New books highlight mansions of Janssen Place, Kansas City Royals, gang of con men

Dan Kelly
·2 min read

Some recently published books with Kansas City area ties:

“Janssen Place: A Unique Kansas City Neighborhood: Still on Parade After 125 Years” by Bruce Mathews and Stephen Mitchell

Photos illustrate the story of the 19 mansions built in the city’s most affluent neighborhood, where construction began in 1897. The authors will discuss their book at 2 p.m. April 14 at the Kansas City Public Library downtown branch.

Mission Point Press (March 15). $40. mwchs.org.

“The Woman With No Name” by Audrey Blake

Audrey Blake is the alter ego of Olathe writer Regina Sirois and Jaima Fixsen, who met online. Their novel is based on the true story of Britain’s first female sabotage agent.

Sourcebooks Landmark (March 12). $16.99. amazon.com.

“Watercolor Your Way” by Sarah Cray.
“Watercolor Your Way” by Sarah Cray.

“Watercolor Your Way” by Sarah Cray

Hamilton, Missouri, artist, illustrator and art instructor Sarah Cray provides an instruction guide on painting with watercolors.

Quarry Books (March 5). $22.99. quarto.com.

“Miss Priss and the Pirate” by Fran Baker

This high-seas pirate romance is the latest from Lee’s Summit resident Fran Banker, who has written 18 novels and one nonfiction book.

Delphi Books (large-print release, March 1). $12.99. barnesandnoble.com.

“The Kansas City Royals: An Illustrated Timeline” by Matt Stewart

Local TV reporter Matt Stewart, who wrote “Unique Eats and Eateries of Kansas City” (2022), returns with a hardcover history of the local baseball team. He will appear for it at 6 p.m. April 1 at the Kansas City Public Library downtown branch and at 7 p.m. April 18 at Rainy Day Books.

Reedy Press (March 1). $39.95. reedypress.com.

“Not the Worst Friend in the World” by Anne Rellihan.
“Not the Worst Friend in the World” by Anne Rellihan.

“Not the Worst Friend in the World” by Anne Rellihan

Anne Rellihan is a former elementary school teacher who lives in Leawood. She has written her first middle-grade novel, which is set at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School in Missouri.

Holiday House (Feb. 6). $18.99. penguinrandomhouse.com.

“I’ll Just Be Five More Minutes: And Other Tales from My ADHD Brain” by Emily Farris

Kansas City author Emily Farris has written a book of essays about discovering she had ADHD at age 35.

Hachette Books (Feb. 6). $19.99. hachettebookgroup.com.

“Men of No Reputation: Robert Boatright, the Buckfoot Gang, and the Fleecing of Middle America” by Kimberly Harper.
“Men of No Reputation: Robert Boatright, the Buckfoot Gang, and the Fleecing of Middle America” by Kimberly Harper.

“Men of No Reputation: Robert Boatright, the Buckfoot Gang, and the Fleecing of Middle America” by Kimberly Harper

Kimberly Harper is the author of the award-winning “White Man’s Heaven: The Lynching and Expulsion of Blacks in the Southern Ozarks, 1894–1909” (2012). This book tracks a gang of con men, led by a man who died in a Kansas City hotel in 1904.

University of Arkansas Press (Feb. 5). $34.95; $24.95 paperback. uapress.com.