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Editorial Content for Bright, Precious Days

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Jane Krebs

If it’s possible to feel nostalgia for a city you barely know, come with me and read Jay McInerney’s BRIGHT, PRECIOUS DAYS. You’ll find yourself awash with a sweet wistfulness for a New York City in the months before the crash of 2008. You’ll find yourself believing the stereotypes of literary agents and cocky genius writers from Tennessee. And you’ll find romances that are tangled and messy, amidst the ever-present backdrop of the canyons and restaurants of Manhattan. Read More

Teaser

Russell and Corrine Calloway seem to be living the dream: a calendar filled with high-society parties; jobs they care about and enjoy; twin children, a boy and a girl whose birth was truly miraculous; a loft in TriBeCa and summers in the Hamptons. But beneath the glossy surfaces, things are simmering. Russell, editor-in-chief of a boutique publisher, has cultural clout but is on the edge financially, and feels compelled to pursue an audacious --- and potentially ruinous --- opportunity. Meanwhile, Corrine’s world is turned upside down when the man with whom she’d had an ill-fated affair in the wake of 9/11 suddenly reappears, and the Calloways find themselves tested more severely than they ever could have imagined.

Promo

Russell and Corrine Calloway seem to be living the dream: a calendar filled with high-society parties; jobs they care about and enjoy; twin children, a boy and a girl whose birth was truly miraculous; a loft in TriBeCa and summers in the Hamptons. But beneath the glossy surfaces, things are simmering. Russell, editor-in-chief of a boutique publisher, has cultural clout but is on the edge financially, and feels compelled to pursue an audacious --- and potentially ruinous --- opportunity. Meanwhile, Corrine’s world is turned upside down when the man with whom she’d had an ill-fated affair in the wake of 9/11 suddenly reappears, and the Calloways find themselves tested more severely than they ever could have imagined.

About the Book

This unforgettable New York story of glamour, sex, ambition and heartbreak begins in the heady days before the financial crash. Russell and Corrine Calloway seem to be living the dream: a calendar filled with high-society parties; jobs they care about and enjoy; twin children, a boy and a girl whose birth was truly miraculous; a loft in TriBeCa and summers in the Hamptons. But beneath the glossy surfaces, things are simmering. Russell, editor-in-chief of a boutique publisher, has cultural clout but is on the edge financially, and feels compelled to pursue an audacious --- and potentially ruinous --- opportunity. Meanwhile, Corrine’s world is turned upside down when the man with whom she’d had an ill-fated affair in the wake of 9/11 suddenly reappears, and the Calloways find themselves tested more severely than they ever could have imagined.

The third book in McInerney’s celebrated Calloway trilogy, BRIGHT, PRECIOUS DAYS is an aching, extraordinary portrait of a marriage during a period of dizzying change.

Audiobook available, read by Edoardo Ballerini

Editorial Content for The Last Days of Night

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Ray Palen

Graham Moore is an Oscar-winning writer who penned the screenplay to The Imitation Game, as well as the bestselling Sherlock Holmes-inspired novel, THE SHERLOCKIAN. In his latest book, THE LAST DAYS OF NIGHT, it is ironic that a story involving famous historical characters like Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, Nikola Tesla and J.P. Morgan would have a relative unknown as its emotional center. Read More

Teaser

New York, 1888. Gas lamps still flicker in the city streets, but the miracle of electric light is in its infancy. The person who controls the means to turn night into day will make history --- and a vast fortune. A young untested lawyer named Paul Cravath, fresh out of Columbia Law School, takes a case that seems impossible to win. Paul’s client, George Westinghouse, has been sued by Thomas Edison over a billion-dollar question: Who invented the light bulb and holds the right to power the country? As Paul takes greater and greater risks, he’ll find that everyone in his path is playing their own game, and no one is quite who they seem.

