Ask a bookseller

We're continuing our September focus on great books for kids and teens. This week, Britt Margit of Second Star to the Right Books in Denver, Colo., recommended "Some Kind of Happiness" by Claire Legrand.

This week, bookseller Linda Stack-Nelson of Wild Rumpus Books for Young Readers in Minneapolis recommended the debut young adult novel “Raybearer” by Nigerian-American author Jordan Ifueko. 

“When there are so many negative stereotypes against black boys and black children, this is just a beautiful poem, almost a love letter, letting them know that they are every good thing,” said bookseller Lorielle J. Holloway.

This week, bookseller Anthony Ascione of Brilliant Books in Traverse City, Mich., recommends Maria Dahvana Headley’s brand-new translation of the classic epic poem “Beowulf.”

Bookseller Nadine Teisberg of Birchbark Books in Minneapolis is recommending the novel “Empire of Wild” by Cherie Dimaline. Teisberg calls the novel an intriguing mystery and a powerful love story, interwoven with Dimaline’s own Georgian Bay Métis culture and traditions. 

Bookseller Stephen Sparks of Point Reyes Books in Point Reyes Station, Calif., recommends the nonfiction work “Fathoms: The World in the Whale” by author Rebecca Giggs.

Bookseller Susan Tank of Paulina Springs Books in Sisters, Ore., recommends one of her longtime favorites, the 2010 novel "Mink River" by Brian Doyle.

Bookseller Jody Hardy recommends a series that has drawn comparisons to the works of Patrick Rothfuss and George R.R. Martin.

Bookseller Derrick Young recommends a memoir that leverages the writer’s sense of humor to address the heavy topics of race and toxic masculinity.

“This is a novel of modern India that should be required reading for anyone who reads to seek a greater understanding of the world,” said bookseller Emilie Sommer.