| The March Staff Picks can also be viewed or printed as a PDF Staff Picks March 2014 (750KB) |
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MARCH FEATURE
The Black-Eyed Blonde: A Philip Marlowe Novel by Benjamin Black ($27).
Alas – Raymond Chandler died in 1959, but if he were still alive he
would have written this book. A terrific re-creation of the noir private
eye's Los Angeles. ~ Louise Jones   
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| FICTION | ||
 The Burnable Book by Bruce Holsinger. This first novel
by an English Medieval
scholar is wordy but
winsome and rich in
the texture of England
at the end of the 15th
century. Written deftly
and with great detail.
Perhaps the first installment of a series
and a right "goode" read. ~ Maeve Noonan |
 Clever Girl by Tessa
Hadley. An
exquisite novel about
nothing, and yet everything,
following Stella
from middle school to
middle age. Hadley has
a talent for making the
everyday domesticity of
life sublime. An excellent read, about the
beauty of the everyday. ~ Becky Doherty |
 Free Falling, As If in a
Dream: The Story of a
Crime by Leif GW Persson. A special
government detective
division reopens the
cold case on the 1986
assassination of Sweden's
Prime Minister Olof
Palme, with startling results. A fascinating,
fictional examination of a real,
unsolved crime. ~ Louise Jones |
 Thirty Girls by Susan
Minot. This
haunting novel, recounting
the abduction of 30
girls in Uganda by the
Lord's Resistance Army
in 1996, links Esther, a
young trauma survivor
who narrates in a mesmerizing voice, and
Jane, a self-involved American journalist
– and embraces both the horror and
beauty of life. ~ Amy Palmer |
 Circle of Wives by Alice
LaPlante. A gripping
story, part mystery, part
psychological examination
of secrets and betrayal
that twists and turns
with each narrator. Five
women, all connected
to a respected surgeon
found dead under questionable circumstances,
narrate and are developed with
depth and insight. An excellent, intelligent
page-turner. ~ Louise Jones |
 One More Thing: Stories
and Other Stories by
B. J. Novak.
Novak proves to be
more than "that guy
from The Office" with
this incredibly smart,
well-written debut.
Where else will you
find a laugh-out-loud story about a guy
returning a sex robot that has fallen in
love with him? Great for fans of David
Sedaris. ~ Chris LinendollA very funny debut collection of stories. ~ Amy Palmer |
 Kinder Than Solitude by
Yiyun Li. Three
young friends are haunted
by the poisoning of a
fourth. Was it attempted
murder, suicide, accident?
A compelling, unsettling,
rich examination of the
abiding question: Can
we ever know one another? ~ Louise Jones |
 Gemini by Carol Cassella. Dr. Charlotte
Reese is determined
to not only save new
ICU patient Jane Doe
but also discover her
identity, why no one is
looking for her, what
happens if she never
regains consciousness and her connection
to Charlotte›s boyfriend. Great book club
read! ~ Jessica Elder |
For meeting schedules, check
our Events page.
For Saratoga Springs groups contact Jess at jkrawczyk@northshire.com For Manchester groups contact Erik at ebarnum@northshire.com
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 The Museum of Extraordinary
Things by Alice
Hoffman. In
this invigorating novel,
two main characters are
drawn together by fate,
circumstance and an epic
tragedy. A complex plot
set in vibrant, pulsating
New York City at the beginning of the
twentieth century around historical fact,
without distorting or exploiting it.
~ Alden Graves |
 Redeployment by
Phil Klay. An
instant classic of war
fiction about the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan by
a Marine captain. Klay
shows a world of confusion,
absurdity, violence
and isolation as real as
in any work of nonfiction. Devastating
and brilliantly written. ~ Stan Hynds |
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| NONFICTION | ||
 The Parthenon Enigma by Joan Breton
Connelly. If you think there's nothing
new to learn from studying an iconic
building more than 2000 years old, you're
in for a treat! Connelly re-evaluates the
culture that built it and why it is so
important. Marvelous! ~ Maeve Noonan |
 One Way Out: The Inside History Of The
Allman Brothers Band by Alan Paul.
Through extensive interviews with band
members and crew, Paul weaves together
a comprehensive and compelling account
of the ABB's musical and cultural legacy.
~ Jon Fine |
 The Broken Road: From the Iron Gates to
Mount Athos by Patrick Leigh Fermor. Fermor's fans will celebrate this
last of his trilogy chronicling his famous
walk through Europe in 1933-4. Beautiful
writing brings you into an almost medieval
Eastern Europe that vanished during
WWII. Absolutely wondro us .
~ Louise Jones |
 Blood Will Out: The True Story of a Murder,
a Mystery, and a Masquerade by Walter
Kirn. When Kirn agrees to transport
an ailing dog across the country, he believes
the lucky pooch will live amongst the
Rockefellers. He becomes involved,
however, with one of the cleverest con
men in history. ~ Alden Graves |
 Little Demon In the City of Light by Steven
Levingston. Gabrielle Bompard
was charged with killing a man she lured
to her Paris apartment. Her defense was
that she was helpless to resist her abusive
lover's hypnotic influence. A memorable
true crime. ~ Alden Graves |
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 The Snowden Files by Luke Harding. The long, lonely, perilous journey of Edward Snowden, who
exposed NSA's wholesale, unconstitutional monitoring of private citizens - purportedly to uncover terrorist
activity. A daunting story of one man's determination to reveal a massive abuse of power. ~ Alden Graves |
 Her: A Memoir by Christa Parravani. Parravani illuminates her complex, intimate relationship
with her twin sister Cara, bringing the heart-wrenching consequences of Cara's rape into stark,
unforgiving light; she died of an overdose trying to dull her pain. ~ Jess Krawczyk |
 The Secret Rooms by Catherine Bailey. John
Manners, 9th Duke of Rutland, aimed
at obliterating from history shameful
chapters of his past and nearly succeeded.
What Bailey uncovers 60 years later
shows an aristocratic family that would
stop at nothing to achieve its goals.
~ Sarah Donner |
