Monthly Staff Picks | March, 2026

March is here! Spring is… thinking about it. And a new batch of Monthly Staff Picks are here at Little Village Toy & Book Shop!

Our Adult selection this month is a real treat for those looking for a Spring-time read, as Chloe Dalton’s acclaimed ‘Raising Hare’ is now in paperback. This nature memoir follows the author as she takes in a newborn hare she finds in the English countryside and is both a heartwarming tale of their relationship and how hares have been viewed across the history of art, literature, and folklore.

The sun shines. The temperature falls. Snowfall is in the forecast once again. And beloved author Kevin Henkes is asking ‘Is It Spring?’; this month’s Picture Book pick, full of colorful illustrations, is perfect for little ones looking to explore the signs as Spring slowly begins to show itself but Winter seems to want to stay.

For Middle Readers, and fans of all ages, our selection is ‘Wings of Fire: A Guide to the Dragon World ’- just in time to prepare for this month’s latest entry. From the world of the bestselling Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland comes this collection that sees the dragons of Pyrrhia and Pantala join forces to tell the histories of their tribes through all-new short stories, letters, songs, recipes and so much more. Featuring full-color maps and new illustrations throughout, this is a delightful expansion of the much loved fantasy series.

There be dragons in store for our YA readers this month, too. ‘A Language of Dragons’ by S.F. Williamson is our YA Pick this March; a thrilling alternate history fantasy set in 1920s London sees one young woman’s efforts to free a dragon ignite a civil war.

Visit us in store this March for 20% off all our Monthly Staff Picks, while supplies last!

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Monthly Staff Pick | February, 2026

February has arrived and with it a new selection of Monthly Staff Picks here at Little Village Toy & Book Shop!

For adults this month, we have ‘Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space’. This riveting history follows decades of spaceflight all leading to a moment-to-moment account of the 1986 tragedy that forever changed America.

‘Learning to Ski with Mr. Magee’ is our Picture Book selection this month and is a seasonal New England favorite. Author and Illustrator Chris Van Dusen’s Mr. Magee returns, with his pet dog Dee in tow, as he heads out to ski and slapstick hi-jinks ensue in this fun read aloud tale for all ages.

Our Young Adult pick this month is ‘Alanna: The First Adventure’, the first book in the Song of the Lioness Quartet, by beloved fantasy author Tamora Pierce. This fantasy adventure classic follows Alanna as she finds a way to switch places with her brother and disguise herself in order to train as a page, all in the hopes of fulfilling her dream and setting her off on the road to knighthood.

And, releasing this Tuesday 2/3, for Middle Readers we have ‘The Lions’ Run’ from the award-winning Sara Pennypacker as our pick this month which is a thrilling historical WWII adventure of animals, friendship, and resistance!

Visit us this February for 20% off all of this month’s selections, while supplies last, and for so much more!

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Monthly Staff Pick | January, 2026

To kick things off this January, our selection for adults is the fan-favorite and addictive ‘Dungeon Crawler Carl’ (now in paperback!); join Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they try to survive an intergalactic game show in this wildly fun adventure full of humor and heart.

For YA readers this month we are featuring ‘My Life with the Walter Boys’. The romance novel from Ali Novak that inspired the hit series, sees teenager Jackie move across the country following a tragic accident to live with the Walters… and their eleven sons and daughter.

We’ve got a Classic retold for Middle & Chapter Book Readers with ‘A Winter’s Tale (Peter Rabbit)’, this retelling of Beatrix Potter’s ‘The Tale of Mr. Tod’ follows beloved characters through the snowy woods in a perfect wintry read for all ages.

And speaking of wintry reads, ‘Frostfire’ is our Picture Book selection this month. This playful adventure from writer and illustrator Elly MacKay follows two fox sisters on a winter walk as they discover the magic in nature after hearing, what could only be, the roar of a snow dragon.

Visit us this January for 20% off all of this month’s selections, while supplies last, and start your year off with a great read!

