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The Gift of a Good Book

WYPR - 88.1 FM Baltimore | By Sheilah Kast,
Maureen Harvie, Andrea Appleton
Published November 23, 2016 at 10:38 AM EST

The story of comedian Trevor Noah’s illegal birth, the haunted life of horror writer Shirley Jackson, a graphic novel with a deaf heroine. We’ve got books suitable for both the insatiable bibliophile and the reluctant reader in your life, perfect to read over the holidays, to give as gifts, or to share among friends. First up, Deborah Taylor of the Enoch Pratt Free Library and her view of the best books of 2016 for adults. Then Miriam DesHarnais, a research and instruction librarian at Towson University, with picks for young people. 

Deborah Taylor's Book Recommendations for Adults:

Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World by Steven Johnson

Swing Time by Zadie Smith

Last Girl Before the Freeway: The Life, Loves, Losses and Liberation of Joan Rivers by Leslie Bennetts

Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life by Ruth Franklin

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah

Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

March 3 by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Miriam DesHarnais' Book Recommendations for Kids and Teens

They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel

My People by Langston Hughes

Thunder Boy, Jr. by Sherman Alexie

King Baby by Kate Beaton

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

The Last 5th Grade of Emerson Elementary by Laura Shovan

El Deafo by Cece Bell

I Yam a Donkey by Cece Bell

Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson

The Rose and The Dagger by Renee Ahdieh

Adnan's Story: The Search for Truth and Justice After Serial by Rabia Chaudry

All-American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

Ghost by Jason Reynolds 

The Fire This Time edited by Jesmyn Ward

Copyright 2016 WYPR - 88.1 FM
Sheilah Kast
Sheilah Kast is the host of On The Record, Monday-Friday, 9:30-10:00 am. Originally, she hostedWYPR's Dupont-Columbia University award-winning Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast from 2006 - October2015. She began her career at The Washington Star, where she covered the Maryland and Virginia legislatures, utilities, energy and taxes, as well as financial and banking regulation. She learned the craft of broadcasting at ABC News; as a Washington correspondent for fifteen years, she covered the White House, Congress, and the 1991 Moscow coup that signaled the end of the Soviet empire. Sheilahhas been a substitute host on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday and The DianeRehmShow. She has launched and hosted two weekly interview shows on public TV, one about business and one about challenges facing older people.
See stories by Sheilah Kast
Maureen Harvie
Maureen Harvie is a producer for Midday with Dan Rodricks. She began her career at WYPR as an intern for the newsroom, where she covered issues ranging from medical marijuana to off-shore wind energy.
See stories by Maureen Harvie
Andrea Appleton
Andrea Appleton is a producer for Midday. She comes to WYPR with years of experience as a freelance journalist filing stories for newspapers, magazines, and public radio. She has reported on topics ranging from bull riding to bionic fish, with an emphasis on science. She is also former senior editor of the Baltimore City Paper, and a graduate of the Columbia University School of Journalism.
See stories by Andrea Appleton
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