GGP Staff Picks

WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION NOMINEE • Best Book of the Month: The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Book Riot, CrimeReads • An elegant and hypnotic new novel of obsession that centers on the real unsolved mystery of the 1951 mass poisoning of a French village, by the Booker Prize–nominated author of The Water... Read more »

Iron Widow

“Iron Widow is addictive, non-stop, and insane! I LOVE this book so much! Take control of your life. Take control of your body. Make the patriarchy pay through blood and vengeance! This alt-reality world mixes Chinese culture and Pacific Rim, with addictive action, complex characters, and an unstoppable fury. Zetian wants revenge and will bring everything down to achieve it. No one, not men nor monsters, can stand against her will and determination. I can't stop thinking about this book! When are we getting book two?? “But I have no faith in love. Love cannot save me. I choose vengeance.””

Anna, The Well-Read Moose

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICE • A “profound and beautiful” (Marilynne Robinson) account of joy and sorrow from one of the great writers of our time, The New Yorker’s Kathryn Schulz, winner of the Pulitzer Prize

“I will stake my reputation on you being blown away by Lost & Found.”—Anne Lamott, author of Dusk, Night, Dawn... Read more »

Poverty, by America

“A succinct discussion of the causes, effects, and potential changes required to eradicate poverty in the United States. ”

Elliot, The Pleasant Pheasant Bookstore

Natural Beauty

“Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop has NOTHING on Holistik. Or…let’s hope it doesn’t! Absolutely everything about Holistik is wrong, from their scientifically questionable and unaffordable procedures to their purportedly “diverse” staff that looks to be entirely young, blonde, white women. The unnamed narrator of Ling Ling Huang’s Natural Beauty discovers all of this firsthand. The daughter of Chinese immigrants, she gives up her life as a child piano prodigy and finds herself deep in the bowels of the wellness phenomenon that is Holistik. As she becomes personally entwined with the family that owns the company and notices startling trends in her physical health, she’ll start to ask herself: What exactly is beauty and who do you have to look like to attain it? The parallels Huang draws between striving for musical perfection and yearning for physical beauty are both striking and haunting. Throughout this book, it was impossible not to root for the narrator, even as she kept foolishly walking into the belly of the beast, because she had to continually fight the way her own desires were subsumed by those of her white, wealthy “benefactors.”Natural Beauty is truly chilling. ”

Wulfe, Raven Book Store

Künstlers in Paradise

“The first Künstler family member we meet is Julian, who at 24 is having a hard time finding himself and becoming an adult. After his parents refuse to foot his bill, he travels to LA to visit his grandmother. Then COVID hits and he finds himself staying with her for the duration. Through their relationship we learn of his grandmother’s escape from Vienna during WW2 and the community of emigres in Hollywood she grew up in. The novel is a pandemic/coming of age story, as regards Julian, and an historical novel of the Jewish film and theater artists who were rescued and brought to Hollywood. Schine manages to cover some dark topics with heart, wry humor and enchanting storytelling. ”

Beth, A Great Good Place for Books

Happy Place

“Another great beach read from Emily Henry! I found myself unable to stop listening to this book. Henry just knows how to write a love story that makes you go noooo then yeeees then whaaaat then yeeees! The story of Wyn and Harriet will make your heart throb. And Harriet's journey to find herself and keep her friends will prove that self-love is worth fighting for.”

Rae, Titcomb's Bookshop

New York Times bestseller Cory Doctorow's Red Team Blues is a grabby next-Tuesday thriller about cryptocurrency shenanigans that will awaken you to how the world really works.

Martin Hench is 67 years old, single, and successful in a career stretching back to the beginnings of Silicon Valley. He lives and roams California in a very comfortable... Read more »

The Queen of Dirt Island

“A beautifully written story of four generations of Irish women in County Tipperary, Donal Ryan’s The Queen of Dirt Island is an exquisite story of family, loyalty, love, and forgiveness. Each chapter is a perfect two-page vignette; when strung together they build into a family saga starting with the birth of Saoirse in 1983. Each woman has a distinct voice, sometimes profane, but never overly sentimental. If you live storytelling that binds generations together, this book is for you. ”

Genevieve, A Great Good Place for Books

Stay True

“Stay True by Hua Hsu is a memoir set largely in/at Berkeley in the 1990s. A quietly profound look at the momentousness of the decisions you make as an emerging adult - about friendship, romance, art, music, activism, and family. ”

Carol, A Great Good Place for Books

The Creative Act

“The Creative Act by Rick Rubin is a wise and inspiring discussion of what it means to be an artist, a maker. He emphasizes that creativity is a way of being in the world - open, attentive, accepting of awe. And makes the case that each of us has a unique vantage onto the world and that expressing how life looks and feels to us is worth communicating, and that those exchanges are vital to our human project. ”

Carol, A Great Good Place for Books

If you enjoyed The House in the Cerulean Sea, then you’ll love In the Lives of Puppets.

