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September 17, 2024

Last week, my book group had a brilliant discussion about THE LION WOMEN OF TEHRAN with Marjan Kamali. We all loved the book, and having Marjan as part of the discussion answering questions was special. If you would like to have her join your group's discussion about the book, please write her to check her availability.

Margaret Renkl, author of The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year

In THE COMFORT OF CROWS, Margaret Renkl presents a literary devotional: 52 chapters that follow the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of a year. As we move through the seasons --- from a crow spied on New Year’s Day, its resourcefulness and sense of community setting a theme for the year, to the lingering bluebirds of December, revisiting the nest box they used in spring --- what develops is a portrait of joy and grief: joy in the ongoing pleasures of the natural world, and grief over winters that end too soon and songbirds that grow fewer and fewer. Along the way, we also glimpse the changing rhythms of a human life.

Coco Mellors, author of Blue Sisters

The three Blue sisters are exceptional --- and exceptionally different. Avery, the eldest and a recovering heroin addict turned strait-laced lawyer, lives with her wife in London; Bonnie, a former boxer, works as a bouncer in Los Angeles following a devastating defeat; and Lucky, the youngest, models in Paris while trying to outrun her hard-partying ways. They also had a fourth sister, Nicky, whose unexpected death left the family reeling. A year later, as they each navigate grief, addiction and ambition, they find they must return to New York to stop the sale of the apartment in which they were raised. As the sisters reckon with the disappointments of their childhood and the loss of the only person who held them together, they realize that the greatest secrets they’ve been keeping might not have been from one another but from themselves.

Liane Moriarty, author of Here One Moment

Aside from a delay, there will be no problems. The flight will be smooth, it will land safely. Everyone who gets on the plane will get off. But almost all of them will be forever changed. Because on this ordinary, short, domestic flight, something extraordinary happens. People learn how and when they are going to die. For some, their death is far in the future --- age 103! --- and they laugh. But for six passengers, their predicted deaths are not far away at all. If you were told you only had a certain amount of time left to live, would you do things differently? Would you try to dodge your destiny?

Elizabeth Strout, author of Tell Me Everything

It’s autumn in Maine, and the town lawyer Bob Burgess has become enmeshed in an unfolding murder investigation, defending a lonely, isolated man accused of killing his mother. He also has fallen into a deep and abiding friendship with the acclaimed writer Lucy Barton, who lives down the road in a house by the sea with her ex-husband, William. Together, Lucy and Bob go on walks and talk about their lives, their fears and regrets, and what might have been. Lucy, meanwhile, is finally introduced to the iconic Olive Kitteridge, now living in a retirement community on the edge of town. They spend afternoons together in Olive’s apartment, telling each other stories. Stories about people they have known --- “unrecorded lives,” Olive calls them --- reanimating them, and, in the process, imbuing their lives with meaning.

Editorial Content for Blue Sisters

Teaser

Three estranged siblings return to their family home in New York after their beloved sister’s death in this unforgettable story of grief, hope and the complexities of family.

Promo

Three estranged siblings return to their family home in New York after their beloved sister’s death in this unforgettable story of grief, hope and the complexities of family.

About the Book

Three estranged siblings return to their family home in New York after their beloved sister’s death in this unforgettable story of grief, hope and the complexities of family, from the acclaimed author of CLEOPATRA AND FRANKENSTEIN.

The three Blue sisters are exceptional --- and exceptionally different. Avery, the eldest and a recovering heroin addict turned strait-laced lawyer, lives with her wife in London; Bonnie, a former boxer, works as a bouncer in Los Angeles following a devastating defeat; and Lucky, the youngest, models in Paris while trying to outrun her hard-partying ways. They also had a fourth sister, Nicky, whose unexpected death left the family reeling. A year later, as they each navigate grief, addiction and ambition, they find they must return to New York to stop the sale of the apartment in which they were raised.

But coming home is never as easy as it seems. As the sisters reckon with the disappointments of their childhood and the loss of the only person who held them together, they realize that the greatest secrets they’ve been keeping might not have been from one another but from themselves.

Imbued with Coco Mellors’ signature combination of humor and heart, BLUE SISTERS is a story of what it takes to keep living after loss --- and, ultimately, to fall in love with life again.

Editorial Content for By Any Other Name

Teaser

From the New York Times bestselling co-author of MAD HONEY comes an “inspiring” (Elle) novel about two women, centuries apart --- one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays --- who are both forced to hide behind another name.

Promo

From the New York Times bestselling co-author of MAD HONEY comes an “inspiring” (Elle) novel about two women, centuries apart --- one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays --- who are both forced to hide behind another name.

About the Book

From the New York Times bestselling co-author of MAD HONEY comes an “inspiring” (Elle) novel about two women, centuries apart --- one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays --- who are both forced to hide behind another name.

Young playwright Melina Green has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. But seeing it performed is unlikely, in a theater world where the playing field isn’t level for women. As Melina wonders if she dares risk failure again, her best friend takes the decision out of her hands and submits the play to a festival under a male pseudonym.