Monthly Staff Pick | November, 2025

We’ve got a unique selection of Monthly Staff Picks for November that are perfect for those looking for something a little different or make a great gift no matter the season.

Our Adult Monthly Staff Pick is ‘Polostan’ from acclaimed Science Fiction author Neal Stephenson and the opening entry in his Bomb Light series. While bite-sized in comparison with his usual tomes, this historical epic is just as full of big ideas as we follow a young woman, Dawn Rae Bjornberg, born in America and raised in Russia, amid the intrigue and espionage of a world racing towards the Atomic Age.

The classic ‘D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths’ is our selection for Middle Readers. Greek Mythology takes on new life in the words and illustrations of Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire in this timeless take that also makes a great read aloud tale for adventurous younger book lovers.

‘Gilbert the Moose Learns to Ski’ is our Picture Book selection this November. Written by Heidi Shadix-Pieros with photography by Rick Pieros and illustrations by Corbet Curfman, this delightful tale follows the young moose as he takes to the slopes and finds that friends make learning something new much easier.

And, for the Young Adult reader this month we have E. Lockhart’s ‘We Were Liars’. This modern YA classic is a New England set family drama and psychological thriller. Whether you’ve seen the recent television series based on the book or are just looking for a clever read, ‘We Were Liars’ is the first entry in this twist filled series with the latest entry hitting shelves this month!

Visit us in-store for 20% off all four of our selections this November, while supplies last!

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The harmful practice of deceptive marketing in today's online world

Are you a fan of Smiski, Pokemon or Jellycat? If so, you've likely noticed it's getting more difficult to track 'em down. Why is that? There are many factors such as increasing demand, resellers and distributors cracking down and limiting supply to shops not to mention the looming tariffs and how those may or may not affect the market.

As a small biz, we feel you. We're doing what we can to keep these items well stocked and at or below MSRP. We refuse to boost our prices to make a quick buck. Other companies (we won't name names) lure you in with buzzwords and "sales", but are you truly getting a good deal? We'll use Smiski as an example here. MSRP is $11.99. Another retailer has them "on sale" for $15.99 from $17-$20. They were never $20. It's a marketing tactic but really it's just pure deception. We will not raise our prices unless absolutely necessary, which sometimes means we make a little less on the back end but your trust is worth more than $$$.

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#shoplocal #littlevillage #smallbiz #smallbizlife #smallbizchallenges #indiebookshop #indiebookstore #toystore #smiski #smiskis

New Releases | January 21st, 2025

• New Release List (Click to Expand)

  Adult Fiction

  • Nobody's Empire - Murdoch, Stuart (Author)

  • The Band - Ma-Kellams, Christine (Author)

  • A Gorgeous Excitement - Weiner, Cynthia (Author)

  • Family Family - Frankel, Laurie (Author)

  • Let's Call Her Barbie - Rosen, Renée (Author)

  • We Do Not Part - Kang, Han (Author) , Yaewon, E (Translator) , Morris, Paige Aniyah (Translator)

  Arts & Entertainment

  • I Dream of Joni: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell in 53 Snapshots - Alford, Henry (Author)

  Biography

  • Three Wild Dogs (and the Truth): A Memoir - Zusak, Markus (Author)

  • The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky - Shuster, Simon (Author)

  Chapter Books

  • Bulldozer's Big Rescue (Bulldozer and Friends #1) - Broach, Elise (Author) , Murphy, Kelly (Illustrator)

  Graphic Novels

  • Mixed-Up - Garcia, Kami (Author) , Williams, Brittney (Illustrator)

  History

  • The Holocaust: An Unfinished History - Stone, Dan (Author)

  • The World That Wasn't: Henry Wallace and the Fate of the American Century - Steil, Benn (Author)

  Homestead

  • Learn to Timber Frame: Craftsmanship, Simplicity, Timeless Beauty - Beemer, Will (Author) , Sobon, Jack A (Foreword by)

