After we discuss real-life cases of hostages turned homies, we'll dive into a story about idiots. Yes, idiots. In a way, this is a story about all of us because we're all idiots at times. But this is also a story about a bridge. Also, it's a story about people and how people need people. Actually, this is a crime novel about a bank robber and a room full of terrible captives who each have something in common. More than anything, though, this is a story about kindness.

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A professional moderator turned author makes a living telling groups of listeners that the sky is blue, water is wet, and, yes, racism is a reality. A somewhat novel idea, she crafts her conversations with white, not black listeners in mind. She addresses the subject of oppression to the group of people consciously and subconsciously oppressing, and the result earns her a side-eye from every side involved.

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A story about life, living, and the regrets in between, The Midnight Library is a unique invention created to tell a universal truth. It allows the reader to make some secret personal applications with the lessons of our protagonist and her desire to end it all. This story is like our better selves, begging us to listen, putting the medicine in the candy, and it does it all within 300 pages.

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Like Google Maps on a long road trip, one top chef is helping us find our way through the endless recipes scattered inside of that junk drawer in our kitchen to the dish we're craving. That's right, by understanding just four cardinal directions of cooking, we can make anything delicious.

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As Beyoncé said, "This is for the 30-somethings that didn't turn out exactly how mom and dad wanted you to be." Convenience Store Woman is the deadpan tale of one woman's happy life in a simple occupation before conformity-obsessed friends, family members, and strangers pressure her into confusion and despair.

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