Tag Archives: Five Book Friday

Five Book Friday!

And a very happy Free for All Birthday to the National Park Service, which celebrated its 100th birthday yesterday!

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Our National Parks themselves have been around a lot longer than that….well, if we’re being fair here, many of them have been around since the continents stopped shifting, but the United States began protecting and honoring these celebrated sites of natural beauty, ecological wonder, and historical significance since 1872, when Yellowstone National Park was designated as a National Park, and run by the Federal Government itself, since there was no one person or body dedicated to overseeing it.  Yosemite National Park was designated earlier, in 1864, but as a state park, overseen by the state of California, who later turned it back over the Federal Government to control.  It was in 1916, however, that the government created a National Parks Service, which was charged with overseeing, protecting, and managing all of the country’s National Parks.  And to all those wide-brimmed and olive-garbed rangers out there, we tip our hats to you today!

Because I get a kick out of random facts like these, the Park Service is responsible for about 84,000,000 acres of land, on the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands, some 85,049 miles of rivers, 8,500 roads, and 27,000 historic sites.  The largest national park is  Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, in Alaska, which covers about 13.2 million acres, while the smallest is the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial, home of the famous Polish freedom fighter, in Philadelphia PA, at 0.02 acres.

Scenic view of Glacier National Park.
Scenic view of Glacier National Park.

And did you know that Massachusetts has 15 National Parks?  With the spate of lovely weather coming up, why not have an adventure to one (or more!) of them soon?  And why not bring a book with you to keep you company (she wrote, in the most skillful of transitions)?  Here are some wonderful new books that have ambled up onto our shelves this week that are oh-so-eager to join you in appreciating the big wide world out there!

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3783022A Scot in the DarkSarah MacLean is by far and away one of my favorite romance authors around, and with each new release, she pushes at the boundaries of our assumptions about romance and what romance novels can do, carving out a space that is very fun, very feminist-y, and just plain a joy to read.  In this second book in her Scandal and Scoundrel series, we meet Lily, who agreed to sit for a painter as a way to escape her gilded cage–only to find herself abandoned and utterly ruined when the painting becomes public.  With no other choice left, Lily turns to her guardian, the Duke of Warwick, a Highland heathen who wants nothing to do with London, or Lily…but in the course of trying to marry her off, the Duke just might discover a reason keep near to both…Kirkus gave this book a starred review, cheering, “MacLean’s signature humor and ingenuity are in evidence throughout this novel…She writes love scenes and romantic dialogue with audacity”–we agree!

3770561A Shocking AssassinationI, for one, am a huge fan of the current trend of Irish historical mystery novels, and Cora Harrison’s Reverend Mother series checks all my boxes: an unlikely heroine (in this case, the Reverend Mother Aquinas), a great historic setting (Cork, during the Irish Civil War, one of the most violent places on the island at that time), and a well-plotted mystery.  In this second series installment, a city engineer has been assassinated, and a young man, who was standing beside the body holding a pistol has been arrested.  And when the boy’s mother begs for help to prove her son’s innocence, the good Reverend Mother finds herself facing down violence in its many, varied, and most fundamentally human forms, making for an investigation that is winning praise on both sides of the Atlantic.  Booklist gave it a star review, hailing, “Period ambience, an absorbing plot, and a wise and intrepid amateur sleuth in the form of the Reverend Mother make this an engaging historical mystery.”

3696202Adventures in Human Being: A Grand Tour from the Cranium to the Calcaneum: Gavin Francis has spent his life in medicine, as an ER doctor, a surgeon, and a family practitioner, and its very clear that he loves all the wonderful, crazy, and unexpected things that the human body can accomplish and do.  But rather than simply giving us a tour of ‘the body’, this wonderfully thoughtful, surprisingly engaging and accessible book also looks at how we see, and have seen the body in the past, using historical texts, literature, philosophy, and personal memories to really helps us come to terms with the body we inhabit, and its meaning throughout our history.  This book has won a number of awards in the UK for being the best non-fiction book of the year, and is already making headlines over here, with the the Wall Street Journal proclaiming:  “Dr. Francis…brings certain necessary equipment to this task. These include a keen sense of the marvelous, a prose style as elegant and cutting as a scalpel, and a breadth of clinical experience that is unusual in an age of specialization… with its deft mix of the clinical and the lyrical, [this is] a triumph of the eloquent brain and the compassionate heart.”

3740772Behold the Dreamers: Imbolo Mbue’s stunning debut novel recalls the early days of the 2007-8 financial collapse from the viewpoint of those who were so easily forgotten as huge banks began tottering, and fortunes began collapsing.  Jende Jonga is a Cameroonian immigrant, who is determined to do whatever he must to make a secure and prosperous life for himself and his family.  Thus, he is overjoyed to get a job as a chauffeur for Clark Edwards, a demanding and exacting boss, as well as a senior executive at Lehman Brothers.  Jende’s wife, Neni, even secures work cleaning the Edwards’ house in the Hamptons.  But as the looming threat of financial meltdown becomes real, and Lehmann Brothers collapses, highlighting the interpersonal cracks in all these intertwined relationships, Jende and Neni find themselves facing impossible choices in order to survive.  Though necessarily heartbreaking, Mbue manages to maintain a kindness towards all of characters, emphasizing the real tragedy of this novel is not one man’s mistakes, but of a system that was build to fall.  As Publisher’s Weekly put it, in their review, “The Jongas are . . . vivid, and the book’s unexpected ending—and its sharp-eyed focus on issues of immigration, race, and class—speak to a sad truth in today’s cutthroat world: the American dream isn’t what it seems.”

