Happy #BookBday (4/25/17 Edition)

Happy #BookBday to two daring debuts and three works of women’s fiction perfect for book clubs:

THE STANDARD GRAND by Jay Baron Nicorvo
A May 2017 Indie Next pick & a Library Journal Spring 2017 Debut Novels pick! An Army trucker goes AWOL before her third deployment, and ends up in the Standard Grand, a sanctuary for homeless veterans suffering from PTSD in the Catskill Mountains. But the Grand is sitting on a shale formation coveted by a corporate executive. “…Nicorvo’s muscular and energetic prose will stun readers with its poignancy, while providing a punch to the solar plexus. Alongside BILLY LYNN’S LONG, HALFTIME WALK and YELLOW BIRDS, THE STANDARD GRAND is an important and deeply human contribution to the national conversation.” — Booklist, starred review

OOLA by Brittany Newell
A provocative and impressive debut delivered with a uniquely sinister lyricism by a brilliant 21-year-old; a story about sex, privilege, desire, and creativity in the post-college years. “Newell’s rangy, circuitous tale is a kind of queer Nadja for millennials with a self-satirizing—and satisfying—bite. A dreamy and provocative exploration of sex, privilege, and self-discovery.” — Kirkus Reviews

THE F WORD by Liza Palmer
At once a funny, whip-smart sendup of L.A. culture and an irresistible love story about how sometimes who we become isn’t who we really are. “A funny and fantastic lesson on how perfection doesn’t translate to happiness is served up in Palmer’s latest. This is a smart and sardonic novel with a genuine voice.” — Publishers Weekly

YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT by Giovanna Fletcher
“This is a warm, humorous, at times heartbreaking novel of three childhood friends, told from their alternating points-of-view and reminiscent of Cecelia Ahern’s ROSIE DUNNE. It reads like a diary readers won’t be able to put down, with characters they would like to spend more time with and get to know. A fresh take on the classic love-triangle story.” — Booklist

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN IN FLORENCE by Alyssa Palombo
A compelling historical novel of artist Sandro Botticelli and Simonetta Vespucci, his beautiful but married muse for “The Birth of Venus.” “In the tradition of Tracy Chevalier’s GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING, Palombo has married fine art with romantic historical fiction in this lush and sensual interpretation of Medici Florence, artist Sandro Botticelli, and the muse that inspired them all.” — Booklist