![Real Americans](/sites/default/files/bibliographic-record/91JoreoZYvL._AC_UF1000%2C1000_QL80__0.jpg)
Real Americans
"An exhilarating novel of American identity that spans three generations in one family, and asks: What makes us who we are? And how inevitable are our futures?"--
Benbrook Public Library
1065 Mercedes St.
Benbrook, TX 76126
United States
"An exhilarating novel of American identity that spans three generations in one family, and asks: What makes us who we are? And how inevitable are our futures?"--
Great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave and impossible to forget...Birdie, Ada and Jane are all lost. Life has not turned out as they planned, and all three of them are scared to ask for help, to say yes - or to say no. To take a chance on someone else. Birdie Greenwing has been at a loose end ever since her beloved twin sister and husband passed away eight years previously. Too proud and stubborn to admit she is lonely, Birdie's world has shrunk. Jane Brown hoped moving to Brighton would be a new start, away from her overbearing mother. While she finds it hard to stand up for herself, her daughter Frankie has no problem telling people what she does and doesn't want.Ada Kowalski thought training to become an Oncologist in England would be a dream come true. In reality she is isolated, exhausted, the professional detachment she has had to develop now threatens to take over her life. When a series of incidents brings their lives crashing together, these three unlikely allies find that there's always more to a person than meets the eye. Goodbye Birdie Greenwing celebrates female relationships in all their forms. It explores what being a mother means. It is a story about the choices we make and how we justify them. About finding out who we are, not who other people think we should be.
An Indie Next and a Hall of Fame LibraryReads Pick! A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science—from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood. Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down. Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through—and he’s a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can’t stop thinking about. The woman who's off-limits to him. Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business—one that plays for keeps.
A.J. Fikry meets The Bookish Life of Nina Hill in this charming, hilarious, and moving novel about the way books bring lonely souls together. Two young lovers. Sixty long years. One bookish mystery worth solving. Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling: to take care of her three younger siblings, to find herself, to make ends meet. She's just about at the end of her rope when she stumbles across a rare edition of a book from the 1960s at the local flea market. Deciding it's a sign of her luck turning, she takes it home with her-only to be shocked when her cranky hermit of a neighbor swoops in and offers to buy it for an exorbitant price. Intrigued, Chloe takes a closer look at the book only to find notes scribbled in the margins between two young lovers back when the book was new…one of whom is almost definitely Jasper Holmes, the curmudgeon next door. When she begins following the clues left behind, she discovers this isn't the only old book in town filled with romantic marginalia. This kickstarts a literary scavenger hunt that Chloe is determined to see through to the end. What happened to the two tragic lovers who corresponded in the margins of so many different library books? And what does it have to do with the old, sad man next door-who only now has begun to open his home and heart to Chloe and her siblings? In a romantic tale that spans the decades, Chloe discovers that there's much more to her grouchy old neighbor than meets the eye. And in allowing herself to accept the unexpected friendship he offers, she learns that some love stories begin in the unlikeliest of places.
"A novel about a woman who one day comes home to find her attic is magic and producing an endless supply of interchangeable husbands"--
Caught in the great Galveston Hurricane of 1900, a female doctor who's joined a traveling medicine show to support her disabled son is forced to weather the storm and its aftermath in a town hostile to the troupe's unconventional ways but desperate for their help. Readers of Ellen Marie Wiseman, Sandra Dallas, and Sara Donati will be captivated by this story of medical historical fiction by Amanda Skenandore, registered nurse and acclaimed author of “The Nurse's Secret” and “The Second Life of Mirielle West”. Once a trailblazer in the field of medicine, Dr. Tucia Hatherley hasn't touched a scalpel or stethoscope since she made a fatal mistake in the operating theater. Instead, she works in a corset factory, striving to earn enough to support her disabled son. When even that livelihood is threatened, Tucia is left with one option-to join a wily, charismatic showman named Huey and become part of his traveling medicine show. Her medical license lends the show a pretense of credibility, but the cures and tonics Tucia is forced to peddle are little more than purgatives and bathwater. Loathing the duplicity, even as she finds uneasy kinship with the other misfit performers, Tucia vows to leave as soon as her debts are paid and start a new life with her son-if Huey will ever let her go. When the show reaches Galveston, Texas, Tucia tries to break free from Huey, only to be pulled even deeper into his schemes. But there is a far greater reckoning ahead, as a September storm becomes a devastating hurricane that will decimate the Gulf Coast-and challenge Tucia to recover her belief in medicine, in the goodness of others-and in herself.
