The Reader's Shelf

From Library Journal

Building the Buzz:  Book Club Worthy Reads

People of the Book By Brooks, Geraldine 2008-12 - Penguin Books 9780143115007 Check Our Catalog 2008 Massachusetts Book Award-Fiction BookPage Notable Title Hanna Heath, an Australian rare-book expert, is offered the job of a lifetime: analysis and conservation of the famous Sarajevo Haggadah, which was rescued during the Bosnian war. When Hanna discovers a series of tiny artifacts in the book's ancient binding, she begins to unlock its mysteries. …More

The Cellist of Sarajevo By Galloway, Steven 2009-03 - Riverhead Books 9781594483653 Check Our Catalog I cannot imagine a lovelier, more beautifully wrought book about the depravity of war as "The Cellist of Sarajevo." Each chapter is a brief glimpse at yet another aspect of the mind, the heart, [and] the soul--ZZ Packer, author of "Drinking Coffee Elsewhere." …More

Good People By Sakey, Marcus 2009-08 - Onyx Books 9780451412744 Check Our Catalog The author of the critically acclaimed "The Blade Itself" returns with this dazzling thriller in which a couple in search of the American Dream is drawn into a world of criminals, double-crossing, and unspeakable revenge. …More

Chez Moi By Desarthe, Agnes Translator Hunter, Adriana 2008-05 - Penguin Books 9780143113232 Check Our Catalog Redolent with the sights, smells, and tastes of Paris, "Chez Moi" is a profound and tender novel about a woman's troubled past--and her enduring love of cooking. …More

The Hundred-Foot Journey By Morais, Richard C. 2011-08 - Scribner Book Company 9781439165652 Check Our Catalog In this lively and charming fable about family, nationality, snobbery, acceptance, and the inevitability of destiny, the hundred-foot distance between a new Indian kitchen and a traditional French one represents the gulf between cultures, people, tastes, and desires. …More

The Creation of Eve By Cullen, Lynn 2011-02 - Berkley Publishing Group 9780425238707 Check Our Catalog "Enormously satisfying...I'm grateful to Cullen for the pleasures of such a splendid read." -Sara Gruen, "New York Times" bestselling author of "Water for Elephants." In 1559, a young woman painter flees a scandal involving one of Michelangelo's students, and is taken to the Spanish court, where she becomes the young queen's confidante and lady-in-waiting. Through her keenly trained eye, readers watch a love triangle unfold involving the queen, the king, and his half brother-a dangerous gamble that risks the lives of the queen and all those who keep her secrets. …More