Wordsmiths Books names Best Books of 2007

The staff of Wordsmiths Books are [is?] excited to present the very first Wordsmiths Books Best Books of 2007 list-a selection of the staff’s most beloved titles from the past year.

See the annotate list in the continuation.

For a limited time, these select titles will be discounted 10% both in-store and online. Members of Wordsmiths Books “Friends of Wordsmiths” loyalty program (with all membership fees going to Wordsmiths continuing efforts to expand the store, as detailed by owner/operator Zach Steele in his recent “State of the Wordsmiths Union” missive and blog post) receive an additional 10% off the Best of 2007 titles.

e-mail from Russ Marshalek, Marketing/PR Director, Wordsmiths Books., 141 E Trinity Place, Decatur

www.wordsmithsbooks.com

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Wordsmiths Books Best Books of 2007:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
J. K. Rowling

There isn't a whole lot that can be said about Harry at this point. You know the story, you know the buzz, you've either read them all or you're thinking of reading them. Simply put, Rowling goes out with a bang, gives you the answers you've been waiting for, ensures that you are not left wondering about any characters and delivers a nice ending to close the series. It's a great book, worth reading again and again, and will continue to gain new readers for years to come.

-Zach, Owner/Operator 

Garden Spells
Sarah Addison Allen

Spellbinding, charming, enchanting… these words don’t go far enough in conveying the delights of this wonderful debut novel. Set in a small southern town, Garden Spells tells the story of sisters, Claire and Sydney, estranged for years now brought back together in their childhood home where each discovers her own magic and where they find a way into each other’s heart.

Bascom

,

North Carolina

has its own magic, every bit as wondrous and true as the South American town created by Garcia Marquez in 100 Years of Solitude or the world the Toni Morrison shows us in Song of Solomon. Fascinating plant lore, an apple tree with a will of its own, and the absolute best first kiss ever make this beguiling novel one that I could not put down and will insist that all my friends read. Highly recommended and, hands down, the best book I’ve read in 2007.

-Dea Anne, Operations Manager

Man Gone Down
Michael Thomas

Obviously (and thankfully) having absorbed the modern literary canon of “adolescence-into-adulthood fears” tomes, Thomas’ masterful first novel concerns itself with the heart of the matter digging at so many-how to be an adult, have, raise and care for a family (and, as Thomas’ protagonist would point out, they are very definitely three separate facets to parenting), uphold responsibilities to others and oneself, all while feeling the vaguely lost near-ennui that accompanies existence in the 21st century. A true, honest-to-god male coming of age tale with heart and soul that’s sorely missing from Thomas’ contemporaries (and, yes, Updike gets to count as a contemporary here, particularly when Thomas paints his story with such resonant masterstrokes), Man Gone Down also concerns itself with enough race and place to find a shelving next to Invisible

Man.

This is a modern classic that’s going to change your life if you let it; and, if you don’t, it’ll force itself in.

-Russ Marshalek, Marketing/PR Director

Toonamint of Champions
Todd Sentell

Toonamint of Champions by local author Todd Sentell is a hilarious and iniquitous satire of the Masters and Augusta National. Before I tell you about this book, you must understand that I know very little about golf. I’m a big baseball fan, but the only golf I play is of the putt-putt kind (and not very good). However, the lack of golf understanding does not matter. Sentell has filled his story with bigger than life characters, and I was literally laughing on almost every page. Toonamint of Champions is the story of Waymon Poodle, “a teller at the Trust Trust bank branch inside the Publix grocery store on Confederate Victory Parkway in Mullet, Luv, Georgia, and no other human being on earth loves more than he does the Masters, the golf course on which it’s played, the wonderful sport of golf in general, and the iniquitous allure of what goes on behind the gates of ootsie-tootsie private golf clubs.” Waymon’s lifelong dream is to play one round at the Augusta National, and he has to overcome so many outlandish obstacles, including his fiancee, LaJuanita Mumps, Waymon’s supervisor at the bank (also named Waymon), and Giant Cicada Killer Wasps. Sentell has a unique writing style that’s basically full of run-on sentences, but his wordplay is fantastic. It’s sort of like Elmore Leonard, except nobody gets shot at the end of each sentence. But be aware that the book is iniquitous (look it up if you need to) and not for the easily offended. If you’re looking for a great laugh, this is the book for you

