Staff Book Picks for April 2010 (a little late, oops)

Just think of it as "double the picks in May!" rather than "accidentally skipping over April!" Indeed. (Sorry about that.)

The Last Time I Saw You by Elizabeth Berg I always read Elizabeth Berg—even short stories, even writing guides. She just seems to speak to me of real people, in real situations. So having said that, maybe it's just the time of year or maybe it's because my Agnes Scott reunion is fast upon me, but I felt particularly attuned to this new novel. In it we are dropped into the lives of a handful of folks heading toward their fortieth high school reunion. All of them are hoping for something: to reclaim old glory; take a second chance at love; find solace; even redemption. And the satisfying thing is that at this reunion, we can watch from behind the curtain without revealing our own wrinkles, pounds, foibles. —Laura

Tomorrow River by Lesley Kagen In rural Virginia in the summer of 1969, 11-year-old Shenandoah Carmody must protect her twin sister, Woody, and find her own answers to her mother's disappearance. This is a spellbinding story of a southern family in a time of change. —Linda

Arcadia Falls by Carol Goodman Motivated by her love of a childhood book, newly-widowed Meg takes a teaching job at the school founded by the authors, who have always had a great influence on her life. The school is located in a remote, artsy town and proves to be even creepier than Meg and her daughter first realized when a mysterious death challenges everything Meg thinks is true about the lives of her idols. —Teresa

Elegy for April by Benjamin Black This follow-up to Christine Falls and The Silver Swan is an engrossing crime novel which again follows Garret Quirke, a Dublin pathologist. It is equal parts mystery, character study, and study of the social climate of the 1950s. —Linda

Warriors edited by George R. R. Martin & Gardner Dozois With novellas from science fiction and fantasy legends including Joe Haldeman, Laurence Block, Joe R. Lansdale, Diana Gabaldon, James Rollins, David Weber, and George R. R. Martin, this action-packed anthology of heroics has something to satisfy every discerning genre reader. Among my favorites are Peter S. Beagle's "Dirae," a haunting account of time travel and broken memories; "Seven Years from Home" by Naomi Novik, in which a military explorer reports on being caught between warring alien forces; and "The Mystery Knight" by George R. R. Martin, the first new story in Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series in five years. —Kimberly

The Man in the Window by K.O Dahl K.O Dahl's latest Norwegian thriller The Man in the Window weaves together a story of murder, betrayal, lost love, and family secrets. When antique dealer Reidar Jesperson is stabbed with a bayonet, stripped, and displayed in his store's front window, detectives Frank Frolich and Chief Inspector Gunnarstranda are called to the scene. Frolich and Gunnarstranda quickly assume the motive is personal. The only problem is everyone who knows Jesperson has motive to kill him. While Dahl's characters are all flawed, he manages to capture well how strong and lasting human emotions can be. —Erin

Split Image by Robert Parker The newest and reportedly last Jesse Stone novel also includes private investigator Sunny Randall and a sizeable list of murder suspects. Jesse and Sunny have become two of my favorite crimefighters. —Linda

Dead End Gene Pool by Wendy Burden Wendy Burden, the great-great-great-great granddaughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt, provides an insider's view of life inside one of the most influential, well-known, and dysfunctional American families. Taking her family in stride and remaining lighthearted and witty, Burden covers all the bases: greed, charity, wealth, debt, substance abuse, and all the other things that come with being from old money. —Teresa

For Children Baby & Kindergarten Once I Ate A Pie by Patricia MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan Charest Accompanied by sweet illustrations, Once I Ate a Pie is a collection of dog thoughts and opinions. Wupsi knows he is so cute; Louis likes to bark, bark, bark; Pocket thinks he is huge (although he's not); and Mr. Beefy steals tubs of butter from the table and once ate an entire pie. —Teresa

Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian and Tim Bowers Sometimes houses get crowded. This book captures a big family well. It's very cute. —Erin

Elementary The Popularity Papers: Research for the Social Improvement and General Betterment of Lydia Goldblatt and Julie Graham-Chang by Amy Ignatow Fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid will love this hilarious shared diary of two girls determined to analyze and replicate the formula for instant popularity the year before they enter junior high school. Handwritten notes, explanatory sketches, snarky doodles, and very odd diagrams catalog these best friends' best-laid plans going awry. —Kimberly

Middle School Alchemy and Meggy Swann by Karen Cushman Born lame in Elizabethan England, Meggy Swann has grown up sharp-tongued and suspicious under the mockery and superstition to which she's been subjected. Now Meggy has been packed off to London, with only a pet goose for company, to live with the father she's never met. Meggy slowly learns to navigate the streets of London on her crutches and the trickier balancing act of making friends. But overhearing a murder plot against the nobility threatens the precarious new life she's built for herself. Newbery Award-winner Cushman has a knack for bringing medieval England to vibrant life, with no illusions about its grimy, earthy realities. —Kimberly

Teen A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner The fourth book in Turner's series about the historical-Greece-influenced country of Attolia, A Conspiracy of Kings follows Sophos, the modest and somewhat lazy heir to a small nation-state. After being kidnapped and enslaved in a political coup, Sophos finds himself fighting for his life and embroiled in a violent struggle for power just as he's never been more powerless. With complex characters and political conflict as taut as any thriller, Attolia is among the best historical fantasy series in current publication, for adult readers as well as teens. —Kimberly