SCLS Staff Picks - Summer 2024

What we're reading - all available to borrow from our branches.

Updated August 8, 2024
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All the colors of the dark :
Whitaker, Chris,
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * From the author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that "hits like a sledgehammer . . . an absolutely must-read novel" (Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl). Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as...
All the light we cannot see : a novel
Doerr, Anthony
Paper Book
*NOW A NETFLIX LIMITED SERIES--from producer and director Shawn Levy (Stranger Things) starring Mark Ruffalo, Hugh Laurie, and newcomer Aria Mia Loberti* Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist, the beloved instant New York Times bestseller...
The antique hunter's guide to murder :
Miller, C. L.
Paper Book
USA TODAY BESTSELLER In this fun, cozy, debut mystery, an antiques hunter investigates a suspicious death at an isolated English manor, embroiling her in the high-stakes world of tracking stolen artifacts. What antique would you kill for? ...
The art of racing in the rain :
Stein, Garth.
Paper Book
NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM FOX 2000 STARRING MILO VENTIMIGLIA, AMANDA SEYFRIED, AND KEVIN COSTNER MEET THE DOG WHO WILL SHOW THE WORLD HOW TO BE HUMAN The New York Times bestselling novel from Garth Stein--a heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately...
The art thief :
Finkel, Michael.
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * One of the most remarkable true-crime narratives of the twenty-first century * "The Art Thief, like its title character, has confidence, élan, and a great sense of timing."--The New Yorker A...
Austenland :
Hale, Shannon.
Paper Book
For readers of Waiting for Tom Hanks and Well Met, a "gloriously satisfying" (Glamour) romantic comedy set at a Jane Austen fantasy resort from New York Times bestselling author Shannon Hale. Now a major motion picture starring Keri Russell and produced by Stephenie Meyer....
Ban this book
Gratz, Alan
Paper Book
You're Never Too Young to Fight Censorship! In Ban This Book by Alan Gratz, a fourth grader fights back when From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her...
Before the coffee gets cold : a novel
Kawaguchi, Toshikazu
Paper Book
*NOW AN LA TIMES BESTSELLER* *AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER* The first book in the five million-copy bestselling magical realism series If you could go back in time, who would you want to meet? ...
Before the fall
Hawley, Noah.
Paper Book
On a foggy summer night, eleven people--ten privileged, one down-on-his-luck painter--depart Martha's Vineyard on a private jet headed for New York. Sixteen minutes later, the unthinkable happens: the plane plunges into the ocean. The only survivors are the painter Scott Burroughs and a four...
The body in the garden :
Schellman, Katharine,
Paper Book
A SUSPENSE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF 2020 Perfect for fans of Tasha Alexander and Rhys Bowen, Katharine Schellman's debut novel is sure to delight. London 1815. Though newly-widowed Lily Adler is returning to a society that frowns on independent women, she is...
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
Mackesy, Charlie.
Paper Book
Charlie Mackesy's beloved The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse has been adapted into an Academy Award® winning animated short film, now available to stream on Apple TV+ #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER · WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER  ·...
Braiding sweetgrass :
Kimmerer, Robin Wall.
Paper Book
An inspired weaving of indigenous knowledge, plant science, and personal narrative from a distinguished professor of science and a Native American whose previous book, Gathering Moss, was awarded the John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing. As a botanist...
A calamity of souls
Baldacci, David
Paper Book
Set in the tumultuous year of 1968 in southern Virginia, a racially charged murder case sets a duo of white and Black lawyers against a deeply unfair system as they work to defend their wrongfully accused Black defendants in this courtroom drama from #1 New York Times ...
Camp zero :
Sterling, Michelle Min,
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Today Show #ReadwithJenna Book Club Pick Libby Book Award Winner for Best Diverse Author In a near-future northern settlement, the fates of a young woman, a professor, and a mysterious...
Chain-Gang All-Stars /
Adjei-Brenyah, Nana Kwame,
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR * FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD IN FICTION * A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK * NATIONAL BESTSELLER * Two top women gladiators fight for their freedom within a depraved private prison system not so far-removed from...
