Contemporary Morocco is the setting for Meryem Alaoui's lively debut novel about a sex worker with an indomitable spirit. In Straight from the Horse's Mouth, translated from the French by Emma Ramadan, Jmiaa introduces herself by saying, "To live, I use what I've got." And what she's got, beside her body, is moxie to spare. Jmiaa admonishes readers, "You only have one life. What's the point of filling it with nothing?"

She fills her life with television, drinking and, obviously, her work. Jmiaa relates her experiences as a sex worker with brutal honesty and a shrug, but she never sees herself as a victim. She lives with Halima, another sex worker who frustrates Jmiaa with her defeatism. Halima was respectable before circumstances led her to Jmiaa's tiny, squalid apartment, and she seems to be wallowing in her fate. Jmiaa, on the other hand, is determined to keep her eyes open for opportunities to move forward. So, when she's tapped to play a sex worker in an indie film being shot in her neighborhood, she jumps at it. Unsurprisingly, her larger-than-life personality transfers to the big screen, and she experiences a life she was sure she was meant for all along.

Jmiaa isn't entirely likable, yet her charisma never flags. This is a funny and profane book; joyful in its celebration of a life lived expansively and filled with the sights and sounds of Casablanca. Straight from the Horse's Mouth received critical acclaim when it was first published in France, and will be equally welcome in this ebullient English translation. --Cindy Pauldine, bookseller, the river's end bookstore, Oswego, N.Y.

Ruth Ware's engrossing One by One opens with a BBC News story headlined "4 Britons Dead in Ski Resort Tragedy." The report states the victims were found after an avalanche in a "house of horror," which in its better days is an exclusive chalet high up in the French Alps.

The mystery cuts to five days earlier, when 10 guests arrive at the chalet, all part of a tech startup that created a popular music app called Snoop. On staff at the resort are Erin and Danny, with Erin handling guest relations and Danny the culinary duties. The guests are ostensibly there for a ski retreat, but the more important item on the agenda is deciding whether or not to accept a company buyout offer. Tensions mount as the players disagree, and when the chalet loses power after an avalanche, everyone is trapped together at the top of the mountain. And then, one by one, people start getting murdered. Will the killings continue until there are none?

One of Ware's (The Lying Game; In a Dark, Dark Wood; The Woman in Cabin 10) strengths is propelling the story in a way that keeps readers trapped inside its pages, and armchair travelers can enjoy being whisked away to a location that's both breathtaking and deadly. Anyone familiar with Agatha Christie's work--specifically And Then There Were None, to which this pays obvious homage--might find One by One predictable at times, but Ware gives it a modern twist and an exciting, literally chilling denouement. --Elyse Dinh-McCrillis, blogger at Pop Culture Nerd

Eleanor Herman (Sex with the Queen and Sex with Kings) continues her unflinching nonfiction series on the insatiable libidos of powerful people by turning the spotlight on American presidents in Sex with Presidents.

Titillating whispers and outright scandal have long surrounded Thomas Jefferson, John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, but all the juicy details are expounded upon, and six more presidents get called out for their ribald behavior. Grover Cleveland, the only one to serve two nonconsecutive terms, was the first of three presidents accused of rape. President Woodrow Wilson maintained a public affair with a married socialite while his wife remained at home battling kidney failure. Warren G. Harding checked himself into a sanitarium (twice!), attempting to cure sex addiction with Kellogg's Cornflakes. Eleonor Roosevelt detested sex with her philandering husband, Franklin, but that didn't deter her from leading a sexually fluid lifestyle. Ten presidents, three first ladies and two well-known figures who aspired to be leader of the free world are dragged through mud in this must-keep-reading book.

