The Safekeep

This debut from Yael van der Wouden completely floored me–The Safekeep is at turns suspenseful, poetic, intimate, and absolutely stunning.

Housemates

Housemates is a roadtrip story about queer love, finding your place, and what it means to create art. Eisenberg tackles these big topics through the lens of two generations of queer creatives, and she does it in a distinctly fresh and fascinating way.

All Fours

This one is a doozy. All Fours is an intense, unfiltered portrait of an artist in her mid-40s fighting tooth and nail to not lose her sense of self as she enters her mid-life. While embarking on a solo road trip, our main character decides to hole away in a motel just 30 minutes from her husband and child. What follows is a manic journey of sexual and emotional rebirth. You will not forget this book.

My Darling Dreadful Thing

A gothic tale in the tradition of Edgar Allen Poe, two women connect over their strange experiences with spiritual companions. The tale that unfolds is macabre, gruesome, and sorrowful, with the clearest hints of beauty and love.

The Last Twelve Miles

Two women, a Coast Guard Special Agent and a bootlegger, face off against each other in this Prohibition-era novel. Their journeys of marriage, motherhood, and career intertwine in this fascinating story based on true events.

Learn more about Erika and her book in our latest Authors IRL post!

The Guncle Abroad

In 2021, Steven Rowley introduced us to The Guncle, our favorite gay uncle who hesitantly steps up to care for his niece and nephew in an Uncle Buck type of scenario. This summer, the Guncle and kids are reunited when they need each other most, and this time they are vacationing throughout Europe. This respectable sequel lives up to the humor and heart of the first book and is the perfect fun summer read.

Also loved by Lindsay!

Women: A Novella

There is so much packed into this little novella. Centering on identity, intimacy, heartbreak, and infatuation, it reads like a memoir as it unpacks the pains and plights of an all-consuming relationship. I would highly recommend this short-but-powerful gem to any readers of Carmen Maria Machado or Maggie Nelson.

The Last Murder at the End of the World

Is this a murder mystery where everyone we meet is a suspect, but no one remembers the crime and the how-dunnit part keeps changing? Or is it a sci-fi tale about the (possible) end of the world and the events leading up to it? Yes, it is.

Bad Animals

Maeve is a straight-laced librarian, but her life begins to spiral after a teenager accuses her of peeping in the bathroom. To cope, Maeve writes to her favorite author, Harrison Riddles. When Riddles responds to Maeve’s letters, she becomes intimately roped into his plans to write about her friend, a Sudanese refugee named Willie. Bad Animals leans into uncomfortable, taboo themes, but oh my god was it fun to read.

Mirrored Heavens (Between Earth and Sky #3)

The ending of Roanhorse’s Between Earth & Sky trilogy is strong, suspenseful, and ultimately satisfying. Mirrored Heavens is full of intrigue, action, and the characters I grew to love (or love to hate). I cannot recommend this series enough. Start with Black Sun and you’ll find yourself drawn into the world of the Meridian, Roanhorse’s pre-Columbian fantasy setting, and you’ll devour the rest.

When Among Crows

The gods, monsters, and legends of Slavic myth find themselves in the heart of Chicago, unpacking centuries’ curses and new twists and turns to their stories. When what’s monstrous looks a lot like what’s human, our main characters must solve the riddles of the past in order to have a future.

One Perfect Couple

Love Island meets And Then There Were None. A couples reality show goes horribly sideways when a storm hits the resort leaving contestants stranded with little food and water. Contestants disappear or are killed. Who is playing to win? Each of Ware’s books is so different then the last but each is a page-turner that leaves you guessing. Who is behind it? Will there only be one contestant left when help arrives?

The Witches of Bellinas

Newlywed New Yorkers Guy and Tansy are captivated by a community on the coast of California when they visit. It’s almost too perfect. Tansy thinks it feels a little cultish, but Guy is ALL IN. Nobody in their intellectual circle would ever get sucked into a cult, would they? These people could give them everything they’ve ever wanted. The fast-paced suspense will upend your ideas of belonging, intellect, and safety.

Exile in Guyville

Black Mirror meets The Handmaid’s Tale. This unsettling short story collection imagines what happens when technological advances and misogynistic horrors meet.

The Queen of Poisons

This is the 4th installment in the Marlow Murders series, and it won’t let you down. Suzie, Judith and Becks are now “official” liaisons for the police as they solve the mayor’s murder: poisoned with aconite, the queen of poisons, at a town council meeting. The trio sort through lots of quirky, seemingly guilty characters before figuring out the cross and double-cross that is a surprise.