An ingenious puzzle, an extraordinary backdrop, and an audacious solution. Solve the murder to save what's left of the world. Outside the island there is nothing: the world was destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the island: it is idyllic. One hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they're told by the scientists. Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And then they learn that the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay. If the murder isn't solved within 92 hours, the fog will smother the island-and everyone on it. But the security system has also wiped everyone's memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer-and they don't even know it. And the clock is ticking"--
"Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other's out, and they'll both go on to find the love of their lives. It's a bonkers idea... and it just might work. Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka. It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected--including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?"--
A fun and interactive preschool adventure (with cutout surprises on almost every page!) that explores counting and colors, from the award-winning creator of The Watermelon Seed and Good Night Owl.
Mister Kitty is missing somewhere inside this book! Will you help us find him? Join the hunt for five yellow spots, four orange paws, three purple bells, and more, exploring numbers and colors along the way in an interactive countdown. Cutouts interacting with Greg Pizzoli's vivid artwork reveal a surprise after each page turn, all leading up to the BIGGEST twist of all at the end!
Don't miss these board books by Greg Pizzoli:
The Watermelon Seed
Good Night Owl
"In a city where Fire, Water, Earth, and Air people reside together, a fiery young woman and a go-with-the-flow guy are about to discover something elemental: how much they have in common."--Publisher marketing.
Everywhere you go, all around the world people are eating ice cream! And while some folks spoon up sundaes and some savor Syrian bouza--one thing is always true: ice cream is joy! Travel the globe and discover a mouthwatering selection of cold, creamy treats. Which one is your favorite?! Ice Cream Everywhere includes a map, an author's note--and three scoops of fun!
The world is full of wonders, if we take a small moment to look! A beautiful story about everyday magic.
April's town is dull and gray, and the people there are too busy to laugh or look up at the sky. But when April remembers Grandma's stories about wonder in the world, like the secret language of flowers, April wonders: Can dandelions help?
Planting tiny seeds while the seasons shift towards spring, April watches as the dandelions and other flowers sprout, bringing more than a little wonder back to her community.
Debut author-illustrator Sally Soweol Han's gorgeous and inspirational story encourages young readers to consider how they too can plant a little wonder in the world.
The hilarious crayons from the #1 New York Times bestselling The Day the Crayons Quit are ready to celebrate our planet!
The Crayons love our planet and are proud of their contributions. White ice caps, Green trees, Blue oceans and skies, Brown soil...and more! Even Beige is proud of his contibution: Wheat! This humorous mini hardcover book shows the beauty of our plant—and why it needs all of us to be complete. Perfect for Earth Day.
Prepare for plenty of giggles as a kindergarten class arrives for their first day of school but can't find their teacher--only a delicious-looking sandwich and the words "Mr. S" scribbled on the chalkboard. Chaos ensues as the kids argue whether the sandwich must be their teacher. A comical first-day-of-school book of mayhem and chaos by Monica Arnaldo, perfect for fans of Miss Nelson Is Missing.
"This might be the funniest first-day-of-school book I've ever read." --Adam Rex, New York Times bestselling author of School's First Day of School
It was the first day of school.
But even the kindergarteners of room 2B could tell something was seriously wrong. . . . Where was the teacher? Who left this sandwich on the desk?
The only clue, written on the chalkboard, were three simple letters: Mr. S
Praise for Mr. S:
"Confusion, mystery, and laughs are on the menu in Arnaldo's deliciously goofy back-to-school tale." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"The tale's genuinely absurd situation, the mystery of the teacher's identity, and the deadpan storytelling make this a memorable read-aloud choice." --ALA Booklist (starred review)
"Mysteries for young readers are few and far between and this one is fun and entertaining." --School Library Journal (starred review)
An Amazon Best Book of the Month * A Junior Library Guild Selection * Indigo Staff Pick of the Month * Governor General's Literary Award Finalist * Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * Indigo Best Book of the Year * Chicago Public Library Best of the Best List * New York Public Library Best Book of the Year * School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * Booklist Editor's Choice
A gorgeously illustrated, sparingly written story about the often complicated feelings brought on by anxiousness, perfect for helping young readers identify this complex emotion.
