Killing Machine: The American Presidency in the Age of Drone Warfare

Lloyd C. Gardner (Get this book)
Straightforward, rigorous account of how President Barack Obama's embrace of high-tech militarism is changing the parameters of the presidency. Gardner presents a deeper narrative than the title implies, essentially utilizing the George W. Bush administration's decision to pursue war in Iraq at the expense of the Afghanistan campaign necessitated by 9/11 as a flash point that altered our ability to respond to terrorist threats. Thus, though the author concurs that Obama the constitutional scholar "fell into the embrace of Reaper and Predator drones by circumstances beyond his control," he still holds responsible the president and his various high-end deputies for blithely advocating their increased use in controversial environments like Pakistan and Yemen. An evenhanded yet grim assessment of the growing consensus regarding "the lethal presidency."--Kirkus

Fever

Mary Beth Keane (Get this book)
A fictional portrait of Typhoid Mary, the Irish immigrant cook who spread disease and death among the cramped, unsanitary streets of turn-of-the-century New York. Opening with the arrest of Mary Mallon in 1907, Keane moves back and forth across several decades to flesh out the famous plague carrier's character against a detailed social panorama. A memorable biofiction that turns a malign figure of legend into a perplexing, compelling survivor--Kirkus

The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon

Brad Stone (Get this book)
Fair-minded, virtually up-to-the-minute history of the retail and technology behemoth and the prodigious brain behind it. In addition to speaking to Bezos several times over the years, including an interview for this book, Stone also spoke with employees across all levels of the company, from C-level officers and software developers to fulfillment center "associates," including many who have moved on. The author's research, which also included access to volumes of emails and other internal documents, revealed an extraordinarily difficult corporate culture for ordinary human beings to work in, one designed to forge (but not necessarily reward) people able to think like Bezos. A must-add to any business bookshelf.--Kirkus

Morning Glory

Sarah Jio (Get this book)
Jio blends romance and mystery in a novel told from the alternating points of view of two women separated by decades but connected by place and circumstances. The author maintains a steady succession of questions, answers and more questions to create suspense. Tragedy and redemption mix in Jio's latest treat for fans--Kirkus

The Gift of Years: Growing Older Gracefully

Joan Chittister (Get this book)
Here are two more self-help books aimed at the generation that refuses to grow old. In "The Gift of Years", Benedictine sister Chittister beautifully downplays regrets and accents the rewards of a mature life. While she acknowledges the pain of old age, she focuses on the new beginnings that life can offer at this stage and discusses the need to stay involved, to put one's affairs in order, and to be open to new relationships. Both books offer excellent information and would make a positive contribution to any public library's collection.--Library Journal

Brown Dog: Novellas

Jim Harrison (Get this book)
This essential collection of six novellas offers an omnibus look at Brown Dog, a pure Harrison creation and a glorious character who will make readers howl with delight. In these stories, he shambles from a day-to-day set of misadventures arising from some illegal salvage diving to a loopy picaresque jaunt through Los Angeles ("I just want my bearskin back, " he says), to something much more profound and redemptive, standing in as a father figure to several vulnerable Indian and partially Indian children, despite the absence of much paternal influence in his own life. Often moving, frequently funny, these 500 pages offer the best way to get acquainted (or reacquainted) with one of literature's great characters--Publisher's Weekly

An American Bride in Kabul: A Memoir

Phyllis Chesler (Get this book)
A renowned psychotherapist's richly compelling memoir about how her experiences as an Afghan man's wife shaped her as both a feminist and human rights activist. At 18, Chesler fell in love with the scion of a wealthy family from Afghanistan. She was Jewish, and her "prince," Abdul-Kareem, was Muslim. Their affair was as unexpected as it was unlikely and led to an even more improbable marriage. Using diaries, letters, interviews, and research and other writings about Afghanistan and the Islamic world, the author offers an illuminating depiction not only of her time as a harem wife, but also of the "gender apartheid" under which Afghan women must live. Intelligent, powerful and timely.--Kirkus

Newtown: An American Tragedy

Matthew Lysiak (Get this book)
Meticulous account of the Newtown massacre and its aftermath. On Dec. 14, 2012, Adam Lanza murdered 20 first graders and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. He had already killed his mother, and he ended by killing himself. New York Daily News journalist Lysiak covered the event, later moving to Newtown to gather more material, particularly about Lanza's troubled life. Lysiak hopes to "inform the debate" generated by the tragedy; it's been a year, and this harrowing book might be a reminder that the debate needs reviving--Kirkus

Storm Front

John Sandford (Get this book)
The seventh Virgil Flowers mystery finds the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agent handed a curious case. Seems a local college professor stole a valuable artifact from an Israeli archaeological dig, returned home to the States, and then promptly vanished; an Israeli investigator is on her way, determined to track the man down and reclaim the artifact. Kudos to Sandford for taking what could have been an ancient-mystery thriller la Dan Brown and playing it like a cop novel. Fans of the Flowers and Davenport series will thoroughly enjoy this one.--Booklist