Bookshelf

(Mineral Point, Wis.: Little Creek Press, 2022).
In this, the author’s third novel, he weaves the plot-twisting tale of what happens following the brutal murder of a local city councilwoman. According to the publisher, “Detective Lincoln Barnes and her cerebral partner, Warren, lead an investigation that focuses on the charismatic mayor and the victim’s chief aide. Barnes’ romantic encounter with a judge turns into an obsession after she discovers startling facts about his past. As she and Warren close in on the killer, events occur that make her question her future as a Minneapolis cop and contemplate a new life with a man who's either the answer to her prayers or the personification of evil.”

(Why Not Books, 2023).
This work of historical fiction focuses on Jack Morgan, who returns home from World War II desolate from the trauma of the battlefield and the unexpected departure of his wife, who left with their young son. He moves to West Virginia with his sister Nellie to take a job as a high school teacher and football coach. The two soon find themselves opening their home to community members in need and are eventually lauded for their compassion. Rich with historical facts and anecdotes, the novel also offers a snapshot of post-war America and West Virginia’s prominent role in it — from race relations, to politics, to baseball.

(Philadelphia: Temple University Press: 2023).
The author, who has worked as a reform-oriented government official and political insider, tells the story of a city’s confrontation with a history that threatens its future. His account of the corruption investigation of John Dougherty, labor leader and one of Philadelphia’s most prominent political figures, examines the costs of corruption, both financial and nonpecuniary, and considers the opportunity cost that corruption imposes. According to the publisher, “Mandel explores the nature and development of Philadelphia’s unique culture of corruption, emphasizing how machine politics and self-dealing are entwined with city history, creating a culture that allows corruption to thrive. In addition, he provides practical, achievable policies and actions that can produce positive change in Philadelphia and elsewhere.” As Philadelphia magazine noted: “Civic activist and author Mandel tallies up the long-term toll corruption has had on this city while offering a glimpse at a better future, if we’re willing to work for it.”

(San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2023).
Filled with heartfelt personal stories, techniques for mindfulness, and engaging journaling prompts, this book grounds the abstract concept of empathy with an actionable and intersectional framework. By weaving together scholarly research with his personal journey of loss, substance use, anxiety, and depression, the author explores how empathy can benefit both our inner lives and our larger community. Tennant is creator of Actually Curious, a conversation card game that helps people create safe spaces to be vulnerable and share their views on personal issues and current events.

(iUniverse, 2021)
The author, who has spent his career as a physician and scientist, considers big scientific questions in a fanciful format. According to the book cover, “The story is told through a Socratic dialogue between a sea lion named Socrates, representing the spirit of nature, and a surfer named Moses, representing the spirit of humanity. The two consider what science can and can't tell us about nature, life, and humanity. They consider questions such as: What is science capable of telling us about the reality of the world we live in? Does science merely create empirical models of reality that are useful, or does it reveal deeper truths about the nature of reality? Does science necessarily conflict with religion, or can they be synergistically reconciled to teach us how to live better lives? What do evolutionary biology and early human history tell us about the prospects for humanity achieving harmony on a global scale and avoiding irreversible damage to the biosphere?”

(Haryana, India: Ebury Press/Penguin Random House, 2022).
This delightful book follows the lives of three affluent young girls from their school days in Mumbai through relationships, weddings, tragedies, and life-changing decisions that shape them as young women The publisher notes: “Glittering, whip-smart, and incredibly fun, All The Right People takes you into the hidden, privileged world of the wealthiest and most powerful families in Bombay, Delhi, and London but tells a universal story. Of love. Of loss. Of family. Of friendship. Of difficult decisions … And of women taking control of their own lives.”

(New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2021).
This beautifully illustrated book by Kirtley, the Montgomery-Garvan Curator of American Decorative Arts at the Philadelphia Museum of Arts, marks the first publication dedicated to one of the finest collections of its type in the country. The publisher notes, “Best known for furniture by artisans from Philadelphia and southeastern Pennsylvania, the museum’s collection includes significant examples from cities and regions farther afield. Interpretive texts for each work focus on design sources, showing how early American furniture participated in an international visual language. A vibrant local economy was bolstered by coastal trade bringing Caribbean mahogany and European imports that continued to influence local production. By the 1740s Philadelphia had developed a distinctive idiom and led the developing nation in style and aesthetics. This volume provides an important resource for scholars of American furniture, illuminates the cultural and mercantile life of the fledgling nation, and offers a lively introduction to the donors, curators, and personalities who have shaped the institution from its earliest days to the present.”

(Pouthier Press, 2022).
Forced to choose where to ride out the pandemic, Facos opts to extend what was originally intended to be a two-month stay in Paris. That “brief” visit would lead to a transformative 16-month journey of self-discovery, path-realignment, romantic adventure, and a deeper relationship with the City of Light and herself. Join the author, an art historian, as she “explores the jasmine-scented streets of Paris, navigates the fascinating world of senior dating, returns to her original career path, spends weekends with aristocrats, winters on the Côte d’Azur, and holds long conversations with her favorite works of art. And meet the new people in her world — Puzzle Man of Montparnasse, Amazing Accordionist, Jim the Expat, and Caroline the Professor — who made her (first) pandemic year one of metamorphosis and joy.” 

(London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2023).
The author, deputy director of research and analytics at The Asia Group and a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, explores how and why autocracy is on the rise, eroding democratic institutions and values. Growing disillusion with current institutions has led some people to ask if authoritarianism is the solution to providing a better life. Dunst disagrees: “Autocracy is not the solution — better democracy is. But we have to make the case for it. We have to combat institutional rot by learning from one another, and, at times, from our rivals. And we have to get our own houses in order. Only then can we effectively stand up for democratic values around the world and defeat the dictators.” As one reviewer noted, this book “offers a brutally honest and incisive account of the contemporary challenge posed by autocracy to democracy today, the dangers of complacency, and how democracies can reverse the illiberal tide. The prescriptions in this book should serve as a wake-up call for all those who care about the shape of political affairs, individual rights, and global security in the 21st century.”

(Georgetown, Ky.: Finishing Line Press, 2022).
As one reviewer so eloquently wrote of this poetry collection: “When we are lost, let poets lead us. Grief, both personal and collective, turns most humans mute, but Dafoe’s a seasoned poet who keeps her eyes open in the dark. With intelligence and skill, she translates the inexplicable and unacceptable into precise, elegant poems that gift us with penetrating images, ideas, and moods — a lonesome frog, a multiverse, a silent house. These transformative poems show us we can pass through devastation into an altered life, ‘forever beginning anew,’ like the galaxies and stars.”