  Horror

  • Thinner - King, Stephen (Author)

  Humor

  • The Modern Bathroom Reader: Fascinating Information for the Perpetually Curious - Wexler, David (Author) , Williams, Emily (Author)

  Manga & Adult Graphic Novels

  • Doctor Doom: Books of Doom - Brubaker, Ed (Author) , Raimondi, Pablo (Illustrator) , Ross, Alex (Not Available)

  Middle Readers

  • Three Tasks for a Dragon - Colfer, Eoin (Author) , Lynch, P J (Illustrator)

  Personal Growth

  • Look Again: The Power of Noticing What Was Always There - Sharot, Tali (Author) , Sunstein, Cass R (Author)

  Romance

  • Onyx Storm (Deluxe Limited Edition) (Empyrean #3) - Yarros, Rebecca (Author)

  • Brewing Up a Bad Boy: A Spicy Small Town Second Chance Romance (Original) (Wicked Sisters #3) - Garbera, Katherine (Author)

  • Give Me Butterflies (Oaks Sisters #1) - Meadows, Jillian (Author)

  Science Fiction & Fantasy

  • The Rainfall Market - Yeong-Gwang, You (Author) , Jung, Slin (Translator)

  Social Sciences

  • Dare I Say It: Everything I Wish I'd Known about Menopause - Watts, Naomi (Author) , Haver, Mary Claire (Foreword by)

  Travel

  • Lonely Planet New England (Travel Guide) (11TH ed.) - St Louis, Regis (Author) , Clark, Gregor (Author) , Gibb, David (Author) , Robinson, Britany (Author) , Vorhees, Mara (Author)

Our Top 5 Picks

• Onyx Storm (Deluxe Limited Edition) (Empyrean #3)

  After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there's no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty.

  Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it's impossible to know who to trust.

  Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves--her dragons, her family, her home, andhim.

  Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything.

  They need an army. They need power. They needmagic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find--the truth.

  But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.

  The Empyrean series is best enjoyed in order.
  Reading Order:
  Book #1 Fourth Wing
  Book #2 Iron Flame
  Book #3 Onyx Storm

• Let's Call Her Barbie

  "A fresh and fun take on Barbie lore...clever and satisfying." - Shelby Van Pelt, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Remarkably Bright Creatures
  

  She was only eleven-and-a-half inches tall, but she would change the world. Barbie is born in this bold new novel by USA Today bestselling author Renée Rosen.

  When Ruth Handler walks into the boardroom of the toy company she co-founded and pitches her idea for a doll unlike any other, she knows what she's setting in motion. It might just take the world a moment to catch up.

  In 1956, the only dolls on the market for little girls let them pretend to be mothers. Ruth's vision for a doll shaped like a grown woman and outfitted in an enviable wardrobe will let them dream they can be anything.

  As Ruth assembles her team of creative rebels--head engineer Jack Ryan who hides his deepest secrets behind his genius and designers Charlotte Johnson and Stevie Klein, whose hopes and dreams rest on the success of Barbie's fashion--she knows they're working against a ticking clock to get this wild idea off the ground.

  In the decades to come--through soaring heights and devastating personal lows, public scandals and private tensions-- each of them will have to decide how tightly to hold on to their creation. Because Barbie has never been just a doll--she's a legacy.

  Includes a Readers Guide and Exclusive Vintage Barbie Photos!
  

• Dare I Say It: Everything I Wish I'd Known about Menopause

  A frank, funny and informative guide to menopause and aging by beloved actress Naomi Watts, one of the leading voices in menopause awareness--with a foreword by Mary Claire Haver, MD, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The New Menopause

  At thirty-six, Naomi Watts had just completed filming King Kong and was trying to start a family when she was told that she was on the brink of menopause. It is estimated that seventy-five million women in the United States are currently dealing with menopause symptoms (dry itchy skin, raging hormones, night sweats), and yet the very word "menopause" continues to be associated with stigma and confusion. With so little information, many women feel unprepared, ashamed, and deeply alone when the time comes.

