Booklist Readerの November 2024 の目次

At the Edge of Empire: A Family’s Reckoning with China. By Edward Wong. Read by the author and Will Dao. 2024. Books on Tape. Wong presents a glorious melding of Chinese history, a tumultuous family saga, and his journey to define his identity. Dao brings 20 years of stage work to the narration, making for an immersive, resonating listen. Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me. By Whoopi Goldberg. Read by the author. 2024. Blackstone. Listeners will feel that they are a part of the celebrity’s life, a dinner guest being regaled with tales both relatable and unique to her own experience. Goldberg narrates as if she is just telling us a story. Class: A Memoir of Motherhood, Hunger, and Higher Education. By Stephanie Land. Read by the…

Always Home: A Daughter’s Recipes & Stories. By Fanny Singer. Read by the author and Alice Waters. 2020. Books on Tape. Chef Alice Waters is a pioneer of California cuisine featuring locally grown, organic ingredients. In this gentle memoir, written and read by Waters’ daughter, Fanny Singer recalls growing up immersed in her mother’s joy of food, passion for beauty, and unconditional love. Chinese Menu: The History, Myths, and Legends Behind Your Favorite Foods. By Grace Lin. Read by Lisa Ling. 2023. Hachette Audio. Gr. 3–7. Lin’s ode to Chinese food was the recipient of an Odyssey Honor thanks to Ling’s engaging narration. Young listeners will be wowed by the range of tasty stories here! Have You Eaten Yet? Stories from Chinese Restaurants around the World. By Cheuk Kwan. Read…

Boomi’s Boombox. By Shanthi Sekaran. 2023. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen. Gr. 5–7. Infused with grief, joy, and sardonic humor, this tale of preteen Boomi employs an sf twist when an old boombox transports her back in time to her recently deceased father’s childhood. The Boy, the Cloud and the Very Tall Tale. By Heather Smith. 2023. Orca. Gr. 4–7. Ewan’s whimsical journey to find his father and his own strength propels him across a colorful 1920s Newfoundland landscape in this fantastical look at loss. Clementine. By Ann Hood. 2023. Penguin Workshop. Gr. 6–10. In this companion to Jude Banks, Superhero, 14-year-old Clementine grapples with grief over her sister’s death, trying to honor her while reaching for contentment and joy in life again. Dear Mothman. By Robin Gow. Illus. by Rebecca Harry. 2023.…

The Babka Sisters. By Leslea Newman. Illus. by Tika Bobokhidze and Tata Bobokhidze. 2023. Lerner/Kar-Ben. PreS–Gr. 2. This playfully illustrated and bouncy book about two sisters competing over who can make the best babka closes with a very good recipe for two kinds of the traditional cake, cinnamon and chocolate, and photos of some of the steps are an uncommon but very helpful inclusion for readers who want to bake along with the book. Black-Eyed Peas and Hoghead Cheese: A Story of Food, Family, and Freedom. By Glenda Armand. Illus. by Steffi Walthall. 2022. Crown. Gr. 1–3. Frances’ Creole grandmother tells her stories about the foods their enslaved ancestors made while the two prepare for a New Year’s Day feast, making many of the same recipes. The clear instructions for…

Baking in the American South: 200 Recipes and Their Untold Stories. By Anne Byrn. 2024. Harper Celebrate. Byrn captures the towering culinary culture of the U.S. South with recipes, anecdotes, engaging prose, and passion readers will feel, while profiling giants like Edna Lewis and Bill Neal along the way. Cook like Your Ancestors: An Illustrated Guide to Intuitive Cooking with Recipes from around the World. By Mariah-Rose Marie. Illus. by the author. 2023. Silver Sprocket. In this inviting cookbook filled with warm illustrations and comics panels, Marie works to demystify intuitive cooking with approachable vegan and vegetarian recipes that reflect global migration. Cooking in Real Life: Delicious & Doable Recipes for Every Day. By Lidey Heuck. 2024. Simon Element. This cookbook does it all, from simple to sophisticated, weeknight to…

Aunty Lee’s Delights; Aunty Lee’s Deadly Specials; Aunty Lee’s Chilled Revenge; Meddling and Murder. By Ovidia Yu. 2013–17. HarperCollins. Aunty Rosie Lee decides to confront widowhood head(belly)-on from her small cafe featuring irresistible traditional Singaporean dishes. Her insatiable curiosity also makes her a tenacious sleuth. Helping her (knowingly or not) are her devoted Filipino maid, her extended stepfamily, and the local police commissioner. Before the Coffee Gets Cold; Tales from the Café; Before Your Memory Fades; Before We Say Goodbye. By Toshikazu Kawaguchi. Tr. by Geoffrey Trousselot. 2020–23. Hanover Square. Welcome to Tokyo’s Funiculi Funicula cafe, where the rules for time-travel are that the temporal seeker must wait for the woman-in-white to vacate her seat and, once the fresh coffee is poured, it must be drunk before it gets cold.…

Sophie Cousens Is She Really Going Out with Him?: A Novel (G.P. Putnam's Sons) Nora Roberts The Mirror: The Lost Bride Trilogy, Book 2 (St. Martin's Press) Find out more at www.LibraryReads.org/HOF Made in LibraryAware - www.libraryaware.com…