In 1581, young Emilia Bassano is a ward of English aristocrats. Her lessons on languages, history and writing have endowed her with a sharp wit and a gift for storytelling. But like most women of her day, she is allowed no voice of her own. Forced to become a mistress to the Lord Chamberlain, who oversees all theater productions in England, Emilia sees firsthand how the words of playwrights can move an audience. She begins to form a plan to secretly bring a play of her own to the stage --- by paying an actor named William Shakespeare to front her work.

Told in intertwining timelines, BY ANY OTHER NAME, a sweeping tale of ambition, courage and desire, centers on two women who are determined to create something beautiful despite the prejudices they face. Should a writer do whatever it takes to see her story live on, no matter the cost? This remarkable novel, rooted in primary historical sources, ensures the name Emilia Bassano will no longer be forgotten.

Editorial Content for Cadenza

Book

Teaser

With brutal honesty and layered storytelling, CADENZA makes Jennifer Coleman’s progress as a pianist and composer read like a mystery novel. Bold characters and personal tragedies emerge as it becomes clear that Jennifer is a force of nature that can be stopped by no one but herself.

Promo

With brutal honesty and layered storytelling, CADENZA makes Jennifer Coleman’s progress as a pianist and composer read like a mystery novel. Bold characters and personal tragedies emerge as it becomes clear that Jennifer is a force of nature that can be stopped by no one but herself.

About the Book

CADENZA is the story of a woman's drive to succeed and overcome her physical and emotional scars. It's a tale of relentless ambition, dark secrets and the lengths to which the human mind will go.

At the age of seven, Jennifer Coleman is severely burned in a house fire that kills her sister. Despite the barriers of her scarred face and her tragic childhood, she reaches the pinnacle of achievement as a classical concert pianist, but at a deep psychological cost.

During Jennifer's meteoric rise as a virtuoso pianist, her disfigurement takes on mythic proportions. She is internationally loved and admired, but unable to love herself. At a pivotal point in her career, she meets an extraordinarily creative, suicidal musician named Felix, who challenges Jennifer's beliefs and falls deeply in love with her. Will Jennifer be able to learn from Felix's example before she self-destructs?

Editorial Content for The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year

Teaser

In THE COMFORT OF CROWS, Margaret Renkl presents a literary devotional: 52 chapters that follow the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of a year.

Promo

In THE COMFORT OF CROWS, Margaret Renkl presents a literary devotional: 52 chapters that follow the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of a year.

About the Book

From beloved New York Times opinion writer Margaret Renkl comes a luminous book that traces the passing of seasons, both personal and natural.

In THE COMFORT OF CROWS, Margaret Renkl presents a literary devotional: 52 chapters that follow the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of a year. As we move through the seasons --- from a crow spied on New Year’s Day, its resourcefulness and sense of community setting a theme for the year, to the lingering bluebirds of December, revisiting the nest box they used in spring --- what develops is a portrait of joy and grief: joy in the ongoing pleasures of the natural world, and grief over winters that end too soon and songbirds that grow fewer and fewer.

Along the way, we also glimpse the changing rhythms of a human life. Grown children, unexpectedly home during the pandemic, prepare to depart once more. Birdsong and night-blooming flowers evoke generations past. The city and the country where Renkl raised her family transform a little more with each passing day. And the natural world, now in visible flux, requires every ounce of hope and commitment from the author --- and from us. For, as Renkl writes, “radiant things are bursting forth in the darkest places, in the smallest nooks and deepest cracks of the hidden world.”

With 52 original color artworks by the author’s brother, Billy Renkl, THE COMFORT OF CROWS is a lovely and deeply moving book from a cherished observer of the natural world.

Editorial Content for The Days I Loved You Most

Teaser

Unforgettable and utterly romantic, THE DAYS I LOVED YOU MOST is a heart-wrenching, life-affirming novel that asks: How much would you sacrifice for the one you love?

Promo

Unforgettable and utterly romantic, THE DAYS I LOVED YOU MOST is a heart-wrenching, life-affirming novel that asks: How much would you sacrifice for the one you love?

About the Book

Unforgettable and utterly romantic, THE DAYS I LOVED YOU MOST is a heart-wrenching, life-affirming novel that asks: How much would you sacrifice for the one you love?

In the summer of 1941, on the New England shores where they were raised, Evelyn and Joseph fell in love. Now, more than 60 years later, with a lifetime between them, they have gathered their three grown children to share the staggering news: she has received a tragic diagnosis, and he cannot live without her. So in one year’s time, they will end their lives on their own terms.

As the couple comes to grips with their fate, they retrace their past --- the joys and regrets, the laughter and the sorrow --- that brought them to this moment. They embark on a journey to live out their greatest dreams and to comfort and connect with each of their children before they're gone. But as their final days draw closer, they must confront the stark reality of what they are about to do, and make peace with the legacy they will leave behind for their family.

Spanning the 20th century from World War II to 9/11 and beyond, THE DAYS I LOVED YOU MOST is a timeless tale of unwavering devotion --- a moving tribute to the enduring power of love and a reminder that, even in the darkest moments, there is always hope and beauty to be found.