Eleanor Herman's poison-pen dissection of lauded historical figures is startling in scope and revelation. Herman readily admits many of her claims rely on hearsay and speculation, due to the destruction of thousands of letters and diaries, but she cites 53 different authors' works to back up the existence of such documents and the veracity of her claims. One thing the author does make clear with her engrossing documentation: as long as politicians keep the economy running smoothly, Americans don't really care what happens behind closed doors. --Paul Dinh-McCrillis, freelance reviewer

Genderqueer writer and filmmaker Stuart Getty's How to They/Them: A Visual Guide to Nonbinary Pronouns and the World of Gender Fluidity is a charming, often witty and useful guide to a serious subject.

Aided by cartoon-style illustrations from Brooke Thyng, Getty tackles big questions, using a generous helping of personal anecdotes to make their points. They explain the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation, and how both relate to the question of sex assigned at birth. They outline a range of possible gender identifications beyond the binary he/she. They explain why someone might prefer to use the pronoun "they," and place that usage in both historical and multicultural context--obliterating the argument that it is "not grammatical" in the process.

With the background of who, why and what established, Getty moves on to a wide-ranging discussion of practical questions about using they, both for those who identify as they and those who don't. Much of their advice boils down to being polite and not assuming, recognizing that both may be difficult at first. They also point out structural issues that organizations can address to be more gender inclusive. In what may be the most important section, they tackle the difficult questions of talking to a friend or relative who refuses to use your correct pronouns, as well as talking to kids about pronouns.

Getty begins and ends with the assertion that their book, and the use of they as a singular pronoun, is ultimately about freedom. They make their case. --Pamela Toler, blogging at History in the Margins

"American citizenship, which ought to grant the same rights to all who hold it, has been historically circumscribed by a number of conditions that are almost entirely determined by the lottery of birth." So writes award-winning novelist and professor Laila Lalami (The Other Americans; The Moor's Account) in her first nonfiction book, Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America.

This provocatively insightful cross between memoir and essay exposes what it is like to be a nonwhite American citizen, using numerous historical examples combined with deeply vulnerable accounts of Lalami's personal experiences.

As a Muslim-American from Morocco, who was naturalized shortly before 9/11, Lalami quickly learned that she could not expect the same rights and protections as a white American male. In chapters with titles such as Allegiance, Caste and Faith, she illustrates ways in which certain factors, such as race, gender and religion, can be an often-insurmountable barrier to the achievement of the American Dream.

As disturbing as these issues are to confront, Lalami's warmth and skill as a writer make this book difficult to put down. She also ends on a note of hope since, as she says, "Despair is seductive. It takes no effort and gives a way out." Instead, Lalami leaves readers with ways in which they can improve the status quo and continue the fight for true equality.

Her call to action has always been necessary, but even more strikingly amid the social turmoil stoked by the Covid-19 pandemic. --Grace Rajendran, freelance reviewer and literary events producer

Adventures in Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life finds the Canadian author Cait Flanders leaving her comfortable perch in Squamish, British Columbia, to "slowly travel full-time" for a year. She books a one-way ticket to London, arriving late March 2019 with loosely laid-out plans and a desire to make temporary homes in places that suit her fancy, living the ultimate untethered existence.

An avid hiker and engaging storyteller, Flanders burst onto the self-help memoir scene with The Year of Less, documenting the year she instituted a shopping ban. With several opt-out adventures under her belt, including her decision to give up alcohol, she sees a fascinating parallel between taking a different path in life and the psychological work required to climb a mountain. She describes the ups and downs of her year abroad, and shares with humor and sincerity the unadulterated truth of what it really takes to "do the opposite of what everyone around [you] is doing." The reward, she reveals, is in the trying, and if all goes well, the satisfying ascent to a new way of living, one in which you are more yourself than before.

Adventures in Opting Out is a deeply honest emotional guide, advising readers to tune into the instincts that indicate it's time to consider a new path, whether that's giving up on goals that others expect us to follow, or rejecting the subconscious restrictions we place on ourselves. --Shahina Piyarali, writer and reviewer

In ArtCurious, podcaster and curator Jennifer Dasal reveals illuminating stories about the rarified world of fine art.