The children's blizzard :
Benjamin, Melanie,
Paper Book
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Aviator's Wife comes a story of courage on the prairie, inspired by the devastating storm that struck the Great Plains in 1888, threatening the lives of hundreds of immigrant homesteaders, especially schoolchildren. ...
The Cloisters :
Hays, Katy,
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Today Show #ReadwithJenna Book Club Pick "For fans of The Talented Mr. Ripley and The Secret History...The perfect mystery." --Jenna Bush Hager, Today In this...
Community board /
Conklin, Tara.
Paper Book
The New York Times bestselling author of The Last Romantics delivers a wise, timely, big-hearted novel of unplanned isolation and newly forged community. Where does one go, you might ask, when the world falls apart When the immutable facts of your life--the...
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop :
Yagisawa, Satoshi,
Paper Book
The wise and charming international bestseller and hit Japanese movie--about a young woman who loses everything but finds herself--a tale of new beginnings, romantic and family relationships, and the comfort that can be found in books.  Twenty-five-year-old Takako has enjoyed a...
Dear Mrs. Bird :
Pearce, A. J .
Paper Book
This charming, irresistible debut novel set in London during World War II about a young woman who longs to be a war correspondent and inadvertantly becomes a secret advice columnist is "a jaunty, heartbreaking winner" (People)--for fans of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie...
Demon Copperhead : a novel
Kingsolver, Barbara
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE * WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION New York Times Readers' Pick: Top 100 Books of the 21st Century * An Oprah's Book Club Selection * An Instant New York Times Bestseller * An Instant Wall Street Journal Bestseller * A #1 Washington Post...
The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections : a novel
Jurczyk, Eva
Paper Book
Anxious People meets the delights of bookish fiction in a stunning debut following a librarian whose quiet life is turned upside down when a priceless manuscript goes missing. Soon she has to ask- what holds more secrets in the library-the ancient books shelved in the stacks, or the people who...
Did you hear about Kitty Karr? :
Paul, Crystal Smith,
Paper Book
REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK BOOK OF THE MONTH PICK A multigenerational saga that traverses the glamour of old Hollywood and the seductive draw of modern-day showbiz When Kitty Karr Tate, a White icon of the silver screen, dies and bequeaths...
Echo
Ryan, Pam Muñoz
Paper Book
Newbery Honor Book New York Times Bestseller Children's Literature Legacy Award Winner This impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force from a treasured storyteller follows three children, in three different times and places, whose lives...
Fairy tale : a novel
King, Stephen
Paper Book
A #1 New York Times Bestseller and New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice! Legendary storyteller Stephen King goes into the deepest well of his imagination in this spellbinding novel about a seventeen-year-old boy who inherits the keys to a parallel world...
Finlay Donovan is killing it /
Cosimano, Elle.
Paper Book
"Getting the job done" for one single mom takes on a whole new meaning in Finlay Donovan is Killing It. A USA Today bestseller! One of Suspense Magazine's "Best Thrillers of 2021" One of New York Public Library's Best Books of 2021 Nominated for...
Finlay Donovan jumps the gun /
Cosimano, Elle.
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! From USA Today bestseller and Edgar Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun--the hilarious and heart-pounding next installment in the beloved Finlay Donovan series. "Fresh,...
Finlay Donovan knocks 'em dead /
Cosimano, Elle.
Paper Book
A USA TODAY BESTSELLER! From Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead--the hilarious and heart-pounding follow-up to Finlay Donovan is Killing It. "Cosimano skillfully combines suspense and laughs in the manner...
Finlay Donovan rolls the dice /
Cosimano, Elle.
Paper Book
A USA TODAY BESTSELLER! From New York Times bestseller Elle Cosimano comes Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice--the fiercely anticipated next installment in the beloved Finlay Donovan series. "Finlay Donovan is...