“Full disclosure: I’m a huge TJ Klune fan and predisposed to love everything he writes! In The Lives of Puppets has his signature humor, charm, and poignancy. At the center of this retelling of Pinocchio is a most lovable motley crew of one human, Victor, and his robot friends Rambo and Nurse Ratched. Klune often writes of themes around found family and misfits, relatable to readers whether or not you’re part of the LGBTQIA community. I’m head over heels in love with hilarious robot Rambo, a little vacuum desperate for love and belonging. Victor sets out on a hero’s quest with his crew and finds love along the way, except there are strings attached (pun intended). ”

Genevieve, A Great Good Place for Books

David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas meets Octavia Butler’s Earthseed series, as acclaimed author Monica Byrne (The Girl in the Road) crafts an unforgettable piece of speculative fiction about where humanity came from, where we are now, and where we’re going—and how, in every age, the same forces that drive us apart also bind us together."A stone-cold... Read more »

Sink

“Joseph Earl Thomas's coming of age memoir captures a child trying to make sense of the adults in his life and the world around him. Growing up in a house ruled by his grandfather, who resents having to care for his daughter's children because she was addicted to crack, Thomas struggles with hunger and the other symptoms of poverty. Sensitive and unable to conform to masculine norms, he suffers persistent verbal abuse and lives in constant fear of violence. He entertains himself by adopting animals, drawing, video games, and Pokémon, which ultimately leads him to finding good friends. Thomas captures the complexity of everyone and every situation from a child's perspective and reaches thoughtful insights with regard to who is violent and who is seen. Highly recommend. ”

Amy, A Great Good Place for Books

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLERSet amid Colorado’s wild beauty, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story of a resilient young woman whose life is changed forever by one chance encounter. A tragic and uplifting novel of love and loss, family and survival—and hope—for readers of Great Circle, The Four Winds, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
Seventeen-year-old... Read more »

Big Swiss

“Big Swiss is the sort of strange and beautiful novel that you have to read to believe. It's utterly shocking, absolutely hysterical, and beautifully cynical. I laughed out loud on every other page, rolled my eyes at the pervasive hipster things Big Swiss pokes fun at, and thoroughly enjoyed the quirky atmosphere. Raging feminism, bunk psychology, and bisexuality all mix with ennui, infatuation, and humor in Jen Beagin's newest novel, Big Swiss. It's a book you won't want to leave and one your mind will probably still be puzzling over long after you've finished reading it.”

Emily, The Violet Fox Bookshop

READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY • “I’ve been an Allegra Goodman fan for years, but Sam is hands down my new favorite. I loved this powerful and endearing portrait of a girl who must summon deep within herself the grit and wisdom to grow up.”—Lily King, New York Times bestselling author of Writers & Lovers

NEW YORK TIMES... Read more »

If you enjoyed Evvie Drake Starts Over, then you’ll love Romantic Comedy (Reese's Book Club).

“I’m not usually one for 'lighthearted' or 'delightful' books but this one is both and darned if i don’t absolutely love it! Maybe its the Saturday Night Live references, or maybe the fact that i literally laughed out loud a few times, but it might just be that I really kind of misses Sally and Noah when the story was done, but i really love this delightful lighthearted book! ”

Angie, The Country Bookshop

Adelaide

“Sometimes I just need to read a book about romance, heartbreak, and friendship. Genevieve Wheeler’s debut novel completely meets that need. Adelaide is a lovable hot mess, a charming yet vulnerable American graduate student living in London. She falls hard for the too-perfect-to-be-true Rory. To be young and in love is wonderful, until Adelaide realizes that Rory’s feelings don’t quite match hers. It’s a poignant and relatable story of loving the wrong person, learning to put yourself first, and healing from heartbreak and its effects on mental health with the help of friends. I’m looking forward to what Wheeler has in store for us next! ”

Genevieve, A Great Good Place for Books

The Space Between Worlds

“I was thoroughly impressed by this imaginative debut high-concept sci-fi novel about multiverse travel! The protagonist, Cara, is unapologetically Queer, fearless and delightfully snarky! The social commentary is currently relevant and on point! Fans of confronting parallel selves, genre-bending political thrillers and depictions of dystopian landscapes will not be able to put this one down! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time! ”

Zinna, A Great Good Place for Books