Your Shelf Life

The Casual Vacancy
By J.K. Rowling

J.K. Rowling’s first adult novel, after a decade of success with the Harry Potter series, comes in at 512 pages. Publishers are calling it a “big book about a small town.” The English town suffers from small battles waged in politics, schools, and homes.

This is How You Lose Her
By Junot Diaz

A collection of short stories about love from the 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Diaz mines pop and ethnic culture to add a fresh, modern take on the human heart.

Live By Night
By Dennis Lehane

The latest from the author of Mystic River and Shutter Island. During Prohibition, a young mobster climbs the ladder of organized crime, starting on the Boston streets and moving to Tampa’s Latin Quarter and, eventually, Cuba.

Year Zero
By Rob Reid

Aliens all over the galaxy have fallen in love with Earth’s music, so naturally, they download a gazillion tracks. When someone realizes every single download will cost $150,000 in fines, which amounts to all the wealth in the universe, chaos ensues.

Child of the Storm
By Kirk Lee Aeder

Former photographer Kirk Aeder’s book about surf legend Chris O’Rourke bears the mark of their friendship. In the ’70s, O’Rourke was one of California's best surfers, but also a volatile guy who contributed to an intense localism at Windansea.