A video to lift the spirits and remind us of the reason for the season.
View the video.
Committing a random act of culture, the Opera Company of Philadelphia rallied 650 singers to surprise shoppers at Macy's Department Store in Philadelphia. At noon, the Wannamaker Grand Court Organ, the world's largest functional pipe organ, struck up the "Hallelujah Chorus."
The "Hallelujah Chorus" closes the Easter portion of The Messiah. Composed in 1741 in just 24 days, the The Messiah is George F. Handel's most famous oratorio.
Bishop McNamara is a Catholic, college-prep high school in Kankakee, IL. The library blog introduces new books, book reviews, book trailers, fun and interesting articles, original writing, and school and community news.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
A Piece of History : a Message of Peace
During World War II, ten thousand German soldiers were housed in a Prisoner of War Camp in Algona, Iowa. In 1944, Eduard Kaib and five friends created a nativity scene to celebrate Christmas. The scene consisted of sixty figures, half life-size and constructed of concrete and plaster. When the camp was disbanded at the end of the war, the crèche was left as a gift for the town of Algona. The local United Methodist Men’s group has created a permanent display featuring the nativity scene and its history.
Click here to view the video.
Click here to view the video.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Figment.com - Literary website for Teens
Figment.com, a literary website for young people, will be launched on Monday, December 6. The site is a free platform for teens to read and write fiction--novels, short stories, poems; to write solo or collaboratively; and to give and receive feedback.
The site will also provide a forum for publishers to scout new talent and to release previews of books. Running Press Kids has contracted to release an excerpt of "Purple Daze," an historical novel by Sherry Shahan.
The site will also provide a forum for publishers to scout new talent and to release previews of books. Running Press Kids has contracted to release an excerpt of "Purple Daze," an historical novel by Sherry Shahan.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Holiday Gift Guide : Best Books of 2010 - from the New York Times
Freedom / Jonathan Franzen
The New Yorker Stories / Anne Beattie
The Room / Emma Donoghue
Selected Stories / William Trevor
A visit from the goon squad / Jennifer Egan
Apollo's angels : a history of ballet / Jennifer Homans
Cleopatra : a life / Stacy Schiff
The emperor of all maladies : a biography of cancer / Siddhartha Mukherjee
Finishing the hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) With Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and Anecdotes / Stephen Sondheim
The warmth of other suns : The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration / Isabel Wilkerson.
Read more at The New York Times
See also "100 Notable Books of 2010."
The New Yorker Stories / Anne Beattie
The Room / Emma Donoghue
Selected Stories / William Trevor
A visit from the goon squad / Jennifer Egan
Apollo's angels : a history of ballet / Jennifer Homans
Cleopatra : a life / Stacy Schiff
The emperor of all maladies : a biography of cancer / Siddhartha Mukherjee
Finishing the hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) With Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and Anecdotes / Stephen Sondheim
The warmth of other suns : The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration / Isabel Wilkerson.
Read more at The New York Times
See also "100 Notable Books of 2010."
The Brain as Art
A new art book literally presents the beauty of the mind. The NYT reviewer comments that "scientists are routinely seduced by beauty." An appreciation for beauty extends far beyond the scientific community. Carl Schoonover, a doctoral candidate in neuroscience at Columbia, has taken up the challenge of presenting the beauty and mystery of the brain as art. The work "includes short essays by prominent neuroscientists and long captions by Mr. Schoonover — but its words take second place to the gorgeous imagery, from the first delicate depictions of neurons sketched in prim Victorian black and white to the giant Technicolor splashes the same structures make across 21st-century LED screens." (from NYT; 12/2/10)
“Portraits of the Mind: Visualizing the Brain From Antiquity to the 21st Century" by Carl Schoonover.
Read more at The New York Times.
“Portraits of the Mind: Visualizing the Brain From Antiquity to the 21st Century" by Carl Schoonover.
Read more at The New York Times.
Jackie Kennedy : a life of her own
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis--the beautiful fashion plate, the linguist, the avid reader, the book editor. Two new books discuss Onassis's career in publishing.
“Reading Jackie: Her Autobiography in Books,” by William Kuhn, a biographer and historian, will be released on Dec. 7.
"Jackie as Editor: The Literary Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis” by Greg Lawrence and will be released Jan. 4.
Read more at The New York Times.
“Reading Jackie: Her Autobiography in Books,” by William Kuhn, a biographer and historian, will be released on Dec. 7.
"Jackie as Editor: The Literary Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis” by Greg Lawrence and will be released Jan. 4.
Read more at The New York Times.
Monday, November 22, 2010
A Christmas Story for Thanksgiving
A Secret Gift: How One Man's Kindness--and a Trove of Letters--Revealed the Hidden History of the Great Depression / Ted Gup
Ted Gup's story of his grandfather, family secrets, and random acts of kindness.
On Dec. 17, 1933, an ad appeared in The Canton Repository newspaper offering $10 to 75 families in distress. A benefactor calling himself Mr. B. Virdot invited readers to submit a letter describing their struggles. He promised to keep the letter writers’ identities secret “until the very end.” In 2008, Ted Gup discovered the letters in a trunk and learned that Mr. Virdot was his grandfather, Sam Stone. He had kept the letters and the secret until the end.
Many families wrote of their need for food or fuel; others wanted to buy a toy for their child or a set of encyclopedias. Gup tracked down the writers or their descendants, discovering that his grandfather’s gifts had an enormous impact on the recipients. Gup eventually hosted a gathering for his grandfather's beneciaries; ninety-year-old Helen Palm was the last living recipient of Mr. Stone's gift. (Read about the event at The New York Times).
Gup also learned more of his grandfather’s secrets. Stone was a Romanian Jewish immigrant who had survived a terrible childhood of poverty and abuse. He made every effort, legal and illegal, to assimilate into American society and eventually became a successful businessman.
As we gather for Thanksgiving, may we be truly grateful to God for our blessings and ever mindful of the needs of others.
Ted Gup's story of his grandfather, family secrets, and random acts of kindness.
On Dec. 17, 1933, an ad appeared in The Canton Repository newspaper offering $10 to 75 families in distress. A benefactor calling himself Mr. B. Virdot invited readers to submit a letter describing their struggles. He promised to keep the letter writers’ identities secret “until the very end.” In 2008, Ted Gup discovered the letters in a trunk and learned that Mr. Virdot was his grandfather, Sam Stone. He had kept the letters and the secret until the end.
Many families wrote of their need for food or fuel; others wanted to buy a toy for their child or a set of encyclopedias. Gup tracked down the writers or their descendants, discovering that his grandfather’s gifts had an enormous impact on the recipients. Gup eventually hosted a gathering for his grandfather's beneciaries; ninety-year-old Helen Palm was the last living recipient of Mr. Stone's gift. (Read about the event at The New York Times).
Gup also learned more of his grandfather’s secrets. Stone was a Romanian Jewish immigrant who had survived a terrible childhood of poverty and abuse. He made every effort, legal and illegal, to assimilate into American society and eventually became a successful businessman.
As we gather for Thanksgiving, may we be truly grateful to God for our blessings and ever mindful of the needs of others.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1936 - Franklin D. Roosevelt
I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, hereby designate Thursday, the twenty-sixth day of November, 1936, as a day of national thanksgiving.
The observance of a day of general thanksgiving by all the people is a practice peculiarly our own, hallowed by usage in the days before we were a nation and sanctioned through succeeding years.
Having safely passed through troubled waters, it is our right to express our gratitude that Divine Providence has vouchsafed us wisdom and courage to overcome adversity. Our free institutions have been maintained with no abatement of our faith in them. In our relations with other peoples we stand not aloof but make resolute effort to promote international friendship and, by the avoidance of discord, to further world peace, prosperity, and happiness.
Coupled with our grateful acknowledgment of the blessings it has been our high privilege to enjoy, we have a deepening sense of our solemn responsibility to assure for ourselves and our descendants a future more abundant in faith and in security.
Let us, therefore, on the day appointed, each in his own way, but together as a whole people, make due expression of our thanksgiving and humbly endeavor to follow in the footsteps of Almighty God.
The observance of a day of general thanksgiving by all the people is a practice peculiarly our own, hallowed by usage in the days before we were a nation and sanctioned through succeeding years.
Having safely passed through troubled waters, it is our right to express our gratitude that Divine Providence has vouchsafed us wisdom and courage to overcome adversity. Our free institutions have been maintained with no abatement of our faith in them. In our relations with other peoples we stand not aloof but make resolute effort to promote international friendship and, by the avoidance of discord, to further world peace, prosperity, and happiness.
Coupled with our grateful acknowledgment of the blessings it has been our high privilege to enjoy, we have a deepening sense of our solemn responsibility to assure for ourselves and our descendants a future more abundant in faith and in security.
Let us, therefore, on the day appointed, each in his own way, but together as a whole people, make due expression of our thanksgiving and humbly endeavor to follow in the footsteps of Almighty God.
George Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation
"Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me to "recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:
"Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
"And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best."
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, A.D. 1789.
"Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
"And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best."
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, A.D. 1789.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
And the winners are. . . .
National Book Awards
Nonfiction
Just kids / Patti Smith
"A memoir of her relationship with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe and life in the bohemian New York of the 1960s and ’70s."
Fiction
Lord of Misrule / Jaimy Gordon
Tells the story of the ruthless world of horse racing in West Virginia.
Young People's Literature
Mockingbird / Kathryn Erskine
The story of an 11 year old girl's struggle with Asperger's.
Poetry
Lighthead / Terrance Hayes
Tom Wolfe was awarded the 2010 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
Joan Ganz Cooney, a public television producer and founder of the Children’s Television Workshop in 1968, won the 2010 Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community.
[from The New York Times)
Nonfiction
Just kids / Patti Smith
"A memoir of her relationship with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe and life in the bohemian New York of the 1960s and ’70s."
Fiction
Lord of Misrule / Jaimy Gordon
Tells the story of the ruthless world of horse racing in West Virginia.
Young People's Literature
Mockingbird / Kathryn Erskine
The story of an 11 year old girl's struggle with Asperger's.
Poetry
Lighthead / Terrance Hayes
Tom Wolfe was awarded the 2010 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
Joan Ganz Cooney, a public television producer and founder of the Children’s Television Workshop in 1968, won the 2010 Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community.
[from The New York Times)
Save the Words!
Every year hundreds of words are dropped from the English language. Today, 90% of writing is communicated by only 7000 words.
Would you like to help combat this problem? How about adding a new word to your vocabulary each day? Visit "Save the Words" website, click on "word-a-day," and register to receive a daily word via email from Oxford Press.
Only you can halt the erosion of language.
Would you like to help combat this problem? How about adding a new word to your vocabulary each day? Visit "Save the Words" website, click on "word-a-day," and register to receive a daily word via email from Oxford Press.
Only you can halt the erosion of language.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
What books did you really enjoy this year? Buzz in with your favorites
Best books of the year
Not a stuffy list, just responses to a question about books from "The Guardian," a British paper.
So here are my titles.
The Forgotten Garden / Kate Morton
A suitcase with a child's dress and a book of fairy tales the only links to Nell's past. Her mysterious history leads to a manor house, a cottage with a walled garden, and a hedge maze. The historic portion of the story is especially well done.
The Music Room / William Fiennes
Fiennes is an excellent storyteller. Don't miss this poignant tale of Fiennes' family, his brother who suffered from severe epilepsy, and a childhood spent in a medieval castle.
Operation Mincemeat / Ben Macintyre
An undercover operation inspired by Ian Flemming (the James Bond novelist). A dead body is given false identification and a letter with false information about an Allied attack. The tale traveled all the way to Hitler's desk and helped assure an Allied victory.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society / Mary Anne Shaffer and Annie Barrows
Stories of the German occupation of Guernsey Island during WWII. Told in a series of letters. The characters are so vivid I was surprised to learn they were not based on real people.
Wintergirls / Laurie Halse Anderson
A dark, disturbing story of a teenage girl's battle with anorexia.
Please buzz in with your favorites.
Not a stuffy list, just responses to a question about books from "The Guardian," a British paper.
So here are my titles.
The Forgotten Garden / Kate Morton
A suitcase with a child's dress and a book of fairy tales the only links to Nell's past. Her mysterious history leads to a manor house, a cottage with a walled garden, and a hedge maze. The historic portion of the story is especially well done.
The Music Room / William Fiennes
Fiennes is an excellent storyteller. Don't miss this poignant tale of Fiennes' family, his brother who suffered from severe epilepsy, and a childhood spent in a medieval castle.
Operation Mincemeat / Ben Macintyre
An undercover operation inspired by Ian Flemming (the James Bond novelist). A dead body is given false identification and a letter with false information about an Allied attack. The tale traveled all the way to Hitler's desk and helped assure an Allied victory.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society / Mary Anne Shaffer and Annie Barrows
Stories of the German occupation of Guernsey Island during WWII. Told in a series of letters. The characters are so vivid I was surprised to learn they were not based on real people.
Wintergirls / Laurie Halse Anderson
A dark, disturbing story of a teenage girl's battle with anorexia.
Please buzz in with your favorites.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Book Title Spoofs
I was reading a book catalog as part of the constant effort to improve the collection and decided to have some fun. The bits in italics are book titles - yes, real book titles. The rest are my musings. Enjoy!
The girl who kicked the hornet’s nest – got stung?
Hell bent – and froze over too. (But it didn’t break.)
Finger lickin’ fifteen – so good it requires three hands!
Plum spooky – pears, apples, cinnamon. Chutney, anyone?
My husband’s sweethearts – um, that would be me, me , and oh yes, me!
The complete idiot’s guide to the constitution – 535 copies to Capitol Hill, please!
“I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace; that two are called a law firm; and that three or more become a Congress!” (from the Broadway musical 1776)
Cast Iron cookbook – for cast iron stomachs - the hardest, toughest recipes ever put between two slabs of cardboard.
The only grant-writing book – well, if it will do the job, you only need one. Does it type or use voice-activated software?
20/20 thinking – a book about hindsight?
And finally,...
You’ve been warned – enough said!
The girl who kicked the hornet’s nest – got stung?
Hell bent – and froze over too. (But it didn’t break.)
Finger lickin’ fifteen – so good it requires three hands!
Plum spooky – pears, apples, cinnamon. Chutney, anyone?
My husband’s sweethearts – um, that would be me, me , and oh yes, me!
The complete idiot’s guide to the constitution – 535 copies to Capitol Hill, please!
“I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace; that two are called a law firm; and that three or more become a Congress!” (from the Broadway musical 1776)
Cast Iron cookbook – for cast iron stomachs - the hardest, toughest recipes ever put between two slabs of cardboard.
The only grant-writing book – well, if it will do the job, you only need one. Does it type or use voice-activated software?
20/20 thinking – a book about hindsight?
And finally,...
You’ve been warned – enough said!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
New Professional Resources
Boys adrift : the five factors driving the growing epidemic of unmotivated boys and underachieving young men : video games, teaching methods, prescription drugs, environmental toxins, devaluation of masculinity / Leonard Sax, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Sax uses scientific literature and professional experience to explore the reasons boys are failing at school and disengaged at home. He illustrates how social, cultural, and biological factors have created a toxic environment for boys. Sax offers strategies for teachers and parents on such topics as homework, video games, and medication. (from the cover.)
Girls on the edge : the four factors driving the new crisis for girls : sexual identity, the cyberbubble, obsessions, environmental toxins / Leonard Sax
Sax addresses problems that stem from early and over-sexualization; the identity crisis that may result from texting, sexting, and social networking; disorders and self-mutilation that may result from obsessions and over-blown anxieties; and environmental toxins that may lead to early onset of puberty and a slew of problems. (from the cover)
Temple Grandin [videorecording]
The movie tells the story of Dr. Temple Grandin. Diagnosed with autism at 4 years old, Grandin overcame the odds to graduate high school, earn a Ph.D., and become a scientist who revolutionized the treatment of livestock.
Dr. Sax uses scientific literature and professional experience to explore the reasons boys are failing at school and disengaged at home. He illustrates how social, cultural, and biological factors have created a toxic environment for boys. Sax offers strategies for teachers and parents on such topics as homework, video games, and medication. (from the cover.)
Girls on the edge : the four factors driving the new crisis for girls : sexual identity, the cyberbubble, obsessions, environmental toxins / Leonard Sax
Sax addresses problems that stem from early and over-sexualization; the identity crisis that may result from texting, sexting, and social networking; disorders and self-mutilation that may result from obsessions and over-blown anxieties; and environmental toxins that may lead to early onset of puberty and a slew of problems. (from the cover)
Temple Grandin [videorecording]
The movie tells the story of Dr. Temple Grandin. Diagnosed with autism at 4 years old, Grandin overcame the odds to graduate high school, earn a Ph.D., and become a scientist who revolutionized the treatment of livestock.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Veteran's Day
Veteran's Day is celebrated in the United States each year on November 11 to honor out military veterans. The date is fixed on the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice to end World War I.
Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know that the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell.
In loving memory of
Calvin B. Ellis, 1929-2010
Lt. Col. Lewis Sherouse,USAF, ret. 1934-2010
Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know that the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell.
In loving memory of
Calvin B. Ellis, 1929-2010
Lt. Col. Lewis Sherouse,USAF, ret. 1934-2010
Highlights - 11/9/10 - in honor of Veteran's Day
And if I perish : frontline U.S. Army nurses in World War II / Evelyn M. Monahan and Rosemary Neidel-Greenlee
More than 59,000 nurses volunteered to serve in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, and more than 1,600 were decorated for meritorious service and bravery. These are their stories.
The Navajo code talkers / Doris A. Paul
During World War II, a platoon of Marines known as the Navajo Code Talkers devised a code based on their native language that the enemy was unable to decipher. Their code enabled Allied forces to prevail in the South Pacific. (Amazon.com; 11/08/10)
1776 / David McCullough
Tells the dramatic events of the year of the Declaration of Independence, the beginning of the war with Great Britain, the leadership of Gen. George Washington, and the bravery and ingenuity of civilians-turned-soldiers. One such man was Henry Knox (heard of Fort Knox?), a young bookseller with the audacity to attempt to move 120,000 pounds of artillery from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston in the middle of winter. To move canons across the frozen Hudson River, Knox drilled holes in the ice to allow water to rise through and freeze over the top, thickening the ice to hold up under the heavy load. Did it work? Read the book and find out.
Operation Mincemeat : how a dead man and a bizarre plan fooled the Nazis and assured an Allied victory/ Ben Macintyre
[Where James Bond got his start!]
At its most visible, war is fought with weapons, leadership, courage and brute force. There is also a less visible conflict, a battle of deception, seduction and bad faith, ‘protected as Church put it, by “a bodyguard of lies.” (p.10)
"Operation Mincemeat" was the brainchild of Lieutenant Commander Ian Fleming, who would go on to write the James Bond novels. “The man lying in the dunes at Punta Umbria was a fraud. The lies he carried would fly from London to Madrid to Berlin, traveling from a freezing Scottish loch to the shores of Sicily, from fiction to reality, and from Room 13 of the Admiralty all the way to Hitler’s desk.”(p.10)
[The Librarian is currently reading this book, and there’s no way she’s giving it up till she’s finished. But she reads fast!]
An American Knight / Norman Fulkerson
The story of Col. John Ripley – decorated Marine and American hero.
More than 59,000 nurses volunteered to serve in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, and more than 1,600 were decorated for meritorious service and bravery. These are their stories.
