Great Reads: Find a book to unwrap under library Christmas tree

For anyone who loves a good book, we bibliophiles usually don’t venture into the unknown when it comes to finding a good read. We rely on family and friends for recommendations. However, a recent trip to the Maricopa Public Library proved that sometimes we just have to take a chance and open ourselves to discovering a new author or genre.

Behind the library’s checkout desk is a small table decorated with a small Christmas tree and the treasures around it are gift-wrapped books. Patrons are encouraged to pick any book, but are not allowed to unwrap it until they leave the library. All that is asked is for the reader is to get through at least three-fourths of the book and fill out the questionnaire inside.

If by chance you’ve read the book you may exchange it for another mystery read.

You have until Dec. 20 to find an amazing new read. In the meantime, you may want to consider any one of the following new books on library shelves.

Flight Behavior is the newest from bestselling-author Barbara Kingsolver and it deals with the controversial issue of climate change. Dellarobia Turnbow is on her way to meet her young lover when she comes to a valley full of trees that resembles a lake of fire. Her discovery unearths a wave of tourists and reporters, and challenges everything she’s believed in.

Jenna Black introduces readers to a new heroine who just happens to discover she’s an immortal huntress in Dark Descendent. This is the first book in a new series featuring Nikki Glass as the huntress.

Actor, politician and body builder Arnold Schwarzenegger tells his story in Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story.

Noam Friedlander’s illustrated biography of Katy Perry tells the story of her rise to fame, and it includes her marriage to British comedian Russell Brand.

Television star Kirstie Alley writes about men in a series of essays on how they have impacted her life in The Art of Men (I Prefer Mine Al Dente). She shares stories of Kelsey Grammar, John Travolta, her father, brother and others in this new tell-all.

Sal Lizard, who has been playing Santa Claus for the last 20 years, he reflects on what he’s learned about Christmas in his book Being Santa Claus: What I Learned About the True Meaning of Christmas.

Reporter Hedrick Smith explores the political and economic decisions of the last 40 years and how they’ve divided our country into two Americas in Who Stole the American Dream.