Recommended Reads

"As the first Black woman to consistently write and publish in the field of science fiction, Octavia Butler was a trailblazer. . . Susana M. Morris places Butler's story firmly within the cultural, social, and historical context that shaped her life: the Civil Rights Movement, Black Power, women's liberation, queer rights, Reaganomics. Morris reveals how these influences profoundly impacted Butler's personal and intellectual trajectory and shaped the ideas central to her writing."-- Publisher description

"There'd always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn't willing to double down on. She may be good enough to steal a shadow from a tower, but will she be good enough to steal back a heart?"-- Provided by publisher.

"An advice columnist, Debbie Mullen, has just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters and her husband is keeping secrets. Now, Debbie's done being being reasonable and practical. It's time to take her own advice. And now it's time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.-- Provided by publisher. 

A thirty-one-year-old production assistant uses a mysterious dating service to find the perfect plus-one for her college reunion, where she reconnects with her friends and begins to question everything she thought she wanted.

Jake wants a dinosaur sleepover for his birthday but his friends come down with the flu, and when Jake investigates a strange noise at night, he finds prehistoric party guests in his living room, in a book that celebrates inclusion and fun.

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Striker isn't entirely sure she should be on this luxury Antarctic cruise. A Black film scout, her mission is to photograph potential locations for a big-budget movie about Ernest Shackleton's doomed expedition... But when a kayaking excursion goes horribly wrong, Striker and a group of survivors become stranded on a remote island along the Antarctic Peninsula.-- Publisher description.

"Jane Boleyn watches from the shadows of the Tudor court, where nothing is more powerful than a secret. And power rests on the edge of a tyrant King's sword. The only weapon she has is her voice. They called her a liar and a traitor. But the truth is far more dangerous..."-- Publisher description.

"What do we do when the climate warming boundaries set by the Paris Agreement have been passed? In the overshoot era, schemes proliferate for muscular adaptation or for new technologies to turn the heat down at a later date by removing carbon from the air or by blocking sunlight. Such technologies are by no means safe; they come with immense risks and provide an excuse for those who would rather avoid limiting emissions in the present. But do they also hold out some potential? Can the catastrophe be reversed, masked or simply adapted to once it is a fact? Or will any such roundabout measures simply make things worse?"-- Provided by publisher.

When she is convicted of a double murder, Felicity Wild, a brilliant grad student turned high-priced escort, declares, "I may not be innocent, but I'm innocent of this." Reenie Bigelow never doubted it. A jury may have given Felicity a life sentence, but Reenie knows that her childhood best friend is not capable of murder. And so Reenie, a journalist, decides to use her deep connections to Felicity's past to unravel the truth. -- Publisher description.

While attempting to banish the spirit of an infamous murderer from his ancestral home, Mallory, a witch with the ability to see ghosts, finds herself at the center of an investigation for a new murder.

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"In this ... biography of the polarizing, trailblazing author, collector, salonnière, and tastemaker, Francesca Wade rescues Stein from the tangle of contradictions that has characterized her legacy. Wade uncovers the origins of Stein's radical writing and reveals new depths to the storied relationship that made it possible."-- Adapted from publisher.

"Learn all about the lives and extended space adventure of astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore in this exciting biography. In March 2025, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore splashed into the Gulf of Mexico. A pod of dolphins greeted them, and their friends and family celebrated their return to Earth. Where had they been? The International Space Station! When Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore left for a short eight-day mission to the International Space Station in June 2024, they never dreamed they would be spending the next nine months in space!...This is the story of Suni and Butch's exciting adventure, from their initial partnership at NASA to their life on the ISS and eventual splashdown off the coast of Florida in a Space X Dragon capsule." -- Publisher.

"No other phenomenon has shaped human history as decisively as capitalism. It structures how we live and work, how we think about ourselves and others, how we organize our politics. Sven Beckert, author of the Bancroft Prize–winning Empire of Cotton, places the story of capitalism within the largest conceivable geographical and historical framework, tracing its history during the past millennium and across the world. "-- from amazon.com

Told in two voices, Andy, a serious journalism student adamant about reinventing herself, and her influencer cousin, Dominique, who is on the verge of securing a major deal, navigate their own respective love stories over the New Year.

"Against the vividly drawn backdrop of Victorian London, amateur sleuth Charles Lenox must unlock a mystery concealed in the architecture of the city itself."-- Publisher description.