Promo

New York, 1888. Gas lamps still flicker in the city streets, but the miracle of electric light is in its infancy. The person who controls the means to turn night into day will make history --- and a vast fortune. A young untested lawyer named Paul Cravath, fresh out of Columbia Law School, takes a case that seems impossible to win. Paul’s client, George Westinghouse, has been sued by Thomas Edison over a billion-dollar question: Who invented the light bulb and holds the right to power the country? As Paul takes greater and greater risks, he’ll find that everyone in his path is playing their own game, and no one is quite who they seem.

About the Book

A thrilling novel based on actual events, about the nature of genius, the cost of ambition, and the battle to electrify America --- from the Oscar-winning screenwriter of The Imitation Game and author of THE SHERLOCKIAN

New York, 1888. Gas lamps still flicker in the city streets, but the miracle of electric light is in its infancy. The person who controls the means to turn night into day will make history --- and a vast fortune. A young untested lawyer named Paul Cravath, fresh out of Columbia Law School, takes a case that seems impossible to win. Paul’s client, George Westinghouse, has been sued by Thomas Edison over a billion-dollar question: Who invented the light bulb and holds the right to power the country?
 
The case affords Paul entry to the heady world of high society --- the glittering parties in Gramercy Park mansions, and the more insidious dealings done behind closed doors. The task facing him is beyond daunting. Edison is a wily, dangerous opponent with vast resources at his disposal --- private spies, newspapers in his pocket, and the backing of J. P. Morgan himself. Yet this unknown lawyer shares with his famous adversary a compulsion to win at all costs. How will he do it?
 
In obsessive pursuit of victory, Paul crosses paths with Nikola Tesla, an eccentric, brilliant inventor who may hold the key to defeating Edison, and with Agnes Huntington, a beautiful opera singer who proves to be a flawless performer on stage and off. As Paul takes greater and greater risks, he’ll find that everyone in his path is playing their own game, and no one is quite who they seem.

Audiobook available, read by Johnathan McClain

Editorial Content for Smooth Operator: A Teddy Fay Novel Featuring Stone Barrington

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Judy Gigstad

Stuart Woods collaborates with another author, Parnell Hall, to give life to a past favorite character from the Stone Barrington series. Read More

Teaser

When President Kate Lee calls Stone Barrington to Washington on an urgent matter, it’s soon clear that a potentially disastrous situation requires the kind of help more delicate than even he can provide…and he knows just the right man for the job. Teddy Fay: ex-CIA, master of disguise, and a gentleman not known for abiding by legal niceties in the pursuit of his own brand of justice.

Promo

When President Kate Lee calls Stone Barrington to Washington on an urgent matter, it’s soon clear that a potentially disastrous situation requires the kind of help more delicate than even he can provide…and he knows just the right man for the job. Teddy Fay: ex-CIA, master of disguise, and a gentleman not known for abiding by legal niceties in the pursuit of his own brand of justice.

About the Book

From #1 bestselling author Stuart Woods comes an extraordinary new series starring an old fan favorite: Teddy Fay.

When President Kate Lee calls Stone Barrington to Washington on an urgent matter, it’s soon clear that a potentially disastrous situation requires the kind of help more delicate than even he can provide...and he knows just the right man for the job. Teddy Fay: ex-CIA, master of disguise, and a gentleman not known for abiding by legal niceties in the pursuit of his own brand of justice.

Audiobook available, read by Tony Roberts

Editorial Content for Juniper: The Girl Who Was Born Too Soon

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Carole Turner

This is a gut-wrenching, hope-filled, then hope-dashed, then hope-filled-again book that is very difficult to put down. Kelley and Thomas French are both well-known journalists who have taken the notes they wrote during their micro-preemie daughter's first 196 days of life, all of which were spent in the hospital, along with the tiny baby's 7,000-page medical record, and created the heartfelt story of how they became a family. Read More

Teaser

Juniper French was born four months early, weighing in at one pound, four ounces. Babies like Juniper, born at the edge of viability, trigger the question: Which is the greater act of love --- to save her, or to let her go? Kelley and Thomas French chose to fight for Juniper's life. Here, they explore the border between what is possible and what is right. They marvel at the science that conceived and sustained their daughter and the love that made the difference. They trace the journey of their family from its fragile beginning to the miraculous survival of their now-thriving daughter.

