our world against the Master of the House? Or will she take her place beside him? V. E. Schwab crafts a vivid and lush novel that grapples with the demons that are often locked behind closed doors.
by Kelly Yang
Ages 8-12
 
From the author of Front Desk comes a poignant middle grade novel about courage, hope, and resilience as an Asian American boy fights to keep his family together and stand up to racism during the initial outbreak of the coronavirus. When the coronavirus hits Hong Kong, ten-year-old Knox Wei-Evans's mom makes the last-minute decision to move him and his siblings back to California, where they think they will be safe. Suddenly, Knox has two days to prepare for an international move—and for leaving his dad, who has to stay for work. At his new school in California, Knox struggles with being the new kid. His classmates think that because he’s from Asia, he must have brought over the virus. At home, Mom just got fired and is panicking over the loss of health insurance, and Dad doesn't even know when he'll see them again, since the flights have been cancelled. And everyone struggles with Knox's blurting-things-out problem. As racism skyrockets during COVID-19, Knox tries to stand up to hate, while finding his place in his new country. Can you belong if you're feared; can you protect if you're new? And how do you keep a family together when you’re oceans apart? Sometimes when the world is spinning out of control, the best way to get through it is to embrace our own lovable uniqueness.
 
Coming Soon
by Emily St. John Mandel
Out: April 5
 
A limited number of signed copies are available for pre-order! Please mention in your order notes that you are requesting a signed copy.
 
The award-winning, best-selling author of Station Eleven and The Glass Hotel returns with a novel of art, time, love, and plague that takes the reader from Vancouver Island in 1912 to a dark colony on the moon five hundred years later, unfurling a story of humanity across centuries and space. A virtuoso performance that is as human and tender as it is intellectually playful, Sea of Tranquility is a novel of time travel and metaphysics that precisely captures the reality of our current moment.
by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Ages 12-18
Out: April 5
 
Signed and personalized copies are available for pre-order!
 
Twin sisters, Mercy and Hunter are witches, direct descendants of the Goode family, the founders of their town. After the murder of their mother at the hands of a foul demon, they have become the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds––ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and the darkest of creatures exist. Grief has taken a terrible toll on the twins. Rather than bringing them together, their sadness has torn them apart, driving Mercy to attempt to save the crumbling Gates without her twin and Hunter into the arms of a dangerous goddess. While Mercy looks for aid from Khenti, Guardian of the Egyptian Underworld, Hunter begins to realize the goddess she's allied with is more monster than deity. She needs her sister’s help, but Mercy is beyond her reach on an adventure that could cost them everything, including their world.
by Jennifer Egan
Out: April 5
 
A "sibling novel" to Egan's Pulitzer Prize-winning A Visit from the Goon Squad, The Candy House is an electrifying, deeply moving novel about the quest for authenticity and meaning in a world where memories and identities are no longer private. The brilliant Bix Bouton's new technology, Own Your Unconscious, allows you access to every memory you've ever had, and to share every memory in exchange for access to the memories of others. In spellbinding interlocking narratives, Egan spins out the consequences of Own Your Unconscious through the lives of multiple characters whose paths intersect over several decades. Intellectually dazzling, The Candy House is also extraordinarily moving, a testament to the tenacity and transcendence of human longing for real connection, love, family, privacy and redemption. In the world of Egan's spectacular imagination, there are "counters" who track and exploit desires and there are "eluders," those who understand the price of taking a bite of the Candy House. Egan introduces these characters in an astonishing array of narrative styles—from omniscient to first person plural to a duet of voices, an epistolary chapter and a chapter of tweets. A bold, brilliant imagining of a world that is moments away, The Candy House delivers an absolutely extraordinary combination of fierce, exhilarating intelligence and heart.
by Tui T. Sutherland
Out: April 5
Ages: 8-12
 
