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Staff Picks

We love to read, and we've got some interesting recommendations. Check Staff Picks weekly for new titles!

The week of March 15, 2010

City at the End of Time by Greg Bear

How do three Seattle street kids affect a dizzyingly distant future? A complex, challenging treat for science fiction lovers.

Pond Circle by Betsy Franco

In Anna's pond, algae is eaten by a mayfly nymph, who is eaten by a beetle, who is eaten by a bullfrog…

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A Bit on the Side by William Trevor

Twelve haunting stories of men and women seeking respite from life's disenchantments, from a prizewinning Irish author.

The Monstrumologist by Richard Yancey

Gruesome supernatural horror, dressed up in a delicious Victorian gothic style.

Amarcord, Marcella Remembers by Marcella Hazan

Marcella Hazan forever changed how Americans cook and eat Italian food. Here, she looks back, from her childhood in Emilia-Romagna to her career as a famous New York cooking teacher.

Mermaid Queen by Shana Corey

A frail ugly duckling from Australia grows into a record-setting athlete, movie star and fashion icon.

Volk's Game by Brent Ghelfi

Chechnya veteran Alexei Volkovoy, gangster and military operative, is the antihero of this gritty, explosive thriller set in post-Soviet Russia.

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani

When 14-year-old Viola is reluctantly sent to boarding school, she finds solace in new friends — and uses the unsettling ghost she keeps seeing as the subject of her first short film.

Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith

Old Red and Big Red, Montana cowboy brothers, bring their best deducifyin' to a couple of suspicious deaths at the mysterious Bar-VR Ranch. Smart and funny.

The Bog Baby by Jeanne Willis

When two sisters go fishing in a magic pond, they find a winged blue bog baby and take it home with them.

The Love Wife by Gish Jen

Mama Wong inflicts a troublemaking Chinese cousin (or concubine?) on the household of her American-born son Carnegie and "Blondie," his Caucasian wife.

Destroy All Cars by Blake Nelson

The funny, bittersweet story of a teenage boy finding his voice.

Song Yet Sung by James McBride

A beautiful runaway slave with the gift of foresight centers this big, action-filled novel set in 1850s Maryland.

Groundhog Weather School by Joan Holub

Part comic-book, part science investigation, and all silly picture book fun.

The Best American Comics 2008 by Lynda Barry

Comics’ unique storytelling power shines in these 26 sophisticated choices from far outside the mainstream.

Say the Word by Jeannine Garsee

17-year-old Shawna finds her perfect world unraveling when she is unwillingly pulled into her estranged mother's life.

The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson

A pioneering doctor in 19th-century London tracks deadly cholera outbreaks in this gripping true story of medical detection. Our 2010 Everybody Reads pick!

Dodsworth in London by Tim Egan

Straight-man Dodsworth and his mischievous companion Duck take on Buckingham Palace in this gentle comedy of errors.

Carried Away by Alice Munro

A sampler of the best work of the Canadian short-story master who's been compared to Chekhov.

Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith

During World War II, a light-skinned African American girl "passes" for white in order to join the Women Airforce Service Pilots.

A Sense of the World by Jason Roberts

The improbable-but-true story of a blind young British sailor and his years of solo travel adventures in the early 1800s.

You Are the First Kid on Mars by Patrick O'Brien

A trip to the red planet, presented in vivid detail.