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Reviews

by Jon Hickey - Fiction

Mitch Caddo, a young law school graduate and an aspiring political fixer, is an outsider in the homeland of his Anishinaabe ancestors. But alongside his childhood friend, Tribal President Mack Beck, he runs the government of the Passage Rouge Nation and the tribe’s Golden Eagle Casino and Hotel. On the eve of Mack’s reelection, their tenuous grip on power is threatened by a nationally known activist and politician, Gloria Hawkins, and her young aide, Layla Beck, none other than Mack’s estranged sister and Mitch’s former love. In their struggle for control over Passage Rouge, the campaigns resort to bare-knuckle political gamesmanship. But when an accident claims the life of Mitch’s mentor, a power broker in the reservation’s political scene, the election slides into chaos and pits Mitch against the only family he has.

by Michael Arkush - Nonfiction, Sports

So, who’s the best of 'em all? Tiger Woods? Jack Nicklaus? Bobby Jones? Ben Hogan? Golf fans will disagree until the end of time, but one thing is certain: For well over 100 years, the sport has provided its share of spectacular careers and indelible moments. And what about fan favorites such as Phil Mickelson, Nancy Lopez and Lee Trevino? Where do they rank on the list? Or modern players like Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Nelly Korda and Justin Thomas. Did they make the final cut --- and if so, where? In a joyride through golf history itself, Michael Arkush establishes a ranking system that places a heavy emphasis on the game’s major championships and profiles the most accomplished and impactful golfers ever --- men and women, known and unknown.

by Steve Cavanagh - Fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

A former resident of the ultra-elite Manhattan upper class, Ruby Johnson now works as a maid in the type of houses she used to live in. Unassuming, she sees everyone’s dirty secrets from the inside of their beautiful, renovated brownstones. But when Ruby witnesses a murder, she has wicked plans in mind that don’t involve telling the authorities the truth. Eddie Flynn, a streetwise ex-con-artist-turned-defense attorney, is the only lawyer in New York City willing to take on hopeless cases. And none is more hopeless than John Jackson’s --- the gun that killed his neighbor was found, with Jackson’s DNA, in his own home. Flynn and his unconventional team will need to use every trick they know to keep an innocent man from being locked up. But to save his client’s life, Eddie must first protect his own, as the scariest organized criminals in the city are out for his head.

by Wayne Stewart - Nonfiction, Sports

Imagine you had the opportunity to sit down with ballplayers such as Hank Aaron, Greg Maddux, Joe Torre and Nolan Ryan. You might ask them about their star teammates and hated opponents. You might talk about the obstacles they overcame and the strategies that led to their success. Or you might just talk about life in the majors. In TALKING BASEBALL WITH MAJOR LEAGUE STARS, Wayne Stewart provides readers with all that and more. Featuring over 45 years of interviews, Stewart details the history, tactics and inside stories of the national pastime with unique perspectives that only the players, coaches and managers could provide.

by Jason Cannon - Biography, Nonfiction, Sports

Professional baseball has featured a bevy of superstars over the past century and a half, but only a few of them have impacted their sport and cities as deeply as Willie McCovey and Billy Williams. Born just a handful of miles apart in 1938, they grew up in and around one of the sport’s true cradles, Mobile, Alabama, on their way to producing two iconic careers in Major League Baseball. In A TIME FOR REFLECTION, Jason Cannon examines these two legends of the game. Overcoming the heinous racism of the Jim Crow South as part of the second generation of African American major leaguers who followed in the footsteps of Jackie Robinson, they became two of baseball’s all-time greatest players. Off the field, they took impactful stands for racial progress that continue to resonate today.

by Scott Turow - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Rusty Sabich is a retired judge attempting a third act in life with a loving soon-to-be wife, Bea. But the peace that’s taken Rusty so long to find evaporates when Bea’s young adult son, Aaron, living under their supervision while on probation for drug possession, disappears. If Aaron doesn’t return soon, he will be sent back to jail. Aaron eventually turns up with a vague story about a camping trip with his troubled girlfriend, Mae, that ended in a fight and a long hitchhike home. Days later, when she still hasn’t returned, suspicion falls on Aaron. And when Mae is subsequently discovered dead, Aaron is arrested and set for trial on charges of first-degree murder. Faced with few choices and even fewer hopes, Bea begs Rusty to return to court one last time, to defend her son and to save their last best hope for happiness.

by Julie Gilbert - Biography, Nonfiction, Performing Arts

The stupendous publication of Edna Ferber's GIANT in 1952 set off a storm of protest over the novel's portrayal of Texas manners, money and mores, with oil-rich Texans threatening to shoot, lynch or ban Ferber from ever entering the state again. In GIANT LOVE, Julie Gilbert writes of the internationally bestselling Ferber, one of the most widely read writers in the first half of the 20th century --- her evolution from mid-west maverick girl-reporter to Pulitzer Prize-winning, beloved American novelist, from her want-to-be actress days to becoming Broadway's acclaimed prize-winning playwright whose collaborators were, along with Ferber herself, the most successful playwrights of their time. Here is the making of an American classic novel and the film that followed in its wake.

by David Aldridge and John Hollinger, with The Athletic NBA Staff - History, Nonfiction, Sports

Over the course of 100 luminous player profiles, the best sports newsroom on the planet paints vivid portraits of the game’s most compelling characters. They include George Mikan, Gary Payton, Dennis Rodman, Allen Iverson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Steph Curry. Edited by award-winning reporters David Aldridge and John Hollinger, THE BASKETBALL 100 also answers the game’s toughest, most important questions: How should we weigh championship rings, versus statistical profiles, versus the “eye test”? Were the great players of yesteryear, like Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell, propelled by the inferior athleticism of their competition, or would they have been transcendent in any era? And of course, who’s the GOAT --- MJ or LeBron?

by Billy Collins - Poetry, Poetry Collection

In this collection of 60 new poems, Billy Collins writes about the beauties and ironies of everyday experience. A poem is best, he feels, when it begins in clarity but ends with a whiff of mystery. In WATER, WATER, Collins combines his vigilant attention and respect for the peripheral to create moments of delight. Common and uncommon events are captured here with equal fascination, be it a cat leaning to drink from a swimming pool, a nurse calling a name in a waiting room, or an astronaut reciting Emily Dickinson from outer space. With his trademark lyrical informality, Collins asks us to slow down and glimpse the elevated in the ordinary, the odd in the familiar.

by John Feinstein - Nonfiction, Sports

The history of the Ivy League dates back to 1869 when Princeton played the first college football game against Rutgers. THE ANCIENT EIGHT explores Ivy League football today. To play in the NFL, one must maintain the highest academic standards and be a great football player. The rivalries are as intense, as are the strict rules --- but there is also a genuine purity in the Ivy League. Through intimate interviews with players, coaches and key figures, John Feinstein uncovers the unique culture that defines football on the Ivy League gridiron, offering unparalleled access to the remarkable coaching staffs and student-athletes who balance their academic ambitions with their passion for the game.