The little girl in this picture book would love to dance, sing, and play with her friends, but she is struggling with anxious feelings that get in the way. Sometimes she feels scared and sometimes she feels shy. Sometimes the world seems too loud, too fast, and everything is so overwhelming she could just scream. There is no easy fix for feeling anxious, but by the end of this story she learns to ask for help and finds small ways to feel better.
Written from a child's perspective, Anxious pairs evocative art with simple text to illustrate some of the ways anxiousness can be experienced, providing an empathetic and compassionate framework for helping readers understand this feeling.
A note to readers adds context and explains in more detail what anxiousness can look like, provides suggestions for coping skills, and resources for professional help.
When Eddy the goldfish takes a leap of faith to be closer to his new friends, his perspective of the world widens in unexpected ways. A funny story about building empathy and making connections, for fans of LeUyen Pham, Dan Santat, Laura Vaccaro Seeger, and Michael Hall.
Eddy is a lonely goldfish stuck inside his fishbowl. He would love to have a friend to swim and play and blow bubbles with. Soon, on the other side of the glass, he spies not one but two new friends. After days of playing games together, Eddy leaps out of his bowl to be closer to them. And that's when he realizes that his two friends are really the inquisitive eyes of A CAT! Oh, no! Luckily for Eddy, friendship can be found in unexpected places.
A Friend for Eddy is funny and suspenseful, and observant readers will delight in seeing Eddy's mistake before he does. Ann Kim Ha's clever, bold illustrations will hold the attention of the youngest children, making A Friend for Eddy a wonderful choice for bedtime and story-time sharing.
A CBC Kids Reads Competition Finalist
In the tradition of All Are Welcome and The Day You Begin comes a touching picture book about the many unique ways we communicate, and how we can better listen to and respect these different modes of expression.
Nathan doesn't say much.
He sure has a lot on his mind, though.
At school, Nathan quietly observes the ways his peers communicate. Even when they’re not talking, they’re expressing themselves in all sorts of ways!
By witnessing the beauty of communication diversity, Nathan learns and shows his classmates the essential lesson: Not only does everyone have something to say, but seeking to understand one another can be the greatest bridge to friendship and belonging.
This tender, stunningly illustrated picture book explores and celebrates the many forms of expression—signing, speaking, singing, smiling, among others—and culminates in a poignant story about connection and understanding.
Includes additional material at the end of the book with vocabulary, an introduction to various forms of communication, and information about communication access, perfect for back-to-school and classroom discussions.
A big-hearted story about fairness and father-son love by the author-illustrator of No Pants!
Pablo and his dad are ready for a fun day together at the farmer’s market–what’s better than a bike ride, doughnuts, and hot apple cider? But Pablo's dad says that everything Pablo picks out is too big for him. It’s just no fair! What if he was in charge and his dad was the kid, Pablo wonders. And his dad stops to think about it, too.
This light-hearted but thoughtful look at fairness introduces a important subject that everyone encounters throughout their lives.
On a hot day, people come from all over the city to spend the day at the pool in this joyful picture book that’s a love song to summer, the city, community, and staying cool!
Today is a pool day in the city! The sun is shining, so what are you waiting for? Friends and family. Kids and grandparents. Big bodies and small bodies. Everybody is welcome at our pool! Get ready for swimming and splashing, zigzagging and dunking, and racing and laughing.
Three starred reviews!
A Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor Book
A Chicago Public Library Best Book
A family remembers their beloved pet dog through the traditions of Día de Muertos in this “gorgeous, deeply touching exploration of grief and remembrance” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) from Pura Belpré Honor–winning team Xelena González and Adriana M. Garcia.
A child and their family observe the customs of Día de los Angelitos, one of the ritual celebrations of Día de Muertos, to celebrate the life of their beloved dog who passed away. They build a thoughtful ofrenda to help lead the pet’s soul home and help the little one process their grief in this moving reminder that loved ones are never really gone if we take the time to remember them.