The forgotten girls :
Potts, Monica,
Paper Book
Talented and ambitious, Monica Potts and her best friend, Darci, were both determined to make something of themselves. How did their lives turn out so different? "The Forgotten Girls is much more than a memoir; it's the unflinching story of rural women trying to live in...
The fox wife :
Choo, Yangsze.
Paper Book
Some people think foxes are similar to ghosts because we go around collecting qi, but nothing could be further than the truth. We are living creatures, just like you, only usually better looking . . . Manchuria, 1908. In the last years of the dying...
A gentleman in Moscow
Towles, Amor
Paper Book
A New York Times "Readers' Choice: Best Books of the 21st Century" Pick The mega-bestseller with more than 2 million readers--Now a Paramount+ with Showtime series starring Ewan McGregor as Count Alexander Rostov From the #1 New York Times...
The Great Alone A Novel
Hannah, Kristin.
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Instant Bestseller In Kristin Hannah's The Great Alone, a desperate family seeks a new beginning in the near-isolated wilderness of Alaska only to find that their unpredictable environment is less threatening than the erratic behavior found in...
The guest list :
Foley, Lucy
Paper Book
Don't miss Lucy Foley's new book, The Midnight Feast, coming June 18th! A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLERS OF THE YEAR "I loved this book. It gave me the same waves of happiness I get from curling up with a...
H is for Hawk
Macdonald, Helen
Paper Book
One of the New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of the Year One of Slate's 50 Best Nonfiction Books of the Last 25 Years ON MORE THAN 25 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR LISTS: including TIME (#1 Nonfiction Book), NPR, O, The Oprah Magazine (10 Favorite Books), Vogue (Top 10), Vanity Fair...
The handmaid's tale
Atwood, Margaret
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * An instant classic and eerily prescient cultural phenomenon, from "the patron saint of feminist dystopian fiction" (The New York Times). Now an award-winning Hulu series starring Elizabeth Moss. Look for The Testaments, the...
Heartless
Meyer, Marissa
Paper Book
For fans of Wicked: Don't miss this #1 New York Times-bestselling romantasy of Wonderland's most notorious villain: the Queen of Hearts. Long before she was the terror of Wonderland, she was just a girl who wanted to fall in love. Catherine may be...
Home is where the bodies are /
Rose, Jeneva
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Marriage and You Shouldn't Have Come Here comes a chilling family thriller about the (sometimes literal) skeletons in the closet. After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest,...
The house of wolves /
Patterson, James,
Paper Book
Instant New York Times Bestseller!  James Patterson and Mike Lupica are the thriller dream team! Jenny Wolf's murdered father leaves her in charge of a billion-dollar empire--and a family more ruthless than Succession's Roys and...
How to read now :
Castillo, Elaine,
Paper Book
"How to Read Now explores the politics and ethics of reading, and insists that we are capable of something better: a more engaged relationship not just with our fiction and our art, but with our buried and entangled histories." "A book that doesn't seek to shut down the...
How to stay invisible /
Rudd, Maggie,
Paper Book
My Side of the Mountain meets How to Steal a Dog in this high-stakes and heartfelt middle-grade story of a young boy and his dog surviving on their own in the woods. Being alone is something Raymond is used to. Twelve-year-old Raymond Hurley...
Ikigai : the Japanese secret to a long and happy life
García, Héctor
Paper Book
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER * 2 MILLION+ COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE "Workers looking for more fulfilling positions should start by identifying their ikigai." ―Business Insider   "One of the unintended--yet positive--consequences of the [pandemic] is that it is...
The Kamogawa food detectives /
Kashiwai, Hisashi,
Paper Book
The Kamogawa Food Detectives is the first book in the bestselling, mouth-watering Japanese series, for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold. What's the one dish you'd do anything to taste just one more time? Down a quiet backstreet in Kyoto...
Last call at the Nightingale /
Schellman, Katharine,
Paper Book
First in a captivating Jazz age mystery series from author Katharine Schellman, Last Call at the Nightingale beckons readers into a darkly glamorous speakeasy where music, liquor, and secrets flow. "Schellman is at the top of her craft and delivers a murder mystery...
