Whatever your go-to genre, from picture books for the kids to scholarly nonfiction or beach reads, you can find titles by authors in your area. Check out this variety and kick back with a good book!
Madeline Finn and the Therapy Dog
by Lisa Papp
Author and illustrator Lisa Papp returns with another companion in her series of picture books about how kids and dogs can make a difference. This time, Star is testing to become a therapy dog at a retirement community. Together, Madeline and Star try to reach one man in a wheelchair who seems firmly forlorn. With soft, sweet illustrations, this tale of intergenerational connection educates on the power of volunteering and the world of therapy animals.
Camp Murderface #2: Doom in the Deep
by Josh Berk & Saundra Mitchell
Bethlehem Area Public Library’s director doesn’t just run the place, he’s graced the shelves with several books for young readers. Last year, Camp Murderface #2: Doom in the Deep continued a middle-grade series set at a spooky summer camp in the early ’80s. Tez and Corryn’s counselors are going missing this summer, and the kids don’t believe the camp director’s assurances that the counselors simply quit. Could something more evil be afoot?
How Do You Fix A Bad Day?
by Pam & Kelsi Cantone
Mother-and-daughter team Pam and Kelsi Cantone created this conversation and picture book to help youngsters understand, articulate and cope with their feelings. Problem-solving and self-reflection are fostered with graphics and conversation starters to help spark discussion and connect over that universal challenge—a bad day.
In Honor of Broken Things
by Paul Acampora
Three middle schoolers are wading through heavy life challenges when they find each other in a pottery class. From parents divorcing to the loss of a sister and the shakeup of a move, these heavy topics are all-too-common realities of life handled deftly by Acampora. With support from each other, the youngsters navigate healing and how to embrace that some hurts will never fully heal.
Jack the Unicorn
by Joe Borda
The colorful picture book comes with a simple lesson as it explores the life of Jack the unicorn. With all kinds of likes and dislikes, activities and interests, life is about learning and having fun—whether it’s by baking, or playing with toy cars, or wearing your favorite clothes! The book includes a section to write in a child’s own preferences to look back on later in life.
Simeon Bleeker’s Magical Sneakers: A Walk Through Anxiety
by Soul Perspective LLC
Before you judge another person, walk a mile in their shoes. We all know the adage, but Simeon Bleeker really has the ability to share the experiences of other kids with the power of his magical sneakers. When he doesn’t understand why Kolby is too anxious to participate in summer camp, Simeon uses his magic red high-tops to find out what it’s like to live with anxiety. Empathy is a superpower in this vibrantly illustrated story!
MIKAYLA’S VOICE
Local Nonprofit
The books published by Mikayla’s Voice are written by children, in keeping with the nonprofit organization’s mission to empower children of all abilities to educate others about diversity and inclusion. Who better to start the conversation with kids about how to compassionately encounter and understand people with disabilities than peers on their own developmental level?
Explaining friends with a brain injury (Our Friend Mikayla), Down syndrome (High Fives and A Big Heart) and autism, (Super Brady: Always on the Move!), the three books released thus far help explain that it’s normal to be uncertain when we meet someone different, and a little kindness and curiosity will carry us through to understanding!
A Million Quiet Revolutions
by Robin Gow
Growing up in a small rural town with an almost nonexistent queer community, trans teens Aaron and Oliver are lucky to have each other. When Aaron moves away, the two turn to historical stories hinted at and untold to orient themselves in the legacy of queer and trans people. A lyrical story told in verse, A Million Quiet Revolutions is full of the passion and poetry of young people in love.
Dagger Hill
by Devon Taylor
It’s 1989, and four friends are set to enjoy the small-town summer before their senior year begins. So much for that—a freak plane crash directly onto their hangout spot has them sucked into a paranormal mystery and searching for an abducted member of the group. Fans of Stranger Things will love the creepy vibe and retro setting, with teens facing their fear to tackle a spine-tingling mystery.
Does This Book Make My Butt Look Big?: A Cheeky Guide to Feeling Sexier in Your Own Skin & Unleashing Your Personal Style
by Carson Kressley
Emmy Award-winning fairy god stylist and TV star Carson Kressley may swan among the stars, but his fashion wisdom is fit for any budget. Anyone can glean a good glamour education from this guide to style from head to toe, rich with Kressley’s saucy voice and splashy watercolor illustrations. Take these targeted tips as tools to create your own self-assured style.
Where the Grass Is Green and the Girls Are Pretty
by Lauren Weisberger
Known best for The Devil Wears Prada, Weisberger fired off another page-turner last year, tangling with sisters, secrets and the crumbling of a perfect-family façade. Peyton is a polished morning show anchor, her sister Skye a stay-at-home PTA princess, but both of their outwardly immaculate lives are about to be rocked by a college admissions scandal implicating Peyton’s husband, and he’s not the only one with something to hide.
READ LOCAL, SHOP LOCAL
Remember to find your next read, new or old, at one of the Valley’s independent booksellers.
Let’s Play Books!
244 Main St., Emmaus | 610.928.8600 | letsplaybooks.com
Order in any book you want or browse the selection at this pillar of the reading community. Let’s Play hosts local events, book club meetings and author chats!
Moravian Book Shop
428 Main St., Bethlehem | 610.866.5481 | moravian.edu/bookshop
The oldest continuously operating bookshop in the States, this landmark of Historic Bethlehem offers a wide contemporary selection and gift shop.
