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The last time we shared staff picks was back in December, and before that it was July. We are certainly overdue!
Before you dive into our recommendations below, a gentle reminder that we have a fabulous assortment of Valentine's Day cards and books for any sweethearts in your life. Will you be able to find any increasingly elusive Jellycats on shelves? May the odds be ever in your favor.
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If you're staying local while schools are off next week, Brianna and Rita have stocked the children's section with books, activities, art supplies, and more. We can't wait to see you!
- Mallory
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Skylark by Paula McLain
Told in dual timelines almost three hundred years apart, Skylark takes place in the same setting: the secret catacombs and passages of Paris.
In 1664, 18-year-old Alouette longs to be an artisan like her father, but gender norms prohibit that. After her father's arrest, she is taken to an asylum to receive cruel “treatments” for her perceived hysteria. Kristof, a psychiatric resident working in Paris during the German occupation in the 1940s, sees firsthand the methods of the Nazis. He works furiously to save his patients from “removal” and find a way to safety for his young Jewish neighbor.
Alouette and Kristof make parallel journeys through Paris’ underground searching for escape and freedom. McLain’s use of the two story lines allows us to see that though there is always evil and repression, good can soar above it and take flight. - Libby
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Departure(s) by Julian Barnes
A sparkly gem of autofiction from a true master of his craft. Approaching 80, Barnes reflects on love, life, death, memory, truth, art, and being a person. If you’ve never read Julian Barnes, do not start with this one (I’ll suggest The Sense Of An Ending), but if you have read Julian Barnes, please make sure you enjoy his avowed final novel. Beyond his marvelous storytelling, his vocabulary is expansive and I kept track of the words I had to look up: trepan; monomania; fritillary; sublunary; spavined; scrofulous; parlous; and coprolalia.
The final pages are a tender farewell letter to his readers and moved me to tears, letting us go in a way I can imagine I’ll want my hopefully long life to end - gentle, safe, filled with both longing and certainty. - Mallory
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Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Aliens have invaded Earth and give humans two options: stay on the destroyed surface or enter the Dungeon. Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat Princess Donut enter the dungeon and find themselves in an intergalactic alien game show. Each dungeon floor harbors trap-filled quests and fantasy creatures hell bent on making sure Crawlers don’t make it to the next level of the dungeon. Carl and Princess Donut embark on an epic journey to fight capitalism, survive the Dungeon, and become reality show darlings. Dungeon Crawler Carl is science fiction at its best! - Caroline
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The Uncool: A Memoir by Cameron Crowe
For any music lover, fan of Almost Famous, or anyone looking to go back to the 1970’s, this is a must read. Cameron Crowe is a writer and director who got his start as the youngest reporter for Rolling Stone Magazine at the age of fourteen. In this memoir he talks about meeting and getting to know David Bowie, Bob Dylan and many more music icons of the 1970s. A coming of age story, a musical history and a little Hollywood glitz all rolled into one. Don’t miss it! - Sally
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The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller
Set during England’s three month “Big Freeze” across the winter of 1962-1963, this Booker Prize-shortlisted tale follows two couples. Eric, a doctor, and his high society wife, Irene, live next door to new farmer Bill and his nightclub hostess wife, Rita, in the remote English countryside. As the couples form a friendship initially based on the fact that both women are pregnant, multitudes of tensions and secrets unravel during the unrelenting winter weather. Rich with supporting characters, a strong sense of the lingering effects of World War II, and the glimpses of the new permissive world order taking shape, The Land in Winter is a quiet meditation on the small incidents which form our lives and threaten to tear them apart. This is, ultimately, an exquisite and hopeful book. - Robin
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Speak to Me of Home by Jeanine Cummins
From the best-selling author of American Dirt comes a story of three generations of women with roots in Puerto Rico. Rafaela is from a wealthy background in Puerto Rico whose family has suffered a fall from grace. She marries Peter, an Irish American who relocates the family to the Midwest. Rafaela and her two children find it hard to assimilate. Daughter Ruth just tries to fit in but there are constant reminders of her ‘non-white’ background.
Later, Ruth’s daughter, Daisy, yearns to make her home in Puerto Rico, much to Ruth’s disappointment. An accident during a storm on the island leaves Daisy wavering between life and death, bringing the family to her hospital bed. Family secrets and desires are explored and discovered. - Dorothy
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The Moon Without Stars by Chanel Miller
Seventh-grader Luna is a quiet but perceptive girl who comes up with a great idea of creating zines with her best friend Scott to help their classmates with their middle school troubles. Soon their work catches the attention of the popular crowd and Luna is thrust into situations and friendships that challenge her sense of self and values. Miller does a fantastic job writing about tweens with a lot of tenderness and humor. A must read! - Rita
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Best Boy by Deborah Goodrich Royce
Viveca’s perfect Greenwich lifestyle unravels when she receives a cryptic letter from a stranger who seemingly knew her in former life as an actress. Having reinvented herself from a midwestern childhood filled with trauma, we share her journey to discover what’s real and what’s imagined. Royce fills the narrative with trivia from her own acting career (Best Boy is trade lingo for a film lighting technician) as we walk through Viveca’s troubled past. I loved this fun thriller with a bit of Hollywood panache. The publication date is 2/24 and our event with Deborah is that evening! - Craig
| | Events at Barrett Bookstore | | Time is running out to RSVP for Deborah Goodrich Royce event on Tuesday, February 24th! Time is also running out for Viveca, Best Boy's protagonist, who is desperate to keep a dark secret buried in the past. Make sure you read Craig's review above and then click here to save yourself a seat. | |  | Did Kat Rosenfield describe her book on Instagram with the phrase "sexy wilderness murder"? Indeed she did. Come hear hear her discuss her sexy wilderness murder tale, How To Survive In The Woods, with Tessa Wegert on Thursday, March 12th. Click here to RSVP. | | | Dive deep into a stunning short story collection by Darien author Sharbari Ahmed. In partnership with India Cultural Center, Ahmed and Nalini Jones come to Barrett on Thursday, March 19th to chat about The Strangest Of Fruit, which Edwidge Danticat calls "as emotionally resonant as it is unforgettable." You can RSVP here. | | | Deborah Levison is coming to the store on Sunday, April 12 to chat with Greg Wands about A Novel Crime, her newest book. This darkly funny tale asks just how far an aspiring writer will go to see her name on a book jacket. Please click here to RSVP. | | | |
Upcoming Partner Events:
Browse our entire event calendar here.
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