Saturday, July 18th, at 6 PM

North Woods author Daniel Mason joins us to discuss his new book, Country People, the story of a year in the life of a family as they strike out into the unknown (aka Vermont).

Joyous, absurd, and life-affirming, Country People is a luminous exploration of marriage and parenthood, the nature of belief and the power of stories, and the ways in which we find connection in an increasingly fragmented world.

"Wonderful—full of joy—and exactly the kind of reading experience we could all do with right now . . . the book of the summer." —Mick Herron, bestselling author of Slow Horses

Tonight! Wednesday, May 27th, at 7 PM

Writer and visual art advisor Natalie Lemle joins us to discuss her debut novel, Artifacts. 

For readers of The Cloisters and Counterfeit, Natalie Lemle’s debut novel offers an insider’s view into the world of stolen artifacts and the hidden networks that link museums to organized crime.

Natalie will be in conversation with Whitney Scharer, author of The Age of Light.

Friday, June 12th, at noon

Wellesley Books is thrilled to invite you to a luncheon with Dear Committee Members author Julie Schumacher to celebrate the release of her new book, Patient, Female. 

Exquisitely honest and expertly crafted, Patient, Female renders—with dark humor and wit—the foibles of human behavior and our endearing imperfections. Each protagonist—ranging from girlhood to senescence—receives her own indelible voice as she navigates social blunders, generational misunderstandings, and the absurdity of the human experience.

Lorna recommends: Life: A Love Story by Elizabeth Berg

Ninety-two-year-old Florence is looking back on her life, sharing memories triggered by the simple treasures that fill her home. She sits down in her kitchen to write a letter to the young woman who grew up in the house next door. Elizabeth Berg writes with great heart and joy about ordinary people, neighbors, and friendships that can begin at any time in life.

Betty recommends: The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

Whether in Maine or Massachusetts, Strout's characters are contemplative, chatty, soul-mates and connected. Here, Artie Dam teaches history without fully knowing his own. He creates a safe place for his friends and students, but can't always find his own place. Another charming, real picture of characters we grow to love.

Bill recommends: Transcription by Ben Lerner

Ben Lerner’s slim new novel follows an unnamed writer whose big interview with his aging mentor goes catastrophically unrecorded, forcing him to reconstruct it from memory—and defend that version against everyone who remembers it differently. Smart, funny, and quietly moving, Transcription is a post-pandemic book about fathers and sons, unreliable narrators, and whether our phones help us remember or just let us rewrite the past.

Bindy recommends: The Blue Dress by Rebecca Morrison (middle grade)

First generation anxiety, navigating influences of the other teens you see around you, wanting to be yourself while also fitting in, questioning how to be more deserving of parents' love and friends' (and self-) approval--all familiar themes, but Morrison delivers them with standout writing and matter-of-factness. The reader comes to feel like they're present in the rooms where all of these decisions and conversations are happening in real time. Nothing cliché here!