All Features

Fiction

Good things, small packages

Feature by Harvey Freedenberg

Three short-story stalwarts showcase their acclaimed skills with their first collections in several years, while a newcomer who’s made his name in television and movies demonstrates that his talents aren’t limited to the screen.

For readers who lack an adventuresome streak, Lydia Davis’ distinctive short fiction can be an acquired taste. Can’t and Won’t: Stories won’t dispel that reputation, but admirers of Davis’ work will find much in this, her fifth collection, to reinforce their appreciation for her singular style.

A sizable number of the stories are based on excerpts from the letters of Gustave Flaubert (Davis translated Madame Bovary in 2010), while others are little more than fragments from Davis’ dreams and those of her family and friends. Despite these and other formal experiments like the story “Ph.D.,” which consists of a single sentence, or “Local Obits,” nine pages of life fragments of the sort that appear in each day’s paper, Davis is capable of expressing deep feeling. One example is “The Seals,” where the narrator describes her struggle to come to terms with the deaths of her sister and father three weeks apart seven years earlier, as she recognizes “the quieter and simpler fact of missing them.”

“Life is too serious for me to go on writing,” says the narrator of the story “Writing.” After reading a collection that’s as varied, vibrant and unsettling as this one, one can only hope Davis isn’t speaking for herself.

A LEGEND RETURNS
Lorrie Moore hasn’t produced a short story collection since 1998’s Birds of America, which included the classic “People Like That Are the Only People Here: Canonical Babbling in Peed Onk.”

In Bark: Stories, she returns with eight stories that blend her often wicked humor with keen insight into our struggles to cope with contemporary life.

Those characteristics are best illustrated in “Debarking,” where Ira Milkins, employed at the State Historical Society in Minneapolis, dips his toe into the “world of middle-aged dating” six months after divorce ends his 15-year marriage. He connects with Zora, a pediatrician whose emotional stability is as tenuous as her relationship with her sullen teenage son is strange. While Ira “had always thought he was a modern man,” he discovers that he “has his limitations.” “Paper Losses” is the heartbreaking story of Kit and Rafe, who embark on a long-planned, if ill-advised, Caribbean vacation with their children, even as they’re about to end their marriage of two decades.

The stories in Bark are liberally seasoned with Moore’s lightning-quick one-liners. Ira seeks “the geometric halfway point between stalker and Rip van Winkle,” and Kit muses that it was “good to date a nudist: things moved right along.”

In “Wings,” the collection’s longest story, KC, a musician in a failing relationship with her boyfriend, befriends an elderly widower and finds herself drawn ever deeper into his sad life. Reflecting on dying, KC imagines it would be “full of rue: like flipping through the pages of a clearance catalog, seeing the drastic markdowns on stuff you’d paid full price for and not gotten that much use from, when all was said and done.”

Certain writers excel in keeping their finger on the pulse of the era in which they write. Lorrie Moore unquestionably is one of them, and this book offers further proof of her deftness in doing so.

CELEBRITY LITERATURE
If you are tempted to dismiss former star of “The Office” B.J. Novak’s collection One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories as a celebrity vanity project, think again. Novak, a Harvard graduate with a degree in English and Spanish literature, is the real thing. With his brand of sharp, absurdist, observational humor, it’s easy to see him taking his place in The New Yorker’s “Shouts & Murmurs” column alongside stalwarts like Woody Allen and newcomers like his fellow actor Jesse Eisenberg.

Novak’s collection comprises 64 pieces, ranging from the two lines of “Kindness Among Cakes” to 20 pages, so if you encounter one offering that isn’t appealing, you generally don’t have to wait long before he delivers one that scores. Immersed as he is in pop culture, Novak finds it a ready-made source of material, as in “Walking on Eggshells (or: When I Loved Tony Robbins),” where the narrator turns her pursuit of the self-help guru into a self-help project. Celebrities like Kate Moss, Neil Patrick Harris, Johnny Depp and Elvis Presley also have their moments onstage.

But Novak fully displays his considerable skill in stories like “J.C. Audetat, Translator of Don Quixote,” in which a poet gains fame producing a string of increasingly improbable translations of great works, or in “The Ghost of Mark Twain,” where a middle school English teacher confronts an editor at Bantam Scholastic Classics with a surprising complaint about a certain deplorable word in Huckleberry Finn.

While it may not be as lucrative as his work in film and television, if Novak can continue to produce writing this fresh, funny and emotionally astute, he’ll have established himself firmly in a successful complementary career.

TALES FROM THE SOUTH
After the edgier short fiction of Davis, Moore and Novak, the Southern-based stories of Ellen Gilchrist’s Acts of God are likely to go down for many readers as smoothly as a cool mint julep on a steamy summer afternoon.

The characters in several of these 11 stories teeter on the edge of annihilation, and natural disaster, in particular, is never far away. “Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas” follows five teens from Fayetteville, Arkansas, who become instant celebrities when one of their number rescues a baby following a tornado in a nearby small town. Hurricane Katrina forms the backdrop for the two of the stories. In “Collateral,” Carly Dixon, a widow and mother of a 13-year-old son, finds herself making helicopter rescues in New Orleans as a member of the National Guard. Dean and Dave, two gay paramedics from Los Angeles attending a convention in New Orleans as the hurricane bears down on the city, decide to ride out the storm with a colorful new friend in a Jackson Square apartment in “High Water.”

Carly Dixon’s new lover dismisses his ex-wife with the comment that “she’s from up north and she doesn’t understand the South.” If you weren’t raised below the Mason-Dixon line, you’ll finish this collection with a better understanding of the lives and values of the people who live there.

Three short-story stalwarts showcase their acclaimed skills with their first collections in several years, while a newcomer who’s made his name in television and movies demonstrates that his talents aren’t limited to the screen.

NonfictionReligion & Spirituality

What you make of life

Feature by Howard Shirley

In time for the Easter season, six new books offer guidance for living a more spiritual life. Some are inspirational, some inspirationally practical. All offer wisdom for those seeking a stronger connection with God and a more fulfilling life.

The meaning of an abundant life in Christ is the central theme of Jonathan Merritt’s Jesus Is Better Than You Imagined. In this deeply personal and highly evocative book, Merritt takes the reader on a search for God through times of intimate communion and soul-searing doubt, sharing the highs and lows of his faith. Whether it’s in the silence of a desert monastery or the brash environs of a bar filled with sacrilegious art, Merritt discovers unexpected truths about Christ and about himself, and realizes that what Christ offers is more than anyone expects and far more than anyone even imagines. Written with soul-stirring simplicity and soul-baring honesty, Jesus Is Better Than You Imagined is both a balm to the wounded believer and the scarred skeptic, as well as a challenge to the committed traditionalist. Merritt calls for a personal encounter that’s not a list of dos and don’ts or pros and cons, but rather an invitation to a lifelong, one-to-one intimacy with a God who knows and loves us, regardless of who, what or where we are.

