Pearl's Picks for September

Pearl's Picks provides monthly reading suggestions from Nancy Pearl, the most widely known librarian of our time. These richly diverse book suggestions provide great reading experiences for readers of all ages and interests.

October · September · August

Awakening

by S.J. Bolton

S. J. Bolton's Awakening is not a book I would have predicted I'd ever enjoy. I am not fond of snakes (and that's an understatement for you) and in general I don't like atmospheric psychological mysteries (plain old vanilla action is enough for me), but I was totally riveted . . . Read more · Place hold

Death on the Holy Mountain

by David Dickinson

When you begin any series in the middle, there's always a question about how the author is going to handle all the information you don't know because you haven't read the earlier books. That's why many readers insist . . . Read more · Place hold

The Dark Horse

by Craig Johnson

I am always happy to find a new entry in Craig Johnson's mystery series featuring Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire. Walt was introduced in The Cold Dish, which was followed by Death Without Company . . . Read more · Place hold

The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet

by Reif Larsen

"Clever" novels frequently put me off. You know the sort I mean: those that make use of different fonts, footnotes, and other similar affectations. I often wonder if the purpose of all these bells and whistles is simply to disguise the fact that the author really has nothing much to say to the reader . . . Read more · Place hold

Bubble Trouble

by Margaret Mahy

I count myself as someone crazy for the books of Margaret Mahy, especially her picture books. I love her flights of fancy and her scrumptious way with words. And her new book — Bubble Trouble — is great fun to read . . . Read more · Place hold

How to Sell

by Clancy W. Martin

Contrary to the implications of the title of Clancy Martin's How to Sell, this is not a "how-to" book, but rather an unexpectedly poignant first novel, set in and around a large jewelry warehouse store in Texas . . . Read more · Place hold

The City and the City

by China Miéville

Here's a scene I imagine might have gone through China Miéville's mind as he was thinking about beginning his newest work of fiction, The City & the City. He'd just finished his wonderful novel for young people, Un Lun Dun . . . Read more · Place hold

Nomad's Hotel: Travels in Time and Space

by Cees Nooteboom

There are some armchair travel books I would put into a category simply labeled "Something Special," and Cees Nooteboom's Nomad's Hotel: Travels in Time and Space is one of them. This collection ranges over a number of years, and includes essays originally written . . . Read more · Place hold

Gooseberry Park

by Cynthia Rylant

When your six-going-on-seven-year-old granddaughter tells you that you have to read a particular book because it's her current favorite and she's shocked, SHOCKED (although she doesn't use exactly those words) . . . Read more · Place hold

Shelf Discovery: Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading

by Lizzie Skurnick

Lizzie Skurnick has a much-read blog called Old Hag, but Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading is actually based on her column Fine Lines from Jezebel.com. And reading Shelf Discovery is akin to spending time with an old friend . . . Read more · Place hold

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