Raising Genius: Mozart, Einstein, Jobs: The Price of Brilliance by Nam Nguyen reminds readers that genius alone is not enough. Parenting, culture, and ambition are among the many factors that shape brilliant minds. The author has chosen three fascinating subjects who came from different backgrounds...

Wayward: The Valley War by Antonio Journie is book one in the Wayward Series. Journie holds readers’ attention with great one-liners, equally dark and compelling characters, and heavy moments that add depth and symmetry to the story. I finished reading Wayward in a few days...

In Are Snowmen Real? by Janice Garden Macdonald, Donkey Otis finds a picture of a snowman and begins to wonder if they really exist. Poncho Lizard soon joins him, and they start their journey to discover the truth. Later on, they meet up with Jack...

Dig Two Graves by Andrew Hallman is a gripping noir thriller that explores themes of revenge, loyalty, and the search for respect. Set against the sweltering backdrop of Southwest Florida, the novel follows Von Martin, a man recently released from prison, as he navigates a...

Bills by John Yelverton is an adventure story about friendship and the excitement of sport fishing. Set against the backdrop of the Gulf of America and the East Coast, the narrative follows Jason Baymont and his team aboard the Family Tradition as they face the...

In Deborah R. Dakins' Vineyard of Lies, Gina Pagliaro—an experienced wine journalist—loses her job after publishing a risky exposé. Feeling dejected, Gina leaves behind the Idaho wine world she has grown to love and takes a tour through southern Italy, hoping the change in scenery...

The Apple and the Stone by Dr. Hartford G. Dawson follows Steve Jobs’s career, from his departure from Apple in 1985, the founding of NeXT, investment in Pixar, and back to his return to Apple in 1997, during which he restored financial stability and introduced...

It is 1905. Martha Adler, a gifted young violinist from Cologne, Germany, has just turned eighteen, yet her life is threatening to fall apart when it has barely begun. The recent demise of her father, the sole breadwinner, not only leaves the family of three...

Gary Hale, Darnell King, Peter “Newbs” Newburg, and Brenna Stanton forge an unlikely foursome. Gary is a wanderer, never fully present. Darnell is almost a stereotypical jock, but he has more depth. Newbs is a Rainman-type super-nerd, and Brenna, the token female, hides a secret...

Obesseus the Mighty Muncher: The Slam-Fu Series is a children's adventure tale by D.T. Tucker. Obesseus was peacefully enjoying the Great Dumpling Festival when the goons of the Juice regime rudely interrupted his buffet and took Dumpling Dave as their captive. Snackland is not the...

Obesseus: Lord of the Buffet is yet another amusing installment from The Slam-Fu Series by D.T. Tucker. This hilarious children's book follows the adventures of Obesseus, a food aficionado who never lets anything or anyone get in the way of a delicious meal. Obesseus thuds...

In Obesseus World War Food by D.T. Tucker, Obesseus is pulled into an escalating food war when General Walter Walnut warns that the Salad Sector has unleashed the Broccoli Beasts. With his Slam-Fu headband, Obesseus sets out across the buffet lands, clashing with restless vegetables...

Jane Goodall once said, “Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play.” That message is one of the main focuses of Fishers in the Forest: The Pacific Fishers in Sequoia and Kings Canyon by Adalgisa and David Nico. It begins with young readers...

Echoes From a Missing Generation by Christina Suzann Nelson is a “whodunit” with a difference. At the height of the Vietnam War, as America’s youth were being called up to serve their country, many questioned what America was doing, sacrificing their young men in a...

Put a Bug in Your Ear by Sam Sumac begins as a giant gecko, He-Knew-Pat-Sajak, emerges from a volcano. Meanwhile, the Palmetto Bug Monster, a massive cockroach, destroys towns from Indiana to Chicago, advancing northwest. In Alaska, reporter Eve Sanderborn, cryptozoologist Usotsuki Shirinigatsuku, General Buchanan...

Spinning Monkey and the Missing Eggs by Devapreya Selvaraj is a picture book that blends mystery, teamwork, and problem-solving for young readers. The story opens with seven Rainbow Frogs sitting on their lily pads, each watching over their seven eggs alongside friends Stork, Bunny, Duck,...

The Devil's Dance by Brett McKay tells the harrowing journey of Chase Gray, a former SWAT officer, who goes on a road trip with his 14-year-old estranged daughter, Oakley. When the latter is kidnapped by Tocho, a member of a bizarre tribal cult, Chase begins...

In Soda Lake, author John C Hampsey follows a narrator whose life becomes entangled with a mysterious man named McCuade—or possibly the man’s invention—after witnessing a strange disappearance at the titular Soda Lake. The narrator alternates between observing, tracking, and interacting with people connected to...

Food safety is essential, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle cannot be overemphasized. What better way to achieve this than by instilling these important habits from a young age? Birdie’s Picnic Party by Jessica McAnelly beautifully illustrates this concept in the story of a bluebird named...

Ogallala by Eric Eichhorn follows Bennett, divorced and long removed from Ann Arbor, who reconnects with his college girlfriend Jennifer after thirty years. Her daughter Zoe is a young MMA fighter traveling to Utah for a match, and Bennett volunteers to drive her and her...