Christina Tabereaux of The Snail on the Wall, a bookstore in Huntsville, Ala., recommends the novel “I See You’ve Called in Dead” by John Kenney.

The book's dark humor evokes Richard Russo’s “Straight Man” or Fredrik Backman’s “A Man Called Ove,” and Tabereaux says the story, with its well-developed characters, drew her to both laughter and tears.

Bud writes obituaries for a living. With his own life down-in-the-dumps, personally and professionally, he drinks too much one night and writes — and publishes — his own obituary.

It’s a rather dramatic description of his imagined feats, and its publication earns him a suspension from his job.

In that moment, Tabereaux says, Bud faces the ultimate question:

“He has to decide, is he going to continue numbly walking through life, or is he going to truly embrace and live life?

“Bud's friend Tim, who is just a wonderful, wonderful character, starts taking Bud to wakes and funerals of complete strangers. And so, he starts evaluating: what's the legacy these people have left? Bud really starts thinking about what his own legacy is going to be.

“It's my favorite kind of book, because it includes just fantastically developed characters who are facing the obstacles of life but doing so in a way that is realistic.

“It's not tied up super neatly in a bow. There's still grief, and there's still loss, and there's heartache; but Bud ultimately realizes that life is better because he embraces the community of people around him."

Listen to Kenney’s interview with NPR’s Scott Simon here: John Kenney on his new novel, 'I See You've Called In Dead' : NPR

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

Sarah Gregg of Lemuria Book Store in Jackson, Miss., recommends a novel that delves deep into a family drama in a small Mississippi Delta town.

The debut novel “Dominion” by Addie E. Citchens takes on themes of power, patriarchy and sexual repression.

Gregg calls it a character-driven novel, and it was the connection between the two main female characters — including what they don’t manage to say — that kept her reading.

We focus on the family Sabre Winfrey, Jr. As a pastor of a large Black Baptist church and owner of several other companies, he wields tremendous power and respect in the town.

His son Manny, nicknamed Wonderboy, is equally beloved, until he’s caught in an act of violence he can’t hide. The story centers on two women who love them: Winfrey’s wife, Pricilla, and Manny’s girlfriend, Diamond.

Gregg says that the inciting act forces the two women to talk with each other about “how they can protect themselves, protect Manny's reputation, and protect other people in the town.

"It's a fantastic read. I think some reviewers might want it to be a little longer or have a little more discussion between the characters, but I think it's such a perfect capsule of real life that you don't have the conversations that you need to be having.”

Trigger warning: This novel involves sexual assault.

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

Liz Bernoskie of Poor Richard’s Books in Frankfort, Ky., recommends a fantasy novella set in an animal world whose actions offer hope for its human readers.

“Auditions for the Fox” is the debut novella from sci-fi/fantasy short story writer Martin Cahill. The tale appealed to Bernoskie because of its focus on the power of individual acts of kindness.

Here’s the scenario: Nesi, a little girl with godly blood, has chosen to audition for the Fox of Tricks. He wasn’t her first choice as divine patron, but she’s running out of options.

While she expected to be challenged to clever games and perhaps a staring contest, Nesi lands an audition that feels very high-stakes indeed. She finds herself sent back in time 300 years into a land occupied by a cruel ruling set of wolves. Impressing the Fox will mean leading a revolution.

Bernoskie says the writing in this book is “delightful,” with interesting characters.

“The wolves are mean and cruel. The fox is exceedingly clever. And Nesi fights a revolution not with violence, but with kindness. And this just appealed to me so much, [the idea] that things can change by one person being kind to another person.”

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

Daniel Wells of Gramercy Books in Bexley, Ohio, recommends the memoir “Coming Up Short” by Robert B. Reich.

Wells called it “a beautiful contextualization of the last 70 or so years in American history.”

An economist and educator, Reich served as Labor Secretary under President Bill Clinton and economic advisor to President Barack Obama. Reich intersperses the narrative of his life with statistics and facts that ground the story in its political era.

Wells, age 25, said he was reminded of being in his high school government class — which he found positive.

He was particularly struck by the generational focus of the memoir.

Reich was born in 1946, the same year as Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and George W Bush. The memoir explores what his generation inherited following World War II: Where they gained ground, and, as the title suggests, where they came up short.

Wells found his conclusion hopeful.

