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Itty bitty gifts

Feature by Stephanie Koehler

To be the absolute perfect stocking stuffer, it helps to actually fit inside a stocking! These books may be small in size, but they are huge in laughs, sass, cuteness and joy.

A Charm of Goldfinches and Other Wild Gatherings: Quirky Collective Nouns of the Animal Kingdom

Best for:
Grammar nerds and animals lovers.

Why they’ll love it:
Through simple, colorful illustrations, they’ll pick up plenty of New Year’s Eve party trivia on collective nouns like “an ostentation of peacocks” and “a quiver of cobras.”

Favorite quote:
“There are many different kinds of buntings around the world and they are all as cute as a baby turtle’s birthday party.”

On Being Awesome: A Unified Theory of How Not to Suck

Best for:
Your punk cousin who used to skate in empty parking lots.

Why they’ll love it:
A professional skater offers in-your-face, nonsucky life advice, with tips on how to manage lame personalities such as the thunder-stealer, preference dictator, bores and fake-ass people.

Favorite quote:
“Being simply sucky is the basic case of suckiness: We encounter a social opening and fail to take it up.”

Daphne and Daisy: Pawtraits of Sausage Style

Best for:
Rabid dog-stagram fans; those who are known to sometimes wear a fancy hat.

Why they’ll love it:  
Two insanely cute dachshund sisters are caught on camera dressed up in huge sunglasses, assorted hats, pompoms, glittery heels and more.

Favorite quote:
“Favourite TV series, Sausage in the City, starring Carrie Bradpaw.”

Lagom: The Swedish Art of Balanced Living

Best for:
Your sister-in-law whose KonMari purge left the house sadly bereft of cozy wool throws.

Why they’ll love it:
This Swedish guide is like an Ikea catalog for your whole life. Nothing will ever be the same after you balance style and comfort by piling your hair in a Lykke Li bun, master the art of making Glögg and counter negative self-talk with oversize scarves.

Favorite quote:
“If you know what’s ‘just enough,’ why go overboard?”

To be the absolute perfect stocking stuffer, it helps to actually fit inside a stocking! These books may be small in size, but they are huge in laughs, sass, cuteness and joy.

NonfictionBusiness & FinanceBody, Mind & Spirit

Warning: Work in progress

Feature by Julie Hale

Got goals for 2018? Yeah, we thought so. For gentle motivation, practical guidance and fresh ideas on how to make this the best year yet, check out the inspiring books below.

FIX YOUR FINANCES
January is the ideal time to size up your fiscal situation. If the prospect of looking at your checking account puts you in a panic, then pick up a copy of Chelsea Fagan’s The Financial Diet: A Total Beginner’s Guide to Getting Good with Money. This handy manual is packed with concise, clear advice on fundamentals like maintaining a personal budget and building credit. Fagan, a journalist and successful blogger, strikes a breezy, cordial tone on the page. Untangling knotty topics such as investing and retirement planning, she delivers a crash course in economics that’s informative and—yes!—enjoyable.

Featuring invaluable insights from a wide range of financial experts, The Financial Diet also includes economical recipes, tips for getting more mileage out of your wardrobe and smart suggestions for stretching that paycheck. “Saving money isn’t about depriving yourself,” Fagan says. “It’s about deciding you love Future You as much as you love Today You.” With a nifty layout by designer Lauren Ver Hage, this appealing book can help you make 2018 the year of spending—and saving—wisely.

BE YOUR BEST SELF
Does your 2018 to-do list include learning to love yourself? If the answer is yes, then here’s your next need-to-read title: Sarah Knight’s inspiring You Do You: How to Be Who You Are and Use What You’ve Got to Get What You Want. An author with attitude (her 2015 book was titled The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck), Knight uses humor and a bold, cut-to-the-chase style to lay out strategies for avoiding what she calls Lowest Common Denominator Living—a follow-the-crowd mindset that smothers individuality.

Knight instead champions learning to identify—and successfully express—your needs and letting go of the expectations of others. And the concept of perfection that permeates our culture? Knight can show you how to tune it out and turn your weaknesses into assets. A self-esteem essential, You Do You will empower you to take risks and take charge of every aspect of your life. Self-love (not to mention like) can’t be achieved overnight, but Knight’s book will get you started.

REFINE YOUR CHARM
French femmes—self-possessed and effortlessly elegant—are the envy of women around the world. What gives them that extra edge? According to bestselling author Jamie Cat Callan, it’s charm, a quality the French appear to have perfected. In Parisian Charm School, Callan shows you how to cultivate the trait through a transformative take on life that includes practical steps for nurturing your own unique appeal.

In chapters enlivened by warm personal anecdotes and inspiring quotes, Callan provides assignments that will nudge you out of your routine and get you engaged with others. She offers instruction in charm-related undertakings, like how to plan a world-class dinner party (and command attention at said fête) and how to flirt effectively (yes, it’s possible to do this without sacrificing your dignity). She also recommends easy wardrobe adjustments with advice on wearing the bold colors you’ve always loved but may have been too much of a wallflower to try. Stepping out of your comfort zone will put you on the path to attaining Parisian allure. “Trust your heart,” Callan counsels. “Say yes. And bring the flowers.” Très charmant!

PICK UP A HABIT
Meditation: It’s one of those polarizing practices that seems to have as many detractors as devotees. ABC News anchor Dan Harris was a longtime doubter of the discipline—until he experienced a panic attack on live TV. In an effort to manage his anxiety, he turned to meditation, and it was a choice that transformed his life. Harris chronicled his conversion experience in his bestselling 2014 memoir, 10% Happier. In his new book, Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics, co-authored with meditation teacher Jeff Warren and journalist Carlye Adler, Harris aims to find out why so many folks are resistant to the ritual. Hopping aboard the 10% Happier tour bus with the free-spirited Warren as his sidekick, Harris tours 18 states and talks to people from all walks of life about what keeps them from taking the meditation plunge. The reasons range from lack of time to boredom with the routine. Harris counters these and other impediments with practical advice on starting—and sticking with—a meditation regimen, and he offers easy techniques for neophytes. Harris’ book will revise your ideas about the ancient exercise and help you feel more focused in the months to come.

CHEAT ON YOUR DIET
Taking a more mindful approach to nutrition is a post-holiday objective many of us set for ourselves. Whether you’re trying to break a serial snacking habit or focus on long-term weight loss, you should take a look at Aaron Carroll’s The Bad Food Bible: How and Why to Eat Sinfully. In this informative, accessible book, Carroll, a doctor and healthcare expert, sifts through the research, advice and straight-up hype surrounding diets to reveal that some of the foods we view as off-limits aren’t as awful as we think.

