Holiday Writing

The next meeting of the Reader's Advisory Roundtable will take place in the new year on Wednesday, February 12th at 9am and we will be roadtripping out to the SPRINGVILLE ROAD LIBRARY.  Our topic of discussion will be timely for Valentine's Day as we talk about the romance and erotica genres.  You may read as gentle or spicy a title as you can stand, then come tell us about it on 2/12/14!

Today we discussed holiday writing of all stripes: cookbooks, holiday history, creepy turn of the century postcards, dysfunctional families, funny stories, Sherlock Holmes, and more!

The Christmas Jars by Jason F. Wright 

Keep some tissues on hand for this holiday story that is sure to be a Christmas classic!

Where had it come from? Whose money was it? Was I to spend it? Save it? Pass it on to the someone more needy? Above all else, why was I chosen? Certainly there were others, countless others more needy than I...Her reporter’s intuition insisted that a remarkable story was on the verge of the front page.

Rising newspaper reporter Hope Jensen uncovers the secret behind the "Christmas Jars" – glass jars filled with coins and bills anonymously given to people in need. But Hope discovers much more than she bargained for when some unexpected news sets off a chain reaction of kindness and brings above a Christmas Eve wish come true.  (amazon.com)

Kelly, Springville Road

Christmas Curiosities: Odd, Dark, and Forgotten Christmas by John Grossman

How did we get from Saturnalia to Santa Claus?  From a berobed clergyman to "right jolly old elf?"  Through turn-of-the-century German postcards and the evolution of the name around the world (Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, Sinterklaas, Jultomten, Pere Noel, etc), Grossman gives the reader access to the little known or discussed history of Santa Claus.  I for one was delighted to learn about early Santa's more than slightly demonic partner, Krampus, who doled out punishment while Santa gave out presents.  Great, GREAT read!

Holley, Emmet O'Neal

The Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays by Anthony F. Aveni

What is the connection between May Day and the Statue of Liberty? Between ancient solstice fires and Fourth of July fireworks? Between St. Valentine, the Groundhog, and the Virgin Mary? In The Book of the Year, Anthony Aveni offers fascinating answers to these questions and explains the many ways humans throughout time have tried to order and give meaning to time's passing. Aveni traces the origins of modern customs tied to seasonal holidays, exploring what we eat, the games we play, the rituals we perform, and the colorful cast of characters we invent to dramatize holidays. Along the way, Aveni illuminates everything from the Jack 'O Lantern and our faith in the predictive power of animals to the ways in which Labor Day reflects the great medieval "time wars," when the newly invented clock first pitted labor against management. Vividly written, filled with facts both curious and astonishing, this engrossing book allows us to hear that beat more clearly and to understand more fully the rhythms we all dance to throughout the year. (amazon.com)

Samuel, Central BST

Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris (audiobook)
Meet Crumpet the Elf, the most cynical elf to ever work in Macy’s SantaLand.  In Holidays on Ice, David Sedaris’s hilarious holiday audiobook compilation, he recounts the absurdity and obnoxiousness of both his fellow workers and the customers inside Macy’s NYC during Christmas time.   Among the visitors are the woman who sneaks her cat in to sit on Santa’s lap and the foreigners who come alone to meet Santa; as well as the pageant parents who comb and spray their child’s hair while sitting on Santa’s lap.  In addition to the SantaLand Diaries, there are five more comical stories included in this compilation.  Highlights include Front Row Center with Thaddeus Bristol, where a professional critic harshly reviews a middle school Christmas pageant and Christmas Means Giving, where neighbors try to outdo each other with overly generous Christmas gifts.  If you need just one good reason to check out this audiobook, here it is: a chance to hear David Sedaris sing “Away in a Manger” in the style of Billie Holiday just to spite Santa.

Carrie, Hoover

The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry
In 1960 in the town of Asquont, New York, young Doug Barnes is preparing to play one of the wise men in the church Christmas pageant.   Hilarity ensues as one of his fellow wise men brings a small radio and plays it under his cloak just to get a rise out of Doug and the other wise men.  Ms. Elkin, the harsh stage director hears something but can’t quite put her finger on and it and thus, thinks she is going crazy.  Other obstacles arise and it seems the Christmas pageant might be ruined, but there is a flicker of hope when Doug and his father adopt Walter the dog on Christmas Eve.  This is highly recommended for fans of the movie A Christmas Story.

Carrie, Hoover

A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote
Based on Capote’s childhood, A Christmas Memory, follows the young child Buddy and his much older (and child-like) cousin Sook as they gather ingredients to make fruitcakes to send out at Christmas time.  To procure one ingredient, they must visit the local Native-American Haha Jones to purchase bootleg whisky.  Buddy and his cousin send the fruitcakes to acquaintances and strangers, including President Franklin Roosevelt. Each year, the pair anticipates their gifts to each other; even though, they always make each other kites.  Nonetheless, they are pleased to receive these gifts each year.  The ending is quite sad, but as most Capote tales go, it is very poignant, too.

Carrie, Hoover

Blue Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews
It's the week before Christmas, and antiques dealer Weezie Foley is in a frenzy to garnish her shop for the Savannah historical district decorating contest, which she intends to win. Weezie is ready to shoot herself with her glue gun by the time she's done, but the results are stunning. She's certainly one-upped the owners of the trendy boutique around the corner, but suddenly things start to go missing from her display, and there seems to be a mysterious midnight visitor to her shop.

Still, Weezie has high hopes for the holiday—maybe in the form of an engagement ring from her chef boyfriend. But Daniel, always moody at the holidays, seems more distant than usual. Throw in Weezie's decidedly odd family, a 1950s Christmas tree pin, and even a little help from the King himself (Elvis, that is), and maybe there will be a pocketful of miracles for Weezie this Christmas Eve.  (amazon.com)
Mondretta, Leeds

Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews
‘Twas the night before Christmas, and Savannah was breezy
But there's trouble afoot - and it's heading toward Weezie.
Seems BeBe’s been holding a big secret back
that would make Santa’s reindeer stop dead in their tracks.
Can these two best friends wriggle out of these twists?
Will they do it in time to ensure CHRISTMAS BLISS?
Return to the wonderful world of Mary Kay Andrews' Savannah with Christmas Bliss  (amazon.com)
Mondretta, Leeds

The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
One of America's most critically acclaimed storytellers, David Baldacci has enthralled millions of readers with his popular novels. Now in a special new gift edition, here is Baldacci's beloved holiday classic-a work that showcases his remarkable versatility as he brings us a uniquely entertaining tale...the christmas train Disillusioned journalist Tom Langdon must get from Washington to L.A. in time for Christmas. Forced to take the train across the country because of a slight "misunderstanding" at airport security, he begins a journey of self-discovery and rude awakenings, mysterious goings-on and thrilling adventures, screwball escapades and holiday magic. He has no idea that the locomotives pulling him across America will actually take him into the rugged terrain of his own heart, as he rediscovers people's essential goodness and someone very special he believed he had lost. Equal parts hilarious, poignant, suspenseful, and thrilling. David Baldacci's THE CHRISTMAS TRAIN is filled with memorable characters who have packed their bags with as much wisdom as mischief...and shows how we do get second chances to fulfill our deepest hopes and dreams, especially during this season of miracles. (amazon.com)
Mondretta, Leeds

A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg
With the same incomparable style and warm, inviting voice that have made her beloved by millions of readers far and wide, New York Times bestselling author Fannie Flagg has written an enchanting Christmas story of faith and hope for all ages that is sure to become a classic.

