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New Nonfiction to Broaden Your Horizons This Summer

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As we emerge from the past few years of collective upheaval, are we ready to face the complexities of our time with joy, authenticity, and connection? Now more than ever, we must learn to heal ourselves, connect, and embody our values. In this life-affirming framework for the way forward, Hemphill shows us how to heal our bodies, minds, and souls—to develop the interpersonal skills necessary to break down the doors of disconnection and take the necessary risks to reshape our world toward justice.

In public life, Dr. Winthrop Bell of Halifax was a Harvard philosophy professor and wealthy businessman. As MI6 secret agent A12, he evaded gunfire and shook off pursuers to break open the emerging Nazi conspiracy in 1919 Berlin. His reports, the first warning of the Nazi plot for WWII, went directly to the man known as C, the mysterious founder of MI6, and to prime ministers. But a powerful fascist politician quietly worked to suppress his alerts. Nevertheless, his intelligence sabotaged the Nazis in ways only now revealed.

When Lauren Spierer―a gregarious young woman at a crossroads in her life―vanished from Indiana University, her story drew global attention from celebrities and news outlets. Lauren’s disappearance wasn’t just some random abduction. What makes the case so confounding is that the 20-year-old was out with dozens of classmates in a bustling university town on the night she went missing. She was seen in public by witnesses and security cameras and ended up in a townhouse complex with several wealthy, well-connected male students―never to be seen again.

As a string of high-profile jewel thefts went unsolved during the Swinging Sixties, the press dubbed the elusive thief “the King of Diamonds” because he eluded police and the FBI for more than a decade. Like Cary Grant in “To Catch a Thief,” the King was so bold that he tip-toed into the homes of millionaires while they were watching television, or hosting parties. He hid in their closets. And dared to smoke a cigarette while they were sleeping not far away. Rena Pederson, then a young reporter with UPI, started following the elusive thief while she managed the night desk.

For years as an award-winning war reporter, Sebastian Junger traveled to many front lines and frequently put his life at risk. And yet the closest he ever came to death was the summer of 2020 while spending a quiet afternoon at the New England home he shared with his wife and two young children. Crippled by abdominal pain, Junger was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. Once there, he began slipping away. This experience spurred Junger to undertake a scientific, philosophical, and deeply personal examination of mortality and what happens after we die.

A quarter of a century after the plane crash that claimed the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and sister-in-law Lauren, the magnitude of this tragedy remains fresh. Yet, Carolyn is still an enigmatic figure, a woman whose short life in the spotlight was besieged with misogyny and cruelty. Amidst today’s cultural reckoning about the way our media treats women, Elizabeth Beller explores the real person behind the tabloid headlines and media frenzy. When she began dating America’s prince, Carolyn was increasingly thrust into an overwhelming spotlight.

D-Day is one of history’s greatest and most unbelievable military and human triumphs. Though the full campaign lasted just over a month, the surprise landing of over 150,000 Allied troops on the morning of June 6, 1944, is understood to be the moment that turned the tide for the Allied forces and ultimately led to the defeat of the Axis powers in World War II. Now, a new book by bestselling author and historian Garrett M. Graff explores the full impact of this world-changing event.

In The Forever Dog, Rodney Habib and Dr. Karen Becker explained that your dog’s longevity starts with proper nourishment. They offer simple ways you can help your dog live longer and better from the inside-out and outside-in, including easy-to-follow tools, recipes, and tips. Learn to prepare healthy, homemade meals your dog will love, with more than 120 nutritionally packed recipes for delicious food bowls, fresh food toppers that supercharge any type of pet food, and nourishing broths and stews that entice the pickiest of eaters.

The American department a palace of consumption that epitomized modern consumerism. Every wish could be met under one roof – afternoon tea, a stroll through the latest fashions, a wedding (or funeral) planned. Whether in New York or Chicago or on Main Street, USA, men owned the buildings, but inside, women ruled. In When Women Ran Fifth Avenue, journalist Julie Satow draws back the curtain on three American women who made twentieth-century department stores a mecca for women of every age, social class, and ambition.

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New DVDs Available at your Library

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New student Cady Heron is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called “The Plastics,” ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George. However, when Cady falls for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels, she finds herself prey in Regina’s crosshairs. Cady must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all: high school.

