YOUR LIBRARIANS READ AND RECOMMEND

YELLOWFACE by R.F. KUANG

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena’s a literary darling. June Hayward is literally nobody. So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers during World War I. What ensues is a gripping tale of white priviledge with dark, sinister twists.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT: It explores deep questions about use, misuse, appropriation, and who tells a story. Plus, you'll learn so many interesting tidbits about how the publishing industry works. You'll even find yourself laughing despite the not so funny nature of stealing someone else's work.

FOR FANS OF: twists and turns, big reveals, power, priviledge, the book world

THE LAST CUENTISTA by DONNA BARBA HIGUERA

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  There lived a girl named Petra Peña, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita. But Petra's world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children – among them Petra and her family – have been chosen to journey to a new planet. They are the ones who must carry on the human race.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT: A mesmerizing tale that infuses science fiction and Mexican folklore. A story about stories and how the power of retaining and telling them has vast implications for humanity.

FOR FANS OF: science fiction, space travel, world ending, folklore

WARRIOR GIRL UNEARTHED by ANGELINE BOULLEY

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Perry Firekeeper-Birch has always known who she is - the laidback twin, the troublemaker, the best fisher on Sugar Island. Her aspirations won't ever take her far from home, and she wouldn't have it any other way. But as the rising number of missing Indigenous women starts circling closer to home, as her family becomes embroiled in a high-profile murder investigation, and as greedy grave robbers seek to profit off of what belongs to her Anishinaabe tribe, Perry begins to question everything.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT: Powerful, at times difficult, but ultimately filled with redemption. A complicated exploration of MMIWG and one young Native woman's quest to understand and repatriate her tribe's ceremonial items, artifacts, art, and remains.

FOR FANS OF: mystery, museums, tribal communities

HOW HIGH WE GO IN THE DARK by SEQUOIA NAGAMATSU

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Beginning in 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work of his recently deceased daughter at the Batagaika crater, where researchers are studying long-buried secrets now revealed in melting permafrost, including the perfectly preserved remains of a girl who appears to have died of an ancient virus. Once unleashed, the Arctic Plague will reshape life on earth for generations to come, quickly traversing the globe, forcing humanity to devise a myriad of moving and inventive ways to embrace possibility in the face of tragedy.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT: This reads like a collection of intertwined short stories. Each chapter tells the story from a different angle and perspective but all are connected by the climate disaster that's shifted humanity forever. It's thoughtful and atmospheric in the unique mechanics of the storytelling.

FOR FANS OF: climate novels, introspective novels, multiple perspectives

BROWN GIRLS by DAPHNE PALASI ANDREADES

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Within one of New York City’s most vibrant and eclectic boroughs, young women of color attempt to reconcile their immigrant backgrounds (which require them to be obedient, dutiful daughters) with the freedoms of American culture.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT:  Writing in vignettes, the author explores female friendship through life’s various stages and presents a collective portrait of women of color as they attempt to forge their place in the world.  Using a first-person-plural narration, she takes on the literary challenge of weaving an intimate and immersive story while capturing the voices of a generation.

FOR FANS OF:  diverse coming-of-age stories, literary fiction, intersectional fiction, stories about first-generation American experiences

ONCE THERE WERE WOLVES by CHARLOTTE MCCONAGHY

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Inti Flynn arrives in Scotland with her twin sister, Aggie, to lead a team of biologists tasked with reintroducing gray wolves into the remote Highlands.  The initiative is met with fierce opposition from the locals, who fear for their safety and way of life.  When a farmer is found dead, Inti knows where the town will lay blame. Unable to accept that her wolves could be responsible, she makes a reckless decision to protect them, no matter the cost, and sets out to solve the mystery of the death herself.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT:  Beyond the vividly realized story of the attempted “rewilding” of the Scottish Highlands, this is a rich, atmospheric meditation on nature, humanity, and the unexpected–often frightening–impulses lurking within us all.  There is no shortage of physical and emotional violence here, but the payoff is in fleeting glimpses of beauty and profound connection as viewed through Inti’s eyes, even as she struggles to remain detached from the people and situations that surround her.

FOR FANS OF:  ecofiction, strong female characters, complex characters, wolves

Content warning for harm to an animal, domestic violence, rape (on the page).

LIGHT FROM UNCOMMON STARS by RYKA AOKI

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Gifted transgender violinist Katrina Nguyen runs away from her abusive home and stumbles into the mentorship of “the Queen of Hell,” infamous violin teacher Shizuka Satomi. Secretly, Shizuka believes Katrina could be the perfect candidate to fulfill a bargain Shizuka once made with a toad-faced demon. But her attention is divided—Shizuka develops a crush on the owner of a local donut shop, Lan Tran, who also happens to be a retired starship captain and an interstellar refugee protecting her children from a galactic war.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT:  Twice, I almost abandoned this book, thinking it wasn’t for me, but I persisted and was rewarded again and again.  I don’t believe I’ve ever before encountered such beauty, trauma, ugliness and whimsy in a single story. If you enjoy a story that stirs the senses and you’re willing to go along for the ride, this might be a worthwhile read for you, too.

FOR FANS OF:  LGBTQIA+ fiction, science fantasy, complex characters, classical music

Content warning for explicit language, transphobia, physical abuse, self-harm, sexual assault, and sex work.

DEAF UTOPIA by NYLE DIMARCO with ROBERT SIEBERT

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:  Actor, producer, model, and Deaf advocate Nyle DiMarco weaves pivotal moments in Deaf history with personal stories of growing up in a multi-generational Deaf home.  He details his efforts to improve Deaf representation in media and chronicles his journey to coming out his way.

WHY YOU MIGHT LIKE IT:  The author’s note for this book begins “Welcome reader.  When you crack open these pages, you enter my world:  the deaf world.”  DiMarco then immerses the reader in Deaf culture and in the richness of American Sign Language (ASL), describing ASL words and phrases, and rendering conversations in a modified form of ASL gloss (a typed approximation of ASL using all caps) as a way to effectively “recapture some of [the] lost magic” of translating his native language to the page.  Declaring himself to be a “proud Deaf man,” DiMarco enthusiastically and passionately shares this “love letter to a way of life.”

FOR FANS OF:  candid memoirs, popular culture, Deaf culture