From Kent:

Starting this week, and through the summer, we'll be sending out the QuailMail every other week on Wednesday rather than each week. We'll still keep you informed of author events and book club schedules by reaching a little farther out to cover both weeks. We'll continue to provide you with our staff reviews and literary news, and we hope you'll appreciate this new frequency.

Order of Time cover I've been reading Italian theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli again--he writes the kind of books that make you realize Reality is Not What it Seems (the title of his previous book). Now in The Order of Time (Riverhead $20), he asserts that time does not exist--that it does not 'flow', and that there's no such thing as the past or the future. Rovelli writes for the layperson, and the book contains only one, simple mathematical equation, which he uses in the first half of the book to deconstruct the notion of time. He's been described as a physicist-poet, and Order, as good literature does, takes us outside of ourselves. But in the second half of this brilliant book, Rovelli pulls us back into ourselves. He references literature, poetry, and science to elegantly explain why we feel innately that time does exist.


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STAFF PICKS

Two from Mamie: Before I knew it, I was halfway through Lauren Groff's new short story collection, Florida (Riverhead $27). The mostly female protagonists, including one who appears in several stories, evoked strong feelings of empathy in me around the struggle to maintain one's security, the expectation of competence and the inability to maintain it, and the responsibility and love of one's children. The temperamental Florida landscape and seascape were used to great advantage to enhance the atmosphere of the stories. Groff's novel Fates and Furies showed me that she is an extraordinary writer, and Florida cemented my opinion of her as one of our finest. Short stories have received some prestigious awards in the past few years, and I predict that this collection will garner well-deserved accolades.

The urban Native American experience is laid bare in There There (Knopf $25.95), the debut novel by Tommy Orange, a member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma who lives in Oakland, California. The story is told from the different points of view of fictional Oakland families and individuals, including those who tentatively or actively want to embrace their Native American heritage, and those who would deny it. Their seemingly disparate lives are wound tighter and tighter together by the upcoming Big Oakland Powwow celebration. Beautiful language, fascinating and complex characters, and a runaway-train plot kept me engrossed until the last page.

Florida and There There are both selections of the Signed First Editions Club, and we also have a limited number of signed copies of each available for sale in the store.

We also have a limited number of signed copies of Anthony Horowitz's new one, The Word is Murder (Harper $27.99). Horowitz has again brilliantly reinvented the classic crime novel, this time writing a fictional version of himself as the Watson to a modern-day Holmes.

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NEW IN PAPERBACK

Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan (Scribner $17). See our Events section below for information about Jennifer Egan's visit to QRB with the novel on June 22.
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (Penguin $16). An uplifting novel about an out-of-the-ordinary heroine with a deadpan weirdness and unconscious wit, who will realize that the only way to survive is to open your heart.
The Last Ballad by Wiley Cash (William Morrow $15.99). A novel set in the Appalachian foothills of North Carolina in 1929 and inspired by actual events. "Cash reveals the dignity and humanity of people asking for a fair shot in an unfair world."—Christina Baker Kline
The Weight of this World by David Joy (G.P. Putnam's Sons $16). An Appalachian noir novel. "Bleakly beautiful... [a] gorgeously written but pitiless novel about a region blessed by nature but reduced to desolation and despair."—NYT Book Review
Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America by Nancy MacLean (Penguin $18).
The Burning Girl: A Novel by Claire Messud (Norton $15.95). "[Messud] is an absolute master storyteller and bafflingly good writer..."—LA Times
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan (Mariner $14.99). Lyrical and heartbreaking, this novel follows three generations of a Palestinian family and asks us to confront that most devastating of all truths: you can't go home again. Named a Best Book of 2017 by multiple outlets.

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FATHER'S DAY IS JUNE 17TH

QRB is your one-stop destination for cards, books and gifts for Father's Day! Our staff can quickly recommend a good read for Dad, plus you'll find:

Father's Day books and gifts If you need to ship books, our Media Mail rate is $3.95 for the first book plus 50 cents for each additional one. With online book orders of $50 or more, Media Mail shipping is free. And giftwrapping is always free!


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AWARDS

On Monday, Lambda Literary, the nation's leading organization advancing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer literature, announced their 30th annual literary awards. Among the winners was Roxane Gay for Hunger (Bisexual Nonfiction), and Carmen Maria Machado for her story collection Her Body and Other Parties (Lesbian Fiction) which was a selection of our Literary Horror Book Club. Writers Roxane Gay and Edmund White also received special awards. Find the full list of winners at LambdaLiterary.org.

The winners of the Audie Awards, sponsored by the Audiobook Publishers Association, were announced recently, and the Audiobook of the Year was Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, read by Nick Offerman, David Sedaris, George Saunders, and a full cast. See winners in the many categories at AudioPub.org.

