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Summer Reads for Adults
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Remarkably Bright Creatures
by Shelby Van PeltA Read With Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick!“Remarkably Bright Creatures is a beautiful examination of how loneliness can be transformed, cracked open, with the slightest touch from another living thing.” -- Kevin Wilson, author of Nothing to See HereFor fans of A Man Called Ove, a charming, witty and compulsively readable exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope that traces a widow's unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopusAfter Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late. Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.
Help Is on the Way
by Kountry WayneComedic superstar and internet entrepreneur Kountry Wayne’s unflinchingly honest, often outrageous, but always hopeful and hard-won lessons on having faith.
Before he was one of Variety’s “10 Comics to Watch” and a comedy sensation followed by millions, Kountry Wayne found few legit options for a poor Black man in a small-minded Georgia town. For many years he resorted to running his own game, but thankfully friends and family (and one patient probation officer) convinced him that he had talent beyond hustling. Once he began posting short sketches based on his on-the-nose Southern Black truths, wildly funny observations, and inspirational guidance, he became an almost overnight hit.
Now a proud father of ten, Kountry Wayne is on a mission to give back. By sharing his seemingly impossible story, he hopes to help others see that no matter where you started from or how stuck you feel right now, the possibilities for living a rich, full life are limitless. Trust that the universe has got you!
His Kountry Lessons include:• Sometimes All You Have Is Your Pride: Often the only person who can push you forward is you.• Live Your Truth: Don’t hide from where you came from, celebrate it—this is what makes you an original.• Don’t Get Mad, Get Money: Ignore the people who want to tear you down and provide for the ones you love.• Stay Up: Even when the worst thing happens, you have to find the strength to keep going.
Whether you are simply looking for a laugh to boost your spirit or some real guidance to help you in life, love, or money, Kountry Wayne has got you covered.
Night Angel Nemesis
by Brent WeeksThe incredible return to the New York Times bestselling world of the Night Angel, where master assassin Kylar Stern embarks on a new adventure as the High King Logan Gyre calls on him to save his kingdom and the hope of peace."Weeks has been showing other fantasy authors how it's done for over fifteen years." — Peter V. Brett, author of The Desert Prince"Weeks is a giant of the genre." — Nicholas Eames, author of Kings of the Wyld After the war that cost him so much, Kylar Stern is broken and alone. He's determined not to kill again, but an impending amnesty will pardon the one murderer he can't let walk free. He promises himself this is the last time. One last hit to tie up the loose ends of his old, lost life. But Kylar's best — and maybe only — friend, the High King Logan Gyre, needs him. To protect a fragile peace, Logan&’s new kingdom, and the king&’s twin sons, he needs Kylar to secure a powerful magical artifact that was unearthed during the war. With rumors that a ka'kari may be found, adversaries both old and new are on the hunt. And if Kylar has learned anything, it&’s that ancient magics are better left in the hands of those he can trust. If he does the job right, he won&’t need to kill at all. This isn&’t an assassination — it&’s a heist. But some jobs are too hard for an easy conscience, and some enemies are so powerful the only answer lies in the shadows."Weeks writes in an inescapably engaging style. Breathlessly high stakes, terrible missteps, and unexpected revelations keep the story humming along at a breakneck pace." — Andrea Stewart, author of The Bone Shard Daughter For more from Brent Weeks, check out:The Ka'kari Codex The Night Angel TrilogyThe Way of ShadowsShadow's Edge Beyond the ShadowsThe Kylar ChroniclesNight Angel NemesisThe Night Angel Trilogy: 10th Anniversary EditionNight Angel: The Complete Trilogy (omnibus) Perfect Shadow: A Night Angel NovellaThe Way of Shadows: The Graphic NovelLightbringerThe Black PrismThe Blinding KnifeThe Broken EyeThe Blood MirrorThe Burning White
Crying in H Mart
by Michelle Zauner#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the indie rock sensation known as Japanese Breakfast, an unforgettable memoir about family, food, grief, love, and growing up Korean American—&“in losing her mother and cooking to bring her back to life, Zauner became herself&” (NPR). • CELEBRATING OVER ONE YEAR ON THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LISTIn this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. With humor and heart, she tells of growing up one of the few Asian American kids at her school in Eugene, Oregon; of struggling with her mother's particular, high expectations of her; of a painful adolescence; of treasured months spent in her grandmother's tiny apartment in Seoul, where she and her mother would bond, late at night, over heaping plates of food. As she grew up, moving to the East Coast for college, finding work in the restaurant industry, and performing gigs with her fledgling band--and meeting the man who would become her husband--her Koreanness began to feel ever more distant, even as she found the life she wanted to live. It was her mother's diagnosis of terminal cancer, when Michelle was twenty-five, that forced a reckoning with her identity and brought her to reclaim the gifts of taste, language, and history her mother had given her.Vivacious and plainspoken, lyrical and honest, Zauner's voice is as radiantly alive on the page as it is onstage. Rich with intimate anecdotes that will resonate widely, and complete with family photos, Crying in H Mart is a book to cherish, share, and reread.
Is It Hot in Here (Or Am I Suffering for All Eternity for the Sins I Committed on Earth)?
by Zach ZimmermanIn this debut collection of essays, lists, musings, and quips, New York-based comedian Zach Zimmerman delicately walks the fine line between tear-jerking and knee-slapping, and does so with aplomb.
In this laugh-and-cry-out-loud, memoir-esque exploration of selfhood, Zimmerman dives into the pros and cons of retiring a Bible-Belt-dwelling, meat-eating, God-fearing identity in exchange for a new, metropolitan lease on life—one of vegetarianism, atheism, queerness, and humor. Whether learning to absolve instilled religious guilt or reminiscing over Tinder dates gone horribly wrong, this book is a candid and hysterical look at one person's journey toward making peace with the past and seeking hope in the future.
HILARIOUS WRITING: The stories featured in this collection are an uproarious read with a strong and established tone of voice. Featuring pieces that were originally published in the New Yorker, Is It Hot in Here (Or Am I Suffering for All Eternity for the Sins I Committed on Earth)? is a literary gem.
RELEVANT AND INCLUSIVE: Zimmerman navigates obstacles in the queer community with essays that are not only humorous and heartfelt, but also act as guiding anecdotes for young, queer community members.
ESTABLISHED AUTHOR AND COMEDIAN: Zimmerman has written dozens of New Yorker humor pieces and essays, a Billboard Top Ten comedy album that debuted at #1, and has been featured in New York Magazine, The New York Times, TimeOut, Vulture, and more.