After Jessica moves back into her childhood home in Louisiana with her family, the reappearance of an imaginary friend from her youth sets in motion a threatening scavenger hunt with Jessica’s stepdaughter, Alice. Aided by cryptic stories from an elderly neighbor about a portal to the spirit world, she realizes the imaginary friend she left behind is very real, and very unhappy she left.

Relegated to Hollow Earth, Kong feels lonely and continues to search for his family, but instead finds a fearsome enemy imprisoned and on the verge of breaking out to conquer the humans. Alongside his human family — Jia, Ilene, Trapper, and Bernie — he ventures above ground to recruit help from Godzilla and other Titans, but making allies from old enemies is never easy!

The Spengler family returns to where it all started, the iconic New York City firehouse, to team up with the original Ghostbusters gang, and join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age.

Paul Atreides, alongside Chani and the Fremen, seeks vengeance against the conspirators who destroyed his family, while grappling with the dilemma of choosing between his love for Chani and the fate of the universe. 

One man’s brutal campaign for vengeance takes on national dangers after he is revealed to be a former operative of a powerful and cover organization known as “Beekeepers.”

An unbreakable bond is forged between pro adventure racer Michael Light and a scrappy street dog dubbed Arthur. Based on an incredible true story, ARTHUR THE KING follows Light as he convinces a sponsor to back him and a team of athletes for the Adventure Racing World Championship in the Dominican Republic. As the team is pushed to their limits of endurance in the race, Arthur redefines what victory and friendship truly mean.

After failing to defeat Aquaman the first time, Black Manta wields the power of the mythic Black Trident to unleash an ancient and malevolent force. Hoping to end his reign of terror, Aquaman forges an unlikely alliance with his brother, Orm, the former king of Atlantis. Setting aside their differences, they join forces to protect their kingdom and save the world from irreversible destruction.

The story of one young hippie’s quest in the 1970s for belonging and liberation that leads not only to love, and rock and roll but that sets into motion a new counterculture crusade changing the course of history. It tells the story of Greg Laurie being raised by Charlene in the 1970s. Laurie and a sea of young people descend on Southern California to redefine truth through all means of liberation. What unfolds becomes the greatest spiritual awakening in American history.

9 New Books to Add to your Summer Reading List

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In the small town of Monta Clare, Missouri, girls are disappearing. When the daughter of a wealthy family is targeted, the most unlikely hero emerges—Patch, a local boy with one eye, who saves the girl, and, in doing so, leaves heartache in his wake. Patch and those who love him soon discover that the line between triumph and tragedy has never been finer. And that their search for answers will lead them to truths that could mean losing one another.

Timeless and bittersweet, Husbands & Lovers takes readers on an unforgettable journey of heartbreak and redemption, from the revolutionary fires of midcentury Egypt to the moneyed beaches of contemporary New England. Acclaimed author Beatriz Williams has written a poignant and beautifully voiced novel of deeply human characters entangled by morally complex issues—of privilege, class, and the female experience—inside worlds brought shimmering to life.

Brooke Hastings is ready to end her six-week affair. Gideon Ross is charming but not worth throwing away her marriage for. So, she breaks it off, hoping Gideon will understand. He doesn’t. Gideon insists that he and Brooke are meant to be together. Finally, he backs off, but not before issuing a promise that he’ll never let her go. Six years later, Brooke wants to believe it’s all behind her. Gideon has vanished. But Brooke is worried. And maybe she’s right to be. Because Gideon is a man who keeps his promises.

Hannah finds community in a true-crime forum that’s on a mission to solve the murders of four women in Atlanta. After William, a handsome lawyer, is arrested for the killings, Hannah begins writing him letters. But when William writes back, Hannah’s interest in the case goes from curiosity to obsession. When a fifth woman is discovered murdered, the jury has no choice but to find William not guilty, and Hannah is the first person he calls upon his release. The two of them quickly fall into a routine of domestic bliss. Well, as blissful as one can feel while secretly investigating their partner for serial murder.

Daphne McFadden is tired of rejection. After submitting her manuscript to dozens of agents, she’s gotten rejection after rejection. And so, Daphne submits her manuscript again, under a man’s name. Imagine her surprise when it becomes a publicity darling. Only she needs a man to play her alter ego Zane Remington. Enter Chris Stanton, who absolutely looks the part of a survivalist. But Chris has a few secrets of his own. When Daphne’s book becomes a bestselling sensation and they’re forced to go on tour together, Daphne finds herself wondering if this city‑boy geek is exactly what she needs to push her to claim her dreams.