Book & Puppet Co.
22 Centre Sq., Easton | 484.544.4738 | bookandpuppet.com
Offering story times, puppet shows and a great children’s collection, this vibrant shop stocks books for all ages and a quirky gift section.
Now and Then Books
56 S. 4th St., Emmaus | 610.966.3114 | now-and-then-books.business.site
A favorite spot to check back for a rainy-day pile of bestsellers at a great price.
The Old Library Bookshop
1419 Center St., Bethlehem | 610.814.3434 | oldlib.com
Cozy and quaint, this bookshop is run by a mother-daughter team and specializes in old and rare books, but the collection runs the gamut.
Apport Used Books
12 S. 4th St., Emmaus | 610.428.8994 | @apportusedbooks
A well-curated trove of niche genres and interesting finds, check out this spot for a unique selection and knowledgeable proprietor.
The Quadrant Bookmart & CoffeeHouse
20 N. 3rd St., Easton | 610.252.1188 | @thequadrantbookmart
Three stories of shelf-browsing heaven and a cafe to boot! Grab brunch and explore this reader’s paradise on Historic Easton’s Millionaire’s Row.
The Beauty of Their Youth
by Joyce Hinnefeld
A compassionate and heartfelt collection of five short stories alights in the lives of characters wrangling with notions of self and its relation to their roles, histories and relationships. From a German tourist plunging into the Florida Everglades to an older woman ruminating on her mother’s death, diverse settings and situations tease out interior lives. Award-winning short-story writer and novelist Joyce Hinnefeld is a professor of English at Moravian College.
Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts
by Kate Racculia
Fast-paced and clever, this mystery follows nerdy loner Tuesday Mooney as she gets drawn out of nights alone binging TV and into the citywide scavenger hunt eccentrically imposed by a dying billionaire. With a huge prize on the line, Tuesday and a team of oddballs chase down clues with plenty of rivals on their heels and specters of their past rearing up in their path.
A Little Hope | A Quiet Life
by Ethan Joella
Life as we know it treads water in an undercurrent of grief, one that Joella wades gamely into. A Little Hope visits a tiny Connecticut town and a dozen denizens’ overlapping hardships, from addiction and betrayal to sudden illness and loss. Beautifully written and rooted in small-community dynamics, the story looks unflinchingly at challenges but also the hope that lets us survive them. His second book, A Quiet Life, will be published this November.
Goodbye, Orchid
by Carol Van Den Hende
A heart-wrenching and captivating love story, Goodbye, Orchid doesn’t play out in the typical way. As the story opens, Orchid and Phoenix are new to a promising relationship. But what happens to that fragile trajectory when Phoenix is badly and irreversibly injured? He wants to spare her from this trauma and the long road of recovery ahead of him, but Orchid is determined not to give up.
Never Been Kissed
by Timothy Janovsky
Wren Roland is in his early twenties but has yet to lock lips with a beau, despite a crush-studded youth. In a drunken haze of nostalgia, he fires off a series of emails to the four guys he almost kissed—and ends up reconnecting with the one that got away. The two are working together over the summer at a classic old drive-in movie theater, where they might just get their own off-screen Hollywood kiss.
True Story: What Reality TV Says About Us
by Danielle J. Lindemann
The phenomenon of reality television is an inescapable feature of modern society, one that we like to indulge in and deride in equal measure. With an evenhanded sociological lens, Lindemann, associate professor of sociology at Lehigh University, explores what reality TV says about us, from the seminal The Real World on MTV to the endless parade of housewives and bachelors, and why we’re so fascinated.
The Anxiety Healer’s Guide: Coping Strategies and Mindfulness Techniques to Calm the Mind and Body
by Alison Seponara, MS, LPC
For those struggling with anxiety, it can surface anytime, anywhere to overwhelm or distract from living our best lives. Licensed psychotherapist Alison Seponara has collected time-tested and scientifically proven strategies to ease anxiety, whether it be by long-term habits or in-the-moment antidotes. A great toolkit for anyone who’s tired of feeling helpless to the whims of their nervous system!
Electing Madam Vice President: When Women Run Women Win
by Nichola D. Gutgold
The 2020 election was historic for many reasons, but Gutgold focuses her attention on a positive one: more women ran for president than ever before, and the United States achieved its first woman as vice president. As a professor of communication arts and sciences at Penn State Lehigh Valley, Gutgold deftly explores the campaign rhetoric and communications of each candidate and the road that led Vice President Kamala Harris to the White House.
Behind the Button
by Jill Strickland Brown
This fun and fast read tracing the journey of an entrepreneur shows how one woman followed her passion for fashion. Starting out in customer service in a small town, she went on to work as a seven-figure sales rep in New York City and found her own boutique, Frox, in Perkasie, PA. Now she uses her story to inspire women to weave a life that suits them, with strength, vulnerability and style!
Craving London
by Jessica Stone
On the brink of 30, foodie Jessica Stone is five years single after a broken engagement as this memoir opens. Looking for a hard reset, she leaves New York City for England, pursuing culinary delights and a London love life. Colin Firth fetishists (or Anglophiles) will enjoy vicariously exploring the city, the dating scene and some cheeky recipes as Stone unreels her adventures across the pond.