The thrilling conclusion to the Lost Continent Prophecy arc! Luna has always wanted to change the world––to fix it, to free it––even if she's never actually known how. Now that all of dragon- and humankind are in mortal danger, Luna is flying back home to Pantala with a team of dragons on a rescue mission, determined to be brave and useful. But saving a continent isn't as easy as a prophecy makes it sound, and "facing a great evil" definitely requires more than the fiery silk that Luna is uniquely able to create. As she fights her way to the abyss that hides the dark roots poisoning Pantala, Luna must uncover a long-buried secret and unite her friends, her enemies, and her own powers. If she doesn't, she won't get to change the world. She'll have to say goodbye to it––forever.
by Dav Pilkey
Out: April 12
Ages 7 & Up
 
The comic club is going in all different directions! Naomi, Melvin, and siblings are each trying to find their purpose. Naomi has an idea to get rich quick that causes a lot of commotion and emotion. And when faced with rejections, the friends try and try again to stay true to their vision. To top it off, a surprise visitor comes to class to stir things up. Will a desire for money and power cloud Naomi's purpose? Is it quitting time? Will the club ever be the same? The hilarity is nonstop as the baby frogs navigate sibling relationships, follow their path, and create art––with purpose! Featured as stories-within-the-story, the mini comics showcase each baby frog's perspective and individual art style. In this groundbreaking graphic novel series, award-winning author and illustrator Dav Pilkey uses a variety of techniques––including acrylic paints, colored pencils, photography, collage, gouache, watercolors, and much more––to illustrate each frog's creative purpose and encourage teamwork. The kaleidoscope of art styles, paired with Pilkey's trademark storytelling and humor, fosters creativity, collaboration, independence, and empathy. Readers of all ages will enjoy this fun, exciting, and purposeful graphic novel adventure.
by Caroline Kurtz
Out: April 19
 
Signed and personalized copies are available for pre-order!
 
By 1996, millions of South Sudanese have been killed, died of starvation, or fled the decades-long civil war ravaging their country. So when the Presbyterian Church in the United States begins recruiting a development team to work with war refugees in the region, Caroline and her husband Mark are eager to help. But it's only months before ghosts from their individual pasts whistle in to disrupt their marriage and their new postings. Caroline finds relief in teaching and peace work in South Sudan, but the heavy responsibility she now carries for dozens of vulnerable families--coupled with the prevailing ideas of Biblical womanhood that put pressure on her personal life––makes it increasingly clear that Caroline is under-prepared for the high-stakes crisis in which she is now embedded. Through a number of consequential mistakes and increasingly debilitating self-doubt, Caroline clings to hope that her willingness to stand with the South Sudanese will count for something in the end. A deeply personal examination of South Sudan at war—and a woman at war with herself—Today is Tomorrow shines a warm light on the darkest of places.
 
See below for our April 5 launch event with Caroline Kurtz!
by Rebecca Roanhorse
Out: April 19
 
Return to The Meridian with Roanhorse's sequel to the most critically hailed epic fantasy of 2020, Black Sun—finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, Lambda, and Locus awards. In Fevered Star, the great city of Tova is shattered. The sun is held within the smothering grip of the Crow God’s eclipse, but a comet that marks the death of a ruler and heralds the rise of a new order is imminent. The Meridian: a land where magic has been codified and the worship of gods suppressed. How do you live when legends come to life, and the faith you had is rewarded? As sea captain Xiala is swept up in the chaos and currents of change, she finds an unexpected ally in the former Priest of Knives. For the Clan Matriarchs of Tova, tense alliances form as far-flung enemies gather and the war in the heavens is reflected upon the earth. And for Serapio and Naranpa, both now living avatars, the struggle for free will and personhood in the face of destiny rages. How will Serapio stay human when he is steeped in prophecy and surrounded by those who desire only his power? Is there a future for Naranpa in a transformed Tova without her total destruction? Welcome back to the fantasy series of the decade in Fevered Star—book two of Between Earth and Sky.
by Emmeline Duncan
Out: April 26
 
Signed and personalized copies are available for pre-order!
 
