Some Enticing New Books for You

I mentioned a while back that Tuesdays are when many of the publishers release their new titles. This Tuesday was a particularly exciting one for me, as we received the paperback editions of two especially wonderful nonfiction books. Let's Take the Long Way Home is a beautifully written memoir by Gail Caldwell that tells the story of her friendship with fellow writer and dog lover Caroline Knapp. It will take your breath away. And even though I already own the hardbound edition of this book, I'm tempted to buy a second copy in paperback because the new cover is gorgeous. (Who says you can't judge a book by its cover???)

The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer, by Siddhartha Mukherjee, is exactly what the subtitle says, a biography of cancer -- from its first documented appearances thousands of years ago through the epic battles in the twentieth century to cure, control, and conquer it, to a radical new understanding of its essence. The book includes an appearance by Brian Druker at OHSU and his work with chronic myeloid leukemia, or CML. The Emperor of All Maladies won the Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction this year, and was named a Top Ten Book of 2010 by The New York Times, Time magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, Entertainment Weekly, and O, The Oprah Magazine -- which gives you some idea of its broad range and appeal.

Recently one of our regular customers came in, someone who reads a great deal of very good narrative nonfiction, and he gave this book the highest possible marks. That's good enough for me! The book is going on my list. And now it's out in paperback!

Our cup continued to runneth over yesterday with wonderful new fiction titles as well, including a debut novel in hardcover that I've been eager to read: The Family Fang, by Kevin Wilson, who is also the author of a short story collection (Tunneling to the Center of the Earth), which received an Alex Award from the American Library Association and the Shirley Jackson Award. The Family Fang is about a family of four: performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang and their two (now grown) children Buster and Annie Fang. You have to be intrigued by a book with this comment from Ann Patchett on the cover: "A comedy, a tragedy, and a tour-de-force examination of what it means to make art and survive your family. The best single world description would be genius."

Some of the paperback fiction titles we received yesterday were Domestic Violets by Matthew Norman, Swamplandia! by Karen Russell, and To the End of the Land  by David Grossman -- a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction.

Our shelves are well stocked with much to tempt you. Come see for yourself! While you're here you can see Kate's fabulous new ocean-themed front window display. Oh, and we're starting to get new 2012 calendars (egad!!) too, including a nifty new one based on one of my favorite books of last year, The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe, by Theodore Gray.