Minimal living…cooking…buying? Enjoying the simplicity of life…times with family, friends, a nice cup of coffee…a new book ~ to hold, feel, savor. January brings all of us a chance to begin again. “We are all, always becoming…” And, with that, we look forward to many positive changes in 2009. Just in December, more than 100 new customers joined all of you at An Open Book. What a privilege it is to know you!
Stop by and say hello to Mel Frisbie…our Saturday employee and young adult title “extraordinaire!” as she returns to Greeley following five months at Disneyworld in Florida. She will be working again starting Jan. 24.
With this new series of speakers/events…starting in February…we will have fun, learn, and support our local community and the larger community across oceans. Call the store and make your reservations now! We begin by “Living Juicy” with Chalice Springfield, on February 9th.
THE PIANO TEACHER, by Janice Lee
Ten years after World War II causes the demise of a love affair between an Englishman and a Eurasian socialite, Claire Pendleton is hired by the wealthy Chen family as a piano instructor, falls in love with the Englishman, and is seduced by the social life of Hong Kong’s expatriate community. 100,000 first printing.
A DEADLY MISUNDERSTANDING, by Mark Siljander
Former Congressman and Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Mark D. Siljander takes us on an eye-opening journey of personal, religious, and political discovery. In the 1980s, Siljander was a newly minted Reagan Republican from Michigan who joined Congress in the same generation as Newt Gingrich and Tom DeLay, ready to remake the world. A staunch member of the Religious Right, he once walked out of the National Prayer Breakfast when a speaker quoted from the Qur’an.
But after losing reelection, Siljander dove into the Bible to look for the passage in which the Bible says it is our job as Christians to convert others in order to save them from eternal damnation. He couldn’t find it; in fact, he couldn’t even find a passage saying that Jesus set out to form a new religion. This discovery was the first step on a spiritual and political journey that started with an in-depth linguistic study of the Bible and led to the discovery that Christianity and Islam share many base words and concepts. In his role as ambassador to the United Nations Siljander began sharing his insights on the connections between Islam and Christianity, with surprising results.
A Deadly Misunderstanding recounts Siljander’s amazing discoveries as he travels to some of the most remote and hostile places in the world—deep into Libya, Sudan, Pakistan, and India—forging deep ties with both heads of state and religious leaders. What he has learned could radically shift the contemporary religious landscape and help heal the rift between Islam and the West. No Christian or Muslim will be unaffected after reading this book.
THREE CUPS OF TEA, by Greg Mortenson
(THE YOUNG READER’S EDITION)
A middle-grade adapted version of the New York Times bestseller about humanitarianism and providing Muslim children around the world with an education is enhanced with photos, maps, illustrations, and a special afterword by the author’s daughter who worked with him as an advocate for the Pennies for Peace program. Simultaneous.
SUZE ORMAN’S 2009 ACTION PLAN, by Suze Orman
Provides advice and tactics for managing personal finances during the economic crisis, covering such topics as credit, retirement investing, saving, spending, real estate, paying for college, and job loss.
CHARLES DARWIN ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES, by Charles Darin
The classic book that changed the course of scientific inquiry, introduced the theory of evolution, and exploded some of humankind’s most enduring myths comes to life in a new, handsomely illustrated edition that features more than 350 illustrations and photographs, many in color, accompanied by excerpts from the author’s diaries, letters, and other writings.
THE BOOK OF UNHOLY MISCHIEF, by Elle Newmark
Taking a job as a chef’s apprentice at the palace of the doge, late-fifteenth-century Venice street orphan Luciano becomes increasingly suspicious about his master’s shadowy past and learns about an ancient book containing a dangerous power. 250,000 first printing.
TEARS OF THE DESERT, by Halima Bashir
A Sudanese doctor speaks out about the horrors of the civil war between black Africans and the Arab-led Sudanese government as she describes her outrage over the treatment of female prisoners of the Arab government, the retaliation she faced after speaking out, and her personal struggle for survival, in a harrowing memoir of courage, family, and hope. 75,000 first printing.
