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Books in the National Media
June 2026 |
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Whistler
by Ann Patchett
When Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, they notice an older, white-haired gentleman following them. The man turns out to be Eddie Triplett, her former stepfather, who had been married to her mother for a little more than year when Daphne was nine. Now fifty-three, Daphne hasn't seen Eddie for many years, not since the fateful event that changed the direction of both their lives. Meeting again, time falls away; while their relationship was brief, it had a profound impact on them both, and now that they are reunited, they have no intention of ever being separated again. Whistler is a story about two adults looking back over the choices they made, and the choices that were made for them. It's a story about bravery, memory, the often small yet consequential moments that define our lives, and the endless stream of loss that in time comes for us all. Featured on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
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Land
by Maggie O'Farrell
On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tom s and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tom s, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster. The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tom s is unexpectedly sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and the lives of those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tom s, and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping and get them both home? Land is a novel about separation and reunion, tragedy and recovery, colonization and rebellion. It is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away. Featured on Fresh Air.
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Dolly All the Time
by Annabel Monaghan
Dolly Brick has never met a problem she couldn't solve. Not when her mom left when she was twelve, and not at thirty-nine when she moves with her son back to Whitfield, Rhode Island, for the summer to keep her dad and brother from losing the family home. So when she comes across Stewart Whitfield--annoyingly handsome scion of the Whitfield family--with a flat tire and at the wrong end of a very public, very humiliating breakup, it's in her nature to help. But Stewart's proposed arrangement ends up being more than either of them bargained for, because as public dinners and high-society benefits turn into sunset boat rides and kisses that hit her bloodstream like a ghost pepper, Dolly starts to feel something more than helpful. She's never relied on anyone besides herself--can she really start now? Featured on Good Morning America.
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The Missed Connection
by Tia Williams
Sasha Cruz knows types. As a booked-and-busy casting agent, she's always casting--at happy hour, the grocery store, everywhere. She's all about finding the perfect person to slot into the perfect role. What she doesn't do, however, is relationships. Too much energy, not enough time. On a flight to Paris for work, a chance encounter with her type changes everything. Sasha's seated next to a broodingly attractive mystery man, and sparks fly--but they never exchange contact information. Convinced she's lost out on her soulmate, Sasha emails her work friend for help, but accidentally writes to the entire company worldwide The international manhunt to find Seat F begins. Meanwhile Sasha takes matters into her own hands. She hires a smoldering detective she knew in another lifetime--who complicates matters in unforeseen (and irresistible) ways. With a worldwide search underway, will love take flight for Sasha? Featured on Today.
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View from the East Wing: A Memoir
by Jill Biden
Jill Biden became First Lady at a complicated moment in US history, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the shadow of the January 6 insurrection. These were the circumstances under which she set up office in the East Wing, where she hit the ground running. Throughout her husband's presidency, Jill remained a tireless advocate for her causes, including women's health, military families, vaccine awareness, cancer initiatives, and education. She made history as the first-ever First Lady to hold an outside job while her husband was in office, continuing to work as a professor at a nearby community college. Yet all the while, she saw herself as an ordinary woman living an extraordinary life. In View from the East Wing, Jill shares her White House experiences for the first time, in her own words. She reflects on the Biden presidency and its impact on her family. She brings you behind the scenes, from Camp David to Air Force One, from grading papers in the Rose Garden to witnessing the abrupt end of her husband's bid for reelection. Featured on The Today Show.
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Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word, and Me
by Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor
The N-word is one of the most perplexing, controversial and misunderstood words in the American lexicon. It's a word that Elizabeth Pryor has not only contemplated, it's one that she has taught and observed up close. When a white student quoted her father and blurted out the N-word in the middle of a class she was teaching, Professor Pryor's worlds collided. In that moment, she was forced to confront the history of the notorious slur in the United States, and her complicated relationship with her father Richard Pryor, who made the word a trademark of his comedy in the 1970s. As she dives into her research, her own memories of the N-word come flooding back in unprocessed memories that she hadn't thought about for decades. In reckoning with those memories, Elizabeth goes on a more public journey of discovery of the messy and sometimes surprising legacies of racism in the United States. Featured on Fresh Air.
