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Must-Read Books March 2024 |
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| Martyr! by Kaveh AkbarAs a kid, Cyrus moved from Iran to Indiana with his dad after the plane his mother was on was accidentally shot down by the U.S. military. Now nearly 30 and recovering from addiction, Cyrus' obsession with martyrs leads him to a dying artist in Brooklyn in this highly anticipated debut. Read-alikes: Ocean Vuong's On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous; Zeyn Joukhadar's The Thirty Names of Night; Salar Abdoh's A Nearby Country Called Love. |
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| Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum; translated by Shanna Tan Yeongju, suffering from burnout and an unhappy marriage, leaves her corporate job and her husband to open a bookshop in Seoul, where she welcomes customers and new friends in this heartwarming tale. Read-alikes: What You Are Looking For Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama; Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa; The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. |
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| The American Queen by Vanessa MillerIn 1865, formerly enslaved Louella Bobo and her pastor husband, William, leave Mississippi with a group of other newly free people and settle in North Carolina, where they establish a utopian community known as The Kingdom of the Happy Land. Inspired by true events, this novel by Vanessa Miller (The Light on Halsey Street) illuminates a fascinating chapter of Black history. |
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| California Bear by Duane SwierczynskiThe Bear, a serial killer in hibernation for decades, is stirring due to an investigation by an ex-cop and an ex-con in this "tour de force" (Publishers Weekly) that also includes a teen girl detective with cancer and a genealogist in a troubled marriage. For fans of: Michael Connelly; She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper. |
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| A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia WilliamsAgainst her wealthy family's wishes, floral designer Ricki Wilde opens a flower shop in Harlem and befriends jazz musician Ezra "Breeze" Walker, a man who's fallen out of time. Light speculative elements and dual timelines add intrigue to this sweeping romance by the author of Seven Days in June. You might also like: Donna Hill's I Am Ayah: The Way Home; Casey McQuiston's One Last Stop. |
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| Village in the Dark by Iris YamashitaThis atmospheric, fast-paced crime novel is narrated by three Alaskan women: a former police detective who learns that her husband and young son, whom she thought had died accidentally, were likely murdered; a grief-stricken hotel owner; and a young half-Indigenous woman in danger. Though this is a sequel to City Under One Roof, newcomers can start here. |
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| Disillusioned: Five Families and the Unraveling of America's Suburbs by Benjamin HeroldEducation journalist Benjamin Herold debuts with a thought-provoking exploration of the limitations of American suburbia, where the legacies of post-World War II racial segregation resonate in restrictive zoning laws and ever-changing school district boundaries. Try this next: Excluded: How Snob Zoning, NIMBYism, and Class Bias Build the Walls We Don't See by Richard D. Kahlenberg. |
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| The Holocaust: An Unfinished History by Dan StoneHistorian and University of London professor Dan Stone explores the origins and ongoing aftermath of the Holocaust in this sweeping study that offers "an urgent new perspective on a much-studied calamity" (Publishers Weekly). Further reading: Black Earth: The Holocaust as History and Warning by Timothy Snyder; Come to This Court and Cry: How the Holocaust Ends by Linda Kinstler. |
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| Infinity Alchemist by Kacen CallenderBrilliant alchemy student Ramsay caught self-taught Ash practicing alchemy illegally. The two strike a deal to find a legendarily powerful book together in exchange for exam tutoring. This romantic, fast-paced fantasy investigates what true power is and what people will do to gain it. |
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| Ferris by Kate DiCamilloMeet Ferris, a 10-year-old word nerd who’s just trying to keep up with the antics of her loving, eccentric family, from her little sister’s attempts to become an outlaw to her grandmother Clarisse’s obsession with a ghost. This tender, offbeat tale is sure to satisfy fans of award-winning author Kate DiCamillo. |
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| Tomorrow's Lily by Christopher RaschkaIn verses as sweet and delicate as the pastel watercolor illustrations, this quiet picture book uses the briefly blooming daylily as the focal point for a kid-friendly meditation on fleeting beauty and enduring memories. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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