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AUDIOBOOKS THROUGH LIBRO.​FM

Indie bookstores like us are partnering with Libro.fm to offer you access to an extensive selection of audiobooks, ready to download to your iOS or Android device, at very reasonable prices. When you create an account with Libro.fm and choose QRB as your Indie partner, with every purchase you'll throw some support our way, so that we can keep doing what we do best for you.

Libro.fm offers over 90,000 titles, bookseller reviews, playlists from partners like The New York Times, IndieNextList, and more. Libro.fm's $14.99 per month membership offers excellent benefits, and you can cancel anytime and keep all your books. Find out more on our website, or click here to go to Libro.fm to create a QRB-linked account.

Currently, members of Audible who sign up for a Libro.fm membership can switch over up to two credits by contacting Amber@quailridgebooks.com with the email address attached to the new account, or just come into the store to let us know. We'll have the credits applied to your new Libro.fm account.

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KIDS' SUMMER BOOK CLUBS ARE FILLING UP FAST

The Page Turners book club for kids ages 8–10 has filled up. We still have some space in the Summer B.I.R.D.S. book club for kids ages 5–7 (Beautiful Independent Readers Developing Soon), as well as The Around the Clock Readers, for ages 11–14. There is a fee for the book clubs, and parents receive a 21% discount on the books purchased for clubs. Find more details at on our website. To register, visit us in the store, or call 919-828-1588. For waiting list information, email Kids@quailridgebooks.com.

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NC BOOKWATCH ON UNC-TV

Thursday at 5:00 p.m., D. G. Martin's guest is Belle Boggs with The Art of Waiting: On Fertility, Medicine, and Motherhood. Sunday's Bookwatch is preempted. Find the full schedule and a link to watch online here.

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QRB EVENTS

Secret Token cover TONIGHT, JUNE 6, 7:00 p.m. Andrew Lawler, The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Lawler examines America's oldest unsolved mystery, as well as the people who have raced to unearth its answer. He offers us a fresh understanding of the first English settlement in the New World, and shows how attempts to understand it continue to resonate today, as we grapple with ideas of race, gender and immigration. Read Lawler's article on the subject at WashingtonPost.com. Click here for information on receiving a ticket for reserved seating and the signing line. General unreserved seating will also be available for this event.


FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 7:00 p.m. Caleb Johnson, Treeborne. This debut novel set in Alabama is heralded as "beautiful, and mythic in ways I would never have been able to imagine" by Daniel Wallace. Southern Living named it one of the Best New Books Coming Out Summer 2018. Johnson will be in conversation with author Taylor Brown (Gods of Howl Mountain). Join us for this Southern tale of how the past gets mixed up in thoughts of the future, and how home is a story as much as a place.

MONDAY, JUNE 11, 10:30 a.m. Jonathan D. Voss, Brave Enough For Two. A special storytime for ages 4+. We welcome North Carolina picture book author and illustrator, Jonathan Voss, as he introduces us to Olive and her best friend, Hoot. Olive loves book-based adventures, but is she brave enough to join Hoot on some real-life adventures, too? Kids are encouraged to BYOB (bring your own bear or other stuffed animal)!

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 13, 7:00 p.m. Virginia Willis, Secrets of the Southern Table: A Food Lover's Tour of the Global South. The award-winning chef and cookbook author will present a contemporary tour of the diverse range of Southern cooking. Willis will discuss well-known recipes like Pimento Cheese Tomato Herb Pie and "Cathead" Biscuits, as well as globally-influenced dishes like Catfish Tacos with Avocado Crema, and Greek Okra and Tomatoes. Willis will also tell us about some of the chefs, farmers, and culinary influencers who are shaping today's Southern cuisine. There will be samples!

FRIDAY, JUNE 15, 7:00 p.m. Dr. Sampson Davis, The Stuff: Unlock Your Power to Overcome Challenges, Soar, and Succeed. Everyone has difficult moments in life. But everyone also has the "Stuff" to overcome hardships, to survive and thrive. Learn how to better access and hone the eleven core elements of the Stuff and be inspired by the real-world stories of triumph in this practical book co-authored by New York Times-bestselling author Davis (The Pact, and Living and Dying in Brick City).

SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 11:30 a.m. Local musician Bruce Emery will be playing acoustic guitar for everyone's enjoyment. Bruce is the creator and publisher of the Skeptical Guitarist and the Guitar/Ukelele From Scratch instructional books series, and he has several music CDs.

Joey cover SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 4:00 p.m. Jennifer Bleakley, Joey: How a Blind Rescue Horse Helped Others Learn to See. When a rescue group brought a blind and starving Appaloosa named Joey to Hope Reins, a ranch in Raleigh dedicated to helping abused or neglected children, could the financially struggling organization afford to take care of a blind horse that no one else wanted? Could Joey somehow learn to trust people even though the world had hurt him so badly? Come hear this inspiring story. Kim Tschirret, founder and CEO of Hope Reins, will introduce Bleakley, and a portion of the book sales from this event will be donated to Hope Reins. We'll have Hope Reins horse equipment on display, and we'll give away two 90-minutes sessions with a Hope Reins horse!