A Letter to the Luminous Deep 

A cozy dark academia book told entirely through letters and secondary sources. A world with no identifiable land masses, only water as far as the eye can see. And a love story so precious it will squeeze your heart. I LOVED Letter to the Luminous Deep so much. For fans of Klune and Mandanna, this book is a must.

The Bezzle

Scams to cover up scams and the counter-scams that arise. Privilege, corruption, and forensic accounting (really!) combine for an exciting ride through private islands and for-profit prisons. Returning Doctorow main Martin Hench, forensic accountant, is a captivating character (really!).

Butcher

I’ve really enjoyed the last few releases from Joyce Carol Oates, but this is by far her most horrific and haunting work yet. Butcher, set in the 1800s, is essentially a fictional biography of Silas Weir—the father of Gyno-Psychiatry. Don’t read this if you’re squeamish, but for anyone looking for some grotesque horror with a strong feminist message, pick this up.

Here for the Wrong Reasons

The premise is based on a group of women going on a Bachelor-esque show, but instead of falling head over heels for the man, two of the women fall for each other. Here for the Wrong Reasons is spicy, dramatic, and entertaining from the first page.

The Five Year Lie

A titan of the romance genre, The Five Year Lie is Bowen’s foray into the world of domestic thrillers. With her signature heart-punch romance at the center, Bowen delivers a spine-tingling thriller that keeps you guessing right up to the very last page.

Dust Storms May Exist: Poems

Dust Storms May Exist marries the sweetness and sorrows of life from both a personal journey and a broad perspective. Former Parnassus bookseller and award winning poet Ben Groner invites readers on a 10,000 mile road trip reckoning with beauty and brokenness. This collection tells an impactful story and is great for both long-time poetry fans and newbies. We are proud to have a new must-read for Parnassus regulars!

Also loved by… everyone!

When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion

One of my favorite movies of all time is George Cukor’s The Women, which pulls off a remarkable feat for 1939 in not featuring any men in the entire film. How’d he do it? Multiple scenes shot in department stores. Julie Satow’s When Women Ran Fifth Avenue is a history of women’s roles in developing American department stores, but it’s also an examination of the crossroads of feminism and capitalism–I loved it.

The Race to the Future: 8,000 Miles to Paris – The Adventure That Accelerated the Twentieth Century

Kassia St. Clair has chronicled an incredible tale of daredevil heroics and questionable methods as automobiles race across two continents from Peking to Paris in 1907. More than just retelling of the race of however, St. Clair ties in the geopolitical forces of the era that are about to transform the world as it races to modernity.

Miss May Does Not Exist: The Life and Work of Elaine May, Hollywood’s Hidden Genius

The first biography of the most underrated filmmaker in Hollywood history, Carrie Courogen’s book on Elaine May is a fascinating spotlight on a figure who so often hid in the shadows. Capturing her sketch comedy roots with Mike Nichols, her graduation into film directing, and her second life as a script doctor, this book is full of stunning insight into a notoriously reclusive living legend.

Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent

In this gem of a collection of conversations, Brendan O’Hea explores play by play roles Dame Judi has inhabited over a long career on stage. Interstitial chapters on the company, audience, Shakespeare’s language and more give insight on history, method, costumes. Theater fans and actors alike will delight in the details and humor.

The Call to Serve: The Life of an American President, George Herbert Walker Bush: A Visual Biography

A beautifully illustrated portrait of George Herbert Walker Bush with Meacham’s commentary throughout. It captures a political landscape that seems so distant today. Bush was driven by a desire to serve his country and its people. Today’s politicians would do well to emulate Bush’s life code, “Tell the truth. Don’t blame people. Be strong. Do your best. Try hard. Forgive. Stay the course.”

Let’s Make Bread!: A Comic Book Cookbook

A different take on a cookbook. Ken Forkish’s 2012 book Flour Water Salt Yeast is THE book for the home baker. In this book he turns baking into visual fun! Forkish provides techniques and recipes in Becan’s inviting comic book format. Great for anyone who wants to bake bread.

The Book of Mothers: How Literature Can Help Us Reinvent Modern Motherhood

This a book that reviews the influence of mothers in literature. It can be a parenting book as well as a launch to read or reread some classics. Fun to explore.

Grateful for You

By M. H. Clark, Cecile Metzger (Illustrator)

This beautifully illustrated book full of cute animals is a reminder to be grateful. Look around and be thankful for all the things but remember it is people who bring joy. Books and hot cocoa are nice but people are nicer! The perfect way to tell someone how much they mean to you.

