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What we're reading in August 2007

Ever wonder what the folks who work at a mystery bookstore like to read? Well, here's your answer. Each month we ask everyone here to pick a book, current or older, that they truly enjoyed and are enthusiastic about. Of course, if you visited the store, we'd tell you directly what we like but for those of you who can't come see us, this is the next best thing. Our special thanks to Judi for pulling this feature together and to all the staff who contributed their picks.

Presented here are the picks for this month, an archive of earlier months is available from the menu at the left.

What Mary Alice is reading

Cancer Vixen ($22) by Marisa Marchetto

A bookshop friend gave me a book during my recent battle with breast cancer to inspire during my surgeries chemo and recovery. And did it ever. By way of announcing that the oncologist gave me a clean bill of health on 7/30, I am going to pass this along to many of you looking for something to help a friend.

 

Cancer Vixen: A True Story by Marisa Acocella Marchetto is a true gem. The author is a bright cartoonist who you may have encountered in The New Yorker and Glamour magazines. In her graphic memoir she tells in spot-on details what it is like to get a breast cancer diagnosis three weeks before her wedding and how the NYC fashionista beats BC in an 11th month journey of love, tears, Kabbalah, relics of saints and great shoes. It is the perfect form for chemo brain and I cannot thank Leslie enough for the gift.

 

Now if we could only get the bipartisan Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act [S910/HR1849]------reintroduced in 2007, passed in Washington. Please sign this petition and pass in on.

What Richard is reading

The Night Gardener ($7.50) by George Pelecanos

One of Pelecanos’ finest novels and that’s saying a lot for an author with a string of outstanding novels that have documented the Washington DC rarely seen by tourists. The body of a young man found dead in a community garden is a flashback for homicide detective Gus Ramone who well remembers a string of similar killings twenty years earlier when he was a rookie along with “Doc” Holliday, bounced from the force, and a legendary detective now retired. This is the cast of characters that Pelecanos takes through an intricate investigation against the background of Ramone’s complicated family situation and the realities of Washington. Not to be missed.

What Kathy is reading

Dead Ex ($21.95) by Harley Jane Kozak

At long last, Dead Ex is here!  The third book in Harley Jane Kozak's 
series is terrific - they just keep getting better.  This time, 
Wollie is trying to balance a boyfriend with secrets he can't share, 
a best friend accused of murder and a mural that depicts Greek 
mythology.  Throw in some very bad dates, some very bad hair days,
and a dead ex-boyfriend, and this is one you won't want to put down.  
A perfect summer read, and out just in time for August vacations!

What Margo is reading

The Apple Pie That Papa Baked ($15.99) by Lauren Thompson illustrated by Jonathan Bean

 “These are the apples, juicy and red, that went in the pie, warm and sweet, that Papa baked…”

 

When I found myself reading this book out loud, I knew it was a winner for the age group 5 and up. This delightful new picture book a la “The House that Jack Built” has the added bonus of the gorgeous illustrations of Jonathan Bean, a young artist heavily influenced by the work of Wanda Gag (A Thousand Cats) and Virginia Lee Burton (two of my favorite children’s illustrators.)  Looking almost like woodcuts, the pictures have a movement and sense of humor about them that is sure to keep a little one happy.

And the book is just the right length of a good bedtime read.

What Judi is reading

The Seventh Sacrament ($22) by David Hewson

Beneath the sweltering streets of Rome, a young boy vanishes into the labyrinth of the catacombs, never to be found. Hewson’s latest is every bit as convoluted and awe-inspiring as the Catacombs themselves. Fourteen years later Detective Nic Costa and his fellow investigators search through layers of their city’s history–for a killer leaving a trail of bodies, lust, and revenge and try to answer the question of why the child’s body was never found.


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