In turn-of-the-twentieth-century Texas, the Berachah Industrial Home for the Redemption of Erring Girls is an unprecedented beacon of hope for young women consigned to the dangerous poverty of the streets by birth, circumstance, or personal tragedy.  When Lizzie Bates and Mattie Corder meet there—one sick and abused but desperately clinging to her young daughter, the other jilted by the beau who fathered her ailing son—they form a friendship that will see them through unbearable loss, heartbreak, difficult choices,and, ultimately, diverging paths.

A century later, Cate Sutton, a reclusive university librarian, begins to comb through the home’s archives in her university’s library.  Pulled by an indescribable connection to their stories, Cate confronts her own heartbreaking past and reclaims the life she thought she had forever let go of.

“A moving tale of friendship and resilience, Home for Erring and Outcast Girls is the story of three different women, each betrayed and abandoned, and the ways in which they find their way home.  Emotional.  Raw.  Compelling.  Julie Kibler writes with skill, compassion, and grace.” -Ariel Lawhon, New York Times bestselling author of  I Was Anastasia.

GPL: F Kibler

Why do even the smartest among us make dumb mistakes with our money?  After decades working as a Wall Street Trader, investment adviser, & money expert for CBS, Jill Schlesinger reveals 13 costly mistakes you’re probably making right now with your money without even knowing it.  Schlesinger argues that simple emotional blind spots cause us to make well-intentioned mistakes like saving for college for your kids before you’ve saved for your own retirement, or taken on too much risk when you invest.

Practical, no-nonsense, & often counter-intuitive, The Dumb Things Smart People Do With Their Money tells you what you really need to hear about retirement, college financing, insurance, buying a house when you should rent, failing to protect your identity, and more.

It might just be the smartest investment that you make all year.

GPL: 332.024 SCHLESIN

The young postman‘s days are numbered.

Estranged from his family and living alone, with only his cat, Cabbage, to keep him company, he was unprepared for the doctor’s diagnosis that he had only months to live.But before he can tackle his bucket list, the devil shows up to make him an offer.:  In exchange for making one thing in the world disappear, the postman will be granted one extra day of life.  And so begins a very strange week that brings the young postman and his beloved cat to the brink of existence.With each object that disappears, the postman reflects on the life he’s lived, his joys and regrets, and the people he’s loved and lost.

Genki Kawamura‘s timeless tale is a moving story of loss and reconciliation, and of one man’s journey to discover what really matters most in life.

GPL: F Kawamura

A stunning tour de force following three fierce, unforgettable Southern women.                                          

It’s 1924 South Carolina & the region is still recovering from the infamous boll weevil infestation that devastated the land & the economy.

Gertrude, a mother of four, must make an unconscionable decision to save her daughters from starvation or die at the hands of an abusive husband.                                                                                                                                                                                                   Retta is navigating a harsh world as a first-generation freed slave, still employed by the Coleses, influential plantation proprietors who once owned her family.                                                                                                                                                                                  Annie is the matriarch of the Coles family & must come to terms with the terrible truth that has ripped her family apart.

These three women seemingly have nothing in common, yet as they unite to stand up to the terrible injustices that have long plagued the small town, they find strength in the bond that ties these women together.  Told in the pitch-perfect voices of Gertrude, Retta & Annie, Call Your Daughter Home is an audacious, timeless story about the power of family, deep-buried secrets, & the ferocity of motherhood.

GPL:F Spera

Jo & Bethie Kaufman were born into a world of promise.  Growing up in 1950s Detroit, they live in a perfect “Dick and Jane” house, where their roles in the family are clearly defined.  Jo is the tomboy, the bookish rebel with a passion to make the world more fair; Bethie is the pretty, feminine good girl, a would-be star who enjoys the power her beauty confers & dreams of a traditional life.

But the truth ends up looking different from what the girls imagined.  Jo & Bethie survive traumas & tragedies.  As their lives unfold against the background of free love & Viet Nam, Woodstock & woman’s lib, Bethie becomes an adventure-loving wild child who dives headlong into the counter-culture & is up for anything (except for settling down).  Meanwhile, Jo becomes a proper young mother in Connecticut, a witness to the changing world instead of a participant.  Neither  woman inhabits the world she dreams of, nor has a life she feels authentic or brings her joy.  Is it too late for the women to finally stake a claim on happily ever after?

GPL:  F Weiner