By Sue Costello
of Winding Trail Books
June is the time of year when the outside welcomes you with its sights and sounds. Nothing is as sweet as sitting outside, soaking up the Minnesota summer warmth, a slight breeze at your back with the faint scent of flowers in the air.
So, this is the perfect time to sit down at your favorite spot with a new book or an old favorite. Here are some books to consider for your reading enjoyment:
“Wolf Kill (A Sam Rivers mystery)” by Cary J. Griffith is scheduled for release on June 15. This is the fourth book from Griffith, who has also written “Gunflint Burning,” “Lost in the Wild” and “Opening Goliath.” This book has been recommended by fellow local authors William Kent Krueger, Brian Freeman and Peter Geye.
This mystery-thriller is about Sam Rivers, a wildlife biologist who is a special agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He returns home to Defiance, a town in northern Minnesota, after his father’s mysterious death. Upon his return he investigates a bizarre wolf attack, conspiracy, family secrets and evidence of murder.
“I’ve never read a book that evokes the fierce winter landscape of the North country better than ‘Wolf Kill,’” says William Kent Krueger, a Como Park resident and Edgar-Award-winning author of “This Tender Land.”
Meanwhile, fans of historical fiction can look forward to the June 29 release of “The Personal Librarian” by acclaimed authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray.
This is the story of Belle da Costa Greene, who is hired to curate a collection of books, artwork and rare manuscripts for a newly built library. Belle, a fixture in New York City society and a powerful person in the art and book world, has a hidden secret that she is trying to protect at all costs.
The Library Journal calls “The Personal Librarian” “an excellent piece of historical fiction that many readers will find hard to put down.”
In the category of young adult fiction is “Instructions for Dancing” by Nicola Yoon that is scheduled for a June 1 release. This is Yoon’s third novel.
A teen disillusioned about love thinks that love doesn’t last. She meets a boy who is everything she isn’t. Discover if he can change Evie’s mind about love. Is love worth the risk?
In the category of juvenile fiction are two new books:
• “Dinosaurs Before Dark Graphic Novel (Magic Tree House)” by Mary Pope Osborne, adapted by Jenny Laird and illustrated by Kelly Matthews and Nichole Matthews. Set for release on June 15, this book is the retelling in graphic novel form about 8-year-old Jack and his little sister and their adventure back to an ancient time zone where they see dinosaurs.
• “Chirp!: Chipmunk Sings for a Friend,” written by Jamie A. Swenson and illustrated by Scott Magoon. This beautiful picture book celebrates friendship and is scheduled for release on June 29.
Whatever books you choose to read this month may you enjoy them and let them take you away on a new adventure.
Sue Costello and her husband Rick Gahm are owners of Winding Trail Book, an independent book and gift store in St. Anthony Park’s Historic Milton Square. For information on these and other books at Winding Trail Books go to http://windingtrailbooks.com.
