“Bittersweet”
The following items are available at the Hancock County Public Library, 900 W. McKenzie Road. Descriptions are provided by the publisher, unless otherwise noted. For more information on the library’s collection or to reserve a title, visit hcplibrary.org.
Fiction: “The Writing Retreat” by Julia Bartz
Alex has all but given up on her dreams of becoming a published author when she receives the opportunity to attend an exclusive, month-long writing retreat at the estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo. Even the knowledge that Wren, her former best friend and current rival, is attending doesn’t dampen her excitement. Then Roza drops a bombshell: participants must all complete an entire novel from scratch during the next month, and the author of the best one will receive a life-changing seven-figure publishing deal. Determined to win this seemingly impossible contest, Alex tries to ignore Roza’s erratic behavior, Wren’s cruel mind games, and the alleged haunting of the mansion itself. But when one of the writers vanishes during a snowstorm, Alex becomes desperate to discover the truth and save herself. -adapted from jacket
Nonfiction: Bittersweet: “How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole” by Susan Cain
With her bestseller “Quiet,” Susan Cain urged our society to cultivate space for the undervalued, indispensable introverts among us, thereby revealing an untapped power hidden in plain sight. Now, she employs the same mix of research, storytelling, and memoir to explore why we experience sorrow and longing, and the surprising lessons these states of mind teach us about creativity, compassion, leadership, spirituality, mortality and love.
Youth: “The Great Eggscape” by Jory John
The Good Egg and his pals escape their carton and drop into the store for a morning of fun, enjoyed by everybody. Well, almost everybody. Shel (an egg) isn’t a huge fan of group activities, especially when he’s made to be “It” for a game of hide-and-seek. Nevertheless, Shel doesn’t want to let his friends down, so he reluctantly plays anyway. But after a morning of hiding and seeking, somebody’s still missing. Will the dozen egg friends ever be reunited?
