Our regular booksellers are back with their favorite books for you to get lost in. Betsy Burton, co-founder of The King’s English, offers the “perfect gift for anyone who loves people with pluck.” Ken Sanders brings a book that tells the tale of one of the most famous animal actors of all time, Bart the Bear. And Catherine Weller recommends a powerful book about sacrifice. Join us this Wednesday at 9 a.m.
GUESTS —
Ken Sanders | Owner of Ken Sanders Rare Books
Betsy Burton | Co-founder of The King’s English Bookshop
Catherine Weller | Book buyer for Weller Book Works
Airdate: Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, at 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
The Holiday Wish List:
Weller Book Works
Adult Fiction and Poetry
“All Fours” by Miranda July, Riverhead Books, hardcover, $29.00
“City and Its Uncertain Walls” by Haruki Murakami, Knopf, hardcover, $35.00
“Collaborators” by Michael Idov. Scribner Book Company, hardcover, $28.99
“Creation Lake” by Rachel Kushner, Scribner Book Company, hardcover, $29.99
“Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story” by Olga Tokarczuk, Riverhead Books, hardcover, $30.00
“I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons” by Peter S. Beagle, Saga Press, hardcover, $26.99
“Lost and Lassoed” by Lyla Sage, Dial Press, paperback, $17.99
“Playground: A Novel” by Richard Powers, WW Norton, hardcover, $29.99
“Polostan” by Neal Stephenson, William Morrow & Co. hardcover, $32.00
“Suggested in the Stars” by Yoko Tawada, New Directions, paperback, $16.95
“There are Rivers in the Sky” by Elif Shafak, Knopf, hardcover, $30.00
“We Solve Murders” by Richard Osman, Pamela Dorman Books, hardcover, $30.00
Adult Non-Fiction
“Absinthe Forger: A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and the World’s Most Dangerous Spirit” by Evan Rail, Melville House, hardcover, $32.00
“American Teenager: How Trans Kids are Surviving Hate and Finding Joy in a Turbulent Era” by Nico Lang, Abrams Pres, hardcover, $30.00
“By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice on Native Land” by Rebecca Nagle, Harper, hardcover, $32.00
“Custodians of Wonder: Ancient Custom, Profound Traditions, and the Last People Keeping them Alive” by Eliot Stein, St. Martins Press, hardcover, $29.00
“Didion & Babitz” by Lila Anolik, Scribner, hardcover, $29.99
“Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times that Made Handel’s Messiah” by Charles King, Doubleday Books, hardcover, $32.00
“Forbidden Garden” by Simon Parkin, Scribner, hardcover, $30.00
“Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth” by Zoe Schlanger, Harper, hardcover, $29.99
“Ultimate Hidden Truth of the World: Essays by David Graeber” FSG, hardcover, $32.00
“Witches Among Us: Understanding Contemporary Witchcraft and Wicca” by Thorn Mooney, Llewllyn Publications, paperback, $16.99
“Without Exception: Reclaiming Abortion, Personhood, and Freedom” by Pam Houston, Torrey House Press, paperback, $15.95
Misc. Adult Books
“”Amrika: 125 Recipes from the Indian American Diaspora” by Khushbu Shah, WW Norton, hardcover, $35.00
“Birds aren’t Real: The True Story of Mass Avian Murder and the Largest Surveillance Campaign in US History” by Peter McIndoe and Connor Gaydos, St. Martins Press, hardcover, $29.00
“Carols of Cthulhu: Horrifying Holiday Hymns from the Lore of H.P. Lovecraft” by Mike Slater, Countryman Press, hardcover, $19.99
“Let’s Go to the Mall: An 80’s Seek-and-Find” by Sally Nixon, Chronicle Books, hardcover, $16.95
“Ottolenghi Comfort: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi with Helen Goh” Ten Speed Press, hardcover, $37.99
“Pass the Plate: 100 Nutritious, Highly Shareable, Everyday Recipes: A Cookbook by Carolina Gelen” Clarkson Potter, hardcover, $35.00
“This Book is Literally Just Pictures of Cute Cats Who are Plotting to Kill You” Smith Street Books, hardcover, $15.95
Little Books for stocking stuffers
“How to… philosophy series” Princeton University Press, hardcover
“Little Book of… science series” Princeton University Press,
“Mindfulness Essentials eastern philosophy series” Paralax Press paperbacks; MIT Press “Essential Knowledge series science and critical studies paperbacks”
Kids Books
“Bakery Dragon” by Devin Elle Kurtz, Knopf Books for Young Readers, hardcover, $18.99 ( 4 – 8 years)
“Bletchley Riddle” by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin, Viking Books for Young Readers, hardcover, $18.99 (10 and up)
“Impossible Creatures” by Kathererine Rundell, Knopf Books for Young Readers, hardcover, $19.99 (10 and up)
“In Praise of Mystery” by Ada Limón and Peter Sís (illustrator), Norton Young Readers, hardcover, $18.99 (4 – 8 years)
“Mr. Lepron’s Mystery Soup” by Giovanna Zopoli and Mariacharia Di Giorgio (illustrator), Candlewick, hardcover, $18.99 (3 -7 years)
“Pig Town Party” by Lian Cho, HarperCollins, hardcover, $19.99 (4 – 8 years)
“Road Home” by Rex Ogle, Norton Young Readers, hardcover, $18.99 (14 and up)
“Rocket Puppies” by William Joyce, $18.99 Atheneum, hardcover, $18.99
Fiction