WORRY NOT
Part of Merritt’s point is that Christians are neither perfect people nor promised perfect lives, and that Christ promises to be there through every mess, mistake and miracle that comes along. This, too, is the central theme of Overwhelmed: Winning the War Against Worry by Perry Noble. Depression, anxiety and worry are not strange afflictions to which Christians should be immune, Noble writes. After all, Moses, Elijah and Paul all suffered through periods of deep depression, even to the point of wishing for death, while heroes like Joseph, Daniel and Christ himself dealt with sources of stress simply unimaginable to most people today. Noble points out that the promise of Christ is not that such struggles will not come, or that we will not feel overwhelmed, but rather that God will carry us through these struggles. With heart and humor, Noble shares details of his own personal battle with depression and stress, using the touchstone of Daniel and his compatriots (and even his kings) to reveal that God has a path through the worry and the fear, and a promise of Christ’s presence amid it all.

HAVING IT ALL
If the superheroes of the past weren’t immune to feeling overwhelmed, then certainly the superwomen of today aren’t, either. Holley Gerth’s You’re Going to Be Okay: Encouraging Truth Your Heart Needs to Hear, Especially on the Hard Days tackles stress, depression and anxiety from a woman’s perspective, for a woman’s life. Gerth brings her knowledge as a counselor and her own experiences with overwhelming worry to relieve the stressed-out and the harried. Filled with practical solutions, family stories and her trademark Southern wit, You’re Going to Be Okay is an intimate conversation with a friend who’s been there too and knows not only what you’re going through, but also that you can go through it—that you’re not alone, no matter what. If you’re a woman dealing with stress, anxiety or depression, or if you love a woman who is, then this is the book for you to seek out.

THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS
One of the foremost leaders in the fight against apartheid, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa comforted countless victims of brutality, rape, torture and murder while facing death threats and virulent racism himself. Yet after apartheid ended, Nobel Peace Prize winner Tutu was among the loudest voices calling not for revenge, but for forgiveness. That commitment and his own personal experiences—as well as those of his daughter, Reverend Mpho Tutu—form the basis for The Book of Forgiving: The Fourfold Path for Healing Ourselves and Our World. This is not a history of apartheid, though it informs the work, but rather an inspirational, practical and moving guide to finding and giving forgiveness, whether for a criminal action or a slight as ordinary as an insult. It is a path to peace, both internally and in community, offered with wisdom, honesty and beauty. Whether the pain you’ve received or given is great or small, The Book of Forgiving offers a roadmap to healing, from one who has followed it.

WISDOM FOR THE ASKING
In The God of Yes: How Faith Makes All Things New, Jud Wilhite points out that wisdom is neither mysterious nor unattainable—with God, it’s ours for the asking. Wilhite explores our lives today through the prism of Ecclesiastes and the eponymous Teacher’s attempts to discover the purpose and meaning of life. Anything but a dry Bible study, Wilhite’s book combines levity with modern-day reality to present an Ecclesiastes that is very much relevant to today’s reader, and an enjoyable read. By comparing our everyday experiences and cultural quirks and showing how there is “nothing new under the sun,” Wilhite offers insight into a God who offers the gifts we need for a fulfilling, meaningful life.

LIFE IS A CANVAS
Wisdom can be practical, but it can also be sublime—and the latter is the best word to describe Erwin Raphael McManus’ The Artisan Soul: Crafting Your Life into a Work of Art. Beautiful, rich, philosophical and inspiring, The Artisan Soul argues that we are all “little creators,” and that human creativity, imagination and love are what make us “the image of God.” Though his own background and relationships are with artists and artistic people, McManus says that we all have “an artisan soul,” from a master painter to anyone who flunked finger painting. It’s not the activity that defines us, but our imaginations—and our canvas is life itself. God has given us the paintbrush and the paints, and like a gentle master guiding a pupil, He is there to help us see what art we make of it. Whether you’re an artist or an accountant, The Artisan Soul will inspire you to make your life the masterpiece God intends it to be.

In time for the Easter season, six new books offer guidance for living a more spiritual life. Some are inspirational, some inspirationally practical. All offer wisdom for those seeking a stronger connection with God and a more fulfilling life.

NonfictionMemoirBiography

A grand slam for baseball books

Feature by John C. Williams

There are certain years that trigger immediate associations in any baseball fan’s mind. 1903: the first World Series. 1927: Murderer’s Row. 1961: Mantle and Maris. 1994: the players’ strike. Whether 2014 will produce such a season is yet to be written, but a tremendous crop of baseball books guarantees this year to be one for the publishing annals.

Is there any more complicated figure in the modern baseball era than Pete Rose? Consider the brief of Kostya Kennedy, author of the magnificent new biography Pete Rose: An American Dilemma. Those with even casual baseball knowledge are familiar with the outline: “Charlie Hustle,” Cincinnati Reds stalwart, the man who always slid headfirst and who attained the Major League record for base hits, is evicted from the game—as well as from eligibility for the Hall of Fame—for betting on those Reds while serving as their manager. Kennedy takes that familiar story and delves deeper, presenting an artful portrait of the blue-collar world Rose came from, the dream world he ascended to and the bizarre world he slipped into after his banishment.

In doing so, Kennedy touches on a theme well beyond baseball: the inherent contradictions of human nature. How could someone who willed himself to the top of his profession with such clarity of purpose throw away his legacy with such singular dissipation? The tragic element of Rose’s life—his ability to bend circumstances to his will in one context yet to lose all sense of rationality in another—is stuff worthy of Shakespeare. Kennedy handles it just fine, though. For the market, the book is pitched as a re-evaluation of Rose’s fate now that baseball has suffered though steroids, arguably a graver sin than gambling. Kennedy doesn’t break new factual ground or suggest “answers” so much as refocus the question. And he presents a compelling case that whether Rose deserves his lifetime suspension should be evaluated separately from whether he should be eligible for the Hall. It’s interesting enough material for the baseball reader, but the appeal of this book goes further. With writing of such quality and a subject of such complexity, it deserves to be read by anyone who appreciates good biography.

HARD-BOILED BASEBALL
No baseball book in recent memory has been as uproarious as They Called Me God, written by legendary umpire Doug Harvey with an assist from longtime sportswriter Peter Golenbock. Harvey, one of only nine umpires in the Hall of Fame and considered by many—including himself—to be one of the best of all time, worked the National League from 1962 to 1992. Stylistically, the book is a marvel, particularly while recounting Harvey’s origins. Its staccato style and fatalistic tone are on par with classic noir. Take, for example, this setup: “The regulars had been drinking, I’d had a few myself, and I was sitting there wondering what I was going to do with the rest of my life.” Or this meditation on his professional plight: “There was just one perfect umpire, and they put him on the cross.” I won’t spoil any more gems.

The book is billed as a tell-all. No kidding. Man, does Harvey settle some scores. His first wife, coaches who disrespected him, cheating pitchers and the league officials who enabled them—no one, it seems, is safe. But the book is written with such good humor and honest feeling that you can hardly begrudge Harvey these takedowns. Harvey only blows one call, so to speak, by including a painfully awkward story about the late umpire Eric Gregg that should not have seen the printed page. That aside, the book offers refreshing insight into an umpire’s world, and with considerable panache.

FROM THE FRIENDLY CONFINES
About 20 years ago, the band the Mountain Goats produced a tune called “Cubs in Five.” The title was a joke—the song is about stuff that is unlikely to happen—but it encapsulates nicely the futility of rooting for Chicago’s National League squad. Even if renowned columnist and Bunts author George F. Will hasn’t heard the song, he gets the sentiment, as is apparent from his latest baseball foray, A Nice Little Place on the North Side: Wrigley Field at One Hundred.