Love & saffron :
Fay, Kim.
Paper Book
The Instant National Bestseller and #1 Indie Next Pick In the vein of the classic 84, Charing Cross Road, this witty and tender novel follows two women in 1960s America as they discover that food really does connect us all, and that friendship and laughter are the best...
Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books
Miller, Kirsten
Paper Book
"Kirsten Miller has that rare ability to take a serious subject and make it very, very funny. I enjoyed this novel and you will too."--James Patterson The provocative and hilarious summer read that will have book lovers cheering and everyone talking! Kirsten Miller, author of The Change,...
Margo's got money troubles :
Thorpe, Rufi.
Paper Book
"Margo's Got Money Troubles is the feel-good novel we need right now." --The Washington Post  "[An] enormously entertaining and lovable book." --Nick Hornby, New York Times Book Review    A bold, laugh-out-loud funny, and heartwarming story about one young woman...
The ministry of time /
Bradley, Kaliane
Paper Book
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF SUMMER 2024 * A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * WINNER OF THE GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD FOR SCIENCE FICTION * A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK * A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, VANITY FAIR, ESQUIRE, VOX, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING,...
North woods :
Mason, Daniel
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER * A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR A WASHINGTON POST TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR * FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD AND THE MARK TWAIN AMERICAN VOICE IN LITERATURE AWARD A sweeping novel...
Organizing solutions for people with ADHD :
Pinsky, Susan C.
Paper Book
Effective organizing strategies for your home, your schedule, and your life!
The pillars of the earth /
Follett, Ken
Paper Book
Ken Follett is known worldwide as the master of split-second suspense, but his most beloved and bestselling book tells the magnificent tale of a twelfth-century monk driven to do the seemingly impossible: build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has ever known. Everything readers...
The power of habit :
Duhigg, Charles.
Audiobook
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Wall Street Journal * Financial Times A young woman walks into a laboratory. Over the past two years, she has transformed almost every aspect of her life. She has quit smoking, run a marathon, and been promoted...
The power of now :
Tolle, Eckhart,
Paper Book
Celebrating 25 Years as a New York Times Bestseller -- Over 16 Million Copies Sold It's no wonder that The Power of Now has sold over 16 million copies worldwide and has been translated into over 30 foreign languages. Much more than simple principles and platitudes, the book takes...
Project Hail Mary : a novel
Weir, Andy
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING RYAN GOSLING AND DIRECTED BY CHRISTOPHER LORD AND PHIL MILLER From the author of The Martian, a lone astronaut must save the earth from disaster in this "propulsive" (Entertainment...
Really good, actually :
Heisey, Monica
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER "Every sentence of Monica Heisey's writing is a treat. No one makes me laugh like she does." --Dolly Alderton, New York Times bestselling author of Everything I Know About Love Recommended by Los Angeles Times * Washington Post * GQ * Elle * Good Morning America...
Remarkably bright creatures :
Van Pelt, Shelby,
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Read With Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick! NAMED A BEST BOOK OF SUMMER by: Chicago Tribune * The View * Southern Living * USA Today "Remarkably Bright Creatures [is] an ultimately feel-good but deceptively...
Rules of civility /
Towles, Amor.
Paper Book
From the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Lincoln Highway and A Gentleman in Moscow, a "sharply stylish" (Boston Globe) book about a young woman in post-Depression era New York who suddenly finds...
Salt houses /
Alyan, Hala,
Paper Book
 Lyrical and heartbreaking, Salt Houses follows three generations of a Palestinian family and asks us to confront that most devastating of all truths: you can't go home again. Winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize and the Arab American Book Award On the eve...
The secret book of Flora Lea :
Henry, Patti Callahan.
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER When a woman discovers a rare book that has connections to her past, long-held secrets about her missing sister and their childhood spent in the English countryside during World War II are revealed. In the war-torn London of...
