COLD WAR CRYPTOGRAPHY in China and the heir to a family’s mathematical genius add up to a grand thriller. A MINUS

DECODED
Farrar
2014

THE SCIENCE OF GETTING SMARTER takes center stage in this engaging overview of intelligence research. B PLUS

SMARTER
Hudson Street Press
2013

A VERY NEW YORK comedy of manners; Upper West Side neighbors drawn together by chance and changes. SOLID B

VISIBLE CITY
Houghton Mifflin
2014

AN EERILY BEAUTIFUL STORY of the customs and ceremonies of three nations on a post-technology world. B PLUS

THE STONE BOATMEN
Aqueduct Press
2001

A NATURALIST’S LOVE LETTER to the extraordinary flora and fauna of Florida captures the state’s richness. B PLUS

BITTEN
University Press of Florida
2014

A DISQUIETING, KAFKASEQUE FABLE about crime and punishment in Japan is also about truth and love and silence. SOLID B

SILENCE ONCE BEGUN
Pantheon
2014

THE EVER-BRILLIANT PEARL CLEAGE (a national treasure!) shares memories of her life, art, work, and politics. B PLUS

THINGS I SHOULD HAVE TOLD MY DAUGHTER
Atria Books
2014

INSIGHTFUL, IRREVERENT ANALYSIS of US teens’ use of online social media. Fascinating, well-researched! B PLUS

IT’S COMPLICATED: THE SOCIAL LIVES OF NETWORKED TEENS
Yale University Press
2014

A PASSIONATE, THOUGHTFUL ADOPTION memoir shares joys and challenges of transracial, transcultural parenting. B PLUS

MAKE ME A MOTHER
W. W. Norton & Company
2014

ANOTHER BRILLIANT GLASGOW noir from Christopher Brookmyre. Not to be missed by crime-fiction aficionados! A MINUS

BRED IN THE BONE
Atlantic Monthly Press
2014