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The Land and Its People: Essays
by David Sedaris
In The Land and Its People, Sedaris investigates what it means to be a traveler, a brother, a lifelong friend. Trying on the role of caretaker after his boyfriend Hugh's hip-replacement surgery, he both succeeds and fails. He covers ground with his friend Dawn and challenges her to eat a truck tire. A ambivalent Duolingo bot becomes his unlikely confidante as he attempts to describe his family in a foreign language. Ever adding to his list of Countries I Have Been To, he rides a horse named Tequila in Guatemala, buys a bespoke priest's cassock in Vatican City, and goes on safari in Kenya without taking a single photo. Time takes its toll: scrolling through his address book, he counts those he couldn't bear to outlive, and realizes how many are already gone. He is bitten by a dog and insulted by a wee train passenger. A woman on the street late at night either sexually harasses him or doesn't. It's easy to agree with the lady waving a sign that reads, Enough Is Enough. And yet, life holds much to delight in: the massive testicles of a ram, a trip abroad with his sisters, a really excellent reptile video, a pair of well-made cotton underpants. Throughout these essays--at once acerbic and tender, playful and profound--Sedaris shows how much there is to marvel at when you keep your head up and your eyes open, observing with warmth and curiosity our fascinating human species and the lands we inhabit. Featured on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
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The Hormone Loop: An Empowering Guide to Restoring Hormonal Harmony, from Puberty to Menopause
by Gillian Goddard
From our mood to our metabolism, hormones are running the show behind nearly every bodily function. They tell our hearts how quickly to beat, our gut how to process the food we eat, our bones to release calcium, and our muscles to grow new fibers. Yet, most of us don't fully understand how our bodies and its systems work--and more importantly, what to do when they don't. Enter renowned endocrinologist Dr. Gillian Goddard, who knows firsthand how urgently women need clear, accessible information about their hormonal health. Drawing from years of clinical experience, she presents a definitive and engaging guide to hormonal health at every stage of a woman's life--from puberty to reproductive years to perimenopause to menopause to post menopause. As Dr. Goddard clearly explains, at each of these stages, there are four distinct hormone loops that keep our bodies in balance: the reproductive loop, the thyroid loop, the growth hormone loop, and the adrenal loop. While these loops often operate quietly in the background, each plays a powerful role in our lifelong health. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the challenges and changes our bodies experience throughout our lives. But hormones often hold the key. Weaving stories from her practice with the latest medical research and featuring helpful charts and illustrations, Dr. Goddard breaks down the problems that commonly arise throughout our lives and offers a clear rubric for how to have better conversations with our doctors. Featured on Good Morning America.
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Cooking the Borderlands: Spice and Smoke Between Mexico and the States
by Claudette Zepeda
The Mexican American border has been an inflamed political focal point within the US; at the same time, Mexican food has long been the most popular ethnic cuisine in America. A child of the border herself, Claudette Zepeda grew up in both California and Mexico and sees the border as a vibrant, vital, and unique cultural and culinary place. A gifted storyteller and chef, Claudette's recipes and ruminations humanize border culture through 100 accessible and beloved dishes such as: - Coahuila's Esquites (Street Corn)- Las Calandrias Caballitos (Chicken Sopes)- Arroz Poblano (Poblano Pepper Creamy Rice)- Camarones al Ajillo (Baja Style Garlic Shrimp)- Capirotada (Bread Pudding) This is a story of a personal and culinary identity that formed betwixt two cultures, told through recipes, anecdotes, and an irreverent sense of humor. Borderlands details the Mexican dishes Claudette grew up eating and loves, their American counterparts, and how the fluidity and flexibility between the two nations shows us a way of being in the world. With her sophisticated, first-hand perspective of the Mexican American border, immigration, and the feet-in-many-worlds attitude of Border Kid culture, Claudette shines a human light on the imaginary line stretching from California through Texas and shows how vital this place is in American culture. Featured on Today.
