From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:
Hardcover
The Gentleman: A Novel by Forrest Leo (Penguin Press, $26, 9780399562631). "Fast-paced, funny, and extremely enjoyable, The Gentleman has fantastic elements and intriguing characters tied together with smart dialogue and timing reminiscent of a Baz Luhrman film. Badly behaved Victorian ladies, indolent poets, an exasperated editor, intrepid British adventurers, steampunk inventors, omniscient butlers, a genteel Devil, and a number of cunning plans combine to make this debut novel exciting and amusing." --Jennifer Richter, Inkwood Books, Haddonfield, N.J.
A House Without Windows: A Novel by Nadia Hashimi (Morrow, $26.99, 9780062449689). "Hashimi sets her layered and suspenseful novel at the crossroads of tradition and modernity in present-day Afghanistan. Her nuanced and well-paced tale tells the story of Zeba, who is accused of murdering her husband. In the Chil Mahtab prison, where Zeba awaits her trial and sentencing, she comes to know a colorful cast of female inmates, many of whom are ordinary women who have been snared in various traps of family honor and have been cast away by their families and by society. This is a compassionately written and moving page-turner." --Marya Johnston, Out West Books, Grand Junction, Colo.
Paperback
The Gates of Evangeline: A Novel by Hester Young (Putnam, $16, 9780425283172). "Charlie Cates recently lost her young son, and the job that she worked so hard for is probably going to be eliminated. When Charlie is offered a chance to write about the Deveau family and their child who went missing over 30 years ago, she jumps at the chance. What she hasn't told anybody is that she has been seeing visions of children in trouble and is currently experiencing one of a young boy in a rowboat in a Louisiana swamp who she suspects is the missing Deveau child. But what if she has it all wrong? In this excellent thriller, things are really not what they seem to be. A wonderful puzzle with a Southern Gothic feel, this is a definite must-read!" --Janice Hunsche, Kaleidosaurus Books, Metamora, Ind.
For Ages 4 to 8: Revisit & Rediscover
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub by Audrey Wood and Don Wood (HMH, $7.99, 9780152054359). Originally published in 1985. "King Bidgood's in the Bathtub is one of those perfect picture books that is both a treat for the eye and fun to read aloud. King Bidgood enjoys his bath so much that he won't get out! Join him in the tub as the sun rises, for lunch midday, and for fishing and dancing as the sun goes down. Both the singsong text and the 'I Spy' type illustrations will delight as you read, read, read with King Bidgood in his bath." --Liesl Freudenstein, Boulder Book Store, Boulder, Colo.
For Ages 8 to 12: Revisit & Rediscover
The Conch Bearer by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (Aladdin, $7.99, 9780689872426). Originally published in 2003. "Anand's middle-class life is just a memory. He now lives in a dilapidated shack in a dangerous Indian neighborhood, working for a cruel tea seller to help support his family. Anand's dreams of adventure seem impossible until a mysterious gentleman asks him to return a magical conch to its rightful home in a distant, secret valley. In this beautifully crafted coming-of-age tale, Anand is challenged to accept the best and the worst in himself, to recognize the consequences of his choices, and to make a decision that could change everything." --Kris Vreeland, Once Upon a Time, Montrose, Calif.
For Teen Readers: Revisit & Rediscover
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (Greenwillow, $7.99, 9780064410342). Originally published in 1986. "Being the first-born of three daughters and therefore unlucky, Sophie has resigned herself to the solitary life of a hat-maker in her family's shop. But when the evil Witch of the Waste curses her, Sophie must venture off by herself to break the spell--an especially dangerous prospect with the Wizard Howl, who is said to eat the hearts of young women as he wanders around the countryside in his walking castle. Fun and magical, Howl's Moving Castle will have readers cheering for everyone from scarecrows to fire demons." --Emily Somberg, Pegasus Books, Berkeley, Calif.
[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]