The Navajo code talkers / Doris A. Paul
During World War II, a platoon of Marines known as the Navajo Code Talkers devised a code based on their native language that the enemy was unable to decipher. Their code enabled Allied forces to prevail in the South Pacific. (Amazon.com; 11/08/10)
1776 / David McCullough
Tells the dramatic events of the year of the Declaration of Independence, the beginning of the war with Great Britain, the leadership of Gen. George Washington, and the bravery and ingenuity of civilians-turned-soldiers. One such man was Henry Knox (heard of Fort Knox?), a young bookseller with the audacity to attempt to move 120,000 pounds of artillery from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston in the middle of winter. To move canons across the frozen Hudson River, Knox drilled holes in the ice to allow water to rise through and freeze over the top, thickening the ice to hold up under the heavy load. Did it work? Read the book and find out.
Operation Mincemeat : how a dead man and a bizarre plan fooled the Nazis and assured an Allied victory/ Ben Macintyre
[Where James Bond got his start!]
At its most visible, war is fought with weapons, leadership, courage and brute force. There is also a less visible conflict, a battle of deception, seduction and bad faith, ‘protected as Church put it, by “a bodyguard of lies.” (p.10)
"Operation Mincemeat" was the brainchild of Lieutenant Commander Ian Fleming, who would go on to write the James Bond novels. “The man lying in the dunes at Punta Umbria was a fraud. The lies he carried would fly from London to Madrid to Berlin, traveling from a freezing Scottish loch to the shores of Sicily, from fiction to reality, and from Room 13 of the Admiralty all the way to Hitler’s desk.”(p.10)
[The Librarian is currently reading this book, and there’s no way she’s giving it up till she’s finished. But she reads fast!]
An American Knight / Norman Fulkerson
The story of Col. John Ripley – decorated Marine and American hero.
New Books - 11/08/10
The cardturner : a novel about a King, a Queen, and a Joker / Louis Sachar
The summer after junior year looks bleak for Alton Richards. His girlfriend dumped him for his best friend. He has no job. Then his parents insist that he drive his rich, blind uncle to his bridge club and act as his cardturner. His uncle can’t see the cards, and Alton doesn’t know the rules of the game. How are they supposed to be partners? (from the cover)
Revolution / Jennifer Donnelly
A story of intrigue, romance, pop music, and history. Andi Alpers, a teenage guitar prodigy, is grieving over her brother’s death and her parents’ failed marriage. While in Paris with her geneticist father, hired to match the DNA of a heart said to belong to the last dauphin of France, Andi discovers a diary hidden within a guitar case. Thus begins the story of Alexandrine Paradis, a companion of the dauphin.
Thrillers
Girl, stolen / April Henry
For Cheyenne Wilder, a blind teenager suffering from pneumonia, a quick trip to the pharmacy becomes a nightmare when her stepmother’s car is stolen, and Cheyenne is kidnapped.
Star Crossed / Elizabeth Bunce
Celyn Contrare is a glamorous lady-in-waiting by day and a thief and spy by night. Celyn knows many secrets, but Lord Daul knows hers and is blackmailing her. Will she survive or fall victim to the king’s Inquisition?
Fantasy
The Scorch Trials / James Dashner
Solving the Maze was supposed to be the end of the puzzles, the variables, the running. Now Thomas and the Gladers find themselves crossing the Scorch, a dangerous, unruly wasteland that lacks food, water, and shelter. Sequel to The Maze Runner.
The summer after junior year looks bleak for Alton Richards. His girlfriend dumped him for his best friend. He has no job. Then his parents insist that he drive his rich, blind uncle to his bridge club and act as his cardturner. His uncle can’t see the cards, and Alton doesn’t know the rules of the game. How are they supposed to be partners? (from the cover)
Revolution / Jennifer Donnelly
A story of intrigue, romance, pop music, and history. Andi Alpers, a teenage guitar prodigy, is grieving over her brother’s death and her parents’ failed marriage. While in Paris with her geneticist father, hired to match the DNA of a heart said to belong to the last dauphin of France, Andi discovers a diary hidden within a guitar case. Thus begins the story of Alexandrine Paradis, a companion of the dauphin.
Thrillers
Girl, stolen / April Henry
For Cheyenne Wilder, a blind teenager suffering from pneumonia, a quick trip to the pharmacy becomes a nightmare when her stepmother’s car is stolen, and Cheyenne is kidnapped.
Star Crossed / Elizabeth Bunce
Celyn Contrare is a glamorous lady-in-waiting by day and a thief and spy by night. Celyn knows many secrets, but Lord Daul knows hers and is blackmailing her. Will she survive or fall victim to the king’s Inquisition?
Fantasy
The Scorch Trials / James Dashner
Solving the Maze was supposed to be the end of the puzzles, the variables, the running. Now Thomas and the Gladers find themselves crossing the Scorch, a dangerous, unruly wasteland that lacks food, water, and shelter. Sequel to The Maze Runner.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Making a list and checking it twice....
'Tis the season for lists and America's literary circles are making them. Here's hoping some of the top titles appear on your Christmas wish list.
2010 Best books for Young Adults (American Library Association)
Amazon’s Best Books of 2010
Best Books of 2010 – Publisher’s Weekly
Top Ten Books of 2010 – Library Journal
Best illustrated children's books of 2010 (from The New York Times)
2010 Best books for Young Adults (American Library Association)
Amazon’s Best Books of 2010
Best Books of 2010 – Publisher’s Weekly
Top Ten Books of 2010 – Library Journal
Best illustrated children's books of 2010 (from The New York Times)
"An American Knight"
Norman Fulkerson will speak at Bishop McNamara on Veteran's Day. He is the author of "An American Knight," the story of Col. John Ripley, a decorated Marine and devout Catholic.
The library has added Fulkerson's work to the collection. You will soon hear the speech. Don't miss the book!
The library has added Fulkerson's work to the collection. You will soon hear the speech. Don't miss the book!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Col. John Ripley representation
An American Knight: The Life of Colonel John W. Ripley, USMC / Norman J. Fulkerson
"I have never known anyone with enduring repetitive courage who was not also a person of faith. In combat my faith was for me a substitute for fear; it was a source of comfort, calm and courage -- it allowed me to do things that for me would have otherwise been impossible. John Ripley was also a man of faith. It was clearly the source of his extraordinary physical and moral courage. He was a true hero, not a celebrity. Not only a person who performed acts of courage, rather he was a good person who performed acts of courage. Only when you combine courage with goodness do you have a true hero. His goodness crowned his courage and defined his character which marked him as an extraordinary example for those who follow the warriors path. It is for this reason that I highly recommend Norman Fulkerson's book on John Ripley, An American Knight, to all who seek to understand heroism. --General Pat Brady, US Army (Ret.)Medal of Honor Recipient" (from Amazon.com; accessed 11/2/10)
Marine Colonel John W. Ripley was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroic action during the Easter Offensive of 1972 in Vietnam. Facing 200 North Vietnamese tanks and 30,000 troops, Ripley was ordered to "hold and die" at Dong Ha Bridge. Ripley destroyed the bridge to prevent the enemy from crossing.
Norman Fulkerson will speak at Bishop McNamara on November 11.
"I have never known anyone with enduring repetitive courage who was not also a person of faith. In combat my faith was for me a substitute for fear; it was a source of comfort, calm and courage -- it allowed me to do things that for me would have otherwise been impossible. John Ripley was also a man of faith. It was clearly the source of his extraordinary physical and moral courage. He was a true hero, not a celebrity. Not only a person who performed acts of courage, rather he was a good person who performed acts of courage. Only when you combine courage with goodness do you have a true hero. His goodness crowned his courage and defined his character which marked him as an extraordinary example for those who follow the warriors path. It is for this reason that I highly recommend Norman Fulkerson's book on John Ripley, An American Knight, to all who seek to understand heroism. --General Pat Brady, US Army (Ret.)Medal of Honor Recipient" (from Amazon.com; accessed 11/2/10)
Marine Colonel John W. Ripley was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroic action during the Easter Offensive of 1972 in Vietnam. Facing 200 North Vietnamese tanks and 30,000 troops, Ripley was ordered to "hold and die" at Dong Ha Bridge. Ripley destroyed the bridge to prevent the enemy from crossing.
Norman Fulkerson will speak at Bishop McNamara on November 11.
The Difference between Infinity and Eternity - a Nobel Laureate gets on with class
Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. the next day he taught class as if nothing had happened. . . .
"Mr. Vargas Llosa twisted around in his front-row seat to face the class. Can anyone, he asked, explain the difference between infinity and eternity?
Several students tried, but Mr. Vargas Llosa was not satisfied.
“But what’s the difference?” he said. “Who can explain the difference to me? It’s not clear to me.”
After other students suggested definitions and references to Borges stories, Marc Lanthemann spoke up.
“Infinity is an absolute, whereas eternity is a temporal relation,” Mr. Lanthemann said. “Infinity is a general property of having no bounds, whereas eternity is a property of time.”
Mr. Vargas Llosa paused and smiled. “I’m not that convinced,” he said, drawing laughs."
Read more at The New York Times.
"Mr. Vargas Llosa twisted around in his front-row seat to face the class. Can anyone, he asked, explain the difference between infinity and eternity?
Several students tried, but Mr. Vargas Llosa was not satisfied.
“But what’s the difference?” he said. “Who can explain the difference to me? It’s not clear to me.”
After other students suggested definitions and references to Borges stories, Marc Lanthemann spoke up.
“Infinity is an absolute, whereas eternity is a temporal relation,” Mr. Lanthemann said. “Infinity is a general property of having no bounds, whereas eternity is a property of time.”
Mr. Vargas Llosa paused and smiled. “I’m not that convinced,” he said, drawing laughs."
Read more at The New York Times.
Friday, October 29, 2010
A tribute to Librarians
A lovely tribute to librarians by author Connie McGovern at the October Librarians Sneak Peek Book Preview 2011. Read her speech at EarlyWord : the Publisher/Librarian Connection.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Five for Halloween - Highlights, 10/27/10
“By the pricking of my thumbs,
something wicked this way comes.” (Macbeth, Act IV, scene i)
Something wicked this way comes / Ray Bradbury
Sometime after midnight, a week before Halloween, the carnival rolls Green Town, IL. “Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show has come. . . to destroy every life touched by its strange and sinister mystery. And two boys will discover the secret of its smoke, mazes, and mirrors; two friends who will soon know all too well the heavy cost of wishes. . . and the stuff of nightmare.” (from the cover)
And then there were none / Agatha Christie
From the Queen of Crime, one of her best-selling mysteries. Ten guests arrive on an island and one by one, are mysteriously murdered. See also, By the pricking of my thumbs.