"A young boy and his family discover a way to merge their Chinese and North American backgrounds by combining traditional foods from both cultures. Max loves his family's Cantonese meals, like steamed rice and gai lan greens with oyster sauce, homemade dumplings, and scallion bread. But sometimes he can't help thinking about French fries, tacos, and ice cream with rainbow sprinkles. For his birthday dinner, Max is really hoping for spaghetti and meatballs, but instead he and his family are headed to Maa Maa and Ye Ye's house for a celebration dinner - and Max is pretty sure that spaghetti won't be served in the familiar blue bowls that came all the way from Hong Kong with his grandparents. But Max is delighted to discover that his understanding family has discovered a way to bring two cultures together with delicious dishes that are a combination of all the foods he loves. This story shows the experience of a child living in between two cultures and how confusing that can sometimes be. It's based on Flo's own experiences growing up, longing to belong/be organically part of the North American culture, but also feeling a strong sense of home and family when immersed in her Chinese culture. She feels that the result for many second-generation Chinese Canadians/Americans is the creation of a third culture that intertwines and connects the various influences of both. Flo has chosen the iconic "exquisite blue bowl" (that she says would be familiar to many Chinese-American families) and the food that goes inside that bowl to set the stage for this duality in the story. Max is trying to come to terms with where he fits in these two cultures, and by the end the story, with the help of his family, he discovers that he has the freedom to create his own experiences, and the results are unique, interesting, and evolving - just like Max himself"--
A CCBC 2024 Choices for the Picture Books category!
A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best!
A 2023 Horn Book Best of the Year--Picture Book
"A loving tale inventively and informatively told." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"A uniquely told story that will delight all readers. Highly recommended." --School Library Journal (starred review)
"Clever, whimsical, and jam-packed with details." --The Horn Book (starred review)
"A friendship story chronicled through charts, graphs, and maps." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
This is THE next book for fans of Mapping Sam and My Map Book! Told exclusively through charts and graphic illustrations, infographics designer Lalena Fisher explores the touching friendship of Ana and Harwin and how they work through their emotions when one friend learns the other is moving far away.
Friends Beyond Measure explores the world of infographics, including maps, diagrams, charts, timelines, and so much more! From the chart showing how to make fairy tea to the Venn diagram of the friends' personalities, every page is filled with delicious details for the reader to pore over.
Ana and Harwin's friendship has been off the charts since day one! But when Harwin learns her family is going to move far away, the duo isn't sure how their friendship can survive the move.
See how their friend-o-meters calibrate in this imaginative, heartwarming story by beloved picture book creator and infographic designer Lalena Fisher.
An ideal read-aloud for classrooms, libraries, and homeschooling, this book includes back matter that explains all about the different types of charts and graphics in the book and gives suggestions for readers to create charts of their own.
Readers will love all the fun details in this rich and visual story! And they'll engage in critical thinking while analyzing and evaluating the images.
This is a snoot. Snoots need boops.
A boop is a pat. A gentle tap. Get your finger ready and . . . BOOP!
There are so many snoots to boop! Snoots attached to big dogs and little dogs and dogs with beards and those without. Are you ready to boop ALL the snoots?
With interactive illustrations by Linzie Hunter (What If, Pig?), this charming, playful, fun, and interactive picture book from Bea Birdsong invites kids to boop all the snoots they see. Perfect for dog lovers of all ages and fans of Press Here and Tap the Magic Tree.
This wacky counting adventure by Geisel Award-winning author David LaRochelle is a hilarious ode to dragons and math, with pitch-perfect art by Lian Cho.
High on a mountain live 100 mighty dragons all named Broccoli. When a tremendous wind blows half the dragons away, ten others sail off to become professional surfers in Hawaii. The oldest and youngest dragons take a train to New York City to start their own heavy metal band. And a mysterious wizard turns four more into a unicorn, a werewolf, a zombie, and a tiny pink poodle. Now how many dragons are left? Young readers will delight in following each and every dragon as they leave their home for marvelous adventures, until there is but one dragon remaining. That's when this final dragon named Broccoli retreats to a cave for the winter and reappears in the spring with a surprise that will thrill and delight. Prepare to read again!
An adorable bunny tries to prove to everyone that there's more to her than just being cute.
