Braille Books Acquired: Winter 2026

Welcome

Welcome to Braille Books Acquired. This quarterly newsletter contains a list of Braille books recently acquired by the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA). Previous issues are available at celalibrary.ca/braille-books-acquired.

In this issue:

Announcements

Letter from our Executive Director

In February, we celebrated Freedom to Read week, which is a chance to think about and affirm the importance of intellectual freedom. We are lucky in Canada to have these freedoms. And we are especially proud of the CELA collection which supports choice in materials and format for people who historically have not has as much access as they deserve. We’re thrilled to offer more than 1.5 million titles through our collection and in partnership with Bookshare.

The CELA staff and Board have had a chance to explore what it means to do this work as part of our strategic planning process. During the Ontario Library Association Super Conference we had a chance to gather in one space. As we’re usually spread across the country, it was a treat to be together and engage in really interesting and important conversations. If you would like to learn more about our strategic planning process and how you can take part in our surveys or focus groups, please visit our website.

We have good news to share on our advocacy efforts to ensure that the Free Literature for the Blind program continues to receive the legal protections it deserves. On February 23, the House of Commons Finance Committee approved amendments to Bill C-15 (2025 Budget Implementation Act) that reinstates the protections for Free Literature for the Blind and reduced postage rates for library materials in the Canada Post Corporations Act. A huge thank you to everyone who supported and helped in this important advocacy work. More information is available below.
This spring, whether you are reading for school, work, for your own education, or as a much-deserved escape, I hope you find something in our collection that is perfect for you.

Our recommendations page or awards page are good places to start.

Happy Reading!

Laurie Davidson, Executive Director

One eRead Canada 

One eRead Canada, a digital book club connecting readers and libraries from across Canada, launches takes place each April. The selection for 2026 is What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, which is available in braille and audio in our collection. Check with your local library about events they may be running or listen in on April 30 to The Next Chapter on CBC when Antonio Michael Downing will be in conversation with Éric Chacour and Pablo Strauss. 

Awards Update 

Congratulations to two Canadian authors who have been named to the longlist of the Dublin Literary Award.  

Maria Reva, author of Endling, and Éric Chacour, author of What I Know About You, are among the 20 international authors longlisted for the 2026 prize. 

The Dublin Literary Award recognizes the best work of English fiction, or work translated to English, from anywhere in the world.
The prize of approximately $160,000 Canadian will be announced in May. You can read books from the longlist in our collection.

Canadian author Amanda Leduc’s most recent novel Wild Life has been named to the longlist of the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction. The winner of the $250,000 prize will be announced June 2, 2026.

Free Literature for the Blind Update

The advocacy efforts to protect the Free Literature for the Blind program have been successful. On February 24 the House of Commons Finance Committee approved amendments to Bill C-15 (2025 Budget Implementation Act) that reinstates the protections for free literature for the blind and reduced postage rates for library materials in the Canada Post Corporations Act.
A huge thank you to everyone who supported and helped in this important advocacy work. NNELS and CELA worked collaboratively with the Canadian Urban Libraries Council (CULC), the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), Braille Literacy Canada (BLC) and Public Library InterLINK on this issue. We also worked alongside CNIB and other disability partners -  all of our voices together have collectively made a difference.

A note about dates

Although the majority of these books have been published within the last 5 years, there may be some books listed here which are older, but which were only recently added to our collection. To make this clearer for you, we include the date of the print version of each book at the end of its annotation.

Fiction printbraille

Animal stories

6806916 Lost stick by Anoosha Syed.

Who's looking for whom? Louise starts up a game of fetch with Milo at the park and throws a stick across the grass over and over again. She looks so happy every time Milo brings it back to her that Milo concludes Louise must really love Stick, too! When Louise fakes Milo out by pretending to throw Stick, Milo thinks she went long and takes off to bring Stick back. Milo sets out to across the neighborhood to find Stick -- while Louise is simultaneously searching for Milo -- but there's one problem: all the sticks look the same. Which one is Louise's stick? A series of hilarious and heart-warming miscommunications takes Milo on a global game of fetch, but along the way, he learns that home is where he really wants to be. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2024.