Complete stories and poems of Edgar Allan Poe
Specializing in the macabre, Poe was the father of the modern detective story.
In “The Fall of the House of Usher”, the narrator receives a desperate letter from Roderick Usher, a "boyhood friend" requesting a visit. The visit to the old mansion becomes a Gothic horror story.
In “The Masque of the Red Death,” Prince Prospero seals one thousand royals in a castle in an attempt to escape the Red Death that has killed half the kingdom’s population.
In “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the narrator describes and carries out his plan to kill an old man and hide his dismembered body beneath the floorboards. The plan goes well until the killer hears his victim’s heart beating.
Killer Stuff / Sharon Fiffer
Jane Wheel, former business woman, is now a picker for an antique dealer, scrounging yard sales and auctions for treasures. When she stumbles on two dead bodies and winds up a murder suspect, Jane finds herself sleuthing for killers rather than killer stuff.
Fiffer is a native of Kankakee and a Bishop Mac grad whose books are set in Illinois and incorporates many local references. Her fifth Jane Wheel mystery will be published soon.
The girl who loved Tom Gordon / Stephen King
Nine-year-old Trisha McFarland wanders away from her brother and mother while hiking on the Appalachian Trail. When night falls, she finds solace listening to the Boston Red Sox game, following the performance of her hero, relief pitcher Tom Gordon. She imagines Gordon is with her as she tries to survive a night in the woods hiding from “an enemy known only by the slaughtered animals and mangled trees in its wake.” (from the inside cover)
something wicked this way comes.” (Macbeth, Act IV, scene i)
Something wicked this way comes / Ray Bradbury
Sometime after midnight, a week before Halloween, the carnival rolls Green Town, IL. “Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show has come. . . to destroy every life touched by its strange and sinister mystery. And two boys will discover the secret of its smoke, mazes, and mirrors; two friends who will soon know all too well the heavy cost of wishes. . . and the stuff of nightmare.” (from the cover)
And then there were none / Agatha Christie
From the Queen of Crime, one of her best-selling mysteries. Ten guests arrive on an island and one by one, are mysteriously murdered. See also, By the pricking of my thumbs.
Complete stories and poems of Edgar Allan Poe
Specializing in the macabre, Poe was the father of the modern detective story.
In “The Fall of the House of Usher”, the narrator receives a desperate letter from Roderick Usher, a "boyhood friend" requesting a visit. The visit to the old mansion becomes a Gothic horror story.
In “The Masque of the Red Death,” Prince Prospero seals one thousand royals in a castle in an attempt to escape the Red Death that has killed half the kingdom’s population.
In “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the narrator describes and carries out his plan to kill an old man and hide his dismembered body beneath the floorboards. The plan goes well until the killer hears his victim’s heart beating.
Killer Stuff / Sharon Fiffer
Jane Wheel, former business woman, is now a picker for an antique dealer, scrounging yard sales and auctions for treasures. When she stumbles on two dead bodies and winds up a murder suspect, Jane finds herself sleuthing for killers rather than killer stuff.
Fiffer is a native of Kankakee and a Bishop Mac grad whose books are set in Illinois and incorporates many local references. Her fifth Jane Wheel mystery will be published soon.
The girl who loved Tom Gordon / Stephen King
Nine-year-old Trisha McFarland wanders away from her brother and mother while hiking on the Appalachian Trail. When night falls, she finds solace listening to the Boston Red Sox game, following the performance of her hero, relief pitcher Tom Gordon. She imagines Gordon is with her as she tries to survive a night in the woods hiding from “an enemy known only by the slaughtered animals and mangled trees in its wake.” (from the inside cover)
Friday, October 22, 2010
"It's a Book!"
It's flat and rectangular. It doesn't tweet or text. It doesn't require a mouse or a password. What is it?
It's a book!
A mouse, a donkey, and a monkey discover the joys of reading in a new illustrated children's book by Lane Smith. Read more at The New York Times.
It's a book!
A mouse, a donkey, and a monkey discover the joys of reading in a new illustrated children's book by Lane Smith. Read more at The New York Times.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
New Books, 10/20/10
Profiles in Economics
Adam Smith (1723-1790)
Known as the founding father of economics, Smith wrote about the importance of free trade.
Karl Marx (1818-1883)
German philosopher and author of the “The Communist Manifesto.”
John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946)
British professor and philosopher who advocated government spending to stimulate the economy.
Milton Friedman (1912-2006)
American economist who believed in free markets, individual liberty, and limited government. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics.
Government
Homeland Security
Agricultural subsidies
Opposing Viewpoints
Video Games
Discusses addiction to video games; how the games are linked to aggression, tolerance, gender roles; and whether their use should be regulated through legislation.
Adam Smith (1723-1790)
Known as the founding father of economics, Smith wrote about the importance of free trade.
Karl Marx (1818-1883)
German philosopher and author of the “The Communist Manifesto.”
John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946)
British professor and philosopher who advocated government spending to stimulate the economy.
Milton Friedman (1912-2006)
American economist who believed in free markets, individual liberty, and limited government. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics.
Government
Homeland Security
Agricultural subsidies
Opposing Viewpoints
Video Games
Discusses addiction to video games; how the games are linked to aggression, tolerance, gender roles; and whether their use should be regulated through legislation.
Lending a hand
The November issue of U.S. News and World Report is titled "Giving Back : a citizen's guide to public service."
Topics include the history and tradition of volunteerism in American, corporate phlanthropy, the "Giving Pledge" taken by some of our wealthiest, and the physical and spiritual benefits of volunteering.
Don't miss this issue!
Topics include the history and tradition of volunteerism in American, corporate phlanthropy, the "Giving Pledge" taken by some of our wealthiest, and the physical and spiritual benefits of volunteering.
Don't miss this issue!
Books and Bars
Avi Steinberg chronicles life as a prison librarian in Running the Books. He quickly learns there are many imaginative uses for library resources from fashioning weapons and body armor to leaving letters and notes for each other inside the books.
Read more at The New York Times
Read more at The New York Times
Friday, October 15, 2010
National Book Award Finalists
The National Book Awards are presented annually to recognize outstanding achievement in American literature. Given by writers to writers, the four categories include fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young people's literature.
For the 2010 list of finalists, see http://www.nationalbook.org/
For the 2010 list of finalists, see http://www.nationalbook.org/
Man Booker Prize Awarded
The Man Book Prize for Fiction was awarded to Howard Jacobson for The Finkler Question.
"The Finkler Question is a novel about love, loss and male friendship, and explores what it means to be Jewish today.
Said to have ‘some of the wittiest, most poignant and sharply intelligent comic prose in the English language', The Finkler Question has been described as ‘wonderful' and ‘richly satisfying' and as a novel of ‘full of wit, warmth, intelligence, human feeling and understanding'." (http://www.themanbookerprize.com/news/stories/1459 ; accessed 10/15/10)
"The Finkler Question is a novel about love, loss and male friendship, and explores what it means to be Jewish today.
Said to have ‘some of the wittiest, most poignant and sharply intelligent comic prose in the English language', The Finkler Question has been described as ‘wonderful' and ‘richly satisfying' and as a novel of ‘full of wit, warmth, intelligence, human feeling and understanding'." (http://www.themanbookerprize.com/news/stories/1459 ; accessed 10/15/10)
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Grant Project - Vote Now!
bishop McNamara has applied for a "We Are Teachers" grant. The proposed project would begin an ebooks program in the Mac library. Voting for grant projects has begun and will be open until October 28th. Please visit the link below and cast a vote for Bishop Mac.
vote here
Thank you!
vote here
Thank you!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Book Highlights, 10/13/10
Rosalind Franklin & DNA / Anne Sayre
Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958) was a scientist whose “photographs of DNA were called ‘among the most beautiful X-ray photographs of any substance ever taken.’" Her photos were shown to James Watson who recognized the double-helix structure and rushed to publish the discovery; Watson, along with Francis Crick and Maurrice Wilkins, was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize for this discovery. Franklin never received credit during her lifetime.
The Fossil Hunter / Shelley Emling
Mary Anning, the daughter of a poor family in Lyme Regis, England, was a fossil hunter and dealer who made significant contributions to paleontology. Her discoveries included the first ichthyosaur skeleton to be correctly identified and the first pterosaur skeleton located outside Germany. Her observations contributed to the discovery that belemnite fossils contained fossilized ink sacs, and that coprolites, known as bezoar stones at the time, were fossilized feces.
[For a fictionalized story of Mary Anning, see Remarkable Creatures / Tracy Chavlier]
The Haunting of Hill House / Shirley Jackson
A supernatural thriller, The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. “It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a "haunting"; Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.” (from Amazon.com;10/13/10)
Alas, Babylon / Pat Frank
As boys growing up in Ft. Repose, Florida, Randy and Mark heard a fire-and-brim-stone preacher railing about the end times; each fiery statement was followed by “Alas, Babylon.” The phrase became the brothers’ code for trouble, and as adults, their code for a nuclear attack.
One day, based on military intelligence, Mark sent a telegram, "Urgent you meet me at Base Ops McCoy noon today. Helen and children are flying to Orlando tonight. Alas, Babylon."
Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958) was a scientist whose “photographs of DNA were called ‘among the most beautiful X-ray photographs of any substance ever taken.’" Her photos were shown to James Watson who recognized the double-helix structure and rushed to publish the discovery; Watson, along with Francis Crick and Maurrice Wilkins, was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize for this discovery. Franklin never received credit during her lifetime.