Sage Caplin is taking her Portland coffee cart on the road to a sustainable music festival, but murder is an unwanted special guest. At Campathon, an annual eco-friendly festival held on a farm outside of Portland, fans celebrate the Pacific Northwest's music scene in quintessential PDX style—with gourmet food carts, reusable utensils… and lots of coffee. How else to get through three days of nonstop entertainment? Sage has scored a coveted place for her Ground Rules coffee cart thanks to her new-ish boyfriend, Bax, who's friendly with Maya, one of the musicians performing. The festivities begin with a stream of customers, friends, and acquaintances stopping by for Ground Rules' world-class blends, expertly brewed by Sage and her newest barista. But there are tensions between Maya and her former bandmates, who are on the cusp of making it big, and with Ian, the band's manager. When Sage stumbles upon Ian’s dead body in the nearby woods—his hand still clutching one of her coffee mugs—it's clear that someone’s grudge boiled over into murder. Can Sage work out who's responsible before another innocent life fades out, and the curtain falls on Campathon, and maybe her own future, for good?
 
See below for our April 26 launch event with Emmeline Duncan!
by Jenn Reese
Out: May 10
Ages: 9-12
 
Signed and personalized copies are available for pre-order!
 
A girl's quest to save a forest kingdom is intertwined with her exploration of identity in Every Bird a Prince, a gorgeous middle-grade contemporary fantasy by Jenn Reese, the award-winning author of A Game of Fox & Squirrels. The only time Eren Evers feels like herself is when she's on her bike, racing through the deep woods. While so much of her life at home and at school is flying out of control, the muddy trails and the sting of wind in her face are familiar comforts. Until she rescues a strange, magical bird, who reveals a shocking secret: their forest kingdom is under attack by an ancient foe—the vile Frostfangs—and the birds need Eren's help to survive. Seventh grade is hard enough without adding “bird champion” to her list of after-school activities. Lately, Eren's friends seem obsessed with their crushes and the upcoming dance, while Eren can't figure out what a crush should even feel like. Still, if she doesn't play along, they may leave her behind…or just leave her all together. Then the birds enlist one of Eren's classmates, forcing her separate lives to collide. When her own mother starts behaving oddly, Eren realizes that the Frostfangs—with their insidious whispers—are now hunting outside the woods. In order to save her mom, defend an entire kingdom, and keep the friendships she holds dearest, Eren will need to do something utterly terrifying: be brave enough to embrace her innermost truths, no matter the cost.
by Emiko Jean
Out: May 31
 
Signed and personalized copies are available for pre-order!
 
Return to Tokyo for a royal wedding in Emiko Jean's Tokyo Dreaming, the sequel to the Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick and New York Times bestseller Tokyo Ever After. When Japanese-American Izumi Tanaka learned her father was the Crown Prince of Japan, she became a princess overnight. Now, she's overcome conniving cousins, salacious press, and an imperial scandal to finally find a place she belongs. She has a perfect bodyguard turned boyfriend. Her stinky dog, Tamagotchi, is living with her in Tokyo. Her parents have even rekindled their college romance and are engaged. A royal wedding is on the horizon! Izumi's life is a Tokyo dream come true. Only... Her parents' engagement hits a brick wall. The Imperial Household Council refuses to approve the marriage citing concerns about Izumi and her mother's lack of pedigree. And on top of it all, her bodyguard turned boyfriend makes a shocking decision about their relationship. At the threat of everything falling apart, Izumi vows to do whatever it takes to help win over the council. Which means upping her newly acquired princess game. But at what cost? Izumi will do anything to help her parents achieve their happily ever after, but what if playing the perfect princess means sacrificing her own? Will she find a way to forge her own path and follow her heart?
 
April Indie Next Picks
 
Every month, the coalition of independent bookstores puts together a list of titles recommended by booksellers across the country. Here are some of their top picks for April 2022:
by Anne Tyler
Out Now!
 
