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THE HEADMASTER’S WAGER, by Vincent Lam

September 20, 2012

A CHINESE EXPATRIATE in wartime Saigon seeks security and a safe future for his son. Exquisite, touching novel.

Grade: A MINUS

THE HEADMASTER'S WAGER
Crown
2012

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THIS IS HOW, by Augusten Burroughs

September 19, 2012

THE STRENGTH (AND WEAKNESS) of Augusten Burroughs’s meta-self-help book is its no-nonsense candor.  Also, wit!

Grade: SOLID B

THIS IS HOW: PROVEN AID IN OVERCOMING...
St. Martin's Press
2012

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THE CRANES DANCE, by Meg Howrey

September 18, 2012

INSIDE A BALLET DANCER’S crisis of career burnout and family dysfunction. Lots of vivid backstage ballet detail!

Grade: B PLUS

THE CRANES DANCE
Vintage
2012

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IN THE KINGDOM OF MEN, by Kim Barnes

September 17, 2012

A NAIVE AMERICAN COUPLE face the complexities of oil-company politics in 1967 Saudi Arabia. Evocative in parts.

Grade: SOLID B

IN THE KINGDOM OF MEN
Knopf Doubleday
2012

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A CHANCE IN THE WORLD, by Steve Pemberton

September 16, 2012

AN INSPIRING MEMOIR follows a man’s search for his birth parents, brothers and sister. Touching and direct!

Grade: SOLID B

A CHANCE IN THE WORLD: AN ORPHAN BOY, A MYSTERIOUS PAST, AND HOW HE FOUND A PLACE CALLED HOME
Thomas Nelson
2012

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THE STRANGE FATE OF KITTY EASTON, by Elizabeth Speller

September 15, 2012

ATMOSPHERIC HISTORICAL MYSTERY set in a stately English manor haunted by World War I–and by family secrets.

Grade: SOLID B

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-strange-fate-of-kitty-easton-elizabeth-speller/1104512941?ean=9780547547527
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
2012

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THE QUEEN’S LOVER, by Francine du Plessix Gray

September 14, 2012

MARIE ANTOINETTE’S LOVER, Swedish diplomat Axel von Fersen, is brought to life in a complex fictional memoir.

Grade: SOLID B

THE QUEEN'S LOVER
Penguin
2012

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DARE ME, by Megan Abbott

September 13, 2012

TENSE, SPLENDIDLY BLEAK psychological mystery about the twisted bonds among a coach and her high school team.

Grade: B PLUS

DARE ME
Little, Brown/Reagan Arthur Books
2012

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OPIUM FIEND, by Steven Martin

September 12, 2012

A US EXPATRIATE’S COMPELLING memoir of how his fascination with antique opium paraphernalia led to addiction.

Grade: SOLID B

OPIUM FIEND: A 21ST CENTURY SLAVE TO A 19TH CENTURY TRADITION
Random House
2012

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PERFECT CHAOS, by Linea Johnson and Cinda Johnson

September 11, 2012

A YOUNG WOMAN’S BATTLE with bipolar disorder, related in parallel with her mother’s caregiving story. Touching.

Grade: SOLID B

PERFECT CHAOS: A DAUGHTER'S JOURNEY TO SURVIVE BIPOLAR, A MOTHER'S STRUGGLE TO SAVE HER
St. Martin's Press
2012

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