Notable Acquisitions - October 2008

Notable Acquisitions - October 2008

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FICTION

Comforts of a Muddy Saturday, by Alexander McCall Smith. Edinburgh denizen and part-time sleuth Isabel Dalhousie is asked to come to the aid of a once-respected professor of medicine who stands accused of falsifying data in a clinical trial.
Fine Just the Way It Is: Wyoming Stories 3, by Annie Proulx. The National Book Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning author returns with a stunning new collection of stories set in the unforgiving expanses of the American West.
Heat Lightning, by John Sandford. When two male bodies, each found shot to death with a lemon in his mouth, turn up a week apart, Virgil Flowers of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is pretty sure there’ll be more. He’s right.
The Lucky One, by Nicholas Sparks. The hero in Sparks’ 14^th book possesses the photo of an unknown, smiling young woman he believes is his lucky charm. How he got the photo - and finds the woman in it - is the basis for a love story.
Hot Mahogany, by Stuart Woods. When his sometimes-CIA boss Lance Cabot assigns him to keep his brother, Barton, out of trouble, Stone Barrington learns why the trauma-induced amnesia Barton suffers is not good for one who knows so many secrets.

NONFICTION

Sarah: How a Hockey Mom Turned the Political Establishment Upside Down, by Kaylene Johnson. Published earlier this year and quickly re-issued, this slim biography delivers the essential facts on Sarah Palin’s early years and rise in Alaska politics.
The War Within: A Secret White House History, 2006-2008, by Bob Woodward. The fourth and final installment in Woodward’s chronicle of the Bush administration at war covers the appointment of General Patraeus and the troop surge in Iraq.
Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution--and How It Can Renew America, by Thomas L. Friedman. Friedman parses the politics of global warming and argues that the problems with fossil fuels may create opportunities for positive change.
The First Billion Is the Hardest, by T. Boone Pickens. A legendary figure in the business arena who knows a thing or two about energy markets, Pickens offers plain-spoken advice for charting America’s path to a post-petroleum world.
The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich, by Timothy Ferriss. No, this isn’t a presidential campaign platform, but a guidebook to a new global lifestyle for those flexible (and mobile) enough to reap the benefits.
Food to Live By: The Earthbound Farm Organic Cookbook, by Myra Goodman, Linda Holland, and Pamela McKinstry. Organic foods are championed here, but the appealing, well-illustrated recipes ensure that this also serves well as a fine general cookbook.

TEENS

The Whole Sky of Stars, by Rene Saldana, Jr. Two teens from a Texas suburb have been friends since first grade. Barry packs a punch, so when Alby incurs gambling debts to a local thug, he enters Barry in a prize-fight to win some quick money.
The Noah Confessions, by Barbara Hall. Like all the other girls in her neighborhood, Lynnie expects a new car for her sixteenth birthday. When her father gives her an old bracelet of her mother’s instead, it sparks painful questions about her family’s past.
The Off Season, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. Not only is D.J. the first girl linebacker in northern Wisconsin, but she has a super best friend and hangs out with the rival team’s popular quarterback. So why does it feel like the people she counts on are drifting away?
Guyaholic, by Carolyn Mackler. Stuck living with her doting grandparents and on the outs with her latest boyfriend, V jumps at the chance to visit her mother in Texas, where she comes to realize that her mother’s lifestyle may not be as cool as she thought.

CHILDREN'S

100 Days and 99 Nights, by Alan Madison. Esme’s life changes when her dad goes away on military deployment for three months. She tries to be good, but it’s not easy with a little brother like Ike. For kids in grades 3-4.
The Diamond of Darkhold, by Jeanne DuPrau. In the fourth Book of Ember, Lina and Doon return underground in search of a mysterious device to help their new community get through the cold, dark winters on the surface. For kids in grades 4-6.
The Barefoot Book of Princesses, retold by Caitlin Matthews. These traditional, well-illustrated princess tales from places like Africa, Persia (Iran), North America, Denmark, and China will delight young princesses in grades two and three.
A Girl Named Dan, by Dandi Daley Mackall. This picture book recounts the author’s childhood experiences when, tossed off her team because of her gender, she entered an essay contest to become a bat “boy” for the Kansas City A’s. For kids in grades 2-4.
The House that Max Built, by Maxwell Newhouse. This book’s vivid folk art paintings and informative text bring to life for young children the exciting process of building a new home. For kids in preschool through grade 2.