Lazy summer days are captured in this small-town, gently elegant novel. Kathleen Novak’s second novel, "Rare Birds", is a lovely slice-of-life work that introduces myriad residents of a small town whose stories intersect. The entire... Read More

Marie Deans was a strong writer, and her words have an immediacy that nicely contrasts with the thorough biography of her life. For about three decades, Marie Deans devoted herself to fighting the death penalty, first in South Carolina... Read More

This is strong nature writing—descriptive and thorough, and helped by Spencer’s obvious devotion to his task. For years, from May to November, Lee Spencer has stood guard over the population of wild steelhead salmon in the same... Read More

Characters’ stories influence one another compellingly, making "An Extraordinary Destiny" hold together despite its wide-ranging structure. In "An Extraordinary Destiny", Shekhar Paleja weaves together a number of characters’... Read More

This book is an effective introduction to many aspects of Buddhist thought and practice. In The Buddha’s Dream of Liberation: Freedom, Emptiness, and Awakened Nature, James William Coleman provides an overview of Buddhist sutras... Read More

Time-travel troubles complicate a budding teen romance in this enjoyable debut. Gwen Cole’s "Cold Summer" intertwines a budding teen romance with time travel, a nice mix that follows the rules of its universe. Kale Jackson started time... Read More

Kulling’s tale introduces young readers to one of science’s great characters at a pivotal point in her story. Paleontology was a new field early in the nineteenth century, when a young girl named Mary Anning made the first of her... Read More

These literary stories stay in the realm of realism, making beautiful use of details from everyday life. Dalia Rosenfeld’s "The Worlds We Think We Know" evinces a writer with a wide range of skills. Some stories are funny, others... Read More