Promo

Juniper French was born four months early, weighing in at one pound, four ounces. Babies like Juniper, born at the edge of viability, trigger the question: Which is the greater act of love --- to save her, or to let her go? Kelley and Thomas French chose to fight for Juniper's life. Here, they explore the border between what is possible and what is right. They marvel at the science that conceived and sustained their daughter and the love that made the difference. They trace the journey of their family from its fragile beginning to the miraculous survival of their now-thriving daughter.

About the Book

The inspiring story of Juniper, a baby born too soon, gorgeously told by her parents, both award-winning journalists.

Juniper French was born four months early, at 23 weeks gestation. She weighed one pound, four ounces, and her twiggy body was the length of a Barbie doll. Her head was smaller than a tennis ball, her skin was nearly translucent, and through her chest you could see her flickering heart. Babies like Juniper, born at the edge of viability, trigger the question: Which is the greater act of love --- to save her, or to let her go?

Kelley and Thomas French chose to fight for Juniper's life, and this is their incredible tale. In one exquisite memoir, the authors explore the border between what is possible and what is right. They marvel at the science that conceived and sustained their daughter and the love that made the difference. They probe the bond between a mother and a baby, between a husband and a wife. They trace the journey of their family from its fragile beginning to the miraculous survival of their now thriving daughter.

Editorial Content for Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Maya Gittelman

"The title of this book is something of a misnomer. The history that has come together in these pages wasn't so much hidden as unseen --- fragments patiently biding their time in footnotes and family anecdotes and musty folders before returning to view." Read More

Teaser

Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, HIDDEN FIGURES follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes. It chronicles their careers over nearly three decades they faced challenges, forged alliances and used their intellect to change their own lives, and their country’s future.

Promo

Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, HIDDEN FIGURES follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes. It chronicles their careers over nearly three decades they faced challenges, forged alliances and used their intellect to change their own lives, and their country’s future.

About the Book

The phenomenal true story of the black female mathematicians at NASA whose calculations helped fuel some of America’s greatest achievements in space. Soon to be a major motion picture starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kirsten Dunst and Kevin Costner.

Before John Glenn orbited the earth, or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as “human computers” used pencils, slide rules and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space.

Among these problem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation. Originally relegated to teaching math in the South’s segregated public schools, they were called into service during the labor shortages of World War II, when America’s aeronautics industry was in dire need of anyone who had the right stuff. Suddenly, these overlooked math whizzes had a shot at jobs worthy of their skills, and they answered Uncle Sam’s call, moving to Hampton, Virginia and the fascinating, high-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory.

Even as Virginia’s Jim Crow laws required them to be segregated from their white counterparts, the women of Langley’s all-black “West Computing” group helped America achieve one of the things it desired most: a decisive victory over the Soviet Union in the Cold War, and complete domination of the heavens.

Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, HIDDEN FIGURES follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes. It chronicles their careers over nearly three decades they faced challenges, forged alliances and used their intellect to change their own lives, and their country’s future.

Audiobook available, read by Robin Miles

Editorial Content for The Last Days of New Paris

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Pauline Finch

Suppose you’re a reasonably well-educated millennial with a broad grasp of what’s what in the world, but perhaps not especially immersed in any particular discipline. Maybe you’re just embarking on an esthetic and intellectual journey that has yet to reveal those landmarks and detours that will become your life’s most powerful passions. And you’re right here, so you love reading. Read More

Teaser

1941. In the chaos of wartime Marseille, American engineer --- and occult disciple --- Jack Parsons stumbles onto a clandestine anti-Nazi group. What he unwittingly unleashes is the power of dreams and nightmares, changing the war and the world forever. Nine years later, a lone Surrealist fighter, Thibaut, walks a new, hallucinogenic Paris, where Nazis and the Resistance are trapped in unending conflict, and the streets are stalked by living images and texts --- and by the forces of Hell. To escape the city, he must join forces with Sam, an American photographer intent on recording the ruins. But Sam is being hunted. And new secrets will emerge that will test all their loyalties --- to each other, to Paris old and new, and to reality itself.