Deep in the southernmost part of Alabama, along the banks of a lazy winding river, lies the sleepy little community known as Lost River, a place that time itself seems to have forgotten. After a startling diagnosis from his doctor, Oswald T. Campbell leaves behind the cold and damp of the oncoming Chicago winter to spend what he believes will be his last Christmas in the warm and welcoming town of Lost River. There he meets the postman who delivers mail by boat, the store owner who nurses a broken heart, the ladies of the Mystic Order of the Royal Polka Dots Secret Society, who do clandestine good works. And he meets a little redbird named Jack, who is at the center of this tale of a magical Christmas when something so amazing happened that those who witnessed it have never forgotten it. Once you experience the wonder, you too will never forget A Redbird Christmas.  (amazon.com)
Mondretta, Leeds

Santa's Twin by Dean Koontz
Combining the tongue-in-cheek charm of a modern classic with the timeless magic of cherished holiday tradition, here is a new Christmas story guaranteed to delight children of all ages--including those who pretend to have not grown up.  At the request of his fans, bestselling novelist Dean Koontz has created a contemporary masterpiece that is destined to take place alongside "The Night Before Christmas" and Christmas Carol as a perennial Yuletide favorite.

Santa's Twin is the hilarious and heartwarming story of two little girls, Charlotte and Emily, who set out to save Santa from his mischievious twin--Bob Claus--who has not only stolen Santa's sleigh, but has stuffed his toy bag with mud pies, cat poop, and broccoli! Plus, he's threatening to turn Donner, Blitzen and the rest of the reindeer into soup! And look at the messhe's leaving under the tree!  How the brave but foolhardy sisters fly to the north pole and rescue Santa from his "deeply troubled" twin is an utterly charming and unforgettable story that will add sparkle to your holiday season.  The first major new Christmas story in decades, Santa's Twin is sure to bring joy that parents can share with their children. Lavishly illustrated with spectacular paintings by Phil Parks, this thoroughly modern masterpiece breathes new life and warmth into the world's most beloved legend.  Read it aloud, preferably to someone whose laugh you love to hear.  And Merry Christmas! (amazon.com)
Mondretta, Leeds

Holmes for the Holidays edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon L. Lellenberg, and Carol-Lynn Waugh
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle only wrote one Christmas-themed Sherlock Holmes story, “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle,” which consistently appears on “best of” lists compiled by fans of the great detective. Holmes for the Holidays is a veritable Christmas revel for readers who can’t get enough of Holmes and the festive season. In contributions by such distinguished mystery writers as Anne Perry, Loren Estleman, Carole Nelson Douglas, we see Holmes doing what he does best: protecting the weak, defending the wrongly-accused, and bringing the guilty to justice—or sometimes allowing the guilty to go their way with a stern warning, because it is, after all, the season of forgiveness. The stories range in tone from comedy to breath-taking suspense---as Holmes points out in one of the tales, “Evil takes no holidays, Watson. Therefore, neither can those who would stop it.” This anthology would be an excellent gift for the Sherlockian on your Christmas list. There is also a follow-up collection entitled More Holmes for the Holidays.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

The Festive Table: Recipes and Stories for Creating Your Own Holiday Traditions by Ronni Lundy
If you feel like you’ve run out of ideas for celebrating holidays, have a look through Ronni Lundy’s The Festive Table.  In the introduction she tells the story of how she cooked her first full Thanksgiving dinner and how her guests had all insisted that it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without (fill in your favorite dish here). “And from that first Thanksgiving I learned two very important things. One: Sauerkraut is really tasty with turkey. Two: Tradition is what you make of it.” That second principle is on full display in this book, with ideas and recipes ranging from a hot tamale party for New Year’s to Do-It-Yourself-Sundae-Making for Fourth of July to a tree-decorating party for Christmas. The recipes range from easy to moderately difficult and the ideas will start you thinking about reviving old family traditions or starting new ones. And you don’t have to wait for a holiday, because any time is a good time for making Orange Blossom Pralines to crumble over ice cream or a comfort-food bowl of Last-of-the-Garden Soup. Read, remember, experiment, and enjoy.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

A Child's Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas
Bring out the tall tales now that we told by the fire as the gaslight bubbled like a diver. . . .
There are always Uncles at Christmas. And Aunts, of course, who might sing a little loudly after dinner. There are the neighborhood cats "sleek and long as jaguars and horrible-whiskered," the carols to sing at eerie houses, the Useful Presents and the Useless Presents, and the endless snow "shawling out of the ground." First published in HARPER'S BAZAAR some fifty years ago, A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES showcases Dylan Thomas's genius for language and remains the poet's most popular prose work in the United States. Chris Raschka's fluid torn-paper illustrations honor the poet's words, evoking their musical cadences and bringing us a fresh appreciation for this most lyric work. (amazon.com)
Maura, Trussville

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays: 140 Step-by-Step Recipes for Simple, Scrumptious Celebrations by Ree Drummond
Ree Drummond—accidental country girl, award-winning blogger, Food Network personality, and #1 New York Times bestselling author—presents The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays, a fantastic collection of recipes, photos, and homespun humor to help you celebrate all through the year.

Ree shows you how to ring in your favorite holidays with inspired menus for breakfasts, brunches, lunches, dinners, parties, deliveries, and feasts, accompanied by fun instructions and hundreds of her signature step-by-step photos. Filled with creative and flavorful ideas for intimate dinners, group gatherings, and family meals, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays includes dozens of mouthwatering dishes (with nineteen recipes for Thanksgiving alone!), helping home cooks create a variety of delights.

Whip up a Resolution Smoothie on New Year’s Day; Whiskey BBQ Sliders and Dr Pepper Cupcakes for The Big Game; Glazed Ham for Easter; Watermelon Sangria for a sizzling Fourth of July cookout; and perfect Popcorn Balls on Halloween. For Christmas, Ree includes special homemade treats, including Caramel Apple Rolls, Christmas Rum Cake, and a selection of smile-inducing cookies, perfect for Christmas deliveries to family and friends.  Enjoy holidays all year ’round...Pioneer Woman style!  (amazon.com)
April, Pinson

What are YOU reading this holiday season?
Holley

self help books

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, December 11th at 9am at the Emmet O'Neal Library for a discussion of Holiday Writing.  Fiction, nonfiction, pagan, religious...you pick, then come tell us about it!  Our December meeting is a potluck meeting so if you are so inclined, bring a small snack to share.

If you shared a book with us at this morning's meeting, please do get an annotation to me at your earliest convenience.  And again, a big thank you goes out to Samuel for presenting the Reader's Advisory program at the most recent JCPLA Staff Developement Day!

Today, we talked about self help books and the many, many varieties out there.  Pretty much, if you have a need for help and advice with anything, chances are very good that someone has written a book about it.

A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
When world-renowned writer C.S. Lewis met Joy Davidman Gresham, his life changed forever. He first married her in a civil ceremony to extend his British citizenship to her so she could raise her sons in England, but he soon realized he sincerely loved her and went through a formal ceremony with her to show his love in the sight of God and man---and to sustain her after her diagnosis of bone cancer. When Joy’s cancer went into a sudden remission, Lewis dared to hope that she might be spared, that the miracle he had prayed for had occurred . . . but it was not to be. Joy died, leaving Lewis shattered with grief, resentment, and doubt about his Christian beliefs. Seeking an outlet for his tumultuous emotions, Lewis took to writing down observations in empty notebooks he found around the house. The final result of these jottings is A Grief Observed, now a classic in the literature of bereavement and one that does not shrink from the uglier and more frightening aspects of the grief process. Lewis, famous for his Christian apologetic works such as Mere Christianity and The Problem of Pain, now had to deal with his own disappointment and rage over how God had dealt (or failed to deal with) this tragedy. “Is it rational to believe in a bad God? Anyway, in a God so bad as all that?”  He also reflects upon his fear that he will forget what his wife was really like, as “I have no photograph of her that’s any good. I cannot even see her face distinctly in my imagination.” Bit by bit, as time passes and he recovers from the exhausting initial stages of grief and loss, Lewis slowly finds his way back to  a degree of peace and faith: “Something quite unexpected has happened . . . suddenly, at the very moment when I mourned [her] least, I remembered her best . . . it was as if the lifting of the sorrow removed a barrier.”
As Madeleine L’Engle points out in her foreword to this edition, part of the great comfort offered by this work is Lewis’ willingness “to yell, to doubt, to kick at God with angry violence.” Not for nothing is anger part of the grief process, and if a reader needs a book that will make him feel safe with that anger, it would be hard to find a better one for that purpose than A Grief Observed.