6806918 The bear out there by Jess Hannigan.

Don't scream! There’s something scary out in the forest, but you’re in good hands in this story by Jess Hannigan, author of the wryly silly Spider in the Well. Just make sure you keep a cool head, and watch out for any intruders…The signs are clear -- there’s a bear out there! You’re lucky to be safe in this cabin in the woods, with a host who is levelheaded, trustworthy, and smart about bear safety. There’s certainly no need to worry about any dark shadows or sneaky schemes in this book…RIGHT? Jess Hannigan is back with another bold and brazen tale that’s not too silly, not too scary, but just right. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2025.

Indigenous peoples in Canada fiction

6894153 The seaweed blanket by Nancy Deas.

When Maren and her younger sister visit lonely Aunt Pearl, they long to play in the sea but their aunt keeps them too busy until the dog accidentally gets out and a chase ensues. The girls are splashed by magical waves that turn their skin to scales, and they swim - until they begin to worry about their aunt, left back home. They take her a blanket of wet seaweed which has the same magical effects - leading to a glorious family romp. This is a story of connection and hope, with themes of mental health and finding joy in the natural world. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2025.

Multi-cultural fiction

6894154 The first peoples by Maika Harper.

Based on an ancient Inuit traditional story, this beautifully illustrated picture book tells of the appearance of the first humans on earth, and how from them all the peoples of the earth emerged. From a mound of simple dirt, through magic and intention, the world we know today slowly takes shape across the page. Retold with loving care by Inuit author and actress Maika Harper, The First Peoples is both mythical and magical, an ancient tale brought to life for new generations. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2025.

Sports fiction

6894151 Our pool by Lucy Ruth Cummins.

It is pool day in the city and everyone is welcome. Uncontracted braille. For grades 1-3. 2023.

6894150 The Bigfoot field guide to campers (and other mysterious creatures) by Jami Gigot.

The forest is full of dangerous creatures, but there's one so treacherous, so destructive, so annoying, that Bigfoot fears them above all else: campers! They wreck rock collections, pee on plants, contaminate water and worst of all ... won't stop taking photos. But when one lost little camper arrives in his backyard, Bigfoot realizes that these loud, messy, smelly creatures may not be that bad, and sometimes it's okay to step outside your comfort zone to make a friend. A cheery, fresh take on the traditional Bigfoot tale that explores first impressions and being open to new experiences. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2025.

Non-fiction printbraille

Animals and wildlife

6894152 Songs in the sea by Pheilm Martin.

Follow Little Whale's adventure with his marine friends as he searches for Mama Whale despite the ocean traffic, in this timely, heartwarming tale of resilience. Uncontracted braille. For grades P-K. 2024.

Fiction for young adults

General non-fiction

6752472 First times: short stories about sex by Karine Glorieux.

The 'first time' is exciting--but there isn't ever really a single first time, is there? Instead there are many. First times with yourself. First times with another person. First times you look forward to. First times you wish you could forget. First times that are sexy as hell. First times that are definitely, definitely not. 'First times : short stories about sex' collects nine stories by nine different authors, writing from a vast range of perspectives, cultural backgrounds and sexual orientations--revealing how unreasonable it is to define ourselves by a single, overhyped moment (What a relief!). For grades 9-12. 2025.

Fiction for adults

Fantasy

6080999 Be the serpent (October Daye novel #16) by Seanan McGuire.

October Daye is finally something she never expected to be: married. All the trials and turmoils and terrors of a hero's life have done very little to prepare her for the expectation that she will actually share her life with someone else, the good parts and the bad ones alike, not just allow them to dabble around the edges in the things she wants to share. But with an official break from hero duties from the Queen in the Mists, and her family wholly on board with this new version of normal, she's doing her best to adjust. It isn't always easy, but she's a hero, right? She's done harder. Until an old friend and ally turns out to have been an enemy in disguise for this entire time, and October's brief respite turns into a battle for her life, her community, and everything she has ever believed to be true. The debts of the Broken Ride are coming due, and whether she incurred them or not, she's going to be the one who has to pay. 2022.

6549472 Paladin's faith by T Kingfisher. Marguerite Florian

is a spy with two problems. A former employer wants her dead, and one of her new bodyguards is a far too good-looking paladin with a martyr complex. Shane is a paladin with three problems. His god is dead, his client is much too attractive for his peace of mind, and a powerful organization is trying to have them both killed. Add in a brilliant artificer with a device that may change the world, a glittering and dangerous court, and a demon-led cult, and Shane and Marguerite will be lucky to escape with their souls intact, never mind their hearts. 2023.

