From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:
Hardcover
Aloha From Hell: A Sandman Slim Novel by Richard Kadrey (Voyager, $23.99, 9780061714320). "I've laughed at the opening page of every one of Richard Kadrey's Sandman Slim novels, and this one was no different. Kadrey's willfully angry, sarcastic, and borderline evil protagonist Stark is back, and he's here in style. With another war between heaven and hell brewing, Stark has some nasty business to take care of and he's going to have to go back downstairs to hell to deal with it. Kadrey wraps up a trilogy with this novel, and he does it the way he always has, with amusing, witty writing and a film noir patter that ranks up there with some of the best." --Lincoln Eddy, Schuler Books & Music, Okemos, Mich.
Ghost Wave: The Discovery of Cortes Bank and the Biggest Wave on Earth by Chris Dixon (Chronicle, $24.95, 9780811876285). "The quest for huge waves has taken surfers to many places, but the source of the biggest by far is Cortes Bank. An entirely submerged island, Cortes Bank sits 100 miles off the coast of Southern California. Here, a freak set of ocean conditions creates a wave that seemingly springs out of nowhere. Dixon unlocks the secrets of Cortes Bank and entertains readers with well-researched history and abundant tales of big wave surfing." --Flannery Fitch, Bookshop Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, Calif.
Paperback
A Curable Romantic: A Novel by Joseph Skibell (Algonquin, $16.95, 9781616200831). "Joseph Skibell is one of America's great unsung writers. His new novel, A Curable Romantic, is funny, dark, and profound. If there is justice in the world, it will win a major prize. Skibell writes amazing prose that carries you like a dream through a complicated plot without ever leaving you impatient. Fine literary tears will be cried." --Paul Ingram, Prairie Lights Bookstore, Iowa City, Iowa
For Teen Readers
Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley (Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, $16.99, 9781442413337). "This novel has an unusually elegant and complex structure, with parallel stories that intertwine at the very end. The themes of disappearance, return, rebirth, and second chances are written cleverly through zombie fantasies, disappearing children, and reappearing woodpeckers. It is a unique and engaging story about faith and community, told by a delightful narrator." --Hannah Manshel, 57th Street Books, Chicago, Ill.
[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]
