Spring 2020 Favorites at Twice Told Tales

Untamed

“I read this book non-stop for a week, underlining, reading passages to my friends & recommending it to anyone with a pulse. There are many great stories inside, but their charm & power, really, is all Glennon. She is a spiritual seeker & leader who loves reality tv, a formidable activist on the global scale who gets anxiety sweats when the doorbell rings. Equal parts poetic & conversational, memoir & manifesto. Her love story will make you swoon. Her shamelessness & relentless self-interrogation will make you feel deeply exposed. This is not a "you can do it, girl!" book. It's more like a spiritual marathon that invites you to jump the guardrail & take off.”

Elon, Apotheosis Comics

Becoming

“I adore our former president and I miss him. Yet I cannot help but be ecstatic that Michelle is coming out with a book about her own life so that I can learn more about this powerful, intelligent, and singularly awesome woman. Barack would be the first to say that his wife is a superstar, and I can’t wait to get my hands on Becoming to read about her in her own words.”

Jax, Bookshop Santa Cruz

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

GOOGLE'S BEST AUDIOBOOKS OF 2019

NPR'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR

INDIE BESTSELLER

GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD WINNER: BEST MEMOIR & AUTOBIOGRAPHY

A laugh-and-cry-out-loud memoir from the beloved star of Netflix’s Queer Eye, Jonathan Van Ness, sharing never before told, deeply personal stories of growing up gay, transforming...

Things in Jars

“Set in Victorian England, Things in Jars feels like a Sherlock Holmes story, if Holmes had been a woman. You can’t help but love Bridie Devine, a strong-willed, chain-smoking woman who has clawed her way from life as an orphaned thief to a highly sought-after detective often consulted by Scotland Yard. Bridie’s newest case, though, is proving difficult and incredibly strange. Not only will it force her to confront someone from her past who she thought was dead, she’ll also team up with an actual ghost as she solves a fantastical crime. Highly imaginative, Things in Jars is a fun and immersive read.”

Jamie Southern, Bookmarks

First published fifty years ago, The Andromeda Strain redefined the science fiction genre, and immediately established Michael Crichton as one of the brightest voices in contemporary literature worldwide.

"I love anything Michael Crichton writes."--Stephen King

A military space probe, sent to collect extraterrestrial organisms from the upper...

Daisy Jones & The Six

“Highly recommend the audiobook. It’s like being in a room with the characters telling you what it was like being in a 70’s Rock ‘n Roll band. (The books’s format is like reading a documentary script.)”

Mollie, HearthFire Books and Treats

THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER

"Transformative ... If Tobia aspires to the ranks of comic memoirists like David Sedaris and Mindy Kaling, Sissy succeeds." --The New York Times Book Review

A heart-wrenching, eye-opening, and giggle-inducing memoir about what it's like to grow up not sure if you're (a) a boy, (b) a girl, (c) something in between, or (d)... Read more »

Nothing to See Here

“Absolutely loved this book, I listened to it on Libro.fm. Quirky, entertaining, smart, and funny. I could not put it down. I can not wait to put this book into hands of readers I know will love it as much as I did. Thank you Kevin Wilson for giving the weird and wonderful a voice! And thank you to Marin Ireland for doing an excellent job with the southern accent! ”

Jessica, E. Shaver, bookseller

Oona Out of Order

“Oona Lockhart has been cursed (or blessed) with a magical wrinkle in time that has her leaping forward and back through the years. Inside she is aging chronologically, but on the outside, Oona is sometimes 51, 30, or 26 years old. A life lived out of order, however, can be just as valid as a life lived forward. Surprising, bittersweet, and filled with love, Oona discovers both the wisdom of age and the spontaneity of youth. Don’t miss out on what is sure to be the most enchanted reading experience of 2020.”

Pamela , Excelsior Bay Books

The Night Circus

“Scintillating, ethereal, and utterly captivating. And with narration by Jim Dale, who could say no? Morgenstern writes in sparkling prose, slowly weaving tapestries that come together in beautiful, unexpected ways, though when you look back, the stage had been set from the beginning. The Night Circus is a beautiful tale of being open to the magic in the world and choosing your own path through it all. Now if only I knew where the Cirque was making its next stop. Perhaps I'll email the proprietor... ”

Britt, Second Star to the Right

Catch and Kill

“A timely, incredibly important account of the difficulties Farrow faced at NBC while working on the Weinstein expose, which he took to the New Yorker and subsequently won a Pulitzer for. The audiobook is grippingly read by Farrow (though the accents he attempts are... let's go with 'confusing'). It's upsetting, sure, but heartening to see the exhaustive research and the very clearly laid-out account of how Farrow had to work against the very powerful high-profile members of the media establishment--including his own bosses--not only because of Weinstein's well-oiled intimidation machine but also as part of those figures attempting to cover up their own histories of being harassers. Highly recommend this important piece of current events journalism, which reads like a thriller novel.”