6548813 The ballad of perilous graves by Alex Jennings.

Nola is a city full of wonders. A place of sky trolleys and dead cabs, where haints dance the night away and Wise Women help keep the order. To those from Away, Nola might seem strange. To Perilous Graves, it's simply home. Perry knows Nola's rhythm as intimately as his own heartbeat. So when the city's Great Magician starts appearing in odd places and essential songs are forgotten, Perry knows trouble is afoot. Nine songs of power have escaped from the piano that maintains the city's beat, and without them, Nola will fail. Unwilling to watch his home be destroyed, Perry will sacrifice everything to save it. But a storm is brewing, and the Haint of All Haints is awake. Nola's time might be coming to an end. 2022.

5827738 The fall of Númenor: and other tales from the second age of Middle-earth by J. R. R Tolkien.

J.R.R. Tolkien famously described the Second Age of Middle-earth as a dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told. And for many years readers would need to be content with the tantalizing glimpses of it found within the pages of The Lord of the Rings and its appendices, including the forging of the Rings of Power, the building of the Barad-dûr and the rise of Sauron. It was not until Christopher Tolkien published The Silmarillion after his father's death that a fuller story could be told. Although much of the book's content concerned the First Age of Middle-earth, there were at its close two key works that revealed the tumultuous events concerning the rise and fall of the island of Númenor. Raised out of the Great Sea and gifted to the Men of Middle-earth as a reward for aiding the angelic Valar and the Elves in the defeat and capture of the Dark Lord Morgoth, the kingdom became a seat of influence and wealth; but as the Númenóreans' power increased, the seed of their downfall would inevitably be sown, culminating in the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. Even greater insight into the Second Age would be revealed in subsequent publications, first in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth, then expanded upon in Christopher Tolkien's magisterial twelve-volume The History of Middle-earth, in which he presented and discussed a wealth of further tales written by his father, many in draft form. Now, adhering to the timeline of "The Tale of Years" in the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, editor Brian Sibley has assembled into one comprehensive volume a new chronicle of the Second Age of Middle-earth, told substantially in the words of Tolkien from the various published texts, with new illustrations in watercolor and pencil by the doyen of Tolkien art, Alan Lee. 2022.

6549549 The monsters we defy by L Penelope.

Washington D.C., 1925: Clara Johnson can talk to spirits-a gift that saved her during her darkest moments, now a curse that's left her indebted to the cunning spirit world. So when a powerful spirit offers her an opportunity to gain her freedom, Clara seizes the chance, no questions asked. The task: steal a magical ring from the wealthiest woman in the District. Clara can't pull off this daring heist alone. She'll need the help of an unlikely team, from a handsome jazz musician able to hypnotize with a melody to an aging actor who can change his face, to pull off the impossible. But as they race along DC's legendary Black Broadway, conflict in the spirit world begins to leak into the human one-an insidious mystery is unfolding, one that could cost Clara her life and change the fate of an entire city. 2022.

Humourous fiction

6548718 If I survive you by Jonathan Escoffery.

A major debut, blazing with style and heart, that follows a Jamaican family striving for more in Miami, and introduces a generational storyteller. In the 1970s, Topper and Sanya flee to Miami as political violence consumes their native Kingston. But America, as the couple and their two children learn, is far from the promised land. Excluded from society as Black immigrants, the family pushes on first through Hurricane Andrew and later the 2008 recession, living in a house so cursed that the pet fish launches itself out of its own tank rather than stay. But even as things fall apart, the family remains motivated, often to its own detriment, by what their younger son, Trelawny, calls the exquisite, racking compulsion to survive. Masterfully constructed with heart and humor, the linked stories in Jonathan Escoffery's If I Survive You center on Trelawny as he struggles to carve out a place for himself amid financial disaster, racism, and flat-out bad luck. After a fight with Topper-himself reckoning with his failures as a parent and his longing for Jamaica-Trelawny claws his way out of homelessness through a series of odd, often hilarious jobs. Meanwhile, his brother, Delano, attempts a disastrous cash grab to get his kids back, and his cousin, Cukie, looks for a father who doesn't want to be found. As each character searches for a foothold, they never forget the profound danger of climbing without a safety net. Pulsing with vibrant lyricism and inimitable style, sly commentary and contagious laughter, Escoffery's debut unravels what it means to be in between homes and cultures in a world at the mercy of capitalism and white supremacy. With If I Survive You, Escoffery announces himself as a prodigious storyteller in a class of his own, a chronicler of American life at its most gruesome and hopeful. 2022.