FOOD MATTERS, by Mark Bittman
Cookbook author Bittman (How to Cook Everything) offers this no-nonsense volume loaded with compelling information about how the food we eat is doing damage to the environment, what changes to make and why. Authors have covered this topic before (Michael Pollan, for example, in The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food), but Bittman takes a practical turn by concluding with 77 recipes that make earth-friendly eating doable and appealing. His collection of reliable recipes even includes such meat dishes as Thai beef salad, which isn’t meat-heavy, but rather has “just the right balance of meat to greens.” There are also such staples as super-simple mixed rice; “chicken not pie”; and modern bouillabaisse. Bittman decries consumption of “over-refined carbohydrates,” but doesn’t leave off without some sweets, including chocolate semolina pudding and nutty oatmeal cookies—suggesting, as the whole book does, that a diet in synch with the needs of the earth doesn’t result in a sense of utter deprivation.
SING THEM HOME, by Stephanie Kallos
When their mother vanishes in the midst of a tornado in 1978, her three children are forced to deal with the sudden loss in their own ways, but when their father dies decades later and they are reunited, the three must delve into their history in order to come to terms with the tragedy that has always haunted them. By the author of Broken for You.
THE NATION GUIDE TO THE NATION, by Richard Lingeman
An eclectic reference furnishes a coast-to-coast lifestyle guide aimed at left-of-center shops, cultural institutions, gathering places, and more, including activist groups, eco-friendly products, press watchdogs, liberal media, blogs, restaurants, writers’ colonies, bookstores, art advocacy groups, public policy institutes, think tanks, and more. Original. 40,000 first printing.
TRAITOR TO HIS CLASS, by H.W. Brands
A sweeping biography of the life and political career of Franklin Delano Roosevelt draws on archival materials, public speeches, interviews with family and colleagues, and personal correspondence to examine FDR’s political leadership in a dark time of Depression and war, his championship of the poor, his revolutionary New Deal legislation, and his legacy for the future. 125,000 first printing.
BEYOND BELIEF, by Josh Hamilton
The outfielder for the Texas Ranger, and the 2008 World Series homerun derby, relates the drug and alcohol abuse that derailed his baseball career and led to his estrangement from friends and family, and describes his spiritual journey back from addiction.
DAEMON, by Daniel Suarez
Originally self-published, Suarez’s riveting debut would be a perfect gift for a favorite computer geek or anyone who appreciates thrills, chills and cyber suspense. Gaming genius Matthew Sobol, the 34-year-old head of CyberStorm Entertainment, has just died of brain cancer, but death doesn’t stop him from initiating an all-out Internet war against humanity. When the authorities investigate Sobol’s mansion in Thousand Oaks, Calif., they find themselves under attack from his empty house, aided by an unmanned Hummer that tears into the cops with staggering ferocity. Sobol’s weapon is a daemon, a kind of computer process that not only has taken over many of the world’s computer systems but also enlists the help of superintelligent human henchmen willing to carry out his diabolical plan. Complicated jargon abounds, but most complexities are reasonably explained. A final twist that runs counter to expectations will leave readers anxiously awaiting the promised sequel.
NEMESIS, by Jo Nesbo
When a bank teller is shot during a holdup at the start of Norwegian bestseller Nesb’s beautifully executed heist drama, Oslo Insp. Harry Hole investigates, along with Beate Lnn, a young detective with the ability to remember every face she’s ever seen. Meanwhile, Harry receives a call from Anna Bethsen, a woman he hasn’t seen in years. After he meets Anna, recovering alcoholic Harry awakens the next morning with a hangover and the news that Anna is dead, apparently by her own hand. While Harry quietly looks into Anna’s death, he and Beate uncover ties in their bank robbery case to one of Norway’s most notorious bank robbers, who’s currently in prison. The deeper Harry digs, the clearer it becomes that Anna’s death is linked to the robbery. Expertly weaving plot lines from Hole’s last outing to feature the inspector, The Redbreast (2007), Nesb delivers a lush crime saga that will leave U.S. readers clamoring for the next installment.
