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JANUARY 2014 ADULT FICTION Fever / Mary Beth Keane Fever is a spectacularly bold and intriguing novel about the woman known as “Typhoid Mary,” the first person in America identified as a healthy carrier of Typhoid Fever. On the eve of the twentieth century, Mary Mallon emigrated from Ireland at age fifteen to make her way in New York City. Brave, headstrong, and dreaming of being a cook, she fought to climb up from the lowest rung of the domestic-service ladder. She worked her way to the kitchen, and discovered in herself the true talent of a chef. Sought after by New York aristocracy, and with an independence rare for a woman of the time, she seemed to have achieved the life she’d aimed for when she arrived in Castle Garden. Then one determined “medical engineer” noticed that she left a trail of disease wherever she cooked, and identified her as an “asymptomatic carrier” of Typhoid Fever. With this seemingly preposterous theory, he made Mallon a hunted woman.
The Department of Health sent Mallon to North Brother Island, where she was kept in isolation from 1907 to 1910, then released under the condition that she never work as a cook again. Yet for Mary—proud of her former status and passionate about cooking—the alternatives were abhorrent. She defied the edict. Bringing early-twentieth-century New York alive—the neighborhoods, the bars, the park carved out of upper Manhattan, the boat traffic, the mansions and sweatshops and emerging skyscrapers—Fever is an ambitious retelling of a forgotten life
The Inlet / Clarie Tham A young female Chinese national drowns in a private swimming pool in a wealthy enclave on a resort island just off the Singapore mainland. The house where she is found belongs to one of the wealthiest property developers in Singapore.
The ripple effects on everyone affected by the incident – the investigating officer, the homeowner and his nephew, the girl’s family – are examined from their point of view. Based loosely on a true incident, The Inlet explores the social and cultural changes that have washed over Singapore society in recent years
The Orphan Train / Christina Baker Kline Penobscot Indian Molly Ayer is close to “aging out” out of the foster care system. A community service position helping an elderly woman clean out her home is the only thing keeping Molly out of juvie and worse...
As she helps Vivian sort through her possessions and memories, Molly learns that she and Vivian aren’t as different as they seem to be. A young Irish immigrant orphaned in New York City, Vivian was put on a train to the Midwest with hundreds of other children whose destinies would be determined by luck and chance. Molly discovers that she has the power to help Vivian find answers to mysteries that have haunted her for her entire life – answers that will ultimately free them both. Rich in detail and epic in scope, Orphan Train is a powerful novel of upheaval and resilience, of unexpected friendship, and of the secrets we carry that keep us from finding out who we are.
JANUARY 2014 AUDIOS [ADULT] Wilson / A. Scott Berg One hundred years after his inauguration, Woodrow Wilson still stands as one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century, and one of the most enigmatic. And now, after more than a decade of research and writing, Pulitzer Prize-winning author A. Scott Berg has completed Wilson—the most personal and penetrating biography ever written about the twenty-eighth President. An intimate portrait of the scholar-President and the man of intense passion and turbulence, Wilson is written with a particularly contemporary point of view.
Where’d You Go, Bernadette: A Novel / Maria Semple Bernadette Fox is notorious. To her husband, she's a fearlessly opinionated partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle, she's a disgrace; to design mavens, she's a revolutionary architect, and to 15-year-old Bee, she is a best friend and, simply, Mom. Bernadette's intensifying allergy to Seattle--and people in general--has made her so agoraphobic that a virtual assistant in India now runs her most basic errands. Then Bernadette disappears. To find her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret correspondence--creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's role in an absurd world.
Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose / Tony Hsieh In Delivering Happiness, Tony Hsieh - the hip, iconoclastic, and widely-admired CEO of Zappos, the online shoe retailer - - explains how he created a corporate culture with a commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of its employees, customers, vendors, and backers. Hsieh details many of the unique practices at Zappos, such as their philosophy of allocating marketing money into the customer experience, the importance of Zappos's Core Values ("Deliver WOW through Service"), and his belief that once you get the culture right, everything else - great customer service, long-term branding - will happen on its own. Finally, Delivering Happiness explains how Zappos employees actually apply the Core Values to improving their lives outside of work, proving that creating happiness and record results go hand-in-hand.
A Dance with Dragons: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Five / George R.R.,Dotrice Martin In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance once again--beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. From all corners, bitter conflicts soon re-ignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all.
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JANUARY 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [CHILDREN] Zen Shorts / Jon J. Muth Three children meet Stillwater, a giant panda who moves into the neighborhood and tells amazing tales. To Addy he tells a story about the value of material goods. To Michael he pushes the boundaries of good and bad. And to Karl he demonstrates what it means to hold on to frustration. With graceful art and simple stories that are filled with love and enlightenment, Jon Muth -- and Stillwater the bear -- present three ancient Zen tales that are sure to strike a chord in everyone they touch.
