Every month our knowledgable and friendly staff pick their favourite new book, ranging in topic from children's books to biography,
adventure to personal development.
Relax in the evening with a good book after a fun filled day in the spectactular Canadian Rockies.
June
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Joy's Pick:
One Good Dog
by Susan Wilson
A fabulous read exploring what really matters versus the trappings we see as success. The story is of Adam and the dog with no name. One damaged man and one damaged dog grudgingly end up in each other company. Both are trying to escape their old lives and the escape plan at no point ever included this sort of relationship. An unloved ugly cross pitbull , abused and scarred and an unloved man abused and scarred in different ways . Yet , here they are, thrown together and slowly without even knowing they save each other. The story is told by Adam and the dog and gives us the two points of view and is wonderfully constructed around emotions and fears as seen from both sides .It shows us how acceptance and friendship can develop in a wasteland of loneliness and the homeless men he now serves and the brave and wonderful dog gives them both a second chance . When he disappears Adam is frantic to find his friend and discovers that at last he needs nothing from his old life but the love of his daughter and his dog – Chance .
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Rebecca's Pick:
Gargoyle
by Andrew Davidson
Canadian novelist Andrew Davidson's first book, The Gargoyle has been an outstanding success and is a firm favorite at Cafe Books. Very graphic and descriptive it rises above first impressions of an unpleasant hero who is a drug addicted porn actor.
A man lies in the burn ward contemplating life and the death. A car accident, whilst under the influence of drugs and alcohol, has left him so disfigured, he can’t bear to look at what was once a handsome human being. A visit from a patient from the psych ward, Marianne Engel gradually transforms his outlook on life..Despite her seeming mental instability he is captivated by her - she visits him every day with a new story on how they have loved and known each other for seven hundred years. Their first encounter was in medieval Germany at a monastery where she was a nun and he wounded mercenary left to die. The Gargoyle is a wonderful tale of how love can stand the test of time, and that real love isn't the beauty on the outside, but what is beating on the inside.
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Joy's Pick:
The Persimmon Tree
by Bryce Courtney
Nick Duncan is a young Australian butterfly collector - its 1942 in Java and the Japanese are invading the islands.Nick desperately makes a dangerous escape.Coming ashore after his amazing journey and rescue of an American soldier Nick seems a perfect fir for one of the most dangeroug jobs in the intelligence service,Born and raised in Japan and speaking fluent japanese, he is a loner who learnt to survive in the jungle as a young boy. He is capable and likes to work alone - they want him behind Enemy lines. The parallel story of Anna,the young mixed-blood girl who has captured his heart describes the invasion of the japanese .Nick tells her story as it is too hard for her to re-tell.
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Jocey's Pick:
Beatrice and Virgil
by Yann Martel
What can an author possibly write after putting a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra, a Royal Bengal tiger and a boy in a life boat together? The only answer is 'Beatrice and Virgil', Martel's first novel after 'Life of Pi'. This intricate story brings together a strangely familiar sounding author known only as 'Henry', an awkward screenwriting taxidermist, a donkey named Beatrice, and a howling monkey named Virgil. Like Life of Pi, this is not just a book about animals in bizarre circumstances. Those familiar with Martel's unique imagination will immediately appreciate the complexity of Beatrice and Virgil's characters, and the larger themes of humanity, suffering, and remembrance.
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Jenni's Pick:
The Luxe
by Anna Godbersen
As sumptuous as the cover this is a great drama of the upper-class society of New York, circa 1940. Behind the classy exterior is a world of lies and deceit. Friends backstab, boys are shared and rules are broken. All the shocking secrets of society are revealed in this enthralling tale. Little does everyone know, the “angel” of the town hides some dark secrets. Held in check by the tight expectations of society girls, she cannot reveal how she really feels. But eventually, everything comes out...
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