KATE SIBER ’02
The Hidden Wisdom of Animals: Surprising Things We Can Learn from Nature
Wide-Eyed Editions
Written for children 8 and older, this enchanting book delves into the outstanding traits of 44 animals—special skills and strengths that Siber calls their “superpowers.” She writes that each animal has a lot to teach us: Squirrels plan ahead. Fireflies shine from within. Wolves know how to work as a team. Jellyfish go with the flow. Crocodiles know how to be still. Flamingos embrace their flamboyance. Arctic terns know how to go the distance. Coupled with lovely illustrations by Kaitlynn Copithorne, this delightful book will instill a sense of wonder and inspire kids to have a more engaged relationship with nature.
NAOMI POLLOCK ’81
Vanishing Japan: Modern Architecture Gone But Not Forgotten
Thames & Hudson
An architect who lived and worked in Japan for more than 30 years, Pollock focuses on about 90 buildings demolished since 2000. While some were taken down after earthquakes, she argues that other mid-century modern buildings were architectural milestones.
DEBORAH SCHUPACK ’84
When We Were Gun: A Narrative Poetry Cycle
Fleur-de-Lis Press
Winner of The Louisville Review National Poetry Contest for her first collection of poetry, novelist Schupack bears witness to the tragedy of an elementary school shooting in an unnervingly up-close and personal way. Students crouching, trying not to move a muscle, as parents anxiously wait outside the school all comes vividly alive. Written as a three-part drama—“Before,” “During,” and “After”—When We Were Gun has been called “essential reading” for anyone trying to make sense of the shattering impacts of school shootings.
KEVIN OMLAND ’85
Understanding the Tree of Life
Cambridge University Press
Omland, a professor of biological sciences at the University of Maryland, takes readers on a journey through the tree of life and challenges outdated views of evolution, unraveling misconceptions about the fallacy of human superiority and showing how modern DNA reveals our connections to one another, to offer a fresh view on life’s interconnectedness.
CHRISTOPHER REA ’99
More Swindles from the Late Ming: Sex, Scams and Sorcery
Columbia University Press
Rea, a professor of Asian studies at the University of British Columbia, co-translates an array of tales from the early 17th century by Zhang Yingyu. They detail various frauds and crimes, including deceptions involving sex, sorcery, and violence, and offer insights into the social anxieties, moral codes, and criminal underworld of the late Ming dynasty. As New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos put it, “In the canon of the con … this book is an honest-to-goodness treasure—without a trace of honesty or goodness.”
MEG DONOHOE ’00
The Memory Gardener: A Novel
Gallery Books (Simon and Schuster)
Centered on the restorative powers of plants and gardens and the power of memory, Donohoe’s captivating sixth novels tells of a gardener with a magical ability to grow flowers whose fragrances awaken lost memories. When she is hired to work at a strange retirement home with long neglected gardens that block its ocean view, she uses her unusual gift. An unexpected mystery ensues as the entire community is transformed and long-buried secrets are unearthed.
DAVID SHAMSZAD ’04
I Am Someone You Know: The Fight for Recovery and Mental Health
Emissary Publishing
In this literary memoir, Shamszad details his struggle to claw his way to recovery from untreated mental illness and addiction—which he calls a harrowing journey inside a mind at war. Explaining his belief that to heal it’s essential to remember, his courage to fight also offers a story of catharsis, relief, and hope.
CHARLENE WANG ’10
I’ll Follow You: A Novel
Mindy’s Book Studio
Wang’s debut thriller, which puts a new twist on the campus novel, delves into a dark tale of female friendship, influence, and feminist revenge. Young women Faith and Kayla manage to catapult themselves out of a Florida trailer park, then go viral when they create the Instagram influencer persona of “Hannah Primrose”—but when one of them is admitted to an elite college, the trouble begins.
K. JULIAN FLAMER ’12
The Canvas Within: Reflections on Growth & Courage
The 1andOnly
The author, a former Dartmouth football player turned actor, navigates themes of identity, memory, transformation, and cultural duality in this debut poetry collection. The poems blend the disciplines of athletics and spiritual meditation with the nuance and rhythms of spoken-word poetry performance.
RENA SAPON-WHITE ’14
Sweet Talk
Smokeshow
Sapon-White’s racy rom-com novel tells the tale of a comedian who is the first woman of color to host a legendary late-night talk show. She must balance the network’s expectations about who she is—but winds up falling for a woman, an eccentric ice cream scientist, who is pretty much her opposite.
