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           Between the Covers in 2017

"You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me." -- C.S. Lewis


Christmas carols have been quieted. Santa's tiny reindeer are tucked away. Lights and tinsel no longer shine as brightly. And am I the only one who finds it a relief to put away Christmas dishes, bowls and platters so kitchen counters can be less cluttered? 

It's also time to start reading lists for the month/season/year. If your newest favorite book wasn't gift wrapped or if you've hit a reading slump, there's the perfect book waiting for you. January is Book Blitz Month.

Novels/Short Stories. Curl up with a cup of hot tea and read new novels or short stories by Chris Bohjalian, Stuart Woods, Danielle Steel, E.L. Doctorow, Terry Goodkind, John Lescroart, Tim Dorsey, Roxane Gay, Mary Miller, Sebastian Barry and Lisa Gardner.

Best of...books. One annually published book series will help make a lot of readers happy and engrossed. Choose from any of these topics: The Best American...Essays, Short Stories, Best Travel Writing, Science and Nature Writing, Mystery Stories, Sports Writing, Science Fiction & Fantasy. Also, there's the Best American Non-required Reading and Best American Magazine Writing 2016. 

Books for little ones. From board books to oversized picture books, there are stubborn pigeons, sweet bears, goofy hippos, and naughty kittens. Look for Mo Willems' Don't Let the Pigeon... series. Classics are given a new spin in the Kid Lit series by Jennifer Adams and Allison Oliver. Look for Alice in Wonderland to teach colors and Romeo and Juliet to help with counting. You can't go wrong with books by Eric Carle (The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Dream Snow), Sandra Boynton (Moo Baa La La La!, Pookie), Lois Ehlert (Feathers for Lunch, Fish Eyes), Harriet Wood (The Napping House), Ezra Jack Keats (The Snowy Day), Robert McCloskey (Make Way for Ducklings, Blueberries for Sal), Dr. Seuss (Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat), Eric Hill (Spot series), Anna Dewdney (Llama Llama series), Crescent Dragonwagon & Jerry Pinkney (Half a Moon and One Whole Star). Watch for new books by James Dean (Pete the Cat) and Kevin Henkes (Egg).

Books for early readers/readers. Graduating from a picture book to a chapter book is a big step for children. There are authors bridging that gap: Marc Brown (Arthur series); Peggy Parish (Amelia Bedelia series); Alyssa S. Capucilli (Biscuit series); James Dean (Pete the Cat I Can Read series); Mary Pope Osborne (Magic Treehouse series). Classic authors for older readers include Gary Paulsen (Hatchet), Louise Fitzhugh (Harriet the Spy), Beverly Cleary (Ribsy, Henry Huggins), Laura Ingalls Wilder (Little House series), Mildred D. Taylor (The Road to Memphis). Young fans can learn more about Jim Henson's magic in Brad Meltzer's I Am Jim Henson, and Frederick Douglass by Walter Dean Myers.

Nonfiction. Smart phones...drones...self-driving cars. Technology is advancing quickly and changing our lives every day. As much as we rely on Google and Instagram, we're also taking a look back at typewriters and Archie Bunker: TV The Book by Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz; Anatomy of a Song - The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R & B, and Pop by Marc Meyers; The Revenge of Analog - Real Things and Why They Matter by David Sax; The Typewriter Revolution by Richard Polt; Television: A Biography by David Thomson; and The Untold Story of the Talking Book by Matthew Rubery.

Three new books to check out in January - Ayelet Waldman shares her struggle to a better life in A Really Good Day. Interested in trying yoga but nervous about various poses? Read Kristin McGee's Chair Yoga. If the right words aren't easily written or spoken in an emotionally charged situation, Emily McDowell and Kelsey Crowe may have the answer in There is no Good Card for This...What To Say and Do When Life is Scary, Awful and Unfair to People You Love.




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