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Amusing and lighthearted with brightly expressive illustrations, Harley Griffon’s Beard is a delightful book for children about one little dog’s mischief, written by Nana Piercy and illustrated by M. Daamoouche. When Harley’s owner tries to clean her beard one day, the dog runs out the door and gets into an even bigger mess, meeting creepy crawly denizens of her neighborhood along the way. Inspired by Piercy’s own dog, Harley’s travels are evermore charming, as they feel more like a real-life adventure. Though there are some complex words for young children, the spirited rhymes and illustrations tell such an engaging story […]

Martin Patin’s charming novel, Roebell Sandwich, follows the ups and downs of a 12-year-old boy’s life in Queens, N.Y. during the 70s and his pursuit of fame. When Paul Roebell achieves his dream of being on TV, his success is countered by failures he must learn to accept. Though the story lacks a distinct climax, this supports the feeling of Roebell’s monotonous daily life, and Patin’s themes of masculinity and identity keep the story alive. Both lighthearted and realistic, Patin provides readers with an entertaining dive into 70s nostalgia that also makes a comment on contemporary issues.

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In a memoir full of charm and grit, Pieman: The Papa D Story, June V. Bourgo and Dennis Bourgo relay their story of how Dennis – aka Papa D – built his meat pie business at the end of a dirt road, with June’s love and support. On the coast of British Columbia, the Bourgos found a rural piece of land and undertook the painstaking process of creating the wildly successful Papa D’s Comfort Foods, featuring his Nana’s recipe. Although the book’s focus is often disrupted by free association and digressions, readers will be drawn in by the authors’ easy, […]

A tender and engrossing work of romance, Love, Lydie by Blair Harton encapsulates a teenage girl’s dreams of romantic fate. On the streets of Greenwich Village, rockstar Nathan Roth defends a young woman, Lydia, in an altercation with her boyfriend – a fateful encounter, as they fall in love. The novel fast-forwards a decade to Lydia’s hometown, where Nathan is a single father working at the local theater, and their relationship takes a turn because Nathan is in love with the theater’s events coordinator. Secrets and wounds are unearthed, weaving unexpected mystery into the novel through a series of enticing […]