The Short List

Our New Release Alerts Service isn’t new, but we wanted to refresh your memory about what a great thing it is. There are thousands of books published in the US every month; many will go unnoticed but others will quickly become bestsellers which also are highly sought-after in libraries by patrons.

The New Release Alerts page on our website is updated every month with 15-20, or so, books to be released by publishers in the next 60-90 days which we believe will be of popular interest to our patrons. We provide a link to each of these books in our catalog which allows patrons to put a hold on the book even before the Library has its copy–and perhaps before the 200 other interested patrons get in the queue. Nice, right?

The New Release Alerts also include books which are expected to be bestsellers even though they’re not by A-List authors or coming from well-known publishers. Recent examples include: The Story Of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski, The Beach House by Jane Green and Love The One You’re With by Emily Giffin.

Click here to see July’s New Release Alerts.

Kate Summerscale’s The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, “a detailed account of the famous murder, in 1860, of a three-year-old child of a respectable middle-class family,” won of the £30,000 (US$60,064) Samuel Johnson prize for non-fiction. Patrick French’s biography of V.S. Naipaul had been the favorite.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Samuel Johnson Prize. Sponsored by BBC Four, it celebrates diverse and thought-provoking writing in non-fiction. The prize covers current affairs, history, politics, science, sport, travel, biography, autobiography and the arts. The competition is open to authors of any nationality whose work is published in the UK in English.

“The judges were unanimous: this is one of those great non-fiction books that uses the techniques of fiction to magnificent effect,” said judging panel chair Rosie Boycott. “On first reading, it is an absolute page-turner. Then, when you reread it, you realise how many levels it has, how much it tells you.”

The shortlist included:

The World Is What It Is: the authorized biography of V.S. Naipaul by Patrick French - available in the US in November, 2008

Blood River: A Journey to Africa’s Broken Heart by Tim Butcher -available in the US in October, 2008

Crow Country by Mark Cocker - currently unavailable in the US

The Whisperers by Orlando Figes

The Rest Is Noise by Alex Ross.

Manly men, that is. The following list of books will be a good counterpoint refuge from all those chick-lit lists of late:

Collision by Jeff Abbott ~~ Two men, one a successful corporate consultant who is mourning the murder of his new bride; the other, a former CIA agent known only as “Pilgrim,” whose current assignment for a fringe espionage agency is so treacherous he doesn’t trust even his own boss are thrown together in a violent, unexpected event. They realize that they’ve been framed in an elaborate setup. Unsure who to trust and who may just be trying to draw them into the open, the unlikely partners have no choice but to work together.

Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks ~~ An Algerian drug runner is savagely executed in the desolate outskirts of Paris. This seemingly isolated event leads to the recall of Agent 007 from his sabbatical in Rome and his return to the world of intrigue and danger where he is most at home. The head of MI6, M, assigns him to shadow the mysterious Dr. Julius Gorner, a power-crazed pharmaceutical magnate, whose wealth is exceeded only by his greed. Gorner has lately taken a disquieting interest in opiate derivatives, both legal and illegal, and this urgently bears looking into.

Empires Of The Sea by Roger Crowley ~~ Acclaimed historian Roger Crowley has written his most mesmerizing work to date–a thrilling account of this brutal decades-long battle between Christendom and Islam for the soul of Europe, a fast-paced tale of spiraling intensity that ranges from Istanbul to the Gates of Gibraltar and features a cast of extraordinary characters: Barbarossa, “The King of Evil,” the pirate who terrified Europe; the risk-taking Emperor Charles V; the Knights of St. John, the last crusading order after the passing of the Templars; the messianic Pope Pius V; and the brilliant Christian admiral Don Juan of Austria.

Death And Honor by W.E.B. Griffin ~~ The year is 1943, and Argentina is officially neutral, but crawling with every kind of spy, sympathizer, and military official imaginable. The hero is Cletus Frade, a Marine pilot recruited by the OSS, with strong family ties to Argentina, and in Death and Honor—Griffin’s fourth book in the series and the first since 1999—he’s got a lot on his hands.

Moscow Rules by Daniel Silva ~~ the death of a journalist leads Allon to Russia, where he finds that, in terms of spycraft, even he has something to learn. He’s playing by Moscow rules now. This is not the grim, gray Moscow of Soviet times but a new Moscow, awash in oil wealth and choked with bulletproof Bentleys. A Moscow where power resides once more behind the walls of the Kremlin and where critics of the ruling class are ruthlessly silenced. A Moscow where a new generation of Stalinists is plotting to reclaim an empire lost and to challenge the global dominance of its old enemy, the United States.