Mary Anne, BPL Central Southern History

Live!  Don't DIEt!: The Low Fat Cookbook That Can Change Your Life by Vicki Park
“Forget about calorie counting! Forget about dieting! Vicki Park did , and lost 165 pounds.”
Sounds too good to be true, right? But read on. This combination cookbook and lifestyle advice book isn’t trying to be a quick “miracle cure” of the weight-loss industry. Park, after realizing that fad diets left her feeling deprived and didn’t help with weight loss, decided that what was in order was not another diet but an entire lifestyle change. She didn’t want to give up her favorite foods, so she created recipes that removed most or all of the fat from the dishes she loved like fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, and onion rings. She also developed her mantra for preparing and eating the new versions: “I will not let myself compare the taste of my low-fat foods to their high-far counterparts. I will simply enjoy them, without making any comparison.”
Along with low-fat and no-fat recipes, Park also shares tips about how to re-equip your kitchen for the low-fat lifestyle, how to use your microwave for healthy cooking, and how to work more activity and exercise into your life. Again, the emphasis is on changing habits: this isn’t a crash diet to be discontinued after a certain amount of weight loss, but a new way of thinking, cooking, and eating. And after sampling some of the recipes such as Moist and Tender Oven-Fried Chicken, Crisp Corn Salad, and Tuna Casserole—Again? I can truthfully say that this is enjoyable food, whether or not you need a weight loss plan. This is a fun and useful addition to any cookbook shelf or any self-help collection.
Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

The AKC's Meet the Breeds: Dog Breeds from A to Z from the American Kennel Club
Before you buy that cute puppy, do your homework and make sure you’re getting the right dog for you and your family. Meet the Breeds makes it easy to review the various dog breeds by presenting the essential information about each AKC-recognized breed in a compact and reader-friendly format. Along with color photographs that show each breed as both puppy and full-grown dog (so you know what you’re getting into before you take on that adorable English Mastiff puppy that will grow to the size of a middle linebacker!), the book features sidebars with information about life expectancy, activity level, grooming requirements, and temperament. Do you want a dog to go jogging with you, or do you want one that will be happy to be a couch potato? Do you live in a small apartment or do you have a 40-acre field to accommodate one of the active giant breeds? Do you need a dog that will be child-friendly? Make your list of requirements and check out Meet the Breeds to help you welcome the right dog into its forever home with you.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

The Noticer: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You by Andy Andrews
Kelly, Springville Road

How Do You Kill 11 Million People?: Why the Truth Matters More Than You Think by Andy Andrews
Kelly, Springville Road

The Happiness Project: or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun by Gretchen Rubin
April, Pinson

Happier At Home: Kiss More, Jump More, Abandon a Project, Read Samuel Johnson, and My Other Experiments in the Practice of Everyday Life by Gretchen Rubin
April, Pinson

Girls Get Curves: Geometry Takes Shape by Danica McKellar
New York Times bestselling author and mathemetician Danica McKellar tackles all the angles—and curves—of geometry In her three previous bestselling books Math Doesn't Suck, Kiss My Math, and Hot X: Algebra Exposed!, actress and math genius Danica McKellar shattered the “math nerd” stereotype by showing girls how to ace their math classes and feel cool while doing it.  Sizzling with Danica's trademark sass and style, her fourth book, Girls Get Curves, shows her readers how to feel confident, get in the driver's seat, and master the core concepts of high school geometry, including congruent triangles, quadrilaterals, circles, proofs, theorems, and more!  Combining reader favorites like personality quizzes, fun doodles, real-life testimonials from successful women, and stories about her own experiences with illuminating step-by-step math lessons, Girls Get Curves will make girls feel like Danica is their own personal tutor.  As hundreds of thousands of girls already know, Danica's irreverent, lighthearted approach opens the door to math success and higher scores, while also boosting their self-esteem in all areas of life. Girls Get Curves makes geometry understandable, relevant, and maybe even a little (gasp!) fun for girls.  (from Amazon.com)
Samuel, BPL Central BST

The Plan: Eliminate the Surprising "Healthy" Foods That Are Making You Fat--and Lose Weight Fast by Lyn-Genet Recitas
Mondretta, Leeds

The Not So Big Life: Making Room for What Really Matters by Sarah Susanka
Sarah Susanka, best known as an architect and proponent of the "Not So Big" philosophy of architecture and interior design (i.e. quality over quantity), has written a self-help book applying the same less-is-more ideas to everyday living.  With the help of an advisor, she demonstrates how small changes can make a big impact on our success and happiness.  She applies these ideas to herself and discusses the outcomes, suggesting ways to examine our lives, eliminate the "clutter" and focus on the things that really matter.
Maura, Trussville

Throw Out Fifty Things: Clear the Clutter, Find Your Life by Gail Blanke
Life coach and motivational speaker Gail Blanke tells us how to eliminate physical and mental/emotional clutter by letting go of things (recycle, donate, discard) and old grudges, disappointments, negative experiences, etc.  Each chapter focuses on a specific room or area for clearing out and describes the increase in energy and motivation we should gain from each completed project.  She uses the term "life plaque" to describe the gunk that builds up around us and prevents us from living a more fulfilling life.
Maura, Trussville

This is How: Proven Aid in Overcoming Shyness, Molestation, Fatness, Spinsterhood, Grief, Disease, Lushery, Decrepitude and More--For Young and Old Alike by Augusten Burroughs
Maura, Trussville

The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by Dr. David Kessler
Dr. Kessler makes the biology behind the overeating impulse, if not easy to defeat, at least easier to understand and combat.  Habit and addiction are tough to fight where food is concerned.  Unlike with a drug or alcohol addiction, one cannot simply abstain from eating.  It's an addiction that you must manage in the face of constant confrontation.  It isn't easy.  Some days it doesn't even feel possible.  However, reading about the science behind why I sometimes feel like I'm losing my mind is comforting and strengthening, possibly even enough to win my battles today.  And if I win them today, I just might tomorrow.  Who knows what good habits may emerge...
Holley, Emmet O'Neal

O's Best Advice Ever!: Make Over Your Life with Oprah and Friends, Including Dr. Oz, Bob Greene, Suze Orman, Dr. Phil, Martha Beck, and More by Oprah Winfrey
This is a glossy compilation of the best advice and wisdom from Oprah Winfrey’s magazine, O, the Oprah Magazine and from twenty-five years of The Oprah Winfrey Show. Oprah shares her personal advice, selections of interviews with famous people from The Oprah Winfrey Show, and information from contributors to her magazine and show on the topics of:  health, fitness, money, happiness, and relationships.  The book is conducive to being read in short segments of time or to being used to refer to topics of interest; as the articles in it are a few pages in length.  Fans of Oprah Winfrey and those looking for quick, not in-depth advice on a number of topics will enjoy this book.

Leigh, North Birmingham

Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice On Love and Life From Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed
Before Cheryl Strayed was the best-selling author of the memoir Wild, she wrote the anonymous advice column Dear Sugar for online literary magazine The Rumpus. As Dear Sugar, Strayed consistently answered the emails of troubled readers with thoughtful, gut-wrenchingly honest responses. Wild lovers will want to read more of Strayed's own journey but anyone struggling with issues of the heart will find sound advice within these pages. Highly recommended.

