What’s better than a good book? A good book written by your neighbor. Grab your favorite cup of tea or coffee and get ready to meet your next read, because we’re talking about locally written books in Madison.

Zhang is a fellow in UW-Madison's creative writing department. | Photo by 608today | Jonathan Shipley

Fiction

"Bummer Camp" by Ann Garvin | Release date: Sept. 1, 2024 | Two sisters try to keep a run-down theater camp afloat in this funny and big-hearted novel.

“I Could Live Here Forever” by Hanna Halperin | Release date: Apr. 11, 2023 | The novel follows Leah Kempler, a UW-Madison student who falls in love with a recovering heroin addict.

"The Sorrow of Others" by Ada Zhang | Release date: May 9, 2023 | Set shortly after the Cultural Revolution, the stories illuminate the lives of immigrants and revolutionaries.

"Wine People" by Michelle Wildgen | Release date: Aug. 1, 2023 | Two ambitious young women enter the male-dominated wine industry in this acclaimed novel.

For the family

“Canary Girls” by Jennifer Chiaverini | Release date: Aug. 8, 2023 | The prolific Chiaverini returns with a novel about the “munitionettes,” women who built bombs in Britain’s arsenals during World War I.

"My Hands Had Plans" by Erin Parquette | Release date: Jan. 1, 2024 | This picture book follows an imaginative child on a snowy day.

"Stephanie's Big Zoo Adventure" by Brandon Maly | Release date: June 25, 2024 | Based on Madison's own Henry Vilas Zoo, an animal-loving second grader visits with Dr. Eva, the zoo's head veterinarian.

“Surely You Can’t Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane!” by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker | Release date: Oct. 3, 2023 | Considered one of the greatest comedy movies of all time, the creators let readers go behind-the-scenes.

Learn something new

"Madison Chefs: Stories of Food, Farms, and People" by Lindsay Christians | Release date: Dec. 21, 2021 | The food editor and arts writer for The Capital Times takes an in-depth look at nine local chefs.

"The Road to Marital Success is Unpaved" by Kenneth Waldron and Allan Koritnsky | Released: June 23, 2023 | A practical road map for married people to realize their dreams of a life-long marriage worth lasting.

"We Had Fun and Nobody Died: Adventures of a Milwaukee Music Promoter" by Amy Waldman | Release date: June 25, 2024 | This biography follows Peter Jest as he rubs elbows with the likes of John Prine, Arlo Guthrie, and the Violent Femmes.

"When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi” by David Maraniss | Release date: Sept. 3, 2000 | The Pulitzer Prize winner writes about, arguably, the greatest NFL football coach of all-time.

Part of a series

"A Collection of Lies" by Connie Berry | Release date: June 18, 2024 | Berry's fifth Kate Hamilton mystery, an antiques dealer follows the clues to discover the truth about the murder of a modern-day Victorian gentleman.

"The Bones of Bascom Hall" by Betsy Draine and Michael Hinden | Release date: Nov. 19, 2024 | A Nora Barnes and Toby Sandler mystery, they piece together why there are human remains that were discovered in the attic of the UW-Madison administration building.

“Death in the Dark Woods” by Annelise Ryan | Release date: Dec. 12, 2023 | There have been Bigfoot-type sightings in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest area in Wisconsin. A man’s been found dead in the forest. Who did it?

"Legacy Academy" by A.P. Goodman | Release date: Nov. 29, 2022 | In a magical high school created for demigods, this YA novel follows Lena, a new student who discovers a deep secret.

“You Are a Star, Malala Yousafzai” by Dean Robbins and Maithili Joshi | Release date: Jan. 2, 2024 | This picture book focuses on Yousafzai’s lifelong mission to bring educational equality and justice to all, especially young girls.

Witgen is a professor at Columbia University. | Photo by 608today
| Jonathan Shipley

Indigenous books

"Indian Mounds of Wisconsin" by Robert Birmingham and Amy Rosebrough | Release date: Oct. 4, 2017 | The authors, archeologists, explore the 4,000 remaining effigy mounds in Wisconsin.

"Meditation on Ceremonies of Beginnings: The Tribal College and World Indigenous Nations Higher Education Consortium Poems" by Thomas Davis | Release date: Nov. 16, 2020 | Davis offers narrative poetry that gives an informal history of the tribal college movement in Northern Wisconsin.

"Our Precious Corn: Yukwanénste" by Rebecca Webster | Release date: May 1, 2023 | The Oneida tribal member discusses the relationship with corn through explorers, military officers, anthropologists, and others.

"Seeing Red: Indigenous Land, American Expansion and the Political Economy of Plunder in North America" by Michael John Witgen | Release date: Aug. 1, 2023 | A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, the book is by a tribal member of the Red Cliff Ojibwe Nation in Wisconsin.

Judith Gwinn Adrian, author of "From Hardship to Hope," holds a Ph.D. in adult learning from UW-Madison. | Photo by 608today
| Jonathan Shipley

Personal stories

“Common Threads: Delivering Hope and Meaning Through Sewing Machines” by Margaret John Jankowski | Release date: Apr. 17, 2023 | The unique story about how The Sewing Machine Project came to fruition. The nonprofit’s mission is to offer sewing tools and education to those who may contribute to the well-being of their families and communities.

“From Hardship to Hope: Crossing the great divides of age, race, wealth, equity, and health” by Judith Gwinn Adrian and Jaylin M. Stueber | Release date: Oct. 8, 2023 | Autobiographical but fictionally woven together, this book follows an older white woman and a young Black teenager who end up living together during the pandemic.

"Moments of Happiness" by Mike Leckrone and Doug Moe | Release date: Sept. 10, 2024 | Leckrone makes note of his 50-year career as director of bands at UW-Madison.

Need more recommendations? Stop by Lake City Books, Mystery to Me, A Room of One's Own, and Kismet Books to get expert advice from 608’s local booksellers.