C.O.W.L vol. 1 & 2 by Kyle Higgins

C.O.W.L. vol. 1: Principles of Power
Kyle Higgins & Alec Siegel
GN H535c1

The Chicago Organized Workers League once stood as a beacon of hope against an epidemic of organized crime and an unbeatable "brotherhood" of Super-Villains. Now, in 1962, the union faces a disillusioned public, scandal, and a new era of threats.

C.O.W.L. vol. 2: The Greater Good
Kyle Higgins & Alec Siegel
GN H535c2

In Volume 2 of this superb series, super villain threats are a problem of the past, but with a strike on his hands, and scandal on the horizon, Geoffrey Warner has taken drastic steps to breathe life back into the Chicago Organized Workers League. But how far will his false-flag operation reach? Is there any line he won't cross for “the greater good?”

The Art of Secrets

The Art of Secrets
James Klise
Fiction K68a

A Fire Destroys . . .
A Treasure Appears . . .
A Crime Unfolds . . .

When Saba Khan’s apartment burns in a mysterious fire, possibly a hate crime, her Chicago high school rallies around her. Her family moves rent-free into a luxury apartment, Saba’s Facebook page explodes, and she starts (secretly) dating a popular boy. Then a quirky piece of art donated to a school fund-raising effort for the Khans is revealed to be an unknown work by a famous artist, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and Saba’s life turns upside down again.

 Should Saba’s family have all that money? Or should it go to the students who found the art? Or to the school? And just what caused that fire? Greed, jealousy, and suspicion create an increasingly tangled web as students and teachers alike debate who should get the money and begin to point fingers and make accusations. The true story of the fire that sets events in motion and what happens afterward gradually comes together in an innovative narrative made up of journal entries, interviews, articles, letters, text messages, and other documents.

(From publisher.)

The House on Mango Street

The House on Mango Street
Sandra Cisneros
Fiction C497h
 

Acclaimed by critics, beloved by readers of all ages, taught everywhere from inner-city grade schools to universities across the country, and translated all over the world, The House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero.

Told in a series of vignettes – sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous – it is the story of a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become. Few other books in our time have touched so many readers.


(From publisher.)