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Grill Time!: Why You Should Be Grilling for Better, Healthier, Easier, and More Delicious Meals: A Cookbook
by Noah Galuten
With two young children, Galuten knows firsthand how important it is to get flavorful, healthy food on the table quickly and easily. His secret: the grill, which allows easily customizable dinners for all different palates. In Grill Time Galuten embraces his love of bright flavors, comfort foods, and veggie-forward dishes to create meals that work for backyard barbecues, pool parties, camping trips, and, of course, quick weeknight dinners. Here are delicious options for meat eaters, vegetarians, and vegans alike: *THE BEST BURGERS AND SANDWCHES From Backyard Bacon Cheeseburgers, the Juiciest Turkey Burgers, and Pork Souvlaki Pitas to a Tofu B nh M with Lemongrass BBQ Sauce and a Smoky Grilled Caprese Sandwich, there's something for everyone. *VEGGIE SIDES AND MAINS GALORE: Grilled Asparagus and Wilted White Cheddar, Perfect Grilled Potatoes, Miso-Butter Corn, Stuffed Poblanos with Cilantro-Lime Tahini, a Grilled Veggie Burrito like no other, and so much more. *BIG SALADS A Southwest Veggie Chop, a Spicy Grilled Chicken Caesar with Garlic Bread Croutons, and a Grilled Shrimp Ni oise, to name just a few. *FISH AND SEAFOOD: From Grilled Clams with Cocktail Butter to Grilled Fish Tacos with Chile Crunch and Smoke-Grilled Miso Black Cod. *CHICKEN, BEEF, AND PORK, every which way: Achiote-Lime Chicken Breast and Pickle-Brined Drumsticks with Spicy Honey; a Taverna Steak for weeknights and a Smoke-Grilled Bone-In Rib Eye for weekends; a Buttermilk-Brined Pork Chop with Grilled Lemon and Smoke-Grilled Baby Backs. There's also a special guide to the ultimate Hermosillo-Style Carne Asada. And for any newbies on the grill, or pros who want to expand their grill knowledge, Grill Time is a helpful guide on grill mechanics, including the differences between smokers, gas grills, and charcoal grills and the cooking techniques that go along with each one. Featured on Today.
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Party People: A Cookbook for Creative Celebrations
by Brie Larson
While their debate over whether or not a hot dog is a sandwich will never end, Brie and Courtney can agree that food always tastes best when you cook it and eat it with the ones you love. They wrote Party People to help you create meaningful connections with the ones you love, whether that's with family, friends, or yourself. And with recipes like Old Pal cocktails, cheesy Jenga bread, and dueling roast chickens, they have you covered. Featured on The Drew Barrymore Show.
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The Rough Side of the Mountain: A Memoir
by Keisha Lance Bottoms
Long before Keisha Lance Bottoms rose to prominence in politics, she was a daddy's girl from the west side of Atlanta--the baby of her family, who did well in school, though she talked too much in class; an outgoing kid who dreamed of growing up to be elegant and charismatic like her parents, cool like her older siblings and big cousins, and the pride of her very large Southern family. After law school, Bottoms worked as an attorney, served as a judge, and was elected to City Council and the mayorship, where she garnered national attention for her leadership during the pandemic and George Floyd protests. Later, she was appointed senior advisor in President Joe Biden's administration. Yet Bottoms felt disquieted internally. She was in her early fifties and approaching the age her beloved father was when he died. She couldn't shake the feeling that something in her life was missing, like she'd forgotten to bring an essential element of herself along for her ascension. Stepping away from the daily political grind, Bottoms realized how much she'd sanded down parts of herself on her path to professional success. She'd tucked away the fuller details about her dad's drug abuse and prison stint for dealing; the sexual abuse she endured; the eating disorder she developed; the close-knit, utterly unpolished family who doted on her and gave her an incredible foundation of love and confidence but whose influence she'd smoothed to a sleek, charming, campaign-ready sheen. She thought that was the price of upward mobility. Then she realized she was wrong. The Rough Side of the Mountain is about this excavation. It's Bottoms's deeply affecting journey to rescue a version of herself that she thought she had to leave behind to succeed. Featured on Book TV.