Everyone agrees—Little Bunny is just the cutest little thing. Well, everyone agrees except for Little Bunny herself. Why doesn’t anyone ever notice that she’s also brave, clever, and helpful? She’s at her wit’s end, until she meets an understanding new friend who makes her finally feel seen for her whole self.
From critically acclaimed author Lucy Ruth Cummins and Pete Oswald, New York Times bestselling illustrator of The Sour Grape, comes a rhyming bedtime tale featuring brand new picture book character Sleepy Sheepy, a sheep who is definitely NOT sleepy!
Sleepy Sheepy was not sleepy
But it was time for bed
(At least, that's what the clock said.)
But Sleepy Sheepy would not sleepy.
He was wired. And absolutely not tired!
In fact, he was WIDE-AWAKE.
Despite his name, Sleepy Sheepy is NOT sleepy. He'd much rather build with blocks or knit socks than go to sleep. Will Ma and Pa Sheepy ever get their sheepy to go to sleepy?
From acclaimed author Lucy Ruth Cummins and brought to life by #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator Pete Oswald (The Bad Seed, The Good Egg, The Smart Cookie, The Sour Grape), Sleepy Sheepy is a hilarious bedtime read-aloud that will appeal to little lambs everywhere.
Praise for Sleepy Sheepy:
"Caregivers will enjoy making this a bedtime read, and librarians will turn to this often for pajama storytimes. An entertaining tale sure to resonate with those on either side of the bedtime battle."—Kirkus reviews
"This could easily end up a story hour favorite and an often checked-out new bedtime classic for not-so-tired kids and their very tired parents; this will especially work a spell on preschoolers." —School Library Journal
"Sleepy Sheepy, rendered by Oswald in fluffy, cloud-like textures, insists he's anything but sleepy . . .even the most bedtime-resistant readers will respect his exhausted capitulation.” —Publishers Weekly
Using the same innovative format as his Caldecott Honor winner, Mel Fell, Corey R. Tabor reimagines Aesop's "The Dog and His Reflection" in a clever, charming tale of empathy and generosity.
One day, down by the pond, Simon meets another dog just like him.
And that dog has a bone just like his, only better!
How will Simon ever get him to trade, when the other pup knows all the same tricks...?
An International Bestseller
“A knockout collection. ... Sharp-edged satire deceptively wrapped like a box of Neuhaus chocolates, Table for Two is a winner.” —The New York Times
From the bestselling author of Rules of Civility, A Gentleman in Moscow, and The Lincoln Highway, a richly detailed and sharply drawn collection of stories, including a novella featuring one of his most beloved characters
Millions of Amor Towles fans are in for a treat as he shares some of his shorter fiction: six stories based in New York City and a novella set in Golden Age Hollywood.
The New York stories, most of which take place around the year 2000, consider the fateful consequences that can spring from brief encounters and the delicate mechanics of compromise that operate at the heart of modern marriages.
In Towles’s novel Rules of Civility, the indomitable Evelyn Ross leaves New York City in September 1938 with the intention of returning home to Indiana. But as her train pulls into Chicago, where her parents are waiting, she instead extends her ticket to Los Angeles. Told from seven points of view, “Eve in Hollywood” describes how Eve crafts a new future for herself—and others—in a noirish tale that takes us through the movie sets, bungalows, and dive bars of Los Angeles.
Written with his signature wit, humor, and sophistication, Table for Two is another glittering addition to Towles’s canon of stylish and transporting fiction.
An entertaining and fascinating memoir of “gifted storyteller” (People) Ann Hood’s adventurous years as a TWA flight attendant.
In 1978, in the tailwind of the golden age of air travel, flight attendants were the epitome of glamor and sophistication. Fresh out of college and hungry to experience the world—and maybe, one day, write about it—Ann Hood joined their ranks. After a grueling job search, Hood survived TWA’s rigorous Breech Training Academy and learned to evacuate seven kinds of aircraft, deliver a baby, mix proper cocktails, administer oxygen, and stay calm no matter what the situation.
In the air, Hood found both the adventure she’d dreamt of and the unexpected realities of life on the job. She carved chateaubriand in the first-class cabin and dined in front of the pyramids in Cairo, fended off passengers’ advances and found romance on layovers in London and Lisbon, and walked more than a million miles in high heels. She flew through the start of deregulation, an oil crisis, massive furloughs, and a labor strike.
