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Welcome to the Late-October edition of MWPA's Ex Libris Maine.
This edition offers new books by Maine authors in the categories of Fiction, Crime Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry,Young Adult / Young Readers, and Anthology.
For more information on any title below, simply click on the book's cover.
Female lobsterman Charlie Pinkham is content with her seaside life in Christmas Cove, Maine. Single and surrounded by friends and community, Charlie’s always been more comfortable braving the bold Atlantic rather than diving into the messy business of romance. When she writes a post for her bestie’s Happily Ever Holidays blog, Charlie’s decidedly unromantic piece goes viral. Readers connect with lobster behavior and how they’re hardwired to protect themselves from their own species—a trait Charlie respects. Because love hurts. Still, she can’t quell her growing interest in the mysterious and definitely unavailable man renting her family’s lighthouse for the month of December. Charlie looks for distraction by DMing a stranger online and organizing Christmas Cove’s first annual holiday festival. But as her "Love & Lobsters" posts explore the ways lobsters display trust, commitment, mating rituals, and sexy time, Charlie must decide if plunging into uncharted waters is worth the risk.
An ancient secret awakens, beckoning the brave into the shadows of history. Carter Mosley is thrust into an unexpected adventure when his childhood friend and former dive partner, Jeff Shelton, leaves him a cryptic message. Carter is hesitant, given his friend's shadowy past, but loyalty draws him in. Joined by Avery Turner, he heads to England to follow the trail. The quest turns deadly when Jeff is murdered and a link to Captain Ace Mullins, a legendary pirate whose tale conceals a priceless treasure, is unveiled. From England's ancient reefs to Paris's underground catacombs, their search escalates into a high-stakes race across Europe. As Carter and Avery confront mercenaries and decode the past, the treasure they seek becomes more than just riches—it's a puzzle steeped in history, where each clue could be their last.
Jane Brox’s In the Merrimack Valley: A Farm Trilogy brings together in one volume her first three books: Here and Nowhere Else, Five Thousand Days Like This One, and Clearing Land. Brox twines two narratives, personal and historic, as she captures the cadences of farm life and those who sustain it, at a time when the viability of both are waning. These books comprise a journey through both family history as well as the quintessentially American history of New England’s Merrimack Valley, its farmers, and the immigrant workers caught up in the industrial textile age.
Brownies and Coffee: A Delicious Defense Against Cognitive Decline
Brownies and Coffee is a cookbook combining indulgence with wellness. It highlights the rich flavors of chocolate and coffee, two beloved ingredients with significant health benefits, particularly for those concerned about Alzheimer’s and cognitive decline. Each recipe is designed to delight the senses while providing nutritional value, showcasing the potential of cocoa, caffeine, and other brain-boosting foods. From classic fudge brownies with a twist, to gourmet coffee preparations and selections, this book is a guide that offers easy-to-follow recipes for chocolate and coffee lovers alike. Beyond desserts, it explores the science behind these ingredients, explaining their antioxidant properties, their role in improving cognitive function, and their potential to slow dementia. Whether you’re a caregiver seeking ways to support a loved one or a foodie looking for flavorful, healthy treats, this cookbook offers delicious, mindful options. It also includes fun trivia and helpful health and cooking tips.
Rudeness Rehab: Reclaiming Civility in the Workplace and Your Home Space
Hate and division have become a more prevalent part of our society. People can easily identify how violent or aggressive behavior has a negative impact on those involved and even on those who witness it. But what about the more subtle, but nonetheless negative, behaviors of rudeness and incivility? This book is about getting you to think about the less obvious ways we treat each other poorly and the negative impacts these behaviors can have on the physical and emotional health of ourselves and our loved ones. Through a mental-health-based approach to awareness, and using tools like breathing, active listening, and compassion, you’ll learn how to better handle any rude situation.
Riots, activist newspapers, prophets, preachers, innovative foods, and the back-to-the-land movement are all connected to Maine’s rich vegetarian history—a heritage which has been excluded from most Maine history books, despite its influence on local and national cuisine. This companion volume to the Maine Historical Society's first-of-its-kind exhibition, "Maine's Untold Vegetarian History" (Sept. 10, 2024 to May 17, 2025), features stories of Mainers who changed what vegetarians eat and opened access to plant-based foods. 300 Years of Maine's Untold Vegetarian History contains the collected history columns of long-running Maine Sunday Telegram food writer Avery Yale Kamila.
Hermitage
Emma Krosschell
Littoral Books
Emma Krosschell spent a year living with her partner in quiet isolation on a seven-acre island off the Maine coast. In Hermitage, the beauty and pain of loneliness, belonging, and selfhood interweave against the backdrop of the natural world in a collection of poems which came out of that experience. "These are poems that begin in silence, and draw us into those moments when the world comes alive before the poet's eyes. Emma Krosschell is, above all, a witness and we become witnesses along with her in this place where the finite, mortal self meets something greater. She is listening, intently, seeing deeply, and her heart is wide open"—Stuart Kestenbaum, former Poet Laureate of Maine.
In this sequel to the “uplifting,” Publishers Weekly star-reviewed, Sparrow Being Sparrow, Sparrow rescues an injured animal but soon wonders if she’s taken on more than she can handle. A blizzard is coming, and Sparrow’s parents are leaving for the hospital to welcome Sparrow’s new baby brother. But all Sparrow can think about is investigating the strange thwack she heard coming from her bedroom window. When she goes outside, she finds an injured pigeon getting buried in the snow. She has to save it! While the grown ups are busy, Sparrow and her best friend, Paloma, bring the bird inside, determined to nurse it back to health. But soon, Sparrow realizes helping this bird recover—especially with curious kittens around—will be much harder than she thought. If she asks for help, will it mean letting go of her new animal friend?
Alive to This: Essays on Fully Living by 20 Maine Writers
Edited by Kara Douglas & Erin O'Mara
Littoral Books
Described by novelist Susan Conley as “a tender, trenchant collection,” Alive to This is an anthology of essays by 20 writers from all parts of Maine, sharing their experiences of living fully. It highlights moments of joy, exuberance, or transcendence, as well as places that restore the writers' spirits, work that engages them, and hardship and sorrow they have endured. Present throughout is the state of Maine itself–its history, landscape, and people. “Alive to This is a literary welcome wagon that introduces us to a community of writers who share their joy and grief, their youth and age, their attachment to the landscape and to those who cohabit this wonderful space we call Maine. How lucky we are to be 'alive'with them in the essays that light up these pages"–Ellen Goodman.
Dead Avenue: Volume 1
Edited by Brian Hershey and Kayla Hardin
Reader2writer Press
The unknown dwells in the dark corners of the world with death coming to us all in the end. Every year people go missing. Some just disappear, and others meet a gruesome end. Occasionally, their outcomes are much worse. . .This ongoing anthology series examines the uncanny twists of fate. From doppelgangers, serial killers, and shapeshifters, to sinister AI, curses, and cosmic creatures, these are the first 8 disturbing tales from those who have walked down Dead Avenue.
SUBMISSIONS If you are a current Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance member, and you would like to announce your new book in ExLibris Maine, click HERE. If you are not a member, click HERE to learn more about our member benefits.
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