THE LAST STAND OF FOX COMPANY, by Bob Drury
Offers the story of the courageous mission of 234 Marines of Fox Company who found themselves surrounded and greatly outnumbered by 100,000 Chinese soldiers near Chosin Reservoir in North Korea, the incredible steps they took to fend them off for five nights, and the major losses they suffered in their desperate struggle before finally being relieved.
LUCKY BILLY, by John Vernon
The author of The Last Canyon draws on historical records to create a fresh, nuanced fictional portrait of the violent life and times of outlaw Billy the Kid, focusing on his role in the Lincoln County War, the murder of his employer John Tunstall, and the revenge killings that followed.
THE LITTLE GIANT OF ABERDEEN COUNTY, by Tiffany Baker
Baker’s bang-up debut mixes the exuberant eccentricities of John Irving’s Garp , Anne Tyler’s relationship savvy and the plangent voice of Margaret Atwood. In an upstate New York backwater, Truly, massive from birth, has a bleak existence with her depressed father and her china-doll–like sister, Serena Jane. Truly grows at an astonishing rate—her girth the result of a pituitary gland problem—and after her father dies when Truly is 12, Truly is sloughed off to the Dyersons, a hapless farming family. Her outsize kindness surfaces as she befriends the Dyersons’ outcast daughter, Amelia, and later leaves her beloved Dyerson farm to take care of Serena Jane’s husband and son after Serena Jane leaves them. Haunting the margins of Truly’s story is that of Tabitha Dyerson, a rumored witch whose secrets afford a breathtaking role reversal for Truly. It’s got all the earmarks of a hit—infectious and lovable narrator, a dash of magic, an impressive sweep and a heartrending but not treacly family drama. It’ll be a shame if this doesn’t race up the bestseller lists. PW Review
SHADOW COUNTRY, by Peter Matthiessen
A reworking of the author’s trilogy chronicles the legacy of E.J. Watson, a notorious desperado gunned down by his neighbors along the lawless nineteenth-century frontier of the Florida Everglades.
THE VIRGIN QUEEN’S DAUGHTER, by Ella March Chase
A historical novel based on long-standing rumors that Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen, had given birth to an illegitimate child follows young Elinor de Lacy–the purported daughter of Elizabeth and her married guardian, Thomas Seymour–who is sent to become a lady-in-waiting to the queen, unprepared for the glitter or the viciousness of the court. 25,000 first printing.
AGINCOURT, by Bernard Cornwell
A tale inspired by the legendary battle of Agincourt finds the “band of brothers” rallying against disease, hunger, and formidable weather around longbowman Nicholas Hook, who in spite of his outlaw status fights for his country and the woman he loves. 200,000 first printing.
THE INDEPENDENCE OF MISS MARY BENNETT, by Colleen McCullough
The best-selling author of The Thorn Birds presents a sequel to Pride and Prejudice that finds the willful third Bennett sister setting out in her late thirties in pursuit of adventure while her sisters worry about her at home. 100,000 first printing.
JEFFREY GOTTIMER’S LITTLE TEAL BOOK OF TRUST, by Jeffrey Gottimer
How to Earn It, Grow It, and Keep It to Become a Trusted Advisor in Sales, Business and Life
THE LANDSCAPE OF HOME, by Julie Moir Messery
Making the most of your home outside!!
THREE WEEKS TO SAY GOODBYE, by C.J. Box
Delighted when they finally achieve their dream of adopting a baby, Jack and Melissa are devastated when their daughter Angelina’s teenage birth father and her grandfather, a powerful Denver judge, set out to put aside the adoption and, realizing that there is something sinister about their motivations, risk everything to protect their child. 100,000 first printing.