"When Serena Drew thinks she sees her cousin in the train station as she returns from her partner’s parents, she avoids him, setting off a cascade of questions. Anne Tyler reminds us that in families, the ripples are crimped in forever."
—Kayleen Rohrer, InkLink Books, East Troy, WI
by Bonnie Garmus
Out: April 5
 
"Protagonist Elizabeth Zott's confrontations with 1960s patriarchy will resonate with women who lived it, but how she gets by while staying true to herself will inspire women of all ages. Read it—and give copies to all your friends!"
—Ellen Klein, Hooray for Books!, Alexandria, VA
by Annie Hartnett
Out: April 12
 
"Small-town residents—dead, alive, missing, and four-pawed—are the heart of this unforgettable novel of Emma's quarter-life and family crises. Hartnett's quirky humor makes dark stuff feel manageable, a skill we need these days."
—Maggie Robe, Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, NC
by Mary Laura Philpott
Out: April 12
 
"I have so much love for Bomb Shelter, as a mom, a woman, an animal lover, and simply as a fellow human. I love Mary Laura's humor and her compassionate and certain voice. I can't wait to share this book with EVERYONE!”
—Sue Kowalski, The Bookstore of Glen Ellyn, Glen Ellyn, IL
by Tara M. Stringfellow
Out: April 5
 
"Centering Black joy above all, Stringfellow's life-affirming debut follows three generations of unforgettable women in a gifted but tested family. Readers will cry, laugh, and sing. I hope we read Stringfellow for a long, long time."
—Katie Williamson, Square Books, Oxford, MS
by Ocean Vuong
Out: April 5
 
"Ocean Vuong comes home in his second full-length collection, exploring grief, violence, masculinity and queer life in America. Whether shoveling snow, reversing time, or losing his mother, Vuong will crack you open and heal you."
—Owen Elphick, Main Point Books, Wayne, PA
 
Former Indie Next Picks New in Paperback:
Mary Jane (Paperback)
by Jessica Anya Blau
Out: April 5
 
"Mary Jane is fourteen in 1975 and her summer job is full of surprises, spontaneity, and love as she is pulled into the family of the little girl she nannies. A sweet, funny story of self-discovery and belonging. This really hit home for me."
—Courtney Boches, Reads & Company, Phoenixville, PA
by Stephen Graham Jones
Out Now!
 
"Jade isn't the final girl; she doesn't fit the requirements for a typical slasher flick. When her town becomes the setting for a real-life slasher case, she fills the role of wise woman to the appropriate final girl."
—April Gosling, Boulder Book Store, Boulder, CO
What Comes After (Paperback)
by JoAnne Tompkins
Out: April 5
 
"Abandoned and homeless, a pregnant sixteen-year-old finds shelter in the home of a man who recently lost his son and his faith. What Comes After brims with feeling and is a poignant, redemptive story of loss and love. Keep tissues nearby."
—Jane Simons, The Dog Eared Book, Palmyra, NY
 
Annie Bloom's Bestsellers
by Taylor Jenkins Reid
 
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now? Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career. Summoned to Evelyn's luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the '80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn's story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique's own in tragic and irreversible ways.
by Art Spiegelman
 
The Pulitzer Prize-winning first installment of the graphic novel acclaimed as "the most affecting and successful narrative ever done about the Holocaust" (Wall Street Journal) and "the first masterpiece in comic book history" (The New Yorker). One of Variety’s "Banned and Challenged Books Everyone Should Read." A brutally moving work of art—widely hailed as the greatest graphic novel ever written—Maus recounts the chilling experiences of the author's father during the Holocaust, with Jews drawn as wide-eyed mice and Nazis as menacing cats. Maus is a haunting tale within a tale, weaving the author's account of his tortured relationship with his aging father into an astonishing retelling of one of history's most unspeakable tragedies. It is an unforgettable story of survival and a disarming look at the legacy of trauma.
by Stanley Tucci
 
