The World of Tomorrow
by Brendan Mathews (Grad ’05)

This period novel tells of two brothers who, fleeing their past and the IRA, show up on their eldest brother’s doorstep in New York City during the 1939 World’s Fair. The week that follows takes readers on a whirlwind tour of the city in a story of lies, family, love and adventure.

Oscar Wilde: The Unrepentant Years
by Nicholas Frankel (Grad ’94)

Tracing the years after Oscar Wilde’s imprisonment in England for “gross indecency,” Frankel argues that the famed writer was not the “broken, tragic figure” of so many portrayals. Rather, Wilde lived out his exile, primarily in Paris, “with bemusement, irony, and self-conviction,” embracing his homosexual identity while finding his voice as an author once again.

Hoos in the Kitchen: Recipes from the UVA Community
by Melissa Palombi (Staff)

New to UVA and to Charlottesville, Palombi set out to acquaint herself the best way she knew how: through food. That process resulted in this collection of recipes from community members, administrators, student-athletes, faculty and alumni, who share dishes ranging from a family’s beloved pierogies to Bodo’s bread pudding.

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
by Vashti Harrison (Col ’10)

Harrison tells the stories of 40 notable black women from American history in this delightfully illustrated children’s book, which acknowledges the valuable contributions of both widely known women like Harriet Tubman and those who changed history in relative obscurity, such as Charlotte E. Ray, the first African-American woman to graduate from law school.

Bringing Columbia Home: The Untold Story of a Lost Space Shuttle and Her Crew
by Michael D. Leinbach (Arch ’76, Engr ’81) and Jonathan H. Ward

As launch director for the Columbia space shuttle, Leinbach never expected to lead the effort to piece the ship together after it exploded across East Texas upon re-entry. The book tells of that tragedy as well as the hard work and comradery of the 25,000 civilians who assisted in the recovery of debris that was vital to determining the cause of the malfunction.

Moral Combat: How Sex Divided American Christians and Fractured American Politics
by R. Marie Griffith (Col ’89)

Describing sex as “both a source of profound fear and an effective tool for fueling the most basic political clashes and power struggles,” Griffith argues that the American consensus on the subject has been fraying for nearly a century, contributing significantly to the deep societal divides we face today. Addressing topics from birth control to sexual harassment, she explores how this came to be.