6548882 Lessons in chemistry by Bonnie Garmus.

Set in 1960s California, this blockbuster debut is the hilarious, idiosyncratic and uplifting story of a female scientist whose career is constantly derailed by the idea that a woman's place is in the home, only to find herself starring as the host of America's most beloved TV cooking show. Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it's the 1960s and despite the fact that she is a scientist, her peers are very unscientific when it comes to equality. The only good thing to happen to her on the road to professional fulfillment is a run-in with her super-star colleague Calvin Evans (well, she stole his beakers.) The only man who ever treated her-and her ideas-as equal, Calvin is already a legend and Nobel nominee. He's also awkward, kind and tenacious. Theirs is true chemistry. But as events are never as predictable as chemical reactions, three years later Elizabeth Zott is an unwed, single mother (did we mention it's the early 60s??) and the star of America's most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth's singular approach to cooking ('take one pint of H2O and add a pinch of sodium chloride') and independent example are proving revolutionary. Because Elizabeth isn't just teaching women how to cook, she's teaching them how to change the status quo. Laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant, and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters, Lessons in Chemistry is as original and vibrant as its protagonist. 2022.

6548778 The patron saint of second chances: a novel by Christine Simon.

Vacuum repairman and self-appointed mayor of Prometto, Italy (population 212) Signor Speranza has a problem: unless he can come up with 70,000 euros to fix the town's pipes, the water commission will shut off the water to the village and all its residents will be forced to disperse. So in a bid to boost tourism--and revenue--he spreads a harmless rumor that movie star Dante Rinaldi will be filming his next project nearby. Unfortunately, the plan works a little too well, and soon everyone in town wants to be a part of the fictional film--the village butcher will throw in some money if Speranza can find roles for his fifteen enormous sons, Speranza's wistfully adrift daughter reveals an unexpected interest in stage makeup, and his hapless assistant Smilzo volunteers a screenplay that's not so secretly based on his undying love for the film's leading lady. To his surprise--and considerable consternation, Speranza realizes that the only way to keep up the ruse is to make the movie for real. As the entire town becomes involved (even the village priest invests!) Signor Speranza starts to think he might be able to pull this off. But what happens when Dante Rinaldi doesn't show up? Or worse, what if he does? 2022.

Mysteries and crime stories

6586719 A Christmas deliverance: a novel by Anne Perry.

A courageous doctor and his apprentice fight to save London's poor--and discover that the hearts of men can be colder than a winter chill--in this gripping holiday mystery from New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry. Scuff has come a long way from his time as a penniless orphan scraping together a living on the banks of the Thames. Now he's studying medicine at a free clinic run by Dr. Crowe. Lately Crowe has grown distracted after witnessing an altercation between a former patient of his named Ellie--a woman he not only treated but grew to love--and her controlling fiancé. It seems someone is forcing Ellie to marry the man, and as Crowe's emotions come flooding back, he sets out to uncover the troubling connection between Ellie, her father, and her betrothed. With Crowe engrossed in his investigation just weeks before the holidays, Scuff is left to fend for himself, performing surgery after surgery on London's poor and vulnerable. He is desperate for help, so when a needy young girl named Mattie comes to the clinic for treatment, Scuff offers her a place to live in exchange for assistance with his medical work. Together, Scuff and Mattie must not only run the clinic but also fend off the police, who are growing suspicious of Crowe's amateur sleuthing. Will Crowe be able to help Ellie, and will Scuff and Mattie ensure all of their patients--and they themselves--can manage to have a peaceful Christmas? 2022.