On the way to an annual book club retreat, Eileen Merriweather, a Literature professor’s car unexpectedly breaks down, and she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel of her favorite romance series. It’s perfect but trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story. Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending. Except there is a character in Eloraton, a grumpy bookstore owner, that does not want her finishing this book. Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own.

It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles and crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches. Everyone is wearing linen. But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. It all began with a secret. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder.

The worst thing to ever happen on Hemlock Circle occurred in Ethan Marsh’s backyard. One July night, ten-year-old Ethan and his best friend and neighbor, Billy, fell asleep in a tent set up on a manicured lawn in a quiet, quaint New Jersey. In the morning, Ethan woke up alone. Thirty years later, Ethan has reluctantly returned to his childhood home and he begins to notice strange things happening in the middle of the night. Someone seems to be roaming the cul de sac at odd hours, and signs of Billy’s presence keep appearing in Ethan’s backyard. Is someone playing a cruel prank? Or has Billy, long thought to be dead, somehow returned to Hemlock Circle?

As a young couple who flip houses, Charlie and Eve can’t believe the killer deal they’ve just gotten on an old house in a picturesque neighborhood. As they’re working in the house one day, there’s a knock on the door. A man stands there with his family, claiming to have lived there years before and asking if it would be alright if he showed his kids around. Eve lets them in but as soon as the strangers enter their home, uncanny and inexplicable things start happening. And when Charlie suddenly vanishes, Eve slowly loses her grip on reality. Something is terribly wrong with the house and with the visiting family—or is Eve just imagining things?

The Ocean is Calling with these 9 Beach Reads

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 Rocked by tragedy, Annie Marlow heads to the one place that makes her happy: Oceanside in the Pacific Northwest. Once there, Annie begins to restore her broken spirit, thanks in part to Keaton to whom Annie feels most drawn. His peaceful nature offers her comfort, and the two begin to grow closer. And when the opportunity of a lifetime lands in her lap, she is torn between the excitement of a new journey toward success and the safe and secure arms of the haven — and the man — she’s come to call home.

There’s a lot happening on this little island at Christmas. No one knows why Dixie’s son is here, on Christmas Day, no less. And he doesn’t look happy. Bookstore owner Dixie is keeping a big secret that will shake up everyone around her. Julie’s daughter, Colleen, is coming home for a visit, but she’s not alone. Janine makes a new friend, but nobody is thrilled about it. Julie and Dawson question their budding relationship. Will they move forward or decide that being friends is the best way to go? 

After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me – it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.” So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where?

Five years ago, Cass barely survived a brutal attack that left her family dead. Now a scuba diving instructor in Thailand, she has spent years trying to build a new, anonymous life for herself as one of the Permanents, a group of expats who have claimed the beautiful Thailand destination as their own. But her dark past is about to catch up with her when Lucy, one of Cass’ dive students, turns up dead and she starts getting messages from someone who has discovered who she really is.

In a lonely cottage on the windswept Maine coast, Wilder Harlow begins the last book he will ever write. It is the story of a sun-drenched summer of his youth, and of the killer that stalked the small New England town. And of the terrible tragedy that forever bonded him with his friends Nat and Harper in unknowable ways. Decades later, Wilder returns to the town in an attempt to recount that summer’s events in his memoirs. But as he writes, Wilder begins to fear his grip on the truth is fading and that the book may be writing itself.

 New York heiress Catherine Dohan seemingly has it all but it’s a lie. As soon as the Morro Castle leaves port, Catherine’s past returns with a vengeance and threatens her life. Joining forces with a charismatic jewel thief, Catherine must discover who wants her dead–and why. Elena Palacio is a dead woman. Or so everyone thinks. After a devastating betrayal, Elena’s journey on the Morro Castle is her last hope. Burning for revenge, her return to Havana is a chance to right her wrongs.

When twelve-year-olds Kat Steiner and Blake O’Neill meet at Camp Chickawah, they have an instant connection. But everything falls apart when they learn they’re not just best friends-they’re also half-sisters. Confused and betrayed, their friendship instantly crumbles. Fifteen years later when their father dies suddenly, Kat and Blake discover he’s left them the family beach house. The two sisters are instantly at odds. They clash as Blake’s renovation plans conflict with Kat’s creative vision, and each sister finds herself drawn into a summer romance. As the weeks pass, the two women realize the most difficult project they face this summer will be learning how to become sisters.