Appropriately for a topic as inherently funny as the Cubs, Will takes a droll approach. In about the amount of time it takes to soak in a ballgame, the reader is treated to a romp through Cubs history, from the origins of Wrigley Field up to the Steve Bartman debacle. As this is George Will, there’s a dollop of evolutionary psychology and economics on the side, though nothing much heavier than an Old Style. 

About that field. The title evokes it, and it is the focus of the book’s thesis: that the beauty of the ballpark is in large part responsible for the consistently poor quality of the product on the diamond. Will has discovered, through the work of some authors he cites, that ticket sales at Wrigley bear a smaller-than-normal correlation to the team’s record and actually are more sensitive to the price of a beer in the stadium than the cost of admission. By providing a good place to watch baseball, Will hypothesizes, management has relieved itself of the need to provide a good baseball team. At least the theory has the virtue of explaining the otherwise inexplicable phenomenon that is the Cubs.

BACK TO THE MINORS
Every kid dreams of hitting a game-winning homer in the World Series. No kid dreams of hitting anything at all for the Montgomery Biscuits. That, in a nutshell, is the idea behind John Feinstein’s Where Nobody Knows Your Name: Life in the Minor Leagues of Baseball, a thorough and enjoyable profile of the players, coaches, umpires, radio announcers and pretty much everyone else besides the peanut vendors who are associated with minor league baseball. By focusing on eight different people over the course of the 2012 season, Feinstein ably shows how the tantalizing promise of working in the bigs—not to mention the attendant compensation and creature comforts—shapes the lives of those who are still down on the farm. The book has a nice pace: casual and a little rambling, though a bit repetitive at times and with lags here and there. Not so different, come to think of it, than a midsummer Double-A tilt.

There are certain years that trigger immediate associations in any baseball fan’s mind. 1903: the first World Series. 1927: Murderer’s Row. 1961: Mantle and Maris. 1994: the players’ strike. Whether 2014 will produce such a season is yet to be written, but a tremendous crop of baseball books guarantees this year to be one for the publishing annals.

Peeling back the layers of human experience

Feature by Julie Hale

For National Poetry Month, we’re highlighing new collections from four American poets that offer fresh insights into the state of the nation. These visionary writers provide unique perspectives on both inner and outer conflicts: the horrors of war, the decline of the environment, the challenges of relationships.

SPIRIT OF '76
Dan Chiasson moves with sleight-of-hand smoothness through varied poetic forms in ­Bicentennial. This shape-shifting collection features a pair of plays, a number of compact, epigrammatic poems and longer pieces that unfold over the course of several movements. Cultural references abound as Chiasson revisits his adolescent years in 1970s Vermont, dropping allusions to cartoons, sports and drugs. “Tackle Football” offers an unforgettable verbal sketch of high-schoolers playing in waist-high snow: “We’re Pompeian before Pompeii was hot. / We have the aspect of the classic dead / Or of stranded, shivering astronauts. . . . ”

Chiasson trades the touchstones of adolescence for the paradoxes of parenting in poems like “The Flume,” in which he’s all too aware of “The future doing its usual loop-de-loop, / The sons all turning into fathers.” Chiasson never knew his own father, whose enduring absence seems to be the impulse behind works that explore symmetry and balance—poems in which equilibrium is achieved, and relationships are complementary. In “Nowhere Fast,” the parallelism is literal: “O my compass / Your wilderness / Awaits reply: / Say you and I / Will find our way / Eventually— / Like see and saw, / Or sea and sky.” Chiasson is a master of poetic construction, and his facility with form is on full display in this rewarding collection.

A COLORFUL TAPESTRY
Although the title might indicate otherwise, Maureen N. McLane’s excellent new collection, This Blue, is filled with green imagery: a “tapestried field” is “mossed ferned & grassed,” and the earth itself is “embroidered” with all manner of plants and trees. McLane writes with a deep awareness of geological time, history and human behavior, and the ways in which they’ve influenced the world. Poems like “Another Day in This Here Cosmos” address mankind’s abusive relationship with our world: “A park’s a way to keep / what’s gone enclosed forever.” Instead of being in sync with nature, McLane says, we’re “commuters” to it.

McLane makes delightful use of contemporary syntax. Contractions and abbreviations—sd stands in for said, yr for your—appear at unexpected points in her brief, sculpted lines. Her insights are often sociological in their precision. In “Replay / Repeat,” a playful and profound poem that examines the endurance of human habits, kids do what they’ve always done—“climb trees they’ve eyed for years / in the park, their bicycles / braced against granite.” Frisbees “saucering / the summer into a common / past” point to shared experience and collective memory. Again and again in these radiant, probing poems, McLane excavates the layers of contemporary experience and gets at the heart of what it means to be human.

THE POETRY OF REALITY
W.S. Di Piero’s Tombo could be read as the work of what the author calls a “vagrant imagination,” a mind that “rushes toward the world / in fear of forgetting anything: / witness and invent, it says. . . .” Di Piero seems to possess just such a psyche—capacious and insatiable and motivated by wonderment. He’s a precise recorder of everyday experience for whom small moments are sublime. In “Other Ways to Heaven,” he ponders “systemic pleasures”—preparing breakfast, reading a book—that in their regularity are remarkable because they “make us feel at home in our elusive lives.”

Many of the poems are prompted by a sense of inquiry, an effort to make sense of the world: “Let me be fool enough / to read meaning into / the twiggy lightning that cracks / the darkening distance / such meaning as animals / like me need to see.” In “Bruised Fruit,” Di Piero explains that his intention as a writer is to take readers “beyond / the sleepiness of selfhood” and “to give a right voice to scenes, to breakage and joy, / to plain plates of jam and bread.” In his reverence for details, Di Piero reveals what we might otherwise miss: “the unspeakable beauty of facts.”

ARMS AND THE MAN
U.S. Army veteran Kevin Powers explores the brutality of war in Letter Composed During a Lull in the Fighting, an urgent, haunting book that—like his acclaimed novel The Yellow Birds—draws on his experiences as a machine gunner in Iraq. The disconnection between his reality and civilian reality warps the way he sees the world. In “Separation,” he eyes some “Young Republicans” in a bar: “I want to rub their clean / bodies in blood. I want my rifle / and I want them to know / how scared I am still . . . when / I notice it is gone.”

Other poems find Powers pondering his own pre-war history. He writes effectively about his Southern boyhood and offers striking characterizations of his parents. As a whole, this collection is masterful—composed and controlled, taut and contained, with a sense of tamped-down passion that can stop the reader cold.

For National Poetry Month, we’re highlighing new collections from four American poets that offer fresh insights into the state of the nation. These visionary writers provide unique perspectives on both inner and outer conflicts: the horrors of war, the decline of the environment, the challenges of relationships.

Children's & YAPicture Book

Friends, silver and gold

Feature by Julie Hale

It’s never too early to start teaching kids about the importance of friendship. Offering lessons to live by, three delightful new picture books demonstrate the rewards of team effort and the power of partnership. As these clever tales prove, pitching in to help a pal—whether it’s with a stroke-of-genius idea or a simple word of cheer—can make a world of difference. That’s what friends are for!

