STAFF FAVORITES

We’ve hand-picked seven titles—four novels, three memoirs—that dazzled, inspired, thrilled, enlightened, and captivated us. Some made us laugh, some made us cry, and some made us do both. We guarantee they’ll do the same for you, too. From March 12-25, you can get any of them for only $1.99. Who knows, maybe they’ll end up being some of your favorites, too! Stay tuned for more of our Staff Favorite picks throughout the year.

Elisabeth Scharlatt (Publisher) on Roland Merullo‘s Breakfast with Buddha:

The Washington Post stated that “Merullo is a great guy to take a road trip with.” And what a trip–I didn’t want it to end.  How often do we have an opportunity to laugh out loud while being enlightened?

Kathy Pories (Senior Editor) on Nina De Gramont‘s Gossip of the Starlings:

De Gramont brilliantly captures the intrigue of prep school life and how a charismatic friend can lead you down the most thrilling–and terrifying–paths. An irresistibly intense novel.

Chuck Adams (Executive Editor) on Jack O’Connell‘s The Resurrectionist:

The Resurrectionist made me fall in love.  O’Connell creates a wickedly demented and fantastical world in this dystopian novel filled with mystery, humor, and melancholy.

Ina Stern (Associate Publisher) on Carrie Brown‘s Rose’s Garden:

I’m a sucker for a great love story and I crave fiction that imparts something unexpected. Rose’s Garden is my perfect read: I learned about the joys and sorrows of enduring love and about the wonders of rooftop birding! Superb!

Craig Popelars (Marketing Director) on Dan Kennedy‘s Rock On:

Kennedy writes like Iggy Pop performs: twistedly fun and hyperly energetic. He dives headfirst into the music industry’s mosh pit where everyone he encounters could benefit from a lobotomy. Righteously rocking.

Michael Taeckens (Online Marketing Director) on Robert Goolrick‘s The End of the World as We Know It:

Written before his smash success A Reliable Wife, Goolrick’s devastating memoir captivated me with its searing power of language. Fans of William Styron, Walker Percy, and Flannery O’Connor will devour this.

Amy Gash (Senior Editor) on Heather Lende‘s If You Lived Here, I’d Know Your Name:

Few can write so engagingly about the moose in the backyard, Tlingit Indian naming ceremonies, and picking blueberries in the buff while quoting Omar Khayyam, Lyle Lovett, a nonagenarian gold miner, and other characters in Alaska.