The narrator is Max Morden, a middle-aged Irishman who, soon after his wife’s death, has gone back to the seaside town where he spent his summer holidays as a child — a retreat from the grief, anger, and numbness of his life without her. But it is also a return to the place where he met the Graces, the well — heeled vacationing family with whom he experienced the strange suddeness of both love and death for the first time. The seductive mother; the imperious father; the twins — Chloe, fiery and forthright, and Myles, silent and expressionless — in whose mysterious connection Max became profoundly entangled, each of them a part of the “barely bearable raw immediacy” of his childhood memories.

Busy flower shop manager Evita Machado can’t wait to get to Nantucket. With a bad breakup behind her, relaxing at the shore with her folks sounds like the sure cure for heartache. But when they arrive at the quaint rose-covered cottage, another group has already put down stakes: the Hatfields. Ryan Hatfield was Evita’s former crush from high school, but their business rival moms refused to let them date. Once it’s clear there’s been a double-booking, Ryan’s mom digs in her heels, meaning to stay. Both sides tepidly agree to share the luxury accommodations by dividing the cozy space. Can Evita and Ryan keep the peace between the warring factions while fostering a growing chemistry between the two of them?”

Enjoy these Books in the Great Outdoors

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In 2016, Amy Tan grew overwhelmed by the state of the world and the hatred and misinformation that became a daily presence on social media. In search of peace, Tan turned toward the natural world just beyond her window and, specifically, the birds visiting her yard. But what began as an attempt to find solace turned into something far greater—an opportunity to connect to nature in a meaningful way, and imagine the intricate lives of the birds she admired.

Nick Offerman has always felt a particular affection for the Land of the Free—not just for the people and their purported ideals but to the actual land the bedrock, the topsoil, and everything in between that generates the health of your local watershed. In his new book, Nick takes a humorous, inspiring, and elucidating trip to America’s trails, farms, and frontier to examine the people who inhabit the land, what that has meant to them and us, and to the land itself, both historically and currently.

This magical journey into the world of the octopus will reveal how the large and capable brain of these creatures occupies their whole body–not just their heads—and they can actually adjust their genetic makeup to respond to the demands of the environment. It will allow readers to watch them change shape and color in order to camouflage themselves more effectively than any other species. And it will divulge how octopus mothers give their all in order to bring forth a new generation.

From the mountains to the ocean shores, from the wetlands to the deserts, North America teems with flora and fauna in delicately balanced ecosystems found nowhere else on Earth. With this book in hand, you will understand the language of nature and see those wild places with new eyes. This volume celebrates a tradition of knowledge established by the Nature Study Guild. For more than sixty years, the Guild’s pocket guidebooks have helped hikers, campers, foragers, and explorers navigate the great outdoors.

Examining the latest epiphanies in botanical research, Schlanger spotlights the intellectual struggles among the researchers conceiving a wholly new view of their subject, offering a glimpse of a field in turmoil as plant scientists debate the tenets of ongoing discoveries and how they influence our understanding of what a plant is. We need plants to survive. But what do they need us for—if at all? An eye-opening and informative look at the ecosystem we live in, this book challenges us to rethink the role of plants—and our own place—in the natural world.

Humans have given meanings and stories to plants and flowers for thousands of years, from myths of Greek Gods who pecked out the eyes of anyone who moved the sacred Peony plant, to 19th century Victorian tales that saw flowers foreshadow death. With details on the origins of the folklore behind each plant, and a beautiful ritual to help you better connect with the teaching each plant has to offer, this is the perfect book for foragers, gardeners, and budding horticulturists looking to develop their knowledge of plants beyond the exterior.

Torbjørn Ekelund dreams of spending more time in nature, but he’s so busy with city life that he has no desire to travel far. So, he hatches a plan. Ekelund decides to leave the city after work and camp near a tiny pond in the forest. The next morning, he returns to work as usual. He does this once a month for a full year. What happens over the course of that year is nothing short of transformative. Evoking Henry David Thoreau, A Year in the Woods asks if the secret to communing with nature lies in small rituals and reflection.

