Publisher: Gibbs Smith
Hard-won and universal wisdom from the ranch for those folks gittin’ up in years. Gems include: “Don’t spread your blanket where a cat’s been diggin’.” “It don’t take a very big man to carry a grudge.” “Every path has some puddles.”
A “suspenseful . . . welcome debut” mystery set in New Orleans (The Washington Post Book World). When a disturbing series of murder-suicides terrorizes the Big Easy, young NOPD criminal psychologist Kit Franklyn is eager to take the case and prove her mettle. She discovers some bizarre connections between the perpetrators: They all share the same blood type, drive old cars, and reportedly hummed a nursery rhyme before committing their grisly acts. As she uncovers the scope of the crimes, Franklyn turns to Andy Broussard, the chief medical examiner whose love of the truth is matched only by his love of New Orleans cuisine. Together, they follow a dangerous trail that leads into the Crescent City’s dark past, and an old Cajun curse that seems to have returned with a vengeance. Now Broussard and Franklyn need to fight off some very bad juju, or their partnership may end before it begins. This first mystery featuring Broussard and Franklyn is a “fast-paced thriller” that “won’t be easily put down” (The Commercial Appeal, Memphis).Show book
One man wants to publish, so another must perish, in this darkly witty philosophical novel by “a spectacularly gifted comic writer” (Newsweek). The Third Policeman follows a narrator who is obsessed with the work of a scientist and philosopher named de Selby (who believes that Earth is not round but sausage-shaped)—and has finally completed what he believes is the definitive text on the subject. But, broke and desperate for money to get his scholarly masterpiece published, he winds up committing robbery—and murder. From here, this remarkably imaginative dark comedy proceeds into a world of riddles, contradictions, and questions about the nature of eternity as our narrator meets some policemen with an obsession of their own (specifically, bicycles), and engages in an extended conversation with his dead victim—and his own soul, which he nicknames Joe. By the celebrated Irish author praised by James Joyce as “a real writer, with the true comic spirit,” The Third Policeman is an incomparable work of fiction. “’Tis the odd joke of modern Irish literature—of the three novelists in its holy trinity, James Joyce, Samuel Beckett and Flann O’Brien, the easiest and most accessible of the lot is O’Brien. . . . Flann O’Brien was too much his own man, Ireland’s man, to speak in any but his own tongue.” —The Washington PostShow book
From shredded furniture to messy litter boxes to fur on everything, there are times when every cat owner wants to shout, "Cats are the worst!" This playful book shows what it looks like if cats could shout back, "No, humans are the worst!" For every grievance humans have about their feline friends (knocked over glasses!), cats have one about their humans (unprovoked vacuuming!)—and each is explored in a lively exchange that is as funny as it is familiar. Filled with watercolor illustrations that perfectly capture every moment of cat-titude, Cats Are the Worst is a relatable laugh for anyone who might agree that cats are the worst—but also, maybe, a little bit the best.Show book
From a Pulitzer Prize–winning author: “An immensely gratifying novel” of an Irish-American clan whose exploits changed Albany forever (The Boston Globe). When it was built, the Phelan mansion was the only home on the block. In the decades since, countless tragedies have swept through its rambling halls, but no matter how many times its foundations have been rocked, the old house still stands. Now, in 1958, its sole occupants are the eccentric old painter Peter Phelan and his illegitimate son, Orson, who sees all—but says nothing. When Peter invites his remaining family to hear him read his will aloud, it forces the Phelan clan to reckon with the most powerful force in Albany: their own tortured history. Unveiling a series of portraits inspired by family tragedy, Peter takes the Phelans back into the past, as far as 1887, forcing them to come face-to-face with the origins of the family curse. As the raucous narrative unfolds, Orson does his best to grapple with his roots, and the knowledge that the sins of the past can never truly be washed away. William Kennedy’s eight-book Albany Cycle is one of the most ambitious projects in modern historical fiction, a kaleidoscopic portrait of a city whose heroes are its corrupt politicians, conmen, and thieves. The Phelans are one of the roughest families in American literature, and also one of the greatest, who “can claim a place beside O’Neill’s Tyrones and Steinbeck’s Joads” (Library Journal).Show book
Illustrated and packaged à la Margaret Wise Brown’s Goodnight Moon, Goodnight '70s turns the classic children’s book into a baby boomer’s ode to the far out 1970s. It’s the perfect gift for anyone nostalgic for the good old days of bell-bottoms, disco balls, and 8-track tapes.Show book
In this New Orleans–set mystery, the author of Cajun Nights “combines an insider’s knowledge with a real flair for making the reader’s skin crawl” (Booklist). There’s a killer stalking the New Orleans French Quarter. Each victim is found in the same gruesome condition: the body bloodied by a gardening fork, and the throat torn out by . . . what exactly? That’s the question on the minds of medical examiner Andy Broussard and his young partner, criminal psychologist Kit Franklyn. Broussard suspects the perpetrator isn’t human at all, but a monster of terrifying legend. Only when their investigation draws them deep into Bayou country do Broussard and Franklyn discover just how monstrous some humans can be . . . With this second sharp-witted mystery in the series featuring Broussard and Franklyn, “it’s hard to beat [Donaldson’s] combination of cool science and explosive passion in the heart of humid Louisiana” (The Commercial Appeal, Memphis).Show book
