book

… the project to inspire hope for kids and teens who are harassed because they are (or people assume they are) gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender?

… the hottest hexes money can buy? Hex Appeal, edited by P. N. Elrod, brings together nine stories by some of the top urban fantasy authors of our time. From the University of Oklahoma to London’s Nightside, an intriguing collection of vampires, zombies, witches, wizards, demons, and other supernatural creatures deal with spells to help and hurt them.

… Laverne DeFazio from TV’s Laverne & Shirley? In the new biography, My Mother Was Nuts by Penny Marshall, you get a quirky look at Penny Marshall as she struggled to grow up in what she considered a very crazy, yet normal family. As in a lot of celebrity biographies, you hear about the dysfunctional family life, the drugs and the famous people.

… life in a city in the great country of Goredd? Rachel Hartman’s novel, Seraphina, follows the title character as she struggles with identity and prejudice in an alternate Middle Ages. The kingdom of Goredd has had an uneasy peace with dragons for nearly forty years.

… life on a farm in the great country of Goredd? Rachel Hartman’s graphic novel, Amy Unbounded: Belondweg Blossoming, follows the title character through the summer she turns ten, a time filled with celebrations and troubles. Amy reads (most of) the story of Queen Belondweg, who united Goredd long ago. She also learns more about the role of women in modern Goredd.

… the fun of camping in Arkansas? Lucy Binoche is about to find out in Sandra D. Bricker’s Love Finds You in Snowball, Arkansas*.

… the mastermind behind one of the greatest rock bands of the 1970s? Light & Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Page by Brad Tolinski is a detailed view into the extraordinary life of guitar icon Jimmy Page. Mr.

… the smallest giant hunter of Mont Petit Pierre? Giants Beware! in this wonderful graphic novel by Rafael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre.

… the historical Marshfield Manor, in North Carolina? It’s just been robbed. In Julie Hyzy’s Grace among Thieves*, Grace Wheaten, the curator and manager of Marshfield Manor, has discovered that several very valuable items in the manor are missing. A film crew is making a DVD of the property to showcase all of it beautiful antiquities.

… all the benefits of preserving your own food? If you’re like me, you’ve heard about the better flavor, the lower price, the more natural ingredients, the satisfaction of eating something you made yourself, and all of the other advantages. However, you wondered when you would have the time, where to get the fancy equipment and tons of fresh produce, and where to store umpteen jars of pickled beets (not to mention what to do when you discover that you hate pickled beets, even if you did make them yourself).