A HIGH-FLYING TALE OF TEAMWORK
No goal is unattainable if you’ve got a gang of buddies to lend a hand. Of course it helps if they have smarts and pluck, like the animals that assist their penguin pal in Kerstin Schoene’s A Mountain of Friends. Giraffe, toucan, elephant, snake—all are concerned about the little penguin, who, attired in a tiny black hat and matching bow tie, slouches glumly on a chunk of ice. This bird clearly has the blues! Why? The flippers he possesses instead of wings prevent him from taking to the air. “Just once I want to soar above the clouds,” the penguin says.

In a fun twist, readers are prompted to rotate the book, which takes on a vertical orientation as the resourceful animals assemble themselves into a precarious pile that reaches to the sky. And who’s at the very top? The penguin! Poised on the tip of the elephant’s trunk, he’s able to enjoy—at last—the feeling of flight. Rendered vividly in chalk, pencil and watercolor, Schoene’s furred and feathered group shows just how important it is to support a friend in need. With its irresistible illustrations and inspiring upshot, this story soars.

A HOUSE BUILT ON FRIENDSHIP
Willingness to compromise is a terrific quality in a friend, as demonstrated by the companion-critters in Kit Chase’s new book, Oliver’s Tree. There’s Lulu, a dainty little bird, and Charlie, a trim, gray bunny. Both take to the trees in the forest with ease. If only Oliver, their elephant friend, could join them! During games of hide-and-seek, Oliver, with his big, gray bulk, is at a decided disadvantage. Lulu’s so light she can vanish up in the branches, and Charlie’s so slight he can hide inside a stump, but Oliver’s weight is too great for any tree. His attempt to scale a low-hanging limb ends in a crash.

Thoroughly dejected, Oliver stalks off and falls asleep. But Lulu and Charlie have an idea. On a broad, flat tree stump, using sticks and moss, leaves and rocks, they build a whimsical house. Size-wise—“not too small and not too tall”—it suits the trio to a T, and Oliver soon joins his buddies there for an inaugural game of pirates. Problem solved! Chase does a wonderful job of depicting the riches of nature—delicate mushrooms and vibrant blooms—with ink and watercolors. Her pink-cheeked woodland pals make this tale of cooperation a winner.

FRIENDS IN FLIGHT
Lita Judge’s too-funny Flight School is the tale of a misfit (another anatomically challenged penguin, as it happens) who, with the help of his mates, graduates with—there’s no better way to say it—flying colors. School is in full swing, and birds of every feather have gathered near a dock to try out their wings, including one latecomer—a penguin who’s more than ready to soar. “I have the soul of an eagle,” he says. Teacher, a stern-looking bird with a pince-nez balanced on his beak, regards his tardy pupil doubtfully but allows him to join the group.

After weeks of practice, the class is ready for flight day. Penguin takes off, but his flippers fail, and he belly-flops into the ocean. When he resurfaces, he’s ready to quit. But his chums come up with a clever way of getting him into the air. In the end, Penguin is so happy with his flight-school experience that he brings a new student to class—an ostrich “with the soul of a swallow.” Uh-oh.

Ford’s storytelling genius shines through her richly detailed watercolor and pencil illustrations. Her birds have character to spare. Overall grade: A+.

It’s never too early to start teaching kids about the importance of friendship. Offering lessons to live by, three delightful new picture books demonstrate the rewards of team effort and the power of partnership. As these clever tales prove, pitching in to help a pal—whether it’s with a stroke-of-genius idea or a simple word of cheer—can make a world of difference. That’s what friends are for!

NonfictionPolitics

Remembering the passage of a landmark law

Feature by Marianne Peters

Fifty years after the landmark passage of the Civil Rights Act, two new books capture the history of those tumultuous times. The story of the law’s passage is not just about the legislative process, though its approval by Congress was anything but a foregone conclusion. It’s a story about grassroots activism, unexpected allies, the clash of personalities and political posturing. It’s about finally putting an end to institutional racism and beginning the slow process towards justice and reconciliation.

Clay Risen’s The Bill of the Century and Todd Purdum’s An Idea Whose Time Has Come both cover the same chronological period (January 1963–July 1964) and events: key developments in the civil rights movement, the March on Washington, the introduction of the Civil Rights bill in Congress, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the transition from Kennedy to Lyndon Johnson and Johnson’s efforts to shepherd the bill into law. The books delve into the personalities, loyalties and strategies employed on Capitol Hill for and against the bill. These latter sections prove to be some of the most fascinating sections of both books, as the authors carefully set up the scenario for the final showdown on the Senate floor.

For those not familiar with the way bills become laws, the intricate details about procedure, cloture and filibuster can be daunting. What’s most interesting about these details is the way lawmakers used relationships to build support for the bill. This bridge-building certainly reflects a less-partisan time when politicians were willing to cross the aisle to support a worthy cause. At times the lawmakers were motivated by self-interest, but at other times they reflected personal conscience and the will of their constituents back home, both grassroots activists and ordinary citizens alike who leaned on their representatives to pass the Civil Rights Act.

Though the books are similar, Purdum’s lens is a wider in scope. While Risen concentrates mostly on the doings of lawmakers, Purdum touches on some incidents occurring at the time the bill was in Congress. In particular, he describes the pressure placed on Martin Luther King Jr. by FBI Chief J. Edgar Hoover, who seemed to have a special hatred for the Civil Rights leader. Releasing a scathing document about King that linked him to well-known Communists, Hoover apparently forced Attorney General Bobby Kennedy to initiate surveillance of King’s headquarters in Atlanta. This is the seamy side of Washington, when people become pawns in the fight to advance the very legislation they hope to pass.

Nowadays, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is something we take for granted. The Bill of the Century and An Idea Whose Time Has remind us of what life was like before the law was passed, and how the law itself was indeed “an idea whose time has come.”

Fifty years after the landmark passage of the Civil Rights Act, two new books capture the history of those tumultuous times. The story of the law’s passage is not just about the legislative process, though its approval by Congress was anything but a foregone conclusion. It’s a story about grassroots activism, unexpected allies, the clash of personalities and political posturing. It’s about finally putting an end to institutional racism and beginning the slow process towards justice and reconciliation.
Graphic Novels & Comics

Graphic novels with an edge

Feature by Becky Ohlsen

Harvey Pekar, best known for his autobiographical American Splendor, teamed up with artist Gary Dumm, editor Paul Buhle and a handful of others to create Students for a Democratic Society: A Graphic History. Though text-heavy for a graphic novel, it's an accessible and exciting look at the roots of the most influential student activist group of the 1960s and '70s. Concentrating on the years 1960-69, and packed with dynamic black-and-white drawings, the book digs into the motivations behind SDS, the struggles over method and direction within the organization, the personalities who shaped the civil rights and peace movements, and the external forces that worked against the radical left. In addition to Pekar, other former members of SDS tell their own stories, and the last few pages illustrate attempts to revive the group in 2006.

