March Staff Picks!
"You misinterpret everything, even the silence." --Franz Kafka, The Castle
Every month we change our staff picks in-store to sell some of our favorite books, authors, or the perfect reads for the month. Here are our March picks with our staff "blurbs," as we call them, with them!
Recommended by Alisa
The Last of Judas Iscariot: A Play by Stephen Adly Guirgis
This brief play follows the court case appealing for Judas’s entry into heaven. It’s a story about finding poetry in the language of the working class, the nature of divine forgiveness, and human free will
Recommended by Andrew
March by Geraldine Brooks
A fabulous reimagination of Little Women from the perspective of the absent father, Mr. March. Brooks’ novel, a Pulitzer Prize winner, delves into his experiences while away at war. Mr March’s travails illuminate the horrors of war, his compassion for those enslaved and the frailty of his own moral ambiguities.
Recommended by Anna
Ten Bridges I've Burnt: A Memoir in Verse by Brontez Purnell
A brutally honest memoir through verse.
"how easily
2:00 a.m. becomes 3:00 a.m.
becomes 5:58 a.m.
becomes sunrise
but at no point will you find me
caught beneath the landslide"
Recommended by John
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Left Hand of Darkness follows human diplomat Genly Ai to the frigid planet of Gethen, whose inhabitants are almost indistinguishable from the humans of Earth except for a divergence in evolution around their sexual physiology. Published in 1969, this science fiction novel has questioned and challenged our perceptions of gender and sexuality- asking if gender is even necessary?
Recommended by Jordan
She and Her Cat: Stories by Naruki Nagakawa and Makoto Shinkai
A collection of four interlinked short stories featuring cats and their humans. The narrative is shared from the alternating perspectives of the cat and his/her human.
Recommended by Kris
Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again by Shigeru Kayama
This is the first ever English translation of the incredible original story of the King of Monsters himself! Shigeru Kayama's original story (slightly different from the iconic 1954 Godzilla) shows how he first imagined Godzilla stomping through Tokyo--and in the insightful afterword by translator Jeffry Angles, see what history and culture influenced Kayama's one-of-a-kind monster.
Recommended by Author's Corner*
Bad Questions by Len Kruger
Humorous and heartbreaking, Bad Questions is a coming-of-age journey toward redemption and self-awareness, skirting the lines between spirituality, skepticism, and faith—and asking the big questions.
*The Inner Loop's Author's Corner supports local authors' independently published books by spotlighting them across all our programming and through community collaborations.
Recommended by Patrick
Damascus Station by David McCloskey
Set in turbulent Damascus, Syria, Dacvid McCloskey’s debut novel contains two interwoven tales; the first, CIA officer Samuel Joseph’s attempt to avenge the loss of a colleague and recruit a well-placed asset within the Syrian government, and the second, a high-stakes sibling rivalry occurring within the highest echelons of the President Bashar al-Assad's autocratic regime
Recommended by Sara
The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations by Toni Morrison
If all of Toni Morrison's collected wisdom was condensed into one book--this is it.
Recommended by Seth
The Castle by Franz Kafka
This book is a little Kafkaesque.
Recommended by Sophie
Dear Emmie Blue by Lia Louis
This book did not go how I thought it was going to go, and I’m not mad about it. Fans of Rebecca Serle’s In Five Years should pick up this one too!
Recommended by Sophie
Just Haven't Met You Yet by Sophie Cousens
This book made me laugh out loud! Laura is a lifestyle journalist specializing in meet cutes. She might finally have a change to write her own love story when she accidentally grabs the wrong bag at the airport. She embarks on a hilarious hunt for "Hot Suitcase Guy" escorted by her trust cab-driver-turned-friend, Ted. Fans of Emily Henry will love this one!
Recommended by Sara
The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
Although Jacobs was initially dismissed as “just a housewife” when she first published Death and Life, this book is still just as relevant as it was over sixty years ago. [[women!!]] A classic and must-read for any urban policy wonk
Recommended by Patrick
Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich by Norman Ohler
In Blitzed, Ohler provides ample evidence indicating that Nazi Germany’s war machine was fueled by methamphetamines prescribed to enhance battlefield stamina and mental focus. Hitler himself abused a slew of mind-altering narcotics, only to develop a crippling, ever-increasing dependency coinciding with the reversal of Germany’s battlefield fortune.
Recommended by Llalan
Embrace Fearlessly the Burning World: Essays by Barry Lopez
I found this collection of essays on nature and Lopez's experiences in the wild refreshing and inspiring. His adventures around the world are mind-blowing--I found myself so jealous! And he writes with such obvious care and tenderness about our Earth. A must-read for anyone who loves this planet.
Recommended by Kris
Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive by Kristen J. Sollee
Words have power, but the power behind the word can be subverted, can be molded and mended—like magic—into something different, something empowering. This book is a great bite-sized read into the connotative and denotative meanings behind witches, sluts, and feminists.
Recommended by Jordan
Midnight on Beacon Street by Emily Ruth Verona
A suspenseful and entertaining debut thriller—and love letter to vintage horror movies—in which a teenager must overcome her own anxiety to protect the two children she’s babysitting when strangers come knocking at the door.
Recommended by Anna
Love & Saffron: A Novel of Friendship, Food, and Love by Kim Fay
A heartwarming book on love, food, and the unpredictability of life. I devoured this story written as letters between two women. Each page feels warm and comforting, and every recipe mentioned sounds utterly delicious