PBS Books Readers Club We are thrilled to announce that the PBS Books Readers Club November pick is Walter Isaacson’s Leonardo da Vinci, which will be featured on Wednesday, Nov. 27, at 8. pm. ET. Explore the life of Leonardo da Vinci during the same month that Ken Burns’ film Leonardo da Vinci premieres. First published in 2017, Isaacson’s biography brings Leonardo to life through an examination of his astonishing notebooks and new discoveries about his life and work, connecting his art to science. He shows how Leonardo’s genius was based on skills we can improve on in ourselves, such as passionate curiosity, careful observation, and an imagination so playful that it flirted with fantasy. With a passion that at times became obsessive, he pursued innovative studies of anatomy, fossils,…

November is Native American Heritage Month, offering an opportunity to celebrate Indigenous cultures, peoples, and heritages. There are more than 574 Native Nations in the U.S., with their own cultures, traditions, languages, and ways of being. These Nations have long histories, thriving presences today, and strong futures. This year, celebrate by exploring the beautiful mosaic of stories by Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Indigenous communities by reading Native-authored books. This selection highlights work that includes Native joy. Though characters face hardship, these stories still have plenty of love, laughter, and humor. The following titles showcase Native characters staying connected to their families, friends, communities, and cultures—and the joy they find in that space. Read on: in November, and year-round. Younger Be a Good Ancestor. By Leona Prince and…

The Don’t Panic Pantry Cookbook: Mostly Vegetarian Comfort Food That Happens to Be Pretty Good for You. By Noah Galuten. 2023. Knopf. YouTube star Galuten shows readers how to make high-flavor meals using pantry staples and little-to-no meat. Eating from Our Roots: 80+ Healthy Home-Cooked Favorites from Cultures around the World. By Maya Feller. 2023. Rodale. Feller’s globally minded, health-conscious cookbook includes a chart for plant-based alternatives to eggs, meat, and dairy. Effortless Eggless Baking: 100 Easy & Creative Recipes for Baking without Eggs. By Mimi Council. 2022. Countryman. Relying on leaveners like baking soda, baking powder, and applesauce to replace eggs, Council also spells out substitutes to make any recipe vegan, gluten-free, or high-altitude. Food Is Love: Plant-Based Indian-Inspired Recipes to Feel Joy and Connection. By Palak Patel. 2024.…

Nonfiction Blood Memory: The Tragic Decline and Improbable Resurrection of the American Buffalo. By Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns. 2023. Knopf. Documentary filmmaker Burns and writer and producer Duncan present a resounding “biography” of the bison in this panoramic volume rich in images, insights, and extended interviews and history that focuses on the “long, beautiful relationship between Native peoples and the buffalo.” By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice on Native Land. By Rebecca Nagle. 2024. Harper. In this thrilling legal expose, investigative journalist Nagle, a member of the Cherokee Nation, scrutinizes the Supreme Court case McGirt v. Oklahoma, one of the most significant Native American rulings in a century, and how it righted a wrong that had been actively ignored by the government since 1866. A…

1. Who is Sophie Sullivan when she is at home? This could be a dangerous question depending on who answers it. I’m a mom, a wife, an obsessive worrier, and a fidgeter, but I think that’s who I am regardless of the setting. I’m most at ease at home, especially when my whole family is there. I have a husband and two daughters—who would tell you Sophie likes to be catered to with treats, water, and pop—and I really enjoy the times we’re all just doing our own thing and there’s music on and we’re just there together. You’ll likely find me in some sort of sleepwear, curled up on my chair, at the table writing (or playing on Canva) or, in the nice weather, sitting outside on the deck…

Fiction City of Night Birds. By Juhea Kim. Ecco. In St. Petersburg, a ballerina wrestles with a career that may be behind her and with two opposing male dancers in the second novel from the author of the much-celebrated Beasts of a Little Land (2021). The City and Its Uncertain Walls. By Haruki Murakami. Knopf. Murakami’s first novel in six years is set in a town his many devoted readers will recognize; it’s an ode to books and libraries, and a love story, all presented in his inimitable style. The Grey Wolf. By Louise Penny. Minotaur. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache’s latest case involves an old enemy, a liqueur made in a remote French monastery, and a threat to Montreal’s water supply. As always, Penny’s story is artfully constructed and lyrically…

The Beatryce Prophecy. By Kate DiCamillo. Read by Finty Williams. 2021. Listening Library. Gr. 3–6. In this medieval fable by Newbery medalist DiCamillo, a prophecy tells of a girl who will one day unseat a king. Williams relates the tale in an even and hypnotic tone that befits the story of finding one’s fate. Big Tree. By Brian Selznick. Read by Meryl Streep. 2023. Scholastic. Gr. 3–7. Two little sycamore tree seedlings living in the Cretaceous period embark on a quest to save the world in this beautifully produced audio that celebrates nature. The legendary Streep delivers a tour de force performance, giving the allegorical tale a timeless and, at times, otherworldly feel, backed by sound effects and an ethereal score. The Golden Compass. By Philip Pullman. Read by Ruth…

Alebrijes. By Donna Barba Higuera. Illus. by David Alvarez. 2023. Levine Querido. Gr. 5–8. Beautiful writing and complex world building fill this dystopian sf novel, wherein 14-year-old Leandro faces monsters of varying kinds to save his sister and himself from the harsh society in which they live. Chronically Dolores. By Maya Van Wagenen. 2024. Dutton. Gr. 7–10. Dolores Mendoza’s life is in the toilet after she embarrasses herself in front of the entire eighth grade, but a new friend helps her gain confidence and find firmer footing in her shifting world. Franny Cloutier: The Year My Life Turned Upside Down. By Stephanie Lapointe. Illus. by Marianne Ferrer. Tr. by Ann Marie Boulanger. 2023. Arctis. Gr. 4–7. This innovative Canadian series opener is told through the vividly illustrated journal entries of…