Tag Archives: books

Beyond the Best Sellers

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stardustThese books did not make the Best Seller list but they are still good reads!

The Promise of Stardust by Priscille Sibley
This is Priscille Sibley’s first novel. The novel opens on the aftermath of a tragic accident that leaves astronaut, Elle Beaulieu brain dead and the families at odds about life support once they learn that she is pregnant. The story is told from Matt’s point of view. Sibley does a good job of weaving their back story with the present scenes of medial and courtroom drama. A good read alike of fans of Jodi Picoult.

The Bughouse Affair by Marcia Muller
On a lighter note Marcia Muller has written a new series. Two former Pinkerton detective form forces and set up their own detective agency in San Francisco. This first novel in the series has the detectives trying to solve several burglaries with the help of “Sherlock Holmes”. Takes place in late 1880′s

The Good Dream </a>by Donna VanLiere
The setting is 1950 in a small Tennessee town, and Ivorie Walker finds herself lonely after the death of her elderly mother. When she discovers a boy stealing from her garden, she reaches out to uncover where he comes from and seeks to help him, only to face fierce resistance from the town who wants to keep certain secrets. This is a character driven novel with strong women, mystery and inspiration.

Love Anthony by Lisa Genova
While dealing with her husband’s infidelity, Beth tries to recapture the independent, creative spirit she used to be through writing. What emerges is a startling new voice, one that will help her heal. Newly separated Olivia Donatelli is struggling to understand the unraveling of her marriage, and to make sense of her eight-year-old autistic son Anthony’s short life and accidental death. A chance encounter between these two women develops into an unexpected and meaningful friendship, giving one writer the opportunity to find her voice and a grieving mother a chance to finally understand her son. The characters are flat and the stories of the broken marriages really aren’t developed and didn’t need to be there. I only included this book because I thought the author’s portrayal of autism and its misunderstandings and effect on the family were well done.

In Sunlight and in Shadow by Mark Helprin
Leisurely paced and intrically plotted this novel is about Harry, a Jewish special-ops WWII paratrooper (we learn all the throttling details in sustained flashbacks) who has just returned home from the front to find his family’s top-of-the-line leather goods company failing and his father dying. Harry is determined to rescue. When he spies a beautiful woman on the Staten Island Ferry he seeks to learn her identity and to marry her. Catherine turns out to be a level-headed, musical, blue-blooded heiress. With the backdrop of 1940s mobster rule and Harry’s business woes their love grows against all odds.

Yoga: It does a Body Good

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yogaWhenever I think of yoga, I always picture the movie “Star Wars” and the little green guy in those movies named Yoda. I’m not really sure why but it sticks with me. Yoda is, of course, the master of finding inner peace and is amazingly agile and flexible for a nine-hundred-year-old being. So when I found out one of my friends was opening a yoga studio in the Cincinnati area, I had to try it. I mean, I always wanted to be as cool as Yoda.
As many of you may or may not know, I took on the endeavor of a couple of 5k runs with my friend last year. So this year, I have decided to take on Yoda, I mean yoga. (I don’t think I could take Yoda.) Having a friend that I trust sure helped in taking the first step to a nice Vinyasa Flow (that’s a yoga term or so I’m told). Many of you might think that running a 5k would be much tougher than yoga, but I am here to tell you that is not true. I used to be an athlete, so I know a good workout when I am forced to do one, and yoga is the best workout. I had my first class on a Thursday at the Fort Thomas Yoga Den and was still sore into the next week. But it was a good sore, an accomplished sore. A sore you go back for the next week, which is what I did and am still doing.
But taking a class is not the only way to get into yoga. There are several instructional videos out there that are super helpful in getting you started. You can certainly check them out at the library and save yourself some bucks. Here are a few of my favorites:
The Trainer’s Edge. Long and Lean Yoga:  This one is good because it helps with flexibility and toning.
Kathryn Budig. Aim True Yoga: The yoga flow that is incorporated here is most similar to the class I’m taking. I haven’t gotten into the poses yet.
Yoga for Inflexible People:  It has 35 workouts that range from 15 minutes to over an hour. If you have only 15 minutes for a workout, you can do that with this video.
There are many more videos that may be more suited to your skill level or to what you want out of a yoga workout, like flexibility, inner peace or core strength. I say the library is a good place to test out these things.
If a video or a class is not your style, the library also has books on yoga. These will also help you get into the yoga lifestyle. Yoga books are an excellent way to see the poses step-by-step through each progression; they are good for setting your own pace and teaching yourself. They will also let you know what the poses will help you accomplish in your workout.
Everybody has different goals that they want to accomplish in their yoga workout. My goal was to become more flexible and increase my lung capacity for running. But what I found was a lot more. You should TRY it and see what you can get out of yoga for yourself. But if you do start, make sure you are mentally and physically ready. You may want to consult a physician and/or start with a trained professional to reduce risk. WebMD has some helpful insights into the health benefits and risks of practicing yoga.

