From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:
Hardcover
31 Hours: A Novel by Masha Hamilton (Unbridled, $24.95, 9781932961836/1932961836). "31 Hours is so beautifully written it nearly took my breath away. The tension grows slowly as the reader gradually learns of the life of Jonas Meitzner and the 'assignment' he has undertaken, the important people in his life, and a most likable homeless man who haunts the subways of New York. I love this book, which is so timely and relevant to our troubled times."--Carol Katsoulis, Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville, Ill.
Friends Like These: My Worldwide Quest to Find My Best Childhood Friends, Knock on Their Doors, and Ask Them to Come Out and Play by Danny Wallace (Little Brown, $24.99, 9780316042772/0316042773). "Danny Wallace both inspires and amuses in the chronicle of his journey into his own past. More moving and serious than his previous books, Friends Like These still manages to find humor and wonder in the human journey."--William Graff, UCLA Bookzone, Los Angeles, Calif.
Paperback
Jarrettsville: A Novel by Cornelia Nixon (Counterpoint, $15.95, 9781582435121/158243512X). "Cornelia Nixon's novel begins in 1869 as Martha Jane Cairnes murders Nicholas McComas in front of many witnesses in Jarrettsville, Maryland, a town just below the Mason-Dixon Line and a microcosm of America in the years following the Civil War. This tale of two lovers and why it ends so badly for them is the story of neighbor fighting neighbor, old customs and quarrels dying hard, passion, friendship, and the complicated relationships between whites and blacks, all told exquisitely."--Cathy Langer, Tattered Cover Bookstore, Denver, Colo.
For Young Adults
Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani (HarperTeen, $16.99, 9780061451027/0061451029). "Brooklyn born and bred Viola must attend a boarding school in South Bend, Indiana, while her parents film a documentary in Afghanistan. She's determined not to enjoy her year at Prefect Academy and is certain that her roommates will be shallow and unable to relate to her. She's wrong, of course, and soon begins a school year in which she grows in her own ability as a filmmaker and makes true friends. A delightful teen novel that shows how real life depends on your perspective."--Cathy Berner, Blue Willow Bookshop, Houston, Tex.
[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]