The February 2005 Book Sense Picks

Here is a preview of the February "Book Sense Picks." Independent booksellers in the Book Sense program will receive their Picks fliers in the January Red Box.

The flier is designed for store use during the month of February, and it is one component of a monthly program that also includes a downloadable PDF flier of 20 additional titles. The PDF flier -- titled "We Also Recommend…" -- features booksellers' quotes and is designed so that it can be distributed in the store. In addition, an electronic file of shelf-talkers of these titles will also be made available in a downloadable PDF format.

Looking ahead, the deadline for nominations for the Book Sense Easter/Passover Top Ten is Friday, January 7. Please nominate any titles -- frontlist or backlist, adult or children's -- that you think would make great hand-sell titles for the holidays.

To nominate, just e-mail a few sentences about the title to Book Sense Picks Editor-in-Chief Dan Cullen at [email protected], or use the convenient Web form at www.bookweb.org/read/6305.

And many thanks for all your contributions to Book Sense!

1. THE SAME SWEET GIRLS, by Cassandra King (Hyperion, $23.95, 1401300383) "This is the captivating story of six college friends whose lives are indelibly intertwined despite the different paths each has chosen in life. Cassandra King develops her characters so realistically and honestly that the reader wants to speak out loud to each one!" --Mary P. Bugnacki, Briggs Carriage Bookstore, Brandon, VT Also a Hyperion Audio (Abridged CD, 1401399193)

A THREAD OF GRACE: A Novel, by Mary Doria Russell (Random House, $25.95, 0375501843) "Fans of Russell's The Sparrow will not be disappointed by her latest novel, set in World War II Italy. Immerse yourself in this richly textured, morally complex novel, and, when you emerge from this story, you'll look at your life differently. " --Susan M. Taylor, Wellesley Booksmith, Wellesley, MA Also a Random House Audio (Abridged CD, 073931856X)

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AN ORDINARY LIFE, by Amy Krouse Rosenthal (Crown, $23, 1400080452) "While this surprisingly endearing book is not a chronicle in any conventional sense, it is shot through with that quality of all good autobiography: closely observed moments, big hopes, and small fears that are at once specific and universal." --Ty Wilson, Copperfield's Books, Sebastopol, CA

KAFKA ON THE SHORE: A Novel, by Haruki Murakami (Knopf, $25.95, 1400043662) "Murakami seamlessly marries the philosophical, the fantastic, and the realistic in his wonderful new novel. Inventive storytelling and thought-provoking ideas on every page -- all that you would expect from one of the best contemporary writers around." --Matthew Simmons, University Book Store, Seattle, WA

SIGHT HOUND: A Novel, by Pam Houston (Norton, $23.95, 0393058174) "Sight Hound, told from the point of view of a number of people and animals, revolves around Rae, an emotionally wounded playwright, and Dante, an ailing Russian wolfhound. The different voices propel a story that follows Rae's attempts to find both love and friendship. This touching, humorous story will entertain you, even if you are not a 'dog person.'" --Terry Lucas, The Open Book, Westhampton Beach, NY

THE LAST KINGDOM, by Bernard Cornwell (HarperCollins, $25.95, 0060530510) "The Last Kingdom is a riveting, high-spirited, knowledgeable account of the Danish presence in ninth century England. This latest novel by Bernard Cornwell will provide hours of enjoyment, entertainment, and insight into the past." --Travis Matteson, Merritt Books, Millbrook, NY Also a Harper Audio (Abridged CD, 0060759259)

PRIDE OF CARTHAGE: A Novel of Hannibal, by David Anthony Durham (Doubleday, $26.95, 0385506031) "In Pride of Carthage, history is brought to life with a realistic blend of fact and fiction depicting Hannibal's march on Rome. Shrewd and engaging, Durham brings humanity and great depth to one of the best historical novels of the decade!" --Emery Pinter, Chapter 11, Atlanta, GA

PLEASE DON'T COME BACK FROM THE MOON: A Novel, by Dean Bakopoulos (Harcourt, $23, 0151011354) "This honest first novel follows 16-year-old Michael Smolij and his friends as they stumble towards manhood in a working-class neighborhood outside of Detroit, where jobs and the American dream have vanished along with the young men's fathers. Michael and his friends reach adulthood with ambivalence about their roles in society in this novel that looks at the changing face of manhood in the heartland of America." --Sandi Torkildson, A Room of One's Own, Madison, WI

THE ROCK ORCHARD: A Novel, by Paula Wall (Atria, $24, 0743496205) "If you were to start reading this novel out loud, you'd find yourself speaking in a Southern drawl before you finished a paragraph. Peppered with Southern euphemism and wit, The Rock Orchard chronicles the clash of Boston upper class and the small Southern town of Leaper's Fork. It's an earthy, funny, wise, sexy book." --Christine Stephens, Schuler Books & Music, Grand Rapids, MI Also a Brilliance Audio (Unabridged CD, 1596000805)