Amanda, Emmet O'Neal

Adulting: How to Become a Grown Up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown
As the author of the popular blog Adulting, Kelly Williams Brown has been spreading good common sense advice for a few years now. In her first book (I say first, because I hope there will be more to come) Brown writes accessibly with friendly ease. It's as though your cool older sister is telling you how she messed up after college and how you can avoid making the same mistakes. Topics include domestic, professional, and social advice. Brown's penchant for quoting gangster rap and fey illustrations keep Adulting from being preachy.
Amanda, Emmet O'Neal

The Tao of Martha: My Year of LIVING; or, Why I'm Never, Ever Getting All That Glitter Off of the Dog by Jen Lancaster
This book is part self help but is all funny. Lancaster decides after a year of not feeling her life is working for her, that she'll institute a new regime of following Martha Stewart's rules for all areas of her hearth and home. So from gardening, baking, decorating, organizing, to throwing parties and more she looks up and does (mostly) by the book what the Stewart Empire recommends. Sometimes she takes shortcuts and fails, miserably and hilariously. It is these moments that really shine and stick with the reader.  I listened to the audiobook which Lancaster narrates. It was literally laugh out loud enjoyable and while I'm sure her written works are just as good, I highly recommend her audio versions. Her comedic timing is perfect.  Through her trials and (many) errors she realizes that living a year of Martha really did help her improve so many areas of her life. I think the most fascinating part of Lancaster's writing is that as you travel along her year of self improvement you feel as though you know her, really know her. She has a way of making the reader feel intimately involved in her crazy, wild, funny life. Even if you don't walk away improved in your domestic skills, you will walk away feeling better about yourself and happier I assure you.
Gina, Gardendale

What are YOU reading?
Holley

fantasy fiction

The next meeting of the JCPLA Reader’s Advisory Roundtable will take place on Wednesday, October 9th at 9am at the Emmet O’Neal Library and the topic of discussion will be self-help books.

Also, we voted on some housekeeping items and I am delighted to be your moderator again for the coming year.  Our topics of discussion for 2014 are as follows:

February 12 (AT SPRINGVILLE ROAD LIBRARY):  Erotica/Romance

April 9:  Topics/Genres Outside Your Comfort Zone

June 11:  Viewer’s Advisory (Movies/TV Shows/Documentaries)

August 13:  Young Adult Fiction

October 8:  Audiobooks

December 10 (AT BPL SOUTHERN HISTORY):  Potluck Food & Books (no assigned topic)

Storm Front by Jim Butcher

(From Amazon.com)For Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard, business, to put it mildly, stinks. So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry's seeing dollar signs. But where there's black magic, there's a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry's name.

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey

(From Amazon.com)The land of Terre d'Ange is a place of unsurpassing beauty and grace. It is said that angels found the land and saw it was good...and the ensuing race that rose from the seed of angels and men live by one simple rule: Love as thou wilt.

Phèdre nó Delaunay is a young woman who was born with a scarlet mote in her left eye. Sold into indentured servitude as a child, her bond is purchased by Anafiel Delaunay, a nobleman with very a special mission...and the first one to recognize who and what she is: one pricked by Kushiel's Dart, chosen to forever experience pain and pleasure as one.

Phèdre is trained equally in the courtly arts and the talents of the bedchamber, but, above all, the ability to observe, remember, and analyze. Almost as talented a spy as she is courtesan, Phèdre stumbles upon a plot that threatens the very foundations of her homeland. Treachery sets her on her path; love and honor goad her further. And in the doing, it will take her to the edge of despair...and beyond. Hateful friend, loving enemy, beloved assassin; they can all wear the same glittering mask in this world, and Phèdre will get but one chance to save all that she holds dear. 

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy Boston

(From Amazon.com)In The Children of Green Knowe, it is the 7 year-old boy Toseland (Tolly for short) who comes to Green Knowe -- named after a sinister topiary Noah in the extensive gardens -- for Christmas holidays, while his parents are away in Burma. Through a painting and personal artefacts which he discovers in the ancient house, as well as his great-grandmother Oldknow's cryptic remarks, he discovers that the house is peopled by the spirits of children and horses long gone to their rest. In particular, he begins to detect and even interact through time (or his imagination?) with Toby, Linnet and Alexander, three young plague victims from the 17th century, of whom Mrs. Oldknow seems to have an extensive knowledge. 

Mary Anne, BPL Southern History

GENERAL DISCUSSION:  If you have a book you’re looking for, “stumpers” as we like to call them, the Loganberry Books website is a good place to submit your query, especially for children’s books.  If you’re searching for a romance novel, Smart Bitches, Trashy Books has a great unofficial HaBO service (Help a Bitch Out) where you can submit as much plot/character info asyou can remember and they’ll try to ferret out the title.  I’ve used this before and had results back nearly immediately.  I was actually kind of embarrassed that they’d found it that quickly as I had BEEN searching for a while.  They are good people over there.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

If I was a novelist I’d be very jealous of David Mitchell. He has in this book as much talent as almost any five excellent novelists. He can write historical fiction, science fiction, thrillers. He can invent worlds and the languages that go with them. His characters move you very deeply, depress you, frighten you and inspire you to no reasonable end. And he does all of this in just one book, Cloud Atlas. How can a story set over a several hundred year span involving dozens of characters cohere marvelously?  How can it keep repeating themes, motifs and hallmarks which are all beautifully balanced and integrated? It does it all because it works literary miracles.

Richard, BPL Fiction

Seven Days in New Crete by Robert Graves

(From Amazon.com)Seven Days in New Crete tells of a poet who imagines the world a thousand years from now. Clocks, money and machinery have disappeared. Magicians are important and so are rituals, handicrafts and love.

Everyone worships a Mother Goddess, and as in the Middle Ages, life is local and personal. Villages war against each other in dramatic fashion--but only on Tuesdays, and no one gets hurt. Graves' future world, as explored by a young poet from our time, has history, reality and stunning inner logic.  This novel may also be found under the great title, “Watch the North Wind Rise.”
Richard, BPL Fiction

Hold, Me Closer Necromancer by Lish McBride
(From Amazon.com)Sam leads a pretty normal life. He may not have the most exciting job in the world, but he’s doing all right—until a fast food prank brings him to the attention of Douglas, a creepy guy with an intense violent streak.

Turns out Douglas is a necromancer who raises the dead for cash and sees potential in Sam. Then Sam discovers he’s a necromancer too, but with strangely latent powers. And his worst nightmare wants to join forces . . . or else.  

With only a week to figure things out, Sam needs all the help he can get. Luckily he lives in Seattle, which has nearly as many paranormal types as it does coffee places. But even with newfound friends, will Sam be able to save his skin?
Kelly, Springville Road

Necromancing the Stone by Lish McBride
(From Amazon.com)With the defeat of the evil Douglas behind him, Sam LaCroix is getting used to his new life. Okay, so he hadn’t exactly planned on being a powerful necromancer with a seat on the local magical council and a capricious werewolf sort-of-girlfriend, but things are going fine, right?

Well . . . not really. He’s pretty tired of getting beat up by everyone and their mother, for one thing, and he can’t help but feel that his new house hates him. His best friend is a werebear, someone is threatening his sister, and while Sam realizes that he himself has a lot of power at his fingertips, he’s not exactly sure how to use it. Which, he has to admit, is a bit disconcerting.

But when everything starts falling apart, he decides it’s time to step up and take control. His attempts to do so just bring up more questions, though, the most important of which is more than a little alarming: Is Douglas really dead?

Kelly, Springville Road

Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
In Gibbons's classic tale, a resourceful young heroine finds herself in the gloomy, overwrought world of a Hardy or Bronte novel and proceeds to organize everyone out of their romantic tragedies into the pleasures of normal life. Flora Poste, orphaned at 19, chooses to live with relatives at Cold Comfort Farm in Sussex, where cows are named Feckless, Aimless, Pointless, and Graceless, and the proprietors, the dour Starkadder family, are tyrannized by Flora's mysterious aunt, who controls the household from a locked room. Once there she discovers they exist in a state of chaos and feels it is up to her to bring order. Flora's confident and clever management of an alarming cast of eccentrics is only half the pleasure of this novel. The other half is Gibbons's wicked sendup of romantic cliches, from the mad woman in the attic to the druidical peasants with their West Country accents and mystical herbs.
Kelly, Springville Road

The Realms Thereunder by Ross Lawhead

(From Amazon.com)Ancient legend tells of an army of knights that will remain sleeping until the last days. The knights are waking up. 

