Mercer Island Library's February Book List: Books That are Loved

As we all know, the holiday that tends to overwhelm February is Valentine’s Day. I thought fleetingly of giving you a long list of romantic or love oriented books (guaranteed to make you beam hearts and rainbows) but I realized I would never be able to claim that I adored every single item on the list. If you can’t claim to love a list that will be posted on Valentine’s Day, then really, what’s the point?

So, I’ve been racking my brains and canvassing my co-workers for our absolute favorites. Even if these books aren’t (necessarily) about the romantic love that’s lauded during this holiday, I know for a fact they are adored above all things by the library people of my acquaintance. I plan to be curled up with one of the items on this list come Feb. 14. Is anyone else going to be doing the same thing? 

Kids

Tikki Tikki Tembo retold by Arlene Mosel; illustrated by Blair Lent. This Chinese folktale has been beloved by generations of librarians, children and parents alike. Long ago, Chinese parents gave their firstborn sons long and honorable names. Chang is the younger brother in his family and has a short, manageable name. When his honored older brother falls into a well, Chang spends way too much time trying to make his way through his brother’s impossible name and summon help from the village. Chang’s brother is eventually rescued but only after everyone has learned that lengthy names are not always a good thing.

Pete and Pickles by Berkeley Breathed. Pete is a perfectly predictable, practical and uncomplicated pig that lives a solitary and quiet life. Then one day, he finds himself rescuing a runaway circus elephant named Pickles. Pickles teaches Pete to embrace the sillier, messier, more adventurous side of his personality and helps him find the true meaning of friendship. Breathed has written and illustrated another wonderful book about two very different friends who bring out the best in one another.

Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath. Primrose lives in British Columbia, Canada in a small fishing village. Primrose’s parents are lost at sea and presumed dead (even though Primrose knows this can’t be true) and so the 11-year-old is sent to live with her Uncle Jack. Although well-meaning, none of the residents of Primrose’s town really understand what’s going on in her head. Then, Primrose discovers a restaurant called “The Girl on the Red Swing” that serves everything (from lasagna to fish and chips) on a waffle. The wise owner of this restaurant helps Primrose to grow and mature, while not lessening her hope and compassion.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins. Were any of you aware that Suzanne Collins wrote another series before her insanely popular "Hunger Games"? Me either. Eleven-year-old New Yorker Gregor and his younger sister never dreamed that anything extraordinary existed beneath the floors of their apartment building. It isn't until one day when the siblings fall into an open grate in their laundry room that they discover the Underland. The Underland is a fantastical world where enormous talking rats, bats and cockroaches live in uneasy peace with humans. When Gregor and his sister enter the picture, the Underlanders are on the brink of war. With a prophesied hero, action packed battles and a satisfying amount of books in the series, "Gregor the Overlander" is a fantastic book to add to your reading lineup.

Teens

The Thief by Megan Whelan Turner. Thief and mischief maker Gen has been left to rot in the King’s prison. Gen made a boast that he can steal anything from anyone and now he is paying the price. After a long while the King’s scholar, Magus, comes down to release him on one condition. Gen must steal a priceless treasure from a distant land that no one has been able to retrieve. What follows is an epic adventure where Gen must make good on his boast and manage to keep the treasure away from the evil, scheming Magus.

God is in the Pancakes by Robin Epstein. Fifteen-year-old Grace works at a nursing home, where her favorite patient is wisecracking Mr. Sands. One day, Mr. Sands reveals that he is dying of a terrible degenerative disease and asks Grace to help him die with dignity. Now, Grace must make the awful decision whether or not to help her friend while also wrestling with family dynamics, relationships and her religious beliefs. This is a wonderful gem of a book.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher. In a distant future, Incarceron is a living prison that makes life a torment for the savage prisoners living within. Ever since he can remember, Finn has been struggling to survive in the vast world of Incarceron. Finn is determined to escape this terrible world, but as all prisoners know, no one from the “Inside” has ever gotten out. Enter Claudia, a prison warden’s daughter. Between an arranged marriage and living a peasant-like existence, Claudia longs to escape. It isn’t until the two join forces thanks to a matching pair of keys that they both find the chance be able to escape their prisons.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. Colin Singleton, high school graduate, math genius, anagram aficionado and former child prodigy, has just been dumped by the nineteenth Katherine. Yes, you read that right. Colin’s entire romantic past has consisted of girls named Katherine who have dumped him. This latest fizzled relationship has left Colin in such a funk that his best friend, Hassan, proposes a road trip intervention. The duo ends up in Gutshot, Tennessee where they befriend local Lindsey and her mother. As Lindsey and Colin’s friendship grows, Colin works feverishly on a mathematical theorem to explain his failures in his former relationships and crack the Katherine code. 

