This month in adult books: April 2021

Reading recommendations for adults
April 13, 2021
Featured Title
Facing-the-mountain-(2).jpgFacing the Mountain: the true story of Japanese American heroes in World War II by Daniel James Brown
There are so many reasons to be excited about this book. But really all we need to tell you is that it is the newest book from the author of the beloved blockbuster The Boys in the Boat. Like that book it takes compelling and richly detailed personal stories to illuminate both social and military history. Working with the assistance of Densho, a Seattle nonprofit organization that preserves oral histories of Japanese Americans, Brown chronicles the journey of four young men from Hawai'i and the West Coast of the U.S. as they fought for their freedom during the Second World War in the all-Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Kirkus reviews calls this book “An insightful portrait of exceptional heroism amid deeply embedded racism.” It’s absolutely not to be missed. This book comes out on May 11. Get in line for your copy today.
 



When-stars-go-dark.jpgNew & Upcoming
This month brings exciting books from debut authors and old favorites. Author Paula McLain, the author of The Paris Wife, offers readers contemporary literary suspense set in Mendocino starring a missing persons detective in When the Stars Go Dark. Love in Color by Bolu Babalola is a delightful debut collection of Black centered love stories drawn from stories around the world. Michelle Zauner, the lead singer of Japanese Breakfast, presents a debut memoir, Crying in H Mart, about growing up Korean-American and the devastating loss of her mother.

  

 
 
Our-team.jpgCheck this Out!

Spring means baseball is back! In between watching or playing the game, why not read about it. Check out this list of recent releases including books about players, like the upcoming Our team: The Epic Story of Four Men and the World Series That Changed Baseball by Luke Epplin and books about baseball in the greater world such as Stealing Home: Los Angeles, the Dodgers, and the lives caught in between by Eric Nusbaum.

   
 

What We’re Reading
Washington-Jacket-Original-High-Res.jpgAlready Toast: caregiving and burnout in America by Kate Washington
 
You might recognize this author - she’s the current dining critic for the Sacramento Bee. But she’s writing about something completely different here. This is about her experience as a full-time caregiver, parent, and writer when her husband was diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma. She intertwines her experience with the epidemic of unpaid caregiving that is happening across the country, and which falls primarily on women. It’s both a brutally honest memoir and a tremendously compelling call to action. It’s also one that will be highly relevant to a number of people, especially after this pandemic year which created tremendous upheaval in so many lives.
 
Note: We will be creating a Book Club in a Box kit for this book, which will be available for checkout this summer.
 
 
For More Reading Suggestions: