Welcome to Book Express

Come in and browse a while. See what your favourite authors have just released, or discover a new author. We are located across from the Food Court in the Cambridge Centre.

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Autographing

Meet Author Suzanne Craig-Whytock

Saturday, May 12th at 1:00 p.m.

Smile by Suzanne Craig-Whytock

Cassandra Wilson’s life isn’t easy. She’s spent most of her teenage years taking care of her much younger brother, working to support her widowed mother, coping with high school and its pressures, and still grieving over the death of her beloved father. The smile on her face has become an easy way of disguising her true feelings and the fact that she really isn’t sure who she is anymore. Her life suddenly begins to change when she learns that her mother has been secretly dating a co-worker for months and plans to introduce him to the family. Feeling betrayed, and fearing that her mother’s new boyfriend will try to take the place of her father, Cassandra decides it’s time to start living a little herself. That impulsive decision marks the beginning of a series of suspenseful twists, turns, and revelations involving a strange cast of characters who may just help her find what she’s looking for—a real reason to smile.

$19.95 Trade paper

If you are unable to attend, call Book Express in the Cambridge Centre, 519-621-9500, to reserve your autographed copy.

Recent Releases

12 Rules For Life: An Antidote to Chaos

by Jordan B. Peterson

What does everyone in the modern world need to know? Renowned psychologist Jordan B. Peterson's answer to this most difficult of questions uniquely combines the hard-won truths of ancient tradition with the stunning revelations of cutting-edge scientific research. Humorous, surprising and informative, Dr. Peterson tells us why skateboarding boys and girls must be left alone, what terrible fate awaits those who criticize too easily, and why you should always pet a cat when you meet one on the street? What does the nervous system of the lowly lobster have to tell us about standing up straight (with our shoulders back) and about success in life? Why did ancient Egyptians worship the capacity to pay careful attention as the highest of gods? What dreadful paths do people tread when they become resentful, arrogant and vengeful?

Dr. Peterson journeys broadly, discussing discipline, freedom, adventure and responsibility, distilling the world's wisdom into 12 practical and profound rules for life. 12 Rules for Life shatters the modern commonplaces of science, faith and human nature, while transforming and ennobling the mind and spirit of its readers.

$34.95 Hardcover

High Voltage

by Karen Marie Moning

Immortal Faerie and ancient feuds, secrets and sacrifices—a thrilling new chapter in the bestselling Fever series begins, featuring Dani, Ryodan, and other beloved characters, as they battle to save Dublin from the rising of a terrifying evil determined to enslave the human race.

There is no action without consequence.

Dani O’Malley was nine years old when the delusional, sadistic Rowena transformed her into a ruthless killer. Years later, Dani is tough and hardened, yet achingly vulnerable and fiercely compassionate, living alone by her own exacting code. Despite the scars on her body, and driven by deeper ones carved into her soul, no one is more committed to protecting Dublin. By day she ensures the safety of those she rescues, by night she hunts evil, dispensing justice swiftly and without mercy, determined to give to those she cares for the peace she has never known.

There is no power without price.

When the Faerie Queen used the dangerously powerful Song of Making to heal the world from the damage done by the Hoar Frost King, catastrophic magic seeped deep into the earth, giving rise to horrifying, unforeseen consequences—and now deadly enemies plot in the darkness, preparing to enslave the human race and unleash an ancient reign of Hell on Earth.

There is no future without sacrifice.

With the lethal, immortal Ryodan at her side, armed with the epic Sword of Light, Dani once again battles to save the world, but her past comes back to haunt her with a vengeance, demanding an unspeakable price for the power she needs to save the human race. And no one—not even Ryodan, who would move the very stars for her—can save her this time.

$29.99 Hardcover

The Never-Ending Present

The Story of Gord Downie and The Tragically Hip

by Michael Barclay

In the summer of 2016, more than a third of Canadians tuned in to watch what was likely the Tragically Hip’s final performance, broadcast from their hometown of Kingston, Ontario. Why? Because these five men were always more than just a band. They sold millions of records and defined a generation of Canadian rock music. But they were also a tabula rasa onto which fans could project their own ideas: of performance, of poetry, of history, of Canada itself.

