Readers will find a great read in the oldie-but-goodie THE EGYPT GAME by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. A group of six children, ranging in age from four to eleven, create a game using old Egyptian artifacts they find in a storage shed, along with their growing knowledge of the Egyptian culture. The author’s incredible descriptive abilities leave just enough to the imagination to make the experience an individual one. Mystery, excitement and friendship abound throughout the novel. Don’t miss the sequel, written nearly thirty years later, THE GYPSY GAME. (Paperback, $6.99) Recommended by Raven customer Amber Keck.

American Made: When FDR Put the Nation to War by Nick Taylor features a remarkable social worker and bureaucratic genius, Harry Hopkins, who headed the largest employment enterprise spearheaded by any government in modern history–the Works Project Administration (WPA). It was the most outstanding of the alphabet soup of agencies begun by the Roosevelt administration during the depression to relieve human misery. By discussing real people to illustrate each aspect of the WPA (theater arts, music, archeology, geology, public works, etc), the author presents an interesting and inclusive exploration of each aspect of the US government’s outreach. Very readable. (Softcover, $15.00). Customer recommendation by Martha.

DEAFENING by Frances Itani, winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize, is an engrossing novel centered on the world of the deaf as well as the horrors and sacrifices of World War I. Relationships among various generations ring true; the characters’ inner and outer worlds come alive in the hands of an experienced and talented writer. This novel, set in Canada, will call to you until you finish the last page. (Paperback, $14.00). Highly recommended by Martha.

Need a heroine? Trying to understand what the feminist movement was all about? I highly recommend WOMAN BEHIND THE NEW DEAL: THE LIFE OF FRANCIS PERKINS, FDR’S SECRETARY OF LABOR AND HIS MORAL CONSCIENCE by Kirsten Downey. Ms. Perkins was the first woman member of the cabinet. Her incredible story is a history of the US in the 20th century through World War II.

With cunning, intelligence and plain old hard work Francis Perkins pressed FDR, the congress, corporations and the labor movement (and sometimes the Supreme Court) to pass progressive legislation that impacts our lives today. Social Security, the minimum wage, the 40 hour work week, working conditions and child labor laws are among the laws that she was instrumental in having passed despite being harassed and vilified because of her gender. The one missing piece in her plan was universal health care–an issue that haunts us to this day. Hardcover, $35.00 Customer review: Martha.