Patriot Pirates by Robert H. Patton ~~ “In this deeply considered book, based on overlooked primary sources, Robert H. Patton illuminates the raucous, illicit origins of our American democracy. The privateers of the Revolution operated in a twilit world of idealism and greed, launching the new nation on the double edge that would thereafter define it. Many familiar names–the Browns of Providence, the Cabots and Derbys of Salem, the Binghams and Franklins of Philadelphia–appear here in unfamiliar, less admirable ways. With neither rancor nor illusions, Patriot Pirates reminds us again of the mystery and unpredictability of true history.” –Stephen Fox

Mack To The Rescue by Jim Lehrer ~~ When Governor “Buffalo Joe” Hayman calls for privatizing state government, Mack decides to oppose his re-election bid, but a medical mishap prevents Mack from running. While attending a lieutenant governors’ conference in Washington, he suddenly collapses. Hospitalized, he is given a heart bypass operation intended for another patient. Mack backs out of the race and throws his support behind his flaky friend and former state house Speaker, Luther Wallace. Embroiled in a medical malpractice suit while following Luther’s questionable shenanigans, Mack finally has no choice but to come to the rescue when the governor’s race takes a particularly ugly turn.

We Would Have Played For Nothing by Fay Vincent ~~ Former Major League Baseball commissioner Fay Vincent brings together a stellar roster of ballplayers from the 1950s and 1960s in this wonderful new history of the game. These were the decades when baseball expanded across the country and truly became the national pastime. The era opened, though, with the domination of the New York teams: the Yankees, Dodgers, or Giants were in every World Series of the 1950s — but by the end of the decade the two National League teams had moved to California. Representing those great teams in this volume are Whitey Ford, Ralph Branca, Carl Erskine, Duke Snider, and Bill Rigney. They recall the great 1951 Dodgers-Giants playoff that ended with Bobby Thomson’s famous home run (served up by Branca). They remember the mighty Yankees, defeated at last in 1955 by the Dodgers, only to recover the World Series crown from their Brooklyn rivals a year later. They talk about their most feared opponents and most valued teammates, from Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle to Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella to Willie Mays.

Janet Maslin recently posted her favorite summer chick-lit book list at the New York Times in an article entitled “On The Beach, Under A Tiffany-Blue Sky”. Interestingly, her favorite doesn’t quite meet the normal standards–it’s non-fiction and it’s written by a man. Nevertheless, her list is The Word on this summer’s most popular books of that genre:

The Favorite: BRINGING HOME THE BIRKIN: MY LIFE IN HOT PURSUIT OF THE WORLD’S MOST COVETED HANDBAG by Michael Tonello

AN ABSOLUTE SCANDAL by Penny Vincenzi

ALL WE EVER WANTED WAS EVERYTHING by Janelle Brown

THE BEACH HOUSE by Jane Green

CHASING HARRY WINSTON by Lauren Weisberger ~~ from the author of The Devil Wears Prada

THE DAY I ATE WHATEVER I WANTED: AND OTHER SMALL ACTS OF LIBERATION by Elizabeth Berg

LOVE THE ONE YOU’RE WITH by Emily Giffin

SUNDAYS AT TIFFANY’S by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet

SWEET LOVE by Sarah Strohmeyer

TROPHIES by Heather Thomas

We just got a new shipment of YA books, some of which are on summer reading lists, and they’re on our shelves now:

Ivy by Julie Hearn ~~ In mid-nineteenth-century London, young, mistreated, and destitute Ivy, whose main asset is her beautiful red hair, comes to the attention of an aspiring painter of the pre-Raphaelite school of artists who, with the connivance of Ivy’s unsavory family, is determined to make her his model and muse.

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow ~~ After being interrogated for days by the Department of Homeland Security in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco, California, seventeen-year-old Marcus, released into what is now a police state, decides to use his expertise in computer hacking to set things right.

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld ~~ Just before their sixteenth birthdays, when they will will be transformed into beauties whose only job is to have a great time, Tally’s best friend runs away and Tally must find her and turn her in, or never become pretty at all. A Nutmeg 2009 book.

Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver ~~ 6,000 years ago, twelve-year-old Torak and his guide, a wolf cub, set out on a dangerous journey to fulfill an oath the boy made to his dying father–to travel to the Mountain of the World Spirit to destroy a demon-possessed bear that threatens all the clans.