A homeless man is stalked by a pale, wraithlike creature with a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth. Maimed animals and a host of suicides cluster around a mountain in Scotland. And deep beneath the cobbled streets of Oxford, a malicious hoard besieges a hidden city.

Freya Reynolds is a university student with a touch of OCD and an obsession with myth and folklore. Daniel Tully is living rough on the streets of Oxford, waging a secret war against an enemy only he can identify. Years ago, they found themselves in a world few know is real. They have since gone their separate ways and tried to put that adventure behind them.

But the mythical world is now bleeding into our reality—a dark spiritual evil that is manifesting itself in forgotten corners of the British Isles. Alex Simpson is a Scottish police officer who specializes in hunting mythical creatures. Together, they must confront the past, the present, and points beyond to defeat the ultimate threat to humanity. Nothing they've seen so far prepares them for what awaits . . . in The Realms Thereunder.

Mondretta, Leeds

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

(From Amazon.com)The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

Mondretta, Leeds

The Magus by John Fowles
Disenchanted Oxford grad and aspiring poet Nicholas Urfe leaves Britain and his airline stewardess girlfriend for a teaching position at a boy’s school on the Greek island of Phraxos. While exploring the picturesque island, he stumbles upon the estate of Maurice Conchis, an enigmatic recluse. While on Conchis’ estate, Nicholas experiences strange visions and encounters with fantasy beings that seem all too real. As his friendship with Conchis develops, Nicholas unwittingly becomes a pawn in Conchis’ intricate and twisted phychological game that weaves together mythological themes, the Nazi occupation, and sexual deviancy.

Amanda, Emmet O’Neal

The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
The first in Stewart’s sweeping Arthurian Saga, The Crystal Cave recounts the young adulthood of the legendary magician Merlin. Illegitimately born to a Welsh princess, Myrddin Emrys struggles to find his place among his neglectful family. Adolescent Myrddin covertly develops his extrasensory and intellectual abilities under the tutelage of hermit Galapas. As a young man, he escapes to Brittany and becomes a powerful player in the court of Ambrosius Aurelianus, who is preparing to invade the Saxons to unify Britain.

Amanda, Emmet O’Neal

Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya
(From Amazon.com)Tohru Honda was an orphan when one day fate kicked her out of the house and on to land belonging to the mysterious Sohma family. After stumbling upon the teenage squatter, the Sohmas invite Tohru to stay in their house in exchange for cooking and cleaning. Everything goes well until she discovers the Sohma family's secret, when hugged by members of the opposite sex, they turn into their Chinese Zodiac animal!
Samuel, BPL Central

Black Bird by Kanoko Sakurakoji
(From Amazon.com)High school is hard enough, even under the best of circumstances. Misao Harada would love a normal high school life, but she has been burdened with the sight since childhood—a gift that allows her to see a world of myth and magic that surrounds ours. Lonely and somewhat mournful, Misao finds her world turned upside down when she reconnects with her childhood friend and first love Kyo and finds out that he is the head of a demon clan. As luck would have it, Misao is the bride of prophecy whose blood gives power to the demon who claims her. While other demon clans target her intending to consume her power, Kyo gives her the choice to become his bride and enjoy his protection. The tension between the two characters as they stave off supernatural forces is intriguing, and readers will no doubt long for Misao to become Kyo's bride. Sakurakoji's art is very romantic and the characters are almost painfully beautiful; fans will have no difficulty falling for Kyo's good looks and charm. Winner of the 2009 Shogakukan Manga Award for shojo manga.
Samuel, BPL Central

Gigi by Collette
(From Amazon.com)This is the classic story of a young girl who wins at the game of love. Gigi has been brought up by her Grandmama and Aunt Alicia, an old-school courtesan, to be a stylish coquette and set her sights on a rich man. When Gaston visits, he brings her candy and lets her cheat at cards, captivated by her girlish ways. Now 16, Gigi is ripe to put away childish things and prepare to become Gaston's mistress. The clever girl however, has other plans...
Samuel, BPL Central

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
This slim volume is chock full of beautiful language, gauzy timelines, and barely glimpsed fairy tale monsters made of cloth and shadow.  The unnamed narrator, back in his home town for a funeral, has an urge to visit the barely remembered farm at the end of the Lane.  His childhood friend Letty lived there before she moved away.  There was a pond that Letty insisted was a sea, but anyone could see it was a simple duck pond.  The old lady in the kitchen seemed like Letty’s grandmother that he remembered from 40 years ago, but that wasn’t possible.  Or was it…?  Glorious, beautiful, eerie, and compulsively readable.
Holley, Emmet O’Neal

Riverworld series by Philip Jose Farmer
To Your Scattered Bodies Go
The Fabulous Riverboat
The Dark Design
The Magic Labyrinth
The Gods of Riverworld
River of Eternity
(From Amazon.com)Imagine that every human who ever lived, from the earliest Neanderthals to the present, is resurrected after death on the banks of an astonishing and seemingly endless river on an unknown world. They are miraculously provided with food, but with not a clue to the possible meaning of this strange afterlife. And so billions of people from history, and before, must start living again.

Some set sail on the great river questing for the meaning of their resurrection, and to find and confront their mysterious benefactors. On this long journey, we meet Sir Richard Francis Burton, Mark Twain, Odysseus, Cyrano de Bergerac, and many others, most of whom embark upon searches of their own in this huge afterlife.
Jon, Avondale

Repairman Jack series by F. Paul Wilson
The Tomb
Legacies 

Conspiracies
All the Rage
Hosts
The Haunted Air
Gateways
Crisscross
Infernal
Harbingers
Bloodline
By the Sword
Ground Zero
Fatal Error
The Dark at the End 

(From Amazon.com)Much to the chagrin of his girlfriend, Gia, Repairman Jack doesn't deal with electronic appliances-he fixes situations for people, often putting himself in deadly danger. His latest project is recovering a stolen necklace, which carries with it an ancient curse that may unleash a horde of Bengali demons. Jack is used to danger, but this time Gia's daughter Vicky is threatened. Can Jack overcome the curse of the yellow necklace and bring Vicky safely back home?
Jon, Avondale

Unnatural Creatures by Neil Gaiman
(From Amazon.com)Unnatural Creatures is a collection of short stories about the fantastical things that exist only in our minds—collected and introduced by beloved New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman.

The sixteen stories gathered by Gaiman, winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards, range from the whimsical to the terrifying. The magical creatures range from werewolves to sunbirds to beings never before classified. E. Nesbit, Diana Wynne Jones, Gahan Wilson, and other literary luminaries contribute to the anthology.

Sales of Unnatural Creatures benefit 826DC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students in their creative and expository writing, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.
Jon, Avondale

The Golden Torc by Julian May
(From Amazon.com)By A.D. 2110 nearly 100,000 humans had fled the civilized strictures of the Galactic Milieu for the freedom they thought existed at the end of the one-way time tunnel to Earth, six million B.C.

