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I love dogs and have always taken an interest in the British royal family, so when I saw The Queen’s Faithful Companion: A Novel of Queen Elizabeth II and Her Beloved Corgi, Susan (2024) on the new books shelf, I knew I needed to read it right away! The story is told from three perspectives: Princess and soon-to-be Queen Elizabeth, Susan the Corgi, and Hanna Penwyck, a fictionalized keeper of the royal dogs.

The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers (2024) by Samuel Burr is a quirky cozy read about a young man whose adoptive mother dies, and, true to form, leaves him a puzzle to decipher. Will it lead him to his biological parents?

When Women Were Dragons (2022) by Kelly Barnhill is a fabulous and moving coming-of-age novel…with dragons! We watch pre-teen Alex Green grow up through her experience with and repercussions of the mass dragoning of over 100,000 women in 1955.

If you’re looking for a fun and fast read, Lovers and Liars (2024) by Amanda Eyre Ward is the perfect book for a long summer afternoon.

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Join us each month as we interview a Readers' Advisor at WPL so you can get to know the team a little better. This month we are featuring Teen Services Department Head, Lisa! Continue reading to learn tips for branching into new genres, the book she can't stop raving about, and more.

How long have you worked in libraries?

12 years

What is your favorite book from childhood?

T. Kingfisher is back with another quirky and creepy tale, and I am here for it!  

I recently saw American Fiction. The film was well-reviewed, and I understand why. In fact, enough time has passed since my viewing, that I find myself wanting to re-watch it. Not only was the movie enjoyable and the acting terrific, the story really left me thinking.

Stella Gibbons wrote 32 books over the course of her life, but she is most known for her first novel, Cold Comfort Farm (1932). Published in 1932, when Gibbons was still in her twenties, Cold Comfort Farm became wildly popular, received stellar reviews, and some very prestigious prizes.

Dwellings by Jay Stephens is a graphic novel that blends cute and cartoonish art with dark and disturbing tales of horror set in a fictional Canadian town. Despite its whimsical appearance, each of the 6 stories packs a punch, giving us a peek into the eerie depths of the human (cartoon?) psyche.

25-year-old Queenie Jenkins, a Jamaican British woman, is having a rough go. Her longtime boyfriend wants a break, leading to struggles at work, a depressing living situation, and questionable life choices. While this synopsis might indicate a light read, Queenie (2019) is a smart story of a strong woman coming to terms with a traumatic childhood, dealing with microaggressions and outright racism, and bolstering her self-worth.

In Tara Isabella Burton's Here in Avalon (2024), Rose lives her life being responsible and stable after a tumultuous upbringing by her bohemian mother, but her world is upended when her wild sister Cecilia vanishes into the enigmatic cabaret troupe known as the Avalon, leading to a mesmerizing journey through New York's hidden underworld.