Connecting with green spaces, trees, and plants can lift our spirits, lower our stress levels, and relax our brains – in short, playing outside is good for adults, too. Forest School for Grown-Ups is here to help. A gorgeous and comprehensive guide to all things outdoors for anyone who loves being in and interacting with nature, readers will learn how to make a rope sing, go forest bathing, read flowers, build a campfire, and make a forest potion. From practical tips and how-tos to forest folklore, there’s something for everyone.

Frankie O’Neill and Anne Ryan would seem to have nothing in common. Frankie is a lonely ornithologist struggling to salvage her dissertation on the spotted owl following a rift with her advisor. Anne is an Irish musician far from home and family, raising her five-year-old, Aiden, who refuses to speak. When Frankie finds an injured baby crow in the forest, little does she realize that the charming bird will bring all three lost souls—Frankie, Anne, and Aiden—together on a journey toward hope, healing, and rediscovering joy.

Dive into Summer with these Beach Reads

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There aren’t enough labeled glass containers to contain the mess that is Ali Morris’s life. She’s a professional organizer whose pantry is a disgrace. No one is more surprised than Ali when the first time she takes off her wedding ring, she meets someone. Ethan smiles at Ali like he likes what he sees. The last thing Ali needs is to make her life messier, but there’s no harm in a little Summer Romance. Is there?

Four freshmen arrive at college from completely different worlds. Soon after moving into their shared dorm, they become fast friends. As their college years fly by, their bond intensifies and the four become inseparable. But as graduation nears, a pact is made to be there for each other in their time of need. Years later, when Hannah calls on her closest friends, they stay true to their promise and agree to embark on a journey of self-discovery, forgiveness, and acceptance.

Jen Weinstein and Lauren Parker rule the town of Salcombe, Fire Island every summer. Their husbands, Sam and Jason, have summered together on the island since childhood, despite lifelong grudges and numerous secrets. But even with plenty to gossip about, this season starts out as quietly as any other. Until a body is discovered, face down off the side of the boardwalk.

Poppy and Alex. They have nothing in common and somehow, they are the very best of friends. And every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since. But she decides to convince him to take one more vacation together. Miraculously, he agrees. Now she has a week to fix everything. What could possibly go wrong?

Lux McAllister wants to leave Hawaii and travel the world after a family tragedy. When her boyfriend, Nico, and two women named Brittany and Amma hire them to sail to a remote island in the South Pacific, Lux jumps at the chance. The island is known for its shipwrecks and rumored murders, but Lux and her friends are excited to disconnect from the real world. However, they soon discover that they are not alone on the island and that things may not go as planned.

Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it’s all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They’ll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?

When Kathleen Deane’s husband, Tom, tells her he’s no longer happy with his life and their marriage, Kathleen is confused. They’ve been married thirty years. Who said anything about being happy? But with Tom off finding himself, Kathleen starts to think about what she wants. And her thoughts lead her to a small beach community on the east coast, a town called Whitbey. As Kathleen gets more and more involved in the town’s politics, she realizes that Whitbey may not be a fairytale, but it just might be exactly what she needed.

The world was destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the last island: it is idyllic. One hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists, living in peaceful harmony. Until one of the scientists is found stabbed to death. And then they learn that the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island. If the murder isn’t solved within 107 hours, the fog will smother the island—But the security system has also wiped everyone’s memories of what happened the night before. And the clock is ticking.

In a sleepy seaside town in Maine, recently widowed Evvie rarely leaves her large, painfully empty house. Everyone in town, even her best friend, Andy, thinks grief keeps her locked inside. Meanwhile, in New York City, Dean Tenney, former Major League pitcher, is wrestling with a terrible injury. As the media storm heats up, an invitation from Andy to stay in Maine seems like the perfect chance to hit the reset button. When he moves into an apartment at the back of Evvie’s house, what starts as an unexpected friendship soon turns into something more.

New Audiobooks to Enjoy in the Libby App

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After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, never left home. She stayed with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm’s length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, hasn’t been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them. The siblings must now decide whether to leave the past in the past or uncover the dark secret their mother took to her grave.

Real Americans begins on the precipice of Y2K in New York City, when twenty-two-year-old Lily Chen, an unpaid intern at a slick media company, meets Matthew. Matthew is everything Lily is not: easygoing and effortlessly attractive, a native East Coaster and, most notably, heir to a vast pharmaceutical empire. Lily couldn’t be more different: flat-broke, raised in Tampa, the only child of scientists who fled Mao’s Cultural Revolution. Despite all this, Lily and Matthew fall in love.

