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Should Have Told You Sooner: A Novel Book Cover
10 copies
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When Noel Enfield is offered a secondment at a museum in London, it’s a chance for her career aspirations to finally come to fruition—but also leads to the opening of some old wounds—in this story of art, love lost, and second chances, perfect for fans of David Nicholls and Claire Lombardo.

While studying art history at a London university, Noel Enfield falls passionately in love with aspiring artist and art school student Bryn Jones. Shortly after Bryn leaves for a five-month painting trip through Italy, Noel discovers she is pregnant. She is ecstatic and believes Bryn will be too—they have plans to marry, after all. But mishaps part the two lovers, and a desperate Noel makes a split-second choice to move forward in a way that will change not only her life but also the lives of everyone she loves. 

Three decades later, when she is offered a six-month secondment to a London museum, Noel decides it’s time to prove she really has moved on from that difficult period by returning to the city where she met and lost Bryn. But rather than proving she has persevered, the move lands Noel in the thick of London’s insular art world, with only one or two degrees of separation from her past and the people she once loved. After she reconnects with an old, dear friend and learns finally what kept Bryn from returning to her all those years ago, the very underpinnings of her life are rocked to their core. Some decisions made in the past can never be put behind her, she realizes, and armed with this new understanding, she sets out on a journey to reclaim what—and who—she left behind.
  • Literary fiction
  • Art
Making Art and Making a Living: Adventures in Funding a Creative Life Book Cover
10 copies
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Daily Rituals author Mason Currey weaves together delightful, illuminating stories and reflections about how famous artists, writers, musicians, and filmmakers throughout history have managed to successfully (or not) support a creative life.

Many of us are drawn to a life in the arts but daunted by how to balance that ambition with the very real need to pay rent and put food on the table. It is impossible to become an accomplished painter, composer, or novelist without spending time experimenting, making false starts, absorbing criticism, reading, talking, and moping about the house. All this time must be purchased, one way or another. Is the history of art and ideas just a history of rich kids?

The answer, of course, is no. William Carlos Williams was a family doctor. Franz Kafka was an insurance man, as were Charles Ives and Wallace Stevens. Grace Hartigan temped. James Joyce mooched off his brother; Christopher Isherwood ingratiated himself with a wealthy uncle. Virginia Woolf and Louisa May Alcott were determined to make their writing pay no matter what. And their material circumstances had an impact on all of their creative outputs.

From family money to jobs to colorful schemes, Mason Currey, author of the acclaimed Daily Rituals, explores both the well-worn and unlikely paths forward for the up-and-coming artist. Making Art and Making a Living is an entertaining and thought-provoking examination of the collision of creative ambitions with real-world necessities and of the messy, glorious, torturous compromises that gifted individuals have patched together when facing the eternal dilemma of an artistic life.
  • Non-fiction
  • Art
A Star Is Reborn: The Most Filmed Hollywood Story of Love Found and Lost Book Cover
100 copies
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Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the 1976 classic film version starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, a riveting, juicy exploration of the history and popularity of Hollywood’s favorite story about itself, from its 1937 technicolor drama starring Janet Gaynor and the 1954 version with Judy Garland, through 2018’s blockbuster Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper remake.

A Star is Born is one of the most popular entertainment legends of all time—the story of a fading male star who falls in love with an ingénue whose fame quickly eclipses his own. It’s been a showcase for some of the most talented female artists of their time—Barbra Streisand, Judy Garland, Lady Gaga—yet it is also a fascinating rumination on the nature of fame and the fragility of the male ego.

Now, Robert Hofler offers a riveting behind-the-scenes journey through the movie’s history, starting with 1932’s What Price Hollywood?, based on the rocky real-life Hollywood marriage of silent movie star Colleen Moore and producer John McCormick. That storyline was reworked by producer David O. Selznick into 1937’s A Star is Born, starring Janet Gaynor and Fredric March in the first of four versions.

From Cary Grant’s refusal to star opposite Judy Garland due to her substance abuse (a problem that would cause the 1954 musical to go wildly over-schedule) to attempts to woo Elvis Presley to star in the 1976 blockbuster that eventually paired Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, How a Star is Reborn delves into the juicy tales behind the scenes. Hofler also traces the evolution of the story itself, as successive versions pivoted away from Hollywood and towards the world of rock music, culminating in 2018’s wildly successful Bradley Cooper/Lady Gaga remake.

Captivating and superbly researched, How a Star is Reborn combines shrewd insights, little-known details, and Hofler’s storytelling flair in this must-read for every fan of modern cinema.
  • History
  • Art
Take It from Me: An Agent's Guide to Building a Nonfiction Writing Career from Scratch Book Cover
50 copies
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From the literary agent behind some of today’s most successful authors comes a narrative guide geared specifically to the needs of aspiring and working nonfiction writers, demystifying the world of publishing and offering a practical roadmap to getting your book published

Alia Hanna Habib remembers what it was like to be on the outside of the publishing world, looking in. Arriving in New York, a first-generation college student with a love of reading and loads of ambition, she hadn’t any idea how to break into the business of books. Now, years later, in her career as an agent, she hears from prospective clients who, whether they’re experts at the top of their fields or wholly new to the writing game, consider finding success in publishing to be a mysterious and daunting endeavor. Ever determined to flout the stereotype of agent as gatekeeper, however, Habib is prepared to hand emerging writers the key.

Drawing on wisdom from her star-studded list of clients, including Hanif Abdurraqib, Merve Emre, Nikole Hannah-Jones, and Judy Batalion, in Take It from Me Habib provides context and clarity to each step of the publishing process, from the germination of a book idea to finding an agent to represent it, from crafting an engaging proposal to navigating the perils of publicity. Readers will find real-life samples of her authors' pitch letters and book proposals, as well as templates writers can use when querying agents or promoting their work on social media. She also incorporates the advice of trusted industry colleagues—attorneys, accountants, editors, publishers, publicists, and more—gifting readers with a full team of experts to answer all the questions they’ve had about the publishing world, but were too afraid, or didn’t know, to ask.

Essential for both the aspiring novice and the seasoned professional, Take It from Me is a guidebook writers will return to again and again. At times laugh-out-loud funny, at others brutally honest about her own experiences in publishing, and in life, Habib offers a clear-eyed look at the challenges facing today’s aspiring nonfiction writers and then gives them the comprehensive, expert guidance they need to put those roadblocks in the rearview mirror.
  • Non-fiction
  • Art
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