Nonfiction

Swords: An Artist's Devotion written and illustrated by Ben Boos. The extraordinary history of one of the most well known weapons is explored beautifully in this book by Boos. Boos takes readers from Europe to Asia and everywhere in between, examining how different cultures forged and used swords. In addition to swords, Boos also talks about those warriors who wielded them, from samurai to knights, from Beowulf to female fighters. This is the perfect book for slowly savoring, as Boos’ illustrations are detailed and laid out attractively on every page.

A Romance on Three Legs: Glenn Gould's Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano by Katie Hafner. Glenn Gould was known as one of the world’s leading (and most eccentric) pianists. Part way through Gould’s career, he employed nearly blind piano tuner Verne Edquist. The only thing needed to complete this relationship was the perfect piano. Gould did find his piano, a Steinway, which was beautifully suited to his method of playing. This book goes into the back stories of these three major ‘characters’, showing how their relationships with each other changed the course of their lives and careers.

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles. Although there are billions of insects on earth, how often do we think about them? Other than being startled by a spider or squishing a fly, most of us do not devote much brain power to insects. However, as Hugh Raffles discusses, insects have had huge impacts on human lives and cultures. From cutthroat cricket fighting in China to famines caused by locusts in Africa, readers can explore the fascinating world of insects. This book is organized like an encyclopedia (with entries in alphabetical order) which makes it a great read for those short on time, or who just want to browse.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. This book has been a huge bestseller and rightly so. When Henrietta Lacks was dying of cervical cancer in the 1950s, the staff at John Hopkins Hospital took a sample of her cells without permission. To their amazement, the cells continued to ‘live’ on in the lab, instead of dying like normal. Thus was found a biological super-cell, one that has enabled many of the greatest breakthroughs in modern medicine. The cells known as HeLa have been reproduced countless times and gone through every type of experiment. However, Lacks’ surviving family members (and Henrietta herself) knew nothing of this until about twenty years ago. A fascinating and compelling look at the medical industry, ethics, people and the impact a single unknowing individual had on all three.    

Adults

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. If you’re looking for an epic historical fiction read with a side of romance, look no further than this series by Diana Gabaldon. Claire Randall is on a second honeymoon with her husband in post-war Scotland in 1945. When she touches an ancient boulder in a circle of stones, she is thrown back to the year 1743. There, she becomes embroiled in clan politics and intrigue. She also meets a Scottish soldier named James Fraser who will become the love of her life. Gabaldon’s strength lies in her ability to create characters, a time period and a place that practically leap off the page and surround you.

The Painter of Battles by Arturo Perez-Reverte. Andres Faulques was a world renowned war photographer. Also known as ‘the painter of battles’, Faulques is spending his retirement painting a huge mural in a secluded house on the Spanish coast. The mural pays homage to the many great works of art that depict war and to Faulques’ own experiences. One day, a stranger interrupts Faulques while he is working. The stranger reveals that he is the subject of one of Faulques’ prize winning photographs. He coolly informs Faulques that he is there to kill him – but only after they understand one another. What follows is a discussion of war, life, love and art, filled with haunting but beautiful prose and an exploration of morality and culpability.

Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher. Five wonderful, eclectic characters find solace in Pilcher’s latest work. Each character tells their story over the course of the book. There’s elderly Elfrida, a former actress and her new friend, retired organist and grieving father Oscar. There’s Elfrida’s distant relative Carrie, a lovely doctor who is escaping a failed love affair. Carrie has her neglected fourteen year old niece Lucy with her. When this cast of characters goes to Scotland to spend the Christmas holidays, New York businessman Sam takes shelter with them during a snowstorm. All of the characters have losses that they must learn to live with over the course of the book.

The Spymaster’s Lady by Joanna Bourne. In Napoleonic France, Annique Villiers is a gorgeous French spy known as the Fox Cub. Robert Grey, the British Spymaster, has sworn to hunt down this “Fox Cub” and bring them and their secrets back to England. Through a twist of fate, these two enemies are thrown into the same prison cell. Now the two must ignore their enmity (and their growing feelings of attraction for one another) long enough to escape their dire situation. This is the debut book in the author’s “Spymaster” series.