Summer Sullivan, the youngest founding member of Elm Creek Quilts, has spent the last two years pursuing a master’s degree in history at the University of Chicago. Her unexpected return home to the celebrated quilter’s retreat is met with delight but also concern from her mother, Gwen; her best friend, Sarah; master quilter Sylvia; and her other colleagues—and rightly so. Stymied by writer’s block, Summer hasn’t finished her thesis, and she can’t graduate until she does.

Summer, 1939. The glittering Côte d’Azur is having a particularly brilliant season, as the world’s wealthiest vacationers collide with Hollywood’s illustrious movie stars for the first-ever film festival on the French Riviera. Into this hothouse playground comes an American named Annabel Faucon. Having left a dead-end job and a broken heart back in New York, she’s escaped to a summer stint at the fabulous Grand Hotel where her uncle is the manager.

Erebus Resort, offers guests the experience of viewing woolly mammoths, and giant sloths in their native habitat, brought back from extinction through genetic manipulation. When a billionaire’s son and his new wife are kidnapped and murdered in the Erebus back country by what is assumed to be a gang of eco-terrorists, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators.

Joe Leaphorn may be long retired from the Navajo Tribal Police, but his detective skills are still sharp, honed by his work as a private detective. His experience will be essential to solve a compelling new finding the birth parents of a woman who was raised by a bilagáana family but believes she is Diné based on one solid clue, an old photograph with a classic Navajo child’s blanket. Leaphorn discovers that his client’s adoption was questionable, and her adoptive family not what they seem.

A beautiful discovery outside the window of her underwater home prompts the reclusive E. to begin a correspondence with renowned scholar Henerey Clel. The letters they share are filled with passion, at first for their mutual interests, and then, inevitably, for each other. Together, they uncover a mystery from the unknown depths, destined to transform the underwater world they both equally fear and love. But by no mere coincidence, a seaquake destroys E.’s home, and she and Henerey vanish.

Los Angeles, 1932: Lulu Wong, star of the silver screen and the pride of Chinatown, has a face known to practically anyone, especially to the Chow sisters—May, Gemma, and Peony—Lulu’s former classmates and neighbors. So the girls instantly know it’s Lulu whose body they discover one morning in an out-of-the-way stable, far from the Beverly Hills mansion where she moved once her fame skyrocketed. The sisters suspect Lulu’s death is the result of foul play, but the LAPD—known for being corrupt to the core—doesn’t seem motivated to investigate.

Years after a breakdown and a diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder derailed her historical preservationist career, Kenetria Nash and her alters have been given a second chance they can’t refuse: a position as resident caretaker of a historic home. Having been dormant for years, Ken has no idea what led them to this isolated Hudson River island, but she’s determined not to ruin their opportunity. Then a surprise visit from the home’s conservation trust just as a Nor’easter bears down on the island disrupts her newfound life.

Nine Books to Read Before Watching the New Movie

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When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum’s classic tale we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?An astonishingly rich re-creation of the land of Oz, this book retells the story of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, who wasn’t so wicked after all.  

Penelope Featherington has secretly adored her best friend’s brother, Colin Bridgerton, for what feels like forever. After half a lifetime of watching him from afar, she thinks she knows everything about him, until she stumbles across his deepest secret…and fears she doesn’t know him at all. But when he discovers that Penelope has secrets of her own, this elusive bachelor must decide…is she his biggest threat – or his promise of a happy ending?

One moonlit night, fourteen-year-old Reena Virk went to join friends at a party and never returned home. In this “tour de force of crime reportage,” acclaimed author Rebecca Godfrey takes us into the hidden world of the seven teenage girls—and boy—accused of a savage murder. As she follows the investigation and trials, Godfrey reveals the startling truth about the unlikely killers. 

Jason Dessen is walking home through the chilly Chicago streets one night, looking forward to a quiet evening with his family, when a masked abductor knocks him unconscious. He awakens to find himself surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And he is not a college professor, but a celebrated genius. How can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answer is a journey that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself as he battles a seemingly unbeatable foe.