According to Carroll, we can once again make room on our plates for red meat, eggs, dairy and bread. He discusses these and other controversial culinary categories in the book, stressing the significance of moderation along the way. “More important than what you’re eating is how you’re eating it—especially how often and how much,” he says. The book has plenty of sensible tips for maintaining a healthy diet, such as cooking nutritious dishes at home and making each meal a communal affair. After all, Carroll says, food is meant to be enjoyed. Here’s to a delicious new year!

 

This article was originally published in the January 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Got goals for 2018? Yeah, we thought so. For gentle motivation, practical guidance and fresh ideas on how to make this the best year yet, check out the inspiring books below.

NonfictionBusiness & Finance

When timing is everything

Feature by Amy Scribner

Time: There’s never enough of it, and it slips through our fingers. As the poet Mary Oliver asked, “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

In this pair of books, a first-time author and a bestselling author offer their advice on making the most of the time we have.

In When to Jump: If the Job You Have Isn’t the Life You Want, Mike Lewis recalls landing a plum job at a major corporation after graduating from an Ivy League school. He thought he’d achieved everything he could hope for, but at age 23, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he should be doing something else.

“For twenty-three years, I had chased plainly laid out goals,” he writes. “Goals that were easy to want to chase because they were popular with the older people around me and were even popular among my own peers. . . . I felt compelled to run faster toward particular goals—at the risk of forgetting what I was hurling toward, and why.”

So did Lewis want a different corporate position, or perhaps a career switch to science or the arts? No. He wanted, somewhat unbelievably, to pursue a professional career playing squash. And he did! Lewis’ book offers practical advice about how—and most importantly when—to make a big career switch. Lewis isn’t the only one who has taken a huge, life-changing leap, and essays by these passionate risk-takers bolster this compelling book. Others who have listened to their own “little voice,” as Lewis calls it, and switched careers include a mechanical engineer who becomes a trainer, a reporter who joins the Marines and a garbage collector who now designs furniture.

I promise I like this next book for more than just its rock-solid, evidence-based defense of naps. Daniel H. Pink, who taught us the secrets of achieving high performance in his bestselling Drive, returns with another deeply researched and lively book. In When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, Pink reveals that timing really is everything.

No matter where one lives, everyone experiences the same daily rhythm: a peak, a trough and a rebound. It may be at different times for different people (some people are night owls while others are morning people, while still another group is what Pink calls “third birds”). The trick is to take advantage of the time when you’re at your best to do your toughest work.

And that time is rarely mid­afternoon. Pink noted a British survey that pinpoints the most unproductive moment of the day: 2:55 p.m. Afternoon is when hospital workers are least likely to wash their hands, it’s when Danish schoolchildren fare worse on exams and it’s when prisoners are less likely to get parole.

Throughout the book, Pink breaks down the science of timing by offering what he calls the “Time Hacker’s Handbook.” These are simple tips to maximize your time, such as how to take the perfect nap. This marriage of research, stories and practical application is vintage Pink, helping us use science to improve our everyday lives.

 

This article was originally published in the January 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Time: There’s never enough of it, and it slips through our fingers. As the poet Mary Oliver asked, “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” In this pair of books, a first-time author and a bestselling author offer their advice on making the most of the time we have.

Romance

Beyond the small-town sweethearts

Feature by Lois Dyer

It’s a new year, and we’re excited to share three terrific contemporary romances for those looking for something a little different. If you’re ready to branch out from the sweet small-town tales so common to the genre, look no further.

BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE
First up is Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz. The master of romantic suspense has set her latest novel in moody, rainy Seattle, a setting that perfectly suits her central mystery. Art gallery owner Virginia Troy and private investigator Cabot Sutter shared a horrific experience as children. Their mothers were members of a cult whose charismatic, sociopathic leader burned the compound down and disappeared. Both of their mothers died that night, and Virginia and Cabot barely escaped with their lives. Both were left with memories that scarred them.

When Virginia’s client and fellow survivor commits suicide, she turns to Cabot’s detective agency for help. She’s not convinced her artist’s death was truly a suicide. Cabot joins her to seek the truth, but they’ve barely begun the investigation when a woman is murdered in Virginia’s art gallery, someone breaks into her condo, and shots are fired at Cabot. As the level of danger ratchets higher, Virginia and Cabot search for answers while dealing with a growing attraction that draws them ever closer. Just as both begin to hope for a future together, the monster from their childhood threatens them once again. Is it possible the cult leader is alive and well—and has returned to finish what he started all those years ago? And if he’s back, will Virginia and Cabot survive?

Krentz dives into sociopathic psychology and complex characterization to great effect in this twisty story, whose plot clips along at a terrific pace. Readers will look forward to the third novel in this ongoing series of books connected through the Cutler, Sutter & Salinas detective agency and the destroyed cult.

RED CARPET ROMANCE
Stacey Kade delivers Starlight Nights, a riveting novel set in the world of Hollywood. Twenty-two-year-old Calista Beckett is desperately trying to move on from her early fame, her manager mother’s obsessive control and her career-destroying personal mistakes. When Eric Stone, the man she’s loved since she was 16, shows up on campus, she just wants him to go away. But Eric knows her too well. He knows that she belongs in the movie industry, and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get her to sign on for a web series he’s filming. Under pressure from her mother, Calista agrees. The acting gig is only for two weeks over the Thanksgiving holiday. What could go wrong? Apparently, everything.

Thrust back into the world she once fled, Calista struggles to deal with her controlling mother’s demands for money, her unresolved feelings for Eric and her desperate need to gain independence. Given how much baggage both she and Eric are carrying after suffering through horrible parents and the pressures of fame, is there any hope this second chance will end well? Or are they doomed to drift apart, separated from the one person who truly understands and loves them?

This emotionally compelling story is simply wonderful Watching Calista and Eric fight to gain independence from manipulative parents and to find the courage to fully commit to loving each other makes for a marvelous read. Readers should prepare to be fully absorbed in the novel’s world—and to stay up all night reading.

RUNAWAY BRIDE
Rachel Gibson returns to the world of sports with The Art of Running in Heels. Lexie Kowalsky is the daughter of a legendary hockey great who now coaches the Chinooks, Seattle’s professional hockey team. When Lexie wins a “Bachelor”-esque reality show, she realizes at the last minute that she can’t go through with the televised wedding. Still dressed in her poufy wedding dress, frothy veil and sparkly stiletto heels, she climbs aboard a friend’s charter plane leaving Seattle for Sandspit, Canada.

