Keiko Swagerty
From Escentials Lotions and Oils
3638 SE Hawthorne
Better start shopping for yer ma; Mother’s Day is just around the corner. And nobody knows moms like the gals at Escentials, who specialize in presents that make a lady feel loved. Here are employee Keiko’s top five Mother’s Day gifts.
– Not Without My Daughter, Betty Mahmoody with William Hoffer: “It’s a book about an American mom and her four-year-old daughter who are held hostage in Iran.”
– White Oleander (2002): “It’s a movie about this crazy woman who deeply affects her daughter’s life, even while in jail.”
– Escentials Custom-Scented Lotions: “You can make our lotions any scent you want, which is really nice.”
– Escentials Gift Basket: “You can make your own. There’s bath-care stuff, shampoos and conditioners, massage oils… if you’re really nice you’ll give her a massage.
– Flowers: “Of course.”
Carolyn Lane
From Murder by the Book
3210 SE Hawthorne
Summer’s coming fast–have you stocked up on your pulp fiction yet? Get down to Murder by the Book, your home for thrillers, mysteries, and spy fiction. Co-owner Carolyn’s top five:
– The Winter Queen, Boris Akunin: “A delightful daring do about a policeman in 1970s Moscow. [Akunin’s] a best-selling author in Russia and is very charming.”
– The Last Detective, Robert Crais: “This fellow’s been writing about the same two private eyes for a number of years, and this one gives some background into those characters.”
– Bad Men, John Connolly: “He’s a great writer. He’s got a thing, though, about insects. Last time it was spiders. This time it’s moths.
– The Kalahari Typing School for Men, Alexander McCall Smith: “He lived in Africa for a long time, and his character is a Botswana female private detective.”
– Beautiful Ghosts, Eliot Pattison: “The main character is Chinese and is sworn to protect these Tibetan monks.”