-Mike Sussman, Webmaster

Bobbie Faye's Very (Very, Very, Very) Bad Day
Toni McGee Causey

I am smitten with Bobbie Faye. The book follows Bobbie Faye Sumrall, equally loved and dreaded “disaster magnet of the south” from Lake Charles, LA who starts her very (very, very, very) bad day in the wee hours of the morning with a very broken washing machine and a flooded trailer. From there, her day takes off (racing downhill at a spectacular speed and gaining momentum with every minute) after her she learns her good-for-nothing little brother, Roy, has been kidnapped by someone who wants something she should have, but that has been stolen—and she has to chase it down (which is really when all the fun starts). As a full-blooded (and proud of it) Texan, I especially appreciate how the author expertly portrays the true southern woman: tough as nails– yet feminine, smart, witty, and not afraid to kick the butt of anyone who messes with family. This book is laugh-out-loud funny. You’ll love it!

-

Alice

, bookseller

Grotesque
Natsuo Kirino

Two women are murdered in Tokyo-one a prostitute and the other an office lady who turned tricks on the side. Trying to shed light on the crimes, our narrator, a nameless woman who was sister to the former and schoolmate to the latter, tells her own accounts of the women as she knew them. Her relationships with them were so fraught, however, that nothing she says can be taken at face value. A disturbing trip into a fragile psyche, the book also delves into the sources of feminine power in traditional social hierarchies. Unreliable, dark, and twisted, Grotesque was easily the most compelling and fascinating book I read in 2007.

-Lucy, bookseller

Loving Frank
Nancy Horan

Throughout the years, there have been few books which have moved me the way this novel has. Loving Frank is one of those stories which leave you aching to know more about its characters, something I’ve spent quite a lot of free time doing ever since I finished reading it. You certainly don’t have to be a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright in order to appreciate the beautiful story behind his romance with Mamah Borthwick, though you will likely be curious to know more about a topic so rarely written about. An engaging read about an amazingly intelligent, passionate and fascinating woman.

-Katie, bookseller

 

Organic Body Care Recipes
Stephanie Tourles

Organic Body Care Recipes by Stephanie Tourles reads like a cookbook, but is resplendent with natural, organic formulas for everything from individualized hair care and chemical-free face wash to all-natural aftershave, gentle organic toothpaste, and herbal love potions or aphrodisiacs. This book is a treasure for crafty folks who are driven to live an organic, earth-friendly existence. The easy-to-follow recipes give tips on general body care, advice on storage for the products you create, and even hints on where to find every ingredient listed in the book--not to mention the wonderful gift ideas.

-Becca, bookseller

Michael Tolliver Lives
Armistead Maupin

Maupin's Tales of the City series was my favorite reading of the late 80s. For those of us who felt that we, too, lived a while at

28 Barbary Lane

, the title itself is a reason to cheer. Now our beloved Mouse returns as narrator to face life in middle age while reuniting us with our old friends, including that unforgetable landlady/mother, Anna Madrigal.

-John Divine, bookseller

Pyres
Derek Nikitas

Local author Derek Nikitas’ first novel is a dark and ominous piece of work that’s also infinitely moving. A must-read.

-Kevin, bookseller

Merle's Door
Ted Kerasote

There was a time when I was just like Merle, except I was alone on a curbside and not wandering out of the woods. But that's okay, because Merle found a great home--just like me--and had a really cool life with Mr. Ted. Merle's Door is a bit sad, I have to tell you, but there are very few books about dogs' lives that make me as happy for how they lived than Merle's story. He's just a really cool dog.

-Curbie, store dog and resident head of security via licking

Comments

[Chrissy]

Fables From The Mud by Erik Quisling Bedtime Stories for Adults Is one of my favorite Fiction/Philosophy reads.
His bedtime stories for Adults is the most unusual and like nothing I've read before, but is pretty much 'dark humor fables' with lots of drawings.
He tweaks pop culture and our society's endless obsession with self and self-improvement.
These philosophical tales are the perfect mix of dark humor and simple yet shrewd observations of the human condition.