When many people think of art, they imagine themselves admiring lovely objects in museums, created by elite artists in a world far removed from daily life. But many works of art and the artists behind them have stories that are fascinating, surprising, sometimes simply unbelievable. During the Cold War, the CIA (through an agency called the Congress for Cultural Freedom) surreptitiously promoted abstract expressionism as the American epitome of individuality and experimentation to challenge socialist realism, the staid official style of art in the Soviet Union. Monet, whom Dasal considered "the most boring painter of my childhood," was actually subversive; along with the rest of the impressionists, he bucked the art establishment and exhibited rejected artwork in the deliciously named Salon de Refusés.

Dasal upends assumptions about what readers think they know about art and artists. Norman Rockwell, known for his sentimental Saturday Evening Post covers, created some of the most important (and grim) paintings during the Civil Rights era. Andy Warhol was a hoarder who created 610 time capsules that contained everything from business contracts to nail clippings. Dasal also considers the unlikely roots of modern art: Georgiana Houghton and Hilma af Klint, two female artists who were inspired by Victorian-era seances and spiritualism.

The art world loves conspiracy theories, and Dasal weighs in on whether or not Vincent van Gogh was murdered, if Walter Sickert was really Jack the Ripper, and if the Mona Lisa hanging in the Louvre is the real deal. Informative and fun, ArtCurious is a delightful romp. --Frank Brasile, librarian

It was only when he started working in the art world that Matthew Israel came to understand that "art history is not just the story of artists and movements": it's also about museum directors and curators, fabricators and fair organizers, advisers and administrators, conservators and shippers. With the pleasingly wonky A Year in the Art World, Israel hopes that readers will "discover that the art world has much more to offer than eccentric celebrities, pretentious ideas and stories of record-breaking auction prices." Happily, his book includes some of that stuff, too.

Each of A Year in the Art World's 15 chapters introduces an aspect of the industry; it begins with an artist, Taryn Simon, in her New York studio, and concludes with art handlers at a Queens warehouse. Israel logs many miles, some overseas, in order to meet with art world movers and shakers who operate largely out of the limelight. Stephen Koch, who manages the estate of the photographer Peter Hujar (1934-1987), believes that "without Theo and his wife, [van Gogh's] paintings would have vanished from history."

A Year in the Art World is a look at the modern art scene, from Campbell's soup cans to nuts. Israel (Kill for Peace: American Artists Against the Vietnam War; The Big Picture: Contemporary Art in 10 Works by 10 Artists) reinforces his book's democratic premise with 16 pages of photos showing not just artists and their work but the folks who toil so that the work can be sought, seen and sold. --Nell Beram, author and freelance writer

In his debut picture book, John Owens takes readers on a mindfulness journey through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) on the Minnesota-Canada border. This gentle, wordless adventure depicts a young child and their family exploring and enjoying the wonders of nature.

Inspired by his own trips to the BWCA, Owens illustrates the awe and wonder of this lush land: dense forest, rushing rivers, tranquil lakes and an expansive night sky. The vibrant colors, strong lines and rich impressions of texture create alluring dimensions on every enticing, double-page spread.

By limiting his book to illustration only, Owens invites his audience to take in all the dynamic details of the family's surroundings and use their imaginations to hear, smell and even taste the natural world depicted. As the interracial family paddles their canoe through a lake full of lily pads, turtles watch and geese fly overhead. Their cozy campsite is inviting, even with the soft gray lines of rain pitter-patting. Realistically illustrated wild, ripe blueberries are picked and savored. Every family member enjoys the bounty of the region and the calm of the Earth.

One Summer Up North lends itself to wonderful discussions with readers of all ages, such as identifying natural elements with preschoolers or appreciating environmental responsibility with older audiences. Owens's love of the BWCA, as described in an author's note, results here in a beautiful homage that is likely to help develop a similar respect in many others. --Jen Forbus, freelancer