From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:
Hardcover
Hausfrau: A Novel by Jill Alexander Essbaum (Random House, $26, 9780812997538). "In this powerful, affecting novel, Essbaum has written an ode to desire and the destructive choices we make. There is a grace in Essbaum's writing that leads the reader to love Anna, to befriend her, and to be endlessly protective of her. Whatever it is that a poet does with words--the arranging, the building of something that is more than the sum of its parts--Essbaum, an accomplished poet, does with the emotions and the honesty in this work. It is brave, vulnerable, and filled with love, passion, and the kind of lust that one never speaks about. This is something special." --Kenny Coble, The Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, Wash.
After Birth: A Novel by Elisa Albert (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $23, 9780544273733). "Ari is the profane, generous, poetic, desperate, loving, and terrified best friend we all hope for. Sleep-deprived and thrumming with the electricity of new motherhood, Ari stumbles upon pockets of community support in places both expected and unexpected that cut through her small-town isolation and the clutch of postpartum depression. Albert wields humor like a blade in relaying Ari's thoughts, and she is a master of conveying the gorgeous struggle of birth and all that comes after." --Katie Presley, BookPeople, Austin, Tex.
Paperback
The Last Days of Video: A Novel by Jeremy Hawkins (Soft Skull Press, $15.95, 9781619024854). "For film geeks and lovers of all things going out of style, reading this book feels like sharing an inside joke with the author. Each quirky character fights in their own way to save the independent store they love --Star Video--from both the Blockbuster moving into the neighborhood and a town eager for change. This book hilariously takes on today's culture, both embracing and mocking its often conflicting ideals of nostalgia and progress." --Rebekah Arwood, The Bookshelf, Thomasville, Ga.
For Teen Readers
The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma (Algonquin, $17.95, 9781616203726). "The Walls Around Us shares the stories of two very different girls--Amber, imprisoned for a terrible crime for so long that she can't remember what the world outside is like, and Violet, a Julliard-bound dancer with a dark and terrible secret that threatens her at every turn. A third girl, Orianna, connects Amber and Violet in ways that none of them understand and that may be the key to setting everyone free. This deep, tense mystery spurs the reader on at every turn, leading down long, winding tunnels of regret and self-loathing, threatening to expose the characters' most private selves, and keeping the pages turning late into the night. This is a gripping tale of what ambition can make friends do for--and to--each other." --Emily Hall, Main Street Books, St. Charles, Mo.
For Ages 8 to 12
Blackbird Fly by Erin Entrada Kelly (Greenwillow Books, $16.99, 9780062238610). "Blackbird Fly is a wonderful story about the struggles of being different, trying to fit in, and still being true to yourself. Apple, who moved to Louisiana from the Philippines with her mother, is trying to fit in at school where she is teased about her heritage. She is able to find comfort in music and becomes a guitar prodigy, using her musical abilities to find new friendships, and, ultimately, herself and acceptance." --Amy Lacy, Petunia's Place, Fresno, Calif.
Children’s Illustrated
Orion and the Dark by Emma Yarlett (Templar, $16.99, 9780763675950). "Orion is afraid of a lot of things, but most of all he is afraid of the dark. He tries everything he can to avoid it. But one night when he yells at the dark to go away, the Dark comes alive and drops into his room. That night, the Dark teaches Orion that darkness is not always scary and can be fun! With detailed illustrations that pop off every page, this story is a wonderful exploration of how sometimes the things we fear the most are just things we don't understand." --Phoebe Dyer, Boswell Book Company, Milwaukee, Wisc.