3779793Ghost Talkers: For those who like a little paranormal with their history, we offer you Mary Robinette Kowal’s latest, set during the First World War, and focused on the Spirit Corps, a group organized to communicate with, and pass along information from, the ghosts of the fallen.  Ginger is a member of the spirit corps, a job that pairs well with her fiance’s work in intelligence.  But with Captain Benjamin Harford out on a mission, Ginger gets evidence of a traitor in the Allies midst–and without him to validate her claims, Ginger not only finds herself doubted by her superiors, but charged with working for the Germans herself.   Abandoned, Ginger sets out on her own to prove her suspicions correct–no easy task for a lone woman in a world of violent men, but Ginger isn’t about to turn back now…Kowal’s work won over the sceptics at NPR, who raved about this book in a recent review, saying “it was that rare ability of Kowal’s to make what could have been a completely goofy add-on to the British war effort into something that felt completely wedded and solid that sold me — that spark of a great idea, well-executed. It is a story that just works.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!

Five Book Friday!

Beloved Patrons, have you see the updates to our Library’s website?  Screen Shot 2016-08-19 at 1.45.32 PM

In addition to providing upcoming events and news, take a look at the text box in the lower left-hand side of the screen….

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It’s the five most-recent posts from this here Free For All, providing you with up-to-the-minute updates on all the joyful nonsense that goes on here!

We’re going to be working on updating our website even further in the coming weeks, so keep your eyes peeled for lots of good things yet to come, but, for now, a huge thanks to our fantastic Web Site Magician, for all her hard work!

And now…how about some new books?!  Here are just a few of the many new tomes that hopped up onto our shelves this week, and are eager to meet you!

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3630536Eileen: This is a new-to-us book, which was released in 2015.  However, when Massachusetts’ native Ottessa Moshfegh’s haunting novel has been long-list for the Man Booker Prize, the book was reprinted, and we made sure to get a copy for ourselves.  Set in the 1960’s, this novel follows, Eileen Dunlop, outwardly an unremarkable employee at a boys’ prison outside Boston.  But at heart, Eileen is a disturbed, desperately lonely young woman who spends her days trying to survive her job, and her evenings trying to clean up after her alcoholic father.  But when a bright, beautiful new counsellor comes to the prison, Eileen finds herself pulled into a new, all-consuming friendship–and finds herself willing to do anything to keep that friendship.  Anything.  The Hitchcock-ian twist in this book, and Moshfegh’s ability to create a thoroughly creepy, yet irresistibly compelling atmosphere has had reviewers around the world raving, including The Guardian, who said “The great power of this book, which won the PEN/Hemingway debut fiction award last month, is that Eileen is never simply a literary gargoyle; she is painfully alive and human, and Ottessa Moshfegh writes her with a bravura wildness that allows flights of expressionistic fantasy to alternate with deadpan matter of factness…As an evocation of physical and psychological squalor, Eileen is original, courageous and masterful.”

51wJyTbXPEL._SX336_BO1,204,203,200_I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life: For all that anti-bacterial hand stuff has become part of our life, and for all that we hear about the dangers of tiny little organisms we can’t see, Ed Yong’s book argues that microbes are an indispensable part of our lives, protecting us from disease, digesting our food, and, literally, keeping life on earth moving by providing the bonds that bring lifeforms together.  In this ‘microbe’s eye view’ of the world, Yong gives us a new way to look at the world around us, and our part in it, in a way that is fascinating, informative, and instantly engaging.  The beauty of this book is how it can take something as apparently straight-forward as the microbe and make it sound wondrous.  Booklist agrees, cautioning, “Bottom line: don’t hate or fear the microbial world within you. Appreciate its wonders. After all, they are more than half of you.”

3779001I Will Send RainWe’ve all seen photos of the Dust Bowl–of desperate-looking women and their barefoot children; we’ve heard the stories of the malnutrition and relentless wind-storms that ruined crops and made the depths of the Great Depression seem all the more hopeless.  Rae Meadows’ novel takes us inside those stories, into the world of Annie Bell, whose Oklahoma farm has been ravaged by those storms, and whose family is slowing coming apart at the seams.  With her son suffering from dust pneumonia, her daughter looking for anyway out of their current existence, and her husband plagued with dreams of rain, Annie begins to realize that she can no longer live for others; in order to survive, she has to make her own choices.  This story is at once deeply personal and wonderfully representative of a time that continues to haunt our collective imagination.  Publisher’s Weekly gave this tale a starred review, saying “Meadows’s strength lies in letting her story be guided by the shadow and light of her well-rendered characters…A vibrant, absorbing novel that stays with the reader.”

3764084 (1)The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo: As Emmy Award-winning comic, television and film star Amy Schumer’s star continues to rise, she proves, once again, that she isn’t about to back down, or allow public notoriety to make her into anything but her authentic self.  In this memoir, Schumer mines her own past for stories about how she became the person she is today, from the hilarious to the heartbreaking, from the deeply…extremely…sometimes uncomfortably personal to the universal.  Schumer’s sense of humor shines through this book, but she also shows how big-hearted, and extraordinarily brave she is with this candid and very frank book that will introduce you–or re-acquaint you–with one remarkable woman.  The Washington Post wrote, “‘Schumer is a talented storyteller. She’s known for standing in a spotlight and sharing every corner of her soul with thousands of strangers. So it’s no surprise that her book is packed with hilarious, honest and often vulnerably raw details of her life… Readers will laugh and cry, and may put the book down from moments of honesty that result in uncomfortable realistic details from her life.”

3743649Perfume River: Another historical novel, this one partially set during the  the Vietnam War, this newest release from Robert Olen Butler explores both the personal lives of one family and the turmoil of a generation at war.  Professor Robert Quinlan and his wife, Darla. now in their seventies, met while working in anti-war protests, and married with the hope of changing the world for good, and for ever.  Now, the fissures in their own relationships are becoming more and more apparent, especially as Robert’s relationship with the rest of his family–including his brother and father, a veteran of the Second World War–crumbles around him.  When a homeless man comes into Robert’s life, he assumes at first that he is just another Vietnam veteran looking for assistance, but the longer he remains, the more he realizes that this man’s impact on his family will be greater than Robert could ever imagine.  A deeply thoughtful, quietly tragic, and deeply moving work, critics are hailing this as another of Butler’s masterpieces, with Booklist declaring it “A deeply meditative reflection on aging and love, as seen through the prism of one family quietly torn asunder by the lingering effects of the Vietnam War. Butler…shows again that he is a master of tone, mood, and character, whatever genre he chooses to explore. This is thoughtful, introspective fiction of the highest caliber, but it carries a definite edge, thanks to an insistent backbeat that generates suspense with the subtlest of brushstrokes.”

Five Book Friday!

And a very happy Free-For-All birthday celebration to Ann M. Martin, author of The Baby-Sitters Club series!

Ann Matthews Martin was born on this day in 1955 in Princeton, New Jersey.  Her father, Henry Martin, was a respected cartoonist whose works appeared in The New Yorker, Ladies’ Home Journal, Punch, and others (you can see a collection of his work by clicking this link.  Mr. Martin donated all his New Yorker cartoons to Princeton University’s Library, which gets him lots of brownie points in our books!).  He also illustrated one of Ann’s books, Baby-sitters Super Special #6: New York, New York!

For more illustrations, see: http://www.scholastic.com/annmartin/letters/2014-02.htm
For more illustrations, see: http://www.scholastic.com/annmartin/letters/2014-02.htm

Ann Martin graduated from Smith College and began her career as a teacher before moving into publishing, where she worked as an editor for children’s books.  Her first book, Bummer Summer was published in 1983.

In 1986, she was approached by Jean Feiwel of Scholastic, who had seen the success of a book called Ginny’s Babysitting Job, and realized there might be a market for similar books, aimed at girls between the ages of 8 to 12.  Martin agreed to write a four book series, beginning with Kristy’s Great Idea, in which enterprising 13-year-old Kristy Thomas gathers her three friends together to start a club-slash-babysitting-business.  The books did fairly well, leading Scholastic to order two more titles.  And then twelve more titles.  And the rest, as they say, is history.

1621292The Baby-Sitters’ Club (or BSC, as we Children of the 90’s knew it) sold over 176 million books between that first book in 1986 and when the series ended in 2000.  It also spawned multiple spin-off series, which featured the members of the Baby-Sitters’ Club itself (which grew to ten members in total), as well as their friends and siblings.  There was also a TV show, which aired on HBO and Nickelodeon, as well as  a film.  The series got so big, in fact, that Scholastic had to hire ghostwriters for the series to keep fans happy.  Though Martin estimates that she wrote between 60 and 80 of the books herself, a number of authors, both known and unknown, have been a part of The Baby-Sitters’ Club at one time or another.

One of my own favorite memories of attending Smith was when Ann M. Martin came to speak at Neilson Library.   As an ardent BSC fan (I wrote Ann M. Martin a fan letter in 1993), I was determined to meet the woman who had shaped so much of my reading experiences through grade school, so I got there an hour early.  The room was already full.  I was lucky enough to get a seat on the window sill, and proceeded to haul late-comers in through said window so that they could hear the talk, as well.  The Fire Marshall wasn’t best pleased with us, but I don’t think there is any greater testament to the power of books to unite readers of all ages, than that night.

So a very happy birthday to Ann M. Martin.  And behalf of all of us: Thank you!

And now, on to some other books that may just change your life, too!

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3739644To the Bright Edge of the World:  Eowyn Ivey’s debut novel, The Snow Child, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, so expectations were quite high for this, her second release.  So far, it seems that it has more than lived up to those expectations.  Set during the winter of 1885, the book tells the tale of Colonel Allen Forrester, a decorated war hero, who leaves his newly pregnant wife Sophie, to accomplish the impossible–to cross the Wolverine River and explore the wilds of Alaska Territory.  He pledges to keep a diary of his trip, to leave some record behind for Sophie, in case he doesn’t make it back.  Meanwhile, Sophie herself finds herself tested in ways she never dreamed, and begins to discover the science and art of photography as a way to express herself and claim her place in it.  The record that these two remarkable people leave behind is one that readers are adoring, and that Publisher’s Weekly called “An entrancing, occasionally chilling, depiction of turn-of-the-century Alaska…In this splendid adventure novel, Ivey captures Alaska’s beauty and brutality, not just preserving history, but keeping it alive.”

3781231Red Right Hand: Levi Black’s debut novel is a little bit horror and a little bit urban fantasy, with a dash of Lovecraft, and a whole lot of imagination, and has the makings of a sensational series.  His heroine is Charlie Tristan Moore, a woman who has survived plenty already in life, but nothing can prepare her for the night when she is ambushed by three skin hounds, and rescued by a Man in Black, with a long, dark coat (which I want, very badly), and a fearsome secret: he is an Elder God, and requires Charlie’s services as his Acolyte, using the dark magic she never knew she had, in order to destroy his fellow Elder Gods.  And he’s taking her best friend Daniel as collateral.  Charlie is told that humanity hangs in the balance–but is she really serving its savior, or its destroyer?  Library Journal says of this series opener: “Fans of dark fantasy and horror in full and gory detail will be entranced by this debut novel.”

3776221These Honored DeadAbraham Lincoln–he was the 16th president, he was a vampire hunter, and now, in Jonathan Putnam’s new mystery, he’s fighting crime on the American frontier!  Apparently inspired by true events, this book centers around young Joshua Speed, the second-son of a plantation owner, who is determined to make his own way in the world.  But when an orphaned girl is found murdered, Joshua is determined to see justice done…and who better to help him than his new friend, and newly-minted lawyer, Abraham Lincoln?  Speed was indeed a real person and a lifelong friend of Lincoln’s, and his brother served as the US Attorney General in 1864, and in bringing him, and Lincoln, to life in this book, Putnam is drawing comparison’s to Caleb Carr’s classic historical mystery The Alienist–high praise indeed!  Library Journal agrees, calling this book a “well-researched debut mystery… Eye-opening historical details on hunting runaway slaves and 19th-century poorhouses will interest readers who enjoy works by Caleb Carr and E.L. Doctorow.”

3779015Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets: Speaking of comparisons, journalist Luke Dittrich’s debut non-fiction book has been drawing comparisons to Oliver Sack and Stephen King, two names that will always grab my attention.  In 1953, a 27-year-old man named Henry Molaison–a factory worker, and severe epileptic–received a radical new form of lobotomy that was intended to eliminate his seizures.  The surgery was a failure, and left Henry unable to produce any long-term memories.  For the next sixty years, Henry became a kind of human science experiement, as doctors used his unique condition to study the brain, how it works, and how it remembers.  Luke Dittrich’s grandfather was the man who performed Henry’s lobotomy, and his book is not just about the two men, but the medical system that brought them together, and a contemplation of the brain and the mind, and what it really means to be human.  Chilling and fascinating by turns, this book is being hailed as a triumph from all corners, with Kirkus Reviews declaring, “Oliver Sacks meets Stephen King in a piercing study of one of psychiatric medicine’s darker hours. . . . A mesmerizing, maddening story and a model of journalistic investigation.”

3779009Adnan’s Story: Fans of NPR’s phenomenally successful Serial heard about  Adnan Syed, who was convicted and sentenced to life plus thirty years for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee, a high school senior in Baltimore, Maryland.  Adnan maintained his innocence throughout his trial and imprisonment, and Rabia Chaudry, a family friend, contacted produced Sarah Koenig at NPR, hoping she could shed light on the case.  The result was a Peabody Award-winning podcast that attracted over 500,000 listeners.  Not only does Chaudry’s book detail Adnan’s life story, his experiences in prison, and the recording of Serial, but claims to have new evidence that will thoroughly defeat the case against Adnan.  Fans of Serial and newcomers to the story will find plenty to enjoy here, and, as the Los Angeles Times notes, “It was easy to forget, listening to ‘Serial,’ that it was a true story about real people. Adnan’s Story adds context and humanizes it in a way that could change how you think about the case, and about ‘Serial’ itself.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!

Five Book Friday!

And a very happy birthday to the Statue of Liberty!

PedestalConstruction

Well…sort of.  On this date in 1884, the cornerstone of the pedestal on which the statue stands was laid on Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbor (the island would be renamed “Liberty Island” in 1956).  Originally, Richard Morris Hunt, who was commissed to design and oversee the construction of the pedestal, wanted to use a solid block of granite, but it turns out that granite was no less expensive (comparatively speaking) than it is today, and Hunt was forced to scale back and construct his pedestal out of poured concrete, about 20 feet wide, and then face it with granite quarried from Connecticut.  At the time, it was the largest concrete mass ever poured.

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The pedestal would not be completed until 1886, when a national fundraiser was able to collect enough money from around the country to afford to erect the Statue. download By that time, Lady Liberty herself had already arrived in pieces into New York Harbor, aboard the French steamer Isère.   Nearly as soon as the concrete had set, work began to get the statue settled, and the dedication ceremony was held on October 28, 1886, with President Grover Cleaveland presiding as Master of Ceremonies. Though it was intended that the statue would work as a lighthouse, no one could figure out how to get the light in the torch to shine brightly enough to been seen at night, until 1916, when the torch was replaced with stained glass, and electic lighting installed.

And speaking of new arrivals (and graceless shifting of topics!), let’s take a look at some of the new books that meandered onto our shelves this week, and are eagerly waiting for you on our Free For All display!

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3774442The Games: A Global History of the OlympicsWith the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics kicking off in Rio de Janiero tonight, this book seemed quite an appropriate choice for today.  Noted and celebrated sports writer David Goldblatt takes a look not only at the history of the Olympics–both Winter and Summer–but also at the world events that took place around them, from World Wars and political upheavals, to the social and cultural movements that changed the game, including the fight for women to be included as equals, and Second World War veterans establishing the Paralympics.  Without shrinking from the often overwhelming economic cost of the Olympics, Goldblatt also manages to show how the Games have in turn affected world events, including the worldwide Civil Rights movement, and the Cold War.  The result is a book that sports fans, history buffs, and cultural observers alike can savor, and one which Kirkus called “A tour de force history of the Olympics in romanticized myth and political reality. . . . Gracefully written and compellingly argued, this is one of the best books of the year and one of the best sports books ever written.”

3772508Night of the AnimalsBill Broun’s genre-defying debut is getting rave reviews from critics on both sides of the Atlantic for its powerful blend of dystopian science-fiction and innocent fairy tale.  Set in London in 2052, the story centers around Cuthbert Handley, a homeless young man who believes that he has been given a gift to communicate with animals–and a calling to set them free.  On the night he sneaks into the London Zoo to release the animals there, the rest of the world’s attention is on a suicide cult that threatening to destroy all of earth’s animals along with themselves.  As Cuthbert and the legions of the cult flood the streets, it becomes increasingly more difficult to tell if Cuthbert is an agent of mercy, or a pawn in the hands of some truly dastardly people, creating a story that is both a nightmare, and a stunning dream.  Publisher’s Weekly gave this book a starred review, saying “Through precise and eloquent prose and a hint of political satire, Broun creates a near future filled with bioelectric technology and characters with patois as diverse as their desires. Broun’s novel is strange, witty, and engrossing, skipping through madness and into the realm of myth.”

3742827The Fire This Time: In 1963, James Baldwin wrote The Fire Next Time, one of the most significant and moving examinations of race relations in the United States.  Now, National Book Award–winner Jesmyn Ward has taken Baldwin’s essay as a starting point for a re-evaluation of race in America, collecting essays, poems, and stories from a diverse and very talented group of young writers.  The result is a collection that challenges us to re-think the idea that the post-Civil Rights era is one that is free of hypocrisy and oppression, and sheds a very sensitive, nuanced light on the way that we, as inviduals, and as citizens, interact with each other, and how we can do better.  This book has been praised by cultural critics, historians, poets, and readers alike, for being both accessible and deeply thought-provoking, with Vogue saying “Perhaps what The Fire This Time does best is to affirm the power of literature and its capacity for reflection and imagination, to collectively acknowledge the need for a much larger conversation, to understand these split-second actions in present, past, and future tense, the way that stories impel us to do. This is a book that seeks to place the shock of our own times into historical context and, most importantly, to move these times forward.”

3783204The HikeDrew Magary has a reputation for creating utterly surreal, and yet bitingly insightful tales that are as wildly imaginative as they are grounded in social observations and analysis, and this latest work is no different.  Ben is an everyday suburban family man on a busniess trip to Pennsylvania, and decides to take a walk through the woods behind his hotel to pass the time.  What he finds is a wonderland of horror and fascination, of beauty and danger…and that he has no choice but to continue going forward, on the hunt for the ‘Producer’ who has created this dreamscape of a reality, and beg to be set free.  With influences from film, video game, and fairy tales alike, this is a book that revels in its own weirdness, yet still manages to present a hero whose journey is emotionally spell-binding.  Library Journal agrees, cheering that “Magary’s second novel…..is a reminder of not only how easy it is to get lost but also how difficult it can be to find one’s way back. Fast-paced and immensely entertaining, this is highly recommended for sf fans and adventurous literary readers.”

3742828I’m Supposed to Protect You From All This: Nadja Spiegelman (daughter of Art Spiegelman, who created the Maus graphic novels), grew up believing that her mother was a fairy.  The French-born New Yorker art director Françoise Mouly held a powerful sway over her family and career, over fantasy and reality alike.  But, as Nadja grew older, she and her mother grew distant.  It wasn’t until she graduated college that her mother told her about her own difficult childhood in France, and the volatile mother she had fled.  This book is not only Nadja’s account of her relationship with her mother, but Françoise Mouly’s mother, whom Nadja tracked down in France, and whose stories totally contradicted the ones that Françoise had told, providing readers with a story that his haunting in its details, and utterly relatable, as are all tales of families and inheritance and memory.  Booklist gave this a starred review, calling Spieglman’s book “Stunning and artistic…[a] touching, surprising consideration of the unclear inheritances of family, and the certain fallibility of memory… [Spiegelman] writes page-turning true stories of women, their work and love, which read like novels, and gains the rare sort of understanding that precludes the need for forgiveness.”

Until next week, beloved patrons–Happy Reading!

Five Book Friday!

Sometimes the world is a big, scary, heavy place.  And this week has seems to have been filled with Days Like That for a lot of you, beloved patrons.  So we’re going to get right down to Five Things to Make You Smile before we get to The Books.

  1. The earliest known iteration of “Facebook”, which seems a lot less stressful than today’s iteration (from The Western Times, 1902)enhanced-11179-1391521202-8

 

2. This cheerful plush teacup

With thanks to Teresa at sewingstars: http://sewingstars.deviantart.com/
With thanks to Teresa at sewingstars: http://sewingstars.deviantart.com/

 

3. A cartoon from the delightfully literary humorist Tom Gauld:

Megalosaur
Check out some more here: http://www.drawnandquarterly.com/youre-all-just-jealous

4. This video of a baby owl getting his pets.  Note: I still want a Library Owl, please.

 

5. New books!  Thank all that is good and right in this world, there are new books:

Five Books

 

97ae3f842a90c5b783b7e51b518a78a4-w204@1xFar From HomeRiptide Publishing is one of the very few publishing companies to promote LGBT romances–and their books are generally of the highest caliber.  Not only that, but their books aren’t afraid to deal with the tough stuff.  In this work, Rachel is dealing with an eating disorder, and the anxiety and insecurity that so often comes along with it.  Drowning in debt and in need of a little kindness, Rachel agrees to marry Pavi, her calm, quiet friend who is in desperate need of a green card.  But as their friendship begins to evolve into something much more intense, Rachel begins to realize that she can’t fully love Pavi until she learns how to trust herself.  Author Lorelei Brown has built her career on crafting smart, insightful romances, and this book promises to be another success, offering an inclusive, honest, and heartrending story, which  Publisher’s Weekly gave a starred review, saying, “The oddest of odd couples finds unexpected joy in Brown’s warm, sweet contemporary romance…drawing readers deep into the women’s tender romance.”

3765886I Am No OnePatrick Flanery’s high-tech thriller shows the very personal aspects of a world of increasing, and increasingly impersonal, surveillance, and uses one man’s search for answers to ask some very trenchant questions about the state of that world.  Jeremy O’Keefe has returned form a decade in England to work as a professor of German literature, living a life that is fulfilling, if a bit lonely.  But when a box full of records of his online activity appears on his doorstep, he begins to wonder if he has not indeed left a trace of some kind.  As the silent attacks begin to escalate, Jeremy is forced to question whether he has unwittingly committed a crime so heinous that it will destroy him–and what it could possible be?  The Associated Press wrote a brilliant review of this book, saying that it “reads like a collaboration between spy novelist John le Carre and Franz Kafka. . . . It’s at once a beautifully written slow-motion thriller, an unnerving story of fear and paranoia, and a cautionary tale about the perils of spy satellites, security cameras and electronic surveillance by faceless government bureaucrats.”

3757351PondNot only does Irish author Claire-Louise Bennett’s debut feature a stunningly colorful cover, but the book itself is being hailed as a remarkable triumph.  Rather than telling a single, linear narrative, we as readers have the chance to see the world through the eyes of Bennett’s unnamed narrator.  As she looks around, as she moves through her day, we learn the secrets of her past, her dreams for the future, and the content of her small cottage.  Bennett’s heroine is as much an Everywoman as she is her own unique presence, and this remarkable, unexpected book is touching and connecting readers around the globe, including the London based Literary Review, which called this slim novel “A beautiful, lasting book that privileges modes of human experience that are so often undervalued, if they are acknowledged at all: neither formative encounters nor outward achievement, but rather the workings of a roving, inquisitive mind, open and receptive to all.”

3772497The Big SheepI love literary puns, and I think sheep are great, so naturally, I had to stop and take a look at Robert Kroese’s book, and saw critics drawing comparisons to both Philip K. Dick and Terry Pratchett…and I was sold.  This book opens in Los Angeles in 2039, where P.I. Erasmus Keane is asked to investigate the disappearance of some genetically-modified sheep.  But as Keane begins chasing lost sheep, his partner finds himself entangled in the case of a mysterious, stunning client–who doesn’t remember hiring them.  As the two cases become impossibly, inextricably linked, Keane realizes that the secrets he is seeking may be the darkest of his memorable career.  NPR had plenty of good things to say about this book, including this: “Kroese’s story is intricate, and his pace is refreshingly relentless, but what really carries The Big Sheep is the laughs. Clever, wry, and not above a little groan-inducing wordplay of the very best kind, the book’s humor not only keeps the mood light, it cements Keane and Fowler’s characters.”

3769669The Accidental AgentReaders who have eagerly awaited the close of Andrew Rosenheim’s Special Agent Jimmy Nessheim trilogy can rejoice, and those who have waited to binge-read this taut, historical thriller, get ready to enjoy.  This story opens in 1942, with Nessheim requesting a long-term leave from the FBI to pursue a law degree at the University of Chicago.  But another man is also heading to the University of Chicago with big dreams–Enrico Fermi has begun work on what will soon become the Manhattan Project, and Nessheim soon finds himself re-enlisted to guard the work that Fermi is doing against a suspected Nazi infiltrator–and confronted with his ex-girlfriend, whose reappearance may not be as coincidental as it seems.  Publisher’s Weekly loved this book, too, giving it a starred review, and cheering, “Rosenheim’s outstanding third Jimmy Nessheim novel (following 2013’s The Little Tokyo Informant) combines a crackerjack plot and multiple nuanced characters with a convincing portrayal of WWII America…The dramatic twists work to propel the plot to a powerful and moving conclusion. Fans of Joseph Kanon’s thrillers of the same period will find a lot to like.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!

Five Book Friday!

And a very happy birthday to S.E. Hinton, author of that perennial classic, The Outsiders!

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Susan Eloise Hinton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma on this date in 1948.  She was always a reader, but was never satisfied with the books she was given to read in school–and quickly set about changing that.  While attending Will Rogers High School (also in Tulsa), she began to observe the two rival “gangs” (groups or cliques might be closer to the mark here) that had established themselves in the school–the Greasers and the Socs.  Both gangs were very much products of their time, defined by their looks and their class.  The HEADER-P7“Greaser” subculture tended to be ‘working class’ young men who posited themselves against a number of traditional societal norms; they reveled in their isolation and individuality, they smoked, they cursed, they loved rock ‘n roll, they formed some of the first motorcycle gangs, and they tended to grease their hair back (à la James Dean), which was how their name was developed–check out the picture on the left for great example.  Though this was primarily a men’s thing, women were allowed to become ‘Greasers’ by the 1950’s.  The Socs, on the other hand, tended to be upper class young men, the children of the elite and the powerful who knew from a very young age that they, too, would grow up to assume those mantles of power.

2282039Society, as a whole, tended to favor the ‘Socs’, because they embodied all that society told people they should want to be–rich, beautiful, powerful, and confident.   But Hinton decided to write a book that was sympathetic to the Greasers–not only to explore the stereotypes surrounding them, but to explain what it was like to be an outsider in a society that condemned without understanding.  She completed the book in 1965 (at the age of 17), and it was published by Viking Press in 1967, when she was a freshman at the University of Tulsa.  Hinton used her initials when publishing as a way to ensure that book reviewers (who, at the time, were nearly exclusively male), would not dismiss the book because of the author’s gender.   The idea was a successful one, in the end.  The Outsiders was an immediate hit, and, to date, has sold more than 14 million copies worldwide.

So we would like to take a moment to thank S.E. Hinton, not only for giving us a book that was a pleasure to read in middle school (and, I can speak from experience, there aren’t many about which I can say that), and for reminding us that everyone deserves sympathy and a voice.

….And, speaking of books….let’s take a look at a few that have sprung up onto our shelves this week!

Five Books

3737618Underground AirlinesBen H. Winters’ book has been making a splash lately, with a number of references in “Best Of” and “Must Read” lists, not in science fiction, but outside the genre, as well.  In Winters’ book, America looks pretty familiar–technology is the same, capitalism rules…the only difference is that the Civil War never happened.  In this America, slavery still exists in four states, and a talented young Black man named Victor is hard at work as a bounty hunter.  Victor’s latest assignment takes him to Indianapolis, where he must attempt to infiltrate an abolitionist group known as the Underground Airlines.  Though he’s always considered himself a good man with bad employers, as he interacts with the people of the Undergroun Airlines, Victor begins to question everything he thought he knew about himself, and about freedom in general.  Christian Science Monitor raved about this book, and the richness of its layers, calling it “a masterful work of art with a gripping mystery at its most basic level. It’s also a complex allegory woven throughout with sparking rich dialogue and multiple shades of awareness. Passengers, fasten your seat belts. The ride may be turbulent, but that’s what makes it great.”

3756073A Green and Ancient Light: Frederic S. Durbin’s haunting novel also features a world very similar–and yet uniquely different from–our own, but this tale is set during the Second World War, when a young boy is sent away from the terrors of the Blitz to live with his grandmother in a rural fishing village.  There is little escape from war, however, and a downed enemy plane in their village immediately shatters the peace of the village.  Then  Mr. Girandole, grandmother’s friend arrives, with tales of fairies and magic.  But it with the discovery of a riddle in the sacred grove of ruins behind grandmother’s house that these erstwhile allies truly begin to find their purpose together, and a world that offers an escape from the brutality around them.  Durbin’s book has drawn comparisons to Neil Gaiman (high praise indeed!), and Booklist drew another admirable comparison of it, saying “Durbin’s gorgeously atmospheric novel solidly shares the fantasy-and historical-fiction genres…a delicate dance between reality and fantasy, ominous soldiers and late-night fairy music. Fans of John Connolly’s The Book of Lost Things will enjoy this bittersweet fantasy with a mystery at its core.

3762216The Tyrannosaur Chronicles: Everyone I know went through a ‘dinosaur phase’ growing up.  I know first grade, for me, passed in a blur of brontasauri and raptors…and it seems that some people’s obsessions really can last a lifetime.  David W.E. Hone has made quite a career for himself as “the face of dinosaur research”, and in  this book, he brings us face to face with the T-Rex, defender of Jurassic Park, and the Big Scary Lizard of every little kid’s imagination.  This book is part history, discussing the first discovery of the T-Rex in the 1880’s, and part science, explaining the evolution of the dinosaur itself, as well as the field of paleontology that gets to study them.  And if that description doesn’t have you jumping up and down by now, I don’t know what to say.  Except, perhaps to relate this review from Publisher’s Weekly, which cheers, “Hone…lets his dinosaur-obsessed inner child run wild in this well-organized, up-to-date fact book about Tyrannosaurus rex and its 25 or so near relatives… Hone provides a solid meal to feed the popular fascination with these tyrant lizards, easily digestible but made from ingredients that, at least in paleontological terms, are quite fresh.”

3717689The Curse of the Tenth Grave:  Fans of Darynda Jones’ fiesty, no-nonsense PI (and grim reaper) Charley Davidson will be delighted with this tenth series’ installment, which finds Charley as busy as ever.  You’d think that helping a desperate homeless girl, saving an innocent man from a murder charge, and locating a pendant that has the entire supernatural community in a panic would be enough work for one day, but Charley is facing an ever greater threat here: three gods have arrived on earth with the express purpose of killing her daughter.  And there is nothing Charley won’t do to protect her family, no matter how long the odds might seem.  This series has consistently received rave reviews from critics and readers alike, and many fans have been expressing delight that Charley seems to be back on track at last, sorting out her issues and dealing with all the drama from previous books, making this a stand-out part of the series, and causing RT Book Reviews to rave, “Jones’ gift for storytelling shines through as she manages to keep the apocalyptic story-lines packed with enough humor and weirdness to make them flat-out fun!”

3762163Champagne, Uncorked: Alan Tardi spent a year at the world-renown (and apparently quite secretive) Krug winery in Reims, and his book tells the tale of the creation of the illlustrious Krug Grande Cuvée (the champagne of champagnes, we are told).  In it, we not only get the tale of Krug, but of champagne itself–it’s creation, it’s cultural significance–apparently we have Napoleon Bonaparte to thank for making it the drink of all good toasts–and the hardships that vinters and wine-makers endure in order to produce it.  The result is a fascinating, well-researched, and easily-disestible book that seeks to understand the real essence of champagne, and will certainly make your own toastable moments that much more memorable.  Newsday agrees, saying the book “Sparkles with information about the beverage of celebration and specifically the making of Krug Grande Cuvee, a great Champagne from arguably the greatest producer. History, harvesting, tasting, blending, marketing, presented with easy going style. You’ll want to make a pilgrimage to Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!

Five Cat Friday!

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We’re changing things up a bit today, beloved patrons.  Because tomorrow is Caturday at the South Branch, a celebration of all things feline.  Thanks to the brilliant (and cat-loving) Lady Pole, the South Branch will be bringing you a day of cats and the people who love them.  Not only will there be cat books and cat videos, the South 3637336Branch will also be hosting acclaimed author Alicia Potter, who will be reading her book Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats and talking about her experiences fostering cats. Her books will also be available for purchase (though purchase is not required to attend).  As if that wasn’t enough fun, there will also be representatives from the Northeast Animal Shelter and PALS, both from Salem, who will be pleased to answer your feline-related questions, and discuss cat adoption.  Here is a full schedule of Caturday Events–it’s an all-day celebration, so feel free to drop by!

  • 9:30AM – Favorite Internet Cat Videos
  • 10AM – Northeast Animal Shelter
  • 11AM- Alicia Potter & Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats
  • 12PM – PALS
  • 1PM – 2016’s Best Internet Cat Videos
  •  ALL DAY – Cat crafts, cat trivia, chat with presenters

So, in honor of this brilliant idea, and in the spirit of finding homes for all our four-legged friends who are looking for forever homes, today we teamed up with the wonderful people at the Northeast Animal Shelter and PALS to bring you a brief bio, health information, and, of course, a ridiculously cute photo, of some of the cats currently at the Shelter, who are just waiting for someone like you to come calling.  Below, you will also find the contact information and websites for both these organizations, if (and when) you begin thinking about adopting a cat….though, for those of us with cats in our lives, we all know that it is us, in reality, who have been adopted by the cats…..

And so, without further ado, please enjoy our first Five Cat Friday!

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From Northeast Animal Shelter:

unnamedWhiskey Girl: Hello, my name is Whiskey Girl and I am a local surrender.  I used to live with a girl chihuahua and I really enjoyed her company.  I also love head butting my person and sit right next to her.  I really am a sweet girl.  I should let you know that I am not a fan of being picked up, but I do love being petted. I also have the sweetest meow when I am playing!  Come in and meet me, I know you will fall in love!
Arrival Date:  4/13/2016
Age:  7 years
Breed: Domestic Short Hair
Sex: Female

unnamed (1)Nivea: Hello, my name is Nivea and I am a 6 year old kitty and a local surrender.  When I first arrived I was very grumpy. All I can say is I really do not like being put into my carrier.  When put into my kennel, I was relaxed and happy.  Then I was put into a carrier and into a van to go to the vet.  Boy, I really dislike traveling. I really would like to be your one and only please.  I do enjoy being petted and having attention on my own terms.  I will let you know when I have had enough via a quick growl or a soft swat with my paw.  If you would like to meet me, come on in!
Arrival Date: 5/31/2016
Age:  6 Years
Breed: Domestic Short Hair
Sex: Female

unnamed (2)Max:  Hello, my name is Max and I am a local surrender.  I lived with another cat and was surrendered when I became diabetic.  My diabetes is doing very well, I guess they say that it is borderline, almost to the point of non-existent!   I am a nice boy and I enjoy being petted and brushed.  I also love playing with both catnip and string toys. I do not care to be picked up though.  Nothing about me is shy, I also have a wonderful purr.  I have been diagnosed with diabetes, but it is well under control, almost to the point of non-existent.  I lived with another cat and we got along well.  Come on in and meet me!  They do same day adoptions and I will be so happy to find a home today!
Arrival Date: 3/23/2016
Age: 12 Years
Breed: Domestic Medium Hair
Sex: Male

From PALS:

NanaNana Gumbo, a quiet, mellow and affectionate 9-year-old, has a sweet temperament. She does, however, live to lounge, and is quite happy sleeping in a sunny spot, or at the foot of your bed. Nana is looking for a home with peaceful surroundings but can adapt to a more lively environment once she feels secure. If you have the patience to introduce Nana to your home slowly, showing her kindness until she builds trust, she will be a loving companion. Nana is a girl who simply doesn’t want to be rushed (unless it’s to the couch for some serious petting!)  Nana Gumbo has been spayed, microchipped, tested negative for FeLV/FIV and is up-to-date on vaccinations.

minouMinou (French for “kitten”) is a 7-year-old wonder cat. He may act timid for the first few seconds, but then shows his affectionate side, head butting with such force that he’ll knock you over. Although he doesn’t like to be held for long, he can be picked up and cuddled. Minou simply loves human companionship and will be eager to be your new best friend. He would, however, like a quieter home as he did get stressed living with a toddler and a dog in his original home. Minou will make a great first pet in a home with older children. Minou has been neutered, microchipped, tested negative for FeLV/FIV and is up-to-date on vaccinations.

For more information on these wonderful kitties and others, for more information on the adoption process, or to make donations to these wonderful places, please contact:

Northeast Animal Shelter:
347 Highland Avenue
Salem, MA 01970
(978) 745-9888
Mon-Fri: 10am – 8pm, Sat & Sun: 10am – 6pm

PALS
Hours for adoptions:
Saturday & Sunday 11-4
Monday-Wednesday-Friday 11-1 (by appointment)

Adoption Center:
10 Traders Way (inside PetSmart)
Salem, MA 01970
978-531-7478

You may view the available cats and kittens in their cages during regular PetSmart store hours.