art and oddsized books

Mark your calendars for the next RART meeting on February 8, 2017 at the Springville Road Library.  The topic up for discussion will be humor and parody books, fiction or nonfiction…the choice is yours!

In other news, long-time RART member April Wallace is leaving the PLJC!  There will be a reception in her honor at the Pinson Library on Monday, December 19 from 1pm-5pm.  Make time to go and wish her well in her new adventure!

We met in the Southern History department of the Birmingham Public Library downtown for a discussion of art and oversize books.  We kicked off our meeting with a visit to the rare book room to see two of their most prized oversize books: the Catesby “Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands" (circa mid-1700’s) and a volume of the Blaeu royal atlas of the world (circa 1600’s).  Afterward, we retired to the Southern History offices to discuss our own oversized and art books.

(reviews obtained from amazon.com unless otherwise noted)

The Romantic Egoists: A Pictorial Autobiography from the Scrapbooks and Albums of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli, Scottie Fitzgerald Smith, and Joan P. Kerr

This pictorial autobiography of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald documents two lives that have become legendary. The book draws almost entirely from the scrapbooks and photograph albums that the Fitzgeralds scrupulously kept as their personal record and provides a wealth of illustrative material not previously available. Minnesota; a photograph of the country club in Montgomery, Alabama, where the two met; reviews of This Side of Paradise; poems to the couple from Ring Lardner; snapshots of their trips abroad; Fitzgerald's careful accounting of his earnings; a photograph of the house on Long Island where The Great Gatsby was conceived; postcards with Fitzgerald's drawings for his daughter. These rare photographs and memorabilia combine into a narrative augmented by selections from Scott's and Zelda's own writings, conveying the spirit of particular moments in their lives.
Holley, Emmet O’Neal

The Picture of Dorian Gray: An Annotated, Uncensored Edition by Oscar Wilde; edited by Nicholas Frankel

The Picture of Dorian Gray altered the way Victorians understood the world they inhabited. It heralded the end of a repressive Victorianism, and after its publication, literature had—in the words of biographer Richard Ellmann—“a different look.” Yet the Dorian Gray that Victorians never knew was even more daring than the novel the British press condemned as “vulgar,” “unclean,” “poisonous,” “discreditable,” and “a sham.” Now, more than 120 years after Wilde handed it over to his publisher, J. B. Lippincott & Company, Wilde’s uncensored typescript is published for the first time, in an annotated, extensively illustrated edition.

The novel’s first editor, J. M. Stoddart, excised material—especially homosexual content—he thought would offend his readers’ sensibilities. When Wilde enlarged the novel for the 1891 edition, he responded to his critics by further toning down its “immoral” elements. The differences between the text Wilde submitted to Lippincott and published versions of the novel have until now been evident to only the handful of scholars who have examined Wilde's typescript.

Wilde famously said that Dorian Gray “contains much of me”: Basil Hallward is “what I think I am,” Lord Henry “what the world thinks me,” and “Dorian what I would like to be—in other ages, perhaps.” Wilde’s comment suggests a backward glance to a Greek or Dorian Age, but also a forward-looking view to a more permissive time than his own, which saw Wilde sentenced to two years’ hard labor for gross indecency. The appearance of Wilde’s uncensored text is cause for celebration.
Samuel, BPL Springville Road

The Case of Alan Turing: The Extraordinary and Tragic Story of the Legendary Codebreaker by Eric Liberge; illus by Arnaud Delalande

Alan Turing, subject of the Oscar-winning 2014 film The Imitation Game, was the brilliant mathematician solicited by the British government to help decipher messages sent by Germany's Enigma machines during World War II. The work of Turing and his colleagues at Hut 8 created what became known as the "bombe" which descrambled the German navy's messages and saved countless lives and millions in British goods and merchandise.

Despite his heroics, however, Turing led a secret life as a homosexual. After a young man with whom he was involved stole money from him, he went to the police, where he confessed his homosexuality; he was charged with gross indecency, and only avoided prison after agreeing to undergo chemical castration. Tragically, he committed suicide two years later.

Authors Liberge and Delalande used once-classified information only available in 2012 to create a biography that is scientifically rigorous yet understandable for the lay reader. It's also a meticulous depiction of World War II, and an intimate portrayal of a gay man living in an intolerant world.

Delving deeper into Turing's life than The Imitation Game, this graphic novel is a fascinating portrait of this brilliant, complicated, and troubled man.
Samuel, BPL Springville Road

The American Revolution: A Visual History
The American Revolution will transport you back in time and onto the frontlines. This complete overview of the war brings all the action to life, from the Boston Massacre and the Boston Tea Party to the Declaration of Independence and the Treaty of Paris.

Beginning with the first stirrings of colonial resistance, The American Revolution presents illustrated accounts of every major military action and comprehensive timelines for every stage of the war. Revealing first-person accounts by soldiers and civilians and profiles of the war's main protagonists, from George Washington to Benedict Arnold. Gallery spreads feature collections of weapons and uniforms, and feature sections detail the politics of the war, such as the treatment of prisoners and the revolution's implications for women, Native Americans, and African Americans.

Two hundred and forty years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, The American Revolution demonstrates that the story of how America overthrew the British is as meaningful today as it was when the ink was still wet on the parchment. Created in association with the Smithsonian Institution. 

Samuel, BPL Springville Road

The Great War: July 1, 1916; The First Day of the Battle of the Somme: An Illustrated Panorama by Joe Sacco
From “the heir to R. Crumb and Art Spiegelman” (Economist) comes a monumental, wordless depiction of the most infamous day of World War I.  Launched on July 1, 1916, the Battle of the Somme has come to epitomize the madness of the First World War. Almost 20,000 British soldiers were killed and another 40,000 were wounded that first day, and there were more than one million casualties by the time the offensive halted. In The Great War, acclaimed cartoon journalist Joe Sacco depicts the events of that day in an extraordinary, 24-foot- long panorama: from General Douglas Haig and the massive artillery positions behind the trench lines to the legions of soldiers going “over the top” and getting cut down in no-man’s-land, to the tens of thousands of wounded soldiers retreating and the dead being buried en masse. Printed on fine accordion-fold paper and packaged in a deluxe slipcase with a 16-page booklet, The Great War is a landmark in Sacco’s illustrious career and allows us to see the War to End All Wars as we’ve never seen it before. 24 plates

