To save the library and her job, young librarian Maura Beth Mayhew starts the Cherry Cola Book Club and soon the booklovers of Cherico, Mississippi gather together to talk about literary classics, secrets, romance and dreams over potluck dinners featuring treasured family recipes. Original.

"This lighthearted, cozy read brought a smile to my face. Lovers of small town fiction are going to fall in love with The Reading Circle." --Marie Bostwick, author of Between Heaven and Texas Welcome to the quirky town of Cherico, Mississippi, where potluck meetings at the local library provide a feast for mind and stomach alike. . . If some folks had their way, the Cherico library would have shut down long ago. Councilman Durden Sparks aims to divert funding to a cause dear to his heart--and his wallet. With the aid of gumption and good friends, librarian Maura Beth Mayhew has finagled a one-year reprieve, and the burgeoning book club is raising the library's profile one mouthwatering meeting at a time. But more members mean more opinions. . . While the Forrest Gump-themed shrimp dishes are a universal hit, meetings don't always go according to plan. Between spirited debate over book choices and surprising revelations and relationship hiccups--including Maura Beth's fledgling romance--there's a lot to discuss. And just when bad luck threatens to finish the library for good, the Cherry Cola Book Club may learn that the best stories have twists--and heroes--you never expected. . . Praise for Ashton Lee's The Cherry Cola Book Club "Lee's buoyant David-versus-Goliath tale zestfully illuminates a real problem confronting libraries and cities of all sizes." --Booklist "Clever, sassy and as tasty as an icebox pie, The Cherry Cola Book Club is a rare treat." --Erika Marks, author of The Guest House

“Examines why the set-in-its-ways Coca Cola Company tampered with a drink that had become an American institution—and blundered into one of the greatest marketing triumphs of all time.”—New York On April 23, 1985, the top executives of the Coca-Cola Company held a press conference in New York City. News had leaked out that Coke, the king of soft drinks, would no longer be produced. In its place the Coca-Cola Company would offer a new drink with a new taste and would dare call it by the old name, Coca-Cola. The new Coke was launched—and the reaction of the American people was immediate and violent: three months of unrelenting protest against the loss of Coke. So fierce was the reaction across the country that it forced a response from the Coca-Cola Company. Stunned Coca-Cola executives stepped up to the microphone and publicly apologized to the American people. They announced that the company would reissue the original Coca-Cola formula under a new name, Coke Classic. The Real Coke, the Real Story is the behind-the-scenes account of what prompted Coca-Cola to change the taste of its flagship brand—and how consumers persuaded a corporate giant to bring back America’s old friend.

Hollywood glitz collides with workingclass aspirations in this satirical tale of an impulsive starlet and a sharp-witted small-town teen. Cherry Kerrigan loves her simple life, her family’s tiny trailer, even working at Burrito Barn. Forget college — she’s marrying her sweetheart from next door. But here comes Ardelia Deen, a glamorous starlet who sweeps Cherry into a world of fast cars and penthouse parties. Now Cherry’s small-town life just seems so . . . small. When Ardelia drops a bomb of an offer — one involving a baby — Cherry knows her life will change forever, no matter what she decides. John M. Cusick focuses his signature wit on Hollywood royalty and the wide-eyed dreams of Small Town, U.S.A. in a novel about discovering who you are . . . and changing your mind.

"Growing up in the wealthy suburbs of Philadelphia, Anton Stratis is groomed to be one thing only: the #1 tennis player in the world. Trained relentlessly by his obsessive father, a former athlete who plans every minute of his son's life, Anton both aspires to greatness and resents its all-consuming demands ... Anton explodes from nowhere onto the professional scene and soon becomes one of the top-ranked players in the world, with a coach, a trainer, and an entourage. But as Anton struggles to find a balance between stardom and family, he begins to make compromises"--Amazon.com.

From the New York Times columnist, a portrait of a family and the cycles of joy and grief that mark the natural world: “Has the makings of an American classic.” —Ann Patchett Growing up in Alabama, Margaret Renkl was a devoted reader, an explorer of riverbeds and red-dirt roads, and a fiercely loved daughter. Here, in brief essays, she traces a tender and honest portrait of her complicated parents—her exuberant, creative mother; her steady, supportive father—and of the bittersweet moments that accompany a child’s transition to caregiver. And here, braided into the overall narrative, Renkl offers observations on the world surrounding her suburban Nashville home. Ringing with rapture and heartache, these essays convey the dignity of bluebirds and rat snakes, monarch butterflies and native bees. As these two threads haunt and harmonize with each other, Renkl suggests that there is astonishment to be found in common things: in what seems ordinary, in what we all share. For in both worlds—the natural one and our own—“the shadow side of love is always loss, and grief is only love’s own twin.” Gorgeously illustrated by the author’s brother, Billy Renkl, Late Migrations is an assured and memorable debut. “Magnificent . . . Readers will savor each page and the many gems of wisdom they contain.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

In the charming small town of Cherico, Mississippi, the Cherry Cola Book Club meets to discuss classic Southern literature, sample favorite dishes-and share their unique stories... Two wonderful new chapters are unfolding for Maura Beth Mayhew, Cherico's librarian. Thanks to her persistence, a new, cutting-edge library is being built on the shores of beautiful Lake Cherico. And come September, Maura Beth will marry Jeremy McShay at his aunt and uncle's stunning home. Yet in life, as in fiction, happy endings are hard-won... A local politician is trying to divert library funds, while Maura Beth's socialite parents insist on a lavish New Orleans wedding. Maura Beth invites them to Cherico to experience the town's laidback appeal-and the book club's delicious potluck fare. Sadly, not even Voncille Nettle's famous biscuits can placate Mrs. Mayhew once the discussion turns from Eudora Welty's The Robber Bridegroom to real-life marriage. To get the wedding and the library of her dreams, Maura Beth will have to harness the indomitable spirit of her favorite Southern heroines-and the sage advice of the Cherry Cola Book Club... "The challenges of keeping any library anywhere open and effectively serving its patrons is a problem facing most communities. Lee brings these salient topics to light in an unpredictably entertaining series." --Booklist