FICTION:
City of endless night by Douglas Preston. One of the best in the Pendergast series – tense and tightly wound, with death relentlessly circling, stalking, lurking behind every shadow. A New York City detective and an F.B.I. special agent track down a killer who decapitates numerous victims.
Cry your way home by Damien Walters. This collection of subversive short horror pieces focuses on the ways girls and women, particularly mothers and daughters, intentionally or inadvertently harm one another.
Death below stairs by Jennifer Ashley. Victorian class lines are crossed when cook Kat Holloway is drawn into a murder that reaches all the way to the throne.
Elmet by Fiona Mozley. A not-always-gentle giant and his two children live peacefully in the woods, but the push and pull of old forces will eventually find them, and the results will be explosive.
Fools and mortals by Bernard Cornwell. In this delightful departure from his popular military historicals, Cornwell conducts a boisterous behind-the-scenes romp through the often sordid world of the Elizabethan stage.
Forest dark by Nicole Krauss. This follows the strange journeys of two American Jews in Israel who experience mysterious transformations while wandering in the desert.
The girls in the picture by Melanie Benjamin. A fascinating novel of the friendship and creative partnership between two of Hollywood’s earliest female legends – screenwriter Frances Marion and superstar Mary Pickford.
Glory days by Melissa Fraterrigo. Here is a stark portrait of the painful transitions of 21 century small-town America.
Green by Sam Graham-Felsen. A novel race and privilege in America that you haven’t seen before: a coming-of-age story about a life-changing friendship, propelled by an exuberant, unforgettable voice.
Halsey Street by Naima Coster. A family saga set against the landscape of gentrifying Brooklyn.
Heart Spring Mountain by Robin MacArthur. A young woman returns to her rural Vermont hometown in the wake of a devastating storm to search for her missing mother and to unravel a powerful family secret.
The immortalists by Chloe Benjamin. This is a family saga that investigates the question: If you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life?
The music shop by Rachel Joyce. This deceptively simple love story is a magical winner that explores the idea that the perfect song can transform one’s life.
The night market by Jonathan Moore. A sharp and scary near-future thriller that delivers a dark message about society’s love affair with technology.
Now that you mention it by Kristan Higgins. When a fateful moment requires Nora to return home to Maine after having made a life for herself in Boston, she must decide whether staying is worth sticking around to hear some hard truths.
Operator Down by Brad Taylor. Pike Logan’s search for a Mossad agent and ally puts him on a collision course with a ruthless military coup in Africa – and tests his loyalties to the Task Force.
Peculiar ground by Lucy Hughes-Hallett. This is a great English country house novel, spanning three centuries, that explores surprisingly timely themes of immigration and exclusion.
Red sky at noon by Simon Sebag Montefiore. This novel is set during the epic cavalry ride across the hot grasslands outside Stalingrad during the darkest times of World War II.
Robicheaux by James Lee Burke. A bereaved detective confronts his past and works to clear his name when he becomes a suspect during the investigation into the murder of a man who killed his wife.
Say my name by Allegra Huston. A middle aged woman has an extramarital affair with a much younger man.
Sing, unburied, sing by Jesmyn Ward. A 13 year old boy comes of age in Mississippi while his black mother takes him and his toddler sister to pick up their white father, who is getting released from the state penitentiary.
The wanted by Robert Crais. A single mother hires Elvis Cole to investigate her teenage son who is on the run after a deadly crime spree.
The woman in the window by A.J. Finn. A twisty, powerful Hitchcockian thriller about an agoraphobic woman who believes she witnessed a crime in a neighboring house.
NEW MUSIC CDs:
Songs of Experience by U2
Lust For Life by Lana Del Rey
The Rest of Our Life by Tim McGraw & Faith Hill
NEW DVDs:
It (2017) starring Bill Skarsgard
A Late Quartet (2012) starring Christopher Walken, Catherine Keener, and Philip Seymour Hoffman
Dunkirk (2017) directed by Christopher Nolan
Strictly Ballroom (1993) directed by Baz Luhrmann
Weeds: Season one and two starring Mary-Louise Parker
Nurse Jackie: Season 1 starring Edie Falco
Scavenger Hunt (1979) starring Richard Benjamin, James Coco, and Ruth Gordon
NONFICTION:
The boy who really, really wanted to have sex by John McNally. Subtitled “The memoir of a fat kid”, this gives readers an honest and often mischievous look at the author’s working-class childhood in Midwestern America.
The Dogist puppies by Elias Friedman. An endearing look at puppies.
50 things to do in Maine before you die by Nancy Griffin. The ultimate to-do list for Mainers and visitors alike.
How Maine changed the world by Nancy Griffin. This reflects upon the contributions Maine has made that have had significant cultural and historical impacts on both the US and the world.
The joy of acrylic painting by Annie Gonzales. Expressive painting techniques for beginners.
Maine: life in a day by Susan Conley. Gathering the work of 50 photographers, this captures the day to day lives of ordinary Mainers.
Remodelista by Julie Carlson. Simple, stylish storage ideas for all over the organized home.
So you want to talk about race by Ijeoma Oluo. The author explores the complex reality of today’s racial landscape – from white privilege and police brutality to systemic discrimination and the Black Lives Matter movement – offering clarity that readers need to contribute to the dismantling of the racial divide.
Stop here, this is the place by Susan Conley. Through Susan’s recollections of moments from her childhood and the ongoing lives of her children, we’re reminded of our own childhoods, and of the necessity to stop and pay attention, to hold on.
Tell me more by Kelly Corrigan. Stories about the 12 hardest things we have to learn to say such as “I was wrong,” “I know,” and “I love you”.
Treating people well by Lea Berman. The extraordinary power of civility at work and in life.
The truth matters by Bruce Bartlett. A citizen’s guide to separating facts from lies and stopping fake news in its tracks.
The ultimate instant pot pressure cooker cookbook by Ella Sanders. 200 easy foolproof recipes.
Women and power by Mary Beard. A look at the roots of misogyny and its manifestations today.
You need a budget by Jesse Mecham. A proven system for breaking the paycheck to paycheck cycle, getting out of debt, and living the life you want.
New Children’s Books for February 2018
FICTION
Click, clack, moo! I love you by Doreen Cronin
Come home already! by Jory John
Dreadful tale of Prosper Redding by Alexandra Bracken
How to find and elephant by Kate Banks
Journey under the sea by R.A. Montgomery
Library book by Tom Chapin
Love by Matt de la Pena
Magic for sale by Carrie Clickard
Real McCoys by Matthew Swanson
Secret of the ninja by Jay Leibold
Space and beyond by R.A. Montgomery
Surf monkeys by Jay Leibold
Survivor diaries: avalanche! by Terry Lynn Johnson
Valensteins by Ethan Long
NON-FICTION
Lindsey Vonn by Eric Braun
Many: the diversity of life on earth by Nicola Davies
Michael Phelps by Grace Hansen
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: the case of R.B.G. vs. Inequality by Jonah Winter
Simone Biles by Grace Hansen
Strongest man in the world: the legend of Louis Cyr by Lucie Papineau
Super Bowl: chasing football immortality by Matt Doeden
You wouldn’t want to live without bacteria by Roger Canavan
You wouldn’t want to live without boogers by Alex Woolf
You wouldn’t want to live without clocks and calendars! by Fiona Macdonald
You wouldn’t want to live without dentists! by Fiona Macdonald
Notes from Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Library Journal, and New York Times Book Review.