6684206 Detective aunty: a novel by Uzma Jalaluddin.

When her grown daughter is suspected of murder, a charming and tenacious widow digs into the case to unmask the real killer in this twisty, page-turning whodunnit-the first book in a cozy new detective series from the acclaimed author of Ayesha at Last. After her husband's unexpected death eighteen months ago, Kausar Khan never thought she'd receive another phone call as heartbreaking-until her thirty-something daughter, Sana, phones to say that she's been arrested for killing the unpopular landlord of her clothing boutique. Determined to help her child, Kausar heads to Toronto for the first time in nearly twenty years. Returning to the Golden Crescent suburb where she raised her children and where her daughter still lives, Kausar finds that the thriving neighborhood she remembered has changed. The murder of Sana's landlord is only the latest in a wave of local crimes which have gone unsolved. And the facts of the case are troubling: Sana found the man dead in her shop at a suspiciously early hour, with a dagger from her windowfront display plunged in his chest. And Kausar-a woman with a keen sense of observation and deep wisdom honed by her years-senses there's more to the story than her daughter is telling. With the help of some old friends and her plucky teenage granddaughter, Kausar digs into the investigation to uncover the truth. Because who better to pry answers from unwilling suspects than a meddlesome aunty? But even Kausar can't predict the secrets, lies, and betrayals she finds along the way? 2025.

6548720 Murder on Bedford Street (Gaslight mystery #26) by Victoria Thompson.

Midwife Sarah Malloy and her private investigator husband, Frank, must stop a killer lurking among a young family in the newest installment of the USA Today bestselling Gaslight Mysteries. Hugh Breedlove is far from the most agreeable client private investigator Frank Malloy has ever had, but his case is impossible to refuse: his young niece, Julia, has been wrongfully committed to an insane asylum by her cruel and unfaithful husband, Chet Longly. Though Breedlove and his wife seem more interested in protecting the family reputation than their niece's safety, Frank and Sarah agree to help for the sake of Julia and the young son she left behind. Frank and Sarah's investigation reveals a dark secret-a maid at the Longly home died suspiciously under Chet's watch, and now it seems Julia's son might also be in danger. The Malloys fear they are dealing with a man more dangerous than they had anticipated, one who will do anything to defame his wife. But all is not as it seems in the Longly family, and perhaps another monster is hiding in plain sight. 2023.

6548621 The shadow murders by Jussi Adler-Olsen.

On her sixtieth birthday, a woman takes her own life. When the case lands on Detective Carl Mørck's desk, he can't imagine what this has to do with Department Q, Copenhagen's cold cases division since the cause of death seems apparent. However, his superior, Marcus Jacobsen, is convinced that this is related to an unsolved case that has been plaguing him since 1988. At Marcus's behest, Carl and the Department Q gang-Rose, Assad, and Gordon-reluctantly begin to investigate. And they quickly discover that Marcus is onto something: Every two years for the past three decades, there have been unusual, impeccably timed deaths with connections between them that cannot be ignored, including mysterious piles of salt at the scenes. As the investigation goes deeper, it emerges that these accidents are in fact part of a sinister murder scheme. Faced with their toughest case yet, made only more difficult by COVID-19 restrictions and the challenges of their personal lives, the Department Q team must race to find the culprit before the next murder is committed, as it is becoming increasingly clear that the killer is far from finished. 2022.

Romance

6548793 Man o' war by Cory McCarthy.

On a field trip to SeaPlanet, seventeen-year-old Arab-American high school swimmer River McIntyre has a chance encounter with Indy, a happy, healthy queer person, which sets off a wrenching journey of self-discovery, from internalized homophobia and gender dysphoria, through layers of coming out, affirmation surgery, and true love. 2022.

6549419 The forever farmhouse: a small town romance by Lee Tobin McClain.

When Ryan Hastings first came to Teaberry Island, he was a troubled teen on his last chance. He's returning as a renowned scientist, checking in on his widowed foster mother. But one thing hasn't changed--Ryan's feelings for the girl next door who he loved and left. Mellie Anderson has a son now, and a good life that Ryan believes he's still too damaged to share. But he knows he can help young Alfie, who's getting picked on at his new school. Mellie is grateful her gifted son is getting extra support, and torn about where it's coming from. Ryan has no idea he's Alfie's father. No matter how valid her reasons were, could Ryan ever understand why she didn't tell him? But in this close-knit community, friendship and forgiveness are always near at hand, and forever love might be waiting just next door. 2022.

