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STRAWBERRY FIELDS

 On a sunny hillside in Kent, in the Garden of England, a group of nine migrant workers from various parts of the world are picking strawberries for Mr. Leapish, the farmer. Housed in two trailers, and fed a daily diet of bread, margarine, jam, and sausages, life isn’t easy for them. But the friendships they forge, and their dreams of love and hopes for a new life in the West, carry them along.

Nineteen-year-old Irina has arrived from Kiev, Ukraine buoyed up by enthusiasm for the Orange Revolution, and full of dreams of a romantic and refined life in the West.

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KEEPER AND KID

Keeper and Kid is the story of what happens when a thirty-something guy, happily living his patched-together life in Providence, is yanked through the portal of parenthood and his world very nearly falls apart in the process.

In this humorous and poignant novel, Edward Hardy explores the depths of modern love, parenthood, and compromise. Keeper and Kid is the story of how a normal guy receives an unexpected gift and in turn must learn to ask more of others and himself. A coming-of-age story for the guy who thought he had already grown up,

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AWAY

Panoramic in scope, Away is the epic and intimate story of young Lillian Leyb, a dangerous innocent, an accidental heroine. When her family is destroyed in a Russian pogrom, Lillian comes to America alone, determined to make her way in a new land. When word comes that her daughter, Sophie, might still be alive, Lillian embarks on an odyssey that takes her from the world of the Yiddish theater on New York’s Lower East Side, to Seattle’s Jazz District, and up to Alaska, along the fabled Telegraph Trail toward Siberia. All of the qualities readers love in Amy Bloom’s work–her humor and wit,

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THE WEDDING OFFICER

In the sumptuous tradition of Chocolat and Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, and already optioned for a major motion picture, comes a magical tale of romantic passion, culinary delight—and Italy.

Captain James Gould arrives in wartime Naples assigned to discourage marriages between British soldiers and their gorgeous Italian girlfriends. But the innocent young officer is soon distracted by an intoxicating young widow who knows her way around a kitchen…Livia Pertini is creating feasts that stun the senses with their succulence—ruby-colored San Marzana tomatoes, glistening anchovies, and delectable new potatoes encrusted with the black volcanic earth of of Campania—and James is about to learn that his heart may rank higher than his orders.

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THE SAFETY OF SECRETS

“”Now we’re just alike.”” So begins Fiona and Patricia’s friendship that warm autumn morning in first grade in Lake Charles, Louisiana, their bond forged ever closer by Fiona’s abusive mother and Patricia’s neglectful one. Their relationship is a source of continuity and strength through their move to L.A. to become actresses; through Fiona’s marriage and Patricia’s sudden fame. When husband and career pressures exact a toll, the women wonder if their friendship can survive. Then a dark secret from their past emerges, threatening to destroy not only their bond, but all they’ve worked for as well.

The Safety of Secrets is a beautifully written exploration of the bonds forged in childhood and challenged decades later,

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CHURCH OF THE DOG

Deep in Oregon farm country, Edith and Earl McRae are looking down the barrel of their fiftieth anniversary with none of the joy such a milestone should hold. Instead, they are stuck in a past that holds them to heartbreak and tragedy. Enter the mysterious and ever-so-slightly magical Mara O’Shaunessey who appears on their ranch with the power to mend long broken fences and show them how to recognize the enchantment of their everyday lives. Gracefully capturing the strange alchemy of people and places, Kaya McLaren’s story of redemption and rediscovery will inspire readers to find the magic and power in every day shared with the people they love.

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