Looks by Madeleine George ~~ Two high school girls, one an anorexic poet and the other an obese loner, form an unlikely friendship.

The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman ~~ A Brooklyn eighth-grader nicknamed Antsy befriends the Schwa, an “invisible-ish” boy who is tired of blending into his surroundings and going unnoticed by nearly everyone.

Tweak by Nic Sheff ~~ Nic Sheff was drunk for the first time at age eleven. In the years that followed, he developed addictions to crystal meth and heroin. Even so, he felt like he would always be able to quit and put his life together whenever he needed to.

Of the many new books on our shelves or on order are a group that might find women as their main readers. Not necessarily confined to being light reading, their topics revolve around love and family relationships and perhaps a juicy murder here and there. See what you think:

Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You by Judith McNaught

Love The One You’re With by Emily Giffin

Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber

Royal Pain by Rhys Bowen

Outtakes From A Marriage by Ann Leary

Death Of A Cozy Writer by G. M. Malliet

How To Be Single by Liz Tuccillo

The Road Home by Rose Tremain

Outcast by Sadie Jones

On Account Of Conspicuous Women by Dawn Shamp

The what? “The Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award is an annual award of 35,000 euros, ( almost $55,000) as such it is currently the world’s richest prize for the short story form. The award is in memory of the late Frank O’Connor, one of the world’s most renowned short story writers. The award is presented in O’Connor’s hometown of Cork, Ireland. It is organised by the Munster Literature Centre and funded by Cork City Council in association with the Irish Times.. The award goes to the author of the book judged to be the best collection of stories published in English for the first time anywhere in the world in the twelve months between September of one year and August of the next. If a translated book wins, the purse is shared equally between the author and translator.”

This year, the jury, in an unprecedented move, dispensed with a short list for the award and announced the winner outright: Jhumpa Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth. Patrick Cotter, Director of the Award said: “With a unanimous winner at this early stage we decided it would be a sham to compose a shortlist and put five other writers through unnecessary stress and suspense. Not only were the jury unanimous in their choice of Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth as the winner, they were unanimous in their belief that so outstanding was Lahiri’s achievement in this book that no other title was a serious contender.”

Jhumpa Lahiri was born in England, in 1967, to Bengali parents who moved to America when she was three. Her first collection of short stories, Interpreter of Maladies, won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize – and sold 600,000 copies. Her 2003 novel, The Namesake, was made into a successful film of the same name. Ms Lahiri lives in New York with her husband and two children.

We’ve got more than 20 great new titles available for download to your computer which you may then transfer to a compatible portable device (MP3 players and many cell phones) or burn to CD where allowed. New titles include:

1434 by Gavin Menzies

7th Heaven by James Patterson

America America by Ethan Canin

Audition by Barbara Walters

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

City of Thieves by David Benioff

Compulsion by Jonathan Kellerman

The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted by Elizabeth Berg

Dear American Airlines by Jonathan Miles

Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich

Odd Hours by Dean Koontz, David

One in a Million by Kimberla Lawson Roby

Remember Me? By Sophie Kinsella

Sundays at Tiffany’s by James Patterson

The Ten-Year Nap by Meg Wolitzer

The Third Angel by Alice Hoffman

Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber

What Happened by Scott McClellan

The Whole Truth by David Baldacci

A recent spate of quality espionage fiction has come to our attention bringing with it a return to Cold War-style spy stories of old. John le Carré created the yardstick by which most other spy novels are measured against along with a number of other contemporaries who propelled the genre forward with protagonists who were as morally ambiguous as their enemies. Le Carré returns this fall with A Most Wanted Man. Set in Germany, it chronicles the fate of a Muslim man who relocates to Hamburg to begin medical school but has a shadowy past that attracts the attention of intelligence agencies from Germany and beyond.

Robert Littell also produced well-crafted spy fiction in the 70’s and still continues publishing. His 2002 fictionalized account of the CIA, The Company, a bestseller, was made into a multi-part series by both the BBC and TNT. He has followed that up with Legends, a darkly humorous story about an aging spy’s identity crisis and Vicious Circle, an account of a kidnapping plot gone bad sending Israel and Palestine to the brink of collapse.

Charles McCarry had a small but devoted following in the 70’s for his books featuring CIA agent Paul Christopher. McCarry too, has seen a recent renaissance in his popularity beginning with Old Boys which brought back Paul Christopher and an aging group of fellow co-workers. Last year’s Christopher’s Ghosts continues the popular series.