Already on the plane when the pilot stuffs Lexie and her dress inside, the Chinooks’ newest star player, Sean Knox, recognizes the gorgeous blonde instantly. He also knows he needs to keep his hands far away from the coach’s daughter. Lexie doesn’t recognize Sean—not on the plane when she asks him to help her unbutton her dress and he rips it off, not when she meets and befriends his hypochondriac mother, not even when they give in to mutual lust at her motel room. In fact, it isn’t until after they part ways the next morning that Lexie discovers Sean’s identity.

Furious, she demands he aid her in rescuing her reputation and business, which tanked after her runaway-bride act. Sean agrees to go along with her plan, partly because he doesn’t want trouble with her father and partly because he wants to spend time with her. The plan requires them to pretend to be in love to spite the media, and before long, the acting begins to feel all too real. When Lexie realizes she’s in love with the handsome, gruff hockey player, will Sean realize that he loves her, too? Or will he walk away from the best thing that’s ever happened to him?

This book is a delight, with laugh-out-loud moments and a hot romance between quirky, smart Lexie and hunky, equally intelligent Sean. Readers will cheer for this couple and thoroughly enjoy watching them battle their way to a happy ending.

 

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

It’s a new year, and we’re excited to share three terrific contemporary romances for those looking for something a little different. If you’re ready to branch out from the sweet small-town tales so common to the genre, look no further.

YA FictionYA

Teen superheroes take the spotlight

Feature by Hilli Levin

If 2017’s biggest blockbusters were any indication, the superhero fever that’s taken hold of the pop culture world doesn’t seem to be dying down anytime soon. As the classic Marvel vs. DC battle rages on, two new takes on beloved, misfit superheroes just so happen to be hitting shelves on the same day. But we're not taking sides—there’s enough love for all these heroes to go around. 

BECOMING THE BAT
Bestselling author Marie Lu (The Young Elites) follows up Leigh Bardugo’s Wonder Woman: Warbringer with her own highly anticipated installment in the DC Icons series—Batman: Nightwalker. In her reimagining of the beloved hero’s origin story, we meet a young Bruce Wayne en route to his 18th birthday party. He’s been carefully groomed by his legal guardian, Alfred (one of the most delightful characters in Lu’s story), to take on the mantle of his late parents’ renowned corporation along with an inheritance that clocks in around a billion dollars.

But despite the polished, confident playboy-image he presents to the press, Bruce is a sensitive and deeply empathetic teen whose social anxiety is more easily triggered than he’d like. His moral ideals are soon challenged by Gotham City’s new gang known as the Nightwalkers, and his newfound independence leads him to make the decision to fight them head-on since the local police can't seem to help. But jumping headfirst into a criminal investigation results in a young Bruce being sent to Arkham Asylum as punishment. There, he comes face-to-face with the kind of criminals he’s hated for so long, but a fellow teen named Madeleine challenges Bruce’s long-held beliefs when she offers to help him shut down the Nightwalkers for good. 

Longtime fans won’t find much new terrain explored here, but Lu’s trademark ability to seamlessly incorporate lots of tech and diversity in her fictional worlds serves Batman well. Although nowhere near as dark as Christopher Nolan’s cinematic series, it’s always compelling to see Bruce Wayne’s progression from starry-eyed, privileged punk to brooding caped crusader, and Lu’s novel is no exception.

LIVING ON THE FRINGE
Christopher Golden’s new novel picks up where the original Marvel comic series, which became an instant cult-classic, left off. Hitting shelves just before fellow bestselling YA author Rainbow Rowell takes the reins and brings the comic series back from the brink, fans and newcomers alike will surely want to dive into this accessible new story centered on a ragtag group of orphaned teens. When Golden’s novel kicks off, the Runaways are struggling with their newfound powers and the grief that’s followed the deaths of each one of their parents—a high powered collection of secret supervillains who were known as The Pride. Now searching for solace and peace in LA, Karolina, Chase, Nico, Gert and Molly discover a secret underground base constructed by their families. It seems like the home they’ve been searching for, however fraught with emotional ghosts as it may be, and they’re determined to utilize all of the tech and gadgets in their quest to do good.

Although it may seem like teens with psychic links to dinosaurs, super strength or spellcasting abilities aren’t the most relatable, Golden excels at making their problems (no matter how big or small) and emotions ring true to life. This is an accessible introduction to the characters and a perfect read for fans of Stand by Me and The Breakfast Club—other beloved stories that explore the resilience of the young spirit, the importance of our chosen families and the possibility of growing up without hardening your heart. 

If 2017's biggest blockbusters were any indication, the superhero fever that's taken hold of the pop culture world doesn't seem to be dying down anytime soon. As the classic Marvel vs. DC battle rages on,  two new takes on beloved, misfit superheroes just so happen to be hitting shelves on the same day. But we're not taking sides—there's enough love for all these heroes to go around.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Big hearts in little tales: Picture books of kindness

Feature by Alice Cary

As Aesop said, no act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. Two picture books contain memorable messages for kids learning to be kind in ways both big and small. Both feature a diverse cast of characters, showing young readers how to reach out to the vast world around them.

KIND ACTS MULTIPLYING
A simple incident of classroom embarrassment becomes occasion for an exquisite treatise on the subject of kindheartedness in Be Kind (ages 3 to 6). Tanisha, a young black girl, spills grape juice all over her new dress, causing her multiracial class to burst into laughter. The white narrator tries to help by announcing, “Purple is my favorite color.” The plan backfires, however, as Tanisha runs into the hallway, seemingly in tears.

While painting a picture for Tanisha in art class, the narrator ponders, “What does it mean to be kind anyway?” Many things, this student muses, such as making cookies for a lonely old neighbor, asking a new girl to be a partner, or saying hi to Omar or Rabbi Mandelbaum in the park. Pat Zietlow Miller―author of the marvelous Sophie’s Squash books―allows the narrator’s thoughts to meander from local (“Maybe I can only do small things.”) to global, as small acts “spill out of our school” and ”go all the way around the world.”

Jen Hill’s lively illustrations soulfully portray Tanisha’s mortification amid classroom giggles as the narrator looks on with concern. Subsequent pages reveal an array of characters whose kindnesses reach around the world to Africa, Asia and the Middle East. On its final pages, Be Kind returns to Tanisha’s dilemma, reaching a subtle, satisfying conclusion.

COME ONE, COME ALL
Open your heart and umbrella wide―that’s the message of this seemingly simple tale for preschoolers, The Big Umbrella (ages 4 to 8). A raincoat-clad child of indeterminate sex grabs an umbrella and heads out into the city streets. This anthropomorphized “big, friendly umbrella” that “likes to help” wears a big grin as it stretches wider and wider to shelter an increasingly diverse group: a runner, a ballerina, a huge duck, a hairy (but friendly) monster, a dog, and more. The final spread (“There is always room”) reveals a bustling, sun-filled street chockfull of diversity, including a woman in a hijab, a young man in a wheelchair and a dad sporting a Mohawk.

