2006 Book Sense Recommendations from SIBA bookstores

BETWEEN, GEORGIA: A Novel,
by Joshilyn Jackson
(Warner, $22.99, 0446524425)

" Following on the heels of Gods in Alabama, Joshilyn Jackson's new novel will be welcomed by readers and fans. A small (population 90) town with two feuding families is drawn together by the infant Nonny -- born of the Crabtrees, raised by the Freets." --Mary Gay Shipley, That Bookstore In Blytheville, Blytheville, AR

TOMORROW THEY WILL KISS: A Novel,
by Eduardo Santiago
(Back Bay, $13.99 paper, 0316014125)

" Eduardo Santiago has created a kaleidoscope of female characters in a novel that is as irresistible and addictive as a telenovela. His Cuban women in exile will wrap you up in their stories, as they illuminate the immigrant experience in a tapestry of memory, dreams, friendship, nostalgia, and humor." --Cristina Nosti, Books & Books, Coral Gables, FL

ROCK OF AGES,
by Howard Owen
(Permanent Press, $26, 1579621287)

" Owen's Rock of Ages is further proof that he is a Southern novelist not to be overlooked. Revisiting the setting of Scots County, North Carolina, this story of guilt, lust, and murder had me emotionally gripped on every page." --Kelly Justice, The Fountain Bookstore, Richmond, VA

CLUELESS GEORGE IS WATCHING YOU!,
by Pat Bagley
(White Horse, $7.95 paper, 097448606X)

" Great comic relief at a time when we most need it. Pat Bagley encapsulates, or should I say cans, what has to be the modus operandi of this administration." --Janet Bollum, The Muse Book Shop, Deland, FL

THE ROCK ORCHARD: A Novel
By Paula Wall
"The women who inhabit Leaper's Fork, Tennessee, are like no others -- larger than life, sassy, magical, insightful, lustful, and hilarious, and the men who love them are just as unique. Truly a novel of epic proportions packed into a fast-paced saucy read. I loved it!" --Katrina Denza, The Country Bookshop, Southern Pines, NC

PLUM WINE: A Novel
By Angela Davis-Gardner
"This elegant, multilayered novel offers pure pleasure. An American woman teaching in Japan during the Vietnam War era inherits a Japanese friend's memoirs, which shed new light on the horrors of the Hiroshima bombing and its aftermath -- and compromise her love affair with a Japanese survivor. An altogether satisfying, beautifully crafted story." --Nancy Olson, Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, NC

KILL ME
By Stephen White
"I loved this literary thriller from a pretty darn good writer, who not only presents you with believable situations and characters, but also makes you really care about them. The story revolves around the anonymous narrator, who has contracted for his own assassination, and what happens as he realizes what he's done." --Hester Jeswald, Sarasota News & Books, Sarasota, FL

HALFWAY HOUSE: A Novel
By Katharine Noel
"Halfway House puts a real face on the problems families must face when dealing with a family member suffering from mental illness. High school senior Angie Voorster and her family are your next-door neighbors, your coworkers, your friends. I will definitely be recommending this to my customers." --Meaghan Leenaarts, Island Bookstore, Corolla, NC

WHITE GHOST GIRLS, by Alice Greenway
(Grove, $13 paper, 0802170188)

"White Ghost Girls is the story of Frankie and Kate, two American sisters, the daughters of a photojournalist who is covering the Vietnam War. Living with their mother in Hong Kong, they watch not only the war unfold in Vietnam, but, also, the Maoist Cultural Revolution. Greenway's descriptions of places, of feelings and emotions, of all family members are captivating." --Susan Weaver, Broad Street Books, Portsmouth, VA

SHE GOT UP OFF THE COUCH: And Other Heroic Acts From Mooreland, Indiana, by Haven Kimmel
(Free Press, $24, 0743284992)

"Zippy is back and she's more charming than ever! The quirky Jarvis family of Mooreland, Indiana, is forever changed when Zippy's mom, Delonda, applies for college, buys an ancient VW Beetle, and drives away into her future. As poignant as it is funny, this book will delight you." --Molly Beck, Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, NC

CARVED IN BONE: A Body Farm Novel, by Jefferson Bass
(Morrow, $24.95, 006075981X)

"The 'Body Farm' is a section of ground on the campus of the University of Tennessee where human corpses are left to decay for the sake of science and the cause of justice, and Carved in Bone goes into the detail of forensic science to help solve the murder of a young woman. This is a great story that really holds your interest." --Donna Thoman, Family Book Shop, Deland, FL

WHALE SEASON: A Novel, by N.M. Kelby
(Shaye Areheart Books, $23, 0307336778)

"I'm trying so hard not to say something like 'this is a whale of a story,' but it's so dang tough, especially with a campy, funny, and smart story like this, although it's not without its serious moments. This story of the arrival in Whale Harbor, Florida, of a man who thinks he's Jesus reads like a cross between Carl Hiaasen and Flannery O'Connor." --Lyn Roberts, Square Books, Oxford, MS

THE WORLD TO COME: A Novel
By Dara Horn

"In this imaginative, multilayered novel, Dara Horn handles themes of betrayal, trust, and memory with both luminous prose and sensitivity. Sympathetic characters fill stories within stories surrounding the theft of a Chagall painting, as she traces its history while also predicting its future. I loved it and think readers and book clubs will too." --Hester Jeswald, Sarasota News & Books, Sarasota, FL

KAFKA ON THE SHORE
By Haruki Murakami

"The stories of a young boy named Kafka and the old man Nakata are wonderfully intertwined and come together beaifully. This is a surrealistic wonderland of characters, places, and events. Impossible to put down." --Kathleen E. Raymond, Davis-Kidd Booksellers, Memphis, TN