Maura, Trussville

Visions of Adventure: N.C. Wyeth and the Brandywine Artists edited by John Edward Dell in assoc with Walt Reed; essays by Douglas Allen, Jr. et al

As famous in their day as the authors whose stories they illustrated, the six artists profiled in this nostalgic collection-N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle, Harvey Dunn, Frank Schoonover, Philip R. Goodwin and Dean Cornwell-used their unique talents at narrative depiction to bring to life places and times in ways no modern medium has surpassed. Vividly reproduced directly from the original paintings that illustrated the pages of popular books and magazines of up to a century ago, many of the pictures are seen here for the first time, just as the artists painted them. The paintings presented in this handsome volume lured readers to the exciting adventure tales of buccaneers and cowboys, hunters and outlaws, pirate fiction and historical romance written by Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Conan Doyle, James Branch Cabell, and other favored writers of the day. Although commissioned to illustrate the written word, these storytelling works of art can stand alone. No text is needed to understand the drama of Howard Pyle's Dead Men Tell No Tales, N. C. Wyeth's The Magic Pool, Frank Schoonover's A Northern Mist, and the dozens of other captivating paintings presented here.
Maura, Trussville

Harper Ever After: The Early Work of Charley and Edie Harper; Essay by Sara Caswell-Pearce; Introduction and Commentary by Brett Harper; Tribute by Chip Doyle

Charley Harper and Edie McKee met on the first day of school at the Art Academy of Cincinnati in 1940. They studied together, fell in love, survived World War II, married, and embarked on successful careers in art. Today, Charley's work is iconic, known around the world particularly for his images of birds and other wildlife created with simple but accurate geometric forms. Edie's fine art photographs, paintings, prints, designs, and illustrations have earned her lasting respect.

Harper Ever After presents paintings and prints from both artists, from their early art school days until 1960, when Charley created Cardinal, now one of his best-known images. The artists' command of a wide range of styles from realism to abstraction to cubism is not only impressive, it informs the path each took to arrive at their individual techniques. The subjects they chose to depict are just as diverse. Charley's World War II scenes, portraits, and cartoons created while serving in Europe as a private first class are especially poignant.

Maura, Trussville

101 More Mixed Media Techniques edited by Cherril Doty, Heather Greenwood, Monica Moody, and Marsh Scott

Whether you are an experienced artist or just starting out, you'll discover new, approachable concepts for creating and embellishing your own mixed media art. Inside this book, you'll find a wide variety of versatile techniques, from printmaking and wabi-sabi painting to paper collage and resists. Each technique is presented with simple, easy-to-follow instructions and beautiful examples from talented mixed media artists. In addition to learning new techniques, you'll also discover ideas and inspiration for using the techniques in your own projects. With a plethora of options to choose from, 101 More Mixed Media Techniques has something for everyartist and is guaranteed to spark new forms of creativity!
Jon, Avondale

The Complete Starter Guide to Whittling: 24 Easy Projects You Can Make in a Weekend by the editors of Woodcarving Illustrated

You can whittle just about anything the only limit is your imagination. It s so easy to get started in this relaxing and rewarding hobby. All you need is a knife, a twig, and this book! We've assembled a team of 12 leading woodcarvers to bring you a complete starter guide to whittling. They present 24 easy whittling projects that you can make in just a weekend, complete with step-by-step instructions, how-to photographs, ready-to-carve patterns, and helpful tips.

Start off with fast and fun projects that build confidence and teach fundamental carving techniques, like a simple flying propeller or a 5-minute owl. Then move on to create whittled wonders like a musical frog or a slingshot. We show you how to whittle complex designs in easy steps, so that you ll soon be carving attention-getting favorites like chain links or the classic ball-in-a-cage.
Jon, Avondale

Bibliocraft: A Modern Crafter’s Guide to Using Library Resources to Jumpstart Creative Projects by Jessica Pigza; Photographs by Johnny Miller; Photostyling by Shana Faust; Illustrations by Sun Young Park

Voted a Best Book of 2014 by Library Journal
There is untold wealth in library collections, and, like every good librarian, Jessica Pigza loves to share. In BiblioCraft, Pigza hones her literary hunting-and-gathering skills to help creatives of all types, from DIY hobbyists to fine artists, develop projects based on library resources. In Part I, she explains how to take advantage of the riches libraries have to offer—both in person and online. In Part II, she presents 20+ projects inspired by library resources from a stellar designer cast, including STC Craft authors Natalie Chanin, Heather Ross, Liesl Gibson, and Gretchen Hirsch, and Design* Sponge founder Grace Bonney. Whatever the quest—historic watermarks transformed into pillows, Japanese family crests turned into coasters, or historic millinery instructions worked into floral fascinators—anyone can utilize library resources to bring their creative visions to life.
Jon, Avondale

The New Small House by Katie Hutchison
Smaller is big, says architect and author Katie Hutchison, whose book The New Small House shows those looking to downsize how they can live smartly, economically and environmentally friendly in elegantly designed homes. With 275 gorgeous photographs and 30 detailed illustrations, The New Small House takes the reader on a tour of North America and spotlights small houses in rural, coastal, and in-town locations. The book presents fundamental small-house design strategies, complete with whole-house case studies for homeowners eager to simplify.

Creating a great small house is illustrated in the opening chapter with 10 approaches, including:

borrowed view and daylight

multipurpose spaces

privacy pockets

using quality materials

Twenty-five stunning small houses are profiled in the second part of the book, organized by the nature of their locations.
Jon, Avondale

Bead Pendants & Necklaces: 20 Beautiful Jewelry Designs by Susan Beal
Fool your friends into thinking your jewelry came from a high-end boutique. But the truth is your jewelry can really be from your kitchen, home office, craft room―wherever you choose to make the stunning pieces in Bead Pendants & Necklaces. You’ll enjoy making the 20 jewelry designs outlined in this imaginative book, and then you’ll love wearing and showing off your new accessories. They look great with jeans and casual wear, and equally fabulous with your best business suits.

Classic, trendy, totally unique―you get 20 jewelry designs in all including:

Drop Pendants made with wood, turquoise, sparkles, teardrops, starbursts, or water lily designs

A Multi-drop Pendant made of amber

Deluxe Pendants with circles of jade or shell

Necklaces such as the “perfectly pink” and the “memoir” design

Lucky Dip Ribbon Choker

And more!