Author-illustrator Amy June Bates’ watercolor, gouache and pencil scenes provide the perfect backdrop for this heartwarming tale, co-written with her seventh-grade daughter, Juniper. Minimal text drives their message home, allowing the illustrations to become the focal point of this celebration of inclusion and generosity.

As Aesop said, no act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. Two picture books contain memorable messages for kids learning to be kind in ways both big and small. Both feature a diverse cast of characters, showing young readers how to reach out to the vast world around them.

Science Fiction & FantasyFiction

Never say die: Two tales of immortality

Feature by Savanna Walker

Cheating death is most frequently a quest for conquistadors or comic book villains. And most characters that have attained immortality, or something close to it, are already fantastical beings of some sort. Two new works of literary fiction, however, investigate what a drastically elongated lifespan can do to a soul and mind intended for mortality.

A good portion of Eternal Life by Dara Horn takes place in the present day, as the approximately 2,000-year-old Rachel wishes for some way to break the cycle of marriage, motherhood and faking her death to ensure that no one discovers her immortality. When she gave up her death in order to save her young son’s life, she didn’t truly believe she would live forever. It wasn’t until the biblical Temple of Jerusalem burned down with the elderly Rachel inside and she woke up outside the city, young once more, that she realized what she had done.

Rachel loves her children and descendants deeply, but time has taken its toll on motherhood. Horn uses flashes of memory to show how, to Rachel, each child is reminiscent of another one, and at times another before that. Rachel’s living family will always remind her of those who are dead, dooming her to continually acknowledge her own separation from the rest of humanity. Horn never answers whether Rachel’s embrace of perpetual motherhood, despite the pain, is true conviction, self-punishment or both. Her heroine does not stop to consider it, unless forced to by the one person who understands her plight—the father of the child she gave up her death to save.

Her lover, Elazar, made the same bargain she did and has been following Rachel ever since, convinced that their immortality is a gift from God and a sign that they were meant to spend eternity together. In expertly executed flashbacks, Horn methodically uncovers a connection between two souls that never quite fit in with their surroundings. Rachel’s guilt and persistent love for Elazar are among the many parts of herself she has attempted to bury via unceasing motherhood, causing damage to herself and her children. In unflinching emotional detail, Horn explores how Rachel has allowed herself to calcify into a cycle, and by the end of Eternal Life, she faces a choice between jettisoning it altogether or embracing it fully, pain and all.

Rachel may refuse to contemplate the enormity of her lifespan, but Tom Hazard is drowning in it. The protagonist of Matt Haig’s How to Stop Time is only 439 years old in comparison to Rachel’s millennia, but the majority of those years have been spent alone. Haig’s greatest accomplishment in this book is his at-times unbearably poignant exploration of how such a life could warp a mind.

Tom is haunted by the impermanence of the world around him and paralyzed by the knowledge that everyone he encounters will one day be dead. Having come of age in the 16th century, he knows all too well the horrors that can await those like him, and refuses to believe that humanity has changed in the ensuing centuries. Yet the memories of his relationship with his wife, and the few close friendships he has enjoyed, have not faded with time, which leads to a sense of jumbled memories that Haig skillfully communicates by skipping backward and forward between Tom’s early life, his experiences in the present day and other moments throughout his centuries. Haig structures these moments like a slow-motion epiphany, following Tom as he attempts to process his worst experiences and possibly seize a chance at community and love in the present.

Haig begins with the losses so devastating that they cast a shadow over Tom’s psyche for centuries, reverberating louder than any of his other memories. But then Haig pulls back, showing the happiness and friendships that have also marked his protagonist’s life, disrupting the isolationist narrative that Tom and others like him have forced themselves to adhere to in order to survive. Along the way, Haig allows for plenty of wistful and witty commentary on eras past, pit stops in the Wild West and 1920s Paris, and perhaps the best fictional depiction of Shakespeare in recent memory.

Like Rachel in Eternal Life, Tom arrives at a point in which he must break or solidify the rhythm of his life, and the final chapters of How to Stop Time arrive with breathtaking catharsis. For all his skill at evoking the passage of centuries, Haig also lavishes his attention on singular moments, mere minutes in the enormity of time that gently nudge his protagonist towards enlightenment.

 

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Read a Q&A with Matt Haig for How to Stop Time.

Cheating death is most frequently a quest for conquistadors or comic book villains. And most characters that have attained immortality, or something close to it, are already fantastical beings of some sort. Two new works of literary fiction, however, investigate what a drastically elongated lifespan can do to a soul and mind intended for mortality.

Children's & YAPicture BookMiddle Grade

Stories to inspire: Picture books for Black History Month

Feature by Julie Hale

February is a special time for celebrating seminal figures and events from African-American history. Six new books pay tribute to the black pioneers of the past—trailblazers who made progress on the road to equality.

FINDING THE RIGHT PATH
Sandra Neil Wallace’s engaging biography Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes Went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery (ages 4 to 8) is a powerful story about the importance of dreams. Young Ernest loves to draw. When it rains, he scribbles figures in the mud with a stick. In his sketchbooks, he captures scenes from his Durham, North Carolina, neighborhood. He wants nothing more than to become an artist, but in the 1940s South, his chances are slim. When a coach recruits him for the high school football team, Ernest begins a successful career in sports. He’s offered 26 scholarships and plays with the pros. But through it all, he holds onto his desire to express himself—and in the end his dreams pay off. The story of his transition from athlete to artist is brought to vivid life through Bryan Collier’s rich illustrations. Featuring breathtaking examples of Barnes’ work, this is a top-notch introduction to an important artist.

CELEBRATING FEARLESS WOMEN
Vashti Harrison’s mini-encyclopedia of African-American heroines, Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History (ages 8 to 12), is accessible, informative and appealing. Featuring 40 brave and brilliant women who made significant contributions in the areas of politics, art, sports, education and entertainment, the book includes capsule biographies and magical portraits that capture each woman’s unique vocation. Readers will find a wide range of notables in this delightful anthology. Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Ella Fitzgerald, Zora Neale Hurston and Raven Wilkinson are among those who receive tribute. Harrison also spotlights contemporary figures such as Maya Angelou, Oprah Winfrey and Julie Dash, and she provides a thoughtful reading list and information on additional resources. Her inviting illustrations—certain to capture the imaginations of little readers—make the book extra special. This outstanding volume is a great way to connect kids with role models and a title that’s sure to spark further study.

