Mid March 2017

A month of unsettled weather – we did so wish it would be an early spring!

After a few weeks of technical meltdown – my personal laptop and my business point of sale machine – I am hoping to get through the next two weeks without more time wasting and frustrating days at the mercy of machinery malfunction. New hard drive and new point of sale now working well.

It is the annual pre-inventory lull – but a few new books worth mentioning have arrived in the past few days.

New in Hardcover

Ice Ghosts by Paul Watson is about the epic hunt for the lost Franklin Expedition. This is the spellbinding story of the greatest cold case in Arctic history – and how the rare mix of marine science and Inuit knowledge finally led to the recent discovery of the shipwrecks.

Murder on the Serpentine by Anne Perry is the most recent in the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series. The stakes have never been greater – as the future of the British Empire rests on the success of their investigation.

New in Paperback

The Unfortunate Englishman by John Lawton

Berlin 1963 – British Intelligence, M16 the KGB – a spy thriller by a master storyteller.

A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline

The story of Christina Olsen and the painter Andrew Wyeth who made her image his own – a fascinating novel.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See

From a remote Chinese mountain village to present day California – a powerful story of two women separated by circumstance, culture and distance – and the enduring connection between mothers and daughters.

NEWS 6 March 2017

This would be a really good day to stay home with a book, on the couch with the fire on – instead of shivering in the store, forcing myself to work, while looking out at the cold and grey day, and the salt covered cars.

But, it is also a day when I can look at some of the new releases to share with you, and the most beautiful cookbook has just come in the door –

FEAST by Lindsay Anderson and Dana Vanveller

Recipes & Stories from a Canadian Road Trip

These two friends crisscrossed the country speaking with farmers, grandmothers, First Nation elders, and acclaimed chefs, collecting stories and recipes from coast to coast to coast. The resulting book is a stunning representation of the diversity and complexity of Canadian cooking – a beautiful, beautiful book! 

In the Name of the Family by Sarah Dunant is a novel of Machiavelli & the Borgias. She writes of the wonders of Renaissance Italy; power, passion, beauty, brutality, and the ties of blood.

New in Paperback

A Hero of France by Alan Furst

Paris 1941. The City of Light, occupied by the Nazis. Alan Furst has written scores of novels that take place just before and during the Second World War. My husband devours them - and every man I’ve recommended one to, comes back for the rest!

In this Grave Hour by Jacqueline Winspear is the most recent in the Maisie Dobbs series. I’m hooked on these stories of a nurse in the First World War and her life in England afterwards, where she runs a private detective agency – while also working, on occasion, for the Secret Service. It is now 1939 and Great Britain in once again heading to war.

The Wonder by Emma Donoghue. A new novel by the author of Room. This time the story of an Irish village mystified by what appears to be a miracle, but may actually be a murder.

AND WE ARE HAVING A SALE!!!!!!!!!

News 18 February

The days are a little longer…….one optimistic customer purchased a gardening book today.

New this week

A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline is a wonderful novel about the artist Andrew Wyeth and the woman who was his model for many years – fascinating story and a great read!

Death of a Ghost by M. C. Beaton is another in the Hamish Macbeth mystery series – as captivating as always and a total escape from whatever it is you need to escape from!

The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson is now in paperback. This is one of the best books you’ll read this year. The story a young school teacher in England and her involvement in the life of a family and a village in 1914, England.

For kids of all ages

North, South, East, West by Margaret Wise Brown is a beautiful book by the author of Goodnight Moon. This lovely and comforting story is sure to become the new baby shower gift of choice – for both baby and mother.

The Vimy Oaks – A Journey to Peace, written by Linda Granfield and Illustrated by Brian Deines is a truly beautiful book about a Canadian soldier in the First World War and the years that followed in both Canada and France.

Week of 10 February

Freezing Rain – Whiteout Blizzards – Sunny Cold Clear Days

We get it all in February – but we are also slowly slowly getting closer to summer each day!

I am busy planning for the summer to come, placing orders for new stock – lots of exciting new releases to come

A few already here –

The very prolific and always terrific Eric Walters has 2 new books – Voyageur is a suspenseful adventure story of a boy and his mom on a canoe trip in Northern Ontario – Trapped in Ice takes place in 1913 in the Canadian Arctic and find a couple of teens facing an extraordinarily treacherous challenge.

Carry Me by Peter Behrens, one of my favourite books published in 2016, is now out in paperback. Have a look on this website to read the review.

Runaway by Peter May has also just come out in paperback. This very popular Scottish writer always thrills with a mystery page turner every time.

The latest in the Maisie Dobbs series Journey to Munich by Jacqueline Winspear is now in paperback. Maisie is dropped into Nazi Germany in an attempt to rescue a British man essential to the Secret Service.

New in hardcover is Racing the Devil – the 12th in the excellent Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery series by Charles Todd.

Week of 19 January 2017

In January and February we are closed on Sunday, Monday & Tuesday – a time for visits with family and friends.

From Wednesday – Saturday things are as usual with books arriving every day and customers shopping and placing & picking up special orders.

Some of the most recent, and more notable, new arrivals are –

The Naturalist by Alissa York is now in paperback. I loved this book about a trio both fearful and fearless exploring the Orinoco River in the 1860s. Wonderful writing and a terrific story.

Georgia by Dawn Tripp is historical fiction about the painter Georgia O’Keefe and a fascinating insight into her life and art.

A Family is a Family by Sara O’Leary should find itself in every classroom. A picture book about what makes a family – something different for everyone in the multi-cultural and diverse world we live in today. 

Also of note –

Birds Art Life by Kyo Maclear who embarked on a yearlong adventure chasing after birds, resulting in a luminous meditation on the nature of creativity and the quest for a good and meaningful life.

Fire by Night by Teresa Messineo is a Second World War story about American Army Nurses and their extraordinary heroism.

No Man’s Land by Simon Tolkien, the grandson of JRR, has written a novel inspired by his grandfather’s experiences in WW1.

Masters of Empire by Michael A. McDonnell, is subtitled Great Lakes Indians and the Making of America. This Australian academic highlights the tribes who lived around Lake Michigan and Huron and their relationship with each other and the French and British.