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This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis & Clark
by Craig Fehrman
In 1806, when Meriwether Lewis and William Clark return from their journey--having led the Corps of Discovery across eight thousand miles of rapids, mountains, forests, and ravines--they bring an incredible tale starring themselves as courageous explorers, skilled survivalists, underrated scientists, and peaceful ambassadors. While there is truth in those descriptions, there is also distortion. From one of the most exciting new historians to emerge in the past decade, This Vast Enterprise offers a novel take on the expedition: a gripping narrative that draws on lost documents, stunning analysis, and Native perspectives. Craig Fehrman spent five years visiting more than thirty archives, interviewing more than a hundred sources, and collecting oral history passed down over centuries. He came to see that the success of Lewis and Clark depended on much more than just Lewis and Clark. We all know Sacajawea, and some of us know York, the Black man Clark enslaved. But here we meet John Ordway, a working-class soldier who fought grizzlies and towed the captains' hulking barge. We hear from Wolf Calf, a Blackfoot teenager who watched his friend die in a battle with Lewis and his men. Each chapter moves to a different person's point of view, describing their desires and contradictions. We see Thomas Jefferson operating in an age of bitter partisan unrest--his secret political maneuvers to fund the expedition, revealed here for the first time, are a case study in presidential power. We witness the strategy and strength of Black Buffalo, completely upending our understanding of Lakota-American diplomacy. York, in his chapters, finds ways to wield power and make choices in an era that didn't allow him much of either. Clark is not a folksy Kentuckian but a student of the Enlightenment. (Fehrman discovered his college notebook; no previous biographer even realized that he went to college.) Lewis is someone willing to sacrifice everything for his country and his mentor, Jefferson. In the end, the captains are men who needed help--from Sacajawea, from the Corps, and from each other. Mile after mile, the expedition pushes on through hailstorms and flash floods, frostbite and infections, rattlesnakes and rabid wolves, with the Spanish cavalry in fierce pursuit. Fehrman balances the story's adventure with the humanity of its protagonists. Featured on Book TV.
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Nothing Random: Bennett Cerf and the Publishing House He Built
by Gayle Feldman
At midcentury, everyone knew Bennett Cerf: witty, beloved, middle-aged panelist on What's My Line? whom TV brought into America's homes each week. But they didn't know that the handsome, driven, paradoxical young man of the 1920s had vowed to become a great publisher and, a decade later, was. By then, he'd signed Eugene O'Neill, Gertrude Stein, and William Faulkner, and had fought the landmark censorship case that gave Americans the freedom to read James Joyce's Ulysses. With his best friend and lifelong business partner Donald Klopfer, and other young Jewish entrepreneurs like the Knopfs and Simon & Schuster, Cerf remade the book business: what was published, and how. In 1925, he and Klopfer bought the Modern Library and turned it into an institution, then founded Random House, which eventually became a home to Truman Capote, Ralph Ellison, Ayn Rand, Dr. Seuss, Toni Morrison, James Michener, and many more. Even before TV, Cerf was a bestselling author and columnist as well as publisher; the show super-charged his celebrity, bringing fame--but also criticism. A brilliant social networker and major influencer before such terms existed, he connected books to Broadway, TV, Hollywood, and politics. A fervent democratizer, he published high, low, and wide, and from the Roaring Twenties to the Swinging Sixties collected an incredible array of friends, from George Gershwin to Frank Sinatra, having a fabulous time along the way. Featured on Book TV.
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Eminent Jews: Bernstein, Brooks, Friedan, Mailer
by David Denby
Leonard Bernstein, Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, and Norman Mailer. Brilliant, brash, 100 percent Jewish and 100 percent American, they were hell-bent on shaking up the world of their fathers. They worked in different fields, and, apart from clinking glasses at parties now and then, they hardly knew one another. But they shared a common historical moment and a common temperament. For all four, their Jewish heritage was electrified by American liberty. As prosperity for American Jews increased and anti-Semitism began to fade after World War II, these four creative giants stormed through the latter half of the twentieth century, altering the way people listened to music, defined what was vulgar or not, comprehended the relations of men and women, and understood the nation's soul. They were not saints; they were Jews, children of immigrants, turbulent and self-dissatisfied intellectuals who fearlessly wielded their own newly won freedom to free up American culture. Featured on Book TV.