In the first print biography of the Tragically Hip, Michael Barclay talks to dozens of the band’s peers and friends about not just the Hip’s music but about the opening bands, the American albatross, the band’s role in Canadian culture, and Gord Downie’s role in reconciliation with Indigenous people. When Downie announced he had terminal cancer and decided to take the Hip on the road one more time, the tour became another Terry Fox moment; this time, Canadians got to witness an embattled hero reach the finish line.

This is a book not just for fans of the band: it’s for anyone interested in how culture can spark national conversations.

$34.95 Hardcover

The Punishment She Deserves: A Lynley Novel

by Elizabeth George

Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers and Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley are forced to confront the past as they try to solve a crime that threatens to tear apart the very fabric of a quiet, historic medieval town in England.

The cozy, bucolic town of Ludlow is stunned when one of its most revered and respected citizens--Ian Druitt, the local deacon--is accused of a serious crime. Then, while in police custody, Ian is found dead. Did he kill himself? Or was he murdered?

When Barbara Havers is sent to Ludlow to investigate the chain of events that led to Ian's death, all the evidence points to suicide. But Barbara can't shake the feeling that she's missing something. She decides to take a closer look at the seemingly ordinary inhabitants of Ludlow--mainly elderly retirees and college students--and discovers that almost everyone in town has something to hide.

A masterful work of suspense, The Punishment She Deserves sets Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers and Inspector Thomas Lynley against one of their most intricate cases. Fans of the longtime series will love the many characters from Elizabeth George's previous novels who join Lynley and Havers, and readers new to the series will quickly see why she is one of the most popular and critically acclaimed writers of our time. Both a page-turner and a deeply complex story about the lies we tell, the lies we believe, and the redemption we need, this novel will be remembered as one of George's best.

$29.99 Hardcover

Red Alert: An NYPD Red Mystery

by James Patterson & Marshall Karp

The richest of New York's rich gather at The Pierre's Cotillion Room to raise money for those less fortunate. A fatal blast rocks the room, stirring up horrifying memories of 9/11. Is the explosion an act or terrorism--or a homicide?

A big-name female filmmaker is the next to die, in a desolate corner of New York City. Detectives Zach Jordan and Kylie MacDonald of the elite NYPD task force investigate, and the intimate details of the director's life remind them of their own impossible situation--their personal relationship seems as unsolvable as the murders.

The crimes keep escalating as a shadowy killer masterfully plays out his vendetta--and threatens to take down NYPD Red in the bargain.

$29.99 Hardcover

The Wife Between Us

By Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
You will assume you are reading about a jealous ex-wife.
You will assume she is obsessed with her replacement – a beautiful, younger woman who is about to marry the man they both love.
You will assume you know the anatomy of this tangled love triangle.
Assume nothing.

Twisted and deliciously chilling, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen's The Wife Between Us exposes the secret complexities of an enviable marriage - and the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.

Read between the lies.

$24.99 Trade paper

The Woman Left Behind

by Linda Howard

Jina Modell works in Communications for a paramilitary organization, and she really likes it. She likes the money, she likes the coolness factor—and it was very cool, even for Washington, DC. She liked being able to kick terrorist butts without ever leaving the climate-controlled comfort of the control room.

But when Jina displays a really high aptitude for spatial awareness and action, she’s reassigned to work as an on-site drone operator in the field with one of the GO-teams, an elite paramilitary unit. The only problem is she isn’t particularly athletic, to put it mildly, and in order to be fit for the field, she has to learn how to run and swim for miles, jump out of a plane, shoot a gun...or else be out of a job.

