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Light of the Jedi

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Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Adults

There’s a new Star Wars book series, set in the High Republic era, a golden age in which the Republic and Jedi reign supreme, and it all starts with Light of the Jedi.

“We are all the Republic” is the message of unity Chancellor Lina Soh wants to send to her constituency. She has a variety of “Great Works” planned to improve life for all, starting with the installation of the Starlight Beacon, a space station in the outer rim, which will improve communication and provide security for some of the more remote territories in the galaxy.

But just as the Starlight is coming online, tragedy strikes, when a disaster occurs in Hyperspace. Luckily several Jedi Knights, like the powerful Avar Kriss, are on hand, to help with the rescue efforts. But who is responsible? Who threatens to end this era of peace and magnanimity? The Nihil, a gang of chaotic marauders, led by the mysterious Marchion Ro.

This book kicks off the High Republic series with all the action, adventure, and emotion Star Wars fans expect from the franchise. There are also High Republic books for children, young adults, and graphic novel readers if you just can’t get enough.

Find Light of the Jedi in our catalog.

The Dead and the Dark

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The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

The Dead and the Dark alternates perspectives between Logan, the daughter of popular T.V. ghost hunters, the ParaSpectors, and Ashley, a small-town girl whose boyfriend just went missing, as they try to figure out what is plaguing the town of Snakebite, Oregon. Missing teenagers, ghosts, family secrets, and more keep this book entertaining from beginning to end.

I really enjoyed this book, it was completely captivating! The way that Gould writes makes the characters feel realistic, and the book overall just hard to put down. The twists and turns of the mystery keep readers guessing and curious until the end. I highly recommend this book if you’re in the mood for a small-town paranormal mystery!

Find The Dead and the Dark in the catalog

Testimony from Your Perfect Girl

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Testimony from Your Perfect Girl by Kaui Hart Hemmings
Format: Book
Who’s it for: Young Adult

Annie is a wealthy teenager who has everything she could ever want. On the outside, her family seems to be perfect but their entire world comes crashing down when Annie’s father is accused of stealing investment funds from several clients. The entire town begins to shame the family, so Annie and her brother are sent to live in a smaller rural town with their aunt and uncle. Annie knows that her father is innocent, but a lot of others don’t seem to agree. She must come up with another identity to remain in hiding until the trial is over. Annie learns how to make new friends and live a completely different lifestyle, while trying to discover her passions in life. Will she tell her new friends about her true identity or keep it all a secret until she can go back home? This is a story that has new connections, inner conflict, and the ultimate realization that parents are perfectly flawed humans too. Find Testimony from Your Perfect Girl in the catalog!

In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond

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In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond: In Search of the Sasquatch by John Zada
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Adults

Investigative journalist John Zada confesses to a lifelong fascination with the legend of Bigfoot.

To satisfy his curiosity, and his appetite for adventure, he visits the remote Great Bear Rainforest region of Canada’s Pacific coast, where indigenous people have been telling stories about the Sasquatch for centuries.

While recording the stories of these First Nations, and other, communities, he also records the plight of the forest itself. Activists are fighting to conserve the vast wilderness, and animals that make their homes there, from oil companies, and hunters.

Zada’s thoughtful descriptions of the forest and its inhabitants will make you want to get lost in the woods, and his search for the Sasquatch leads him to a philosophical and psychological exploration of why we believe, or want to believe, in anything.

If you like books about travel, the environment, folklore, or belief systems, I suggest you give this a try. I found it to be a truly interesting read I continue to think about long after turning the last page.

Find In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond in the catalog

Devolution

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Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre by Max Brooks
Format: Book, eBook, Digital Audiobook
Who it’s for: Adults

If you’ve read World War Z, you know Max Brooks is the master of writing imagined violent disasters as if they were non-fiction, and his latest book Devolution continues the tradition.

The novel is presented as the diary entries of Kate Holland, resident of Greenloop, a secluded environmentally-conscious neighborhood of telecommuting professionals in the vast forested area of Washington state, interspersed with interviews of other individuals impacted by mysterious events that occurred there in the wake of a volcanic eruption at Mount Rainier.

Kate’s diary begins when she arrives in Greenloop, and the first few entries consist of descriptions of her quirky new neighbors, complaints about her husband Dan, and observations about the elegant “smart” homes. She goes for invigorating nature walks, attends a cathartic meditation class, pretty standard stuff. But after Rainier erupts, and Greenloop is completely cut off from civilization, it becomes apparent that a group of enormous bipedal primates are living in the woods surrounding her community. Sasquatches are real. And they are hungry.

If you like fast-paced adventure, survival stories, or have always been fascinated by the legend of Bigfoot, you should definitely make this your next read.

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The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez

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The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez, by Adrianna Cuevas
Format: Book
Who is it For: Kids

The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez is an honor for the 2021 Pura Belpré Award in the Children’s Author category. First established in 1996, the Belpré Award is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.

Nestor, a young boy who has moved to a new town, must not only navigate going to a new school and having a father deployed overseas, but he also struggles to keep his gift of talking to animals a secret. But as animals start disappearing in the woods around his house, Nestor finds himself trying to uncover the truth behind a mysterious creature and put a stop to it before it’s too late.

Adrianna Cuevas draws on Panamanian and Costa Rican myths to present to a thrilling adventure for young readers.

Find The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez in the catalog.