One night a stranger named Savannah knocks on Stan and Joy Delaney’s door, bleeding after a fight with her boyfriend. The Delaney’s are more than happy to give her the small kindness she sorely needs. If only that was all she wanted. Later, when Joy goes missing, and Savannah is nowhere to be found, the police question Stan. But for someone who claims to be innocent, he seems to have a lot to hide. Two of the Delaney children think their father is innocent, two are not so sure—but as the two sides square off against each other, all of the Delaneys will start to reexamine their shared family history in a very new light.

In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery.

Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion.

Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. So when she feels a spark with a neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, Lily can’t get him out of her head. As questions about her new relationship with Ryle overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.

After Englishman John Blackthorne is lost at sea, he awakens in Nippon. Thrust into the closed society that is seventeenth-century Japan, Blackthorne must negotiate not only a foreign people, but also his own definitions of morality, truth, and freedom. As internal political strife and a clash of cultures lead to seemingly inevitable conflict, Blackthorne’s loyalty is tested by both passion and loss, and he is torn between two worlds.

Nine Must Read Books for Mental Health Awareness Month

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After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s. Rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rose sharply, more than doubling on many measures. Why? In The Anxious Generation, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out the facts about the epidemic of teen mental illness that hit many countries at the same time. He then investigates the nature of childhood, including why children need play and independent exploration to mature into competent, thriving adults.

Public awareness of mental illness has been transformed in recent years, but our understanding of how to define it has yet to catch up. A narrative has taken hold that a mental health crisis has been building among young people. In this profoundly sensitive and constructive book, psychologist Lucy Foulkes argues that the crisis is one of ignorance as much as illness. Drawing on her extensive knowledge of the scientific and clinical literature, Foulkes explains what is known about mental health problems.

With Quiet, Susan Cain urged our society to cultivate space for the undervalued, indispensable introverts among us, thereby revealing an untapped power hidden in plain sight. Now she employs the same mix of research, storytelling, and memoir to explore why we experience sorrow and longing, and the surprising lessons these states of mind teach us about creativity, compassion, leadership, spirituality, mortality, and love. Cain shows how a bittersweet state of mind is the quiet force that helps us transcend our personal and collective pain.

As Melissa Bond raises her infant daughter and a special-needs one-year-old son, she suffers from unbearable insomnia, sleeping an hour or less each night. She loses her job as a journalist, and her relationship with her husband grows distant. Her doctor casually prescribes benzodiazepines—and increases her dosage regularly. Benzodiazepine addiction is not well studied, and few experts know how to help Melissa as she begins the months-long process of tapering off the pills without suffering debilitating, potentially deadly consequences.

Trauma is a fact of life. Veterans and their families deal with the painful aftermath of combat; one in five Americans has been molested; one in four grew up with alcoholics; one in three couples have engaged in physical violence. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, one of the world’s foremost experts on trauma, has spent over three decades working with survivors. In The Body Keeps the Score, he uses recent scientific advances to show how trauma literally reshapes both body and brain, compromising sufferers’ capacities for pleasure, engagement, self-control, and trust.

Healthy boundaries. We all know we should have them–in order to achieve work/life balance, cope with toxic people, and enjoy rewarding relationships with partners, friends, and family. But what do “healthy boundaries” really mean–and how can we successfully express our needs, say “no,” and be assertive without offending others? Licensed counselor, sought-after relationship expert, and one of the most influential therapists on Instagram Nedra Glover Tawwab demystifies this complex topic for today’s world.

Sometimes you slip through the cracks: unforeseen circumstances like an abrupt illness, the death of a loved one, a breakup, or a job loss can derail a life. These periods of dislocation can be lonely and unexpected. For May, her husband fell ill, her son stopped attending school, and her own medical issues led her to leave a demanding job. Wintering explores how she not only endured this painful time, but embraced the singular opportunities it offered. Ultimately Wintering invites us to change how we relate to our own fallow times.

Is there just one “you”? We’ve been taught to believe we have a single identity, and to feel fear or shame when we can’t control the inner voices that don’t match the ideal of who we think we should be. Yet Dr. Richard Schwartz’s research now challenges this “mono-mind” theory. “All of us are born with many sub-minds—or parts,” says Dr. Schwartz. “These parts are not imaginary or symbolic. They are individuals who exist as an internal family within us—and the key to health and happiness is to honor, understand, and love every part.”