It’s all about the beads―and the value! All 20 designs incorporate beads, so you know the end result can be as colorful and textured as you like. Ideal for just about anyone, from beginner to skilled, Bead Pendants & Necklaces features a fully illustrated techniques section to teach you the basics of jewelry-making. It’s gives you a smart base to build off of so that you can even create your own brand new designs. And because each pattern costs about 50 cents, you’re well on your way to expensive-looking jewelry without having to pay the price.
Jon, Avondale

Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, From Tabletops to Bookshelves by Emily Henderson with Angelin Borsics; Photographs by David Tsay

The ultimate guide to thinking like a stylist, with 1,000 design ideas for creating the most beautiful, personal, and livable rooms. It’s easy to find your own style confidence once you know this secret: While decorating can take months and tons of money, styling often takes just minutes. Even a few little tweaks can transform the way your room feels.

At the heart of Styled are Emily Henderson’s ten easy steps to styling any space. From editing out what you don’t love to re-purposing what you can’t live without to arranging the most eye-catching vignettes on any surface, you’ll learn how to make your own style magic. With Emily’s style diagnostic, insider tips, and more than 1,000 unique ideas from 75 envy-inducing rooms, you’ll soon be styling like you were born to do it.
Jon, Avondale

Spectrum: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art edited by John Fleskes
The best-selling Spectrum series continues with this twenty-third lavishly produced annual. Challenging, controversial, educational, and irreverent, the award-winning Spectrum series reinforces both the importance and prevalence of fantastic art in today’s culture. With exceptional images by extraordinary creators, this elegant full-color collection showcases an international cadre of creators working in every style and medium, both traditional and digital. The best artists from the United States, Europe, China, Australia, South America and beyond have gathered into the only annual devoted exclusively to works of fantasy, horror, science fiction, and the surreal, making Spectrum one of the year’s highly most anticipated books.

Featured in Spectrum 23 are over 300 diverse visionaries. With art from books, graphic novels, video games, films, galleries, advertising and the fine arts, Spectrum is both an electrifying art book for fans and an invaluable resource for clients looking for bright new talent. The entire field is discussed in an invaluable, found-nowhere-else Year In Review. Contact information for each artist is included.

Often imitated, never equaled, Spectrum 23 continues the freshness and excellence that was established over twenty years ago.
Jon, Avondale

GENERAL DISCUSSION:

This Fabulous Century by the editors of Time-Life Books

Multi-volume reference work published in the late 1960s as a pictorial survey by decade of the American social scene, 1900-1970.

Vintage Ad Browser
Vintage Ad Browser was created in 2009/2010 and released in 2010, by Philipp Lenssen from Germany, currently living in China. This site aims to collect vintage ads from a variety of sources, including comic books, CD-Roms, websites, APIs, your submissions, book, magazine & comic book scans, and more. At the moment, this site contains 123,311 ads.

Interior Desecrations: Horrible Homes From the Brass Age of American Design designed by James Lilek

Interior Desecrations was once a website, a popular & venerable part of the Institute of Official Cheer – and now it’s a book! From the same fine people who brought you the Gallery of Regrettable Food comes an all-new compendium of pop-culture. It’s fun, it’s cheap, and it makes a great gift for anyone who grew up in a house like this, or made their kids suffer for their decade-long lapse in taste.

Wisconsin Death Trip by Michael Lesy; photographs by Charles Van Schaik

First published in 1973, this remarkable book about life in a small turn-of-the-century Wisconsin town has become a cult classic. Lesy has collected and arranged photographs taken between 1890 and 1910 by a Black River Falls photographer, Charles Van Schaik.

Wisconsin Death Trip (DVD)

Inspired by the cult-favorite book by Michael Lesy, Wisconsin Death Trip is an eerily dreamlike film about the moral, spiritual, and physical collapse of a small American town in the 1890s. Stricken by economic depression, harsh winters, and a diphtheria epidemic that decimated the local infant population, the citizens of Black River Falls, Wisconsin--primarily German and Norwegian immigrants hoping for a better life in America--fell victim to a rising tide of insanity, murder, arson, and moral breakdown. By creating moody black-and-white reenactments of the horrid events chronicled in Lesy's book (which includes the haunting vintage photographs of the town's official photographer), director James Marsh conveys, through chilling detachment and the subtly sardonic narration by Ian Holm, the impression of sly bemusement, as if Black River Falls was preordained by fate to become a village of the damned. It's both fiendishly macabre and yet strangely compelling, weakened only by Marsh's suggestion (through color sequences of present-day Wisconsin) that things have never really changed since those creepy, ill-fated days when death was seemingly everywhere. Apart from that half-baked attempt at irony, Wisconsin Death Trip is a film you won't soon forget. --Jeff Shannon

new Hoover Book Club Kits

The Hoover Library has refreshed their Book Club Kits!  This is an invaluable resource to library and area book groups, so take a minute and toodle on over to their website for a look!

http://www.hooverlibrary.org/book-groups#book-kits

Everything you need for your book club is in this kit (just ad

d readers).

• 8 or more copies of the title
• Author biography
• Reviews of the book
• Discussion questions
• An annotated list of other Instant Book Club Kits
• Complete Lists of Titles

Fiction Book Club Kits in the PLJC catalog

Fiction Book Club Kit List (PDF)

Guidelines

• Each kit checks out to one group member for a period of six weeks.
• Kits may not be renewed.
• Overdue fines are $1 per day.
• Kits may be reserved up to one year in advance by calling the Fiction Department at 444-7820.

Please return kits in a timely manner so others who have reserved kits may have access to them when needed.

holidays, crafts, and cookbooks

The next RA Roundtable will be on Wednesday, December 14^th at 9am in the Southern History Department at the Birmingham Public Library downtown.  The topic up for discussion will be art (any kind) and odd sized books.  Large or small, we want to hear about them all!  This is our annual holiday potluck so, if you are able, please bring a small dish to share!

Just in case you haven’t had a chance to make note of the 2017 calendar for RART, here ‘tis:

Feb 8 – humor/parody @ Springville Road

Apr 12 – bookgroups/popular fiction @ Homewood

Jun 14 – literature in translation @ Emmet O’Neal

Aug 9 – parenting/mentoring @ Hoover

Oct 11 – sci fi/fantasy/horror @ Pinson

Dec 13 – young adult @ East Lake

The Fall/Halloween season is in full swing in the Public Libraries of Jefferson County.  Here are a few examples!  

