Riot Headline Book Riot’s 2025 Read Harder Challenge
Newsletter 1

Quick Pick: January 15, 2016

Our pick for the week's best new release

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Liberty Hardy

Senior Contributing Editor

Liberty Hardy is an unrepentant velocireader, writer, bitey mad lady, and tattoo canvas. Turn-ons include books, books and books. Her favorite exclamation is “Holy cats!” Liberty reads more than should be legal, sleeps very little, frequently writes on her belly with Sharpie markers, and when she dies, she’s leaving her body to library science. Until then, she lives with her three cats, Millay, Farrokh, and Zevon, in Maine. She is also right behind you. Just kidding! She’s too busy reading. Twitter: @MissLiberty

View All posts by Liberty Hardy

your heart is a muscleYour Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist by Sunil Yapa

Set amid the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle, Yapa weaves together the stories of pot dealers, policemen, politicians, and protesters as the peaceful demonstrations threatens to spill over into violence. There’s Victor, who just wants to sell drugs to the protesters for enough cash to split town; there’s his policeman father, Chief Bishop, who hasn’t seen Victor in three years; and several more people just trying to fight for what they believe in. This is an electrifying debut, a protest novel that gives humanity to all sides of the fight. It’s full of heart and, ultimately, hope.

Backlist bump: A Strangeness In My Mind by Orhan Pamuk

Subscribe to the New Books! newsletter to get weekly updates about new releases:

* indicates required