The Fossil Hunter / Shelley Emling
Mary Anning, the daughter of a poor family in Lyme Regis, England, was a fossil hunter and dealer who made significant contributions to paleontology. Her discoveries included the first ichthyosaur skeleton to be correctly identified and the first pterosaur skeleton located outside Germany. Her observations contributed to the discovery that belemnite fossils contained fossilized ink sacs, and that coprolites, known as bezoar stones at the time, were fossilized feces.
[For a fictionalized story of Mary Anning, see Remarkable Creatures / Tracy Chavlier]
The Haunting of Hill House / Shirley Jackson
A supernatural thriller, The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. “It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a "haunting"; Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.” (from Amazon.com;10/13/10)
Alas, Babylon / Pat Frank
As boys growing up in Ft. Repose, Florida, Randy and Mark heard a fire-and-brim-stone preacher railing about the end times; each fiery statement was followed by “Alas, Babylon.” The phrase became the brothers’ code for trouble, and as adults, their code for a nuclear attack.
One day, based on military intelligence, Mark sent a telegram, "Urgent you meet me at Base Ops McCoy noon today. Helen and children are flying to Orlando tonight. Alas, Babylon."
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Fewer Picture Books? Say it isn't so!
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. The 2010 Caldecott Medal was awarded to Jerry Pinkney for The Lion and the Mouse.
Recently, The New York Times ran an article stating that publishers are accepting fewer picture books and book sellers are allocating less shelf space to them. Parents are encouraging their young children to read text-heavy chapter books at an earlier age. I can’t help but wonder if by scrimping on picture books, parents are pushing children to skip or cut short an important developmental stage.
As the Times article relates, picture books often introduce children to serious topics. And they often use a larger, more challenging vocabulary than chapter books, the link between text and illustration helping children to learn new words.
Imagine a world without Dr. Seuss and his lively cast of cartoon characters. No Shel Silverstein and his funny line drawings. No Tasha Tudor, the eccentric American artist known for her lush borders and ubiquitous Corgis. Do we want our children to miss out on these and all their talented successors?
Emily Dickinson said, “There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away.” Picture books do that for young children. Not only do they amuse and entertain, they spark the imagination. They encourage flights of fancy, creativity, and artistry. Illustrations are a child’s earliest training in art appreciation. They train the eyes - of both young and old - to notice details. Picture books encourage their audience to be aware of wonder.
I believe picture books help children fall in love with reading. Their early encounters with beautiful and gently challenging picture books are a necessary step toward reading more text-heavy books. Studies have shown a correlation between reading and writing ability and academic achievement and for adults, athletic and civic involvement. We need creative thinkers and problem solvers. Businesses list the ability to write well at the top of their lists of desired skills for prospective employees. So let us not scrimp on the development of future readers. Encourage children to read picture book and when they are ready, any other book they can find. Stop by the library or the book store, curl up with an old classic or a new favorite, add a pinch of pixie dust, and let the imagination take flight.
Recently, The New York Times ran an article stating that publishers are accepting fewer picture books and book sellers are allocating less shelf space to them. Parents are encouraging their young children to read text-heavy chapter books at an earlier age. I can’t help but wonder if by scrimping on picture books, parents are pushing children to skip or cut short an important developmental stage.
As the Times article relates, picture books often introduce children to serious topics. And they often use a larger, more challenging vocabulary than chapter books, the link between text and illustration helping children to learn new words.
Imagine a world without Dr. Seuss and his lively cast of cartoon characters. No Shel Silverstein and his funny line drawings. No Tasha Tudor, the eccentric American artist known for her lush borders and ubiquitous Corgis. Do we want our children to miss out on these and all their talented successors?
Emily Dickinson said, “There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away.” Picture books do that for young children. Not only do they amuse and entertain, they spark the imagination. They encourage flights of fancy, creativity, and artistry. Illustrations are a child’s earliest training in art appreciation. They train the eyes - of both young and old - to notice details. Picture books encourage their audience to be aware of wonder.
I believe picture books help children fall in love with reading. Their early encounters with beautiful and gently challenging picture books are a necessary step toward reading more text-heavy books. Studies have shown a correlation between reading and writing ability and academic achievement and for adults, athletic and civic involvement. We need creative thinkers and problem solvers. Businesses list the ability to write well at the top of their lists of desired skills for prospective employees. So let us not scrimp on the development of future readers. Encourage children to read picture book and when they are ready, any other book they can find. Stop by the library or the book store, curl up with an old classic or a new favorite, add a pinch of pixie dust, and let the imagination take flight.
It's thick as peanut butter out there!
Fog / Carl Sandburg
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
Friday, October 8, 2010
A Homecoming Postscript
Thursday night's bonfire and pep rally began late. The homecoming queen was running in a cross country track meet. Congratulations, Samantha!
Homecoming
Homecoming week. The forecaster keeps saying the temps are warm for October. But I think they are perfect. Chilly mornings and evenings, divided by clear, warm afternoons. Warm enough to be comfortable, and cool enough to think it is football weather. Zippedee doo dah days we call them in the South.
Thursday of Homecoming week is Games Day. Classes are shortened and a few hours are dedicated to clean fun and competition. Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors face off in a variety of games. The planning done by Student Council and their mentor is very impressive. There is a little room for athletes to strut their stuff: the basketball players invariably represent their classes in Knockout, and wrestlers and football players shine at tug-of-war. And just for the record, boys and girls compete together in Basketball Knockout, and a Junior GIRL won, knocking out a Senior Boy with her last shot. But happily, the games are planned so that there is something for everyone.
Today’s competition began with all members of the four classes racing to unroll giant rolls of toilet paper. Then there was “fan the egg” in which competitors had to move two eggs down the basketball court by fanning them with a pizza box. And “the weave” in which a team of 25 must weave crepe papers streamers around the entire team, passing them hand-to-hand, without breaking the streamer.
All the students modeled good sportsmanship. But the Freshmen team in particular caught my attention during the streamer race. They moved the roll of crepe paper carefully and steadily, patiently weaving themselves into a sleeve of grey. The hand-to-hand progress of the streamer roll was deliberate and methodical. The Juniors were rushing along and for a second it looked as though they might win. But no, like the tortoise racing the hare, slow and steady won the race for the Freshmen. And later, the Freshmen boys beat the Junior boys at tug-of-war. That never happens! But those guys just kept pulling. I don’t know the Freshmen class, rarely see them in the library. (We have to work on that!) But their persistence and conscientiousness impressed me.
Tonight, students will gather around a bonfire. The Homecoming queen and her court will be announced. Football players will work up a little anger for Friday night’s opponent.
And on Friday night, gladiators will suit up to battle between the goal posts. The queen will be crowned. The 1985 football team will be honored. The game will be followed by a dance. And then it will be over. One homecoming among many for the teachers. The first homecoming for our Freshmen. The first event in a year of lasts for our Seniors.
Thursday of Homecoming week is Games Day. Classes are shortened and a few hours are dedicated to clean fun and competition. Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors face off in a variety of games. The planning done by Student Council and their mentor is very impressive. There is a little room for athletes to strut their stuff: the basketball players invariably represent their classes in Knockout, and wrestlers and football players shine at tug-of-war. And just for the record, boys and girls compete together in Basketball Knockout, and a Junior GIRL won, knocking out a Senior Boy with her last shot. But happily, the games are planned so that there is something for everyone.
Today’s competition began with all members of the four classes racing to unroll giant rolls of toilet paper. Then there was “fan the egg” in which competitors had to move two eggs down the basketball court by fanning them with a pizza box. And “the weave” in which a team of 25 must weave crepe papers streamers around the entire team, passing them hand-to-hand, without breaking the streamer.
All the students modeled good sportsmanship. But the Freshmen team in particular caught my attention during the streamer race. They moved the roll of crepe paper carefully and steadily, patiently weaving themselves into a sleeve of grey. The hand-to-hand progress of the streamer roll was deliberate and methodical. The Juniors were rushing along and for a second it looked as though they might win. But no, like the tortoise racing the hare, slow and steady won the race for the Freshmen. And later, the Freshmen boys beat the Junior boys at tug-of-war. That never happens! But those guys just kept pulling. I don’t know the Freshmen class, rarely see them in the library. (We have to work on that!) But their persistence and conscientiousness impressed me.
Tonight, students will gather around a bonfire. The Homecoming queen and her court will be announced. Football players will work up a little anger for Friday night’s opponent.
And on Friday night, gladiators will suit up to battle between the goal posts. The queen will be crowned. The 1985 football team will be honored. The game will be followed by a dance. And then it will be over. One homecoming among many for the teachers. The first homecoming for our Freshmen. The first event in a year of lasts for our Seniors.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
New Books - 10/6/10
Nonfiction
Lincoln’s flying spies: Thaddeus Lowe and the Civil War balloon corps / Gail Jarrow
For two years during the Civil War, Thaddeus Lowe led a group of balloonists who spied on Confederate troops and telegraphed messages to Union generals and President Lincoln.
Fiction
Fallout / Ellen Hopkins
Nearly twenty years after Kristina met the monster, her three oldest children struggle with addiction and poor choices. Can they find the courage to break the cycle?
With “Glass” and “Crank,” this if the third and final installment of Kristina’s story.
Insatiable / Meg Cabot
Meena Harper is a successful soap opera writer with a psychic gift for knowing how people are going to die. Meena doesn’t believe in vampires and is tired of vampire books and television shows, but she can’t get away from the “undead.” In the news, there are a rash of murders-by-exsanguination (look it up!) in New York City. At work, her bosses hope to attract more young viewers by adding a fanged character to the soap. And finally, it seems that she’s fallen in love with a vampire.
Return to paradise / Simone Elkeles
The sequel to “Leaving Paradise.” Caleb left Paradise seven months ago but he’s back and participating in a program for teens affected by drunk driving. The same program as Maggie. In alternating chapters, Maggie and Caleb tell their stories as they come to terms with Maggie’s accident, Caleb’s secret, and each other.
Poetry
Time you let me in : 25 poets under 25 / selected by Naomi S. Nye
If someday, in a morning, you see you,
in a mirror or the dent of a spoon, and wonder
Where is my soul and
Where has it gone, remember this:
Catch the gaze of a woan
on the metro, subway, tram.