We are lucky to have a cadre of newer writers to continue presenting espionage in the Cold War tradition. Olen Steinhauer has a first-rate series of books featuring Inspector Emil Brod set in a fictional Eastern European country. The first, The Bridge Of Sighs, nominated for multiple awards, begins at the end of WWII. The series closes at the fall of the Berlin Wall with Victory Square, portraying the corruption that has etched itself on Brod over the preceding 40 years.

Jenny Siler also writes as Alex Carr. Her books depict events still resonating in our society: Easy Money, portrays drug running with its origins in the killing fields of Vietnam, and An Accidental American covers the 1983 Beirut bombings. Carr’s newest novel brings us up to date, exposing the underbelly of Morocco in The Prince of Bagram Prison.

Alan Furst uses WWII and the days immediately following as glamorous backdrops for his espionage tales beginning with The Night Soldiers and continuing with the just-published The Spies of Warsaw.

Daniel Silva’s bestselling series starring Mossad agent Gabriel Allon carries on the tradition with his take-no-prisoners scenarios and plenty of action just begging to be bought up by Hollywood. His latest installment, Moscow Rules, is due out in July.

In a similar vein, but already cashing in on the Hollywood interest, is Robert Ludlum with Eric Lustbader and the Bourne series. The latest Bourne book, The Bourne Sanction, is due out the end of July.

Although William F Buckley is gone, he’s certainly not forgotten, and his bestselling Blackford Oakes series will continue to find new fans. Oakes, a CIA agent described by Buckley as being “distinctly American”, acquits himself with style and charm. The series begins with Saving The Queen and concludes with Last Call For Blackford Oakes.

Science fiction stylist William Gibson brings his expertise with cyberspace to the genre with two espionage novels that won critical acclaim: Pattern Recognition and Spook Country.

Last but not least, Ted Bell has produced an enjoyable spy series with Alex Hawke as the lead character who works for both the American and British governments. The series includes Hawke, Spy, Assassin and TSAR due out this September.

Some great new books for summer reading are arriving almost daily. Here are just a few recent arrivals in no apparent order:

Death Of A Cozy Writer by G.M. Malliet ~~ “Detective Chief Inspector St. Just finds himself with a pretty puzzle when a father and son are murdered in a snow-shrouded Cambridgeshire manor house. The family of wealthy mystery writer Adrian Beauclerk-Fisk have arrived in response to a shocking wedding invitation. Long divorced from his first wife, he delights in keeping his unloved heirs on edge by constantly changing his will. Upon their arrival, they learn that he has already married beautiful, aristocratic Violet Winthrop, who Ruthven, his oldest son, announces was accused of murdering her first husband.” Kirkus Reviews

Gas City by Loren Estleman ~~ “Estleman exposes the black heart of a seemingly stable, well-run city suddenly pitched into violence and chaos. A delicate balance of forces—greed and corruption, ambition and desire—run out of control in the wake of a serial killer’s grisly rampage. A power struggle—between a police chief who has looked the other way for too long, a Mafia boss who holds the city’s vices in his powerful grasp, and media reporters looking for a big story—turns what has been a minor dispute into a desperate struggle for survival.”

Outtakes From A Marriage by Ann Leary ~~ “How does a free spirit turned wife and mother cope with her actor husband’s infidelity? According to this debut novel from memoirist Leary, with tears, irreverent humor and, ultimately, a reaffirmed sense of self.” Kirkus Reviews

When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris ~~ “David Sedaris uses life’s most bizarre moments to reach new heights in understanding love and fear, family and strangers. Culminating in a brilliantly funny account of his venture to Tokyo in order to quit smoking, Sedaris’s sixth essay collection will be avidly anticipated.”

While America Aged by Roger Lowenstein ~~ “Bestselling author Roger Lowenstein explains how corporations and governments ran up ruinous pension and health-care promises to workers—promises that are now coming due and that will hit America like a tsunami if nothing is done.”

Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber ~~ “Anne Marie Roche wants to find happiness again. At thirty-eight, her life’s not what she’d expected—she’s childless, a recent widow, alone. She owns a successful bookstore on Seattle’s Blossom Street, but despite her accomplishments, there’s a feeling of emptiness. On Valentine’s Day, Anne Marie and several other widows get together to celebrate…what? Hope, possibility, the future. They each begin a list of twenty wishes, things they always wanted to do but never did.”

Ladies Of Liberty by Cokie Roberts ~~ “Roberts presents a colorful blend of biographical portraits and behind-the-scenes vignettes chronicling women’s public roles and private responsibilities.”