Shhh… Do you hear it? Yup, that distant jingle is a Christmas carol playing somewhere over store speakers.
Already. I love Christmas and all its carols, but just not yet.
Thankfully the eleventh month has plenty in store for us. I’ve added a few books in that were released near the end of October. I know, it’s cheating, but I was worried you might have read all the titles I suggested in October, this way you don’t have to be without a book for even a moment.
So, if you feel like staying indoors and avoiding the onslaught of over-eager Christmas shoppers (how are they so ORGANIZED?) grab one of these books and put your ear plugs in. Because dear readers CHRISTMAS. IS. COMING.
Amazon.ca: Released!
In Avenue of Mysteries, Juan Diego—a fourteen-year-old boy, who was born and grew up in Mexico—has a thirteen-year-old sister. Her name is Lupe, and she is a mind reader. Although Lupe doesn’t know the future as accurately as you might hope.
Avenue of Mysteries is the story of what happens to adult Juan Diego when he takes a trip to the Philippines, where what happened to him in the past collides with his future.
Amazon.ca: November 10th 2015
The magic strings of Frankie Presto is an epic story of Frankie Presto, the greatest guitar player to ever live, and the six lives he changes with his magical blue strings.
At nine years old, Frankie is sent to America in the bottom of a boat. His only possession is an old guitar and six precious strings.
Frankie’s journey weaves him through the musical landscape of the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s, with his stunning playing and singing talent affecting stars like Elvis Presley and KISS until, as if predestined, he becomes a pop star himself.
Although Frankie is adored his gift is also his burden, and he realizes through his music, he can affect people’s futures—with one string turning blue whenever a life is altered.
At the height of his popularity, Frankie Presto vanishes and his legend grows. Decades later he reappears to change one last life.
Amazon.ca: November 3rd 2015
I’m not sure how I feel about the title, but the books itself sounds amazing – tissues at the ready!
In 1939, as Poland falls under the shadow of the Nazis, young Alma Belasco’s parents send her away to live in safety with an aunt and uncle in their opulent mansion in San Francisco. There she encounters Ichimei Fukuda, the son of the family’s Japanese gardener, and a tender love affair begins. However, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the two are cruelly pulled apart as Ichimei and his family—like thousands of other Japanese Americans—are declared enemies and forcibly relocated to internment camps run by the United States government. Throughout their lifetimes, Alma and Ichimei reunite again and again, but theirs is a love that they are forever forced to hide from the world.
Decades later, Alma is nearing the end of her long and eventful life. Irina Bazili, a care worker, struggling to come to terms with her troubled past, meets the elderly woman and her grandson, Seth. As Irina and Seth forge a friendship, they become intrigued by a series of mysterious gifts and letters sent to Alma, eventually learning about Ichimei and their secret love that has endured for almost seventy years.
Amazon.ca: November 10th 2015
Anyone who has a slight interest in history will love this book. (Cough, cough. Nudge, nudge.)
This fascinating collection gathers the most significant written documents that have influenced and shaped the way we think about the world and the course of history
In addition to famous treaties and official charters, there are less well known yet interesting items included, such as the Apollo flight plan, the check with which the U.S. purchased Alaska from Russia and Apple’s 1976 incorporation documents.
Amazon.ca: Released!
Full of shocks and suspense from the first page to the last Elizabeth George’s newest novel tells the unspoken secrets and buried lies of one family as they begin to rise to the surface
The suicide of William Goldacre is devastating to those left behind who have to deal with its unintended consequences—however, could there be a link between the young man’s leap from a Dorset cliff and a horrific poisoning in Cambridge?
After issues with her department, Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers is desperate to redeem herself. So when a past encounter gives her a connection to the unsolved Cambridge murder, Barbara begs Inspector Thomas Lynley to let her pursue the crime, even though she knows one mistake could mean the end of her career.
Amazon.ca: November 24th, 2015
The title speaks for itself.
In January 2015, Oliver Sacks was diagnosed with a recurrence of cancer. He chose to share his news in his New York Times essay
“I cannot pretend I am without fear. But my predominant feeling is one of gratitude… Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and adventure.”
After reading those words, I don’t know how you could not go out and get this book. His words are moving and hopefully make you pause for a moment and appreciate each day.
Gratitude consists of four essays that originally appeared in The New York Times, and are accompanied by a foreword that describes the occasion of each chapter. The foreword is written by Kate Edgar, his long-time collaborator, and Billy Hayes, his partner.
Amazon.ca: Released!
Published to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Lewis Carroll’s beloved classic Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Gregory Maguire’s After Alice offers readers a magical new twist on the traditional tale.
Ada, a friend of Alice’s mentioned briefly in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, is off to visit her friend, but arrives a moment too late—and tumbles down the rabbit-hole herself. Ada brings to Wonderland her own imperfect apprehension of cause and effect as she embarks on an odyssey to find Alice and bring her safely home.
If you haven’t had enough spook-filled reads in October, here you go. You may have read this before The Grownup, which originally appeared in the anthology edited by George R. R. Martin called Rouges. Lucky for you if you didn’t read it then now it is available as a standalone book.
A young woman is making a living, faking it as a cut-price psychic working at Spiritual Palms. She makes a decent wage — mostly by telling people what they want to hear. But then she meets Susan Burke.
Susan has recently moved into a Victorian house, built in 1893, with her husband and 15-year old stepson Miles. Susan has become convinced that some malevolent spirit is inhabiting their home and taking possession of the stepson. The young “psychic” doesn’t believe in the supernatural, but she does see Susan as an unhappy woman eager to give her life some drama. However when she visits Susan’s eerie house, she begins to change her mind.
Amazon.ca : Released!
In the mood for an intricately plotted heart-stopping suspense novel?
Alice Edevane, who lives on a lakeside estate in Cornwall, England, is a bright, and talented sixteen-year-old who loves to write stories.
One midsummer’s eve, after at the estate has ended, the Edevanes discover that their youngest child, eleven-month-old Theo, has vanished without a trace.
Decades later, Alice is living in London, and Theo’s case has never been solved. Miles away, Sadie Sparrow, a young detective in the London police force, stumbles upon the old estate—clearly abandoned long ago. Her curiosity is sparked, setting off events that will bring her and Alice together and reveal shocking truths.
amazon.ca: November 3rd 2015
In 1940, American painter Alizee Benoit vanished in New York City under mysterious circumstances. No one knows what happened to her. Some seventy years later, her great-niece, Danielle Abrams, while working at Christie’s auction house thinks she has discovered three of Alizée’s paintings. Do they hold answers to the questions surrounding her missing aunt?
Danielle’s journey takes us through Depression-era politics and reveals the tragic consequences of American policy when the Jewish populations of Europe, imperiled by Nazism, were denied refuge in the US.