• Springville Road is having an all-ages Halloween Family Fun Night starting at 6pm on Monday, October 31^st.  
• All BPL staff at all branches have been invited to costume it up on the 31^st as well so visit them all and see what characters you find!  Great photo ops abound!  
• The Leeds Library will have an evening block party on the 31^st, fun for the whole family!  
• At Emmet O’Neal, the Children’s department is hosting the annual Library Dark & Grim Costume Carnival on Friday, October 21st beginning at 6pm, with a Tangled sing-along movie at 7. The Teen department (grades 7-12) is hosting a Halloween trivia night on Tuesday, October 25^th 6:30-8 and a horror movie double feature on Friday, October 28^th 6-10pm. The Adult department will have a horror movie double feature (ages 18+) on Saturday, October 15^th 5-9, a documentary about the Amityville haunting on Tuesday, October 18 at 6:30pm, and a literary Halloween trivia night on Thursday, October 27^th at 6:30pm.  Call the reference desk at 205-445-1121 to register a team of 2-4 people.

Yesterday, we met at the Woodlawn Library to discuss cookbooks, crafts, and holidays of all kinds.  I’d like to extend a big THANK YOU to Woodlawn (and to Pam and Sequoria!) for hosting and providing the yummy snacks!

Better Homes and Gardens Halloween Pumpkins & Parties:101 Spooktacular Ideas

I most definitely end up in the "pinterest fail" category when I try out these books, but many of the craft ideas, recipes, and decorating tips in this book are doable as-is, or with minimal tweaking.  

Holley, Emmet O'Neal

Gooseberry Patch Halloween: 200 Bewitching Recipes, Crafts,and Decorating Ideas

A friend has told me for years how awesome the Gooseberry Patch books are and now I'm a convert!  I made two recipes from the many offered here (snacks, desserts, cocktails, and more!) and they were both delicious and easy: the Bite-You-Back spicy roasted pecans and the kid-friendly Mummy Dogs.  I plan to try a couple of the crafts/decorations as well.  I'm even thinking about buying my own copy of this to have at home!

Holley, Emmet O'Neal

Christmas with Southern Living 2016: The Complete Guide to Holiday Cooking and Decorating

Like beauty in Emerson’s poem “The Rhodora,” Southern Living is its own excuse for being, especially at the approach of the holiday season. If you eagerly leaf through each new issue of the magazine, then the Christmas with Southern Living book series is something you should check out. Our department has just received the 2016 version and even if you don’t feel your crafting and cooking skills are in the Martha Stewart category, you can still revel in the gorgeous photography. And who knows? Some of the decorating schemes and recipes are fairly simple and you may find something you’d like to try. On page 39 there is a recipe for Salted Brown Sugar Butter that is only three ingredients: unsalted butter, brown sugar, and flaky sea salt. We are assured that “you will find endless dishes in which to use this butter, from topping cooked carrots and roasted root vegetables to slathering on dinner rolls and muffins.” Well, I’m sold. Something tells me this will find its way into my recipe file and my roasted root vegetables will be all the better for it. Take a look and you might find a decorating idea or recipe that will become one of your personal classics.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

Thanksgiving: An American Holiday, an American History by Diana Karter Appelbaum

Most of us who grew up in this country have an image of Thanksgiving that includes a turkey dinner, accompanied by various sides such as cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, and other personal favorites. Appelbaum’s history of Thanksgiving is interesting because of how it examines many different versions of Thanksgiving and how the holiday originated. The Pilgrim “feast” with the Native Americans may or may not have featured turkey, though it’s a possibility along with ducks, geese, or partridges. There may have been pumpkins and corn, but these were a regular feature of the settlers’ diet. There might also have been oysters, which may be where we get our recipes for turkey stuffing (“dressing” if you grew up in the South) with oysters in it. But whatever the food, the meal we think of as a feast emerged from circumstances where famine was more likely.

It hasn’t always been just a sit-down dinner with relatives and friends, either. During different periods of American history, Thanksgiving Day might begin with a skating party in the morning (helpful in working up an appetite for the afternoon dinner) and end in the evening with a gala dance. It was not until FDR’s presidential administration that the day for the observance legally became the fourth Thursday in November.  But one thing has not changed. One of the illustrations in the book is from the 19^th century and is entitled “After Dinner.” It shows a grandfather sleeping peacefully in an armchair with his grandchild slumbering in his arms. Apparently the “fall asleep after dinner” tradition is an absolutely vital part of the long and complex history of Thanksgiving Day. 

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

Occasions: Always Gracious, Sometimes Irreverent by Kate Spade

No matter what the occasion, this is a handy book to have around. With the signature grace and flair that characterizes her brand from clothing to home decorating, Spade covers just about everything you need to know for almost any kind of celebration, including a few things you hadn’t thought of. You will find advice on how to be a good host/hostess and guest, how to decorate, what should be in a well-stocked bar and pantry, what to do about the drunken guest wearing a lampshade as a hat, and how to stage every kind of gathering from a dinner party for a dozen to a midnight breakfast for two. A sample of advice on being a good host: “If you have houseguests frequently, it’s a good idea to sleep in your guest room once every few months. Then you’ll know firsthand what works, what’s missing, whether the pillows are perfect or the mattress too soft.”  I lost count of how many times I read something like this and thought, “That’s perfect and why didn’t I already know it?” So whatever kind of event you’re planning, take a look at Occasions and be ready for anything.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

How to Spell Chanukah...And Other Holiday Dilemmas: 18 Writers Celebrate 8 Nights of Lights edited by Emily Franklin

Ring in the holiday with eighteen writers who extol, excoriate, and expand our understanding of this most merry of Jewish festivals as they offer up funny, irreverent, and, yes, even nostalgic takes on a holiday that holds a special place in Jewish hearts . . . and stomachs.

Pieces by Jonathan Tropper, Jennifer Gilmore, Steve Almond, Joanna Smith Rakoff, Adam Langer, and others address pressing issues: what is the weight gain associated with eating 432 latkes in eight nights? Offer joyous gratitude: “What a holiday! No pestilence, no slavery, no locusts, no cattle disease, or atonement. Thank God.” And afford tender truths: “You are reminded of your real gifts: a family you get to come home to.”

Whether your family tradition included a Christmas tree or a Chanukah bush, whether the fights among your siblings rivaled the battles of the Maccabees, or even if you haven’t a clue who the Maccabees were, this little book illustrates the joys, frustrations, and small miracles of the season.

Mondretta, Leeds

The American Book of Days: A Compendium of Information aboutHolidays, Festivals, Notable Anniversaries, and Christian and Jewish Holy Days by George William Douglas

Mondretta, Leeds

Chase’s Calendar of Events 2016: The Ultimate Go-To Guide for Special Days, Weeks, and Months

Find out what's going on any day of the year, anywhere across the globe!

If you're looking to tie a promotional event to a special month, travel to a music festival halfway around the world, blog about a historical milestone or do a celebrity birthday round-up on your radio show or Twitterfeed, Chase's Calendar of Events is the one resource that has it all.

The world’s datebook, Chase's is the definitive day-by-day resource of what America and the wider world are celebrating and commemorating. Founded in 1957 on a reputation for accuracy and comprehensiveness, this annual publication has become the must-have reference used by experts and professionals for more than fifty years. From celebrity birthdays to historical anniversaries, from astronomical phenomena to national awareness days, from award ceremonies and sporting events to religious festivals and carnivals, Chase's is the one-stop shop for everything that is happening now or is worth remembering from the past.

The 2016 Edition of Chase's Calendar of Events brings you:

• The Transit of Mercury
• Games of the XXXI Olympiad in Brazil
• The 25^th anniversary of the collapse of the USSR
• The 50^th anniversary of the first celebration of Kwanzaa
• The 75^th anniversary of Pearl Harbor
• The National Park Service’s 100^th birthday
• The 100^th anniversary of WWI’s Battle of Verdun and Battle of the Somme
• The 200^th birth anniversary of Charlotte Brontë
• Indiana’s 200^th statehood birthday

For librarians, broadcasters, journalists, event planners, public relations professionals, editors, writers or simply the curious, this is one reference you can't do without!

Mondretta, Leeds

Crafting with Mason Jars and Other Glass Containers: Over 35 Simple and Beautiful Upcycling Projects by Hester Van Overbeek

Follow Hester van Overbeek's easy steps to make a fresh flower-decorated tea-light votive for a garden party, store all your grains and pasta in large jars with vibrantly painted lids, or why not surprise a friend with the colorful "birthday in a jar"? There are lots of quick ideas that take no time at all, such as vacation memories in a jar, the table-setting jars, or the floral centerpiece that will charm all your guests. Some are elegant, some are homespun, but all make use of natural materials such as wood, shells, flowers, and leather to give an original but sophisticated feel to your home and garden. Once you are confident in making the simpler crafts, there are more intricate projects to try, using basic DIY techniques: make a fabulous drink dispenser, a desk lamp, or a rustic vase display by attaching jars to a weathered piece of wood. All the projects have clear step-by-step instructions and hand-drawn illustrations to guide you, so all you need to do is pick the project you want to make first!

Jon, Avondale

The Boy Mechanic Makes Toys: 159 Games, Toys, Tricks, and Other Amusements by the editors of Popular Mechanics

It’s vintage fun! This follow-up to The Boy Mechanic—Popular Mechanics’ collection of can-do ingenuity from the early 1900s—features more than 200 unique toys and games that anyone with a basic tool kit will want to make, plus the unusual and attractive rounded, flexibound format. Charmingly designed to capture that old-fashioned flavor, every imaginative project remains as engaging today as ever, with its appeal fully intact. There’s amusement for little kids, including a toy donkey that nods and wags its tail; a child’s playhouse and a miniature windmill; magic tricks, such as an “X-Ray” pack of cards and mystery coin box; items for the great outdoors, which range from a homebuilt canoe to a diving tower; plus gizmos and gadgets, “scien-terrific” motors and engines, and entertaining objects for an older child to create and play with.

Jon, Avondale

How to Show & Sell Your Crafts: How to Build Your Craft Business at Home, Online, and in the Marketplace by Torie Jayne

For crafters who want to take their craft to a new entrepreneurial level, this book is the perfect guide. Using highly-visual, step-by-step tutorials, How to Show & Sell Your Crafts is packed with helpful branding, selling, and merchandising tips that no serious crafter should be without. Using the workspaces, shops, salons, and "through-the-keyhole" profiles of some of the world's most successful crafters, readers will learn the best ways to merchandise and sell their items online, at craft fairs, markets, pop-up events, exhibitions, and in shops. Plus, you'll learn how to build a personality-driven brand, create a memorable blog or website, improve your photography skills, and analyze your results to help move your business forward into the future.

You start by learning how to optimize your workspace to improve creativity and profitability, then how to build a strong brand name and Internet presence on Etsy and across multiple social media platforms. Lastly, learn how to get your work out into the marketplace, engage customers, and use the insider secrets offered in this book to set yourself up for success and grow your sales!

Jon, Avondale

Bead Pendants & Necklaces: 20 Beautiful Jewelry Designs by Susan Beal

These 20 beautiful projects range in skill level from beginner to experienced, allowing you to build new skills as you complete one project and move on to the next. A fully illustrated techniques section teaches you the basics of jewelry-making and gives you a base to build off of so that you can even create your own brand new designs.

Jon, Avondale

The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook: Sweet Treats for the Geek in All of Us by Rosanna Pansino

The long-awaited first cookbook from the creator and host of the Internet’s most popular baking show, Nerdy Nummies: a collection of Rosanna Pansino’s all-time favorite geeky recipes as well as sensational new recipes exclusive to this book.

The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook is quirky, charming, and fun, featuring the recipes behind Rosanna Pansino’s celebrated, one-of-a-kind creations, as well as beautiful, mouthwatering photographs throughout. It is the perfect companion that you’ll turn to whenever you want to whip up a delicious treat and be entertained all at once. And best of all, these treats are as simple as they are fun to make! No need for costly tools or baking classes to create these marvelous delights yourself.

The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook combines two things Rosanna loves: geek culture and baking. Her fondness for video games, science fiction, math, comics, and lots of other things considered “nerdy” have inspired every recipe in this book. You’ll find the recipes for many beloved fan favorites from the show, such as Apple Pi Pie, the Chocolate Chip Smart Cookie, and Volcano Cake; as well as many new geeky recipes, such as Dinosaur Fossil Cake, Moon Phase Macarons, and the Periodic Table of Cupcakes. The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook showcases Rosanna’s most original and popular creations, and each recipe includes easy-to-follow photo instructions and a stunning shot of the finished treat in all its geeky glory: a delicious confection sure to please the geek in all of us!

Jon, Avondale

Southern Spirits: Four Hundred Years of Drinking in the American South, with Recipes by Robert F. Moss

Ask almost anyone to name a uniquely Southern drink, and bourbon and mint juleps--perhaps moonshine--are about the only beverages that come up. But what about rye whiskey, Madeira wine, and fine imported Cognac? Or peach brandy, applejack, and lager beer? At various times in the past, these drinks were as likely to be found at the Southern bar as barrel-aged bourbon and raw corn likker. The image of genteel planters in white suits sipping mint juleps on the veranda is a myth that never was--the true picture is far more complex and fascinating. Southern Spirits is the first book to tell the full story of liquor, beer, and wine in the American South. This story is deeply intertwined with the region, from the period when British colonists found themselves stranded in a new world without their native beer, to the 21st century, when classic spirits and cocktails of the pre-Prohibition South have come back into vogue. Along the way, the book challenges the stereotypes of Southern drinking culture, including the ubiquity of bourbon and the geographic definition of the South itself, and reveals how that culture has shaped the South and America as a whole.

Samuel, Springville Road

GENERAL DISCUSSION:  The Homewood Library has a magnificent program series on cocktails let by local writer and bartender-at-large, Clair McLafferty!  Here’s the lineup for 2017 (sorry for the creases, it was folded up in my purse):

meetings in 2017

Mark your 2017 calendars!

February 8 @ Springville Road (humor/parody)
April 12 @ Homewood (bookgroup/popular fiction)
June 14 @ Emmet O'Neal (literature in translation)
August 9 @ Hoover (parenting/mentoring)
October 11 @ Pinson (sci fi/fantasy/horror)
December 13 @ East Lake (ya fiction)

debut fiction

The next RART meeting will be Wednesday, October 12^th at 9am at the Woodlawn Library and the topic up for discussion will be celebrations!  Bring a book on your favorite holiday and/or holiday cooking and tell us about it!  And hey, if you want to bring a sample of your favorite recipe, no one will be mad ;-)

I am delighted to serve another year as RART moderator and the dates/topics are as follows (venues TBD):

February 8 – Humor/Parody (SPRINGVILLE ROAD)

April 12 – Bookgroup/Popular Fiction

June 14 – Literature in Translation

August 9 – Parenting/Mentoring (HOOVER)

October 11 – Sci Fi/Fantasy/Horror

December 13 – YA Fiction

If your library does not have a subscription to NoveList, you can still sign up for their excellent monthly newsletter: http://www.libraryaware.com/14/Subscribers/Subscribe.  I frequently use the newsletter to create bibliographies and displayes.

At this week’s meeting, we discussed one of my favorites: debut fiction.  It is sometimes said there are no new ideas, but some of these authors are proving the critics wrong!

Security by Gina Wohlsdorf

The first found-footage novel I've ever read and SHE MAKES IT WORK.  Fans of Chelsea Cain, Patricia Cornwell, and Karen Slaughter shouldn't be disappointed by this first effort from a disconcertingly sweet-looking Wohlsdorf.  Language, violence, sex, and various other depravities abound at the brand-new luxury resort, Manderley.  The video cameras catch everything and stop nothing.  I read it by the pool in one sitting, cringing much of the time.

Holley, Emmet O'Neal

Still Life by Louise Penny

Three Pines is an idyllic dream of a small town. Nestled in an isolated area of Quebec, the little village is truly off the grid: cell phone reception drops to one bar or none; your wifi connection refuses to connect; you can’t find your way to Trois Pins on most maps . . . unless you need to be there. Without having supernatural qualities, the town still has a way of attracting to itself the people who really need it in their lives.

However, the peace of this close-knit community is shattered when local artist Jane Neal is found lying dead in the woods with an arrow in her body. Hunting accident? Possibly.  There are plenty of bowhunters in the area who aren’t as careful as they should be. But Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Surêté du Québec doesn’t think this is an accident. All of his experience and intuition tells him that Jane Neal was murdered. As he assembles his team and sets out to solve the case, everyone in the village is looking at their neighbors through different eyes, not knowing which of the people they thought they knew might turn out to be a killer.

I can’t think when I’ve reacted to a mystery series with such grabby-hands anticipation for the next book. Still Life is a fine introduction to a series that just keeps getting better and better. Like many another reader, I’ve fallen hard for Three Pines in general (it would be a lovely vacation getaway spot) and Armand Gamache in particular. Unlike many fictional detectives he is not warped or tormented or saddled with terrible habits; he’s a warm, considerate, middle-aged man who loves his children and adores his wife. He also makes every effort to do right by his co-workers and carefully train the agents under his supervision: according to Gamache, the four sayings that are important for learning wisdom are I was wrong; I'm sorry; I don't know; and I need help. And Gamache doesn’t just say them. He lives them.

While Still Life has some characteristics of a “cozy” mystery, be careful about recommending it to your readers who favor these. There are some brutal aspects to the novel and the series—gory descriptions of murder and attempted murder, foul language, and drug abuse, to name only a few. But if you have (or are) a reader who’s looking for fiction that will grip you and not let go, this is one for the record books. Start at the beginning with Still Life and read in order, for there are some story arcs and character developments that take a while and you’ll miss one of the best aspects of the series unless you let it unfold at its own pace.

See you in Three Pines—if I can find it!

Author Louise Penny:

http://www.louisepenny.com/

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

The Widow by Fiona Barton

When the police started asking questions, Jean Taylor turned into a different woman. One who enabled her and her husband to carry on, when more bad things began to happen...

But that woman’s husband died last week. And Jean doesn’t have to be her anymore.

There’s a lot Jean hasn’t said over the years about the crime her husband was suspected of committing. She was too busy being the perfect wife, standing by her man while living with the accusing glares and the anonymous harassment. 

Now there’s no reason to stay quiet. There are people who want to hear her story. They want to know what it was like living with that man. She can tell them that there were secrets. There always are in a marriage. 

The truth—that’s all anyone wants. But the one lesson Jean has learned in the last few years is that she can make people believe anything…

Shannon, Hoover

Vegetarian by Han Kang

Before the nightmares began, Yeong-hye and her husband lived an ordinary, controlled life. But the dreams—invasive images of blood and brutality—torture her, driving Yeong-hye to purge her mind and renounce eating meat altogether. It’s a small act of independence, but it interrupts her marriage and sets into motion an increasingly grotesque chain of events at home. As her husband, her brother-in-law and sister each fight to reassert their control, Yeong-hye obsessively defends the choice that’s become sacred to her. Soon their attempts turn desperate, subjecting first her mind, and then her body, to ever more intrusive and perverse violations, sending Yeong-hye spiraling into a dangerous, bizarre estrangement, not only from those closest to her, but also from herself. 

Celebrated by critics around the world, The Vegetarian is a darkly allegorical, Kafka-esque tale of power, obsession, and one woman’s struggle to break free from the violence both without and within her.

Shannon, Hoover

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg

The stunning debut novel from bestselling author Bill Clegg is a magnificently powerful story about a circle of people who find solace in the least likely of places as they cope with a horrific tragedy.

On the eve of her daughter’s wedding, June Reid’s life is upended when a shocking disaster takes the lives of her daughter, her daughter’s fiancé, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend, Luke—her entire family, all gone in a moment. June is the only survivor.

Alone and directionless, June drives across the country, away from her small Connecticut town. In her wake, a community emerges, weaving a beautiful and surprising web of connections through shared heartbreak.

From the couple running a motel on the Pacific Ocean where June eventually settles into a quiet half-life, to the wedding’s caterer whose bill has been forgotten, to Luke’s mother, the shattered outcast of the town—everyone touched by the tragedy is changed as truths about their near and far histories finally come to light.

Elegant and heartrending, and one of the most accomplished fiction debuts of the year, Did You Ever Have a Family is an absorbing, unforgettable tale that reveals humanity at its best through forgiveness and hope. At its core is a celebration of family—the ones we are born with and the ones we create.

Shannon, Hoover

Half Bad by Sally Green

In modern-day England, witches live alongside humans: White witches, who are good; Black witches, who are evil; and sixteen-year-old Nathan, who is both. Nathan’s father is the world’s most powerful and cruel Black witch, and his mother is dead. He is hunted from all sides. Trapped in a cage, beaten and handcuffed, Nathan must escape before his seventeenth birthday, at which point he will receive three gifts from his father and come into his own as a witch—or else he will die. But how can Nathan find his father when his every action is tracked, when there is no one safe to trust—not even family, not even the girl he loves?

In the tradition of Patrick Ness and Markus Zusak, Half Bad is a gripping tale of alienation and the indomitable will to survive, a story that will grab hold of you and not let go until the very last page.

Gina, Gardendale

Rush Oh! by Shirley Barrett

1908: It's the year that proves to be life-changing for our teenage narrator, Mary Davidson, tasked with providing support to her father's boisterous whaling crews while caring for five brothers and sisters in the wake of their mother's death. But when the handsome John Beck-a former Methodist preacher turned novice whaler with a mysterious past-arrives at the Davidson's door pleading to join her father's crews, suddenly Mary's world is upended.

As her family struggles to survive the scarcity of whales and the vagaries of weather, and as she navigates sibling rivalries and an all-consuming first love for the newcomer John, nineteen-year-old Mary will soon discover a darker side to these men who hunt the seas, and the truth of her place among them. 

Swinging from Mary's own hopes and disappointments to the challenges that have beset her family's whaling operation,RUSH OH! is an enchanting blend of fact and fiction that's as much the story of its gutsy narrator's coming-of-age as it is the celebration of an extraordinary episode in history.

Maura, Trussville

In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

What should be a cozy and fun-filled weekend deep in the English countryside takes a sinister turn in Ruth Ware’s suspenseful, compulsive, and darkly twisted psychological thriller.

Sometimes the only thing to fear…is yourself.

When reclusive writer Leonora is invited to the English countryside for a weekend away, she reluctantly agrees to make the trip. But as the first night falls, revelations unfold among friends old and new, an unnerving memory shatters Leonora’s reserve, and a haunting realization creeps in: the party is not alone in the woods.

Samuel, Springville Road

The Swede by Robert Karjel

A thief.

A prisoner.

A man who no longer exists.

At a remote military base on an island in the Indian Ocean, the FBI is trying to get a prisoner to confess. But the detainee, a suspect in an Islamist-inspired terrorist attack in the United States, refuses to talk.

Ernst Grip, a Swedish security officer, has no idea why he’s been dispatched to New York City. The FBI agent he meets on arrival, Shauna Friedman, seems to know a little too much about him. And when he arrives at his real destination, the American authorities have just one question: Is their suspect a Swedish citizen?

In the process of uncovering the prisoner’s true identity, Grip discovers the man’s ties to a group of other suspects—a ruthless American arms dealer, a Czech hit man, a mysterious nurse from Kansas, and a heartbreakingly naïve Pakistani. The closer Grip gets to the truth, the more complicated the deception becomes. Who is real and who is leading a double life?

Samuel, Springville Road

The Immortals by Jordanna Max Brodsky

The city sleeps. Selene DiSilva walks her dog along the banks of the Hudson. She is alone -- just the way she likes it. She doesn't believe in friends, and she doesn't speak to her family. Most of them are simply too dangerous. 

In the predawn calm, Selene finds the body of a young woman washed ashore, gruesomely mutilated and wreathed in laurel. Her ancient rage returns. And so does the memory of a promise she made long ago -- when her name was Artemis. 

Samuel, Springville Road

Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins

In 2012, Claire Vaye Watkins’s story collection, Battleborn, swept nearly every award for short fiction. Now this young writer, widely heralded as a once-in-a-generation talent, returns with a first novel that harnesses the sweeping vision and deep heart that made her debut so arresting to a love story set in a devastatingly imagined near future:

Unrelenting drought has transfigured Southern California into a surreal, phantasmagoric landscape. With the Central Valley barren, underground aquifer drained, and Sierra snowpack entirely depleted, most “Mojavs,” prevented by both armed vigilantes and an indifferent bureaucracy from freely crossing borders to lusher regions, have allowed themselves to be evacuated to internment camps. In Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon, two young Mojavs—Luz, once a poster child for the Bureau of Conservation and its enemies, and Ray, a veteran of the “forever war” turned surfer—squat in a starlet’s abandoned mansion. Holdouts, they subsist on rationed cola and whatever they can loot, scavenge, and improvise.

The couple’s fragile love somehow blooms in this arid place, and for the moment, it seems enough. But when they cross paths with a mysterious child, the thirst for a better future begins. They head east, a route strewn with danger: sinkholes and patrolling authorities, bandits and the brutal, omnipresent sun. Ghosting after them are rumors of a visionary dowser—a diviner for water—and his followers, who whispers say have formed a colony at the edge of a mysterious sea of dunes.

Immensely moving, profoundly disquieting, and mind-blowingly original, Watkins’s novel explores the myths we believe about others and tell about ourselves, the double-edged power of our most cherished relationships, and the shape of hope in a precarious future that may be our own.

