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- Midwest Connection: Marilynne Robinson teaches at the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop and lives in Iowa City, Iowa.
- Hook: Marilynne Robinson trains her incisive mind on our current political moment, offering fresh wisdom in an era of rampant political and cultural pessimism.
- Shelf-talker: The essays in What Are We Doing Here? are a call to action. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author examines the state of modern politics and faith.
| Overview Marilynne Robinson has plumbed the human spirit in her renowned novels. In What Are We Doing Here?, her peerless prose and boundless humanity are on full display in this new collection of essays on theological, political, and contemporary themes. This collection is a call for Americans to continue the tradition of those great thinkers and to remake American political and cultural life. Marilynne Robinson trains her incisive mind on our current political moment, offering fresh wisdom in an era of rampant political and cultural pessimism. | Blurbs “[A] collection of learned, probing essays . . . Robinson’s gorgeous, demanding, and enlightening essays, propelled by her intricate vision of unity, radiantly recharge both mind and soul.” --Booklist “[Robinson’s] eloquent work stands up for a compassionate faith, the value of education, and a sense of decency.” --Publisher’s Weekly “[A] trenchant [collection of] essays about faith, values, and history . . . Sharp, elegant cultural analysis.” --Kirkus Review |
| Target Readers Fans of Robinson's previous books; readers of philosophy and theology; readers interested in unity and changing our political and cultural climates; fans of Anne Fadiman, Annie Dillard, Christian Wiman, Alice McDermott, Zadie Smith | Comp Titles Feel Free: Essays by Zadie Smith Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays by Zadie Smith Upstream: Selected Essays by Mary Oliver Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion |
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Marilynne Robinson is the recipient of a 2012 National Humanities Medal, awarded by President Barack Obama, for “her grace and intelligence in writing.” She is the author of Gilead, winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award, Home, winner of the Orange Prize and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and Lila, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award. Her first novel, Housekeeping, won the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award. Robinson’s nonfiction books include The Givenness of Things, When I Was a Child I Read Books, Absence of Mind, The Death of Adam, and Mother Country, which was nominated for a National Book Award. She teaches at the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop and lives in Iowa City.
 | Dreadful Young Ladies Collection of short fiction by Kelly Barnhill Algonquin February 20, 2018 Hardcover, $24.95 ISBN: 9781616207977 Follow the author on Twitter Follow the publisher on Facebook and Twitter Read more about this title on Edelweiss+ |
- Midwest Connection: Kelly Barnhill lives in Minnesota with her husband and three children.
- Hook: A stunning collection of short fictions for adult readers from the World Fantasy Award and Newbery Medal–winning author of The Girl Who Drank the Moon.
- Shelf-talker: Written in lyrical prose this collection of reality-bending fantasy tales is underscored by universal themes of love, death, jealousy, and hope.
| Overview Award-winning, New York Times bestselling-author Kelly Barnhill weaves a stunning collection of short fictions, teeming with uncanny characters whose stories unfold in worlds at once strikingly human and eerily original. Barnhill’s stories draw their power from startling metaphors, unforeseeable twists, and universal themes of love, death, jealousy, and hope | Blurbs “Haunting and beautifully told . . . Each story is written in intensely poetic language that can exult or disturb, sometimes within the same sentence, and evokes a dreamlike, enchanted mood that lingers in the reader’s mind. These tales are made to be reread and savored.” --Publishers Weekly, starred review "Fantasy readers—especially fans of Neil Gaiman or even Kelly Link—will appreciate this spellbinding collection."--Booklist |
| Target Readers Perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman and Kelly Link, and Karen Russell. Anyone who enjoys bold, imaginative stories, lyrical prose and indelible imagery. Reality-bending fantasy underscored by rich universal themes of love, death, jealousy, and hope. Adults and Young Adults (14+) | Comp Titles Get in Trouble by Kelly Link The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Lui Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell |
Kelly Barnhill lives in Minnesota. She is the author of The Girl Who Drank the Moon, winner of the 2017 Newbery Medal. She is also the winner of the World Fantasy Award, and has been a finalist for the SFWA Andre Norton Award, and the PEN/USA literary prize. Visit her at kellybarnhill.wordpress.com.
