Annotation:“Assistance sought in search for missing man,” begins the Most Wanted poster. Balram Halwai himself is that “missing man,” he explains to the Chinese Premier in his letter: he was a former schoolboy, dragged out of school as a young teenager; he was also a former coal crusher at tea store and a former chauffeur in Delhi. But that was then… now he’s a self-made “entrepreneur” who keeps mysterious midnight hours in Bangalore: he’s a charismatic, unpredictable, eavesdropping entrepreneur—and a murderer! What internal and external forces led an innocent boy from the village of Laxmangarh to become a successful man with blood on his hands in a corrupt city? Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger was the recipient of the Man Booker award. (Russ K., Reference)

Annotation:Peter Pan is known as the “boy who won’t grow up.” In this lusciously illustrated centennial edition, we learn he is apparently the boy who will never die. Tatar provides the story of the book’s evolution from a snippet within a short story, to a play, to a novel, to a musical, to a Disney cartoon, and to any number of cinema permutations. My love affair with this story started at age five with a gift of the book version of Disney’s film and a paper craft reproduction of the Jolly Roger. Ever since, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for it. If your inner child is like mine even a little, this is a lovely book to savor and perhaps share with a special child in your life. (Barbara L., Reader’s Services)

Annotation:If you, like me, enjoy smart and funny “chick lit,” this book is for you. Recently divorced single mom and marmalade marketer Ally James is like a grown-up Bridget Jones. Tired of her lackluster life, Ally decides to give a “Proactive Partnership Program” dating seminar a try. With her marketing roots she finds that with a bit of repackaging and some new-found confidence she’s actually a pretty great catch. So much so that she suddenly has the eye of her brother’s friend, her electrician, a new neighbor, and her ex-husband. Which of her many suitors, if any, will she end up with? This light romance novel will have you laughing and cheering for Ally while you find out. (Rika G., Reference)

Annotation:Many know Coben from his Myron Bolitar novels. This earlier stand-alone novel was adapted into a French thriller, Ne le dis a personne. Recently it was announced that Ben Affleck will direct a Hollywood version of the book. Tell No One is a quiet thriller but the premise is well-developed enough so the storyline will keep the reader engaged. This is not for fans of action-packed explosive reads; instead, this mystery will appeal to those who can distance themselves from the story as each layer of the plot unfolds to reveal a more complex problem underneath. (Juliette S., Reader’s Services)

Annotation:Oscar Wao is a “fuku” cursed, overweight Dominican boy growing up in Paterson, New Jersey obsessed with girls he can’t get. His sister convinces her athletic boyfriend to help him, but to no avail. Oscar jumps off a bridge only to survive with broken legs and a broken heart. In the Dominican Republic he falls madly in love with an older prostitute whose jealous boyfriend works for the oppressive dictator Rafael Trujillo. Oscar refuses to give up on love even after a severe beating. His personal writings confirm that in the final days of his life he got what he was always searching for. 2008 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. (Elvira C-D, Reader’s Services)

Annotation:This novel is a rich, darkly funny examination of an American family in the larger context of the United States during the booming dot-com era. Materialism, disappointment, and manipulation are rampant in the Lambert family—Alfred and Enid and their three adult children, Gary, Chip, and Denise. The Lamberts are so flawed and so real in their individual and joint struggles that, while you may not like them much, you will find yourself empathizing with their painful striving. Although chapter breaks sometimes feel few and far between in this dense novel packed with emotionally detailed, excruciatingly intimate details, this serves to draw the reader (further than is comfortable) into the world of these characters. (Genevieve G., Reader’s Services)

Annotation:Dana and Chaurisse are sisters, but only Dana knows it. She and her mother Gwen are the “secret” family, the illegitimate wife and daughter whom James Witherspoon hides from his “real” family and the rest of the world. Although James persuades himself that he’s doing right by them, Dana’s resentment at always being second best eventually leads to devastating revelations for everyone involved. Tayari Jones creates a cast of fascinating and memorable characters, and a fully realized setting in Atlanta’s black community of the late 70s and 80s. A stunning, painful story of betrayal and disillusionment, in a family with far too many secrets. (Lesley W., Adult Services)

Annotation:1920s Paris (of the “Lost Generation”) is captured beautifully in this book. The reader is transported into the Paris cafes, post-war Europe, and Pamplona bullfighting, told from the point of view of Ernest Hemingway’s first wife Hadley Richardson. The Paris Wife immerses the reader in this unique time in literary history while playing out a wrenching love story. Although their marriage eventually crumbles and Hemingway remarries three move times, he writes of Hadley in A Moveable Feast: “I wished I had died before I ever loved anyone but her.” (Rika G., Reference)