He appreciated the sentiments that “we can do this. It's not impossible. It's all about coming together as a community and understanding that there is no ‘us’ versus ‘them.’ We are all together trying to work towards a better society, and the only way we will squander that is if we buy into the idea that we are different somehow.”

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

Are you a letter writer? Are you looking for a book about second chances that feels life-affirming? Cathy Fiebach of Main Point Books in Wayne, Pa., suggests you read the novel “The Correspondent” by Virginia Evans.

Our protagonist, Sybil Van Antwerp, is a letter writer. She emails when necessary, but mostly she puts pen to paper to connect with family and strangers alike.

She lets famous writers know what she thinks about their books, and she lets the local public utilities know when they could be doing better. In this epistolary novel, the world unfolds both through Sybil’s writing and through the responses she receives.

As with life, sometimes these notes lead in surprising directions. For example, Fiebach says, Sybil’s notes of complaint to a customer service person turn into friendship and a chance for Sybil to be of help.

Fiebach says, "It's a story of loss and love and friendship, second chances. It's about an older woman, and her life sort of opening up instead of closing down.

“So as she's writing her letters, she's discovering things about herself, and she's sort of discovering more possibilities and more people. [She’s discovering] some of the things that she could do differently, she's apologizing to people, and they're welcoming her back into their lives. I just found it a very warm and life-affirming book.”

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

Calvin isn’t the only six-year-old comic strip character with deep thoughts about how the world should work. Meet Mafalda, star of the classic comic strip created by Argentine artist Quino.

Timothy Otte of Wild Rumpus Books in Minneapolis says the first book of collected Mafalda comics is now available in English, as translated by Frank Wynne.

Here’s how Otte introduces Mafalda:

“Mafalda is a six-year-old genius. Imagine Lucy from the Peanuts gang if she were written by a Latin American Bill Waterson. Mafalda is smart and obsessed with democracy. She hates soup, and she and her friends discuss politics day in and day out. She's wonderful. I think she's so funny.”

The comic strip, written in Spanish, ran from 1964 to 1973 and was distributed around the world. Its illustration style is similar to Charles Schulz’s “Peanuts.”

Otte says its comments and humor still feel relevant today.

“It's such an open-hearted kind of politics. It has the kind of humor that is very much geared toward young readers, but that adults will also find a lot of really unique and wonderful jokes in as well."

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

All this month, Ask a Bookseller is featuring books for kids and teens as we mark the start of school.

This week’s recommendation comes from Bunnie Hilliard, owner of Brave + Kind Bookshop, a children’s bookstore in Decatur, Georgia.

She’s been enjoying “Why On Earth: An Alien Invasion Anthology,” edited by Rosiee Thor and Vania Stoyanova. It’s a collection of YA short stories centered on a teen alien rescue mission-gone wrong.

Hilliard calls the stories “surprising and diverse” and recommends them for anyone looking for a break from reality.

Captain Iona leads our alien crew as they attempt to recuse her brother, who is under cover in California as a human celebrity. From that accidental invasion beginning, the stories vary widely from sci-fi to romcom to adventure, written by both best-selling authors and new voices.

“Some of the overarching themes are belonging, found family, empathy, and the idea of ‘other’ — both people who are aliens who feel different from humans and people who are humans who feel alienated and different from their peers,” Hilliard said.

Correction (Sept. 20, 2025): An earlier version of this story misspelled the author’s name. The story has been updated.

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.

All September, Ask a Bookseller is marking the start of school by focusing on books for kids.

This week’s recommendation comes from Ashley Robin Franklin of First Light Books in Austin, Texas.

Ashley adores the picture book/early reader title “Little Shrew” by Akiko Miyakoshi. It's a quiet collection of three stories about Little Shrew’s daily life, secret joys and friends — perfect for thoughtful kids and bedtime reading.

“The pictures are honestly incredible. When this book first came in, I think I gasped when I took it out of the box. Akiko Miyakoshi is just an incredible illustrator. It is, I think, all graphite and watercolor, and so it has this very gentle quality to it that I love.

“I think that's just really sweet and really special. It’s a great starting point for questions about other people's lives and also for conversations about the quiet beauty of everyday life. It's not something you see in a kid's book that often.”

Correction (Sept. 19, 2025): A previous version of this story misspelled the author’s name in a reference. The above story has been updated.