“Playground” by Richard Powers, Norton hardcover, $29.99
“Gabriel’s Moon” by William Boyd, Atlantic Monthly Press hardcover, $28
“Our Evenings” by Alan Hollinghurst, Random House hardcover, $30
“Lazarus Man” by Richard Price, Farrar, Straus and Giroux hardcover, $29
“Tell Me Everything” by Elizabeth Strout, Random House hardcover, $30
Fiction Paperback of the Year and a Perfect Gift for Anyone Who Loves to Read:
“The Covenant of Water”, Abraham Verghese, Grove paperback, $22
Nonfiction
“Thirst: Great Salt Lake” by Fazal Sheikh, Photographer and Terry Tempest Williams. Distributed Arts Press hardcover, $52
“Mythos” by Stephen Fry, Illustrations by Jesús Sotés, Chronicle hardcover, $45
“Letters by Oliver Sachs” edited by Kate Edgar, Knopf hardcover, $40.00
“Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel’s Messiah” by Charles King , Doubleday hardcover, $32
Paperback of the Year and a Perfect Gift for Anyone Who Loves People with Pluck:
“So…Why Not?” by Georgia Perrin Ball, Perrin paperback, $16.95
Nonfiction Hardcover of the Year and a Perfect Gift for Almost Anyone:
“A Walk in the Park” by Kevin Fedarko, Scribner hardcover, $32.55
Mystery Thriller
“The Drowned” by John Banville Hanover Square hardcover, $28.88
“Presumed Guilty” by Scott Turow,
“Death at the Sign of the Rook: A Jackson Brodie Book” by Kate Atkinson, Doubleday hardcover, $30
“The Waiting” by Michael Connelly, Little, Brown hardcover, $30
Children’s Picture Books
“Rocket Puppies” by William “Whoosh” Joyce, Atheneum Books, $18.99
“The Gingerbread House Jack’s Family Ate” by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Nate Wragg,
Orchard hardcover, $17.99
“The Yowlers” by Stacy Lynn Carroll, illustrated by Molly Ruttan, Nancy Paulsen hardcover, $18.99
Children’s Chapter Books
“The Bletchley Riddle” by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin, Viking hardcover, $18.99 (middle reader)
“The Winterton Deception 1: The Final Word” by Janet Sumner Johnson, Pixel Ink paperback, $10.99 (middle reader)
“When the World Tips Over” by Jandy Nelson, Dial hardcover, $21.99 (Young Adult)
Fiction & Poetry
“The Book of Drought: Poems by Rob Carney.” Texas Review Press: 2024. Paperback, $21.95
“Absolution: A Southern Reach Novel” by Jeff VanderMeer. MCD: 2024. Hardcover, $30
“The City and Its Uncertain Walls” by Haruki Murakami. Alfred A. Knopf: 2024. Hardcover, $35
“The Mighty Red” by Louise Erdrich. Harper: 2024. Hardcover, $32
“Playground” by Richard Powers. W. W. Norton & Company: 2024. Hardcover, $29.99
“Entitlement” by Rumaan Alam. Riverhead Books: 2024. Hardcover, $30
“Herscht 07769” by László Krasznahorkai and Ottilie Mulzet (Translator). New Directions Publishing Corporation: 2024. Paperback, $16.95
Illustrated Books & Graphic Novels
“B. Traven: Portrait of a Famous Unknown” by Golo and Donald Nicholson-Smith. PM Press: 2024. Paperback, $19.95
“The Hidden Life of Trees: A Graphic Adaptation” by Peter Wohlleben. Greystone Books: 2024. Hardcover, $35
“Revolution in 35MM: Political Violence and Resistance in Cinema from the Arthouse to the Grindhouse, 1960-1990” by Andrew Nette and Samm Deighan. PM Press: 2024. Paperback, $29.95
“The Road: A Graphic Novel Adaptation” by Cormac McCarthy and Manu Larcenet (Illustrator). Abrams Comicarts: 2024. Hardcover, $26.99
“The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien” by John Hendrix. Abrams Fanfare, 2024. Hardcover, $29.99
“Final Cut” by Charles Burns. Pantheon: 2024. Hardcover, $34
Children’s Books
“In Praise of Mystery” by Ada Limón and Peter Sís (Illustrator). Norton Young Readers: 2024. Hardcover, $18.99
“Alice in a Winter Wonderland” by Jan Brett. G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers: 2024. Hardcover, $19.99
“My First Book of Fancy Letters” by Jessica Hische. Penguin: 2024. Hardcover, $16.99
History, Politics & Current Affairs
“They Call You Back” by Tim Z. Hernandez. University of Arizona Press, 2024. Hardcover, $30
“That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America” by Amanda Jones. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2024. Hardcover, $29.99
“The Explorers: A New History of America in Ten Expeditions” by Amanda Bellows. William Morrow and Company: 2024. Hardcover, $32.50
“Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering” by Malcolm Gladwell. Little Brown and Company: 2024. Hardcover, $32
“Queering Kinship in the Mormon Cosmos” by Taylor G. Petrey. University of North Carolina Press: 2024. Paperback, $27.95
“The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates” One World: 2024. Hardcover, $30
“Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI” by Yuval Noah Harari. Random House: 2024. Hardcover, $35
Natural History
“Where Are Your Men? Rafting Western Rivers with The Ladies” by Zan Merrill and Nikki Naise. Z Press, 2024. Paperback, $12.99
“The Grizzlies and Us by Lynne Seus” The Vital Ground Foundation: 2024. Paperback, $24.95
“The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World” by Robin Wall Kimmerer and John Burgoyne (Illustrator). Scribner Book Company, 2024. Hardcover, $20