all-time literary gems :

Emma

Jane Austen · 2016

The Book Thief

Markus Zusak · 2007

<b>#1 <i>NEW YORK TIMES</i> BESTSELLER • ONE OF <i>TIME</i> MAGAZINE’S 100 BEST YA BOOKS OF ALL TIME <b>• A <i>NEW YORK TIMES</i> READER TOP 100 PICK FOR BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY • A <i>KIRKUS REVIEWS</i> BEST YOUNG ADULT BOOK OF THE CENTURY</b><br><br>The extraordinary, beloved novel about the ability of books to feed the soul even in the darkest of times.</b><br><br><i>When Death has a story to tell, you listen.</i><br><br>It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.<br><br>Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. <br><br>In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of <i>I Am the Messenger,</i> has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.<br><br>“The kind of book that can be life-changing.” —<i>The New York Times</i><br><br>“Deserves a place on the same shelf with <i>The Diary of a Young Girl </i>by Anne Frank.” —<i>USA Today</i><br><br><b>DON’T MISS <i>BRIDGE OF CLAY</i>, MARKUS ZUSAK’S FIRST NOVEL SINCE <i>THE BOOK THIEF.</i></b>

Echo

Pam Muñoz Ryan · 2015

The Night Circus

Erin Morgenstern · 2011

<b><b><b><i>NEW YORK TIMES</i> BESTSELLER </b>• Two starcrossed magicians engage in a deadly game of cunning in the spellbinding novel that captured the world's imagination. <b>•</b> "Part love story, part fable ... defies both genres and expectations." —<i>The Boston Globe</i><br><br></b></b>The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called <i>Le Cirque des Rêves</i>, and it is only open at night. <br><br>But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

Circe

Madeline Miller · 2020

"A bold and subversive retelling of the goddess's story," this #1 New York Times bestseller is "both epic and intimate in its scope, recasting the most infamous female figure from the Odyssey as a hero in her own right" (Alexandra Alter, The New York Times). In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child -- not powerful like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power -- the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves. Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts, and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus. But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love. With unforgettably vivid characters, mesmerizing language, and page-turning suspense, Circe is a triumph of storytelling, an intoxicating epic of family rivalry, palace intrigue, love and loss, as well as a celebration of indomitable female strength in a man's world. #1 New York Times bestseller -- named one of the best books of the year by NPR, the Washington Post, People, Time, Amazon, Entertainment Weekly, Bustle, Newsweek, the A.V. Club, Christian Science Monitor, Refinery 29, BuzzFeed, Paste, Audible, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Thrillist, NYPL, Self, Real Simple, Goodreads, Boston Globe, Electric Literature, BookPage, the Guardian, Book Riot, Seattle Times, and Business Insider

Stone Butch Blues

Leslie Feinberg · 1993

Jess Goldberg decides to come out as a butch in the bars and factories of the prefeminist '60s and then to pass as a man in order to survive when she is left without work or a community in the early '70s.

Mockingjay

Suzanne Collins · 2010

The Greatly Anticipated Final Book In The New York Times Bestselling Hunger Games Trilogy By Suzanne Collins. The Capitol Is Angry. The Capitol Wants Revenge. Who Do They Think Should Pay For The Unrest? Katniss Everdeen. The Final Book In The Hunger Games Trilogy By Suzanne Collins Will Have Hearts Racing, Pages Turning, And Everyone Talking About One Of The Biggest And Most Talked-about Books And Authors In Recent Publishing History!!!!

Catching Fire

Suzanne Collins · 2010

Against All Odds, Katniss Everdeen Has Won The Annual Hunger Games With Fellow District Tribute Peeta Mellark. But It Was A Victory Won By Defiance Of The Capitol And Their Harsh Rules. Katniss And Peeta Should Be Happy. After All, They Have Just Won For Themselves And Their Families A Life Of Safety And Plenty. But There Are Rumors Of Rebellion Among The Subjects, And Katniss And Peeta, To Their Horror, Are The Faces Of That Rebellion. The Capitol Is Angry. The Capitol Wants Revenge.