BEFORE HE PLAYED BALL
In The United States v. Jackie Robinson (ages 4 to 8), Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen delivers a fascinating chronicle of the early life of baseball legend Jackie Robinson. Young Jack grows up under segregation in Pasadena, California. His family is shunned by the neighbors, but Jack’s mother encourages her children to believe in themselves. A star athlete in college, Jack enlists in the army after Pearl Harbor is attacked, and there he continues to experience discrimination. One day, he sits down in the middle of the army bus, and the driver orders him to move to the back. When Jack refuses, he’s court-martialed and finds himself facing the threat of jail time. During the agonizing trial that follows, he holds tight to his beliefs—and comes out on top. R. Gregory Christie’s textured, impressionistic illustrations add a wonderful sense of history to the story. Youngsters will find a hero in this compelling tale.

MAKING HER OWN KIND OF MUSIC
Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of Elizabeth Cotten (ages 5 to 8) by Laura Veirs is a spirited homage to a folk icon. Libba finds music in everything, from the sound of the river to the movement of the train. She tries out her brother’s guitar, but because he’s right-handed, Libba—a leftie—has to flip the instrument over and play it backwards: “Nobody else played that way, but it was the way that felt right to Libba.” Libba practices and writes her own tunes, but as the years go by, her music falls by the wayside. When she goes to work for composer Ruth Crawford Seeger, Libba finds the inspiration to play again. With the Seegers’ help, she launches a successful musical career with engagements around the world. In her delicate, expressive illustrations, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh does a masterful job of tracing the arc of Libba’s life from eager girl to dignified grande dame. Readers will love learning about this innovative performer.

POEMS OF PRIDE
Sharing history through verse, Andrea Davis Pinkney tells the story of the final days of Martin Luther King Jr. in Martin Rising: Requiem for a King (ages 9 to 12). Featuring lyrical, impressionistic pieces as well as more concrete compositions, the book looks at the key events of 1968 via a diverse group of 39 poems. “Roar” chronicles a march in Memphis by striking sanitation workers, whose cause precipitates Martin’s fateful April visit: “They cling / to the peace-dream / of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” The bold, exclamatory “Shattered” captures the spirit of the March 28 protest Martin leads in Memphis: “Four words / shout simple affirmations / of their humanity: I AM A MAN.” From the sense of portentousness that grows on April 3 to the dramatic events of the following day, Pinkney portrays the passing of a remarkable man, using language in innovative ways. Brian Pinkney’s swirling, cascading, colorful illustrations provide an exhilarating backdrop for an outstanding collection of poems that’s destined to become a classic.

YOUNG LEADERS UNITE
Monica Clark-Robinson’s Let the Children March (ages 6 to 9) is a stirring account of the 1963 rally in Birmingham, Alabama, known as the Children’s Crusade. Clark-Robinson presents the story from the perspective of an African-American girl who goes to church with her family to hear Martin Luther King Jr. speak. When she learns that her mother and father will lose their jobs if they take part in the upcoming demonstration, the girl joins other young people who protest on behalf of their parents: “Hand in hand we marched—so frightened, yet certain of what was right for our freedom.” Beautifully realistic illustrations by Frank Morrison communicate the upheaval of the day—the girl is arrested with other youngsters—but there’s also a sense of hope in the story’s final scene of a desegregated playground filled with children. This is an impressive tribute to a group of courageous leaders.

February is a special time for celebrating seminal figures and events from African-American history. Six new books pay tribute to the black pioneers of the past—trailblazers who made progress on the road to equality.

NonfictionFamily & RelationshipsAmerican History

What’s love got to do with it?

Feature by the editors of BookPage

The month of Valentine’s Day has arrived, and whether you’re in a committed relationship, looking for love or happily single, we’ve got a few books you may want to have on your nightstand.

HORMONAL
By Martie Haselton

The perfect Valentine’s Day read for: Heterosexual women interested in understanding how their hormones help them choose potential dates—or any woman who’s ever been pissed off by a guy calling her “hormonal.”

Between the covers: The world’s leading researcher of ovulatory cycles offers insight into the hidden intelligence of women’s hormones. It’s heavy on the science, so it can be dry, but knowledge is powerful.

Best advice for the lovelorn: Sexually active Soay sheep in Scotland are often sick and succumb to the elements, while those less driven to reproduce remain healthy. Sex is dangerous, Haselton writes, so stay home with your Wi-Fi.

Strangest tidbit: Only primates, bats and elephant shrews have menstrual periods.

Choice quote: “[W]e are not under strict hormonal control, locked in the sway of ‘heat,’ weakened by the loss of blood, or depleted as our fertility fades. Still, when we do feel these ancient forces stirring in rhythm with our hormonal cycles, we can tap into a uniquely feminine power.”

HOTTEST HEADS OF STATE
By J.D. Dobson and Kate Dobson

The perfect Valentine’s Day read for: Those who have reached a point—whether single, taken or navigating online dating territory—where all you can do is laugh.

Between the covers: Combining biting satire with gleeful absurdity, this is a relentlessly funny, bipartisan exploration of America’s presidents that judges each as a potential partner. Check out a fearless exposé of John Tyler (who was obviously a swamp monster) and a timeline of struggles with our greatest foe—Canada.

Best advice for the lovelorn: You can have a meet cute with Richard Nixon by doing the following: “Identify the sketchiest nearby location. . . . Go there, take out your wallet, and start visibly counting your money. When someone hits you on the back of the head with a sap, that’s Richard Nixon!”

Strangest tidbit: If you want to get into taxidermy in order to impress Teddy Roosevelt, you have to first murder an animal and then be cleared by a jury of its peers. Only then you may proceed with the taxidermy.

Choice quote: “Did you know that over time, people grow to look more and more like their favorite pastime? That is why the very handsome young Dwight D. Eisenhower gradually grew to resemble a golf ball.”

THE ROUGH PATCH
By Daphne de Marneffe

The perfect Valentine’s Day read for: Married couples and middle-aged singles who are struggling with parenting, finances, aging, loss of libido or drug and alcohol abuse, and are looking for practical, experience-based advice from a professional psychotherapist.

Between the covers: Daphne de Marneffe tackles the cliche of the midlife crisis in its many forms. Using examples from her practice, she illustrates how to cope with feelings of isolation, desire, longing and distress, offering a necessary guide for those who wish to heal and grow in their relationships.

Best advice for the lovelorn: If you’re feeling left out of the fun that young people supposedly are having—the excitement of falling in love, the freedom from caring for children and elders—perhaps it’s time to start an affair with understanding (and loving) your flawed self.

Strangest tidbit: A discussion of the differences between terms like “polyamory,” “swinging” and something called “sexual anarchy” might leave you wanting—and maybe or maybe not daring—to research their meanings further.

