A cinematic and involving historical novel, "Contests of Strength" traces a love that is challenged by village circumstances. History and modern science meet amid secrets and romance in Melissa Slager’s historical novel "Contests of... Read More

If you walk long enough to see your hair turn gray, fending brush from your face through starless nights, note taking to the cadence of seasons, your poetry will reach great heights—that is, if Kelly Shepherd’s modus operandi holds... Read More

The incisive autobiographical essays of Amy Lee Scott’s "When the World Explodes" ponder private tragedies and global threats. Eleven inquisitive pieces consider personal crises alongside natural disasters and gun violence. One links... Read More

In Barbara Sjoholm’s stirring historical novel "The Reindeer of Chinese Gardens", a woman is determined to become a writer. At the turn of the twentieth century, Norwegian Dagny yearns for “foreign places and adventure.” She... Read More

A woman hiding personal neurological secrets probes the limits of genetic control in "The Adjudicator", Susan Daitch’s tense dystopian novel. Zedi, an adjudicator for Pangenica, a major corporation where babies’ genes are coded to... Read More

The power of words gets a literal twist in this quirky picture book. When Oscar finds a chest full of words, he is disappointed—until he realizes they can transform the world around him. He sticks “hairy” on an oak tree, and it... Read More

A fight for power and scientific enlightenment plagues a planet’s inhabitants in the intricate fantasy novel "Bellosio". A civilization is on the brink of revolution in John F. Shekleton’s epic fantasy novel "Bellosio". Set during a... Read More

Karen Vermeulen’s graphic memoir "Good Luck to Us All" is a funny, honest account of an “imperfect” life marked by foibles and follies. An unwanted pregnancy, a bad relationship, an unruly cat, and aging are among the problems... Read More