The Hunger Games

Suzanne Collins · 2009

This Special Edition of <i>The Hunger Games</i> includes the most extensive interview Suzanne Collins has given since the publication of <i>The Hunger Games</i>; an absorbing behind-the-scenes look at the creation of the series; and an engaging archival conversation between Suzanne Collins and YA legend Walter Dean Myers on writing about war. The Special Edition answers many questions fans have had over the years, and gives great insight into the creation of this era-defining work.<p></p>In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to death before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Still, if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Crooked Kingdom

Leigh Bardugo · 2018

See the Grishaverse come to life on screen with the Netflix series, Shadow and Bone -- Season 2 streaming now!<br/><br/>Discover what comes next for Kaz, Jesper, Inej, and Wylan in Crooked Kingdom, the spectacular sequel to Six of Crows.<br/><br/>When you can’t beat the odds, change the game.<br/><br/>Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets―a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.<br/><br/>#1 New York Times bestseller<br/><br/>Read all the books in the Grishaverse!<br/><br/>The Shadow and Bone Trilogy<br/>(previously published as The Grisha Trilogy)<br/>Shadow and Bone<br/>Siege and Storm<br/>Ruin and Rising<br/><br/>The Six of Crows Duology<br/>Six of Crows<br/>Crooked Kingdom<br/><br/>The King of Scars Duology<br/>King of Scars<br/>Rule of Wolves<br/><br/>The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic<br/>The Severed Moon: A Year-Long Journal of Magic<br/>The Lives of Saints<br/>Demon in the Wood Graphic Novel

Six of Crows

Leigh Bardugo · 2018

See the Grishaverse come to life on screen with Shadow and Bone, now a Netflix original series. Discover what comes next for heist trio Kaz, Inej, and Jesper -- and the star-crossed Nina and Matthias -- in the #1 New York Times bestseller Six of Crows, Book One of the Six of Crows Duology. Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone. . . . A convict with a thirst for revenge. A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager. A runaway with a privileged past. A spy known as the Wraith. A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums. A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes. Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo returns to the breathtaking world of the Grishaverse in this unforgettable tale about the opportunity—and the adventure—of a lifetime. Praise for Six of Crows: “Six of Crows is a twisty and elegantly crafted masterpiece that thrilled me from the beginning to end.” –New York Times-bestselling author Holly Black “Six of Crows [is] one of those all-too-rare, unputdownable books that keeps your eyes glued to the page and your brain scrambling to figure out what’s going to happen next.” –Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra “There's conflict between morality and amorality and an appetite for sometimes grimace-inducing violence that recalls the Game of Thrones series. But for every bloody exchange there are pages of crackling dialogue and sumptuous description. Bardugo dives deep into this world, with full color and sound. If you're not careful, it'll steal all your time.” —The New York Times Book Review Read all the books in the Grishaverse! The Shadow and Bone Trilogy (previously published as The Grisha Trilogy) Shadow and Bone Siege and Storm Ruin and Rising The Six of Crows Duology Six of Crows Crooked Kingdom The King of Scars Duology King of Scars The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic The Severed Moon: A Year-Long Journal of Magic Praise for the Grishaverse “A master of fantasy.” —The Huffington Post “Utterly, extremely bewitching.” —The Guardian “This is what fantasy is for.” —The New York Times Book Review “[A] world that feels real enough to have its own passport stamp.” —NPR “The darker it gets for the good guys, the better.” —Entertainment Weekly “Sultry, sweeping and picturesque. . . . Impossible to put down.” —USA Today “There’s a level of emotional and historical sophistication within Bardugo’s original epic fantasy that sets it apart.” —Vanity Fair “Unlike anything I’ve ever read.” —Veronica Roth, bestselling author of Divergent “Bardugo crafts a first-rate adventure, a poignant romance, and an intriguing mystery!” —Rick Riordan, bestselling author of the Percy Jackson series