The Staff Shelf: Square Books

When we walk into a bookstore, the first place we go is the staff recommendation shelves—it’s how you get a quick sense of the personality of the store. The very best bookstores are merely a reflection of the eclectic, deeply felt opinions of the book-lovers who work there. As part of our Interview with a Bookstore, we asked the staff at Square Books what they recommend.

SLIDESHOW: Square Books Staff Shelf

: TS RECOMMENDS: A powerful story as much about the beautyf of the world as the struggle of existence; it emanates a slow-burn kind of energy. I cannot emphasize enough how essential a read this is.

: CM RECOMMENDS: By the author of the Pulitzer Prize winner ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE, this truly remarkable, beautiful, heart-breaking, yet somehow ultimately uplifting gem of a novel is unforgettable.

: RICHARD (CO-OWNER) RECOMMENDS: Evan S. Connell’s Mrs. Bridge and the companion (husband) novel Mr. Bridge form a modest but quietly profound portraiture of mid 20th century middle America that is likely to resonate in our literary cannon for a good long while.

: KO RECOMMENDS: This is not your mama’s devotional. Instead, it offers a glimpse into the writer’s life at 22, studying at the esteemed Iowa Wiriters’ Workshop. Her struggle to balance literary ambition and a meaningful relationship with Catholicism is as eloquent and engaging as her fiction. A must read for aspiring writers & fans of the southern Gothic.

: DR RECOMMENDS: Arseniev was a Russian explorer and naturalist who led several expeditions to Siberia. This is an account of one expedition guided bynative Dersu Uzala who won the respect and admiration of the team. A great adventure story and the basis for the Kurosawa movie.

: LISA (CO-OWNER) RECOMMENDS: Guernseyman Ebenezer LePage is one of the most wonderful unsung characters in English literature, and this novel about his life is one of the greatest books I have ever read. For real.

: KO RECOMMENDS: Required reading for anyone hoping to gain insight into (or empathy for) the diverse trials of their fellow man. 10 years in the making, Solomon’s findings are engaging and eye-opening–a first rate collection portraying the various tribulations, triumphs, and make-ups of the modern family. P.S. The last 200 pages are notes and bibliography…not as daunting as it looks.

: BH RECOMMENDS: After the Bible, this is the most important book in Western culture. Genius, groundbreaking and ultimately astonishing, Darwin’s observations set the tone for the last 150 years of biology and natural science. Free of jargon, it’s an easy read, little more than a man alone with his thoughts, profound as they may be.