6548634 The life and crimes of Hoodie Rosen by Isaac Blum.

Hoodie Rosen's life isn't that bad. Sure, his entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to the quiet, mostly non-Jewish town of Tregaron, but Hoodie's world hasn't changed that much. He's got basketball to play, studies to avoid, and a supermarket full of delicious kosher snacks to eat. The people of Tregaron aren't happy that so many Orthodox Jews are moving in at once, but that's not Hoodie's problem. That is, until he meets and falls for Anna-Marie Diaz-O'Leary--who happens to be the daughter of the obstinate mayor trying to keep Hoodie's community out of the town. And things only get more complicated when Tregaron is struck by a series of antisemitic crimes that quickly escalate to deadly violence. As his community turns on him for siding with the enemy, Hoodie finds himself caught between his first love and the only world he's ever known. 2022.

6548665 You made a fool of death with your beauty: a novel by Akwaeke Emezi.

Feyi Adekola wants to learn how to be alive again. It's been five years since the accident that killed the love of her life and she's almost a new person now-an artist with her own studio and sharing a brownstone apartment with her ride-or-die best friend, Joy, who insists it's time for Feyi to ease back into the dating scene. Feyi isn't ready for anything serious, but a steamy encounter at a rooftop party cascades into a whirlwind summer she could have never imagined: a luxury trip to a tropical island, decadent meals in the glamorous home of a celebrity chef, and a major curator who wants to launch her art career. She's even started dating the perfect guy, but their new relationship might be sabotaged before it has a chance by the overwhelming desire Feyi feels every time she locks eyes with the one person in the house who is most definitely off-limits-his father. This new life she asked for just got a lot more complicated, and Feyi must begin her search for real answers. Who is she ready to become? Can she release her past and honor her grief while still embracing her future? And, of course, there's the biggest question of all-how far is she willing to go for a second chance at love? Akwaeke Emezi's vivid and passionate writing takes us deep into a world of possibility and healing, and the constant bravery of choosing love against all odds. 2022.

Science fiction

6548779 Braking Day by Adam Oyebanji.

It's been over a century since three generation ships escaped an Earth dominated by artificial intelligence in pursuit of a life on a distant planet orbiting Tau Ceti. Now, it's nearly Braking Day, when the ships will begin their long-awaited descent to their new home. Born on the lower decks of the Archimedes, Ravi Macleod is an engineer-in-training, set to be the first of his family to become an officer in the stratified hierarchy aboard the ship. While on a routine inspection, Ravi sees the impossible: a young woman floating, helmetless, out in space. And he's the only one who can see her. As his visions of the girl grow more frequent, Ravi is faced with a choice: secure his family's place among the elite members of Archimedes' crew or risk it all by pursuing the mystery of the floating girl. With the help of his cousin, Boz, and her illegally constructed AI, Ravi must investigate the source of these strange visions and uncovers the truth of the Archimedes' departure from Earth before Braking Day arrives and changes everything about life as they know it. 2022.

6548939 A prayer for the crown-shy (Monk & Robot #02) by Becky Chambers.

After touring the rural areas of Panga, Sibling Dex (a Tea Monk of some renown) and Mosscap (a robot sent on a quest to determine what humanity really needs) turn their attention to the villages and cities of the little moon they call home. They hope to find the answers they seek, while making new friends, learning new concepts, and experiencing the entropic nature of the universe. Becky Chambers's new series continues to ask: in a world where people have what they want, does having more even matter? 2022.

6548630 Mickey7: a novel (Mickey7 novel #01) by Edward Ashton.

Dying isn't any fun...but at least it's a living. Mickey7 is an Expendable: a disposable employee on a human expedition sent to colonize the ice world Niflheim. Whenever there's a mission that's too dangerous-even suicidal-the crew turns to Mickey. After one iteration dies, a new body is regenerated with most of his memories intact. After six deaths, Mickey7 understands the terms of his deal...and why it was the only colonial position unfilled when he took it. On a fairly routine scouting mission, Mickey7 goes missing and is presumed dead. By the time he returns to the colony base, surprisingly helped back by native life, Mickey7's fate has been sealed. There's a new clone, Mickey8, reporting for Expendable duties. The idea of duplicate Expendables is universally loathed, and if caught, they will likely be thrown into the recycler for protein. Mickey7 must keep his double a secret from the rest of the colony. Meanwhile, life on Niflheim is getting worse. The atmosphere is unsuitable for humans, food is in short supply, and terraforming is going poorly. The native species are growing curious about their new neighbors, and that curiosity has Commander Marshall very afraid. Ultimately, the survival of both lifeforms will come down to Mickey7. That is, if he can just keep from dying for good. 2022.