Look at a man. Seek and
you will find you
in the slivered space,
a flash between souls.
[from Pupil / Brianne Carpenter]
Bomber County : the poetry of a lost pilot’s war / Daniel Swift
“In early June 1943, James Eric Swift, a pilot with the 83rd Squadron of the Royal Air Force, boarded his Lancaster bomber for a night raid on Münster and disappeared.”(from the inside cover) Bomber County chronicles Swift’s search for his lost grandfather while examining the poetry inspired by the bombing campaigns of WWII.
Short Stories
Short Stories / Louisa May Alcott
Contains five short stories by Alcott, best known for Little Women. From Alcott’s experience as a volunteer nurse during the Civil War come the story of her encounter with a dying soldier (“A night”)and
“My Contraband,” a tale of vengeance involving a nurse, her Confederate patient, and his former slave. The collection also includes “Obtaining supplies,” “Happy women,” and “How I went out to service.”
Lincoln’s flying spies: Thaddeus Lowe and the Civil War balloon corps / Gail Jarrow
For two years during the Civil War, Thaddeus Lowe led a group of balloonists who spied on Confederate troops and telegraphed messages to Union generals and President Lincoln.
Fiction
Fallout / Ellen Hopkins
Nearly twenty years after Kristina met the monster, her three oldest children struggle with addiction and poor choices. Can they find the courage to break the cycle?
With “Glass” and “Crank,” this if the third and final installment of Kristina’s story.
Insatiable / Meg Cabot
Meena Harper is a successful soap opera writer with a psychic gift for knowing how people are going to die. Meena doesn’t believe in vampires and is tired of vampire books and television shows, but she can’t get away from the “undead.” In the news, there are a rash of murders-by-exsanguination (look it up!) in New York City. At work, her bosses hope to attract more young viewers by adding a fanged character to the soap. And finally, it seems that she’s fallen in love with a vampire.
Return to paradise / Simone Elkeles
The sequel to “Leaving Paradise.” Caleb left Paradise seven months ago but he’s back and participating in a program for teens affected by drunk driving. The same program as Maggie. In alternating chapters, Maggie and Caleb tell their stories as they come to terms with Maggie’s accident, Caleb’s secret, and each other.
Poetry
Time you let me in : 25 poets under 25 / selected by Naomi S. Nye
If someday, in a morning, you see you,
in a mirror or the dent of a spoon, and wonder
Where is my soul and
Where has it gone, remember this:
Catch the gaze of a woan
on the metro, subway, tram.
Look at a man. Seek and
you will find you
in the slivered space,
a flash between souls.
[from Pupil / Brianne Carpenter]
Bomber County : the poetry of a lost pilot’s war / Daniel Swift
“In early June 1943, James Eric Swift, a pilot with the 83rd Squadron of the Royal Air Force, boarded his Lancaster bomber for a night raid on Münster and disappeared.”(from the inside cover) Bomber County chronicles Swift’s search for his lost grandfather while examining the poetry inspired by the bombing campaigns of WWII.
Short Stories
Short Stories / Louisa May Alcott
Contains five short stories by Alcott, best known for Little Women. From Alcott’s experience as a volunteer nurse during the Civil War come the story of her encounter with a dying soldier (“A night”)and
“My Contraband,” a tale of vengeance involving a nurse, her Confederate patient, and his former slave. The collection also includes “Obtaining supplies,” “Happy women,” and “How I went out to service.”
Hats off, Gentlemen!
“Please take off your hats, guys.”
“Why?”
“Because gentlemen always remove their hats indoors.”
“What about the girls?
“Ladies may wear hats indoors.”
“Aw … now you’re just making stuff up.”
No, dear students, I am not making this stuff up. Those guidelines are traditional manners that used to be taught to every child from the time that s/he was knee high to a grass hopper. But people seldom wear hats proper hats, such as fedoras and berets, and the traditional manners associated with them have been lost. Utilitarian hats – baseball caps, cowboy hats – have become the norm and are often worn in places other than the ball field, the corral, and the woods. I have actually seen men wearing baseball caps at a performance of The Messiah. That is just wrong.
So off to consult Miss Manners, who writes:
"Dear Miss Manners:
Where does one wear a hat these days?
Gentle Reader:
Same as always : on the head. (Whoops. You’ll have to pardon Miss Manners, who occasionally get giddy after a full day of this sort of thing.) . . . . A lady certainly may wear a hat inside church, a restaurant, or anywhere else during the daytime. The exception is a function in her own house, where hat wearing would suggest that she had some place better to go, unlike her guests. It is gentlemen who must take their hats off indoors. . . . (Miss Manners’ guide to excruciatingly correct behavior, p.42)"
I heard recently that men’s hats are making a comeback; however, the rules for wearing them are a bit fuzzy. Men are wearing or not wearing hats indoors based on a scale of perceived formality: hats are removed in formal settings and left on in more casual ones. Miss Manners must be very perturbed. The traditional rules, though old fashioned, are clear and require no judgment calls that might lead to behavior which others find offensive. Armed members of the military may wear hats indoors. Otherwise, it’s hats off, gentlemen!
“Why?”
“Because gentlemen always remove their hats indoors.”
“What about the girls?
“Ladies may wear hats indoors.”
“Aw … now you’re just making stuff up.”
No, dear students, I am not making this stuff up. Those guidelines are traditional manners that used to be taught to every child from the time that s/he was knee high to a grass hopper. But people seldom wear hats proper hats, such as fedoras and berets, and the traditional manners associated with them have been lost. Utilitarian hats – baseball caps, cowboy hats – have become the norm and are often worn in places other than the ball field, the corral, and the woods. I have actually seen men wearing baseball caps at a performance of The Messiah. That is just wrong.
So off to consult Miss Manners, who writes:
"Dear Miss Manners:
Where does one wear a hat these days?
Gentle Reader:
Same as always : on the head. (Whoops. You’ll have to pardon Miss Manners, who occasionally get giddy after a full day of this sort of thing.) . . . . A lady certainly may wear a hat inside church, a restaurant, or anywhere else during the daytime. The exception is a function in her own house, where hat wearing would suggest that she had some place better to go, unlike her guests. It is gentlemen who must take their hats off indoors. . . . (Miss Manners’ guide to excruciatingly correct behavior, p.42)"
I heard recently that men’s hats are making a comeback; however, the rules for wearing them are a bit fuzzy. Men are wearing or not wearing hats indoors based on a scale of perceived formality: hats are removed in formal settings and left on in more casual ones. Miss Manners must be very perturbed. The traditional rules, though old fashioned, are clear and require no judgment calls that might lead to behavior which others find offensive. Armed members of the military may wear hats indoors. Otherwise, it’s hats off, gentlemen!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Three new research titles
Social Issues in Literature series
--The American Dream in John Steinbeck’s “Of mice and men”
--Colonialism in Chinua Achebe’s “Things fall apart”
--War in Stephen Crane’s “The red badge of courage”
Friday, October 1, 2010
Oh, how far we have come!
This clothes-washing advice is not library-related, but I wanted to share it anyway. A friend passed it along, and it is terrific. And since everything is related to everything....well, technology can be wonderful. Whether it's washers and dryers or online catalogs or databases, technology has made our everyday work and our research much easier. We now have the world of knowledge at our fingertips. Machines that allow us to accomplish chores easily and efficiently allow us more time for leisure - including leisure reading. So, go do that laundry quickly and head to the library for a good weekend read!
"How sweet it is. Years ago an Alabama grandmother gave the new bride the following recipe for washing clothes. It appears just as it was written, and despite the spelling, has a bit of philosophy. This is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrap book-with spelling errors and all.
"How sweet it is. Years ago an Alabama grandmother gave the new bride the following recipe for washing clothes. It appears just as it was written, and despite the spelling, has a bit of philosophy. This is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrap book-with spelling errors and all.
"Build fire in backyard to heat kettle of rain water. Set tubs so smoke wont blow in eyes if wind is pert. Shave one hole cake of lie soap in boilin water. Sort things, make 3 piles: 1 pile white, 1 pile colored, and 1 pile work britches and rags.To make starch, stir flour in cool water to smooth, then thin down with boiling water. Take white things, rub dirty spots on board, scrub hard, and boil, then Rub colored don't boil just wrench and starch. Take things out of kettle with broom stick handle, then wrench, and starch. Hang old rags on fence. Spread tea towels on grass. Pore wrench water in flower bed. Scrub porch with hot soapy water. Turn tubs upside down. Go put on clean dress, smooth hair with hair combs. Brew cup of tea, sit and rock a spell and count your blessings."
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Book highlights, 9/22/10
Half-Broke Horses / Jeanette Walls
Described as a “true-life novel,” Half-Broke Horses tells the story of Walls’s grandmother, Lily Casey Smith(1901-1968). Smith, who died when Walls was eight years old, was a tough, intelligent woman who found a life lesson in everything. She lived a hard-scrabble life in West Texas and Arizona, but “got the lace knocked off her panties” early while breaking horses on her parents’ farm.
Taking double loads, she earned a bachelor’s degree in 2 years; book work was so much easier than ranch work that she felt like a lady of leisure. She taught school – and to earn more money, also drove the bus (a hearse!) and worked as the school janitor. As a young mother, she sold bootlegged whiskey out of her home till a disgruntled customer almost got her arrested.
A hard-working ranch wife, Lily was also a winning poker player, a racehorse rider, and a bush pilot.
THE GOOD SOLDIERS
By David Finkel
Lt. Col. Ralph Kauzlarich, commanding officer of the Army infantry battalion 2-16, has a motto: “It’s all good.” From a skinny boy with protruding ears, “The Kauz” molded himself into the man who could do the most pushups, run the fastest mile. A man whose opinions are sought by others, who could ask anything of anyone and have that person comply for fear of disappointing him. “As one of his soldiers said, ‘He is the kind of [leader] you would follow to hell and back.’” (p.9). And follow him they did. Into the most dangerous area of Baghdad, determined to be the difference in “the surge.”