Team leader Levi, call sign Ace, doesn’t have much confidence in Jina--who he dubbed Babe as soon as he heard her raspy, sexy voice--making it through the rigors of training. The last thing he needs is some tech geek holding them back from completing a dangerous, covert operation. In the following months, however, no one is more surprised than he when Babe, who hates to sweat, begins to thrive in her new environment, displaying a grit and courage that wins her the admiration of her hardened, battle-worn teammates. What’s even more surprising is that the usually very disciplined GO-team leader can’t stop thinking about kissing her smart, stubborn mouth…or the building chemistry and tension between them.

Meanwhile, a powerful Congresswoman is working behind the scenes to destroy the GO-teams, and a trap is set to ambush Levi’s squad in Syria. While the rest of the operatives set off on their mission, Jina remains at the base to control the surveillance drone, when the base is suddenly attacked with explosives. Thought dead by her comrades, Jina escapes to the desert where, brutally tested beyond measure, she has to figure out how to stay undetected by the enemy and make it to her crew in time before they’re exfiltrated out of the country.

But Levi never leaves a soldier behind, especially the brave woman he’s fallen for. He’s bringing back the woman they left behind, dead or alive.

$21.99 Trade paper

Local Books and Authors

Dreams Unleashed

by Claudette Snow

Dreams Unleashed is a compilation of real-life inspirational stories written by those who have focused on expanding their minds and transforming their lives. Their experiences are a result of working in harmony with the laws of the universe. There are tales of motivation, inspiration, limiting beliefs, self-discovery, and realizations. These pages hold proof that time spent studying yourself, accompanied with proper use of your mental faculties, can dramatically impact your life in a positive manner. It explains the value of having a trained mentor and the benefits of surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals. There are programs, people, and companies that specialize in guiding you through the goal-achieving process, enabling you to build the life you’ve always wanted. Most of the population isn’t aware that they already hold the key to unlocking their own future. Whether it be health, wealth, relationships, corporate, or individual, you can truly have anything you desire.

$20.00 Trade paper

Walking Home

by Lynda L. Wilson

Walking Home is an intimate ramble through the lush Ontario countryside as Lynda and husband Doug set out to become the first to walk the 127-km Guelph to Goderich Rail Trail. Laugh-out-loud funny and poignant in turn, Walking Home is a love story amidst deer flies, detours and the sweltering heat of an Ontario summer. Untangling the rich history of the trail and towns along the way, the two aging hikers discover the meaning of home and just how difficult it can be to let go.

Praise for Walking Home:

"Funny, touching, heart-wrenching and true-blue. I enjoyed the read every single step of the way. It is a tremendous story — well penned — engaging and well worth the read. Peter Smith — Writer/Producer/Playwright/Actor; Project Director, Blyth Arts & Cultural Initiative 14/19

"This is Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods Canadian style.” Valerie Hill, Waterloo Region Record (January 4, 2016 article)

$19.95 trade paper

Celebrating Cambridge: People - Place - Prosperity

by City of Cambridge Archives

In celebration of Canada's 150th birthday, the City of Cambridge Archives and Records Centre has complied a book to commemorate the people, places and prosperity that have made Cambridge the city it is today.

$40.00 hard cover

Our Cambridge: A Gift to the World

Photography by Richard Bain
Foreword by Jeff Hutcheson

Richard Bain, one of Canada's top landscape photographers, has put together images of Cambridge from Business to Architecture to Landscape with unprecedented visual quality for the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce. He has published numerous high quality tabletop books for colleges, universities, Chambers and municipalities.

Greg Durocher, President and CEO of the Cambridge Chamber enthusiastically said about the project, "I am excited the Chamber had the opportunity to put this amazing publication together and I know our Members are going to be proud to share it with the world."

Richard Bain has been photographing the Cambridge area since last July. He says that "of all the projects that I have been involved with, Cambridge is one of the most diverse and challenging. Showcasing Galt, Preston and Hespeler with their rivers, incredible historic architecture and hi-tech companies, has made for a wonderful project...a collection of images and a gift book that corporations, residents and visitors will simply love."