But all of them had fallen into the hands of the Tanu, a humanoid race who'd fled their own galaxy to avoid punishment for their barbarous ways.
And now the humans had made the Tanu stronger than the Firvulag, their degenerate brethren and ritual antagonists. Soon the Tanu would reign supreme. Or so they thought . . .
Jon, Avondale

Sacre Bleu: A Comedy d’Art by Christopher Moore
This amusing novel combines historical fiction, mystery, fantasy, and love story. Set in the late 19th Century, the story begins with the suicide of Vincent Van Gogh - or is it really murder?  That is one of the mysteries that the protagonist, Lucien is hoping to figure out.  Lucien is an aspiring painter who encounters a number of major artists of the late Impressionist period, most notably Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who accompanies him on many adventures.  Lucien has fallen in love with Juliette, who is an artist's muse controlled by the mysterious and often cruel Colorman.  The Colorman is the guardian of the rare and powerful blue pigment (the "sacred blue" of the title) that has been sought after by major artists throughout history.  It not only costs money to obtain the pigment, but each artist who obtains it also becomes vulnerable to some kind of tragedy or misfortune.  Juliette is forced to participate in the Colorman's schemes, acting as muse for the artists and occasionally the agent of misfortune; she takes on different forms (and names) for each artist she is to inspire. The Colorman and Juliette have unusual powers, including the ability to change forms and seemingly live forever.  For their love to survive, Lucien ultimately must help Juliette to free herself from the grip of the Colorman.  There is much bawdy humor and humor in general.  I listened to the audiobook version and thought the humor was enhanced by the reader's delivery and almost-over-the-top French accent.
Maura, Trussville

The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien
Completed in 1940 but not published until 1967, a year after the author's death, this novel has been described as a surreal dark comic masterpiece.  The protagonist has recently committed a murder during a botched robbery; he turns himself in to the local police barracks and once he enters, he begins to experience a place that defies the laws of space and time.  He interacts with three odd policemen who confound him with riddles and lead him into alternate dimensions.  He also encounters his own soul (named "Joe").  The narrator is devoted to the absurd ideas of a philosopher named de Selby; throughout the book there are footnotes expounding on de Selby's theories. The novel is both funny and unsettling, with clever wordplay and a conversational style that I can only describe as "very Irish."
Maura, Trussville

lit websites

Our own RART member, Richard G., sent this to me.  I'm really starting to develop a crush on Flavorwire....

http://flavorwire.com/407418/the-25-best-websites-for-literature-lovers/view-all

fantasy fiction

The Reader's Advisory Roundtable will meet next week, Wednesday August 14th at 9am at Emmet O'Neal Library for a discussion of fantasy fiction.  Be there or be forever confined to reality.

RART is geared towards adult services staff, but everyone is welcome!  For more information, contact Holley at 205-445-1117 or hwesley[at]bham[dot]lib[dot]al[dot]us.

geeking out over Jane Eyre

If you or anyone you know is an Eyre aficionado, you may be interested in this series I was made aware of whilst hobnobbing at RWA's Librarians' Day last week.

The Jane Eyre Chronicles by Joanna Campbell Slan

Death of a Schoolgirl (9780425247727)  (This title is available in the PLJC system)

Death of a Dowager (9780425253519)

I spoke with the author at the event and she gave me a few postcards and pamphlets about the book (which I will make available at our next meeting) and told me about a FREE virtual author event coming up in October.  The event, featuring Joanna Campbell Slan, will explore the history of Charlotte Bronte's classic and celebrate 166 years of Jane Eyre.

The event will be on October 16, 2013, from 3-5pm EST at http://shindig.com/event/jane-eyre

For more information, or book club questions, contact the author at joannaslan@aol.com and visit her website at www.joannaslan.com.

author Michael Morris

This came through the staff email this afternoon:

The Hoover Public Library has just had a very successful book group with
Michael Morris new book, Man in the Blue Moon.  He came to the library and
we engaged with him for over an hour about this book, his previous books,
and about his writing life.  He's a great speaker.  He wanted me to let
other library's know that he'd be willing to go to any of the branch
libraries for a book talk if you wanted him to come.  (He's local so it's
convenient for him.)

You can contact him at the following email address: wiregrass@earthlink.net.

Thanks,
Shannon
Hoover Public Library

Danny’s Mom: a novel by Elaine Wolf

Beth is a high school guidance counselor when her only son is killed in a one-car accident.

She blames her husband because she had argued against letting Danny drive that night, and she feels guilty for not standing up to both of them to prevent it.   After only three weeks she goes back to her job and her personal turmoil bleeds over into her relationships with a vulnerable student who is being bullied, a teacher who is the victim of a “mean girls” hate campaign, and a rigid administrator who refuses to listen to her concerns.   As a former educator, this author supposedly has insight into what really goes on in our schools, but if things are this bad, our teachers deserve combat pay.   I was so unsettled by this book that I asked a former school administrator to read it and give me her feedback (or at least her reassurance that the behavior described is exaggerated).    I can’t say I liked it, but it is certainly thought-provoking.   With its themes of grief, rage, professional conflict, school bullying, sexual orientation hate crimes and doubt about how much educators can and should do to protect students and themselves, this novel seems ideal for reading groups.

Kelly, Springville Road

Western novels

I received the July NoveList newsletter today that was all about (surprise! surprise!)
westerns!  I am including the links in case you would like to read more
about them.

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/wanted-dead-or-alive-or-undead-the-weird-wild-west

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/the-many-sides-of-the-western-romances

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/spurred-to-greatness-the-evolution-of-the-literary-western

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/who-says-westerns-are-dead

more cookbook madness

Here's a great little tidbit from Mary Anne, who led our tour of BPL Southern History's vintage cookbook collection this past December:

Check out the new July issue of Southern Living magazine. There's an article called
"Spiral-Bound South" that's all about spiral-bound cookbooks like you see for churches,
fundraisers, etc. And there's a contest to win a collection of vintage community cookbooks.

Another good article in this issue is the one about the noble church institution of "dinner
on the grounds." Mmmmmm . . .   8-9  The title of that one is "Spread the Gospel."

Travel Writing/True Crime

Attendance:

Holley W. – Emmet O’Neal

Richard G. – Central Fiction

Jonathan N. – Avondale

Elizabeth S. – JCLC

Maura D. – Trussville

Today, Systems Librarian extraordinaire Elizabeth S. visited to share with us some of the exciting features of Sierra, the upgrade to our Millennium system coming later this fall.

Our next meeting will be on August 14, 2013 at 9am at the Emmet O’Neal Library.  The topic of discussion will be fantasy…graphic novels are also welcome!  This morning we had a dual discussion of true crime and travel writing.

Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

A travelogue/comedy hybrid that is classic Sedaris: sardonic, biting, and profoundly funny for the thick skinned.  Not for the faint of heart as Sedaris skewers many social conventions.  I listened to the audio narrated by Sedaris himself and I demand that no one other than Sedaris EVER narrate his audiobooks…a truly stellar performance!

Holley, Emmet O’Neal

The Longest Road: Overland in Search of America, from Key West to the Arctic Ocean by Philip Caputo
This book is not scheduled for publication until July 16, 2013 (Henry Holt and Co, 9780805094466, $28.00) but I have been enchanted with it ever since I first read the review.  Here is the book description from Amazon: 

One of America’s most respected writers takes an epic journey across America, Airstream in tow, and asks everyday Americans what unites and divides a country as endlessly diverse as it is large.

Standing on a wind-scoured island off the Alaskan coast, Philip Caputo marveled that its Inupiat Eskimo schoolchildren pledge allegiance to the same flag as the children of Cuban immigrants in Key West, six thousand miles away. And a question began to take shape: How does the United States, peopled by every race on earth, remain united? Caputo resolved that one day he’d drive from the nation’s southernmost point to the northernmost point reachable by road, talking to everyday Americans about their lives and asking how they would answer his question.