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Screen People: How We Entertained Ourselves Into a State of Emergency
by Megan Garber
Whether it's our reality-television-star President or our expertly curated Instagram feeds, the line between fact and fiction--between what's real and what's fabricated for entertainment--has never been more blurred. Screen People explores what happens when we cede our reality to spectacle. Megan Garber explains how today's internet-inflected culture conditions us to see one another not as people but as characters in an ongoing show, and how some of our most chronic and harmful social conditions--loneliness, depression, mistrust, misinformation, cynicism--stem from our demand for diversion. In ten chapters, each themed around an element of entertainment--from The Producers, who edit our reality, to The Extras, the strangers we turn into objects of our amusement, to the Haters, the worshipful Qanon-types who expect the prophecies of their anonymous leader to play out on live television--Garber argues that this comedy of our daily lives is quickly becoming tragedy. And we can't understand our politics without first understanding our culture. Like The Anxious Generation but about our media diet, Screen People shows why Megan Garber is one of the most respected and widely-read journalists of our day. Featured on Book TV.
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Transcendent: A Memoir
by Laverne Cox
Laverne Cox is a powerhouse in the fight for transgender rights and representation--but her path from a struggling trans actress to a cultural movement was anything but easy. Surviving a childhood full of trauma, dealing with depression, and working at a drag restaurant in New York City for seven years, Laverne was turning forty and felt it was time to throw in the towel when it came to being a Hollywood star--then she booked the character of Sophia Burset in Orange is the New Black. Her world changed overnight. She made history as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy, starred in a range of high-profile shows, and became the first transgender person to win a Daytime Emmy as executive producer on Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word. A red-carpet fashion icon, podcast host, and fearless advocate, she uses her stardom to champion LGBTQ+ rights, whether on Hollywood's biggest stages, her personal channels, or at Supreme Court hearings. And she's only getting started. In Transcendent, you will experience life in Laverne's shoes, from her childhood abuse to making her big break, dealing with Hollywood bureaucracy, feeling lonely in a world that is unaccepting, and finding her voice through the chaos of it all. With behind-the-scenes stories and personal reflection, we can heal and fight for equality, right alongside Laverne. Featured on The View.
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Advice No One Asked for: Essays
by Jenny Hagel
You'd think with a resume like Jenny Hagel's--being a writer/performer for Late Night with Seth Meyers, and head writer/EP of The Amber Ruffin Show--she would describe her greatest accomplishment as something like sharing the stage with Hillary Clinton, or the six times she was nominated for an Emmy. Yet, for Jenny, landing a joke or going to a fancy award show pales in comparison to her true passion: giving people advice. Jenny is so obsessed with (addicted to?) offering unsolicited wisdom that she runs a sold-out live show in New York City called, appropriately, Jenny Hagel Gives Advice. With her debut essay collection, Jenny sets out to backseat drive for as many unwitting strangers as possible. The result is a heartfelt and funny journey through a list of life-changing recommendations, like: wear black when you travel, buy an analog watch, and just because you can go into the monkey enclosure while visiting Honduras doesn't mean that you should. Featured on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
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Walking Red Flag: Dating Advice from Your Favorite Guy Friend
by Jared Freid
YOU'RE NOT CRAZY. Dating right now is wild. One minute he's planning a romantic weekend getaway, the next he isn't sure what he's looking for. He watches your Instagram stories instantly but takes twelve hours to text back. If it feels like it makes no sense, you're not alone. Jared Freid has been there, and he's also been that guy. He's given advice, ignored advice, dated well, dated badly, and stared at a confusing 2:00 a.m. text wondering what just happened. He's the guy who knows what men are thinking, and explains it without defending them. No bro-code excuses. Just honest decoding of the behavior driving you and your group chat insane. In Walking Red Flag, Jared doesn't just describe modern dating--he helps figure out you how to get through it with humor and understanding. Because dating today isn't just mixed signals and inflated egos--it's real emotion colliding with people who don't know what they're doing, but are still trying their best. Inside, he tackles: - Getting Dates: How to meet people IRL, conquer dating apps (stop hiding your face in pictures ), and set boundaries. - Hooking Up: Navigating first dates, the ick, and intimacy. - Milestones: Holidays, birthdays, and all the tests of a new relationship. - Breaking Up: Surviving heartbreak without alienating your friends. - Loving Singledom: Why being single isn't a red flag--it's a power move. - Staying Hopeful: Remembering that love is out there, you deserve it, and you don't have to compromise to get it. Featured on The Kelly Clarkson Show.
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Harford County Public Library
1221-A Brass Mill Rd Belcamp, Maryland 21017 410-273-5600
hcplonline.org
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