Mad Men Reading List

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Jacket.aspxI’m sure many of us have been eagerly awaiting the return of Mad Men on Sunday, April 7.  Somewhat of a rarity on television, Mad Men characters are frequently shown reading.  Why not flesh out your 6th season experience by giving some of those books a try?  Check out the incredibly comprehensive Mad Men book list curated by New York Public Library, or a shorter, greatest hits-style list from Flavorwire.  If you run into trouble finding some of the older books in CCPL’s catalog, most likely you can locate them using the MORE system, which allows you to borrow materials from other libraries in Ohio.  Strike out there?  Check with the reference staff at your local branch; often we can obtain materials through Interlibrary Loan, even from other states!

More interested in the show itself than in the books featured on it?  Then check out some of these Mad Men-inspired items from our collection:

Analyzing Mad Men: Critical Essays on the Television Series edited by Scott F. Stoddart:  The 12 critical essays in this collection offer a broad, interdisciplinary approach to this highly relevant television show, examining Mad Men as a cultural barometer for contemporary concerns with consumerism, capitalism and sexism.  A detailed cast list and episode guide are included

The Fashion File: Advice, Tips, and Inspiration from the Costume Designer of Mad Menby Janie Bryant with Monica Corcoran Harel: Offers readers a peek into the dressing room of the hit television show “Mad Men,” revealing the design process behind the characters’ looks and showing every woman how to find her own leading lady style.

Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing is as it Seems edited by Rod Carveth and James B. South: This collection of essays takes an unprecedented look at the philosophical issues and themes behind AMC’s Emmy Award-winning show, Mad Men, exploring issues ranging from identity to authenticity to feminism, and more.

Mad Women: The Other Side of Life on Madison Avenue in the ’60s and Beyond by Jane Maas:  Mad Women is a tell-all account of life in the New York advertising world of the 1960s and 70s from Jane Maas, a female copywriter who succeeded in the primarily male environment portrayed by the hit TV show Mad Men.

The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Inside the Kitchens, Bars, and Restaurants of Mad Men by Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin:  Dine like Draper and drink like Sterling with more than 70 recipes from the kitchens, bars, and restaurants seen on Mad Men.

Never watched Man Men?  Wondering what all the fuss is about?  Feeling the need to catch up on previous seasons?  We’ve got you covered!  Borrow the first five seasons from the library, available on DVD.

Stephenie Meyer’s Alien Love Story

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host After her wildly popular Twilight series had teen fans crowding bookstores and theaters, Stephenie Meyer tried her hand at writing for adults with The Host, first published in 2008. Now The Host, a sci-fi thriller featuring a love triangle with only two humans involved (it’s complicated) comes to theaters on March 29 in a film adaptation written and directed by Andrew Niccol (The Truman Show). This story is vampire-free but it does have aliens–”souls” who have taken over Earth and captured humans to serve as host bodies for their occupation. Check out all the action–romantic and otherwise–in Meyer’s novel before the movie opens on the big screen later this m

Books about Popes – Past and Present

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popeWhile you are waiting for the selection of the new pope check out these fact and fiction books about the popes and the history of the Vatican:

Nonfiction

The Popes: Histories and Secrets by English Papi

Absolute Monarchs: A History of the Papacy by John Julius Norwich
A comprehensive history of the papacy describes the defining relevance of papal authority to the Church, chronicling the unexpectedly violent and colorful historical events that have indelibly shaped the Pope’s authority and station.

Papal Sin by Gary Wills
An exploration of the papacy challenges the culture of deceit that surrounds the Vatican in modern times, which prevents the church from facing its own history.

Pontiff by Gordon Thomas
This book focuses on the period from 1978 (the year which saw the death of Pope Paul VI, the election and death 33 days later of John Paul 1, and the election of John Paul II) through to the assassination attempt of 1981, in which John Paul II survived four bullet wounds.

Mistress of the Vatican: the true story of Olimpia Maidalchini: the secret female pope by Eleanor Herman
Traces the story of a seventeenth-century mistress who significantly influenced the Catholic church and international policy in Rome during the reign of her lover and brother-in-law, Pope Innocent X.

