Here are some books that have crossed our desks recently.
HARDBACKS
HOME BOY," by H.M. Naqvi, Shaye Areheart Books, $23 (f)
A debut novel telling the story of three young Pakistani friends in New York City. Chuck is the newest one of the bunch and he lucks out and gets a Wall Street job in the financial district. They start living the high life, going to parties, and hanging out with socialites. Chuck then loses his job, and with money running low, he starts working as a cabbie. Then comes 9/11 and the three friends find themselves in a changed America.
"206 BONES," by Kathy Reichs, Scribner, $26.99 (f)
Dr. Temperance Brennan finds herself bound and injured in an underground tomb. In flashbacks, the reader finds out about the case Brennan is working on. She and Lt. Andrew Ryan had been personally asked to accompany the remains of Rose Jurmain from Montreal to Chicago. The woman was from a storied Chicago family with deep pockets and a love for suing people. The family's lawyer tells Brennan she has been accused, by an anonymous tipster, of botching Jurmain's autopsy and cover-up murder. Brennan is furious and is determined to find out who's behind the accusation. While Tempe begins to uncover who's trying to sabotage her, three more elderly women turn up dead around Montreal. Are their deaths related to Jurmain's? Brennan and Ryan think so. Meanwhile, things at Brennan's lab grow increasingly tense as an ambitious new colleague seeks to prove herself.
More hardbacks recently released:
"The Way of Boys: Raising Healthy Boys in a Challenging and Complex World," by Anthony Rao and Michelle Seaton (nf); "Trotsky: Downfall of a Revolutionary," by Bertrand M. Patenaude (nf); "Madoff's Other Secret: Love, Money, Bernie and Me," by Sheryl Weinstein (nf); "The Devil's Punchbowl," by Greg Iles (f)
PAPERBACKS
"THE SOUTHERN CROSS," by Skip Horack, Mariner Books, $13.95 (f)
Set in the Gulf Coast over the course of a year torn halfway by the arrival of Hurricane Katrina, these 16 short stories follow the lives of an assembly of unforgettable characters. An exonerated ex-con who may not be entirely innocent, a rabbit farmer in mourning, and an earnest young mariner trying to start a new life with his wife — all are characters that populate the spirited cities and drowsy parishes in this portrait of the South.
More paperbacks recently released:
"When Evil Rules," by Michele R. McPhee (nf); "I Am Potential: Eight Lessons on Living, Loving, and Reaching Your Dream," by Patrick Henry Hughes with Patrick John Hughes and Bryant Stamford (nf, reprint); "Night's Cold Kiss," by Tracey O'Hara (f); "Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Processing Issues," by Lindsey Biel and Nancy Peske (nf, reprint); "Winging It: Dispatches from an (Almost) Empty Nest," by Catherine Goldhammer (nf, reprint)
YOUNG READERS
"CALLIE'S RULES," by Naomi Zucker, Egmont, $15.99 (ages 8-12)
Callie Jones is excited about her first day of sixth grade, but from the moment she arrives, she realizes that there is a set of unwritten rules that everyone except her seems to know. At home, the Jones family's preparations for Halloween are in full swing until an overly concerned parent convinces the town council to replace Halloween with Autumn Fest. Callie's life at school and home is falling apart, so she decides to challenge the rules with a set of her own. Charming and funny, this book celebrates a child's imagination and ingenuity, and will serve well in inspiring young readers to think out of the box and stand up for their beliefs.
—Jessica Harrison
More books for young readers recently released: "Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd," by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci (young adult); "Mink," by Robyn Rolison-Hanna (ages 13 and up)
— compiled by Kari Morandi