Get a sneak peek of the exhibit highlighting this year's A Novel Idea selections.
See the literary-inspired quilts that have become a beloved part of the A Novel Idea experience. Join library representatives, quilters, and museum staff for light refreshments and a preview of the Read/Create exhibit.
Read/Create will be on display through June 13. Show your library card for free admission.
2026 A Novel Idea Book Selection:
Supersonic charts the rise of a boomtown city in the American West where ambition outpaces memory. In the present day, PTA president Sami Hasegawa-Stalworth is determined to rename her daughter’s elementary school after her late grandmother—a beloved music teacher and Japanese internment survivor. What begins as a symbolic family gesture spirals into a kaleidoscopic, multi-generational story of struggle—for and against change, and over who gets to define the future.
Through interwoven lives—an opioid-addicted 19th-century conman, a disgraced Navy seaman building a jet that will fly faster than sound, a stay-at-home dad turned weed entrepreneur, and a family haunted by the ghosts of progress—Supersonic reveals how each era tries to remake the same ground beneath its feet. At once intimate and panoramic, the story channels the restless energy that propels the West.
About the Author:
Thomas Kohnstamm was born and raised in Seattle. He still lives in the same house he grew up in—now with his wife and two children. A freelance writer for over twenty years, he’s been a Spanish & Portuguese translator, travel writer, video & animation producer and has covered subjects ranging from rainforest conservation to quantum computing to backcountry skiing. Supersonic is his third book.
About the Book:
Hope in the Valley is a middle-grade novel exploring grief, friendship, family, and growing up in a community facing a housing crisis.
Twelve-year-old Indian-American Pandita Paul doesn't like change. She's not ready to start middle school and leave the comforts of childhood behind. Most of all, Pandita doesn't want to feel like she's leaving her mother, who died a few years ago, behind. After a falling out with her best friend, Pandita is planning to spend most of her summer break reading and writing in her favorite secret space: the abandoned but majestic mansion across the street. But then the unthinkable happens. The town announces that the old home will be bulldozed in favor of new—maybe affordable—housing. With her family on opposing sides of the issue, Pandita must find her voice—and the strength to move on—in order to give her community hope.
About the Author:
Mitali Perkins has written many books for young readers, all of which explore crossing different kinds of borders. Her goal is to make readers laugh or cry, preferably both, as long as their hearts are widening. She lives and writes in the East Bay.
Learn more about A Novel Idea
Learn more about Read/Create
Questions? Contact lizg@deschuteslibrary.org
AGE GROUP: | Adult |
EVENT TYPE: | Adult Program |