So it was that in 2011, in an America more divided than in living memory, Caputo, his wife, and their two English setters made their way in a truck and classic trailer (hereafter known as “Fred” and “Ethel”) from Key West, Florida, to Deadhorse, Alaska, covering 16,000 miles. He spoke to everyone from a West Virginia couple saving souls to a Native American shaman and taco entrepreneur. What he found is a story that will entertain and inspire readers as much as it informs them about the state of today’s United States, the glue that holds us all together, and the conflicts that could cause us to pull apart.
Holley, Emmet O’Neal

Way Off the Road: Discovering the Peculiar Charms of Small Town America by Bill Geist
Talking about Philip Caputo’s new book made me remember how much I enjoyed this little gem several years ago.  You may remember author Bill Geist as a celebrated roving correspondent for CBS News Sunday Morning.  In Way Off the Road, we follow Geist as he takes a rollicking look at some small-town Americans and their offbeat ways of life.  One of the small towns Mr. Geist visits is Scottsboro, Alabama for a stop at the Unclaimed Baggage Center!
Holley, Emmet O’Neal

A Death in Italy: The Definitive Account of the Amanda Knox Case by John Follain
Jon, Avondale

Portrait of a Monster: Joran van der Sloot, a Murder in Peru, and the Natalee Holloway Mystery by Lisa Pulitzer and Cole Thompson
Jon, Avondale

Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper—Case Closed by Patricia Cornwell
Jon, Avondale

Psycho USA: Famous American Killers You Never Heard Of by Harold Schechter
Jon, Avondale

GENERAL DISCUSSION:

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson
Erik Larson—author of #1 bestseller In the Garden of Beasts—intertwines the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair and the cunning serial killer who used the fair to lure his victims to their death. Combining meticulous research with nail-biting storytelling, Erik Larson has crafted a narrative with all the wonder of newly discovered history and the thrills of the best fiction. (Amazon)

The Outside Man: A Novel by Richard North Patterson (A fictionalized account of the 1977 murder of Mountain Brook resident Virginia Simpson--more info here and here.)
The outside man is society lawyer Adam Shaw. A northerner in a southern town jealous of its secrets, he finds the dead body of his best friend's wealthy wife -- and his friend is missing.

In a world where wealthy people will stop at nothing to maintain a genteel image, Shaw must gamble his career, his marriage, and his very life in a passionate quest for the real murderer -- and learn the shocking truth about his own past and future. (Amazon)  

Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies

It was among the most notorious criminal cases of its day. On August 11, 1921, in Birmingham, Alabama, a Methodist minister named Edwin Stephenson shot and killed a Catholic priest, James Coyle, in broad daylight and in front of numerous witnesses. The killer's motive?  The priest had married Stephenson's eighteen-year-old daughter Ruth to Pedro Gussman, a Puerto Rican migrant and practicing Catholic.

Sharon Davies's Rising Road resurrects the murder of Father Coyle and the trial of his killer. As Davies reveals with novelistic richness, Stephenson's crime laid bare the most potent bigotries of the age: a hatred not only of blacks, but of Catholics and "foreigners" as well. In one of the case's most unexpected turns, the minister hired future U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black to lead his defense. Though regarded later in life as a civil rights champion, in 1921 Black was just months away from donning the robes of the Ku Klux Klan, the secret order that financed Stephenson's defense. Entering a plea of temporary insanity, Black defended the minister on claims that the Catholics had robbed Ruth away from her true Protestant faith, and that her Puerto Rican husband was actually black.

Placing the story in social and historical context, Davies brings this heinous crime and its aftermath back to life, in a brilliant and engrossing examination of the wages of prejudice and a trial that shook the nation at the height of Jim Crow. (Amazon)

Bad Lands: A Tourist on the Axis of Evil by Tony Wheeler
In an age of plastic knives on planes, Tony Wheeler can make the extraordinary claim of having visited all the rogue countries currently on newsreaders' lips. Bad Lands is a witty first-hand account of his travels through some of the most repressive and dangerous regimes in the world: Afghanistan, Albania, Burma, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea and Saudi Arabia. Taking into account each country's attitude to human rights, terrorism and foreign policy, he asks 'what makes a country truly evil?' and 'how bad is really bad?' - all the while engaging with a colorful cast of locals and hapless tour guides, ruminating on history and debunking popular myths. Written by the founder of Lonely Planet, this fascinating account of life in these closed-off countries will appeal to anyone with an interest in the state of the world today. (Amazon)

Wicked North Alabama by Jacquelyn Procter Reeves
Thoughts of Alabama invite images of Confederate jasmine and fertile cotton fields, sweet iced tea and southern hospitality. But even in paradise, evil sometimes creeps in. Some of the stories captured within the pages of this book are well known to the good folks of North Alabama; others are less familiar. The scandals of Lincoln's brother- in-law, the reign of terror created by Huntsville's Southwest Molester, the Decatur man who buried his wife's dismembered body under the fishpond and the beautiful Black Widow of Hazel Green- all of these stories and more are well researched and masterfully written by Huntsville author Jacquelyn Procter Reeves. True-crime fans will appreciate this treasury of stories spanning nearly two hundred years of North Alabama history. (Amazon)

The Birmingham Horrors by William Stanley Hoole (Weld article here)
Being a complete and accurate account of Richard R. Hawes's murder of his wife, Emma, and daughters, May and Irene in Birmingham, Alabama, on December 3-4, 1888

The Last Train to Zona Verde: My Ultimate African Safari by Paul Theroux
Following the success of the acclaimed Ghost Train to the Eastern Star and The Great Railway Bazaar, The Last Train to Zona Verde is an ode to the last African journey of the world's most celebrated travel writer.

“Happy again, back in the kingdom of light,” writes Paul Theroux as he sets out on a new journey through the continent he knows and loves best. Theroux first came to Africa as a twenty-two-year-old Peace Corps volunteer, and the pull of the vast land never left him. Now he returns, after fifty years on the road, to explore the little-traveled territory of western Africa and to take stock both of the place and of himself.

His odyssey takes him northward from Cape Town, through South Africa and Namibia, then on into Angola, wishing to head farther still until he reaches the end of the line. Journeying alone through the greenest continent, Theroux encounters a world increasingly removed from both the itineraries of tourists and the hopes of postcolonial independence movements. Leaving the Cape Town townships, traversing the Namibian bush, passing the browsing cattle of the great sunbaked heartland of the savanna, Theroux crosses “the Red Line” into a different Africa: “the improvised, slapped-together Africa of tumbled fences and cooking fires, of mud and thatch,” of heat and poverty, and of roadblocks, mobs, and anarchy. After 2,500 arduous miles, he comes to the end of his journey in more ways than one, a decision he chronicles with typically unsparing honesty in a chapter called “What Am I Doing Here?”

Vivid, witty, and beautifully evocative, The Last Train to Zona Verde is a fitting final African adventure from the writer whose gimlet eye and effortless prose have brought the world to generations of readers. (Amazon)

The Dark Side of Disney: Utterly Unauthorized Tips, Tricks, and Scams for Your WDW Vacation by Leonard Kinsey
Maura, Trussville

The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival by John Vaillant
It’s the late 1990s in the Russian Far East. An Amur tiger has turned the tables and is hunting people. Usually, it’s the other way round, but that’s rare, as hunters know to stay away from tigers. But someone has upset the code of the taiga and angered a tiger, an animal known for its capacity for revenge upon any creature that does it harm. Who’s guilty here? The tiger? Or a person? And how can you tell? John Vaillant marshals the facts well, and creates such a detailed portrait of this exotic back of beyond you feel you are there with the frightened people as well as the tiger.
Richard, BPL Central - Fiction

GENERAL DISCUSSION:

Richard’s book about killer tigers reminded the group of The Maneaters of Tsavo and Other East African Adventures by John Henry Patterson AND the movie adapted from those adventures, The Ghost and the Darkness.
When the British government undertook the construction of the Uganda Railway through East Africa in 1898, harsh criticism from the press, tremendous amounts of money spent, and rebelliousness of the workers turned out to be the least of the government’s worries. Their biggest obstacle came in the form of two ravenous lions with a taste for human flesh, terrorizing the 35,000 laborers building a railway bridge over the Tsavo River.

 After killing more than one hundred-thirty people over the course of nine months, the lions completely halted construction, as the workers were too afraid to continue. Colonel John Henry Patterson, the chief engineer overseeing the project, then took matters into his own hands. An inexperienced hunter at the time, but a courageous and clever man, he took on the beasts and single-handedly brought an end to their nine-month reign of terror.

Patterson’s true account of his gripping and terrifying adventures confronting the lions and overseeing the project termed “The Lunatic Line,” while tackling countless other obstacles, is a must for anyone looking for a thrilling read. With over 100 original photos of the East African lands, native tribes, and wild animals, The Man-Eaters of Tsavo is a true hunting classic. (Amazon)

The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell

Sarah Vowell travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the dusty, bumpy roads of her own life. In this insightful and funny collection of personal stories Vowell -- widely hailed for her inimitable stories on public radio's This American Life -- ponders a number of curious questions: Why is she happiest when visiting the sites of bloody struggles like Salem or Gettysburg? Why do people always inappropriately compare themselves to Rosa Parks? Why is a bad life in sunny California so much worse than a bad life anywhere else? What is it about the Zen of foul shots? And, in the title piece, why must doubt and internal arguments haunt the sleepless nights of the true patriot?

Her essays confront a wide range of subjects, themes, icons, and historical moments: Ike, Teddy Roosevelt, and Bill Clinton; Canadian Mounties and German filmmakers; Tom Cruise and Buffy the Vampire Slayer; twins and nerds; the Gettysburg Address, the State of the Union, and George W. Bush's inauguration.

The result is a teeming and engrossing book, capturing Vowell's memorable wit and her keen social commentary. (Amazon)

We also talked about expose-type books from members of various service industries:

Free For All: Oddballs,Geeks, and Gangstas in the Public Library by Don BorchertNot long ago, the public library was a place for the bookish, the eggheaded, and the studious—often seeking refuge from a loud, irrational, crude, outside world.  Today, libraries have become free-for-all entertainment complexes filled with rowdy teens, deviants, drugs, and even sex toys. Lockdowns and chaperones are often necessary.

What happened?

Don Borchert was a short-order cook, door-to-door salesman, telemarketer, and Christmas-tree-chopper before landing a job in a California library. He never could have predicted his encounters with the colorful kooks, touching adolescents, threatening bullies, and tricksters who fill the pages of this hilarious memoir.

In Free for All, Borchert offers readers a ringside seat for the unlikely spectacle of mayhem and absurdity that is business as usual at the public library. You’ll see cops bust drug dealers who’ve set up shop in the men’s restroom, witness a burka-wearing employee suffer a curse-ridden nervous breakdown, and meet a lonely, neglected kid who grew up in the library and still sends postcards to his surrogate parents—the librarians.  In fact, from the first page of this comic debut to the last, you’ll learn everything about the world of the modern-day library that you never expected. (Amazon)

The World’s Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette’s, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne
An inspiring story of how a Mormon kid with Tourette’s found salvation in books and weight-lifting

Josh Hanagarne couldn’t be invisible if he tried. Although he wouldn’t officially be diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome until his freshman year of high school, Josh was six years old and onstage in a school Thanksgiving play when he first began exhibiting symptoms. By the time he was twenty, the young Mormon had reached his towering adult height of 6’7” when—while serving on a mission for the Church of Latter Day Saints—his Tourette’s tics escalated to nightmarish levels.

Determined to conquer his affliction, Josh underwent everything from quack remedies to lethargy-inducing drug regimes to Botox injections that paralyzed his vocal cords and left him voiceless for three years. Undeterred, Josh persevered to marry and earn a degree in Library Science. At last, an eccentric, autistic strongman—and former Air Force Tech Sergeant and guard at an Iraqi prison—taught Josh how to “throttle” his tics into submission through strength-training.

Today, Josh is a librarian in the main branch of Salt Lake City’s public library and founder of a popular blog about books and weight lifting—and the proud father of four-year-old Max, who has already started to show his own symptoms of Tourette’s.

The World’s Strongest Librarian illuminates the mysteries of this little-understood disorder, as well as the very different worlds of strongman training and modern libraries. With humor and candor, this unlikely hero traces his journey to overcome his disability— and navigate his wavering Mormon faith—to find love and create a life worth living.

Heads in Beds:  A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality by Jacob Tomsky
In the tradition of Kitchen Confidential and Waiter Rant, a rollicking, eye-opening, fantastically indiscreet memoir of a life spent (and misspent) in the hotel industry.

Jacob Tomsky never intended to go into the hotel business. As a new college graduate, armed only with a philosophy degree and a singular lack of career direction, he became a valet parker for a large luxury hotel in New Orleans. Yet, rising fast through the ranks, he ended up working in “hospitality” for more than a decade, doing everything from supervising the housekeeping department to manning the front desk at an upscale Manhattan hotel. He’s checked you in, checked you out, separated your white panties from the white bed sheets, parked your car, tasted your room-service meals, cleaned your toilet, denied you a late checkout, given you a wake-up call, eaten M&Ms out of your minibar, laughed at your jokes, and taken your money. In Heads in Beds he pulls back the curtain to expose the crazy and compelling reality of a multi-billion-dollar industry we think we know.

Heads in Beds is a funny, authentic, and irreverent chronicle of the highs and lows of hotel life, told by a keenly observant insider who’s seen it all. Prepare to be amused, shocked, and amazed as he spills the unwritten code of the bellhops, the antics that go on in the valet parking garage, the housekeeping department’s dirty little secrets—not to mention the shameless activities of the guests, who are rarely on their best behavior. Prepare to be moved, too, by his candor about what it’s like to toil in a highly demanding service industry at the luxury level, where people expect to get what they pay for (and often a whole lot more). Employees are poorly paid and frequently abused by coworkers and guests alike, and maintaining a semblance of sanity is a daily challenge.

Along his journey Tomsky also reveals the secrets of the industry, offering easy ways to get what you need from your hotel without any hassle. This book (and a timely proffered twenty-dollar bill) will help you score late checkouts and upgrades, get free stuff galore, and make that pay-per-view charge magically disappear. Thanks to him you’ll know how to get the very best service from any business that makes its money from putting heads in beds. Or, at the very least, you will keep the bellmen from taking your luggage into the camera-free back office and bashing it against the wall repeatedly. (Amazon)

Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet by Heather PooleReal-life flight attendant Heather Poole has written a charming and funny insider’s account of life and work in the not-always-friendly skies. Cruising Attitude is a Coffee, Tea, or Me? for the 21st century, as the author parlays her fifteen years of flight experience into a delightful account of crazy airline passengers and crew drama, of overcrowded crashpads in “Crew Gardens” Queens and finding love at 35,000 feet. The popular author of “Galley Gossip,” a weekly column for AOL’s award-winning travel website Gadling.com, Poole not only shares great stories, but also explains the ins and outs of flying, as seen from the flight attendant’s jump seat. (Amazon)

Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip—Confessions of a Cynical Waiter by Steve DublanicaAccording to The Waiter, 80 percent of customers are nice people just looking for something to eat. The remaining 20 percent, however, are socially maladjusted psychopaths.

Eye-opening, outrageous, and unabashed—replete with tales of customer stupidity, arrogant misbehavior, and unseen tidbits of human grace in the most unlikely places—Waiter Rant presents the server's unique point of view, revealing surefire secrets to getting good service, proper tipping etiquette, and ways to ensure that your waiter won't spit on your food. (Amazon)

Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress by Debra Ginsberg
A veteran waitress dishes up a spicy and robust account of life as it really exists behind kitchen doors.

Part memoir, part social commentary, part guide to how to behave when dining out, Debra Ginsberg's book takes readers on her twentyyear journey as a waitress at a soap-operatic Italian restaurant, an exclusive five-star dining club, the dingiest of diners, and more. While chronicling her evolution as a writer, Ginsberg takes a behind-the-scenes look at restaurant life-revealing that yes, when pushed, a server will spit in food, and, no, that's not really decaf you're getting-and how most people in this business are in a constant state of waiting to do something else. (Amazon)