An interesting companion piece, also from Hill & Wang, is the equally accessible history lesson of J. Edgar Hoover: A Graphic Biography by Rick Geary. Using simple, straightforward line drawings (literally—Geary's artwork is full of pinstripes), the book traces the FBI director's journey from successful young lawyer to paranoid control freak, addressing key points in U.S. history along the way.

Another side of the nation's history comes to life in Incognegro by Mat Johnson, illustrated by Warren Pleece. With shadowy black-and-white artwork and hardboiled dialogue, Pleece and Johnson deliver a pulp-detective-style tale about a black newspaper columnist in the early 20th century who "passes" as white and writes an anonymous column about his experiences. Going undercover to investigate a series of lynchings, he becomes embroiled in a murder, a jailbreak, mob violence, a case of mistaken identity and a slew of other complications. True to life, there's no happy ending, but the characters find human decency in unexpected places, and the twisty plot makes for a gripping read despite the bleak subject matter.

A MOODY MEMOIR
Also fairly bleak, yet suffused with heartwarming optimism, is Frederik Peeters' memoir Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story. The book recounts Peeters' relationship with his girlfriend, Cati, who, along with her young son, is HIV positive. The author's expressive drawings instantly telegraph his mood, whether he's anxious, exhausted, terrified, nervous, adoring or cheerful. His engagingly realistic writing includes mumbled half-sentences, lots of ellipses and occasional Socratic moments where his thoughts swirl in worried circles and nothing makes much sense. Peeters is a well-known Swiss artist; Blue Pills, his American debut, was translated by Anjali Sing, the editor responsible for bringing Persepolis to U.S. readers.

EMOTIONAL STRUGGLES
Though handled with equal seriousness, the themes in Skim, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki (they're cousins), are aimed at teen readers. But that doesn't mean the book is free of emotional struggles. It opens with a broken arm and moves right along to teenage suicide, followed by possible gay crushes on teachers, best-friend betrayals and standard adolescent identity crises. The writing takes the form of a diary kept by 16-year-old Kim, nicknamed Skim ("because I'm not," she explains). The elegant illustrations call to mind traditional Japanese art but with a modern looseness; the drawings aren't always confined to panels, and key plot points are shown subtly, never exaggerated or over-explained. In other words, despite its hot topics, Skim is pretty cool.

Harvey Pekar, best known for his autobiographical American Splendor, teamed up with artist Gary Dumm, editor Paul Buhle and a handful of others to create Students for a Democratic Society: A Graphic History. Though text-heavy for a graphic novel, it's an accessible and exciting look…

Children's & YAPicture Book

Go your own way

Feature by Julie Hale

Featuring creatures with outsize personalities whose slightly subversive behavior is hugely hilarious, the picture books featured below are about defying expectations and bending the rules. Young readers, show the world who you really are!

Delightfully demonstrating the adage that there’s “nothing to fear but fear itself,” Jill Esbaum’s I Am Cow, Hear Me Moo! is a triumphant tale of self-reliance that features, of all creatures, a cow. In the barnyard one day, Nadine boasts about her own bravery, impressing her cow comrades, Starla and Nanette. To test her courage, the two suggest a trek to the forest. Nadine is game, although the sight of the woods—overgrown, dark and dense—quickly sparks fear in her heart. Nadine discovers that she loves the woods, but when she becomes separated from her friends and night falls, she’s terrified. With a twitch of her own tail, she spooks herself and takes off at a mad trot. But she soon bumps into her buddies, who were hopelessly lost. Convinced that Nadine saved them, they celebrate her as a hero—not quite the truth, Nadine knows, but close enough! Esbaum’s rollicking, rhymed lines give this inspiring story momentum, while Gus Gordon’s clever mixed-media illustrations will draw the kiddos in for a closer look. Who knew that fear could be fun?

HOLLYWOOD STARS
And the Best Comedy Award goes to . . . Richard T. Morris and Tom Lichtenheld for their screwball offering, This Is a Moose. Set in the woods during the shooting of a movie, this zany tale is the story of a star who eludes the typecasting trap and pursues new dreams. The lead, a moose with broad antlers and a defiant stance, has something to declare: He wants to be an astronaut! Clad as a spaceman, he steps before the camera, causing the director to call “cut”—the first of many such eruptions, as the star and his animal pals usurp the production. With gags aimed at grownups, showbiz jokes and a quintessential dictator-director, this is a brilliant send-up of cinema culture. On this set, a bear serves as gaffer, a chimp mans the camera, and a kangaroo wields the clapper. Lichtenheld is the real director here: His antic illustrations in ink, pencil and gouache make Moose a future classic. Readers will applaud this behind-the-scenes movie spoof.

HOW-TO HIGH JINKS
Camp Rex, Molly Idle’s madcap sleepaway adventure, features the blue-eyed tykes from her previous book, Tea Rex. This time around, the proceedings are less civilized, as blonde and beaming Cordelia and her impish younger brother (with teddy bear in tow) rough it in the wilderness with four grinning, agreeable dinosaurs. No regulation troupe, this! Led by the granddaddy of them all, T. Rex, whose kit consists of a red neckerchief and a minuscule scout hat, the gang goes on a march and (after some inexpert attempts at pitching tents) sets up camp. When it comes time to gather round the fire, T. Rex tears a tree from the ground, attaches marshmallows to the roots and gets to roasting! Idle plays it straight in the text, adopting a serious, how-to-camp tone that stands in hilarious contrast to her genius drawings. This is an irresistible trip readers will want to go on again and again.

 

This article was originally published in the May 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Featuring creatures with outsize personalities whose slightly subversive behavior is hugely hilarious, the picture books featured below are about defying expectations and bending the rules. Young readers, show the world who you really are!

FictionMysteryCozy Mystery

Sweet treats with a side of murder

Feature by Sheila M. Trask

Fresh settings, quirky characters and original twists abound in our favorite new cozies. Whether you prefer to sample exotic recipes, explore antique-filled English mansions, take a little break at a charming B&B or create a custom floral bouquet, a delightful adventure awaits in these books—oh, and murders, too. But don’t worry: The strong, determined and often hilarious women at the center of the action are sure to figure things out before it’s too late—if only just.

J.J. Cook, the beloved author of the Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade mysteries, moves from the hills of Tennessee to the streets of Mobile, Alabama, for the first in her new Biscuit Bowl Food Truck mysteries. Death on Eat Street is a quirky and entertaining mystery that centers on the backstabbing backside of the food industry.

Thirty-year-old Zoe Chase defies her parents by quitting her bank job to open, to their great dismay, a diner and a food truck. It’s not only her parents’ disapproval that Zoe has to deal with, though. Her new digs aren’t in the nicest part of town, and food truck vending turns out to be a cutthroat business. When a competitor is found dead behind the wheel of Zoe’s Biscuit Bowl truck, she finds out just how serious things can get.

Zoe and the delightful cast of supporting characters, including a lazy but lovable Persian cat named Crème Brulée, lend a light mood to this ever-escalating murder mystery. Zoe’s life is threatened at every turn, but she’s undaunted. She’s much more interested in sharing her famous deep-fried biscuit bowl treats with everyone from office workers to the men at the homeless shelter. Her kind heart and intrepid determination carry the day, along with her nourishing recipes, several of which are included.