BEAT THE REAPER, by Josh Bazell
The carefully orchestrated life of Manhattan emergency room doctor and witness-protection program participant Peter Brown unravels in the course of a high-stakes day that begins with a mugging, an elevator encounter with a sexy pharmaceutical rep, and a new patient who knows him from his previous existence.
TINKERS, by Paul Harding
Elderly New Englander on his deathbed finds his thoughts drifting back to the father who abandoned the family when he was 12. His organs failing and his mind wandering, retired antique-clock repairman George Washington Crosby prepares to leave this world surrounded by loving family in the house he built himself. In a parallel narrative, his father Howard, a traveling peddler, sells cleaning supplies and sundries to dirt-poor farm wives in 1920s Massachusetts. Barely eking out enough to support his increasingly bitter wife Kathleen and four children, Howard has the heart of a poet and prefers nature walks to selling soap. His quiet desperation is complicated by regular epileptic seizures that leave him bloody and dazed, sometimes miles from home. A violent fit in his home results in him badly biting young George, prompting Kathleen to take steps to send her husband to a state-run mental hospital. He flees, leaving George to grow up into a meticulous, practical man who stashes cash in safety-deposit boxes, most likely as a reaction to his own penniless youth. Debut author Harding (Creative Writing/Harvard Univ.) employs diary entries, stream-of-consciousness musings and excerpts from clock-repair manuals to tell both men’s stories. Short on dialogue and filled with lovely Whitmanesque descriptions of the natural world, this slim novel gives shape to the extraordinary variety in the thoughts of otherwise ordinary men. An evocative meditation on the nonlinear nature of a life. Copyright Kirkus 2008
A SINGLE THREAD, by Marie Bostwick
Bostwick makes a seamless transition from historical fiction to the contemporary scene in this buoyant novel about the value of friendship among women. When Evelyn Dixon’s marriage ends, she leaves Texas and drives north until New Bern, Conn., captures her heart. There she pursues a dream of opening a quilt shop, and with little money and a lot of determination, she turns a derelict building into a haven for the crafty set. But three women who show up for quilting class end up learning about more than stitching and batting. Chilly, wealthy Abigail Burgess; her angry 19-year-old niece, Liza; and recently laid-off Margot Matthews all have different reasons for being there, but when Evelyn, having just learned she has breast cancer, breaks down, the trio unites to support her. Evelyn’s illness and recovery are the catalysts that force the others to re-examine their own lives, while hints of a possible romance for Evelyn add a complementary thread to the friendship, community and illness story lines. Bostwick’s polished style and command of plot make this story of bonding and sisterhood a tantalizing book club contender. PW Review
LOG HOMES MADE EASY, by Jim Cooper
Contracting and building your own log home.
A PLACE OF MY OWN, by Michael Pollan
By the author of Omnivore’s Dilemma Botany of Desire, and In Defense of Food. Originally pub. 1997. Pollan tells the inspiring, insightful, and often hilarious story of his quest to realize a room of his own – a small, wooden hut in the forest, a “shelter for daydreams: - built with his own admittedly unhandy hands. Inspired in equal parts by Thoreau and Mr. Blandings, A Place of My Own not only explores the history and meaning of all human buildings, it also demonstrates architecture’s unique power to give our bodies, minds, and dreams a home in the world – now with a new preface.
DREAMING GREEN, by Lisa Sharkey
A style-lover’s guide to fashionable but eco-friendly decorating showcases a series of urban, suburban, and rural homes that are beautiful, livable, and environmentally friendly and that represent an array of sizes, shapes, and styles, accompanied by an extensive resource section for readers planning their own “green” home. 20,000 first printing.