6548834 The school for good mothers: a novel by Jessamine Chan.

In this taut and explosive debut novel, one lapse in judgement lands a young mother in a government reform program where custody of her child hangs in the balance. Frida Liu is struggling. She doesn't have a career worthy of her Chinese immigrant parents' sacrifices. She can't persuade her husband, Gust, to give up his wellness-obsessed younger mistress. Only with Harriet, their cherubic daughter, does Frida finally attain the perfection expected of her. Harriet may be all she has, but she is just enough. Until Frida has a very bad day. The state has its eyes on mothers like Frida. The ones who check their phones, letting their children get injured on the playground; who let their children walk home alone. Because of one moment of poor judgment, a host of government officials will now determine if Frida is a candidate for a Big Brother-like institution that measures the success or failure of a mother's devotion. Faced with the possibility of losing Harriet, Frida must prove that a bad mother can be redeemed. That she can learn to be good. A searing page-turner that is also a transgressive novel of ideas about the perils of perfect" upper-middle class parenting; the violence enacted upon women by both the state and, at times, one another; the systems that separate families; and the boundlessness of love, The School for Good Mothers introduces, in Frida, an everywoman for the ages. Using dark wit to explore the pains and joys of the deepest ties that bind us, Chan has written a modern literary classic. 2022.

Short stories

6548876 Blank pages: and other stories by Bernard MacLaverty.

Tinged with melancholy but rooted in resiliency, the exquisite stories of Bernard MacLaverty's Blank Pages display the perseverance of the human spirit. In “A Love Picture," a middle-aged woman, already no stranger to loss, consults a World War II newsreel to determine the fate of her son. "Blackthorns" tells of a poor, out-of-work Catholic man who falls gravely ill in the sectarian Northern Ireland of 1942 but is brought back from the brink by an unlikely savior. The harrowing but transcendent "The End of Days" imagines life in another pandemic as artist Egon Schiele and his wife, both stricken with the Spanish flu, spend their final days together. And in the poignant title story, an elderly writer takes stock of what remains after losing his life partner. Blank Pages elegantly probes MacLaverty's signature themes-domestic love, Catholicism, the Troubles, aging-with compassion and insight. A consummately gifted storyteller, MacLaverty uncovers the turbulent undertones of seemingly ordinary human interactions and explores endings of all kinds with tenderness, affection, and wry humor. Acclaimed for his extraordinary emotional range and "telescopic observational powers" (Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal), MacLaverty captures the joys and sorrows of everyday existence in crystalline, precise prose. Each resonant story in Blank Pages reminds us again why he is regarded as one of the greatest living Irish writers. 2022.

6548891 Heart broke: stories by Chelsea Bieker.

A woman steals a baby from a shelter in an attempt to salvage her own lost motherhood. A phone-sex operator sees divine opportunity when a lavender-eyed cowboy walks into her life. A mother and a son selling dream catchers along a highway that leads to a toxic beach manifest two young documentary filmmakers into their realm. And two teenage girls play a dangerous online game with destiny. United by the stark and sprawling landscapes of California's Central Valley, Chelsea Bieker brims over with each character's attempt to salvage - or sabotage - grace where they can find it. 2022.

6548816 Learning to talk: stories by Hilary Mantel.

In the wake of Hilary Mantel's brilliant conclusion to her award-winning Wolf Hall Trilogy, this collection of loosely autobiographical stories locates the transforming moments of a haunted childhood. Sharp and funny, these drawn-from-life stories begin in the 1950s in an insular northern village scoured by bitter winds and rough gossip tongues. For the child narrator, the only way to survive is to get up, get on, get out. In "King Billy Is A Gentleman," the child must come to terms with the loss of a father and the puzzle of a fading Irish heritage. "Curved Is the Line of Beauty" is a story of friendship, faith, and a near-disaster in a scrap-yard. The title story sees our narrator ironing out her northern vowels with the help of an ex-actress with one lung and a Manchester accent. In "Third Floor Rising," she watches, amazed, as her mother carves out a stylish new identity. With a deceptively light touch, Mantel illuminates the poignant experiences of childhood that leave each of us forever changed. 2022.