Choice quote: “Occupying the panoptic position of a therapist who sees people at all phases of life, I sometimes have the Ghost of Marriage Future impulse to tell women in their thirties, who currently feel hounded by their partner’s sexual demands, that in a decade or two they might be hankering for more attention, not less.”

THE LOVE GAP
By Jenna Birch

The perfect Valentine’s Day read for: Heterosexual millennial women who are well educated, successful, confident, independent—and really frustrated that they can’t get a guy to commit.

Between the covers: Health and lifestyle journalist Jenna Birch gets to the bottom of this major modern dating problem with her theory of the Love Gap, which she defines as “the reason men don’t always pursue the women they claim to want; frequently, women like you.”

Best advice for the lovelorn: “The exact love that you want is out there. But it takes patience, growth, tenacity, investment, discernment, a dash of timing, and just the right chemistry.”

Strangest tidbit: “I’m also here to tell you that men have pertinent needs that may overwrite the qualities they desire in a partner.” Sometimes logic really does go out the window.

Choice quote: “A relationship with the ‘right’ person should excite you with its potential for growth. A ‘right’ commitment should feel like it expands your possibilities in life, instead of shrinks them.”

THE KISS
Edited by Brian Turner

The perfect Valentine’s Day read for: The literature-loving romantic in your life.

Between the covers: Across cultures and time, the kiss has always been there. In this collection, a diverse assemblage of writers contribute their own unique takes on that singular act and all that it can mean.

Best advice for the lovelorn: There are billions of humans out there, and anything you’re feeling has been felt before, many times over. You’re not alone out there—even if you’re single. We’re all connected by something as simple as a kiss.

Strangest tidbit: Who knew a kiss could mean so many different things? It can be loving, sad, a goodbye or a hello—or even ambiguous. The full spectrum of human emotions can be pinned on a kiss.

Choice quote: “She will reach out, bridging the abyss between any two humans, and offer this kiss, this true gift, this brief meeting of spheres, and you’ll feel like a balloon being inflated, and believe quite suddenly in the possibility of grace.”(Excerpt from Steven Church’s “Kiss, Bounce, Grace.”)

 

This article was originally published in the February 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

The month of Valentine’s Day has arrived, and whether you’re in a committed relationship, looking for love or happily single, we’ve got a few books you may want to have on your nightstand.

NonfictionSocial ScienceMemoirBlack HistoryAmerican History

The many forms of a freedom fighter

Feature by Vanessa Willoughby

America may have abolished Jim Crow laws, but prejudice is a clever shape-shifter. Certainly, the black experience is not solely defined by injustices inflicted by white America. Regardless, the black experience in this country cannot be discussed without the ever-looming menace of racism and the complementary institution of white supremacy. These four recent releases offer a nuanced spectrum of views on what it means to be black in America.

For many Americans who believed in the concept of “colorblindness,” the election of Donald Trump abruptly shattered the myth of a post-racial America. Yet for many minorities, the unapologetic racism and bigotry that helped elect Trump served as a reminder that the institution of white supremacy is alive and thriving. At a young age, Patrisse Khan-Cullors learned that blackness functioned as a target and watched as racism chipped away at the humanity of her loved ones. Yet Khan-Cullors, who co-founded the Black Lives Matter movement with Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi, found strength within the unconditional love she held for her family, which provided a refuge from the dehumanization tactics of white supremacy. The title of her memoir, When They Call You a Terrorist, co-authored with asha bandele, references the labeling of Black Lives Matter as a terrorist movement by conservative media outlets, politicians and government officials. According to a report leaked by Foreign Policy, the FBI’s counterterrorism division determined that “black identity extremists” were a violent group of domestic terrorists. Activists such as Khan-Cullors cite this assessment as an example of dog-whistle politics. For those under the banner of white supremacy, it’s deemed radical to say that black lives matter—because black people are rarely seen as human.

HARD TO SAY
Talking about race in America can feel like chatting with a mouth full of thorns. Even for the white Americans who vow to be allies, talking about race is taboo: If you’re not racist, then why are you noticing skin color in the first place? Equal parts an excavation of personal history and a piece of sharp political commentary, author Ijeoma Oluo inhabits a narrative tone that is neither condescending nor coddling in So You Want to Talk About Race. Racism in America can take the form of so much more than the “N” word, and here Oluo astutely dismantles issues such as police brutality, cultural appropriation and microaggressions, and the pervasive, poisonous power of racism and white supremacy. Balancing the intimacy of a memoirist with the dedication of an investigative journalist, Oluo recognizes that her offerings are a starting point. The work required to effectively battle racism can begin with conversation, but if these principles are not put into consistent practice, then lasting change has little chance. Systemic racism benefits from silence just as much as it thrives under white liberals who refuse to check their privilege—those who assume that proximity to their black friend, love interest or neighbor proves that they are not complicit. So You Want to Talk About Race argues that with the right tools, discussions about race in America can serve as bridges rather than battlefields.

FINAL WORDS
In 2014, the killing of 43-year-old Eric Garner, a black Staten Island resident and neighborhood fixture, was caught on video. The footage shows white New York City police officer Daniel Pantaleo wrestling Garner to the ground and using what appears to be an illegal chokehold. Garner struggles, uttering those infamous last words, “I can’t breathe.” The medical examiner ruled Garner’s death a homicide. Regardless, a grand jury chose not to indict Pantaleo on a charge of murder. In I Can’t Breathe: A Killing on Bay Street, a carefully constructed and researched portrait of Garner, Rolling Stone staff writer and author Matt Taibbi utilizes the tragedy to hold a mirror to the degrading, demoralizing and crippling manifestations of American racism. I Can’t Breathe not only examines the wide-reaching effects of racism but also specifically breaks down how the ideas of “law and order” contribute to a system of racist, predatory policing. Although Taibbi recognizes that Garner had his flaws, he pushes beyond them to compile a rich, nuanced depiction of a devoted family man who became yet another victim of bad luck, unforgiving environmental circumstances and the racially fueled injustices of the country’s police forces. I Can’t Breathe demands readers ask: Who are the police really intended to protect?

