Guardians of Ga'Hoole Book 9: The First Collier

Written by: Kathryn Lasky

First line: Call me Grank.

Why you should read this book: Lasky takes a fresh look at her popular series, using the familiar characters only as a frame for the first part of the story of Grank, the first collier, who tells his tale in first person from the pages of an ancient manuscript. In times long past, dark magic threatens owls across the north lands, but especially the Queen Siv and her unhatched egg, the future King Hoole. Many of the legends and language from earlier in the series are explored in detail in another fast-paced adventure, brimming over with supernatural effects and brave deeds.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're pregnant.

Where Clouds Are Formed

Written by: Ofelia Zepeda

First line: Every day it is the same.

Why you should read this book: A lovely and refreshing collection of poetry focuses on the land around Tucson, the experience of a Tohono O'odham woman moving through her landscape, and a love of water, dirt, clouds, and stars. The language is evocative, transporting the reader to a desert world where life is abundant for those who know how to see it and science, culture, history, language, and place intersect in a wonderful web. A triumphant and powerful statement set firmly in time and space.

Why you shouldn't read this book: It's almost too short: you've only just begun to savor the flavors of the poet's world when the book is over.

Partner to the Poor: A Paul Farmer Reader

Edited by: Haun Saussy

First line: People sometimes refer to Paul Edward Farmer, MD, born in 1959, as a hero, saint, madman, or genius.

Why you should read this book: This collection of scholarly essays, spanning a period of more than two decades, collects some of medical anthropologist Dr. Farmer's powerful research on the intersection of poverty, gender, ethics, and healthcare. Based mostly in Haiti, but covering the entire world, with implications for everyone, he discusses infectious disease, particularly AIDS and tuberculosis, and they way in which the modern medical model fails those who need the most help. From "stupid" (easily preventable) deaths, to child prostitution, violence, and the objectification of the poor, resulting in prejudicial attitudes that poverty must be an impediment to healthcare, this book dissects the false beliefs, negated by Farmer's actual success, that have allowed wealthy nations to set aside their responsibility to others.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Although Farmer writes with a quiet wit, this is a rather dense scholarly work and may not be easy for some readers to get through.

In Pieces

Written by: KJ Kabza

First line: The first thing Jesper noticed was her parasol, twirling like a ghostly pinwheel beyond the branches and webs.

Why you should read this book: In the fantasy worlds of KJ Kabza, sometimes the ghost saves you, and sometimes you save the ghost; the hero's epic quest is no match for true love, and the holiness of angels is no match for true lust. From the clones of JK Rowling and CS Lewis in the distant future to the shades of Charon and Sisyphus in the mythic past, this collection of previously published short stories offers fresh perspectives on speculative themes and characters you may have seen before, but never quite in this light. When the scientist smashes his time machine after a safe and successful trip to the future, the superhero claims a "guilt-free, socially sanctioned excuse to break shit," after posting his arch-enemy's homemade fetish tapes to YouTube, and small purple dragons live in the bathtub drain and eat soap, you know you've left the mundane world and entered into the author's truly surprising imagination.

Why you shouldn't read this book: In the interest of full disclosure, I am biased toward this book, in no small part because the dedication reads, "For Monica Friedman, who knows it all," and the acknowledgements thank me "for a lifetime of being awesome."

This book is available exclusively on Smashwords: Buy it here.

The Land of the Painted Caves

Written by: Jean M. Auel

First line: The band of travelers walked along the path between the clear sparkling water of Grass River and the black-streaked white limestone cliff, following the trail that paralleled the right bank.

Why you should read this book: If you read the first five novels in the Earth's Children series and are dying to know what happens to Ayla and Jondalar, that would be a decent recent to pick up this monstrosity. If you are interested in reading pages and pages of detailed descriptions of prehistoric cave paintings (which go on for so long that even the main character, whose joie de vivre helps her feel excitement for pretty much everything in the world, admits that she is bored of cave paintings) or willing to slog through hundreds of pages of repetitious exposition with little action, conflict, or character development to learn one researcher's opinion on the ephemera of prehistoric religion, those would also be reasons to tackle this tome. I cannot think of another reason why anyone would want to read this book, which is badly in need of editing and lacks most of the graphic sex scenes, emotional turmoil, and ancient innovation that made the previous novels so delightful.