Gretchen, A Room Of One's Own Bookstore

Talking to Strangers

“In TALKING TO STRANGERS, Gladwell examines how communication is the key to basically everything. With historical as well as current case studies, this book makes you examine your prejudices and preconceived notions. This is not your typical audiobook. Gladwell uses original clips from news stories, segments from other audio books, and he even has a theme song for this book. This listens like a tightly orchestrated podcast and it is a fabulous way to consume this book. Highly recommend.”

Rachel, Avid Bookshop

This audiobook includes bonus tracks with interviews from Shauna Niequist (Present Over Perfect), Hillary McBride (Mothers, Daughters, and Body Image), Pete Enns (How the Bible Actually Works), and more from Jen's podcast, For the Love!

No more hiding or people-pleasing up in here, sisters. No more being sidelined in your own life. It is time for...

Three starred reviews!
“Harrowing but deeply illuminating.” —School Library Journal

A young boy gets detained by ICE while crossing the border from Mexico to the United States in this timely and unflinching novel by award-winning author Alexandra Diaz.

The bed creaks under Santiago’s shivering body. They say a person’s life flashes by before... Read more »

If you enjoyed Lovecraft Country, then you’ll love The City We Became.

“Enthralling and just a half step away from reality. The audio book performance adds a depth and resonance that transforms the text giving an already incredible read tangible texture.”

Tegan, Odyssey Bookshop

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires

“I don’t know about everyone else, but I, for one, am really excited that vampires are making a comeback. I think they’re such a fun trope in pretty much every genre, and this was no exception. True to the Grady Hendrix style, this book was the perfect campy, slightly off-kilter, and moderately gory suburban horror story I didn’t know I needed.”

Kendall, Brilliant Books Audio

A Bad Day for Sunshine

“Sunshine Vicram is the new sheriff in town. But she's not sure how since she never ran for office. On her first day, she's confronted with a kidnapping as well as other small town shenanigans. But, the real reason she came back to her home town is to determine who kidnapped her when she was a teen. This is part whacky Stephanie Plum (but competent policing) and Gilmore Girls with the banter, but with an underlying darkness that will satisfying most mystery readers.”

Audrey, Belmont Books

You Are Not Alone

“Yup... They did it again. The dynamic duo of Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkhan have another fabulous hit thriller on their hands. I hope these two fabulous writers never stop writing. Poor Shay - her life is not what she wants it to be. She would be so much happier is she had a challenging, fun job to go to every morning. She also is secretly/subconsciously in love with her roomie. One problem though - roomie is in love with someone else and she is always at their pad. Shay is tired of being the third wheel. Shay witnesses a woman who jumps to her death in the Subway. She begins an exhaustive search to find out as much as she can about the dead woman. She meets the woman's friends at the memorial service and all of a sudden, Shay's life changes in the blink of an eye. In a matter of days, Shay falls in with the popular girls. Before she knows it, she is living in a gorgeous apartment. How did that happen, you ask? You will have to buy the book. That's as far as I can go with this review without releasing some juicy spoilers. I will tell you, however, that there are plenty of twists and turns and I never saw the ending coming. Hats off to the fabulous narrator.”

Melinda, Buttonwood Books and Toys

Teaching by Heart summarizes the author's key insights gained from more than forty years of teaching and managing. It illustrates how teachers can both lift people up and let them down. It proposes that the best teachers are also leaders, and the best leaders are also teachers.

In examining how to lead and teach, renowned Harvard Business... Read more »

Such a Fun Age

“A racial comedy of manners for the digital age, Such a Fun Age is a hilarious and cringe-inducing look at white people trying to do the right thing: badly, and for all the wrong reasons. Nicole Lewis's reading is a dazzling feat: expertly code-switching between the voice Emira uses with her friends, to the voice she uses with her boss, Alix, to the voice her boss's suburban black friend, Tamara, uses with Alix, to the voice Tamara uses with Emira. I don't think I would have enjoyed this book half as much without this effortlessly nuanced narration.”

Rachel, The Book Table