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Book Picks
by Winston Tabb
Thomas Jefferson said, “I cannot live without books” and proved it by surrounding himself at Monticello with a great library that subsequently became the foundation of our national library. Our libraries have to serve many needs, but our private libraries need serve only our own. Like Jefferson, I love to live and work among books on many subjects, but my collecting for pleasure now focuses mainly on first editions by Willa Cather, the great American novelist of the 20th century, and on first editions by living women mystery writers. A few of my favorites:
Charm City by Laura Lippman. Tess Monaghan, Lippman’s smart and witty P.I., not only leads readers through a compelling adventure in this Edgar Award-winning book, but brings Baltimore alive as well.
The Pearl Diver by Sujata Massey. Another extraordinary Baltimore-based mystery writer, Massey draws on her years in Japan in crafting a gripping story in which the contrasts between Japanese and American cultures add thought-provoking complexity.
Innocent Blood by P. D .James (Baroness James of Holland Park). In this immensely readable book, the teen-age protagonist, adopted as a child, enters a world of terror when she attempts to find out who her parents were.
The Scold’s Bridle by Minette Walters. When the meanest woman in the village is found dead in her bathtub with a medieval scoldís bridle fastened to her head, police aren’t sure whether it was suicide or murder.
Children of the Storm by Elizabeth Peters. Another outstanding Maryland-based mystery writer, Peters draws on her training as an Egyptologist in this amusing and chilling tale of larceny, sabotage, and revenge set in early 20th century Luxor.
A Dark-adapted Eye by Barbara Vine (Ruth Rendell). Full of psychological suspense, this novel set in the 1940s in England gradually reveals the complex family relationships that led to the hanging of the matriarch, with which the book begins.
Winston Tabb is the Dean of Johns Hopkins University Libraries.
The Red Canoe
4337 Harford Rd.
(410) 444-4440
http://www.redcanoe.bz
A purple banister leads the way inside this sunny two-story house-turned-café and kids’ bookstore. Owner Nicole Selhorst, a former grade-school teacher, dreamed of opening such a shop for years and years. Now Nicole serves up tasty raspberry blue cheese salads for lunch and regular events for children, including an after-school homework club, pre-school morning sing-along, and a playwriting class each Sunday. Her book selection is downstairs in a room full of windows; upstairs a large space is painted sky blue, each wall a mural of trees and clouds and sunlight. Be sure to sample the Red Canoe iced tea and rich espresso as you browse.
Nicole’s Top Gift Books:
The Yellow Balloon by Charlotte Dematons (Front Street). Young readers follow a bright balloon through a richly painted world.
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman (Dragonfly Books). A grocery trip takes early readers around the globe.
Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert (Harcourt). The leaf man has blown away without leaving travel plans. Hello, cold fall!
The Children’s Bookstore
737 Deepdene Road
(410) 532-2000
http://www.thecbstore.com
Stepping into The Children’s Bookstore is like flipping open a picture book. Owner JoAnn Fruchtman, an artist by training, designed the colorful space herself: whimsical arches and star and moon-shaped cutouts inspire a smile.
JoAnn believes children’s literature is better than most contemporary adult fiction—so she set up shop 27 years ago. The Roland Park shop is organized like a grand library for children. A large front room stacks shelves and shelves of quality YA fiction, more than any corporate bookstore we’ve visited. And JoAnn seems to know every title by rote. In a step-down room to the left, find stories on CD, poetry, illustrated biographies, and sports books. Toward the back of the shop, exquisite fairy tale collections, board books for babies, gorgeous picture books and more line the generous shelves, begging to be curled up with and read and reread. Big-time children’s authors visit the store regularly—J.K. Rowling made time to give a reading here recently on her very limited U.S. tour.
“What’s important here is really the depth of the store,” JoAnn says. “I do feel that there’s a reason for every book to be here.”
JoAnn’s Top Gift Books:
Flush by Carl Hiaasen (Alfred A. Knopf), YA fiction. Noah and his sister embark on an ecologically-minded crime-solving spree.
Goose Girl by Shannon Hale (Bloomsbury), YA. On the way to meet her prince, this beleaguered beauty does time as a goose.
Inkspell by Cornelia Funke, translated by Anthea Bell (Scholastic, Inc.), YA. In Maggie’s book, characters come to life complete with real struggles and dreams.