THURSDAY, JUNE 21, 11:00 a.m. (Please note the early time.) Together in conversation, two virtuosos in Southern women's fiction each bring us a new novel centering around family ties, second chances, and new opportunities for change. Whisking you back to the shores of her bestselling Beach House series, Mary Alice Monroe weaves a tale of the struggles and triumphs of the historic Rutledge family of Charleston, South Carolina, in Beach House Reunion. Having left fans "practically [begging] for a sequel" (Bookpage), Kristy Woodson Harvey now returns with book two in the Peachtree Bluff series, The Secret to Southern Charm. It features a trio of sisters and their mother who discover a truth that will change not only the way they see themselves, but also how they fit together as a family.

FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 7:00 p.m. Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach, new in paperback. We welcome Pulitzer Prize-winning Egan (A Visit From the Goon Squad), to discuss this magnificent historical novel that dives deeply into one family's story, and the trailblazing young woman searching for her father. Manhattan Beach won the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and was longlisted for the National Book Award. Egan will be introduced by Angela Davis-Gardner, Raleigh author of Butterfly's Child, a favorite book of Egan's. Click here for information on attending this reserved seating event.

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BOOK CLUBS & MEETINGS (Everyone welcome)

TONIGHT, JUNE 6, 7:00 p.m. BRIDGING THE DIVIDE. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. Moderator: Kory Swanson. The goal of this book club is to foster dialog and better understanding between people with different viewpoints.

SUNDAY, JUNE 10, 2:00 p.m. WRITERS COFFEEHOUSE. Every writer of any kind at any stage in their writing career is welcome to join this discussion and networking group. No set agenda, no fees, no registration, no publishing requirements. Not a peer review/critique group.

MONDAY, JUNE 11, 7:00 p.m. NOT FOR MEN ONLY. The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Meeting at QRB, not at Whole Foods.

TUESDAY, JUNE 12, 2:30 p.m. OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute). Clementine by Sonia Purnell.

THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 7:00 p.m. LITERARY HORROR. The Ritual by Adam Nevill.

SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 7:00 p.m. TRIANGLE ORIGAMI FOLDERS UNITED (TOFU). Open to any skill level.

SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 4:30 p.m. LITERARY PURSUITS. Roscoe by William Kennedy.

MONDAY, JUNE 18, 7:00 p.m. UNDERSTANDING THE MIDDLE EAST. Pity the Nation (chapters 11–18) by Robert Fisk.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, TREATMENT TALES. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. Treatment Tales is a discussion group for younger adults 18–29 who are living with cancer, from diagnosis to remission, to discuss shared experiences as well as books of interest to the group. New members are always welcome to drop in. Contact Elizabeth at TreatmentTalesRaleigh@gmail.com for more info.

THE FREAKIN' AWESOME BOOK CLUB, for young adults with developmental disabilities, meets Sundays at 4:45 p.m. at QRB or in members' homes. Currently reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. Contact facilitator Marlyn Wells at marlynwells@gmail.com for more information.

TEEN WRITERS COLLECTIVE: Meets at Whole Foods Community Room in Ridgewood Shopping Center, usually on the first, third and fifth Wednesdays of the month at 7:00 p.m. Suggested entry level is rising high school freshman+. Contact Cris Crissman at criscrissman@gmail.com for more information.

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Quail Ridge Books
33 Years of Independent Bookselling
919-828-1588
QuailRidgeBooks.com

“It is the nature of the writer to question the validity of his world and yet rely on his senses to describe it. From what other tension can great literature be born?”~~ Jeff Vandermeer

For inquiries concerning QuailMail contact editor Kent Bryant at kent@quailridgebooks.com.

Links to browse or shop the books:
The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli
Reality is Not What It Seems by Carlo Rovelli
Florida by Lauren Groff
Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
There There by Tommy Orange
The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
The Last Ballad by Wiley Cash
The Weight of the World by David Joy
Democracy in Chains by Nancy MacLean
The Burning Girl by Claire Messud
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan
Hunger by Roxane Gay
Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
The Art of Waiting by Belle Boggs
The Secret Token by Andrew Lawler
Treeborne by Caleb Johnson
Brave Enough For Two by Jonathan D. Voss
Secrets of the Southern Table by Virginia Willis
The Stuff by Dr. Sampson David
Joey by Jennifer Bleakley
Beach House Reunion by Mary Alice Monroe
The Secret to Southern Charm by Kristy Woodson Harvey
A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
Butterfly's Child by Angela Davis-Gardner
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
The Call of the Wild by Jack London
Clementine by Sonia Purnell
The Ritual by Adam Nevill
Roscoe by William Kennedy
Pity the Nation by Robert Fisk
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling