Librarian’s Pick: Marley – Jon Clinch
"Before reading Marley, I dug out my Bantam Classic paperback of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and reread it. As if I needed such an excuse: It’s one of my favorite books, and Ebenezer Scrooge’s story of greed and selfishness never gets old. I was equally...
Librarian’s Pick: Movies And Other Things – Shea Serrano
"We all know one film aficionado who remembers bits and bobs about movies long after everyone else has forgotten them. This person can be tricky to shop for, as they’ve seen every movie already and have plenty of opinions about them. Enter Movies (and Other Things) by...
Librarian’s Pick: Atlas Of The National Parks
"Any outdoor lover will appreciate the lush and comprehensive National Geographic Atlas of the National Parks. Former ranger Jon Waterman profiles 60 national parks, from the Gates of the Arctic to American Samoa’s jungles, with detailed maps, photographs and plenty...
Librarian’s Pick: The Season – Kristen Richardson
"When she was 17, Kristen Richardson was invited to become a debutante. The prospect of being on display held no interest for her, but as Richardson attended the ritualized “coming-out” parties of friends, she became fascinated by the enduring upper-class ritual,...
Librarian’s Pick: This Is Happiness – Niall Williams
"Imagine a single sentence worthy of its own page. This Is Happiness opens with such a line, reporting that it has stopped raining. Why, you wonder, does this declaration deserve its own page? Especially in a novel about an ordinary Irish village called Faha. Things...
Librarian’s Pick: How The Dead Speak – Val McDermid
"Val McDermid’s latest installment in the Tony Hill/Carol Jordan series, How the Dead Speak, is a bridge novel. Although not specifically required, it helps to have read the past few books in the series, particularly 2017’s Insidious Intent. As that book ends and this...
Librarian’s Pick: What It Is – Clifford Thompson
"Until 2016, writer Clifford Thompson felt like an American first and foremost. Following Trump’s election, Thompson was shaken to see how differently his fellow Americans seemed to understand the world. He found himself reflecting on his American identity—where it...
Librarian’s Pick: Fifth Sun – Camilla Townsend
"For generations, historians have gleaned their understanding of the conquest of Mexico from Spanish accounts—whether from the conquistadors, who stressed Aztec human sacrifice, or Catholic missionaries, who were sometimes more sympathetic to the indigenous Nahua...
5 Owls- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Spoilers
Welcome to our spoiler-iffic Sorcerer's Stone post! This post is for readers who have finished the series and are using this opportunity to revisit Hogwarts. If you have not read ahead, please wait to read the rest of this post. Questions, polls, comments, etc. may...
Librarian’s Pick: On Swift Horses – Shannon Pufahl
"It’s 1956, and in the American West, military servicemen are returning from Korea and Japan looking for work, the fledgling interstate system is going up, and bomb tests draw Nevada tourists to watch the explosions. This is the backdrop for Shannon Pufahl’s assured...