An excellent glimpse into the cold world the Cro-Magnon man and their cousins, the Neanderthal, inhabitated. Fagan does an excellent job of vividly imaging the trials and tribulations they faced, the interactions they had with one another, and what factors contributed to these conditions. All of his descriptions are founded in some of the most recent and ground breaking scientific discovery, which he cites thoroughly throughout.

An easy and enjoyable read for the lamen and the expert alike, this book is a must-read for anthropology lovers and anyone interested in the factors which led to the modern biodiversity of Europe and the Near East.

A heartwarming story of a sick senior dog who was prepared to live out his last days in a shelter only to be adopted and shown that with enough love and patience life can be worth living again. The author, Tom Ryan, never gave up teaching Will to trust even through the tough times. I recommend this book to anyone who has a special place in their heart for senior dogs.

The story goes that a mother of two small boys once asked Albert Einstein how to foster in her sons an interest in science. His answer, so they say: "Read them fairy tales." Why? Because tales of fantasy and imagination encourage us to think abstractly. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, philologists, historians, culled German oral tradition for samples of German dialect and found a wealth of treasure which had been relegated to the nursery by encroaching industrialism and the growth of the middle class. These which had been told by adults to adults, in which, perhaps, the concrete fears and hopes people of all ages would be worked out through the actions of plucky young women and seemingly idiotic youngest sons. There are many fine current translations, but this one is brought further to life by the haunting and humorous illustrations of Gris Grimly.

A “nix” is a shapeshiftingspirit in Germanic mythology. In Nathan Hill’s book, it takes the form of college professor Samuel Andresen’s mother who left him as a child. She reappears in the news decades later, after being accused of physically attacking a conservative politician.

In uncovering her past starting in the cultural upheaval of the 1960s, author Hill takes on multiple storylines with themes of subversion, alienation, abandonment, virtual reality and a politically divided country  – timely issues he handles with both humanity and hilarity. Samuel’s search for the truth amidst the chaos hooked me from the very first page.

New readers and older fans alike will enjoy Who Could That Be At This Hour, the first of Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler)'s newer series, All The Wrong Questions. This series follows the character of Lemony Snicket himself during his time as a young apprentice for VFD (the secret society of his prior series) as he works with an utterly useless boss in a mostly abandoned town that is being threatened by a sinister villain called Hangfire.

With a fascinating cast of characters, a mysterious yet adventurous plot, a peculiar setting, and a quirky writing style, I believe this book to be enjoyable for both adults and children.

As a child my mother would point to pictures in my Richard Scarry books asking me to name them. "Fire truck", "Kitchen", "Baby", I would call out gleefully as I sat in her lap. What are we even doing with our lives? lets me relive those memories by yelling out "kombucha", "political poster" and "organic carrots" while sipping wine and holding my dog.