  This is the book Naomi Watts wishes she had when she first started experiencing symptoms. Like sitting down over coffee and having an intimate chat with your girlfriend, Dare I Say It blends funny and poignant stories from Naomi and her friends with advice from doctors, hormone experts, and nutritionists to take the secrecy and shame out of menopause and aging. Answering questions such as: What's hormone therapy and should I be on it? Will I ever sleep again? Will I get myself back? What happened to my libido? Do I need eighteen serums for my aging skin? Whose body is this anyway? Who am I now? Naomi Watts shares the most up-to-date research on how to manage menopause symptoms and tackle the physical and emotional challenges we encounter as we age.

  Irreverent, bold, and reassuring, Dare I Say It is the companion every woman needs to embrace the best version of herself as she moves into what can be the most powerful and satisfying period of her life.

• The Holocaust: An Unfinished History

  A revelatory new history that reexamines the brutal reality of the Holocaust-and reinterprets the events as a living trauma from which modern society has not yet recovered

  One of the most acclaimed books of the year: "Outstanding" (Times Literary Supplement); "Remarkable" (Guardian); "Important and challenging" (Jewish Chronicle); "Deeply haunting" (Telegraph)

  The Holocaust is much discussed, much memorialized, and much portrayed. But there are major aspects of its history that have been overlooked.

  Spanning the entirety of the Holocaust, this sweeping history deepens our understanding. Dan Stone--Director of the Holocaust Research Institute at Royal Holloway, University of London--reveals how the idea of "industrial murder" is incomplete: many were killed where they lived in the most brutal of ways. He outlines the depth of collaboration across Europe, arguing persuasively that we need to stop thinking of the Holocaust as an exclusively German project. He also considers the nature of trauma the Holocaust engendered, and why Jewish suffering has yet to be fully reckoned with. And he makes clear that the kernel to understanding Nazi thinking and action is genocidal ideology, providing a deep analysis of its origins.

  Drawing on decades of research, The Holocaust: An Unfinished History upends much of what we think we know about the Holocaust. Stone draws on Nazi documents, but also on diaries, post-war testimonies, and even fiction, urging that, in our age of increasing nationalism and xenophobia, it is vital that we understand the true history of the Holocaust.

• Nobody's Empire

  One of the great lyricists of our time, the lead singer and songwriter for the iconic Glasgow-based band Belle and Sebastian, pens a sensitive and intimate account--his debut novel based on his own youthful experiences--of dark days leading to light and a coming of age through music.

  It's the early 1990s in Glasgow, Scotland, and Stephen has emerged from a lengthy hospital stay. Diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, a little-understood disease which has robbed him of any prospects of work, friends, or independent living, he moves slowly toward new goals and meets others like him, including Richard, a friend from school, and Carrie, a young woman bedridden for five years. Feeling isolated and alone, they form their own support group, and try to get by with as little money and pain as possible. Since he's been ill, Stephen never feels warm, inspiring Carrie to affectionately call him "The World's Coldest Boy." As the world seems to care less for them, the trio start to care less about fitting in with the world.

  Stephen soon discovers he has a talent for writing songs. He awakens to the possibility of a spiritual life that transcends the everyday, and feels a calling for a place that might as well be on the other end of the universe let alone the world. Buoyed by tentative hope, he and Richard leave Glasgow in search of a cure in the mythic warmth and sun of California. As they float between hostels, sofas, and park benches, they discover the trip is life-changing in ways neither expected, and Stephen embraces a new-world reinvention that will change his life forever.

  Melodic and captivating, filled with graceful notes, melancholic chords, and witty, thoughtful riffs on life's infinite possibilities and curiosities, Nobody's Empire is a warm and wonderful coming-of-age novel, imbued with Stuart Murdoch's magical lyricism.

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