THE SOCIETY OF OTHERS: A Novel, by William Nicholson (Nan A. Talese/Doubleday, $23.95, 0385513275) "This thought-provoking novel about a nameless young Englishman who wanders into a nightmarish country where books are considered dangerous and fear and repression is rampant impressed me. The reader is slowly drawn into the potent mixture of spy thriller and philosophical discourse in this highly recommended book." --Len Cowgill, McLean & Eakin Booksellers, Petoskey, MI

AS HOT AS IT WAS YOU OUGHT TO THANK ME: A Novel, by Nanci Kincaid (Back Bay, $12.95 paper, 0316009148) "Kincaid's novel is gloriously vivid in evoking the characters and setting of the backwater town of Pinetta, Florida, in a time when having a television carried status. At first a finely crafted coming-of-age story, As Hot As It Was blossoms into a very crafty mystery, twisty and surprising in its revelations." --Stan Hynds, Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, VT

THE BOOK OF THE FILM OF THE STORY OF MY LIFE: A Novel, by William Brandt (Warner, $12.95 paper, 0446693812) "A funny, wry coming-of-age novel -- except the narrator is a forty-something New Zealander living in London with a famous actress wife. The style is reminiscent of Nick Hornby and is just as profound." -- Margaret Ogle, Allegory Books and Music, Gleneden Beach, OR

THE WAY OUT: A True Story of Survival, by Craig Childs (Little, Brown, $23.95, 0316610666) "Childs and a friend attempt to find a way through some of the most inhospitable terrain in North America, all the while flashing back on various episodes (some rather dark) that have brought them both to where they are in their lives. This is another beautiful and challenging book from one of our best nature writers." --Curt Witteveen, Annie Bloom's Books, Portland, OR

THE CELESTIAL JUKEBOX: A Novel, by Cynthia Shearer (Shoemaker & Hoard, $25, 1593760523) "A Chinese grocer, farmers -- white and black, Mauritians, gangstas, Hondurans, and musicians of all sorts pass through Madagascar, Mississippi. This is a story about relationships -- familial, economic, and accidental -- and about how intertwined lives are in this microscopic town in the Mississippi delta, a place that reflects the world." -- Lyn Roberts, Square Books, Oxford, MS

THE GEOGRAPHER'S LIBRARY: A Novel, by Jon Fasman (Penguin, $24.95, 1594200386) "A young newspaper reporter sets out to write the obituary of a professor from his nearby alma mater, but the professor's life and death are both revealed to be shady businesses, indeed. However, the real puzzler of this entertaining mystery is the mysterious tales of a library of treasures that may hold the secret to eternal life." --Daniel Goldin, Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop, Milwaukee, WI Also a Penguin Audio (Unabridged CD, 0143057235)

HOT LIGHTS, COLD STEEL: Life, Death, and Sleepless Nights in a Surgeon's First Years, by Michael J. Collins (St. Martin's, $24.95, 0312337787) "I was glued to the pages of this wonderful memoir of a medical resident. Here is a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the medical field, and into the heart and mind of one of its dedicated surgeons in training." --Cynthia Ashbaugh, Island Books, Middletown, RI

THE SHADOW OF THE WIND, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Penguin, $15 paper, 0143034901) Young Daniel is taken by his father, an antiquarian book dealer in Barcelona, to the secret Cemetery of Forgotten Books to choose a book that he must care for. He chooses The Shadow of the Wind, and so begins a quest to find all of its author's printed work. This is a work of suspense written with the structure, characters, and settings of a great classic." --Jan Healy, Eagle Harbor Book Company, Bainbridge Island, WA

SIGHTSEEING, by Rattawut Lapcharoensap (Grove Press, $19.95, 0802117880) "In Sightseeing, Lapcharoensap tells us stories of richly drawn characters in Thailand and America, with style and subtlety. While the images he conjures are varied (some beautiful, some unsettling, and some harsh), they will move readers to a deeper understanding of humanity." --Laura Huemer, Goldfinch Books, Maplewood, NJ

SNOBS, by Julian Fellowes (St. Martin's, $23.95, 0312336926) "A delightfully arrogant afternoon spent with folks who invented the fine art of snobbery: the English. This enthralling story of love and marriage between classes is funny and heartbreaking. Good show!" --Chris Vietmeier, St. Helens Book Shop, St. Helens, OR Also an Audio Renaissance Audio (Abridged CD, 1593976046)

THE CENTER OF WINTER: A Novel, by Marya Hornbacher (HarperCollins, $23.95, 0060192267) "I stayed up until 2:00 a.m. to finish The Center of Winter, the moving story of a family dealing with a tragic suicide. I will definitely be recommending this book." --Diane Brodie, Powell's Books, Portland, OR