Gift a Book: Recommendations for Everyone on Your Holiday List
Looking to give a book this holiday season? Here are some great suggestions for adults, teens and children from board members of the Friends of the Larchmont Library. Happy Holidays!
A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan.
A wonderful read about the Ku Klux Klan in Indiana in the 1920s and the woman who took them down. – Elinor Berlin
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin.
One of the great biographies of all time and basis for the movie “Oppenheimer.” – Richard Levy
Blindsight by Peter Watts
Hard science fiction space psychodrama that will make you question the value of consciousness and self awareness. – Marcus Siotkas
Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad
A gorgeous novel about an English Palestinian actress who decides to visit her sister in Israel to recover from an affair gone bad. A terrific read in itself, but also an unusual look at everyday life for Israeli Arabs and life in the West Bank. - Alina Tugend
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
A novel - focused on four sisters and those who become part of their world - that is both very intimate and universal. – Leah Katznelson
Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra
A beautifully written novel about a scrappy film studio — a cut-rate version of Warner Bros. — that seems chronically on the verge of going bust but gets a reprieve during World War II, when the government hires it to make propaganda movies.– Teddi Becker
North Woods by Daniel Mason
An epic, sweeping novel told through the generations of people who lived in a house in New England. So unique and so incredibly beautiful. – Leigh Marchant
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
A great story told by an octopus of family and friendship. – Melisa Prevost
Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane
At the heart of the book is a masterly psychological study of racism. It’s the early 1970’s and South Boston is faced with the integration of its formerly all-white high school. Along with the tension of that story is a mother’s search for her daughter – a student at that school - who has disappeared. – Teddi Becker
The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness and the Tragedy of Good Intentions by Jonathan Rosen
A tour-de-force real life story about a brilliant man plagued by mental illness written by his childhood friend. It is an intimate portrayal of a family and friends but also a look at the limits of the mental system even for the very privileged. - Alina Tugend
The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer
A big-hearted and life-affirming debut novel about a death doula who, in caring for others at the end of their life, has forgotten how to live her own. – Julie Konvisser
The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese
A beautifully written but tragic novel chronicling the generations of a family in south India from 1900 to 1970. – Richard Levy
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue
A very witty, political, and deep coming-of-age novel which turns the genre on its head with biting satire and moral examination. – Sedona Fitzgerald
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
A charming and smart story of a Jewish and Black neighborhood in Pennsylvania in the 1920s and 30s. - Elinor Fredston
The Soldier’s Truth: Ernie Pyle and the Story of World War II by David Chrisinger
A biography of Ernie Pyle, whose dispatches from overseas during World War II gave the war a human face. – Ron Meister
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
A book about ambitions and dreams, mothers and daughters and the lives parents have before they have children. – Pat Melrose
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
A moving, smart and incredibly well written novel about friendship and love in the world of video game design. – Leigh Marchant
True: The Four Seasons of Jackie Robinson by Kostya Kennedy
An original look at Jackie Robinson’s life, including his first year in white baseball with the Montreal Royals. – Ron Meister
Young Adult and Children’s Books chosen by Board Member Barbara Mehlman, a school library media specialist
DK Children’s Cookbook: Quick and Easy Recipes for Young Chefs
With appealing photographs and step-by-step instructions. Children love to look at and make recipes!
Dogtown by Katerine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko
Dogtown is a shelter for regular dogs and robot dogs. Chance, a real dog, Metal Head, a robot dog and Mouse, a mouse who lives at Dogtown embark on a page-turning humorous adventure to find real homes. Ages 8-12.
Don’t Blow Your Top by Anne Dyckman
Two volcanoes live happily until a bird accidentally drops a coconut. An adorable story about emotional regulation with skills for when the reader might feel hot-tempered. Ages 3-7
History Smashers by Kate Messner
Relying on resources and evidence Messner debunks historical misconceptions and gives readers the real story of various historical events. Give this illustrated nonfiction series to children interested in The Mayflower, Right to Vote, The Titanic, The American Revolution as well as other events in American History. Ages 8-12
Iceberg by Jennifer Nielsen
A twelve-year-old stowaway on the Titanic is caught up in intrigue as tragedy approaches. Page-turning historical fiction. Ages 8-12.
Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You! By Sonia Sotomayer
The Supreme Court justice addresses kids’ curiosity about disability and illness. “Each of us grows in our own way,” says Sonia, a child based on the author as she plants a garden. Just as each plant has a “different color, different shape, and different purpose,” kids are “all different too.” Encouraging curious readers to “JUST ASK,” Sonia and 11 friends introduce their respective disabilities and chronic illnesses—ranging from blindness to nut allergies—by asking such questions as “How do you use your senses?” and “Are you really good at something?”
Real Pigeons Fight Crime by Andrew McDonald
Silly tales of cartoon pigeons who fight crime. Give these hybrid fantasy mysteries to fans of The Bad Guys and Inspector Flytrap. Ages 7-10.
Swim Team by Johnny Christmas
When Bree moves from Brooklyn to Florida she ends up in the only available elective Swim 101. Bree is too embarrassed to tell her teacher and her classmates that she doesn’t know how to swim. However, when her older neighbor decides to teach Bree how to swim, Bree finds herself on the swim team. A smart and inspiring graphic novel. Ages 8-13.
Twenty Questions by Mac Barnett
An interactive picture book by celebrated author Mac Barnett and award winning illustrator Christian Robinson presents a series of open ended questions. Entertaining and creative. Children will be spellbound. Ages 3-8
Who Would Win by Jerry Pallotta
Popular nonfiction series for young readers featuring reptiles, mammals, sea creatures and dinosaurs going head to head in battle. Filled with photos, charts and illustrations. Ages 6-8.
Wild Oak by C.C. Harrington
In this novel set in 1963, an eleven year old girl cruelly taunted for her stutter only feels comfortable speaking to animals. Sent to Cornwall to stay with her doctor grandfather, Maggie finds strength and comfort in an endangered forest with a snow leopard cub abandoned after being given as an ill-advised birthday gift. This gorgeous novel is perfect for fans of Pax and a Wolf Called Wander. Ages 8-13.