Jon, Avondale

The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi

In the near future, the Colorado River has dwindled to a trickle. Detective, assassin, and spy, Angel Velasquez “cuts” water for the Southern Nevada Water Authority, ensuring that its lush arcology developments can bloom in Las Vegas. When rumors of a game-changing water source surface in Phoenix, Angel is sent south, hunting for answers that seem to evaporate as the heat index soars and the landscape becomes more and more oppressive. There, he encounters Lucy Monroe, a hardened journalist with her own agenda, and Maria Villarosa, a young Texas migrant, who dreams of escaping north. As bodies begin to pile up, the three find themselves pawns in a game far bigger and more corrupt than they could have imagined, and when water is more valuable than gold, alliances shift like sand, and the only truth in the desert is that someone will have to bleed if anyone hopes to drink.

Jon, Avondale

Not on Fire, But Burning by Greg Hrbek

Twenty-year-old Skyler saw the incident out her window: Some sort of metallic object hovering over the Golden Gate Bridge just before it collapsed and a mushroom cloud lifted above the city. Like everyone, she ran, but she couldn't outrun the radiation, with her last thoughts being of her beloved baby brother, Dorian, safe in her distant family home. 

Flash forward to a post-incident America, where the country has been broken up into territories and Muslims have been herded onto the old Indian reservations in the west, even though no one has determined who set off the explosion that destroyed San Francisco. Twelve-year old Dorian dreams about killing Muslims and about his sister—even though Dorian's parents insist Skyler never existed. Are they still shell-shocked, trying to put the past behind them . . . or is something more sinister going on?

Meanwhile, across the street, Dorian's neighbor adopts a Muslim orphan from the territories. It will set off a series of increasingly terrifying incidents that will lead to either tragedy or redemption for Dorian, as he struggles to prove that his sister existed—and was killed by a terrorist attack.

Not on Fire, but Burning is unlike anything you're read before—not exactly a thriller, not exactly sci-fi, not exactly speculative fiction, but rather a brilliant and absorbing adventure into the dark heart of an America that seems ripped from the headlines. But just as powerfully, it presents a captivating hero: A young boy driven by love to seek the truth, even if it means his deepest beliefs are wrong.

Jon, Avondale

Fiend by Peter Stenson

 When Chase first sees the little girl in umbrella socks disemboweling the Rottweiler, he's not too concerned. As a longtime meth addict, he’s no stranger to such horrifying, drug-fueled hallucinations.  
   But as he and his fellow junkies soon discover, the little girl is no illusion. The end of the world really has arrived. And with Chase’s life already shattered by addiction, the apocalypse might actually be an opportunity—a last chance to hit restart, win back the love of his life, and become the person he once dreamed of being. 
   That is, if the darkness inside him doesn't destroy everything—again.

Jon, Avondale

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin

A sharply honest and moving debut perfect for fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Ask the Passengers.

Riley Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. And gender fluid. Some days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. But Riley isn't exactly out yet. And between starting a new school and having a congressman father running for reelection in über-conservative Orange County, the pressure—media and otherwise—is building up in Riley's life.

On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it's reallylike to be a gender fluid teenager. But just as Riley's starting to settle in at school—even developing feelings for a mysterious outcast—the blog goes viral, and an unnamed commenter discovers Riley's real identity, threatening exposure. And Riley must make a choice: walk away from what the blog has created—a lifeline, new friends, a cause to believe in—or stand up, come out, and risk everything.

From debut author Jeff Garvin comes a powerful and uplifting portrait of a modern teen struggling with high school, relationships, and what it means to be a person.

Holley, Emmet O'Neal

The Killing Gift by Bari Wood (Light Source is also excellent.)

This is more than a novel about a lonely woman who becomes the quarry of an obsessed detective. It is more than a gripping psychic suspense story that holds the readers right down to the last sentence. It reaches into the subconscious; the core of violence and aggression in all of us. It explores the question that most civilized people ask themselves: What would I do if I had the power to kill just by thinking about it?

Mondretta, Leeds

Work Like Any Other by Virginia Reeves

In this astonishingly accomplished, morally complicated, “exceptional and starkly beautiful debut” (Kevin Powers, National Book Award–nominated author of The Yellow Birds), a prideful electrician in 1920s rural Alabama struggles to overcome past sins and find peace after being sent to prison for manslaughter.

Roscoe T Martin set his sights on a new type of power spreading at the start of the twentieth century: electricity. It became his training, his life’s work. But when his wife, Marie, inherits her father’s failing farm, Roscoe has to give up his livelihood, with great cost to his sense of self, his marriage, and his family. Realizing he might lose them all if he doesn’t do something, he begins to use his skills as an electrician to siphon energy from the state, ushering in a period of bounty and happiness. Even the love of Marie and their child seem back within Roscoe’s grasp.

Then a young man working for the state power company stumbles on Roscoe’s illegal lines and is electrocuted, and everything changes: Roscoe is arrested; the farm once more starts to deteriorate; and Marie abandons her husband, leaving him to face his twenty-year sentence alone. Now an unmoored Roscoe must carve out a place at Kilby Prison. Climbing the ranks of the incarcerated from dairy hand to librarian to “dog boy,” an inmate who helps the guards track down escapees, he is ultimately forced to ask himself once more if his work is just that, or if the price of his crimes—for him and his family—is greater than he ever let himself believe.

Mondretta, Leeds

Soulless by Gail Carriger

Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette. 

Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. 

With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?

Kelly, Springville Road

Nightshifted by Cassie Alexander

Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every paranormal patient you can imagine-from vamps and were-things to zombies and beyond...

Edie's just trying to learn the ropes so she can get through her latest shift unscathed. But when a vampire servant turns to dust under her watch, all hell breaks loose. Now she's haunted by the man's dying words-Save Anna-and before she knows it, she's on a mission to rescue some poor girl from the undead. Which involves crashing a vampire den, falling for a zombie, and fighting for her soul. Grey's Anatomy was never like this...

Kelly, Springville Road

GENERAL DISCUSSION:

Fans of the Netflix series, Stranger Things, might enjoy Brian K. Vaughan’s (Saga series) latest series, Paper Girls!

This fall, Hoover Library will be hosting a skyping session with Siobhan Fallon, author of You Know When the Men are Gone, a short story collection about military families.  Keep your eyes on their calendar!

What are YOU reading?