David Finkel, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and editor at the Washington Post, was embedded with the battalion. This book documents their fifteen months in Iraq.
David Finkel, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and editor at the Washington Post, was embedded with the battalion. This book documents their fifteen months in Iraq.
My sister's keeper / Jodi Picoult
A teenage girl suffering from leukemia. A younger sister genetically designed as an ideal donor. A family devastated by difficult choices. The movie earned $12.5 million on opening weekend. Don’t miss the original!
Harvest Cove is a lovely tourist spot in summer, but in winter, it’s a tiny, frozen ghost town. And in the cold of the Canadian winter, something is stalking teenagers, making them disappear. From his half-Ojibwa girlfriend, Danny learns about Windigos, massive cannibalistic creatures that hunt and sting their prey. Danny and his friends decide the
Monday, September 20, 2010
A New School Year
Another school year has begun, full of hope and optimism. Students arrive bearing backpacks and laptops.
The fans hum, trying in vain to beat back the heat and humidity. The library was 81 degrees this morning, not too bad for September.
The halls are heavy with footsteps; the rooms ring with young voices. Students come to study.
“Do you know anything about Geometry?”
“Well, let’s see. . . .”
My memory is fuzzy but we manage to set up the equation and solve for x. I pronounce it fun; the student, who aspires to be a writer, has a less enthusiastic assessment.
Books begin to circulate. Slowly. Never as quickly as I would like. New books with pristine spines, freshly covered and cataloged, wait on the New Book Shelf, silently calling, “Pick me! Pick me!” Meanwhile, the librarian is rooting for all the books. Will students venture beyond the oh-so-easy-to-love teen romance to the gothic mystery, the story of a teen immigrant, or the last book of the Hunger Games trilogy? I hope someone will read “Operation Mincemeat,” the true story of a how a dead body with false papers helped assure an Allied victory in World War II.
During band rehearsal, a trumpet player repeatedly attempts a high note. A student trying to concentrate on a computer screen complains, “He should stop. Sounds like he’s killing a cat.”
The final bell. Students rush to leave - heading home, to sports practice - trailing shoe laces and promises.
The fans hum, trying in vain to beat back the heat and humidity. The library was 81 degrees this morning, not too bad for September.
The halls are heavy with footsteps; the rooms ring with young voices. Students come to study.
“Do you know anything about Geometry?”
“Well, let’s see. . . .”
My memory is fuzzy but we manage to set up the equation and solve for x. I pronounce it fun; the student, who aspires to be a writer, has a less enthusiastic assessment.
Books begin to circulate. Slowly. Never as quickly as I would like. New books with pristine spines, freshly covered and cataloged, wait on the New Book Shelf, silently calling, “Pick me! Pick me!” Meanwhile, the librarian is rooting for all the books. Will students venture beyond the oh-so-easy-to-love teen romance to the gothic mystery, the story of a teen immigrant, or the last book of the Hunger Games trilogy? I hope someone will read “Operation Mincemeat,” the true story of a how a dead body with false papers helped assure an Allied victory in World War II.
During band rehearsal, a trumpet player repeatedly attempts a high note. A student trying to concentrate on a computer screen complains, “He should stop. Sounds like he’s killing a cat.”
The final bell. Students rush to leave - heading home, to sports practice - trailing shoe laces and promises.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Book highlights
Every two weeks, the library will be highlighting a few titles from the collection, some popular and some overlooked gems. Enjoy!
Vampires
[The Historian / Elizabeth Kostova]
A medieval book, empty except for a woodcut of a dragon and the word "Drakulya,” and a group of letters addressed to “My dear and unfortunate successor” plunge a sixteen-year-old girl into a dangerous mission to uncover the secrets of her parent’s past. As she researches Vlad the Impaler and the legend of Drakula, the drama mounts as does the body count.
Beautifully written, spine-tingling drama.
Mystery
[The Boxer and the Spy / Robert Parker]
When fifteen-year-old Jason’s body washes up on a New England beach, his death is ruled a suicide. But shy, artsy Jason was not the type to experiment with steroids; his classmate, Terry Novak believes Jason was murdered and sets out to bring his killer(s) to justice. A young boxer, Terry uses violence only when absolutely necessary; he is on a quest not only to solve a crime but to learn “to live honorably and with moral purpose.” (Amazon; 9/8/10)
Robert Parker weaves terrific mysteries with sparkling dialogue and vivid descriptions. Don’t miss his “Spenser” novels.
Drama / Drug Addiction
“Life was good
before I
met
the monster.
After,
life
was great.
At
least
for a little while.” (Crank / Ellen Hopkins ; p. 1)
The disturbing story of Kristina; her bad-girl alter-ego Bree; and her addiction to the “monster,” crystal meth. Written in verse and based on the story of Hopkins’ own daughter.
Hopkins has written three books about Kristina and her family : Crank, Glass, and Fallout (to be released on September 14)
Fiction / Islam
[Does my head look big in this? / Randa Abdel-Fattah]
Sixteen-year-old Amal is an Australian-born, Muslim Palestinian. A smart, funny girl, and a devout Muslim, she chooses to wear the hijab (head covering) despite her parents’ misgivings and jibes from her fellow students. The book “tells of her emotional and spiritual journey as she copes with a mad crush on a boy, befriends an elderly Greek neighbor, and tries to help a friend who aspires to be a lawyer but whose well-intentioned mother is trying to force her to leave school and get married.” (Amazon ; 9/8/10)
Manages to deal with serious issues in a funny, entertaining manner.
Vampires
[The Historian / Elizabeth Kostova]
A medieval book, empty except for a woodcut of a dragon and the word "Drakulya,” and a group of letters addressed to “My dear and unfortunate successor” plunge a sixteen-year-old girl into a dangerous mission to uncover the secrets of her parent’s past. As she researches Vlad the Impaler and the legend of Drakula, the drama mounts as does the body count.
Beautifully written, spine-tingling drama.
Mystery
[The Boxer and the Spy / Robert Parker]
When fifteen-year-old Jason’s body washes up on a New England beach, his death is ruled a suicide. But shy, artsy Jason was not the type to experiment with steroids; his classmate, Terry Novak believes Jason was murdered and sets out to bring his killer(s) to justice. A young boxer, Terry uses violence only when absolutely necessary; he is on a quest not only to solve a crime but to learn “to live honorably and with moral purpose.” (Amazon; 9/8/10)
Robert Parker weaves terrific mysteries with sparkling dialogue and vivid descriptions. Don’t miss his “Spenser” novels.
Drama / Drug Addiction
“Life was good
before I
met
the monster.
After,
life
was great.
At
least
for a little while.” (Crank / Ellen Hopkins ; p. 1)
The disturbing story of Kristina; her bad-girl alter-ego Bree; and her addiction to the “monster,” crystal meth. Written in verse and based on the story of Hopkins’ own daughter.
Hopkins has written three books about Kristina and her family : Crank, Glass, and Fallout (to be released on September 14)
Fiction / Islam
[Does my head look big in this? / Randa Abdel-Fattah]
Sixteen-year-old Amal is an Australian-born, Muslim Palestinian. A smart, funny girl, and a devout Muslim, she chooses to wear the hijab (head covering) despite her parents’ misgivings and jibes from her fellow students. The book “tells of her emotional and spiritual journey as she copes with a mad crush on a boy, befriends an elderly Greek neighbor, and tries to help a friend who aspires to be a lawyer but whose well-intentioned mother is trying to force her to leave school and get married.” (Amazon ; 9/8/10)
Manages to deal with serious issues in a funny, entertaining manner.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
New Books - 9/7/2010
Science, health, and ethical issues
The right to die
Biodiversity
The energy crisis
Fast food
Should vaccinations be mandatory?
Are natural disasters increasing?
Economy
Bankruptcy
The federal budget deficit
Politics
How does religion influence politics?
Age of consent
Censorship
Civil liberties
Voter fraud
Should the U.S. close its borders?
Violence
The right to die
Biodiversity
The energy crisis
Fast food
Should vaccinations be mandatory?
Are natural disasters increasing?
Economy
Bankruptcy
The federal budget deficit
Politics
How does religion influence politics?
Age of consent
Censorship
Civil liberties
Voter fraud
Should the U.S. close its borders?
Violence
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
New Books - Fun Reads!
Historical/Political Fiction
The Guernsey literary and potato peel pie society / Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
As England is recovering from WW II, Juliet Ashton discovers her next writing project in a book club on Guernsey Island – “a club born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi after its members are discovered breaking curfew.” (from WorldCat ; 8/24/10) Relayed in a series of letters are intrigue, romance, and stories of life and relationships in the shadow of Nazi occupation. [Good book! Don’t miss this one. – The Librarian]
Half of a yellow sun / Chimamanda Adichie
Nigerian novelist Adichie presents the fictional story of Olanna and Kinene, wealthy and well-connected sisters facing personal and professional crises in the midst of a bloody civil war. (Loosely based on events in 1960’s Nigeria.) “The characters and landscape are vividly painted, and details are often used to heartbreaking effect: soldiers, waiting to be armed, clutch sticks carved into the shape of rifles; an Igbo mother, in flight from a massacre, carries her daughter's severed head, the hair lovingly braided.” (from Amazon, 8/23/10)
Fantasy / Gothic Fiction
Phantom island / Krissi Dallas
“One fateful summer night ...when one rule is broken ... five teenagers will discover an unexpected adventure full of magic, romance, and true friendship." (from Amazon, 8/23/10)
The road / Cormac McCarthy
In this postapocalyptic novel, “a father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food--and each other.” (from WorldCat; 8/24/10)
Shadowed summer / Saundra Mitchell
Iris and her friends fill their empty, hot summer days by casting spells in the town cemetery. Then a male voice whispers in Iris’ ear, demanding that the disappearance of a teenage boy be solved.