It’s Me! / Eric Drachman Drachman narrates the tale of Patricia, a preschooler with a big imagination and a penchant for dress up. Patricia appears to her family as a princess, witch, a Little Mommy and finally a girl named Patricia. Everyone indulges her—except for the seemingly know-it-all brother, Danny. Humorous sound effects and Drachman's rich, friendly voice and playful storytelling style make this an enjoyable tale for young listeners.
JANUARY 2014 CHILDREN Come to School Too, Blue Kangaroo! / Emma Chichester Clark Lily and Blue Kangaroo—a friendship forever! The eighth title in this popular series featuring Lily and her loveable soft toy sees the inseparable duo starting at a new school with surprising results. Lily thinks Blue Kangaroo is worried about going but, secretly, he can’t wait to explore and try new things–which is just as well, because the fun lasts even longer than he expected…
The Energy Bus for Kids: A Story about Staying Positive and Overcoming Challenges / Jon Gordon George is a regular kid having a bad day. He woke up sleepy, skipped breakfast, and then nearly missed his bus. But when Joy, the bus driver, puts on the brakes and invites him on board, his attitude starts to change. Joy helps George understand that he has the power to choose his attitude. If he believes in himself, has a positive vision for the future, and fuels his ride with positive energy, he'll find the strength to overcome any challenge.
In this illustrated adaptation of bestselling fable The Energy Bus, author Jon Gordon takes children on an enlightening and inspiring ride that will positively impact them at school and home. The Energy Bus shows kids how to overcome negativity, bullies, and everyday challenges to be their best and share their positive energy with others. When you get kids on the Energy Bus, you'll infuse their lives with vision, hope, love, and positivity.
The Dark / Lemony Snicket Laszlo is afraid of the dark. The dark lives in the same house as Laszlo. Mostly, though, the dark stays in the basement and doesn't come into Lazslo's room. But one night, it does. This is the story of how Laszlo stops being afraid of the dark. With emotional insight and poetic economy, two award-winning talents— Snicket and Jon Klassen—team up to conquer a universal childhood fear.
Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs / Mo Willems Once upon a time, there were three hungry Dinosaurs: Papa Dinosaur, Mama Dinosaur… and a Dinosaur who happened to be visiting from Norway. One day—for no particular reason—they decided to tidy up their house, make the beds, and prepare pudding of varying temperatures. And then—for no particular reason—they decided to go…someplace else. They were definitely not setting a trap for some succulent, unsupervised little girl. Definitely not! This new take on a fairy-tale classic is so funny and so original—it could only come from the brilliant mind of Mo Willems.
Penelope Crumb / Shawn K. Stout Penelope Crumb is no ordinary fourth grader. And when she discovers that she *gasp* has a big nose, she's initially devastated. But when her mother lets her know that she has the same nose as her Grandpa, Penelope perks up. And then she perks up even more when she finds out that Grandpa isn't dead like she expected—he's just gone. And she decides that it's her job to find him. A sweet and funny story with tons of heart and high jinx about Penelope using her big nose to bring her family together.
Into the Wild (Warriors, Book 1) / Erin Hunter For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by the powerful ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying -- and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty…who may yet turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.
FEBUARY 2014 ADULT FICTION The Invention of Wings / Sue Monk Kidd Inspired by the true story of early-nineteenth-century abolitionist and suffragist Sarah Grimké, Kidd paints a moving portrait of two women inextricably linked by the horrors of slavery. Sarah, daughter of a wealthy South Carolina plantation owner, exhibits an independent spirit and strong belief in the equality of all. Thwarted from her dreams of becoming a lawyer, she struggles throughout life to find an outlet for her convictions. Handful, a slave in the Grimké household, displays a sharp intellect and brave, rebellious disposition. She maintains a compliant exterior, while planning for a brighter future.
Told in first person, the chapters alternate between the two main characters’ perspectives, as we follow their unlikely friendship (characterized by both respect and resentment) from childhood to middle age. While their pain and struggle cannot be equated, both women strive to be set free—Sarah from the bonds of patriarchy and Southern bigotry, and Handful from the inhuman bonds of slavery. Kidd is a master storyteller, and, with smooth and graceful prose, she immerses the reader in the lives of these fascinating women as they navigate religion, family drama, slave revolts, and the abolitionist movement.
Five Star Billionaire / Tash Aw Tash Aw draws a luminous portrait of four new, disparate arrivals to Shanghai: a venerable business woman, a pop star, a factory girl turned socialite, and an inheritor of his family real-estate, all of whose fates are tied to an elusive billionaire. Each character in this quartet has emigrated from Aw’s own native Malaysia, seduced by the neon profile of metropolitan China, unknowingly •connected through Walter Chao, author of the eponymous Secrets of a “Five Star Billionaire”.
