Covering differing versions of a single life seen side by side, the reflective novel "Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart" is a satisfying dual adventure about a lifetime of joy and mysteries. In Rex Cole’s touching novel "Too Soon Old, Too... Read More

A proud woman who was a child star is the last to understand the wounds her industry inflicted on her in the complex, haunting novel "The Case for Brandi Belden". A former child star grapples with the fallout from her past in William... Read More

A woman with mystical powers exposes Angelenos’ disunity on the basis of race, gender, and faith in the thoughtful novel "One Shining Soul". Wayne L. Wilson’s spellbinding novel "One Shining Soul" imagines how modern Americans would... Read More

Fleshing out a family story with imagination and admiration for its heroine, "Surviving Southwood Avenue" is an inspiring historical novel. In Melissa Simonye’s historical novel "Surviving Southwood Avenue", a girl’s Depression-era... Read More

Consequential connections form among the denizens of a food truck lot in the intriguing novel "Deep Fried". A food truck lot just outside of a county courthouse serves as the primary setting of Mark Doyon’s polyphonic novel "Deep... Read More

An affecting bildungsroman, "The Summer Between" is about personal discovery in a period of historical tumult. In Robert Raasch’s novel "The Summer Between", a college-bound man navigates his gay identity amid the upheavals of the... Read More

Lisa Greenwald’s Ellie’s Deli: In a Pickle is the second illustrated book in a series about Ellie, a spunky eleven-year-old whose family owns a Jewish deli. In this installment, Ellie strives to stay on top of schoolwork and squash... Read More

In Susan R. Greenway’s novel "Elephant Touch", a girl learns to love again after a significant loss. Quinn lost her mother in a skiing accident. In Thailand, her Aunt Lizzie hopes that volunteering at an elephant sanctuary will... Read More