6548850 Vanished: stories (Prairie schooner book prize in fiction) by Karin Lin-Greenberg.

Winner of the Raz/Shumaker Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Fiction, Vanished tells the stories of women and girls in upstate New York who are often overlooked or unseen by the people around them. The characters range from an aging art professor whose students are uninterested in learning what she has to teach, to a young girl who becomes the victim of a cruel prank in a swimming pool, to a television producer who regrets allowing her coworkers into her mother's bird-filled house to film a show about animal hoarding because it will reveal too much about her family and past. Humorous and empathetic, the collection exposes the adversity in each character's life; each deals with something or someone who has vanished-a person close to her, a friendship, a relationship-as she seeks to make sense of the world around her in the wake of that loss. 2022.

Suspense and thrillers

6548716 Crosshairs by James Patterson.

A killer uses fearsome precision to take out impossible targets. Detective Michael Bennett teams with a shooting expert--a former Army Ranger and sniper with NYPD's Emergency Services Unit. But Officer Rob Trilling seems more comfortable with rifles than he is with people. When his new partner begins to log unexplained absences from duty, only Bennett can prove whether the decorated officer is a lonely hunter or a hardened assassin. 2024.

6515584 The heron's cry (Two rivers #2) by Ann Cleeves.

North Devon is enjoying a rare hot summer with tourists flocking to its coastline. Detective Matthew Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at the home of a group of artists. Dr Nigel Yeo has been fatally stabbed. His daughter Eve is a glassblower. The murder weapon is a shard of one of her broken vases. Dr Yeo was beloved by his daughter. Matthew learns Jonathan, his husband, and Eve are friends. Then another body is found, killed in a similar way. Matthew finds himself treading carefully through a case that is dangerously close to home. 2022.

6549517 Holly: a novel by Stephen King.

When Penny Dahl calls the Finders Keepers detective agency hoping for help locating her missing daughter, Holly is reluctant to accept the case. Her partner, Pete, has Covid. Her (very complicated) mother has just died. And Holly is meant to be on leave. But something in Penny Dahl's desperate voice makes it impossible for Holly to turn her down. Mere blocks from where Bonnie Dahl disappeared live Professors Rodney and Emily Harris. They are the picture of bourgeois respectability: married octogenarians, devoted to each other, and semi-retired lifelong academics. But they are harboring an unholy secret in the basement of their well-kept, book-lined home, one that may be related to Bonnie's disappearance. And it will prove nearly impossible to discover what they are up to: they are savvy, they are patient, and they are ruthless. 2023.

6548761 Livid (Scarpetta novel #26) by Patricia Daniels Cornwell.

Forensic pathologist Kay Scarpetta has just inherited one of the most notorious cases of her career. Two years ago, a former beauty queen's body washed up on the shore of Wallops Island, Virginia. She was last seen on a boat with her fiancé, who has since been held in jail while awaiting trial. Scarpetta must act as the expert witness for the case--an investigation previously botched by another forensic pathologist. After a grueling cross-examination by the prosecutor, Scarpetta leaves the court only to discover that the sister of the judge on her case has been found dead. Scarpetta ultimately finds herself facing a powerful, invisible enemy who's planning the unthinkable. 2022.

6548971 Signal fires by Dani Shapiro.

Signal Fires opens on a summer night in 1985. Three teenagers have been drinking. One of them gets behind the wheel of a car, and, in an instant, everything on Division Street changes. Each of their lives, and that of Ben Wilf, a young doctor who arrives on the scene, is shattered. For the Wilf family, the circumstances of that fatal accident will become the deepest kind of secret, one so dangerous it can never be spoken. On Division Street, time has moved on. When the Shenkmans arrive--a young couple expecting a baby boy--it is as if the accident never happened. But when Waldo, the Shenkmans' brilliant, lonely son who marvels at the beauty of the world and has a native ability to find connections in everything, befriends Dr. Wilf, now retired and struggling with his wife's decline, past events come hurtling back in ways no one could ever have foreseen. In Dani Shapiro's first work of fiction in fifteen years, she returns to the form that launched her career, with a riveting, deeply felt novel that examines the ties that bind families together--and the secrets that can break them apart. Signal Fires is a work of haunting beauty by a masterly storyteller. 2022.