When I Sing, Mountains Dance

Set in the remote Pyrenees Mountains, this is the lyrical and heartbreaking story of one family in a village told through alternating viewpoints- humans, the mountains themselves, the roe-deer, and ghosts. We see the fallout of the untimely death of Domènec and what happens to the family that must cope with his loss. The writing is stunning, but it is also a testament to stunning translation skills.

Open Throat

This is a very short, very weird book about a queer feral mountain lion caught between climate crisis starvation and the inexplicable human civilization of LA. If you weren’t immediately sold at “queer mountain lion POV” I don’t know what you want from a book.

The New Life

Set in late nineteenth century London, Tom Crewe’s The New Life follows two men, both married to women, who write a book in defense of gay love. I missed this when it debuted and was so happy to discover this beautiful novel that explores a chapter of queer history I didn’t know that much about.

Dawn (Lilith’s Brood #1)

To know me is to know I love a monster/alien romance, and Octavia Butler’s Dawn is one of my all time favorites. When humankind has ruined Earth beyond repair, an alien race takes over the planet, putting humans in stasis until Earth can be healed. Centuries later they are awoken and one woman is tasked with saving her people. But salvation comes at a cost.

Daisy Miller

Henry James humorously engages how Europeans and Americans interact through the adventurous Daisy Miller – a travelling “flirt” who gracefully disrupts European norms.

The Luminaries

An intricate novel covering the fallout of two mysterious crimes on the South Island in the 19th Cent. that gets curiouser and curiouser with each revelation. While it’s amazing even if you don’t know/care about astrology, each of the characters and their interactions are associated with and reflected by the positions the heavenly bodies were in during the timeframe of the novel. A challenging read, but so worth it!

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms

The blueprint for good fantasy. Page turning with an incredibly intricate structure and a yearning romance amongst gods. I stayed up all night to finish it!

Enter Ghost

Through various storytelling methods – prose, drama, multiple languages – Isabella Hammad follows Sonia, an actress returning to Haifa to visit her sister. Once there, Sonia joins a company doing a West Bank production of Hamlet. A wonderful story of family, home, passion, and resistance, this novel is a must-read. I am obsessed with Hammad’s storytelling, and have my eyes peeled for what’s to come.

First Editions Club: June Selection

Sandwich

I was recently having a conversation with a friend about a book I started and didn’t finish. When she asked me why I stopped, I said I thought the characters were petty and bitter, and the plot felt overly familiar. My friend nodded sympathetically. “I felt the same way at first,” she said. “But in the last hundred pages the whole book came together. The last hundred pages made the slog worthwhile.”

Maybe I read too much. I don’t have the time or inclination to stick with a book until it gets better. I want a book that starts great and stays great.

Enter Sandwich by Catherine Newman, a manuscript that was passed from bookseller to bookseller until it was dirty and torn. I can remember my sister saying to me, “I just can’t get into anything right now.” I held out the first page of Sandwich. She started laughing. “Give me this book!” she said. “Give me this book immediately.”

Oh, to have a book that’s funny and smart, a book in which you see yourself no matter who you are, a book that drags you to a chair and won’t let you stand up until you’re finished. Is that too much to ask?

Sandwich is about a woman who is part of the sandwich generation—those who are looking after both their children and aging parents. They’re also near Sandwich on Cape Cod. And she makes a lot of sandwiches.

Here’s what I wrote for the jacket: “Sandwich is joy in book form. I laughed continuously, except for the parts that made me cry. Catherine Newman does a miraculous job reminding us of all the wonder there is to be found in life.”

Go find your comfortable chair.

Enjoy.

Ann Patchett

More about our First Editions Club: Every member receives a first edition of the selected book of the month, signed by the author. Books are carefully chosen by our staff of readers, and our picks have gone on to earn major recognition including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the PEN/Faulkner Award. Plus, there’s no membership fee or premium charge for these books. Build a treasured library of signed first editions and always have something great to read! Makes a FABULOUS gift, too.

Love, Parnassus: June Selection

Birding with Benefits

The Love, Parnassus box is a monthly subscription box for romance readers curated by the experts at Parnassus Books. Each month you will receive a first edition book (which is sometimes signed), a letter from the author, a custom sticker, and a bookmark to track your reading. The Love, Parnassus selection will focus on debut and new-to-you romance authors. Set up a subscription for yourself or buy a gift membership for your favorite romance reader for 3, 6, or 12 months.