A spell of winter / Helen Dunmore
In the years prior to WWI, siblings Cathy and Rob grow up on their grandfather’s crumbling estate sharing a world of dark secrets: their mother’s abandoning her family; their father’s mental illness and death in an asylum; and a bond so fierce it threatens to smother them. A novel in gothic style.
Mystery
Reality check / Peter Abrahams
Cody, a 16 year old football player, is benched by a knee injury and drops out of high school. When Clea, Cody’s well-to-do girlfriend disappears from her boarding school, he drives from Colorado to Vermont to find her. An exciting, page-turning mystery.
Romance
The book of Luke / Jenny O’Connell
“Nice girl” Emily Abbott is tired of finishing last! When her family moves from Chicago to Boston during her senior year and her boyfriend, Sean, dumps her, Emily and her friends write a guys’ guide to girls. The girls decide Emily should try out their theories on Luke, but the tables are turned when the experiment gets serious.
The last song / Nicolas Sparks
Ronnie and her younger brother have been sent to Wrightsville Beach, NC, to spend the summer with their father. Angry and resentful over her parents’ divorce, Ronnie doesn’t know that her father is dying. And she doesn’t plan on falling in love.
Plan b / Jenny O’Connell
Vanessa has her life planned : “coast through senior year; graduate; travel around Europe; join boyfriend out East for college. Then the phone rings.” A new half-brother wasn’t part of the plan. (from the book cover.)
Rules of Attraction / Simone Elkeles [romance]
In this sequel to Perfect Chemistry, Alex’s younger brother, Carlos, works to escape the clutches of a Mexican gang and a conniving drug lord while winning the heart of the lovely Kiara. [Some Spanish dialogue, clarified by context.]
Two-way street / Lauren Barnholdt
Jordan and Courtney are high school sweethearts. They’re attending the same college, even driving the long trip to orientation together. Then Jordan dumps Courtney for a girl he met on the Internet. Secrets are not good for a relationship.
Family Relationships
A blue so dark / Holly Schindler
Fifteen year old Aura is frightened as her artist - mother, Grace, sinks further and further in schizophrenia and refuses medication. Aura associates the disease with creativity, and fearing that she might be genetically predisposed, she stops exploring her own her own creative abilities. A sober but hopeful novel.
Girl in translation / Jean Kwok
Ah-Kim Chang (Kimberly) and her mother immigrate to Brooklyn from Hong Kong. Despite poverty and deplorable living conditions, Kimberly excels at school and paves the way for a better future for herself and her mother.
The Guernsey literary and potato peel pie society / Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
As England is recovering from WW II, Juliet Ashton discovers her next writing project in a book club on Guernsey Island – “a club born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi after its members are discovered breaking curfew.” (from WorldCat ; 8/24/10) Relayed in a series of letters are intrigue, romance, and stories of life and relationships in the shadow of Nazi occupation. [Good book! Don’t miss this one. – The Librarian]
Half of a yellow sun / Chimamanda Adichie
Nigerian novelist Adichie presents the fictional story of Olanna and Kinene, wealthy and well-connected sisters facing personal and professional crises in the midst of a bloody civil war. (Loosely based on events in 1960’s Nigeria.) “The characters and landscape are vividly painted, and details are often used to heartbreaking effect: soldiers, waiting to be armed, clutch sticks carved into the shape of rifles; an Igbo mother, in flight from a massacre, carries her daughter's severed head, the hair lovingly braided.” (from Amazon, 8/23/10)
Fantasy / Gothic Fiction
Phantom island / Krissi Dallas
“One fateful summer night ...when one rule is broken ... five teenagers will discover an unexpected adventure full of magic, romance, and true friendship." (from Amazon, 8/23/10)
The road / Cormac McCarthy
In this postapocalyptic novel, “a father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food--and each other.” (from WorldCat; 8/24/10)
Shadowed summer / Saundra Mitchell
Iris and her friends fill their empty, hot summer days by casting spells in the town cemetery. Then a male voice whispers in Iris’ ear, demanding that the disappearance of a teenage boy be solved.
A spell of winter / Helen Dunmore
In the years prior to WWI, siblings Cathy and Rob grow up on their grandfather’s crumbling estate sharing a world of dark secrets: their mother’s abandoning her family; their father’s mental illness and death in an asylum; and a bond so fierce it threatens to smother them. A novel in gothic style.
Mystery
Reality check / Peter Abrahams
Cody, a 16 year old football player, is benched by a knee injury and drops out of high school. When Clea, Cody’s well-to-do girlfriend disappears from her boarding school, he drives from Colorado to Vermont to find her. An exciting, page-turning mystery.
Romance
The book of Luke / Jenny O’Connell
“Nice girl” Emily Abbott is tired of finishing last! When her family moves from Chicago to Boston during her senior year and her boyfriend, Sean, dumps her, Emily and her friends write a guys’ guide to girls. The girls decide Emily should try out their theories on Luke, but the tables are turned when the experiment gets serious.
The last song / Nicolas Sparks
Ronnie and her younger brother have been sent to Wrightsville Beach, NC, to spend the summer with their father. Angry and resentful over her parents’ divorce, Ronnie doesn’t know that her father is dying. And she doesn’t plan on falling in love.
Plan b / Jenny O’Connell
Vanessa has her life planned : “coast through senior year; graduate; travel around Europe; join boyfriend out East for college. Then the phone rings.” A new half-brother wasn’t part of the plan. (from the book cover.)
Rules of Attraction / Simone Elkeles [romance]
In this sequel to Perfect Chemistry, Alex’s younger brother, Carlos, works to escape the clutches of a Mexican gang and a conniving drug lord while winning the heart of the lovely Kiara. [Some Spanish dialogue, clarified by context.]
Two-way street / Lauren Barnholdt
Jordan and Courtney are high school sweethearts. They’re attending the same college, even driving the long trip to orientation together. Then Jordan dumps Courtney for a girl he met on the Internet. Secrets are not good for a relationship.
Family Relationships
A blue so dark / Holly Schindler
Fifteen year old Aura is frightened as her artist - mother, Grace, sinks further and further in schizophrenia and refuses medication. Aura associates the disease with creativity, and fearing that she might be genetically predisposed, she stops exploring her own her own creative abilities. A sober but hopeful novel.
Girl in translation / Jean Kwok
Ah-Kim Chang (Kimberly) and her mother immigrate to Brooklyn from Hong Kong. Despite poverty and deplorable living conditions, Kimberly excels at school and paves the way for a better future for herself and her mother.
New Books - Research
Science and ethics -- 100
The ethics of biotechnology / Jonathan Morris
World Religions -- 200
African traditional religion / Aloysius Lugira
Daoism / Paula Hartz
Shinto / Paula Hartz
Economics - 300
The Oxford encyclopedia of economic history / Joel Mokyr, ed. (Reference ; for the ECON Class!!)
Crisis economics : a crash course in the future of finance / Nouriel Roubini and Stephen Mihm
Energy, Global Warming, and Politics - 300
Energy policy (Point, Counterpoint series) / Paul Ruschmann
Energy : powering the past, present, and future / Julie Casper
Environmental regulations and global warming (Point, Counterpoint series) / Paul Ruschmann
500
Bioinformatics, genomics, and proteomics : getting the big picture / Ann Batiza
Immigration - 300
Immigration policy / Alan Allport & John E. Ferguson
History and Politics - 300
Imperialism : a history in documents / Bonnie Smith, ed.
The progressive movement : advocating social change / Tim McNeese
500
The family values movement : promoting faith through action / Samuel Crompton
History and Literature (Where history and English projects intersect!) - 300
Medicine in society : historical essays / Andrew Wear, ed.
Women’s history : Britain, 1850-1945 : an introduction / June Purvis, ed.
900
Daily life in the 18th century / Kirstin Olsen
Dr. Johnson’s London : everyday life in London 1740-1770 / Liza Picard
Intellectual Property, or what is plagiarism? - 300
Protecting ideas (Point, Counterpoint series) / David Hudson
Science -- 600
Biotechnology and your health : pharmaceutical application / Bernice Schacter
Biotechnology on the farm and in the factory : agricultural and industrial application / Brian Shmaefsky
Literature -- 800
Holocaust literature (2 volume collection of writings about the holocaust) / John Roth, ed.
Magill’s survey of American literature / Stephen Kellman, ed.
The ethics of biotechnology / Jonathan Morris
World Religions -- 200
African traditional religion / Aloysius Lugira
Daoism / Paula Hartz
Shinto / Paula Hartz
Economics - 300
The Oxford encyclopedia of economic history / Joel Mokyr, ed. (Reference ; for the ECON Class!!)
Crisis economics : a crash course in the future of finance / Nouriel Roubini and Stephen Mihm
Energy, Global Warming, and Politics - 300
Energy policy (Point, Counterpoint series) / Paul Ruschmann
Energy : powering the past, present, and future / Julie Casper
Environmental regulations and global warming (Point, Counterpoint series) / Paul Ruschmann
500
Bioinformatics, genomics, and proteomics : getting the big picture / Ann Batiza
Immigration - 300
Immigration policy / Alan Allport & John E. Ferguson
History and Politics - 300
Imperialism : a history in documents / Bonnie Smith, ed.
The progressive movement : advocating social change / Tim McNeese
500
The family values movement : promoting faith through action / Samuel Crompton
History and Literature (Where history and English projects intersect!) - 300
Medicine in society : historical essays / Andrew Wear, ed.
Women’s history : Britain, 1850-1945 : an introduction / June Purvis, ed.
900
Daily life in the 18th century / Kirstin Olsen
Dr. Johnson’s London : everyday life in London 1740-1770 / Liza Picard
Intellectual Property, or what is plagiarism? - 300
Protecting ideas (Point, Counterpoint series) / David Hudson
Science -- 600
Biotechnology and your health : pharmaceutical application / Bernice Schacter
Biotechnology on the farm and in the factory : agricultural and industrial application / Brian Shmaefsky
Literature -- 800
Holocaust literature (2 volume collection of writings about the holocaust) / John Roth, ed.
Magill’s survey of American literature / Stephen Kellman, ed.
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