 | The Undertaker's Daughter Fiction/thriller/suspense by Sara Blaedel Grand Central/Hachette February 6, 2018 Hardcover, $26 ISBN: 9781455541119 Follow the author on Facebook and Twitter Follow the publisher on Facebook and Twitter Follow the imprint on Facebook and Twitter Read more about this title on Edelweiss+ |
- Midwest Connection: The novel’s setting is a funeral home in Racine, Wisconsin. Racine is known for its large Danish population. Sara Blaedel is Denmark’s most popular novelist.
- Hook: International #1 bestselling author Sara Blaedel crafts an unforgettable suspense novel about a daughter stumbling upon an unsolved murder in her estranged father’s funeral home.
- Shelf talker: Murder strikes in Wisconsin in the thrilling new suspense novel from international #1 bestselling author Sara Blaedel.
| Overview Widow Ilka Nichols Jensen’s life in Copenhagen is rocked with the unexpected news that her estranged father has died in America. Furthermore, he’s left her something in his will: his funeral home in Racine, Wisconsin. Hoping for closure and to settle her father’s affairs, Ilka flies to Wisconsin. But once there, she stumbles upon an unsolved murder—and a killer who’s very much alive | Blurbs “One can count on emotional engagement, spine-tingling suspense, and taut storytelling from Sara Blaedel.” —Sandra Brown "Sara Blaedel is a force to be reckoned with. She's a remarkable crime writer who time and again delivers a solid, engaging story that any reader in the world can enjoy." --Karin Slaughter |
| Target Readers Fans of Mystery and Suspense, Readers with strong Danish heritage and an affinity for Wisconsin, Lovers of strong female protagonists, quirky characters, and dark settings | Comp Titles Find Her by Lisa Gardner Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag Bones Never Lie by Kathy Reichs |
Sara Blaedel is the #1 international bestselling author of the Detective Louise Rick series and is published in 37 countries. She has been voted Denmark’s most popular author four times and has been honored with the Golden Laurel, Denmark’s most prestigious literary award. She lives in New York City.
 | A Problematic Paradox YA fiction by Eliot Sappingfield GP Putnam's Sons BFYR January 23, 2018 Hardcover, $16.99 ISBN: 9781524738457 Follow the author on Facebook and Twitter Follow the publisher on Facebook and Twitter Read more about this title on Edelweiss+ |
- Midwest Connection: The book is set almost entirely within the state of Iowa at a school for humanoid aliens and human geniuses, which is very loosely based on a certain college town in eastern Iowa. The author was born in Sioux City, Iowa, and currently lives in southwestern Missouri.
- Hook: A wild, warm-hearted, and utterly hilarious sci-fi boarding school adventure perfect for geeky kids (and adults!).
- Shelf-talker: “It’s like Harry Potter, but with science instead of magic. Nikola is exactly the smart female protagonist that the sci-fi genre needs.” —HelloGiggles
| Overview When Nikola Kross’s inventor father is kidnapped by evil extraterrestrials, she’s suddenly transported to a secret boarding school for scientific geniuses, a place where classes like Practical Quantum Mechanics are the norm, students commute via wormholes to class, and the student body isn’t entirely human. | Blurbs “Absolute outlandishness, an endless parade of jokes (both sly and knee-slapping), incredibly wacky worldbuilding and characters, and a savvy, refreshing irreverence for the genre. Readers will clamor for more. A glorious cacophony of wildly inventive gadgets, gags, and action.”--Kirkus Reviews, starred review |
| Target Readers Kids ages 10 and up. Lovers of sci-fi and humor. Fans of boarding school adventures. | Comp Titles The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan |
Eliot Sappingfield was inspired to write this book when one of his daughters asked him why all the good storybook heroes were boys, and why they always used magic instead of science. He is a carbon-based life form who hails from Sioux City, Iowa. He attended college at the University of Iowa and at Missouri State University in southwestern Missouri, where he now lives with his remarkable wife, their twin daughters, and an unremarkable dog. This is his debut novel.