YOUR ECO-FRIENDLY HOME, by Sid Davis
Buying, Building, or Remodeling Green
CRAFTING LOG HOMES SOLAR STYLE, by Rex Ewig
This revision of Logs, Wind and Sun is coming out when interest in renewable energy is keen. Rex, author of other books on alternative energy, and wife LaVonne recount their log-home construction odyssey. The best section is tucked at the end—there are definitions and descriptions of different energy sources, with pros and cons clearly listed, along with the associated costs and equipment required. This alone makes the book valuable, even if you are not inspired to tromp out to the wilderness to build a log cabin. “A hands-on guide to building solar-powered log homes, complete with how-to illustrations and photos, plus profiles of log home owners from across the United States. Topics includes log home construction, solar and wind energy, home heating options, pumping water, costs to consider, and Web resources”–LJ Review
THE BIG BOOK OF INTERIORS, by Agata Losantos
Features more than 600 different design ideas covering each room in the house. This work contains chapters that are divided by location in the home. Each section opens with text describing the decorating challenges to that part of the house, followed by color design ideas showcasing different solutions to outfit each size room.
EAT, DRINK…AND BE MINDFUL, by Susan Albers
Psychologist and author Albers expands on themes introduced in Eating Mindfully with this workbook for devotees of her conscientious approach to health and weight loss. Her philosophy involves becoming aware of eating patterns and the emotions one associates with food, encouraging readers to discover the how and why of their everyday diet in order to gain greater self-control. Arguing that the mind and the mouth are equally important to consumption, Albers encourages readers to set goals, keep diaries and pay attention to what they eat in detail with a variety of tables and exercises: meditating on a piece of chocolate; describing what tastes draw you; focusing on the here and now. PW Review
THE ADOPTED DOG BIBLE, by Petfinder.com
An all-encompassing guide for owners of rescued and shelter dogs with special needs provides recommendations for such concerns as pursuing veterinary care with minimal records, introducing optimal-nutrition diets, and rehabilitative training. Original. 40,000 first printing.
PUBLISHED IN MAY…BUT WORTH REPEATING!!!
THE PLAGUE OF DOVES, by Louise Erdrich
Unaware of a violent event that marked the beginning of her mixed ancestry, ambitious young Evelina Harp, a part-Ojibwe, part-white girl prone to falling hopelessly in love, learns disturbing truths from her gifted storyteller grandfather, while a sentimental judge weighs the legacy of a century-old crime as reflected by his own love life. By the author of The Painted Drum. 125,000 first printing.
PUBLISHED IN APRIL, 2008…BUT WORTH REPEATING!!
UNACCUSTOMED EARTH, by Jhumpa Lahiri
Exploring the secrets and complexities lying at the heart of family life and relationships, a collection of eight stories includes the title work, about a young mother in a new city whose father tends her garden while hiding a secret love affair, as well as “Hema and Kaushik,” “Only Goodness,” and “A Choice of Accommodations,” among others. 300,000 first printing.
WORTH LOOKING AT AGAIN…pub. 2005
HOW SOCCER EXPLAINS THE WORLD, by Franklin Foe
Casting soccer as a metaphor representative of today’s world issues, an analysis of the sport’s reflection of history as well as its modern influence identifies commonalities between tribalism and globalization, explaining how such factors as terrorism, poverty, racism, and religion contribute to how the game is played today. Reader’s Guide available. Reprint. 50,000 first printing.
COMING IN FEBRUARY…RESERVE YOU COPY NOW!!
THE HELP, by Kathryn Stockett
What perfect timing for this optimistic, uplifting debut novel (and maiden publication of Amy Einhorn’s new imprint) set during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Miss., where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is just home from college in 1962, and, anxious to become a writer, is advised to hone her chops by writing “about what disturbs you.” The budding social activist begins to collect the stories of the black women on whom the country club sets relies—and mistrusts—enlisting the help of Aibileen, a maid who’s raised 17 children, and Aibileen’s best friend Minny, who’s found herself unemployed more than a few times after mouthing off to her white employers. The book Skeeter puts together based on their stories is scathing and shocking, bringing pride and hope to the black community, while giving Skeeter the courage to break down her personal boundaries and pursue her dreams. Assured and layered, full of heart and history, this one has bestseller written all over it. PW Review
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