IndieBound: Other Indie Favorites

From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:

Hardcover
IQ: A Novel by Joe Ide (Mulholland Books, $26, 9780316267724). "IQ is the nickname of Isaiah Quintabe, who, despite being a high-school dropout, is absolutely brilliant and has amazing deductive skills. Living on the rough side of Long Beach, California, he is an underground detective who takes on cases in the city's ghettoes that the LAPD refuses to handle. Beginning with a kidnapping and moving to a case involving the assassination attempt on a famous rapper, IQ represents a positive influence in this tough environment of gang warfare, drugs, murders, and prostitution. A mixture of Michael Connelly's The Lincoln Lawyer, the craziness of Don Winslow's Savages, and the classic mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, this debut will spark interest and open up this particular world to new readers." --Gerard Villegas, Warwick's, La Jolla, Calif.

Nicotine: A Novel by Nell Zink (Ecco, $26.99, 9780062441706). "Zink excels at feel-good novels that, far from being sappy, are incredibly smart and laugh-out-loud funny. When recent college graduate Penny Baker inherits her hippie father's childhood house, she expects to find an abandoned ruin. Instead, she finds a house renovated and inhabited by squatters and falls desperately in love with one of them, something that does not go over well with her family. This deceptively simple premise allows Zink to return to some of her favorite themes of family and identity, as well as love, activism, and materialism, through the lives of unforgettable characters and hilarious situations. This book is a riot!" --Pierre Camy, Schuler Books & Music, Grand Rapids, Mich.

Paperback
Cabo de Gata: A Novel by Eugen Ruge, translated by Anthea Bell (Graywolf Press, $14, 9781555977573). "Bored, anchorless, and alone, a man leaves Berlin for a tiny Andalusian fishing village where he plans to write a novel. Instead, he encounters a cranky hotelier, green tomatoes, an Englishman who acts like an American, an American who acts like an Englishman, a very quiet bartender, a mysterious cat, and, possibly, the meaning of everything--or lack thereof. This slim, playful novel will speak to anyone who has ever questioned the path they were on--or whether there is a path at all." --Sam Kaas, Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, Wash.

For Ages 4 to 8
Teacup by Rebecca Young, illustrated by Matt Ottley (Dial, $17.99, 9780735227774). "Teacup is a lyrical tale of a refugee's journey, evoking the loneliness, anxiety, and sadness of leaving everything you know behind to begin anew. Ottley's textured, breathtaking illustrations are both incredibly realistic and beautifully dreamlike, adding gentleness and whimsy to this subtly told story. Young's minimal text allows the reader's imagination to expand and the drama unfolds at a perfect pace. Teacup is a book to linger over, appreciating the beauty to be found in the persistence and strength it takes to make a new life in an unfamiliar place." --Hannah DeCamp, Avid Bookshop, Athens, Ga.

For Ages 9 to 12
The Secret Horses of Briar Hill by Megan Shepherd (Delacorte, $16.99, 9781101939758). "One of Shepherd's gifts as a writer is the ability to transport readers to a very specific time and place and immerse them in its physical and social realities. This is done beautifully in The Secret Horses of Briar Hill, set in a children's hospital in rural England during World War II. Whether the winged horses little Emmaline sees in the mirrors at Briar Hill are real or just her imagination, the hope and solace they provide are very real. A moving and magical story not to be missed." --Leslie Hawkins, Spellbound Children's Bookshop, Asheville, N.C.

Young Adult Nonfiction: An Indies Introduce Title
Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee and Susan McClelland (Amulet Books/Abrams, 9781419721328, $16.95). "This superb biography is a devastating account of survival amidst the dark and famine-stricken towns and cities along the Chinese-North Korean border. I found it to be an illuminating glimpse into this closed-off country--so much so that I have read it cover to cover twice. I believe that this book will have great staying power in the future." --Biddy Kehoe, Hockessin Bookshelf, Hockessin, Del.

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

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