Promo

1941. In the chaos of wartime Marseille, American engineer --- and occult disciple --- Jack Parsons stumbles onto a clandestine anti-Nazi group. What he unwittingly unleashes is the power of dreams and nightmares, changing the war and the world forever. Nine years later, a lone Surrealist fighter, Thibaut, walks a new, hallucinogenic Paris, where Nazis and the Resistance are trapped in unending conflict, and the streets are stalked by living images and texts --- and by the forces of Hell. To escape the city, he must join forces with Sam, an American photographer intent on recording the ruins. But Sam is being hunted. And new secrets will emerge that will test all their loyalties --- to each other, to Paris old and new, and to reality itself.

About the Book

A thriller of war that never was --- of survival in an impossible city --- of surreal cataclysm. In THE LAST DAYS OF NEW PARIS, China Miéville entwines true historical events and people with his daring, uniquely imaginative brand of fiction, reconfiguring history and art into something new.

“Beauty will be convulsive...”

1941. In the chaos of wartime Marseille, American engineer --- and occult disciple --- Jack Parsons stumbles onto a clandestine anti-Nazi group, including Surrealist theorist André Breton. In the strange games of the dissident diplomats, exiled revolutionaries and avant-garde artists, Parsons finds and channels hope. But what he unwittingly unleashes is the power of dreams and nightmares, changing the war and the world forever.

1950. A lone Surrealist fighter, Thibaut, walks a new, hallucinogenic Paris, where Nazis and the Resistance are trapped in unending conflict, and the streets are stalked by living images and texts --- and by the forces of Hell. To escape the city, he must join forces with Sam, an American photographer intent on recording the ruins, and make common cause with a powerful, enigmatic figure of chance and rebellion: the exquisite corpse.

But Sam is being hunted. And new secrets will emerge that will test all their loyalties --- to each other, to Paris old and new, and to reality itself.

Audiobook available, read by Ralph Lister

Editorial Content for Perfume River

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Harvey Freedenberg

In a literary career that’s been noteworthy for its diversity, Robert Olen Butler first came to prominence in 1993, when A GOOD SCENT FROM A STRANGE MOUNTAIN, his Vietnam-themed short story collection, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. In the two decades that have ensued, his production has included a short story collection based on tabloid headlines (TABLOID DREAMS), an eponymous novel set in hell, and a book of writing instruction (FROM WHERE YOU DREAM), among other works. Read More

Teaser

Robert Quinlan is a 70-year-old historian, teaching at Florida State University, where his wife Darla is also tenured. Their marriage, forged in the fervor of anti-Vietnam-war protests, now bears the fractures of time, both personal and historical. For Robert and Darla, the cracks remain under the surface, whereas the divisions in Robert’s own family are more apparent. He has almost no relationship with his brother, Jimmy. Their father, a veteran of WWII, is coming to the end of his life. And an unstable homeless man whom Robert at first takes to be a fellow Vietnam veteran turns out to have a deep impact not just on Robert, but on his entire family.

Promo

Robert Quinlan is a 70-year-old historian, teaching at Florida State University, where his wife Darla is also tenured. Their marriage, forged in the fervor of anti-Vietnam-war protests, now bears the fractures of time, both personal and historical. For Robert and Darla, the cracks remain under the surface, whereas the divisions in Robert’s own family are more apparent. He has almost no relationship with his brother, Jimmy. Their father, a veteran of WWII, is coming to the end of his life. And an unstable homeless man whom Robert at first takes to be a fellow Vietnam veteran turns out to have a deep impact not just on Robert, but on his entire family.