The secrets of Wishtide : a Laetitia Rodd mystery
Saunders, Kate
Paper Book
Mrs. Laetitia Rodd, aged fifty-two, is the widow of an archdeacon. Living in Hampstead with her confidante and landlady, Mrs. Bentley, who once let rooms to John Keats, Laetitia makes her living as a highly discreet private investigator. Her brother, Frederick Tyson, is a criminal...
The spellshop /
Durst, Sarah Beth.
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY AND INDIE BESTSELLER! A #1 LibraryReads pick! An Indie Next pick! EXCLUSIVE DELUXE EDITION--a gorgeous hardcover edition featuring beautiful lavender sprayed edges! The Spellshop<...
Stay sexy & don't get murdered :
Kilgariff, Karen,
Paper Book
The instant #1 New York Times and USA Today best seller by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, the voices behind the hit podcast My Favorite Murder! Sharing never-before-heard stories ranging from their struggles with depression, eating disorders, and...
The stranger in the lifeboat :
Albom, Mitch,
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Bestseller What would happen if we called on God for help and God actually appeared? In Mitch Albom's profound new novel of hope and faith, a group of shipwrecked passengers pull a strange man from the sea. He claims to be "the Lord." And he says he can only save them if...
Table for two :
Towles, Amor.
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times Bestseller "A knockout collection. ... Sharp-edged satire deceptively wrapped like a box of Neuhaus chocolates, Table for Two is a winner." --The New York Times "Superb ... This may be Towles' best book yet. Each tale is as...
Tell me everything :
Kelly, Minka,
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Washington Post best celebrity memoir of 2023 An Audible best celebrity memoir of 2023 "A timely, urgent portrait of working-class American women." --Gabrielle Union In her...
The Thursday murder club
Osman, Richard
Paper Book
Soon to be a Major Motion Picture The first installment in the beloved and New York Times bestselling series from Richard Osman, also author of We Solve Murders Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves A female cop...
The trials of Morrigan Crow /
Townsend, Jessica,
Paper Book
A breathtaking, enchanting new series by debut author Jessica Townsend, about a cursed girl who escapes death and finds herself in a magical world--but is then tested beyond her wildest imagination. Morrigan Crow is cursed. Having been born on Eventide, the unluckiest day for any...
An untidy death /
Brett, Simon
Paper Book
When the body of a prospective client is discovered in her burned-out home, declutterer Ellen Curtis is drawn into a baffling investigation where nothing is as it first appears. "My mother's going to kill herself . . . That is, if I don't kill her first."When Alexandra Richards approaches...
The war that saved my life /
Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker.
Paper Book
* Newbery Honor Book * #1 New York Times Bestseller * Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award  * Forbes 25 Top Historical Fiction Books Of All Time selection * Wall Street Journal Best Children's Books of the Year selection * New York...
We have always lived in the castle /
Jackson, Shirley,
Paper Book
Shirley Jackson's beloved gothic tale of a peculiar girl named Merricat and her family's dark secret Taking readers deep into a labyrinth of dark neurosis, We Have Always Lived in the Castle is a deliciously unsettling novel about a perverse, isolated, and possibly...
When women ran Fifth Avenue :
Satow, Julie,
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A Best Book of the Year: Amazon, Smithsonian, and Financial Times * A glittering portrait of the golden age of American department stores and of three visionary women who led them, from the award-winning author of The Plaza. * "Ms. Satow's...
Why we swim
Tsui, Bonnie
Paper Book
A Time Magazine Must-Read Book of 2020 A Best Book of the Season: BuzzFeed * Bustle * San Francisco Chronicle A Best Book of the Year: NPR's Book Concierge * Washington Independent Review of Books
The Women A Novel
Hannah, Kristin.
Paper Book
A #1 bestseller on The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times! From the celebrated author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds comes Kristin Hannah's The Women--at once an intimate portrait of coming of age in a...
Yellowface :
Kuang, R. F.
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK "Hard to put down, harder to forget." -- Stephen King, #1 New York Times bestselling author White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences... Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she...

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