On the shelves - March 21

The books listed below are now available for checkout at the Clovis-Carver Public Library. The library is open to the public, but patrons can still visit the online catalog at clovis.polarislibrary.com or call 575-769-7840 to request a specific item for curbside pickup.

“The Black Church: This is Our Story, This is Our Song” by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. brilliantly shows the Black church has never been only one thing. Its story lies at the heart of the Black political struggle, and it has produced many of the Black community's most notable leaders. At the same time, some churches and denominations have eschewed political engagement and exemplified practices of exclusion and intolerance that have caused polarization and pain. Those tensions remain today, with demands for freedom and dignity for all within and beyond their communities, regardless of race, sex, or gender. Still, as a source of faith and refuge, spiritual sustenance and struggle against society's darkest forces, the Black Church has been central, as this enthralling history makes vividly clear.

“Yang Sheng: The Art of Chinese Self-Healing” by Katie Brindle uncovers a concept of self-care that is in fact, thousands of years old. 'Yang sheng,' a buzzword rooted in a 2,500-year old Chinese philosophy, means to nourish life - fostering your own health and wellbeing by nurturing body, mind and spirit. Brindle skillfully teaches how to harness this powerful natural healing system to improve every aspect of their life.

“Space 2069” by David Whitehouse looks at the promises and the pitfalls of man's planned future in space over the next 50 years. NASA's Artemis program expects to see mankind return to the moon later this decade. The first crewed mission to Mars will briefly orbit the red planet in 2039, preparing the way for a future landing mission. And in the 2050's, a lander will descend to Jupiter's moon Europa to drill into its subsurface ocean in search of life. Whitehouse employs up-to-date scientific findings and a healthy dose of realism in this mind-expanding tour of the past and future of human space exploration.

“Paris is Always a Good Idea” by Jenn McKinlay presents the hilarious and heartfelt tale of Chelsea Martin. It's been seven years since she embarked on her yearlong post-college European adventure. Since then, she's lost her mother to cancer and watched her sister marry twice, while throwing herself into work as a talented fundraiser. When her father announces he's getting remarried, Chelsea acknowledges the last time she can remember being happy, in love, or enjoying her life was during her year abroad. Inspired to retrace her steps in Europe, Chelsea finds nothing goes as planned, but as she reconnects with her old self, she also finds love in the very last place she expected.

“The Bitter and Sweet of Cherry Season” by Molly Fader crafts a sweet story about overcoming the bitterness of the past. When Hope arrives at her aunt's house late in the night, sporting a black eye and with her young daughter in tow, she's not sure if she'll be welcomed or turned away with a shotgun by the aunt she has never met. Yet Hope is allowed to stay if she will help with the cherry harvest. Over time, the three generations of women come together, grow together, and uncover past secrets as they work their way towards forging a better future for all of them.

“Dear Edward” by Ann Napolitano opens with twelve-year-old Edward Adler, his beloved older brother, his parents, and 183 other passengers boarding a flight from Newark to Los Angeles. Halfway across the country, the plane crashes, leaving Edward the sole survivor. As his story captures the attention of the nation, he struggles to find a place in a world without his family. Edward then makes an unexpected discovery-one that will lead him to the answers of some of life's most profound questions: When you've lost everything, how do you find the strength to put one foot in front of the other? How do you learn to feel safe again? How do you find meaning in your life?

— Summaries provided by library staff