Jeff Hutcheson, a native of Cambridge and star of Canada's #1 morning television program, Canada AM, has lent his words for the forward of this book. Jeff was raised in Cambridge, but is always first to say he is from Preston.

$50.00 hard cover

Flight Test: The Avro Arrow and a Career in Aeronautical Engineering

by David Waechter

Flight Test describes the work of the author’s late father, Ralph William Waechter, and those with whom he worked at Avro Aircraft Limited. Ralph Waechter’s work at Avro included Machmeter calibration and aircraft performance analysis. The book reproduces and explains key excerpts from documents that Ralph Waechter retained after leaving the company. These documents include:

A report on the Avro Arrow's highest speed flight
A report on the Avro Arrow's Machmeter calibration
A report on a computer program to compute aircraft drag
A report on a visit to Edwards Air Force Base and other establishments in California to discuss methods of testing supersonic aircraft (at the base, future Mercury and Gemini astronaut, Captain Gordon "Gordo" Cooper, served as an escort for the Avro visitors)
Fuel consumption and speed graphs for the Avro Jetliner
Takeoff and landing performance data for the Avro CF-100

A final chapter discusses Ralph Waechter's post-Avro career, including his work at American Airlines, an American consulting company (Aero Performance Inc.), de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited, and Canadair Limited. The book will appeal to readers with an interest in aeronautical technology and its historical development. While the main text is written for the general reader, additional information for the technically inclined reader can be found in sidebar articles, figure captions, and Avro report excerpts. This approach makes the book accessible to a fairly wide readership while also making it a valuable resource for historians of science and technology. Chapters 5 and 9 are more technical than most, but are worthwhile reading for those who wish to know more about how the Arrow's airspeed was measured (chapter 5) and how its performance was assessed (chapter 9). Although some of the considerations involved in the decisions to terminate the Jetliner and cancel the Arrow are discussed, the book is not inherently political, and readers are left to draw their own conclusions. Length: 176 pages (with index).

$25.00 trade paper

Finding Ruby

by Marianne Scott

Kathleen Jones has lived a protected and typical suburban life, nothing unexpected in her carefully controlled and planned existence. She’s about to complete her college degree and is ready to start a successful career but after completing her last exam she comes home to find her world has been turned upside down. Her home has been torched and her parents and little brother killed. If that’s not bad enough, she is kidnapped and drugged unconscious by strangers posing as police officers. When she awakes she discovers that everything has changed – her face, her name, and everything she believed to be true. But things get worse. Hardly recovered from surgery, she is whisked away under the cover of darkness as more men storm the clinic with guns. It seems that the men who abducted her are not her greatest threat. Now on a private charter on its way to Nice, France, her abductors are calling her Ruby – Ruby Draker!

$21.00 trade paper

Little Girl in the Mirror

By Tara Mondou

Little Cathy Barron loved living with her Grandmother on Cape Breton Island.

?Every summer her Mother would step off the train from Ontario in her fancy outfit and her red lipstick and visit with her daughter for two weeks. In the summer of 1955, her Mother demanded to take Cathy back to Ontario to live with her for good. Cathy reluctantly said good bye to the only life she ever knew. She was promised a new and exciting life full of love and happiness, but what Cathy got was the exact opposite. The only way to survive in her new empty world was to draw strength from her only friend, the little girl in the mirror...

Based on a true story, Tara Mondou artistically recreates the heartbreaking roller coaster recount of her mother's early childhood

$21.99 trade paper????

Baseball's Greatest Controversies

by John G. Robertson

To the uninitiated, baseball is a simple sport: the pitcher throws the ball, the hitter tries to hit it, and the fielders try to catch it. But what happens before, during and after those basic actions causes more arguments than can be found in any other sport. Most of these disputes are settled quickly; a few survive for generations, still able to spark heated debate decades later.