“Five Star Billionaire” is as much about people as it is about place: Shanghai represents the booming economic growth of China. It's a city of over 23 million people--some trying to make a name for themselves, others just trying to get by. By the end, “Five Star Billionaire” doesn't feel so foreign. The characters don't find
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personal fulfillment, but they're finally moving in the right direction. Aw reveals that the American Dream isn't so uniquely American as it is a byproduct of capitalism. Or perhaps it's a byproduct of the human condition: money becomes a way to quantify one's worth, to cure one's unhappiness. In such a big city, everything that matters is inward.
The Goldfinch / Donna Tartt The goldfinch referred to in the title of Donna Tartt’s dazzling new novel is a charming painting of a pet bird created in 1654 by the Dutch artist Carel Fabritius, whose“Goldfinch” is considered a small but priceless masterpiece of Dutch painting.
The narrator and hero of “The Goldfinch” is Theo Decker, 13 when we first meet him, a smart New York scholarship kid who lives alone with his mother. His heavy-drinking father, who abruptly left them was always so unreliable that Theo developed a lasting fear that his mother might not come home from work. Then, one day, everything changes: Theo and his mother are at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see an exhibition featuring one of her favorite paintings — “The Goldfinch” — when a terrorist bomb explodes. Theo’s mother is killed, and his life divides, forever, into a Before and After. In the confusion of the bomb’s aftermath, Theo has a strange encounter with a delirious old man who begs Theo to save “The Goldfinch” from the burning wreckage and gives him a ring.
Soon, Theo is living on Park Avenue with the wealthy Barbours, while serving a kind of apprenticeship in antiques restoration. No sooner have the Barbours begun to provide Theo with the semblance of stability than his disreputable father resurfaces, and he quickly whisks Theo (who’s packed “The Goldfinch” painting in his suitcase) away to his McMansion in the Vegas desert. It’s clear that Theo is suffering post-traumatic stress disorder from the museum bombing and is still sick with grief over the loss of his mother — feelings only heightened by being plunked down in the lonely Nevada desert. His salvation is a new best friend named Boris: a funny, profane, street-smart kid who grew up in Australia, Russia and Ukraine and who will play Artful Dodger to Theo’s Oliver Twist.
Back in New York, a snowballing series of events grow ever more dangerous as Theo becomes involved with violent criminals who covet “The Goldfinch” as much as he does. “The Goldfinch” is a beautiful, stay-up-all-night and tell-all-your-friends triumph, an old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self- invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate.
FEBUARY 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [ADULT] The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America / George Packer; Audio CD A riveting examination of a nation in crisis, from one of the finest political journalists of our generation, The Unwinding portrays a superpower in danger of coming apart at the seams, its elites no longer elite, its institutions no longer working, its ordinary people left to improvise their own schemes for success and salvation. Packer’s kaleidoscopic history of the new America tells the story of the United States over the past three decades in an utterly original way through the lives of several Americans. The Unwinding was the 2013 National Book Award Winner, A New York Times Bestseller, and one of Publishers Weekly's Best Nonfiction Books of 2013.
Sycamore Row / John Grisham; Audio CD In Sycamore Row, John Grisham returns to the setting and the compelling characters that first established him as America's favorite storyteller. The listener returns to that famous courthouse in Clanton from A Time to Kill as Jake Brigance once again finds himself embroiled in a fiercely controversial trial -- a trial that will expose old racial tensions and force Ford County to confront its tortured history. The story leaves no doubt that Grisham remains the master of the legal thriller.
The Luminaries / Eleanor Catton; MP3 CD Winner of the 2013 Man Booker Prize, a breathtaking feat of storytelling where everything is connected, but nothing is as it seems.... It is 1866, and Walter Moody has come to make his fortune upon the New Zealand goldfields. On the stormy night of his arrival, he stumbles across a tense gathering of twelve local men, who have met in secret to discuss a series of unsolved crimes. Moody is soon drawn into the mystery: a network of fates and fortunes that is as complex and exquisitely patterned as the night sky.
FEBUARY 2014 JUNIOR FICTION Boy21 / Matthew Quick Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in gray, broken Bellmont, a town ruled by the Irish Mob, drugs, violence, and racially charged rivalries. At home, he takes care of his disabled grandfather, and at school he’s called “White Rabbit”, the only white kid on the varsity basketball team. He’s always dreamed of getting away with his girlfriend, Erin. But until then the only thing that makes sense for him is when he puts on his number 21 to play. Russ has just moved to the neighborhood. A former teen basketball star from a privileged home, his life has been turned upside down by tragedy. Cut off from everyone he knows, he now answers only to the name Boy21—his former jersey number—and has an unusual obsession with outer space. As their final year of high school brings these two boys together, “Boy21” may turn out to be the answer they both need
Beautiful Creatures (Castor Chronicles 1) / Kami Garcia Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever. Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them. In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.