From award-winning actor and food obsessive Stanley Tucci comes an intimate and charming memoir of life in and out of the kitchen. Stanley Tucci grew up in an Italian American family that spent every night around the kitchen table. He shared the magic of those meals with us in The Tucci Cookbook and The Tucci Table, and now he takes us beyond the savory recipes and into the compelling stories behind them.​ Taste is a reflection on the intersection of food and life, filled with anecdotes about his growing up in Westchester, New York; preparing for and shooting the foodie films Big Night and Julie & Julia; falling in love over dinner; and teaming up with his wife to create meals for a multitude of children. Each morsel of this gastronomic journey through good times and bad, five-star meals and burned dishes, is as heartfelt and delicious as the last. Written with Stanley’s signature wry humor, Taste is for fans of Bill Buford, Gabrielle Hamilton, and Ruth Reichl—and anyone who knows the power of a home-cooked meal.
by Xiran Jay Zhao
 
Pacific Rim meets The Handmaid's Tale in this blend of Chinese history and mecha science fiction for YA readers. The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn't matter that the girls often die from the mental strain. When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it's to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister's death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected—she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​ To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way—and stop more girls from being sacrificed.
by Brené Brown
 
In Atlas of the Heart, Brown takes us on a journey through eighty-seven of the emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human. As she maps the necessary skills and an actionable framework for meaningful connection, she gives us the language and tools to access a universe of new choices and second chances—a universe where we can share and steward the stories of our bravest and most heartbreaking moments with one another in a way that builds connection. Over the past two decades, Brown's extensive research into the experiences that make us who we are has shaped the cultural conversation and helped define what it means to be courageous with our lives. Atlas of the Heart draws on this research, as well as on Brown's singular skills as a storyteller, to show us how accurately naming an experience doesn't give the experience more power—it gives us the power of understanding, meaning, and choice. Brown shares, "I want this book to be an atlas for all of us, because I believe that, with an adventurous heart and the right maps, we can travel anywhere and never fear losing ourselves."
While I Was Away (Paperback)
by Waka T. Brown
Ages 8-12
 
When twelve-year-old Waka's parents suspect she can’t understand the basic Japanese they speak to her, they make a drastic decision to send her to Tokyo to live for several months with her strict grandmother. Forced to say goodbye to her friends and what would have been her summer vacation, Waka is plucked from her straight-A-student life in rural Kansas and flown across the globe, where she faces the culture shock of a lifetime. In Japan, Waka struggles with reading and writing in kanji, doesn't quite mesh with her complicated and distant Obaasama, and gets made fun of by the students in her Japanese public-school classes. Even though this is the country her parents came from, Waka has never felt more like an outsider. If she's always been the "smart Japanese girl" in America but is now the "dumb foreigner" in Japan, where is home...and who will Waka be when she finds it?
by Laura Moulton and Ben Hodgson
 
In 2011, Laura Moulton founded Street Books, a bicycle-powered lending library serving folks living outside in Portland, Oregon. That summer, Ben Hodgson became one of her most dedicated regulars, setting the still-unbeaten single season record for borrowing. Then winter came, and Ben's routines changed, and they didn't see each other for two years. Loaners is the story they began to tell when they reconnected. Their story is a lot of things: It's an oral history of a friendship, told in hyper-observant vignettes. It's a much-needed report from the frontlines of Portland's housing crisis. It's a DIY guide to creating your own street library. It's an indelible portrait of what it's like to experience houselessness for three and a half years. It's an unforgettable exercise in empathy. It's also very funny. Hodgson (or "Hodge" as Laura calls him) is a classic raconteur, and Moulton matches him tale for tale. Loaners alternates between their perspectives in an addictively readable, occasionally sublime way.
 