By age thirty, Stephanie Foo was successful on paper: She had her dream job as an award-winning radio producer at This American Life and a loving boyfriend. But behind her office door, she was having panic attacks and sobbing at her desk every morning. After years of questioning what was wrong with herself, she was diagnosed with complex PTSD–a condition that occurs when trauma happens continuously, over the course of years. In this deeply personal and thoroughly researched account, Foo interviews scientists and psychologists and tries a variety of innovative therapies.

Nine Nonfiction Titles to Enjoy in May

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Booksellers and librarians are superheroes, saving lives every single day. Here are their amazing, inspiring true stories as told to the greatest storyteller of our time, James Patterson. To be a bookseller or librarian…You have to play detective. Be a treasure hunter. A matchmaker. An advocate. A visionary. A person who creates “book joy” by pulling a book from a shelf, handing it to someone and saying, “You’ve got to read this. You’re going to love it.”

People love to keep score. Managers keep score of a range of business market share, revenue, profit margin, growth rate. In our personal lives, social media has us keeping score by likes and followers. These external scores are outcome-driven and serve as proof of our success—money, fame, material possessions, wins—but this constant chase for more validation often leaves us feeling exhausted and empty. In The Score That Matters, Ryan Hawk and Brook Cupps show that the internal score is what matters most—it reveals whether we are living in alignment with our purpose and values.

It’s often said that China is in a cold war with America. The reality is far the war is hot, and the body count is one-sided. China is killing Americans and working aggres­sively to maximize the carnage while our leaders remain passive and, in some cases, compliant. Why? If anyone could crack the code, it’s the renowned nonpartisan investigator Peter Schweizer. Schweizer’s previous three number one New York Times bestsellers sent shock waves through official Wash­ington, sparking FBI investigations and congres­sional probes that continue to this day.

Do you think mainstream America needs to find its voice? If so, you’re not alone. The country is under attack by extremists at the fringes who put ideology before sanity and stoke division for their own gain. They are trying to rob America of its common sense and deny empirical truths, and we’re all suffering the consequences. In We’ve Got How You Can Stand Strong for America’s Soul and Sanity, Dr. Phil employs his signature no-nonsense approach to analyze America’s cultural crisis and offers strategies to restore and support our country’s collective mental health.

Our current definition of “productivity” is broken. It pushes us to treat busyness as a proxy for useful effort, leading to impossibly lengthy task lists and ceaseless meetings. We’re overwhelmed by all we have to do and on the edge of burnout, left to decide between giving into soul-sapping hustle culture or rejecting ambition altogether. But are these really our only choices? In this timely and provocative book, Cal Newport harnesses the wisdom of these traditional knowledge workers to radically transform our modern jobs.

Menopause and perimenopause are still a black box to most doctors, leaving patients exasperated as they grapple with symptoms ranging from hot flashes to insomnia to brain fog. As a leading neuroscientist and women’s brain health specialist, Dr. Mosconi unravels these mysteries by revealing how menopause doesn’t just impact the ovaries—it’s a hormonal show in which the brain takes center stage. To conquer these challenges successfully, Dr. Mosconi brings us the latest approaches.

In 1977, in an Ohio Amish community, pregnant wife and mother Ida Stutzman perished during a barn fire. The coroner’s natural causes. Ida’s husband, Eli, was never considered a suspect. But when he eventually rejected the faith and took his son, Danny, with him, murder followed. What really happened to Ida? The dubious circumstances of the tragic blaze were willfully ignored and Eli’s shifting narratives disregarded. Could Eli’s subsequent cross-country journey of death—including that of his own son—have been prevented if just one person came forward?

Aged just seven, Suzanne Heywood set sail with her parents and brother on a three-year voyage around the world. What followed turned instead into a decade-long way of life, through storms, shipwrecks, reefs and isolation, with little formal schooling. No one else knew where they were most of the time and no state showed any interest in what was happening to the children. Suzanne fought her parents, longing to return to England and to education and stability. This memoir covers her astonishing upbringing.

What happens when we can’t joke about some of the most important stuff in life? In a 2019 study, 40% of people reported censoring themselves out of fear that voicing their views would alienate them from the people they care about most.  In You Can’t Joke About That, Kat Timpf shows why much of the way we talk about sensitive subjects is wrong. We’ve created all the wrong rules. We push ourselves into unnecessary conflicts when we should feel like we’re all in this together.