AMERICAN GLORY
When we think of the black renaissance, we typically conjure images of bustling Harlem streets and flashy zoot suits alongside the black excellence of Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston. We may even think of Chicago and its cultural icons such as author Richard Wright and playwright Lorraine Hansberry. Memoirist and reporter Mark Whitaker’s Smoketown: The Untold Story of the Other Great Black Renaissance is a thoroughly researched celebration of the black community and culture in Pittsburgh from the 1920s through the 1950s. Pittsburgh’s black residents, Whitaker argues, offered cultural contributions that significantly shaped black history—and the nation. With the diligence of a seasoned anthropologist, Whitaker spotlights the city’s stunning feats of black achievement and resilience through the lens of his extensive cast of influencers and icons. While some of the names may be unfamiliar, each subject’s narrative is a nuanced portrayal meant to challenge our country’s often narrow, dismissive version of black history. Cultural heavyweights such as boxer Joe Louis are treated as historical catalysts rather than extraordinary oddities. Black history, as evident in the cultural renaissance of Pittsburgh, is not defined by oppression. Despite the setbacks of systemic racism and discrimination, black excellence flourishes regardless of the white gaze.

 

This article was originally published in the February 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

America may have abolished Jim Crow laws, but prejudice is a clever shape-shifter. Certainly, the black experience is not solely defined by injustices inflicted by white America. Regardless, the black experience in this country cannot be discussed without the ever-looming menace of racism and the complementary institution of white supremacy. These four recent releases offer a nuanced spectrum of views on what it means to be black in America.

FictionDebut Fiction

Stories from the homefront and beyond

Feature by Julie Hale

Is there anything better than the tension and tremendous heart of a rousing wartime tale, especially when it recounts the experiences of courageous heroes? Through globetrotting stories of loyalty and love, three new historical novels deliver an unforgettable look at the sacrifices of women during World War II.

In her fast-paced blend of fact and fiction, The Atomic City Girls, Janet Beard uses the viewpoints of a diffuse group of characters to create an impressively realized portrait of life in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the makeshift city where uranium for the atomic bomb was secretly generated during the war. Eighteen-year-old June Walker is excited and nervous about working at Oak Ridge, but she doesn’t know what to make of Cici Roberts, her gorgeous, flirtatious dormitory roommate. Between tedious shifts monitoring big machines and evening dances where they blow off steam, the two girls form a friendship. Like nearly everyone else in the city, they’re kept in the dark about the purpose of their work. Joe Brewer, an African-American man who’s part of a labor gang at Oak Ridge, adds another layer to the novel, as he works to send money home to his family. Providing an outsider’s perspective is Sam Cantor, a Jewish scientist from the Bronx. June—hoping to learn the secrets behind Oak Ridge—begins a romance with Sam, who has the shocking answers she needs.

A native of East Tennessee, Beard brings a sure grasp of the region’s past to the narrative and infuses her central characters with a Southern sensibility that’s pronounced but never parody. In this compelling novel, she distills the essence of an era.

A TALE OF TWO SISTERS
White Chrysanthemum, Mary Lynn Bracht’s assured, atmospheric debut, takes place in 1940s Korea during the Japanese occupation. Hana is a haenyeo, or sea woman—a female diver who catches fish in the ocean. Hana learned the trade from her mother, and she uses her earnings to help her family make ends meet. One day, during a dive, a Japanese soldier appears on the shore. When she tries to protect her younger sister, Emi, from the man, Hana is captured and taken to Manchuria, where she’s made to work as a comfort woman for the Japanese.

Decades later, Emi comes to Seoul to try to locate Hana and to join in the protests near the Japanese embassy in memory of women enslaved as prostitutes during the war. Emi has long been haunted by Hana’s disappearance and hopes to finally discover the rest of her sister’s story.

Bracht, an author of Korean descent, has produced a psychologically acute, emotionally resonant novel. She skillfully develops separate plots for the sisters and, with remarkable depth, portrays both the oppression of daily life during the occupation and the haunting aftereffects of the experience.

Rich with historical detail, White Chrysanthemum is a compelling and important account of civilian women’s lives during wartime.

RIDING THE TIDES OF WAR
Sara Ackerman delivers a dramatic saga of motherhood, loss and the possibility of renewal in Island of Sweet Pies and Soldiers. In Hawaii, as the war effort ramps up, Violet Iverson struggles to make sense of her husband’s disappearance. Rumors about his fate are on the rise, and some locals believe he is working for the Japanese. The one person who might have answers is Violet’s daughter, Ella, but no amount of coaxing will make her talk about what she has seen. It seems she’s been scared into silence.

Joining forces with her female friends, Violet starts a pie stand near Camp Tarawa—an undertaking that gives the enlisted men a taste of home. When the women are accused of spying, Sergeant Stone, a bold marine, lends a helping hand. Violet soon finds herself in the grip of a strong attraction, but she faces the possibility of another loss when Stone leaves for Iwo Jima.

With a sensitive touch and an instinct for authenticity, Ackerman depicts the fraught nature of wartime relationships. The letters Violet receives from Stone are filled with a sense of yearning, and her devotion to him as he risks his life is palpable. Born and raised in Hawaii, Ackerman mixes romance, suspense and history into a bittersweet story of cinematic proportions.

 

This article was originally published in the February 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Is there anything better than the tension and tremendous heart of a rousing wartime tale, especially when it recounts the experiences of courageous heroes? Through globetrotting stories of loyalty and love, three new historical novels deliver an unforgettable look at the sacrifices of women during World War II.

Romance

Rising stars of romance

Feature by Lois Dyer

It’s February—time for chocolates, hearts, flowers and romances! Our Valentine’s Day gift to you is a trio of books by rising stars.

WOUNDED HEARTS HEALED
If you love the popular television series “Victoria,” you’re certain to enjoy Never Dare A Wicked Earl. Twice a finalist for the coveted Golden Heart Award from Romance Writers of America, Renee Ann Miller makes her historical romance debut with the first in her Infamous Lords series.

Widower Hayden Milton, Earl of Westfield, has an infamous reputation. When an ex-mistress shoots him, medical student Sophia Camden is assigned to tend him as he recuperates. Hayden finds her annoying—and enticing. Sophia finds him exasperating—and handsome. He’s determined to shock her into resigning, while she’s equally determined to ignore his teasing. Their sickbed-set battle of wills forces them into near constant proximity, and both begin to open up to the other.

Both the hero and heroine have pasts darkened with loss, regret and guilt that hamper their ability to fall in love. These difficult beginnings lead to lots of engaging emotional conflict. Miller lightens the stressful moments with a delightful child, a hilarious dog, a harried sister and other equally charming secondary characters in Never Dare a Wicked Earl’s engrossing pages. This first novel will surely have readers looking forward to the second in the series.

ROMANCING THE CHEF
Everyone loves fabulous food. The terrific characters of More to Love, the latest romantic comedy from Alison Bliss, certainly do. The residents of Granite, Texas, flock to plus-size heroine Jessa Gibson’s food truck. Unfortunately, local electrician Max Hager discovers that Jessa’s mouthwatering food is about to put his favorite restaurant owner out of business. Outraged and determined to save the restaurant, Max comes up with what is arguably the worst scheme ever conceived. Posing as the local health inspector, he introduces himself to Jessa and begins listing violations of local rules. Jessa is taken aback at his odd, finicky comments but is also distracted by how cute the “inspector” is. Max is equally distracted by Jessa’s lush curves.