Lives of the Popes: the pontiffs from St. Peter to John Paul II

All the Pope’s Men by John Allen
A guide to the inner workings of the Vatican reveals the beliefs and bureaucracies behind its decision-making processes, offering insight into the career path of the Roman Curia and challenging myths about the institution’s agendas.

Fiction

Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross
Berated for being intelligent and scholarly, Joan dons her dead brother’s clothes, assumes a man’s identity, and gains respect and authority as well as the title of pope.

White Smoke by Andrew Greeley
As the cardinals of the Church gather in Rome for the election of a new pope, Bishop John Blackwood Ryan, reporter Dennis Mulloy, and CNN correspondent and Mulloy’s ex-wife Patricia investigate a Vatican banking scandal and an assassin out to destroy the next pope.

The Secret Cardinal by Tom Grace
Called in by the Vatican to examine the workings of the Vatican Library, former Navy SEAL Nolan Kilkenny soon discovers that Pope Leo has another mission in mind–to rescue a “secret” cardinal, a Chinese bishop imprisoned by the Chinese for some thirty years.

The Confessor by Daniel Silva
In the wake of a Munich writer’s assassination, Mossad agent Gabriel Allon and Vatican priest Pietro embark on dangerous journeys that reveal long-buried secrets affecting the fates of millions of people.

DVD

Shoes of the Fisherman
Based on the novel by Morris L. West. The Shoes of the Fisherman describes the election and career of a Slavic Pope, a Russian cardinal who is also the youngest in the conclave. This was 15 years before the election of the relatively young Pole Karol Wojtyla as Pope John Paul II.

(information from BookBrowse and Novelist)

Sometimes, Some Things Make Me Cry.

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I’m a guy, so I never cry. But, as the title goes sometimes, some things do make me cry. It’s a natural human emotion and I am man enough to admit to it. This, however, is not going to be about all the things that make me cry; you don’t care about that and I certainly have no need to share my sensitivities that only occur when it’s raining. Nonetheless, it’s time we share a tender moment together and delve into our feelings over a nice, freshly brewed cup of tea.

For me, nothing gets me crying more than a good Bruce Willis movie, like the Die Hard movies or Red or even 16 Blocks, in which he sports an outstanding mustache.  In the grand scheme of things, a good Bruce Willis tear-jerker keeps it all in perspective for me. When poor John McClain gets sucked into another scenario where he is the only one that can be the hero and save the day, that just hits me right in the tear ducts man. The pain he goes through must really hurt – I mean emotionally, of course. Probably physically as well.

But, even more than that, sitting down next to the fireplace while sipping on some tea and reading a good emotionally gripping-novel with some historically accurate inaccuracies like Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith. This book is so emotionally gripping that my copy has several tear-stained pages. There is not a doubt in my mind that the library’s copy has some of the same problems…from many other patrons’ leaking eyes.

Then there is Justin Bieber. “I’ll be honest with you, I love his music. I do. I’m a “Justin Bieber” fan. For my money, I don’t know if it gets any better than when he sings “When a Man Loves a Woman”.” Bieber brings on a whole other level of sentimentality.  Every song he bellows from his velvety smooth vocal chords brings out emotions in me that I just don’t understand. He sends me to tears with one note. He’s just that good.

As you can plainly see, I’m an emotional fellow. I may not cry at every time a vampire shines like a diamond for me or for every lost love, but I have my moments and that is exactly what they are…my moments. Plus, I kinda lied; this did turn out to be about my times of tenderness.

P.S. I never Cry, never. I don’t care what you say…..never. Plus, I’m more of a Michael Bolton fan. He just gets me.

New JD Robb – Calculated in Death

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robbJD Robb’s (Nora Roberts) latest Eve Dallas thriller, Calculated in Death,  is due out soon. These books are like a bowl of popcorn for me; I only mean to eat a handful when I start and before I know it, I’ve consumed the entire bowl/book.

From the publisher: On Manhattan’s Upper East Side a woman lies dead at the bottom of the stairs, stripped of all her valuables. Most cops might call it a mugging gone wrong, but Lieutenant Eve Dallas knows better. A well-off accountant and a beloved wife and mother, Marta Dickenson doesn’t seem the type to be on anyone’s hit list. But when Eve and her partner, Peabody, find blood inside the building, the lieutenant knows Marta’s murder was the work of a killer who’s trained, but not professional or smart enough to remove all the evidence. But when someone steals the files out of Marta’s office, Eve must immerse herself in her billionaire husband Roarke’s world of big business to figure out who’s cruel and callous enough to hire a hit on an innocent woman. And as the killer’s violent streak begins to escalate, Eve knows she has to draw him out, even if it means using herself as bait. . .