Did Babe Ruth call his home run in the 1932 World Series? Was “Shoeless” Joe Jackson a victim or a perpetrator of the Black Sox Scandal? And who really won the batting title in 1910? These and 23 other of the game’s most heated controversies are analyzed in this work. The background for each of the debates is given, as well as a full discussion of the historical implications of the decisions. After all, disputes have been a part of the national pastime since Abner Doubleday laid out the first baseball diamond in 1839. Right?

About the Author
John G. Robertson wrote a weekly sports history column for the Kitchener-Waterloo (Ontario) Record. He lives in Cambridge, Ontario.

$20.00 trade paper

The Games That Changed Baseball

by John G. Robertson and Andy Saunders

The American national pastime’s rich history and vast cache of statistics have provided fans and researchers a gold mine of narrative and data since the late 19th century. Many books have been written about Major League Baseball’s most famous games. This one takes a different approach, focusing on MLB’s most historically significant games.

Some will be familiar to baseball scholars, such as the October afternoon in 1961 when Roger Maris eclipsed Babe Ruth’s single-season home run record, or the compelling sixth game of the 1975 World Series. Other fascinating games are less well known: the day at the Polo Grounds in 1921, when a fan named Reuben Berman filed a lawsuit against the New York Giants, winning fans the right to keep balls hit into the stands; the first televised broadcast of an MLB game in 1939; opening night of the Houston Astrodome in 1965, when spectators no longer had to be taken out to the ballgame; or the spectator-less April 2015 Orioles-White Sox game, played in an empty stadium in the wake of the Baltimore riots. Each game is listed in chronological order, with detailed historical background and a box score.

About the Authors
John G. Robertson wrote a weekly sports history column for the Kitchener-Waterloo (Ontario) Record. He lives in Cambridge, Ontario. Andy Saunders is a baseball buff who hosts trivia shows in his hometown. He lives in Guelph, Ontario.

$35.00 trade paper

And With Thy Spirit

by April Bulmer

In her new book of poetry And With Thy Spirit, award-winning writer April Bulmer claims we have passed this way before. Firmly committed to the concept of reincarnation, the Eastern religious or philosophical belief that the soul begins a life after biological death in a new body (human, animal, or spiritual), her poems are visions of her feminine roots firmly buried in the fertile soil of her soul.

The book reflects the lives of 15 women and their various ethnic and religious backgrounds. It begins with her current incarnation as April and her complex relationship with her father which she believes is mired in the damp earth of earlier days. Psychoanalysts and hypnotherapists sometimes suggest that we travel in karmic groups and affect each other’s destiny life after life as our paths cross.

$19.95 trade paper

One Book, One Community Waterloo Region 2017

The 2017 One Book, One Community selection was Emancipation Day by Wayne Grady. Learn about the author, the book, events, and more at www.oboc.ca

With his curly black hair and his wicked grin, everyone swoons and thinks of Frank Sinatra when Navy musician Jackson Lewis takes the stage. It's World War II, and while stationed in St. John's, Newfoundland, Jack meets the well-heeled Vivian Clift, a local girl who has never stepped off the Rock and longs to see the world. They marry against Vivian's family's wishes--there's something about Jack that they just don't like--and as the war draws to a close, the couple travels to Windsor to meet Jack's family.
But when Vivian meets Jack's mother and brother, everything she thought she knew about her husband gets called into question. They don't live in the dream home Jack depicted, they all look different from one another--different from anyone Vivian has ever seen--and after weeks of waiting to meet Jack's father, he never materializes.
Steeped in jazz and big-band music, spanning pre- and post-war Windsor-Detroit, St. John's, Newfoundland, and 1950s Toronto, this is an arresting, heartwrenching novel about fathers and sons, love and sacrifice, race relations and a time in our history when the world was on the cusp of momentous change.

Literary Prize Winners 2017 (and the shortlisted titles):

The Scotiabank Giller Prize

Governor General's Literary Awards

The Man Booker Prize

Rogers Writers' Trust of Canada Ficton Prize

Winner 2017