As the airline industry changed around her, Hood began to write—even drafting snatches of her first novel from the jump-seat. She reveals how the job empowered her, despite its roots in sexist standards. Packed with funny, moving, and shocking stories of life as a flight attendant, Fly Girl captures the nostalgia and magic of air travel at its height, and the thrill that remains with every takeoff.
NOBEL PRIZE WINNER • From the acclaimed, bestselling author of The Remains of the Day comes “a Gothic tour de force" (The New York Times) with an extraordinary twist—a moving, suspenseful, beautifully atmospheric modern classic.
As children, Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy were students at Hailsham, an exclusive boarding school secluded in the English countryside. It was a place of mercurial cliques and mysterious rules where teachers were constantly reminding their charges of how special they were.
Now, years later, Kathy is a young woman. Ruth and Tommy have reentered her life. And for the first time she is beginning to look back at their shared past and understand just what it is that makes them special—and how that gift will shape the rest of their time together.
One of Amazon’s Best Books of September!
Strangers on a London bus unite to help an elderly man find his missed love connection in the heartwarming new novel from the acclaimed author of The Last Chance Library.
When Libby Nicholls arrives in London, brokenhearted and with her life in tatters, the first person she meets on the bus is elderly Frank. He tells her about the time in 1962 that he met a girl on the number 88 bus with beautiful red hair just like hers. They made plans for a date at the National Gallery art museum, but Frank lost the bus ticket with her number on it. For the past sixty years, he’s ridden the same bus trying to find her, but with no luck.
Libby is inspired to action and, with the help of an unlikely companion, she papers the bus route with posters advertising their search. Libby begins to open her guarded heart to new friendships and a budding romance, as her tightly controlled world expands. But with Frank’s dementia progressing quickly, their chance of finding the girl on the 88 bus is slipping away.
More than anything, Libby wants Frank to see his lost love one more time. But their quest also shows Libby just how important it is to embrace her own chances for happiness—before it’s too late—in a beautifully uplifting novel about how a shared common experience among strangers can transform lives in the most marvelous ways.
In 1958, a small Minnesota town is rocked by a shocking murder, pouring fresh fuel on old grievances in this dazzling novel, an instant New York Times bestseller and “a work of art” (The Denver Post).
On Memorial Day in Jewel, Minnesota, the body of wealthy landowner Jimmy Quinn is found floating in the Alabaster River, dead from a shotgun blast. The investigation falls to Sheriff Brody Dern, a highly decorated war hero who still carries the physical and emotional scars from his military service. Even before Dern has the results of the autopsy, vicious rumors begin to circulate that the killer must be Noah Bluestone, a Native American WWII veteran who has recently returned to Jewel with a Japanese wife. As suspicions and accusations mount and the town teeters on the edge of more violence, Dern struggles not only to find the truth of Quinn’s murder but also put to rest the demons from his own past.
Caught up in the torrent of anger that sweeps through Jewel are a war widow and her adolescent son, the intrepid publisher of the local newspaper, an aging deputy, and a crusading female lawyer, all of whom struggle with their own tragic histories and harbor secrets that Quinn’s death threatens to expose.
Both a complex, spellbinding mystery and a masterful portrait of mid-century American life that is “a novel to cherish” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis), The River We Remember offers an unflinching look at the wounds left by the wars we fight abroad and at home, a moving exploration of the ways in which we seek to heal, and a testament to the enduring power of the stories we tell about the places we call home.
A #1 bestseller on The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times!
From the celebrated author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds comes Kristin Hannah's The Women—at once an intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided.
Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these words, it is a revelation. Raised in the sun-drenched, idyllic world of Southern California and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing. But in 1965, the world is changing, and she suddenly dares to imagine a different future for herself. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.
As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is over-whelmed by the chaos and destruction of war. Each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, she meets—and becomes one of—the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost.
But war is just the beginning for Frankie and her veteran friends. The real battle lies in coming home to a changed and divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam.
The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on all women who put themselves in harm’s way and whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has too often been forgotten. A novel about deep friendships and bold patriotism, The Women is a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose idealism and courage under fire will come to define an era.