Garth Stein's novel The Art of Racing in the Rain (Harper, $23.95) is the new Starbucks book selection. It will be available in more than 7,000 Starbucks (and other retailers) starting May 13. It's the first time the java giant will feature a work of fiction by a relatively unknown writer. A contemporary family drama involving a race-car driver, Stein's third novel is narrated by the driver's wise dog, Enzo. Stein, 43, lives in Seattle with his family and dog Comet, who is not the model for his canine sage. "She's a little too goofy," Stein says. The Art of Racing in the Rain was chosen because it is "an inspirational story told from such a unique perspective," says Starbucks' Ken Lombard. Previous Starbucks selections include For One More Day by Mitch Albom (the chain's first pick in 2006) and A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah.

Parent trap:

"Parenting isn't for the faint of heart," says thriller writer Harlan Coben, whose Hold Tight, a novel about a family whose teenage son vanishes, enters USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list at No. 3. His 2007 novel, The Woods, new in paperback, is No. 27. Hold Tight, Coben's 15th novel, centers on a bubbling social controversy: parents using spyware to monitor children's online activity. "It's such a gray area," says Coben, who has four kids and doesn't use spyware. "Your knee-jerk reaction as a freedom-loving American is to be against anything that smacks of the word 'spy.' " Coben made his mark with a mystery series starring sports agent Myron Bolitar. Fox TV has the rights for a pilot to be made by Bones creator Hart Hanson.

Prescient plot:

Sometimes fiction has a way of becoming reality. James Grippando's 1998 political thriller, The Abduction (Avon, $7.99), has a ripped-from-the-headlines plot. At its center is a hotly contested bid for the presidency between the Democratic candidate, a white woman, and a black man, the GOP nominee. Not all reviews were positive, but Library Journal said the book, which is still in print, was "deftly plotted political fun." "One of the most positive reviews came from a newspaper that loved the book but said some readers may have trouble suspending disbelief that the country is actually ready for a presidential election where neither candidate was a white male," says Grippando, who has written 14 novels. "Here we are 10 years later, and it's come to pass."

Enlarge Garth Stein's The Art of Racing in the Rain is the latest Starbucks book selection.

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