Philip Connors
[isbn]
Every summer Philip Connors runs away from home. He spends half the year in a remote fire lookout savoring the solitude and the joy of monotasking. His wonderful book, Fire Season, will make you want to quit your job, sell the house, and find your own little piece of wilderness. You've been warned.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Dani Shapiro
[isbn]
A beautiful meditation on marriage, memory, aging, and the pleasures and perils of pursuing a creative life.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Michael Finkel
[isbn]
Haven’t we all at one point or another had thoughts of running away and escaping from it all? Well, Christopher Knight did just that… for 27 years! In 1986 he built a secluded tent camp beside a lake in a remote corner of Maine. For nearly three decades he lived off of supplies he stole from nearby cabins and managed to survive some of the harshest winters in America. Stranger in the Woods reads like a hard-boiled mystery and seeks to... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Ta-Nehisi Coates
[isbn]
I could say that Between the World and Me, a piercing exploration of race in America, is a book that is timely and important. There's no doubt that it is. But it also has a purity and intensity that demands it be read. I cannot think of another book in recent memory so powerful, so alive, and so necessary.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Jhumpa Lahiri, Ann Goldstein
[isbn]
Writing a book is difficult enough, but imagine trying to write it in a language that is not your own. This is the challenge Jhumpa Lahiri embarked upon in the fascinating memoir In Other Words. She is forthright and honest in recounting her struggles and vividly describes how it feels to be immersed and overwhelmed in another language. The result is a thoughtful examination of the creative process and the role that language plays in all... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Katie Kitamura
[isbn]
I finished A Separation in a single Saturday afternoon marathon session. It’s a book that packs a serious literary punch, yet has the fun propulsive flow of a thriller. The story and the setting will immediately suck you in and afterwards leave you thinking, What the hell just happened! I have no doubt that this will be the big breakout book for Katie Kitamura.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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David Grann
[isbn]
Killers of the Flower Moon tells the shocking story of a horrible series of crimes. In the 1920s after oil was discovered on their land, the members of Osage Indian Nation became the richest people per capita in the world. Soon thereafter, they began to be slowly and systematically murdered. The newly formed FBI became involved, and its young ambitious director, J. Edgar Hoover, sought to make a name for the bureau (and himself) by... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Amber Sparks
[isbn]
The beautiful stories in Amber Sparks’s debut collection have an ephemeral quality that is difficult to categorize. Comparisons can be made to Haruki Murakami or George Saunders, but honestly the writing is unlike anything I’ve ever read. The otherworldliness of these stores will transport you beyond the minutia of your everyday life and alter the way you look at the world.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Chloe Caldwell
[isbn]
Chloe Caldwell writes with an emotional intensity that is insightful, heartfelt, and often hilarious. In her new essay collection, I’ll Tell You in Person, she perfectly captures what it’s like to try and navigate your way through the traumatic first decade of adulthood. It’s filled with a raw honesty and voyeuristic allure that’s utterly captivating.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Tim Murphy
[isbn]
Tim Murphy uses the Christodora, a historic apartment building in the East Village, as the namesake and the backdrop for his compelling debut novel. The story follows the lives of several residents over the course of four decades. He writes incredibly well about the intersection of art and ambition, activism and loss, the consequences of addiction and the devastation of the AIDS epidemic. I can think of no novel in recent memory in which I felt... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Chris Dombrowski
[isbn]
Chris Dombrowski is a poet, a fly-fishing guide, and a wonderful storyteller. In Body of Water he sets out to understand the origins of saltwater fly-fishing and to get to know the guide who helped establish the sport in the Bahamas. Dombrowski's passion for life and his curiosity about the natural world are apparent on every page. Writing this beautiful is as rare as the elusive bonefish he so diligently pursues.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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David Sax
[isbn]
In the last few years we have witnessed firsthand the resurgence of local independent bookstores. However, I was surprised to learn that it is not just books, but board games, vinyl records, and paper journals that have also benefited from this shift towards nondigital lifestyle products. David Sax is one of the great chroniclers of cultural change, and his newest book, The Revenge of Analog, is a fascinating investigation of why society... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Billy Sparrow
[isbn]
While many of us have dreamed of leaving it all behind and
embarking on an epic adventure, Billy Sparrow actually did it. In 1997 he
cashed in his savings and bought an old wooden sailboat called Tranquility
(which proved to be anything but tranquil). The account of his journey is both
inspiring and entertaining. It's the type of book that should come with a
warning sticker that says, "Caution: May cause reader to quit job, leave
family, sell... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Keri Hulme
[isbn]
The Bone People is a dark, deeply moving story that will remain with you for a long time to come. Keri Hulme's unique use of language and lyrical style give the narrative a musicality unlike anything you'll ever read. The Bone People is Hulme's only novel and was the winner of the 1985 Booker Prize. More than 30 years later, it remains a testament to the power of love and its ability to transform lives.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Chuck Klosterman
[isbn]
This is one of the most interesting and thought-provoking books I've read in a long time. It is an analysis of the present from some point in the distant future that asks which authors, artists, and musicians from this era will be remembered and respected hundreds of years from now.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Haruki Murakami, Ted Goossen
[isbn]
Murakami's first two novels never saw wide English-language distribution and have long been out of print. Now packaged together as Wind/Pinball, the books are finally available again and include a new introduction by the author. These remarkable stories serve as a coming of age, not just for their characters but for Murakami as well.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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William Finnegan
[isbn]
William Finnegan is a lifelong surfer and a long-term staff writer for the New Yorker. Through this combination of writing talent and surfing skill, he is able to explain convincingly why so many surfers become obsessed with the sport. Finnegan writes especially well about the difficulty in balancing a consuming activity with the demands of work and family. He also honestly conveys his struggles to keep his ego and competitive instincts... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Richard Russo
[isbn]
While any new book from Richard Russo is a cause for celebration, to have one that revisits the characters from a beloved classic feels like a gift from the literary gods. Everybody’s Fool returns to North Bath, New York, the setting for Russo’s breakout novel from 1993, Nobody’s Fool. No one writes better about the quirks, petty jealousies, hard times, humor, and heartbreak of small-town America. Everybody’s Fool is... (read more)
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Sunil Yapa
[isbn]
Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist takes place over the course of one day in 1999 during the WTO protests in Seattle. In this wonderful debut, Yapa manages to create tension and empathy, urgency and compassion. It is a book that feels alive and visceral, much like the heart, muscle, and fist in its title.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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Alex Honnold and David Roberts
[isbn]
Alex Honnold is without a doubt the world’s best rock climber. His free solo climbs are the stuff of legend, yet he maintains a modest approach to his craft. Alone on the Wall is a fascinating chronicle of Alex’s adventures around the world and will appeal to anyone who loves nature, travel, and sports.
Recommended by Shawn D.
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