In The Girl From Oto, a young American scholar navigates a foreign world, tasting friendship, betrayal and love as she chases the ghost of a Renaissance-era artist through Europe.American art historian Zari Durrell scores a coveted post-doctorate position in Scotland, studying artist Cornelia van der Zee. As Zari decodes clues hidden in two sixteenth-century portraits attributed to Van der Zee, she unearths the traces of a mysterious artist named Mira. Risking her professional reputation and her own safety, Zari follows Mira into the heart of a mountain wilderness.Woven throughout Zari's quest is the swashbuckling story of Mira herself. Born in the Pyrenees mountains during a time wracked by war, plague, and shifting political boundaries, Mira grows up in a convent believing she is an orphan. A friendship blooms between Mira and Arnaud, a boy whose family helps the convent exploit a lucrative trade in merino wool. But when her peaceful existence is shattered, Mira must plunge into the world beyond the convent's gates to confront the harsh truth about her identity and her uncertain future.

An extraordinary literary debut about a Nigerian boy's secret intersex identity and his desire to live as a girl. Oto leaves for boarding school with one plan: excel and escape his cruel home. Falling in love with his roommate was certainly not on the agenda, but fear and shame force him to hide his love and true self. Back home, weighed down by the expectations of their wealthy and powerful family, the love of Oto's twin sister wavers and, as their world begins to crumble around them, Oto must make drastic choices that will alter the family's lives for ever. Richly imagined with art, proverbs and folk tales, this moving and modern novel follows Oto through life at home and at boarding school in Nigeria, through the heartbreak of living as a boy despite their profound belief they are a girl, and through a hunger for freedom that only a new life in the United States can offer. An Ordinary Wonder is a powerful coming-of-age story that explores complex desires as well as challenges of family, identity, gender, and culture, and what it means to feel whole.

A Japanese boy born without arms or legs tells his own astonishingly upbeat story. Reading about how determined he was to join in everything may change your own life in more ways than one. Book jacket.

Chiaki Ogawa has never doubted who he is, although the rest of the world hasn’t been as kind. Bound by his mother’s dying wish, Chiaki tries to be a good daughter to his ailing father. But when the burden becomes too great, Chiaki sets out to remake himself in his own image and discovers more than just personal freedom in his transition—he finds understanding from the people who matter most. -- VIZ Media

1454. A noble French falconer. A spirited merchant's daughter. And a fateful decision that changes their destiny forever. When Cédric is recruited by the Knights Hospitaller to the Greek island of Rhodes, his wife Sophie jumps at the chance to improve their fortunes. After a harrowing journey to Rhodes, Cédric plunges into the world of the knights-while Sophie is tempted by the endless riches that flow into the bustling harbor. But their dazzling new home has a dark side. Slaves toil endlessly to fortify the city walls, and rumors of a coming attack by the Ottoman Turks swirl in the streets. Desperate to gain favor with the knights and secure his position, Cédric navigates a treacherous world of shadowy alliances. Meanwhile, Sophie secretly engineers a bold plan to keep their children safe. As the trust between them frays, enemies close in-and when disaster strikes the island, the dangers of their new world become terrifyingly real. With this richly-told story of adventure, treachery, and the redeeming power of love, Amy Maroney brings a mesmerizing and forgotten world to vivid life. Amy Maroney is the author of the award-winning Miramonde Series, the story of a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern day scholar on her trail.

The Book of Lies was written by English occultist and teacher Aleister Crowley under the pen name of Frater Perdurabo. As Crowley describes it: "This book deals with many matters on all planes of the very highest importance. It is an official publication for Babes of the Abyss, but is recommended even to beginners as highly suggestive." The book consists of 91 chapters, each of which consists of one page of text. The chapters include a question mark, poems, rituals, instructions, and obscure allusions and cryptograms. The subject of each chapter is generally determined by its number and its corresponding Qabalistic meaning.

An unforgettable story of an extraordinary love and a town's prejudice during World War II. Sophie and the Rising Sun "suggests the small but heartwarming triumphs made possible by human dignity and courage." -Publisher's Weekly. In sleepy Salty Creek, Georgia, strangers are rare. When a quiet, unassuming stranger arrives--a Japanese man with a secret history of his own--he becomes the talk of the town and a new beginning for lonely Sophie, who lost her first love during World War I. Middle-aged Sophie had resigned herself to a passionless existence. That all begins to change as she finds herself drawn to the mysterious Mr. Oto. When the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Mr. Oto's newfound life comes under siege; his safety, even in Salty Creek, is no longer certain. Sophie must decide how much she is willing to risk for a future with the man who has brought such joy into her life. Visit the author at: www.AugustaTrobaugh.com