BAD NEWS AT THE B&B
If you’re still hungry after your breakfast bowl with Zoe Chase, you might consider lunch at a new bed and breakfast, the Dixie Dew, where polite Southern chats over tea and cakes can carry a sinister undertone.

Award-winning author Ruth Moose makes her cozy debut with Doing It at the Dixie Dew, another tale of a woman reinventing herself. Instead of a food truck, Beth McKenzie is rehabilitating her family home and turning it into a warm and friendly B&B. Once the first guest is booked, she thinks she’s on her way, but things quickly take a grim turn when that guest turns up dead the next morning. Trusting the small-town gossip grapevine more than the local police to solve this crime, Beth follows a trail of precious jewels and deadly poison that leads her directly into the clutches of the astonishing culprits.

Along the way, she bakes muffins, falls a little bit in love with her handyman and stencils the heck out of her new tearoom. Beth’s bright optimism remains throughout, even when more murders are discovered and many of the clues appear to lead straight back to the Dixie Dew. Instead of dwelling on the implications, Beth and her friends make dark jokes—maybe the motto for the B&B should be “Rest in Peace,” they suggest—and move on. With Doing It at the Dixie Dew, Moose sets the stage for further adventures for the new innkeeper and her comrades; you never know who will come through the door next.

MOTHER-DAUGHTER MYSTERY
For afternoon tea, might we suggest a stop in the English countryside? In Murder at Honeychurch Hall, Hannah Dennison’s first novel outside of the popular Vicky Hill series, a thoroughly modern woman—television personality Kat Stanford—is tossed deep into the history of Honeychurch Hall. This 600-year-old estate holds many secrets, the latest of which is a missing—and possibly murdered—nanny.

The setting, the murder . . . none of it would even be on Kat’s radar if it weren’t for her mischievous mother, Iris, who has confounded her daughter’s respectable plans for her retirement by setting up housekeeping in a rundown carriage house on the premises. As exasperated Kat attempts to talk her reckless mother down from her latest adventure, the two share their aggravation and affection for each other in equal measure. Their entertaining banter anchors the fast-paced action, as readers come to suspect nearly everyone on the estate. Everyone has something to hide, from the stately Lady Edith to her fanciful grandson Harry. Even Iris has a few skeletons in the closet, leaving Kat to wonder about her own mother’s culpability.

Dennison keeps the twists and turns coming fast and furious, alleviating the tension periodically with humorous scenes involving the underwhelming local constabulary and unusual antiques like Kat’s beloved vintage Jerry mouse. In the end, it’s all connected, but readers will have a hard time putting it all together until the very last pages.

TILL DEATH DO US PART
It’s flowers and cupcakes for dessert at the romantic Rose in Bloom, a truly charmed flower shop in the small town of Ramble, Virginia. Owners and cousins Audrey Bloom and Liv Rose have an untarnished reputation for providing the perfect bridal bouquets, with the arrangements based on the Victorian meanings of flowers. These ladies are so good that not one of the couples wedded with their bouquets has ever gotten divorced. Just as the local paper is set to celebrate their success, tragedy strikes their latest customers: The groom turns up murdered, with flower petals from Audrey’s shop strewn over his body. Audrey has little faith in the local police, and when suspicion for the murder starts to turn her way, she relies on a strong network of friends and family to help her sleuth out the truth.

Bloom and Doom is the first Bridal Bouquet Shop mystery from Beverly Allen, who also writes as Barbara Early. Allen’s casual dialogue captures the camaraderie among Audrey and her co-workers, as they band together to design funeral flowers instead of wedding sprays. The central mystery definitely intrigues, although it may be a secondary mystery that holds the most surprising outcome. Both are revealed slowly, as Audrey and company realistically, and often comically, go through their everyday life accompanied by a charming parade of small-town characters, like the attractive cupcake chef from the bakery two doors down and Audrey’s crazy, escape-artist cat, Chester. Ramble is a town full of such characters, and there will surely be more for Audrey to discover in upcoming volumes.

 

This article was originally published in the May 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Fresh settings, quirky characters and original twists abound in our favorite new cozies. Whether you prefer to sample exotic recipes, explore antique-filled English mansions, take a little break at a charming B&B or create a custom floral bouquet, a delightful adventure awaits in these books—oh, and murders, too. But don’t worry: The strong, determined and often hilarious women at the center of the action are sure to figure things out before it’s too late—if only just.

Nonfiction

Farewells and fresh starts

Feature by Julie Hale

Whether it’s from high school or university, graduation is a milestone that’s certainly cause for celebration, but with it can come a new set of concerns—big-time worries about how to make the grade in college or in the real world. Whether your grad needs direction or already possesses a five-year plan, three new books offer plenty of inspiration, encouragement and practical advice.

Your teen may affect an air of world-weary ennui, but don’t let the cool facade fool you. If you have a teen heading to college this fall, he or she is bound to be feeling unsettled by the changes that lie ahead. The transition from home to dorm can be tough for any first-timer (they don’t call ’em freshmen for nothing!). Luckily, Blair Thornburgh’s pithy, practical Stuff Every College Student Should Know anticipates—and provides solutions for—many of the hair-tearing scenarios students face in their first year.

The book is organized into critical categories, including social life, academics and money matters. In addition to tips on how to make dorm-dwelling tolerable, Thornburgh provides succinct instruction in critical skills such as knowing how to brew a good cup of coffee, keep a mini-fridge clean and interpret the oft-confusing codes of a washing machine. She also provides advice on social savvy, with lessons in finessing potentially stressful situations, like dealing with a music-blasting roomie and landing a date with that special someone (or, conversely, calling it quits). From understanding Greek life and developing smart study skills to answering the question that looms over all college students—what should I major in?—Thornburgh covers all the bases in this pocket-​size guide. Mandatory reading for the college bound.

WISDOM FOR THE AGES
Listen up, class! Remember the high school graduation oration that David McCullough Jr. delivered in 2012? The talk that went viral on YouTube? That’s right—the “You Are Not Special” speech that the English teacher gave to Wellesley High School grads. Well, you can get your very own copy of that mind-​expanding address, along with some of the best real-world advice contained between two covers, if you pick up McCullough’s new book, You Are Not Special. In it, he explains all the stuff that teens stress over—how to deal with parents, pick the right college, handle peer pressure, choose a career. It’s great, because McCullough really gets where kids are coming from—he understands them on a level that’s, like, micro.

Seriously, though. When it comes to closing the gap that exists between teens and adults, McCullough proves an expert bridge builder. In his book, he uses his now-famous speech as a jumping-off point, encouraging young people to cultivate intellectual curiosity, compassion and self-reliance. He also demystifies parental behavior—an undertaking for which he’s overqualified as a father of four. Smart but not condescending, knowing but never a know-it-all, McCullough—a longtime high school teacher—issues small admonishments to teens (text less, read more) in a tone that’s exceedingly collegial. “The sweetest joys in life . . . come only with the recognition that you’re not special,” he told the 2012 grads. Those who can, teach.

