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The Top Three Books I Didn’t Read
This list begins with a confession. I don’t read all the books. Let me be clear. I want to read all the books. I spend time with many of them, but alas I cannot read them all. At least not right away. I bring home treasured volumes and stack them high with full intent to get to them one day. Their spines are little billboards reminding me that there are amazing words within.
Book List
Capital in the Twenty-First Century (Hardcover)
By Thomas Piketty, Arthur Goldhammer
$39.95
ISBN-13: 9780674430006
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Belknap Press, 4/2014
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I’m absolutely not the only person who purchased this book and hasn’t quite made it through yet. French economist Pikety stirred up a lot of passions with his analysis of the pros and cons of global capitalism. Dense and academic at times, the book is not for the faint of heart, but I expect it will reveal a great deal about our life and times.
Indigo (Hardcover)
By Clemens J. Setz, Ross Benjamin, Ross Benjamin
$27.95
ISBN-13: 9780871402684
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Liveright Publishing Corporation, 11/2014
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An Austrian exploration of alienation and anxiety framed by a mystery inside a mystery. The only reason I haven’t read this yet is because it arrived in early December and I haven’t had time. As soon as things slow down, I’ll settle in to ponder the deeper questions posed by the story and its existential overtones.
Your Face in Mine (Hardcover)
By Jess Row
$27.95
ISBN-13: 9781594488344
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Riverhead Hardcover, 8/2014
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I’m not entirely sure how I missed this debut. The story is this: A skinny white kid secretly has a radical, racial reassignment surgery to turn him into a black man. Now, he calls upon an old high school friend to help him ‘come out’ and explain himself to his family and friends. One can imagine things do not go smoothly.
The Top Three Novels I Loved the Best
I can’t do a ‘best books’ list. I try, but I can’t. There are too many books to love. There are too many books I missed. But when I think back over 2014, these titles stand out
Faces in the Crowd (Paperback)
By Valeria Luiselli, Christina Macsweeney
$15.95
ISBN-13: 9781566893541
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Coffee House Press, 5/2014
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This translated novel is a shining star of 2014. The narrative shifts between a contemporary woman and the subject of her research: a Harlem jazz musician from the 1930s. Their stories unfold in a way that makes you question who is dreaming who. FACES is brilliant and beautiful. I adore this novel and can’t wait for her next. (See also: SIDEWALKS, her exceptional collection of essays.)
On Such a Full Sea (Paperback)
By Chang-rae Lee
$16.00
ISBN-13: 9781594632891
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Riverhead Trade, 12/2014
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In Chang-Rae Lee’s dystopic landscape, China has spread across the world to create order in the unruled landscape. When Fan’s lover goes missing, she abandons that order to seek him out and in the process becomes a folk hero for a generation. The people that Fan encounters on her journey are some of the most memorable for me, particularly Miss Cathy’s ‘Girls’ and their history mural. Chang-Rae Lee comes to Brazos on January 14 for the paperback book tour.
Boy, Snow, Bird (Paperback)
By Helen Oyeyemi
$16.00
ISBN-13: 9781594633409
Availability: Coming Soon - Available for Pre-Order Now
Published: Riverhead Trade, 3/2015
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I’m not entirely sure why this retelling of the Snow White story stuck with me. Could it perhaps be the exceptional writing? Or maybe it’s the extraordinarily clever use of source material. More likely, it’s that the story explores complicated, unexpected issues without judgement. You empathize with all three narrators and find that right and wrong, good and evil aren’t black or white.
The Top Three Most Beautiful Books
The book’s the thing. I know that I’m preaching to the crowd when I suggest that looking at a screen is a poor substitution for print. So take a moment and browse through all the beauties. The gorgeous editions are my favorite things to look at in the store right now.
Cover (Hardcover)
By Peter Mendelsund
$60.00
ISBN-13: 9781576876671
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: powerHouse Books, 4/2014
It’s book porn, plain and simple. COVER is an overview of the most beautiful, innovative and interesting book jackets designed by the inimitable Peter Mendelsund. A good cover design makes you want to pick the book up and never stop reading read it. Flipping through this book, I expect you’ll find dozens of new books to never stop reading, in addition to those that already grace your shelves.
North Korea: Anonymous Country (Hardcover)
By Julia Leeb, Jr. Karasek, Niko Karasek
$95.00
ISBN-13: 9783832798437
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Te Neues Publishing Company, 9/2014
I visited South Korea earlier this fall and took a day trip to the DMZ. It was really something to peer across the line into a country and society that has been isolated from most of the world since the 1950s. German journalist and photographer visited North Korea twice (as a tourist) and snapped some of the most amazing photos I’ve seen. The images in the book from teNeus show the people, places and festivals of North Korea. Every page amazes.
Here (Hardcover)
By Richard Mcguire
$35.00
ISBN-13: 9780375406508
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Pantheon, 10/2014
This exraordinary graphic novel defies easy description. Each page spread shows the same fixed view, but the year jumps around. Sometimes it's the 1950s and a suburban house. Sometimes its the swampy bog near the manor in the 1740s. Stories emerge. Connections are made across the years. This book will keep you looking and looking and looking.
The Top Three You Should Get Ready to Read in 2015
There is no shortage of great books on the horizon. I’ve read these already and can’t wait to get them into your hands and onto your shelves.
The Girl on the Train (Hardcover)
By Paula Hawkins
$26.95
ISBN-13: 9781594633669
Availability: Coming Soon - Available for Pre-Order Now
Published: Riverhead Hardcover, 1/2015
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A woman rides the train, pretending to go to work, pretending to be sober, and obsessively looking at her former neighborhood, and life she used to have. When one of the objects of her obsession goes missing, she realizes that she may have been a witness to a horrible crime. Or worse yet, the perpetrator. A must-read thriller to kick off 2015. January
A Kim Jong-Il Production: The Extraordinary True Story of a Kidnapped Filmmaker, His Star Actress, and a Young Dictator's Rise t (Hardcover)
By Paul Fischer
$27.99
ISBN-13: 9781250054265
Availability: Coming Soon - Available for Pre-Order Now
Published: Flatiron Books, 2/2015
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As it turns out, the current Sony Pictures debacle with North Korea isn’t the first time that state has been involved with Hollywood intrigue. Before Kim Jong-Il was the ‘Dear Leader,’ he ran the Propaganda Ministry and produced all of North Korea’s films. In the late 1970s, he kidnapped two of South Korea’s biggest stars and forced them to work for him. This true life thriller must be read to be believed. February 5
Whisper Hollow (Hardcover)
By Chris Cander
$17.95
ISBN-13: 9781590517116
Availability: Coming Soon - Available for Pre-Order Now
Published: Other Press, 3/2015
Houston author Chris Cander’s debut novel from Other Press is a multi-generational epic about religion and obsession in a West Virginia coal mining town. A terrible moment in 1916 echoes across decades, shaping the way an entire community understands good and evil.