The consulting firm McKinsey has its hand in everything. This book gives a sense of the scope of their work and the consequences of a private enterprise exercising such worldwide influence in everything from Healthcare to Authoritarian Governments. For a company that masquerades as a way for young graduates to change the world, they do a nauseating amount of harm.
"A literary crime masterpiece that follows a Japanese pickpocket lost to the machinations of fate." An addictive read, perfect for the mystery reader in your life who seems to have read everything!
Chosen by: JulieWhen I finished this one, it felt like finishing five seasons of a tv show I binged in a week. How did the characters change in such startling, yet realistic ways so quickly? Am I just supposed to stop wondering about them now? While I connected with the members of this family on a cellular level, The Latecomers has broad appeal for anyone into family sagas and family secrets and meditations on privilege and excellent writing.
Chosen by: Sophia
What's for Dessert is an incredible follow up to the cult classic Dessert Person. Saffitz breaks down how to make dessert in a way that is mesmerizing, marrying her impressive knowledge and her love for sweet treats. The pictures in this book are stunning and I don't know what to make first! The perfect gift for that sweet someone, sweet anyone in your life!
Chosen by: Sophia
Time is a Mother is Ocean Vuong’s second collection of poetry. Each sentence is beautifully heartbreaking, leaving you aching but somehow hopeful. Vuong invites you to sit with his grief and examine living after the death of his mother. He paints pictures with words just as vividly as he did in his critically acclaimed titles On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous and Night Sky With Exit Wounds.
Chosen by: Ava
Before I read this book, I loved Paul Newman. He was an incredible philanthropist and actor, devastatingly handsome and very charismatic. After I read this memoir I admired him even more than I did before. This autobiography was surprisingly raw, deeply honest and self-analytical. He was one of the most famous celebrities of his time who was often put on a very high pedestal; I felt like his story told in his own words, was one that was both incredibly human and relatable.
Chosen by: Ava
This is a combination you didn’t know you needed until you saw that it existed. While reading this book, it was evident that the only person you could get to illustrate a Kafka story is someone who is equally deep, smart, strange and ironically humorous. R. Crumb uses his scratchy pen-and-ink style drawing to perfectly capture a Kafkaesque mood.
Chosen by: Emily
This is such an important book. In a world of constant social-media posting and performative activism, local author Kavita Das asks "what is our motivation for writing about social issues?" She uses her own published work as well as the writing of greats such as George Orwell and James Baldwin to illustrate the nuances of tackling difficult topics. One thing that makes this book so well-rounded is that it contains the full text of the work the author references, so the reader can fully understand the points being made. This is a book not only for journalists or authors, but for anyone who wants to more effectively write, read, post, speak, and think about the state of our world.
Chosen by: Astrid, age 3
Bina bear is a little shy. Where did Bina bear go?
Chosen by: Michael
In this monumental work, Hämäläinen completely reframes American history by centering the indigenous societies that occupied North America before the Europeans arrived. Upending the traditional American narrative highlighting unenforceable territorial claims by European colonial powers, Hämäläinen shows how the indigenous societies were not backwoods savages but fully formed powers themselves, forcing the Europeans (and later the Americans) to ally and negotiate with them to survive. One of the best new history books in years.
This dazzling graphic novel (translated into English for the first time by Alex Dudok de Wit) is a fascinating look into iconic filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki’s early career, as well as a stunning, fully formed work in its own right. Perfect for the graphic novel or Miyazaki lover in your life, or anyone who wants to embark on a beautiful adventure.
If you love opening a book and seeing a map in the front pages, this book is for you! If you enjoy wandering a new city with just a paper map, this book is also for you! If you imagine and create new lands and stories of your own, guess what? This book is for you!!! Feast your eyes on strange early maps from our own world as well as the fantastical array of maps from our favorite literary worlds and read all about the artistic processes that generated them. This book also makes an incredible gift for the writer, artist, fantasy reader or D&D player on your holiday list.
A beautiful new compendium of the Greek myths, told through the voices of the women at the heart of them. Get ready to be transported to a dream-like, labyrinthine world, where the stories are woven together seamlessly and accompanied by elegant line drawings by the artist, Chris Ofili. This is a fresh, captivating collection that will surprise readers who are already familiar with the tales, and enchant readers who are discovering them for the first time.