About the Book

From one of America’s most important writers, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A GOOD SCENT FROM A STRANGE MOUNTAIN comes PERFUME RIVER, an exquisite novel that examines family ties and the legacy of the Vietnam war through the portrait of a single North Florida family.

Robert Quinlan is a 70-year-old historian teaching at Florida State University, where his wife Darla is also tenured. Their marriage, forged in the fervor of anti-Vietnam War protests, now bears the fractures of time, with the couple trapped in an existence of morning coffee, solitary jogging, and separate offices. The cracks in Robert and Darla’s relationship remain under the surface, whereas the divisions in Robert’s family are more apparent: he has almost no relationship with his brother Jimmy, who became estranged from the family as the Vietnam War intensified. As Robert and Jimmy’s father, who is a veteran of World War II, draws near to the end of his life, aftershocks of war ripple across the family once again, with Jimmy refusing to appear at his father’s bedside. And an unstable homeless man, whom Robert meets at a restaurant and at first takes to be a fellow Vietnam veteran, turns out to have a deep impact not just on Robert, but on all of the people closest to him.

A profound and poignant novel that continues Butler’s exploration of America, war, and the family, as begun in A GOOD SCENT FROM A STRANGE MOUNTAIN and A SMALL HOTEL, PERFUME RIVER is a powerful and moving portrait of the challenges of close relationships, the resonance of personal choice, and the American experience.

Audiobook available, narrated by Robert Olen Butler

Editorial Content for The Butcher's Son

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Joe Hartlaub

Author Grant McKenzie should get more recognition than he currently does. He has written a couple of mystery series --- one under his own name, the other under a pseudonym --- and more recently has published a number of stand-alone titles, as well as some short stories for eReaders. THE BUTCHER’S SON, McKenzie’s latest work, feels like the opening salvo of a new series, featuring a compassionate and tenderhearted protagonist towing a boatload of tragedy that, in turn, occasionally manifests an explosive and rough edge. Read More

Teaser

Ian Quinn is a Child Protection Officer who has spent his life protecting children from the monsters that live among us. Ian's own father left years ago, leaving him and his sister alone. But, out of the blue, Ian is called by an attorney, claiming his father has recently died and named Ian in his will. Ian had assumed his father was long dead, and is confused as to what he could possibly be needed for. When Ian goes to the lawyer's office, he is given three items: The first is a key. The second is a deed to his grandfather's old butcher shop. The third is a letter from his father that reads simply and cryptically: "Sorry for everything, son, but it's your burden now."

Promo

Ian Quinn is a Child Protection Officer who has spent his life protecting children from the monsters that live among us. Ian's own father left years ago, leaving him and his sister alone. But, out of the blue, Ian is called by an attorney, claiming his father has recently died and named Ian in his will. Ian had assumed his father was long dead, and is confused as to what he could possibly be needed for. When Ian goes to the lawyer's office, he is given three items: The first is a key. The second is a deed to his grandfather's old butcher shop. The third is a letter from his father that reads simply and cryptically: "Sorry for everything, son, but it's your burden now."

About the Book

For one man, the past will never stay buried.

Ian Quinn has spent his life protecting children from the monsters that live among us. As a Child Protection Officer, Ian places their lives above his own, and has no qualms about getting his hands dirty when it comes to protecting those who can't protect themselves. Years ago, Ian was unable to protect his own daughter when she was killed, and has channeled the anger and sadness into his vocation. Ian has tried to bury his past. But the past is far from done with him.

Ian's own father left years ago, leaving Ian and his sister alone. But out of the blue Ian is called by an attorney, claiming his father has recently died and named Ian in his will. Ian had assumed his father was long dead, and confused as to what he could possibly be needed for. When Ian goes to the lawyer's office, he is given three items:

The first is a key.

The second is a deed to his grandfather's old butcher shop.

The Third is a letter from his from his father that reads simply and cryptically: "Sorry for everything, son, but it's your burden now."

Audiobook available, read by Peter Berkrot

George Eliot

There's no disappointment in memory, and one's exaggerations are always on the good side.

Attribution

George Eliot