Livestream Author Readings
Omens Bite
Monday, April 4, 7pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes Oregon authors P.C. & Kristin Cast for the pre-launch of their new Sisters of Salem novel, Omens Bite. In book number 2 in the Sisters of Salem series, twin sisters and witches Mercy and Hunter are on an adventure that could cost them everything, including their world.
Today Is Tomorrow
Tuesday, April 5, 7pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes back local author Caroline Kurtz for a livestream reading from her new memoir, Today Is Tomorrow. Caroline will be in conversation with her sister, children's author Jane Kurtz. A deeply personal examination of South Sudan at war—and a woman at war with herself—Today is Tomorrow shines a warm light on the darkest of places.
Poetry Reading
Thursday, April 7, 7pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes a quartet of poets for a National Poetry Month reading: John Sibley Williams, Ashley Toliver, Amie Zimmerman, and Sara Lupita Olivares. Portland poet John Sibley Williams is the author of two newly released collections: Scale Model of a Country at Dawn (Cider Press Review Poetry Award) and The Drowning House (Elixir Press Poetry Award). Portland poet and Attic Institute teacher Ashley Toliver is the author of Spectra (Coffee House Press). From Portland, poet and PhD student Amie Zimmerman is the author (with artist Samantha Wall) of 31 Days/The Self (Ursus Americanus 2021). New Mexico poet Sara Lupita Olivares is the author of Migratory Sound (The University of Arkansas Press).
House Number 12 Block Number 3
Saturday, April 9, 2pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes Los Angeles author Sana Balagamwala for a livestream reading from her new book, House Number 12 Block Number 3. Sana will be in conversation with Karen Karbo, author of the critically acclaimed title In Praise of Difficult Women.
Counting to Bananas
Tuesday, April 12, 5pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes local author Carrie Tillotson for a livestream reading from her debut picture book, Counting to Bananas, a hilarious, mostly-rhyming picture book about a banana and narrator who can't quite agree on what their book is about.
Poetry Reading
Thursday, April 14, 7pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes Oregon poets Linda Ferguson and Mimi German for a livestream reading from their new collections, both published by local press The Poetry Box. Ferguson's Of the Forest is a story of three siblings, a spouse and a surname, and is threaded with poems that hint of danger while also celebrating love… and the sumptuous pleasures of language itself. German's Beneath the Gravel Weight of Stars is a lyrical force as it translates the language of suffering, trauma, addiction, sorrow, love, and the fires of life and death.
Double Shot Death
Tuesday, April 26, 7pm
Livestream: Register here!
 
Annie Bloom's welcomes back local authoir Emmeline Duncan for the livestream launch of Double Shot Death, the second Ground Rules mystery. Emmeline will be in conversation with fellow Portland mystery author Angela M. Sanders. In Double Shot Death, Sage Caplin is taking her Portland coffee cart on the road to a sustainable music festival, but murder is an unwanted special guest.
 
In Case You Missed it
 
Gift Cards
Both E-gift cards and physical gift cards are available in any amount, from $5 to $200. The e-gift card will be emailed to the recipient and can be used online at our website. Our traditional Molly Bloom gift cards can be mailed or picked up at the store.
 
Expanded Local Delivery Zone
We have expanded our local delivery zone! We now deliver to more of Portland and parts of Vancouver, Beaverton, Tigard, and Lake Oswego! If you are within our service area you will see "Local Delivery Service" as an option when you check out on our website.
 
Donate to Street Books
 
Street Books is a bicycle-powered mobile library, serving people who live outside. Street Books strives to empower people on the streets through access to literature and create a community of support for people living outside, through a shared love of books. Annie Bloom's Books is partnering with Street Books by offering 10% off books purchased for their wish list. To view that wish list and to find out more about Street Books, please see: Our Street Books Page
 
Libro.fm Audiobooks
Support Annie Bloom's by purchasing audiobooks through Libro.fm, an indie vendor dedicated to indie bookstores. They offer the same deep catalog of audiobooks as Audible at the same prices. You can choose various membership options or shop à la carte. Click to visit our Libro.fm store.
 
Kobo eBooks
Are you an ebook reader? Head over to Annie Bloom's Kobo store, where your ebook purchases also support independent bookstores (including Annie Bloom's, of course).
 
Annie Bloom's Books | 503-246-0053 | 7834 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219
 
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