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| After the Rain by Nnedi Okorafor; adapted by John Jennings; illustrated by David Brame What it is: a gruesome graphic novel adaptation of Nnedi Okorafor's short story "On the Road."
Starring: Nigerian American Chioma, a Chicago cop who must embrace her heritage to best the menacing supernatural entity plaguing her family's Nigerian village.
Art alert: Bold colors, crowded panels, and an emphasis on facial expressions heighten the foreboding atmosphere of this evocative tale. |
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| Children of Chicago by Cynthia PelayoHow it begins: Rookie Chicago detective Lauren Medina investigates a grizzly crime scene that is eerily reminiscent of her nine-year-old sister's murder years ago. Has the killer returned?
Why you might like it: This twisty reimagining of the Pied Piper folktale features a complex and unreliable narrator, breakneck pacing, and immersive worldbuilding that draws on Latinx history and culture.
Author alert: Poet and author Cynthia Pelayo is a two-time Bram Stoker Award nominee and a finalist for the International Latino Book Award. |
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| The Memory Theater by Karin TidbeckWelcome to... the Gardens, a mystical universe where time stands still for the pleasure-seeking Masters, who subject their young servants to violent -- and deadly -- rituals.
A daring escape: Fleeing on the eve of his dismemberment, servant Thistle and his best friend Dora embark on a quest through time and space in a desperate bid for freedom.
Book buzz: This genre-blending latest from Swedish author Karin Tidbeck expands on the stories featured in Jagannath. |
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Mouthful of Birds: Stories
by Samanta Schweblin
What it is: a surreal collection of 20 translated short stories that is as darkly humorous as it is disturbing.
Don't miss: The nightmarish "Headlights," in which hundreds of jilted brides sit abandoned on the side of a highway, offers witty gender commentary and an ending that is "a slug in the gut" (Library Journal).
Author alert: Argentine author Samanta Schweblin is a Man Booker International Prize finalist for her thought-provoking debut novel, Fever Dream.
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Comemadre
by Roque Larraquy
"1907: In a sanatorium in Temperley, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, Doctor Quintana falls in love with Menéndez, the head nurse--of whom he knows almost nothing, not even her first name. Motivated by this love--which he shares with his colleagues--bymoney, and by the promise of transcendence, he carries out a cruel and misguided experiment that investigates the threshold between life and death. The premise is that a human head stays alive and conscious for nine seconds after being severed from the body. 2009: A celebrated artist and ex-child prodigy decides to "bring the monster alive," converting his own body, and the bodies of those he loves, into art objects. The halves of the book are held together by a shared interest in the human pursuit of transcendence through bodily intervention, first as it relates to the scientific or pseudo-medical and the positivism that marked the beginning of the twentieth century, then by way of a radical and absurd artistic vision."
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The dangers of smoking in bed : stories
by Mariana Enriquez
Written against a backdrop of the sociopolitical dynamics of contemporary Argentina, a collection by the author of Things We Lost in the Fire follows the experiences of sophisticated and macabre protagonists, from obsessed fangirls to a morally challenged neighborhood.
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I Am Behind You
by John Ajvide Lindqvist
The grass is greener: Awakening at their campsite to find the world they knew gone, replaced with a sunless blue sky and an endlessly green landscape devoid of landmarks, four families confront the menacing physical forms of their buried traumas and desires.
Series alert: I Am Behind You is the first in a planned trilogy.
Reviewers say: "It will keep entranced and shocked readers guessing until the very end" (Library Journal).
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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