Why you shouldn't read this book: If you cut out every passage that summed up plots or relationships detailed in the previous five books or earlier in this one, it would be about fifty percent shorter. If you also cut out the tedious greetings, various characters' impressions of the protagonist's accent, dull hunting scenes, long-winded explanations of climate, flora, and fauna that has been explained in the other books, and the description of all the painted caves, you'd be left with a book that was about eighty-five percent shorter and reasonably interesting, although still mostly predictable and really poorly written.

The Guardians of Ga’Hoole Book 8: The Outcast

Written by: Kathryn Lasky

First line: You are a mask.

Why you should read this book: In exile from his hateful family, young Nyroc begins to explore the world and contemplate the terms of his destiny. To this end, he changes his name to Coryn and journeys to Beyond the Beyond, for what purpose he can only guess. Along the way, he begins to hone his skills as a hero while collecting allies, until multiple character converge at the sacred volcanoes and the plucky owl can discover the fate that the world offers.

Why you shouldn’t read this book: You consider your own offspring, or other people’s children, perfect sacrificial lambs.

Mountains beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World

Written by: Tracy Kidder

First line: Six years after the fact, Dr. Paul Edward Farmer reminded me, "We met because of a beheading, of all things."

Why you should read this book: In turn heartbreaking, inspiring, astonishing, painful, and eye-opening, this Pulitzer-winning book recounts the life and work of Dr. Paul Farmer, as seen through the eyes of writer Tracy Kidder, who accompanies him around the world, from Haiti to America to Peru to Russia and back to Haiti, documenting Farmer's determination to eradicate multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis, AIDS, and any other disease that comes him way amidst populations that most of the planet has already decided should be allowed to die. Farmer's unrelenting work on behalf of the poorest and most downtrodden people of the world serves as a wake-up call that anyone, anywhere can make a difference if he or she is determined to change the world, and this book demonstrates how Farmer's advocacy for the poor has changed the world: building clinics and houses, cleaning up water supplies, and negotiating with the international groups that determine treatment protocols, distribute funds, and control drug prices. Kidder's sensitive reporting helps the average reader understand the mind of a nearly super-human genius, rendering his subject accessible and encouraging a little more compassion, understanding, and determination from his audience.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You've already assuaged your white liberal guilt with your checkbook.

Go the Fuck to Sleep

Written by: Adam Mansbach

First line: Cats nestle close to their kittens now.

Why you should read this book: Pairing familiar, cozy images of peacefully slumbering animals and happy babies with tongue-in-cheek text in which the narrator begs an overly wakeful child to go the fuck to sleep, this is a satirical look at the desire of all adults for their children to turn off at the end of the day so everyone can decompress. Sleep deprived Moms and Dads will recognize the hysterical juxtaposition: there is that adoration of ones offspring paired with parental desperation; anyone who has ever wondered why their child will not go the fuck to sleep will find their feelings mirrored in the increasingly frantic pleas for a little big people solitude free of further requests for drinks, teddy bears, or bathroom trips. For a truly grown-up treat, check out Samuel L. Jackson reading this text at Audible.com.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think it's for children and are horrified by the language.

Guardians of Ga'Hoole Book 7: The Hatchling

Written by: Kathryn Lasky

First line: "It's the hatchling," a young owl said as the group watched Nyroc, only son of the great warrior Kludd, begin a power dive.

Why you should read this book: The Guardians of Ga'Hoole series takes a different turn, and gives evil a new face, as the action shifts to the enclave of the Pure Ones, where Kludd and Nyra's newly hatched son, Nyroc, demonstrates his amazing ability to do everything his mother asks of him. Nyroc is a likable little owl, clever and open-minded, who possesses talents far beyond anything his power-hungry mother can guess at. Will he grow up to fill his father's battle claws, or will there be tasks set before him that he simply cannot answer to?

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think asking a kid to murder his best friend is a great test of loyalty.

Ends of the Earth

Written by: Roy Chapman Andrews

First line: Almost every day someone asks me: "How did you start exploring and digging up dinosaur eggs in the Gobi Desert?"

Why you should read this book: Affable adventurer Andrews provides detailed accounts of many of his expeditions, from his first whale collecting field trip in 1907 through to his scientific exploration and leisure pursuits in China and Mongolia in the late twenties. With rich descriptions of the most imposing animals to ever die at the hands of a gentleman scientist, along with his personal observations on Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Mongolian peoples and culture and dozens of near-death experiences, this book brings the author's journeys to life in a vivid way. This volume includes dozens of black and white photographs, all taken by the author, in the early part of the last century, documenting some of his travels to distant lands.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Contains a lot of the same material as the later (and shorter) Under a Lucky Star.