A SIMPLE PROPOSITION
George Saunders is no speechifier. He’s a writer who makes every word matter, so it’s no surprise that the convocation address he delivered to Syracuse University grads in May 2013 was brief, to the point and oh-so-potent. Saunders, the acclaimed and award-winning author of Tenth of December, can cut to the heart of almost any matter in a few select sentences. His Syracuse speech lasted all of eight minutes but had enormous impact. Part of its appeal lay in the delivery—Saunders’ plainspoken, forthright tone. It was a deceptively simple address that packed a punch, raising resonant questions about contemporary values. When a transcript of the talk was published on the New York Times website, it went viral.

In time for graduation season, Random House has released Congratulations, by the Way: Some Thoughts on Kindness, a gift edition of Saunders’ oration. In it, he owns up to personal “failures of kindness” and proposes that people work on being, well, nicer to one another. Calling for a general recalibration of the moral compass, he suggests that we all try to “increase our ambient levels of kindness” and passes on solid advice to his audience: “Do those things that incline you toward the big questions, and avoid the things that would reduce you and make you trivial.” Sparkling illustrations and a special gift card make this a book that grads will treasure.

 

This article was originally published in the May 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Whether it’s from high school or university, graduation is a milestone that’s certainly cause for celebration, but with it can come a new set of concerns—big-time worries about how to make the grade in college or in the real world. Whether your grad needs direction or already possesses a five-year plan, three new books offer plenty of inspiration, encouragement and practical advice.

NonfictionParentingMemoir

What does it mean to be a mom?

Feature by Alice Cary

These four books add unique insights to this essential question, with subjects including an irrepressible immigrant mother, birth mothers and adoptive mothers, and a crusading mom who wants to liberate others from their guilt.

One can only imagine what Elaine Lui’s mother wants for Mother’s Day.

Lui, creator of the popular blog LaineyGossip.com, details her relationship with her uniquely irrepressible mother in a sparkling new memoir, Listen to the Squawking Chicken: When Mother Knows Best, What’s a Daughter To Do?

Lui explains that her mother loves to be honored on any occasion, even when it’s her daughter’s birthday: “There is no better way to demonstrate gratitude for Ma giving birth to me than to give her money. If it’s not the first thing she says when she sees me, it’s definitely the second thing out of my ma’s mouth when she sees me: ‘Where’s my money?’”

In this hilarious account, readers learn that Lui’s mother grew up in Hong Kong, loves rhinestone-studded clothes that her daughter describes as “China Woman Elvis,” and, most notably, has a grating voice that has earned her the nickname “the Squawking Chicken.” Despite a trauma-filled, poverty-stricken childhood, her mom persevered, remaining strong, even in later life when faced with a rare blood disorder. And she is certainly a woman who continues to be heard.

The Squawking Chicken has always been an in-your-face, controlling mom, and Lui describes numerous incidents when her and her mother’s wills have clashed. The details are fascinating, and the many cultural differences between China and the West are particularly intriguing.

Her mom usually ends up being right, Lui says. She’s also gotten used to the texts her mom sends after Lui appears on TV, such as “STOP MAKE UGLY FACE WHEN YOU TALKS.” Lui has made her peace with her mother’s intrusions; in fact, she would almost certainly be lost without them.

As she explains: “I am the Squawking Chicken’s only daughter and her only true friend. It can be a burden, sure. But mostly, it is my life’s honor.”

ADOPTIONS AND REUNIONS
When Caroline Clarke, an award-winning journalist, faced some health issues, she contacted the agency that had handled her adoption in 1964. She ended up discovering that her birth mother was Caroline “Cookie” Cole, the adopted daughter of Nat King Cole.

Clarke writes beautifully about this unexpected discovery in Postcards from Cookie: A Memoir of Motherhood, Miracles, and a Whole Lot of Mail.

Cookie had led a life of privilege, but when she became pregnant, she was sent away to a home in New York for unwed mothers. She wanted to keep her baby and, after her birth, delayed signing adoption papers. However, when she heard on the radio that her beloved father was hospitalized with end-stage lung cancer, she felt that she had no choice but to obey her domineering mother, sign the papers and head back to California to his deathbed.

When Clarke contacts her newly discovered birth mother decades later, their lives are forever changed. “This means everything to me,” Cookie says.

As a psychotherapist tells Clarke, “In every way, you got the fantasy.” Not only does she suddenly belong to a well-known, highly accomplished birth family, she has a wonderful, supportive adoptive family who nurtured her every step of the way. Still, the connection becomes at times overwhelming for both mother and daughter, and there are problems as everyone gets used to this new reality.

In a parallel but very different story, at age 18, Diane Burke got pregnant during a summer fling with a co-worker, a Muslim on a work visa from Jordan. Burke writes about how this event transformed her life in One Perfect Day: A Mother and Son’s Story of Adoption and Reunion. The young lovers quickly decided not to marry, and Burke’s horrified parents sent her off to secretly give birth in a home for unwed mothers. Burke wanted to keep her baby, but with no immediate way to support herself and the child, she gave him up for adoption.

Burke continued to mourn the loss of her son as she later married, had two more sons, divorced, remarried and became a writer of romantic mysteries. During turbulent times, she turned to religion for strength.

Years later, a stranger on the telephone asks, “Mrs. Burke, did you give up a child for adoption in 1971?” It was a question that would lead to Burke’s reunion with her son, Steve Orlandi. This riveting account describes the multitude of conflicting emotions that both mother and son share as they meet and get to know each other. (Steve also wrote parts of the book, explaining the emotional impact of reuniting with his birth family).

As Burke explains: “All reunions are intense, emotional, and complicated. It is the past colliding with the present and being faced with an uncertain future. It is joy and pain and hope and disappointment. But it can become a relationship founded on love and blessed with commitment and happiness.”

GUILT BE GONE
Daisy Waugh is a busy, accomplished mother of three. She’s also a British novelist and journalist, and the granddaughter of literary lion Evelyn Waugh. In The Kids Will Be Fine: Guilt-Free Motherhood for Thoroughly Modern Women, Waugh makes it clear that she loves being a mother, but adds that “there have been many moments when I felt bewildered and alienated by society’s inflexible expectations of me as a mother.” As a result, she offers “some potentially liberating observations for mothers” who’ve been led to believe they should focus solely on their child’s every need.

Her blunt and amusing advice is divided into sections on Pregnancy and Birth, Baby Care, Child Care, School, and Charm School. After three kids, Waugh has learned which battles aren’t worth fighting, such as the harangues parents make about kids wearing coats in cold weather. She advises a live-and-learn policy: “As often as not, the children are only taking eight short but breezy steps from hallway to the back of a heated car. . . . It shouldn’t matter much, even in a snowstorm, if they made the journey in their underpants.”

Waugh’s views on parenting without guilt are bound to be controversial, such as her thoughts on organic food, which she describes as “a waste of money.” I myself disagree with a number of her notions, such as her dislike of having children write thank-you notes.

Whatever your thoughts on motherhood, Waugh’s eye-opening approach offers a new perspective on what makes a “good” mother.

 

This article was originally published in the May 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

These four books add unique insights to this essential question, with subjects including an irrepressible immigrant mother, birth mothers and adoptive mothers, and a crusading mom who wants to liberate others from their guilt.

Children's & YAPicture Book

Start your engines

Feature by Heather Seggel

Three picture books about racing use the excitement of competition to introduce themes of cooperation, collaboration and sharing.