Annotation:A renowned writer named Michael reimagines himself as an 11-year-old boy setting sail from his native Colombo, on an ocean liner bound for England, to meet a mother he hardly remembers. Assigned a seat at the Cat’s Table with the least privileged passengers, he befriends two boys who become his cohorts in a series of (sometimes mischievous) adventures. Undetected by adults who are mostly unreliable, untrustworthy, and incomprehensible, he is free to explore, use his imagination and reinvent himself. This perilous journey includes a cast of colorful characters, thievery, mysterious death, a shackled prisoner who walks each midnight, plants (some poisonous) with remarkable powers, and more. Full of suspense, with vivid scenes that seem almost like paintings, this sad and beautiful story is magnificent. (Susan R., Reader’s Services)

Annotation:After bursting on to the literary scene with last year’s acclaimed Mr. Peanut, Adam Ross has returned with this superb collection of short stories. Much like his debut, these twisting, noirish tales turn up the suspense with a touch of the surreal as they explore the darker corners of marriage and friendship. In the standout “The Rest of It,” for instance, a lonely English professor panics after befriending a mysterious handyman who might be harboring a murderer, while in the unnerving “Suicide Room,” a group of morally-reckless college kids play an increasingly dangerous game of Chicken with possibly tragic results. With vivid characters, and often hauntingly ambiguous, these well-crafted stories are a fantastic follow-up that delivers on the promise of Mr. Peanut and leaves you eager for more. (Russell J., Reader’s Services)

Annotation:At the Central Registry of Births, Marriages, and Deaths lives low-level aging worker Senhor José who lives adventurously at night climbing tall ladders to reach the highest shelf and illegally making copies of official documents that tell the story of famous dead and living celebrities. When he discovers information about an unknown woman, he is determined to find her. A few times his out-of-character actions are sparked upon receiving advice from the ceiling in his small apartment, but ultimately his uncanny behavior receives praise and encouragement from an unexpected source with godlike qualities. The Portuguese author José Saramago received the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature. (Elvira C-D, Reader’s Services)

Annotation:Born into a Sudanese family of wealth and influence, Midnight comes to the projects of Brooklyn with his beloved mother Umma and negotiates life and love with his Islamic sensibilities and African intelligence. Souljah fills in the background of the sought-after Midnight introduced in The Coldest Winter Ever. I definitely was hooked by this book, although (pardon the expression) some of the characters are a little black and white. Midnight’s mother is perfect, and Midnight is pretty close, and the world they live in is gritty to say the least, but the story definitely captivated. (Connie H., North Branch)

Annotation:The imagery is so strong and the language so beautiful in this book, a story of three boys growing up with a white mother carrying too large a burden, and a Puerto Rican father, a dreamer who floats from job to job and takes his anger out with his fists. This edgy coming-of-age story is a powerful read of a family that does everything (fight, love, and make up) large. The images jump off the page and make you wince but also smile and laugh as the boys learn to become men. (Rika G., Reference)

Annotation:For those who love the lush, eloquent style of contemporary Indian literature, Thrity Umrigar’s novel The Space Between Us is a must-read. This provocative and disturbing story centers on the relationship between two women—an educated middle-class woman, Sera, and her illiterate servant, Bhima. Sera’s happily-married daughter is pregnant; but so is Bhima’s unmarried granddaughter. Sera has often rescued Bhima from crisis during the 25 years of Bhima’s faithful employ… how will she help Bhima now, with the granddaughter in a predicament? Umrigar writes beautifully about the two women’s complex relationship in a society where rigid class structure and gender taints and complicates each relationship. (Russ K., Reference)

Annotation:All hell breaks loose in Manhattan when a blind competition for the memorial at Ground Zero is won by a Muslim American. Waldman tells her story from a multitude of viewpoints providing a complex look at the survivors, politicians, Muslims, journalists and others who have a stake in the results. With her journalistic eye, Waldman writes a story that is reality. The writing is sensitive, funny and incisive, and the plot is compelling. (Connie H., North Branch)

Annotation:Serial killers are categorized on what is known as the “Evil Scale,” from Level 1 to Level 25. Ted Bundy, for example, falls at a 17. The antagonist of this novel requires a level of his own: Level 26. The book follows former agent Steve Dark on his quest to track down this new breed of killer nicknamed “Sqweegel.” Sqweegel is the worst the world has seen, not only torturing and killing, but taunting and causing mass hysteria in his one-piece, forensic-proof, latex suit. Part One of the Dark Trilogy, by CSI creator Anthony Zuiker, is the next generation of fiction: the “diginovel.” Every couple of chapters, readers are invited to go online and watch a corresponding video. It is the best of both worlds combining fiction and visual narrative. (Kim H., Reader’s Services)