Happy Birthday Amelia Bedelia!

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Amelia Bedelia

It has been 50 years since Amelia Bedelia has showed us her unique ways of dusting the furniture, dressing a chicken, drawing the drapes, and changing the towels.  Amelia does EXACTLY what she is told to do and things just don’t seem to turn out right.

Harper Collins is celebrating Amelia Bedelia Day on January 29, 2013.  Visit the website for more information about the day and for fun games and activities: http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/kids/gamesandcontests/features/amelia

Check out the library’s collection of books about Amelia Bedelia and about the authors Peggy and Herman Parish.

Happy 50th Birthday Amelia Bedelia !!!

Inside “Hidden America”

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Jacket.aspxThe cover flap of Hidden America: From Coal Miners to Cowboys, an Extraordinary Exploration of the Unseen People Who Make This Country Work by Jeanne Marie Laskas begins with this teaser:

Five hundred feet underground, Jeanne Marie Laskas asked a coal miner named Smitty, “Do you think it’s weird that people know so little about you?” He replied, “I don’t think people know too much about the way the whole damn country works.”

One of the newest additions to the growing “behind-the-scenes at work” genre, Hidden America is a series of essays that provide a peek into the quirks and demands of several jobs that are unfamiliar to the average American.  Delve in to learn more about:

  • coal miners
  • migrant workers and life in a labor camp
  • Ben-Gals cheerleaders
  • air traffic controllers
  • sporting goods stores and the culture of gun ownership
  • ranching
  • oil rigs
  • long distance truckers
  • landfills

Laskas spent weeks in each setting, learning the work and meeting the people whose job it is to do the labor every day.  More than anything, the essays are character studies; sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, always engaging.  While I was at times left wishing for more information about the technical aspects of the work described, as written, the book is very accessible and full of intriguing details.  Local readers may be surprised to learned that despite all of the time they put into practice and promotional events, the only compensation the Ben-Gals cheerleaders receive is $75.00 per game.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, many will be startled to read that a migrant laborer picking blueberries in Maine can earn as much as $1,350.00 per week, though this is far from typical for most crops.  Imagining days spent in a mine with ceilings that don’t exceed five feet, or on an oil rig off the frigid shores of Alaska’s North Slope, will leave you amazed that there are people who actually enjoy working in these environments.  Would you believe that many of the people employed at Puente Hills Landfill in California cite being close to nature as one of their favorite things about working there?  To sample a bit of her writing style and see pictures that compliment her essays, visit Laskas’ website.

DISCLAIMER: Nervous flyers may want to skip the chapter on air traffic controllers.  It’s fascinating and you’ll be impressed when you meet the controllers, but you’ll never again be able to board a plane blissfully unaware of all of the high level logistics required to keep planes from crashing into each other!

 

Post Apocalypse Depression

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Well, I guess we made it to another new year and we avoided the apocalypse yet again. I don’t know about you, but I am extremely disappointed with this fact. I mean either I was going to become a zombie (unlikely), or I was going to hunt zombies (probably). Either one would have been great. THANK YOU VERY MUCH MAYANS and your false prophecy of doom! I guess you have now made yourselves completely irrelevant to much of modern society and it is time your ancient society fades into oblivion just like all those other societies that no longer exist and we can no longer remember.  As a consequence, like after Y2K, we are left with a pre-apocalyptic world. Thanks for getting our hopes up with your calendar that ends for no reason.

There are, however, a couple of things I liked about 2012, and since the world did not end, you can check them out from the library.

1. Music…Cat Power, Mumford and Sons, Alabama Shakes, fun., Norah Jones, Lumineers, Of Monsters and Men.

Then. Movies….The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy, The Pirates, The Amazing Spider-Man, One for the Money.

C. Books….Unholy Night written by Seth Grahame-Smith, Doctor Who: Shada: The Lost Adventure by Douglas Adams written by Gareth Roberts, The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury written by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga.

Finally. TV Shows…..Once Upon a Time, Justified, Mad Men, Burn Notice, The Walking Dead.

Not necessarily in that order. So if you are frustrated with your pre-apocalyptic world and need something to take your mind off the regular everyday mundane world, those are just a few of the things that you can find at your friendly neighborhood library. It is okay if you don’t like the things I listed above, just stop reading my posts. Right now. I mean it.  You are now dead to me…dead I tell you. Really, just find something you do like, that would be great.