Adult Non-Fiction – Book Club Book: A $500 House in Detroit by Drew Philp
A young college grad buys a house in Detroit for $500 and attempts to restore it—and his new neighborhood—to its original glory in this “deeply felt, sharply observed personal quest to create meaning and community out of the fallen...A standout” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).
Drew Philp, an idealistic college student from a working-class Michigan family, decides to live where he can make a difference. He sets his sights on Detroit, the failed metropolis of abandoned buildings, widespread poverty, and rampant crime. Arriving with no job, no friends, and no money, Philp buys a ramshackle house for five hundred dollars in the east side neighborhood known as Poletown. The roomy Queen Anne he now owns is little more than a clapboard shell on a crumbling brick foundation, missing windows, heat, water, electricity, and a functional roof.
A $500 House in Detroit is Philp’s raw and earnest account of rebuilding everything but the frame of his house, nail by nail and room by room. “Philp is a great storyteller...[and his] engrossing” (Booklist) tale is also of a young man finding his footing in the city, the country, and his own generation. We witness his concept of Detroit shift, expand, and evolve as his plan to save the city gives way to a life forged from political meaning, personal connection, and collective purpose. As he assimilates into the community of Detroiters around him, Philp guides readers through the city’s vibrant history and engages in urgent conversations about gentrification, racial tensions, and class warfare.
Part social history, part brash generational statement, part comeback story, A $500 House in Detroit “shines [in its depiction of] the ‘radical neighborliness’ of ordinary people in desperate circumstances” (Publishers Weekly). This is an unforgettable, intimate account of the tentative revival of an American city and a glimpse at a new way forward for generations to come.
Adult Fiction: The Great American Read: The Book of Books: Explore America's 100 Best-Loved Novels as featured on PBS Series
A blockbuster illustrated book that captures what Americans love to read, The Great American Read: The Book of Books is the gorgeously-produced companion book to PBS's ambitious summer 2018 series.
What are America's best-loved novels? PBS will launch The Great American Read series with a 2-hour special in May 2018 revealing America's 100 best-loved novels, determined by a rigorous national survey. Subsequent episodes will air in September and October. Celebrities and everyday Americans will champion their favorite novel and in the finale in late October, America's #1 best-loved novel will be revealed.
The Great American Read: The Book of Books will present all 100 novels with fascinating information about each book, author profiles, a snapshot of the novel's social relevance, film or television adaptations, other books and writings by the author, and little-known facts. Also included are themed articles about banned books, the most influential book illustrators, reading recommendations, the best first-lines in literature, and more.
Beautifully designed with rare images of the original manuscripts, first-edition covers, rejection letters, and other ephemera, The Great American Read: The Book of Books is a must-have book for all booklovers.
Local Adult: Whispers on the Wind by Barbara E. Bull
”My name is Marie LeClerc, but you can call me Abigail.” A voice whispers on the wind over three centuries to Katherine MacLeod, a retired educator who lives full-time in her ancestral cottage on the shore of Lake Michigan. The voice carries Katherine from Puritan New England to the land of the Mohawk and the world of the voyageurs, tracing a tale of tragedy, faith, perserverence, and family love. Rich in historical detail and frontier adventure, Barbara Bull’s third novel also continues the saga of the MacLeod Clan and their beloved Cloud Cottage in the 21st century. Bonding over the rituals of beach life and deep connections with the natural world, the family draws close together, grounding Katherine as she struggles to understand the eerie experience drawing her into the 18th century.
Barbara E. Bull lives in West Michigan on a farm near Little Point Sable. When she is not busy welcoming visitors to her Cherry Point Farm & Market, she loves roaming the bach and woods along the shore. Whispers in the Wind is her sixth book for Cherry Point Publishing, which include Benjamin’s Gift, A Point in Time, A Point of View, and the first two Katherine MacLeod books, Cloud Cottage, and Gray Clouds, Blue Skye.
Young Adult: I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
National Book Award Finalist!
Instant New York Times Bestseller!
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian meets Jane the Virgin in this poignant but often laugh-out-loud funny contemporary YA about losing a sister and finding yourself amid the pressures, expectations, and stereotypes of growing up in a Mexican-American home.
Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family.
But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role.
Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed.
But it’s not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister’s story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal?
“Alive and crackling—a gritty tale wrapped in a page-turner. ”—The New York Times
“Unique and fresh.” —Entertainment Weekly
“A standout.” —NPR
Children: The Little Prince – Deluxe Pop-Up Book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
After being stranded in a desert after a crash, a pilot comes in contact with a captivating little prince who recounts his journey from planet to planet and his search for what is most important in life.
For over sixty-five years Antoine de Saint-Exupery's classic, The Little Prince, has captured readers' hearts. The whimsical story with a fairy tale feel has sold over 3 million copies in all formats. This exciting pop-up edition includes the complete original text accompanied by Saint-Exupery's beautiful illustrations brought to life through paper engineering. Perfect for longtime fans and those meeting the little prince for the first time!
Courtesy:
Bryan Uecker
The Book Nook & Java Shop
8744 Ferry Street
Montague, Michigan 49437
231.894.5333 p