Elizabeth Strout’s first book since Pulitzer Prize-winning 'Olive Kitteridge' tells the story of the lifelong repercussions suffered by three siblings as a result of a freak accident that killed their father when they were children. In a conversation with Elliott Bay Book Co.’s Rick Simonson, Strout discusses the themes of race, immigration, and class that are woven into this new tale of family loss and the destructive power of secrets. -- Using a real-life case in Maine as a model for one of the character’s legal troubles, along with Strout’s own time as both a Maine and New York local and her expertise as a former lawyer, Strout brings deeply human protagonists into the present day and makes their story the crux of 'The Burgess Boys.' -- In addition to 'Olive Kitteredge,' Strout is the author of two previous novels: 'Abide With Me' and 'Amy and Isabelle.'

Kennedy will be joined by students from the Seattle Arts and Lectures’ Writers in the Schools program, Seattle University and Sanislo Elementary, along with Washington State Poet Laureate Kathleen Flenniken, who will recite both poems from the book and their own original work. -- In 'Poems to Learn by Heart,' the companion to 'A Family of Poems,' Kennedy has chosen more than a hundred poems that show how vital and relevant poetry is and can be in the lives of children of all ages. Thoughtful introductions to sections on nature, sports, monsters and fairies, friendship and family reflect Kennedy’s own family’s engagement with and enjoyment of poetry. The new anthology is illustrated with watercolor paintings by award-winning artist Jon J. Muth, who also illustrated 'A Family of Poems.' -- Kennedy is well-known as an author of works on American history, politics and poetry, as well as for continuing the strong Kennedy family tradition of public service. Her bestselling books include 'She Walks in Beauty: A Woman’s Journey Through Poems' and 'A Family of Poems.' She is the 2013 honorary chair of National Library Week, sponsored by the American Library Association.

Looking for a road map to your next career? Join Marci Alboher for a conversation about how to make a living and a difference in the second half of life. Alboher is joined by Paul Shoemaker of Social Ventures Partners Seattle for a conversation that explores the transition involved in an encore career, how much you need to make, the pros and cons of going back to school, when to volunteer or intern, how to network effectively and harness the power of social media, and who is hiring and for what jobs. -- They will also discuss Alboher's 'The Encore Career Handbook: How to Make a Living and a Difference in the Second Half of Life,' a comprehensive, nuts-and-bolts guide filled with inspiring stories and extensive FAQs that addresses how to strike a balance between doing good and doing well in a new career. -- Alboher is a vice president of Encore.org, a nonprofit organization that helps people pursuing encore careers put their passion to work for the greater good. She has authored 'One Person/Multiple Careers,' and created the 'Shifting Careers' column and blog for The New York Times. Her work and commentary have been featured in national media outlets, including USA Today and NBC’s Today show. -- Shoemaker is the Executive Connector and Director of Social Ventures Partners Seattle, which helps individuals realize greater impact with their giving, strengthens nonprofits and enriches Washington’s social sector.

In her first novel in ten years, Jamaica Kincaid reveals a marriage in all its joys and agonies. -- Kincaid offers a meditation on the doomed marriage between Mr. and Mrs. Sweet, a Caribbean-born writer and gardener and a New York City composer who are raising their children in Shirley Jackson's former home in a quaint Vermont town. -- "In this furious, funny, and sorrowful tirade and lament, Kincaid meshes autobiography with archetypes as the unraveling of an unlikely marriage turns into a heightened, hypnotic, and shrewdly complex inquiry into time, alienation, and metamorphosis." - Booklist starred review. -- Kincaid was born in St. John's, Antigua. Her memoirs and autobiographical fiction, including 'The Autobiography of My Mother,' 'My Brother,' and 'Mr. Potter,' bring to life the primal dramas of Kincaid’s West Indian upbringing.

Thrilling Tales Storytime for Grown Ups presents: The Hammer of God, by G.K. Chesterton. -- When an athiest is struck dead outside the village cathedral, who better to solve this perplexing mystery than that unassuming yet most perceptive little cleric, Father Brown.

Poet, painter, teacher and writer Natalie Goldberg presents in book form what she's been teaching for years in small, intensive workshops. -- Sit. Walk. Write. These are the barest bones of Goldberg’s revolutionary writing and life practice. The capstone to 40 years of teaching, 'The True Secret of Writing' covers Goldberg’s own search for truth and clarity. Her students’ breakthroughs and insights give testament to the workings of her unique, tough-love method. Homages to the work of other great teachers and observers of mind, life and love provide further secrets and inspiration for writing. -- Goldberg is the author of 12 books, including her classic, 'Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within' and 'Old Friend from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir.'

In Rebecca Miller's latest novel, an 18th-century Jewish peddler is reincarnated as a fly in present-day Long Island and becomes involved in the lives of two residents. -- Jacob, the peddler; Leslie and Deirdre Senzatimore, an American couple; and Masha, an alluring young ultra-Orthodox Jew who is gravely ill find their fates intertwined and the courses of their lives irrevocably altered. -- "Marvelous, deep, rich, sexy, transgressive, terrifying, tough, and very, very funny -- a great ingathering as multifaceted as a gem, or the eye of a fly!" - Tony Kushner, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of 'Angels in America'. -- "A deeply pleasurable, darkly comic, and original reinterpretation of Jewish history's 'indestructible storyline,' alighting thoughtfully on forces both individual and collective, internal and external, from genocide to assimilation." - Booklist starred review. -- Miller is a writer, filmmaker and actress. Her books include the story collection 'Personal Velocity' and the novel 'The Private Lives of Pippa Lee.' For the film version of 'Personal Velocity,' she won several awards, including the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. She has also written and directed the award-winning films 'Angela' and 'The Ballad of Jack and Rose' and most recently 'The Private Lives of Pippa Lee.'

Sage Singer works in a bakery and is approached one day by a beloved community member, Josef Weber, who asks Sage the impossible: would she be willing to kill him? Josef, who has hid his past as a Nazi SS guard, asks Sage, a young Jewish woman, to hear his story and consider his request. -- Picoult probes ethical and moral questions from different perspectives while telling a compelling story. As Stephen King said, "Picoult writes with unassuming brilliance."

Using her parents' writings, as well as her own memories, Albright presents a moving and thoughtful memoir of her formative years in Czechoslovakia during the tumult of Nazi occupation, World War II, fascism, the onset of the Cold War and her eventual immigration to the United States. -- As she discusses her experience growing up during this period, Albright reflects on the discovery of her family's Jewish heritage many decades after the war, and the choices that her parents and their generation faced as complicated events unfolded on the world stage. -- Madeleine Albright served as America's 64th Secretary of State, the first female to hold the position, from 1997 to 2001. Her books include "Madam Secretary" and "Memo to the President." Albright's career includes positions in the National Security Council, on Capitol Hill and as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

In their young adult biography, Judy Bentley and Lorraine McConaghy tell the true story of a 13-year-old slave who escaped from Washington Territory to freedom in Canada on the West's Underground Railroad. -- When James Tilton came to Washington Territory as surveyor-general in the 1850s, he brought young Charles Mitchell with his household. The story of Charlie's escape in 1860 on a steamer bound for Victoria and the help he received from free blacks reveals how national issues on the eve of the Civil War were also being played out in the West. This biography explores issues of race, slavery, treason and secession in Washington Territory; making it a resource for teachers and a story for readers of all ages. -- Bentley teaches at South Seattle Community College and is the author of “Hiking Washington's History,” along with 14 books for young adults. McConaghy is a public historian at the Museum of History and Industry in Seattle and the author of “Warship Under Sail.”