From last week's Book Sense bestseller lists, available at
booksense.com, here are the recommended titles, which are also Book
Sense Picks:
Hardcover
The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--And How
It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World by Steven Johnson
(Riverhead, $26.95, 1594489254). "Johnson's vivid history of Victorian
London's cholera epidemic of 1854 describes a rapidly growing city
beset with suffering, and it tells the story of the struggle to
overcome entrenched 'wisdom' in order better to understand disease and
public health. A tribute to pioneering medical and scientific research
and a fascinating look at how people and societies often cling to false
ideas."--Will Peters, Annie Bloom's Books, Portland, Ore.
Rain Village: A Novel by Carolyn Turgeon (Unbridled, $24.95,
1932961240). "Carolyn Turgeon has written a captivating first novel
that I read straight through in one sitting. Her unique voice reminded
me of Gabriel Garcia Marquez as she weaved the story of a remarkable
young woman who finds her future in her friend's past. Original and
beautiful."--Sally Brewster, Park Road Books, Charlotte, N.C.
Paperback
The World to Come: A Novel by Dara Horn (Norton, $13.95, 0393329062).
"With the theft of a million-dollar Chagall painting, Horn takes the
reader back to a Jewish orphanage in 1920s Russia and follows the
painting and those attached to it to the suburbs of New Jersey, to
Vietnam, and back to the Museum of Hebraic Art. She weaves a tale of
unimaginable tragedy, haunting beauty, and simple imagery, just like
the painting itself."--Janet Bollum, The Muse Book Shop, Deland, Fla.
For Younger Children
Ninety-Three in My Family by Erica S. Perl, illustrated by Mike Lester
(Abrams, $15.95, 0810957604). "Families with pets of any type or number
will enjoy this raucous picture book. Can you imagine living with 27
owls, 11 dogs, 10 cats, six goldfish and a carsick gerbil? And that's
just the beginning. It's a madhouse, and everyone will enjoy a
visit."--Lorna Ruby, Wellesley Booksmith, Wellesley, Mass.
Truman's Loose Tooth by Kristine Wurm, illustrated by Michael Chesworth
(Spirited, $16.95, 097685130X). "This delightful, coming-of-age book
focuses on the very real, physical aspect of growing older--a boy
losing his first tooth. With fresh and fun illustrations, this is a
wonderful book to share with young children to help them prepare for
that moment."--Candy Pearson, Apple Blossom Books, Oshkosh, Wis.
[Many thanks to Book Sense and the ABA!]