Kirstin Valdez Quade’s The Five Wounds is the latest selection for the Barnes and Noble book club.
Quade’s novel follows the Padillas, a family in New Mexico, as they navigate their troubled relationships. In a starred review, a critic for Kirkus called the book “a brilliant meditation on love and redemption” featuring “perfectly rendered characters.”
The novel is Quade’s first book since the 2015 story collection Night at the Fiestas, which won the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize for best first book.
Barnes and Noble Vice President Jackie De Leo praised The Five Wounds as “a beautifully rendered and tenderly humorous story about the loving Padilla family, who face a year filled with life-changing obstacles.”
In a statement, Quade said she was “beyond thrilled” that her book was selected for the club.
“I hope that readers will root for the members of the Padilla family as they help each other to become better versions of themselves and to heal old wounds,” Quade said. “As both a reader and a writer, I’m so grateful to Barnes and Noble for everything they do for books.”
Quade will discuss her novel at a virtual event on Barnes and Noble’s Facebook page with author Karen Russell on May 4.
Barnes and Noble launched their book club in 2018. Previous selections have included Lauren Fox’s Send for Me and Anna North’s Outlawed.
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
