One of our favorite things about being booksellers is sharing the stories we just can’t stop thinking about. This month our team is sharing some recent 5-Star reads. Whether you’re heading out on vacation, spending slow afternoons in the shade, or simply looking for your next unforgettable read, we hope these picks inspire your summer TBR. Happy Reading!
The Great Cool Ranch Dorito In the Sky by Josh Galarza
Getting drunk, Ubering through drive-thrus and living with your best friend, sounds incredible until you realize it’s slowly killing you.
Brett is a high school student struggling with an eating disorder, his adoptive mother’s cancer diagnosis, and the fear that he will never be enough. So, he lives vicariously through his own comic book series’ main hero, Kid Condor. When Brett starts to lose grip on reality, his issues become worse. Binge eating, arguing with his best friend/roommate, and ignoring his counselor. The worst part? His journal filled with his deepest insecurities is posted online for everyone to see and things start to get even worse.
This book is an intimate look into the world of eating disorders in a comprehensive form. Furthermore, this book shows the reality we often hide from others in exchange for social hierarchy. Tackling the worst years of your life (high school), Josh Galarza shows us that sometimes things just suck.
Don’t get me wrong, this book is fun, hilarious, and jam packed with pop culture references. Just be ready for the vibe to switch any second. If you read this, feel free to swing by Malibu Village Books and chat with me about it! Just make sure to bring some tissues.
- Chris E.
After Hours at Dooryard Books by Cat Sebastian
If you’ve ever wished you could step inside a neighborhood bookstore where everyone eventually finds their place, After Hours at Dooryard Books is the novel to pick up next. Set in 1968 Greenwich Village, Cat Sebastian weaves a tender, deeply human story about found family, quiet resilience, and the kind of love that grows through trust rather than grand gestures.
While it’s undeniably a romance, this is equally a love letter to bookstores as sanctuaries—places where: strangers become community, difficult conversations are welcomed, and hope can quietly take root even during turbulent times. Sebastian’s characters feel wonderfully lived-in, and the slow-burn relationship is matched by an equally rewarding exploration of friendship, grief, activism, and belonging.
Perfect for readers who loved The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, Days Without End, or The House in the Cerulean Sea. This is a warm, thoughtful novel that lingers long after the final page. A gentle reminder that even in uncertain times, kindness and community can change everything.
Happy Reading!
-Miguel
The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett
Where to begin in this 656 page yarn of a tale?! I cried, I laughed (literally out loud), I kept reading till the wee hours of the morning, I fell in love with all the characters (minus a few, of course) and when I closed the last page, I was devastated there wasn’t more.
The time is: 1933. The place: Mississippi. Two female stories unfold, one mid-twenties and considered “unmarriable” & the other an eleven-year-old named Meg Lefleur.
Both have left their home, one taken and the other traveling to her sisters to ask for a loan; both have seen the ravages & desperation of the Great Depression play out around them. But Meg & Birdie know how to fight, know how to persevere in the face of man’s cruelties; they know how to find love in the smallest of corners or the deepest of cracks and let that shine.
A cast of characters comes in an out of this novel and you ride a rollercoaster of scenarios & predicaments. If you liked: The Great Gatsby, Fried Green Tomatoes by Fannie Flagg or Taylor Sheridan’s “1883” or “1923”, then you will LOVE Kathryn Stockett’s The Calamity Club.
-Michelle
Lost Souls Meet Under A Full Moon by Mizuki Tsujimura
Four stories, one connection, and a chance to visit the dead.
Every character isn’t expecting a teenage boy when they set up a meeting with this mythical go-between. He takes their request and then lays out the rules: they can only meet one person in their lifetime (and same goes for the deceased), the service is completely free, and they must meet under a full moon. Each person is looking for a meeting for their own reason, one wants to meet their idol, another a son looking for a lost deed, a girl mourning her best friend’s death, and a business man looking for his missing fiancé.
A great quick read that is cozy, heart warming, and, real. Tsujimura makes you think about who you would request to see from the go-between.
- Lauren B.
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