Although there are moments when a reader may wish Max would just man up and lay his cards on the table, Bliss gives him good reasons to hesitate. Max knows he should confess his charade, but before he can do so, things between him and the very sexy chef are careening out of control. The attraction between these two is off the charts. He’s in love and afraid to lose her; she’s in love and confused by his reticence. When the inevitable revelation occurs, will Max be able to keep both their hearts from breaking? The only things missing from this story are recipes for the wonderful dishes. Be warned—this one should be read with a snack close at hand.

SNARK AND SPARKS
Maggie Wells explores the wage gap and the world of college sports in her terrific new novel, Love Game.

Kate Snyder is a former Olympic gold medalist, WNBA all-star and current coach of the Wolcott University Warrior Women, a team she’s led to four national basketball championships. When the university hires famous but disgraced Danny McMillan to take the reins of the school’s low-ranked football team, Kate knows her contract negotiations are under threat. She expects to dislike the sports legend, but as she spends time with Danny, neither can deny the powerful connection that draws them together. Kate and Danny’s sexual chemistry is never in doubt, and Wells’ devotion to showing how much the pair enjoys and respects each other make the eventual payoff even sweeter.

Wells’ kickass heroine and confident hero trade witty banter and have some sigh-worthy sex scenes. Wells earns an A-plus, however, for creating a power couple that fully embodies being grown-up, intelligent adults who fall madly in love.

 

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

It’s February—time for chocolates, hearts, flowers and romances! Our Valentine’s Day gift to you is a trio of books by rising stars.

NonfictionWomen's HistoryAmerican History

We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for

Feature by Julie Hale

Women speak up louder and stronger with every passing day, even though it can be hard to make the world listen. Women’s History Month is a time for recognizing the milestones reached on the road to equality and the pioneering women who have made progress possible. Five outstanding new titles focus on the female experience from a variety of viewpoints.

An inspiring tribute to 100 sensational women, Julia Pierpont’s The Little Book of Feminist Saints celebrates trailblazing figures from the past and present. This who’s who of winning women spotlights educators and athletes, artists and activists. Luminaries include Maya Angelou, Frida Kahlo, Gloria Steinem, Sandra Day O’Connor, Billie Jean King and Oprah Winfrey. Small but jam-packed, the volume contains facts and anecdotes about each woman, along with memorable quotes and plenty of feminist trivia. Taking her cue from Catholic saint-of-the-day books, Pierpont gives each woman in her book “matron saint” status and a special feast day. (Nina Simone, for instance, is the “Matron Saint of Soul.”) In luminous, full-color portraits, artist Manjit Thapp captures the essence and individuality of her subjects. Small enough to tuck into a bag, this delightful book offers instant inspiration.

PROGRESS AT THE POLLS
On August 18, 1920, Tennessee ratified the 19th Amendment—a history-making move by the state legislature that enabled women to vote in elections across the nation. In her absorbing new book, The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote, bestselling author Elaine Weiss retraces the road to victory traveled by female reformers such as Carrie Chapman Catt and Alice Paul. Weiss does a wonderful job of laying out the background of the American women’s suffrage movement, which began to take shape in the 1840s, providing a setup for the tension-filled debates and protests in Nashville that culminated in the August vote. Weiss brings the struggle for women’s suffrage to life through vivid portrayals of the suffragists and the “Antis” who challenged them, including Tennessee native Josephine Pearson. A lively slice of history filled with political drama, Weiss’ book captures a watershed moment for American women.

JOIN THE SISTERHOOD
The internet may make connecting with others easier than ever before, but there’s no substitute for old-fashioned, face-to-face friendship. In I Know How You Feel: The Joy and Heartbreak of Friendship in Women’s Lives, F. Diane Barth, a prominent psychotherapist, explores the particular challenges and rewards women face when forging friendships. Barth interviewed a wide range of women on the topic of friendship, and she includes their heartfelt testimonies in the book. She also provides advice on negotiating the thorny territory that often comes with connection, offering suggestions on what to do when a friend drops you, as well as guidance on relationships with women who are competitive or controlling. Each chapter concludes with a “What You Can Do” segment that has proactive steps on how to combat loneliness, reach out to others and find the unique fulfillment that comes with friendship. A compelling look at the ways in which women bond, Barth’s book is eye-opening and essential reading for anyone trying to build—or maintain—a strong social circle.

POWER TOGETHER
Beverly Bond established the organization BLACK GIRLS ROCK! in 2006 in order to support and promote the accomplishments of black women. Over the years, the organization has evolved into a movement, with an annual awards show, youth enrichment activities and now a book edited by Bond, Black Girls Rock!: Owning Our Magic. Rocking Our Truth., an inspiring salute to outstanding black women who are leading the way in politics, education and entertainment. This coffee table-worthy book spotlights fierce figures like Misty Copeland, Maxine Waters, Joy Reid, Lupita Amondi Nyong’o, Erykah Badu and Serena Williams, each of whom contribute thoughtful essays on their experiences as black women. Divided into nine sections that highlight a particular facet of “Black Girl Magic,” the volume is filled with gorgeous new and archival photographs. “The women in this book showcase the beautiful complexity, depth of diversity, rich cultural traditions, and bountiful contributions of Black women,” Bond writes. “They remind us of our collective magic.” Rock on!

EQUALITY IN THE WORKPLACE
Former USA Today editor-in-chief Joanne Lipman delivers a fascinating overview of today’s working environment in That’s What She Said: What Men Need to Know (and Women Need to Tell Them) About Working Together. In this important, accessible book, Lipman examines on-the-job dynamics between genders, addressing topics such as unconscious bias, communication and salary disparity. She also shares stories about her own professional evolution and investigates efforts by companies such as Google to create an equitable workplace. Women, Lipman says, “are attempting to fit into a professional world that was created in the image of men.” Drawing upon statistics from studies about women in the workplace, she explores the unique obstacles that female professionals face. (Case in point: According to one survey, women are 15 percent less likely to get promoted than men.) Perhaps most importantly, Lipman looks at the ways in which small businesses and large corporations alike can bridge the gender gap. Her book is a must-read for the career-minded reader—male or female.

 

This article was originally published in the March 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Women speak up louder and stronger with every passing day, even though it can be hard to make the world listen. Women’s History Month is a time for recognizing the milestones reached on the road to equality and the pioneering women who have made progress possible. Five outstanding new titles focus on the female experience from a variety of viewpoints.

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