AND THEY’RE OFF!
Jamie Harper’s Miles to the Finish finds Miles and his buddy Otto polishing their wheels for the preschool Grand Prix when trouble arrives in the form of a woman. Well, a girl—Indie’s a racer, too, with a much faster car. Miles is determined to beat her, but cooperation and friendship win the day. The book’s brightly colored mixed media art and dialogue-driven story make it perfect for reading aloud, right down to the big “ERRRRRH!” when Miles slams on the brakes. Such drama!

FRIENDLY COMPETITION
Miles and his friends are human, but Number One Sam is a dashing dog who’s used to being number one on the track. When he loses a race, his confidence is shaken, and he neglects his best friend. Another race looks like it’s in the bag, but when a crisis arises, Sam does the right thing and is able to enjoy a different kind of victory. Author/illustrator Greg Pizzoli uses bold colors and simple designs here, so the little things stand out: When Sam loses, his car’s big red “1” is crossed out and a blue “2” is handwritten beside it; when he stops to help some birds, their chatter includes one asking him to slow down and another declaring, “You are my idol.” He’ll be yours, too.

WINNER’S CIRCLE
Chisato Tashiro’s Five Nice Mice series hits the road with Five Nice Mice & the Great Car Race. It’s the most visually complex book here, but has the simplest story: The mice compete in an auto race whose prize is the biggest piece of cheese imaginable! Inspired to succeed, they design a car from an empty can (of Red Bull) with a battery-powered motor and a secret weapon to help them reach the finish line. The race takes the competitors through an outdoor market and public park, past curious children, dogs and mice lining the race path with directional flags. Tashiro gives each mouse a distinct look and personality, and kids will have fun picking them out of the crowd. The moral here is simple—an edible prize is best shared with friends—and who can argue with that? These mice really are nice.

 

Heather Seggel reads too much and writes all about it in Northern California.

Three picture books about racing use the excitement of competition to introduce themes of cooperation, collaboration and sharing.

RomanceFiction

‘Tis the season . . . for weddings

Feature by Lois Dyer

Spring has arrived and, with it, wedding season. Brimming with adventure, humor, danger, surprises, mystery and, of course, love, these four new nuptial-themed romance novels will surely send you swooning.

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY
In It Happened One Wedding by best-selling author Julie James, successful investment banker Sidney Sinclair is caught up in her younger sister’s whirlwind wedding plans. Unfortunately for Sidney, being maid of honor means she has to deal with Vaughn Roberts, the sexy brother of her sister’s groom. An experienced FBI agent, Vaughn has a love-’em-and-leave-’em approach to women: He dates a lot but has no interest in commitment. Sidney has dated too many guys who share Vaughn’s attitude and has decided she’s done with playboys. She’s made a list of requirements for her next boyfriend, and Vaughn doesn’t seem to have any of them.

Unfortunately for Sidney, she can’t ignore the powerful attraction growing between her and Vaughn, especially when they’re constantly thrown together as part of the wedding preparations. Vaughn’s having his own problems because spending time with Sidney is making him question whether he truly wants to avoid commitment—or if he just hasn’t met the right woman until now.

This battle-of-the-sexes novel is rich with detail about the world of investment banking and FBI undercover work. The secondary characters are charming, while Vaughn and Sidney will tug at readers’ hearts and make them smile.

A KILLER BRIDEGROOM
Otherwise Engaged, the latest historical romance by Amanda Quick (aka Seattle’s Jayne Ann Krentz), is set in 19th-century London. In the opening chapter, intrepid world traveler Amity Doncaster saves the life of Benedict Stanbridge, finding herself drawn to the mysterious engineer. It isn’t until later, when the report of her bravery causes gossip in London, that their paths cross again. And Benedict’s arrival is none too soon, because the scandal has placed Amity directly in the path of a serial killer known as the Bridegroom. Benedict immediately joins forces with Amity to begin a search for the killer, who turns out to be a formidable opponent. Despite their combined talent and intelligence, and the fact that they’re aided by a Scotland Yard investigator and Amity’s sister, whether they will survive the machinations of the madman is anyone’s guess.

Historical details provide a wonderful backdrop to this story of romance and murder. Readers will particularly enjoy the creative weapon employed by Amity, the intricacies of the mystery plot that will keep everyone guessing as to the identity of the killer and the heated attraction between Amity and Benedict. If you love a good mystery with your romance, this one’s for you.

TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH AND BACK
A Wedding by Dawn—the second historical romance from Alison DeLaine—opens with the introduction of Nicholas Warre, the handsome Lord Taggart. He is desperately in need of funds to save his estate, which he’s determined to secure by marrying a wealthy heiress. Although Lady India Sinclair is equally determined not to marry, her father has given his consent for her to marry Nicholas in return for a large sum of cash. The dice, it would appear, have been cast. But Nicholas soon learns that striking a bargain with her father and actually finalizing a marriage with India are two very different things. First he must find her. When Nicholas tracks India down to the Mediterranean, he discovers her dressed as a sailor and downing ale in a seaside tavern. After India starts a brawl, Nicholas fights his way out of the tavern—with bruises, yes, but also with India in hand. Victory seems within his grasp, but he quickly learns that nothing involving Lady Sinclair is ever easy. The two bicker their way across Europe and eventually back to England, after a brief wedding ceremony in Paris. Both are hiding secrets; both have vulnerable hearts; and both have fallen in love. If they can only bring themselves to cry peace and bare their souls, they may find happiness. However, the cost of exposure may be too high, even for these two brave and resourceful people.

In this tale of adventure and romance, two honorable, caring people are caught in circumstances that would doom a happy ending for any ordinary couple. But Nicholas and India are not just any hero and heroine. If ever a couple deserved a happily-ever-after, it’s India and Nicholas.

THEY MEET AGAIN
Best-selling author Victoria Alexander matches an American entrepreneur and an English lady in The Scandalous Adventures of the Sister of the Bride. When widowed Lady Delilah Hargate joins her family at Millworth Manor to aid in the preparations for her sister’s wedding, she’s stunned to learn that the groom’s best friend is Samuel Russell, the man she spent one very enthralling night with in New York a few months ago. She thought she’d never have to see him again, but now that he’s here, she can’t stop thinking about him. Given that Samuel is a houseguest, Delilah can neither avoid nor ignore him. For his part, Samuel is delighted to be thrown into Delilah’s company. He hasn’t been able to forget their passionate night and plans to learn much more about the lovely Delilah during his stay. However, between wedding preparations, Delilah’s stubborn insistence that she is not in love with him and frustrating problems with an experimental motorcar, Samuel’s got his work cut out for him. Delilah is having her own problems. Although Samuel is not a man who fits her list of requirements for a husband, she can’t seem to keep herself from being utterly charmed by him.

This turn-of-the-century tale is filled with clever dialogue and simply wonderful characters. Readers will fall in love with the handsome, sexy Samuel and adore lovely, stubborn Delilah, while finding the historical snippets detailing the arrival of early motorcars in England intriguing.

Lois Dyer writes from her home in Port Orchard, Washington.

Spring has arrived and, with it, wedding season. Brimming with adventure, humor, danger, surprises, mystery and, of course, love, these four new nuptial-themed romance novels will surely send you swooning.

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