The Vindico / Wesley King. The Vindico are a group of supervillains who have been fighting the League of Heroes for as long as anyone can remember. Realizing they’re not as young as they used to be, they devise a plan to kidnap a group of teenagers and train them to take over for them when they retire—after all, how hard can it be to teach a bunch of angsty teens to be evil?
FEBUARY 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION Chickens may not cross the road and other crazy (but true) laws / Kathi Linz & Tony Griego It is against the law in Brooklyn, New York, for donkeys to sleep in bathtubs. In Idaho you are not allowed to fish while sitting on a giraffe. In California you must not keep slugs as pets. Yes, it’s the law—says so right on the state or city books. Some of the most ludicrous laws in the history of our country come to light in this
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funny and fascinating book for people who have a special appreciation for the tyranny of silly rules.
Twenty-odd Ducks: Why, Every Punctuation Mark Counts! / Lynne Truss Commas and apostrophes aren?t the only punctuation marks that can cause big trouble if they?re put in the wrong place. Now, Truss and Timmons put hyphens, parentheses, quotation marks, periods, and more in the spotlight, showing how which marks you choose and where you put them can cause hilarious mix-ups.
Special Effects Film and TV / Jake Hamilton (DK) Lavish full-color spreads reveal the secrets behind Hollywood’s special effects in this book, where actors fly, vanish, or turn into aliens through the use of pulley systems, blue-screen backgrounds, and elaborate make-up. Plenty of shots from well knownmovies (e.g., The Borrowers, Lost in Space) serve as cutting-edge examples, and show the crews on the sets of films, setting up snowstorms, helping puppets walk, and packing the punch into pyrotechnics. Perhaps most interesting of all is the discussion of Computer Generated imaging (CGi) and its eventual use in returning such stars as Marilyn Monroe to the big screen. There’s plenty here for budding Hitchcocks and Spielbergs to unearth in the name of lights, camera, and special-effects action.
FEBUARY 2014 CHILDREN Lucky Ducklings / Eva Moore Early one morning, Mama Duck takes her babies for a walk. They follow safely behind her as they leave their pond, waddle through the park, and stop in the little sunlit town's parking lot for yummy breakfast. But one by one, Mama's little ducklings get separated when they disappear into the slats of the town's storm drain. How three firemen and a pickup truck rush to their rescue makes for a vivid and exciting drama that children will return to over and over again. Based on a true story, award-winning artist Nancy Carpenter and veteran author Eva Moore have created a delightful new classic with an inspiring environmental message. Monkey and Robot by Peter Catalanotto Monkey and Robot celebrate their friendship in this chapter book of four charming tales that are ideal for young readers. Monkey and Robot simply belong together, and it never matters that silly Monkey is furry, or that kind Robot can rust. What matters is their sharing: movies and popcorn, games of hide-and-seek, a fish tank for…a hippopotamus?
Penny and Her Doll / Kevin Henkes When Penny receives a surprise box in the mail from Gram, she is thrilled. The surprise is a doll, and she is absolutely perfect, from her head to her toes. Penny loves her immediately. She introduces her new doll to Mama and to the babies and to Papa. But then Papa asks what the doll's name is, and Penny realizes that she doesn't know. How Penny decides on a name for her doll will appeal to children who need to find their own power, and trust in it.
John, Paul, George & Ben / Lane Smith Once there were four lads... John [Hancock], Paul [Revere], George [Washington], and Ben [Franklin]. Oh yes, there was also Tom [Jefferson], but he was annoyingly independent and hardly ever around. These lads were always getting into trouble for one reason or another. In other words, they took a few...liberties. And to be honest, they were not always appreciated. This is the story of five little lads before they became five really big Founding Fathers.
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Dead Bodies, Funerals, and Other Fatal Circumstances / Lenore Look Here's the fourth book in the beloved and hilarious Alvin Ho chapter book series, which has been compared to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Alvin, an Asian American second grader who's afraid of everything, is facing something truly scary: the idea that someone he loves might die. When Alvin's Gung Gung loses his best friend, Alvin (gulp) volunteers to go with him to the funeral. From Lenore Look and New York Times bestselling illustrator LeUyen Pham comes a drop-dead-funny and touching series—perfect for both beginning and reluctant readers—and a truly unforgettable character.
Waiting for Normal / Leslie Conner Addie is waiting for normal. But Addie's mom has an all-or-nothing approach to life: a food fiesta or an empty pantry, jubilation or gloom, her way or no way. All or nothing never adds up to normal. All or nothing can't bring you all to home, which is exactly where Addie longs to be, with her half sisters, every day. In spite of life's twists and turns, Addie remains optimistic. Someday, maybe, she'll find normal. Leslie Connor has created an inspiring novel about one girl's giant spirit.
FEBUARY 2014 TODDLERS WHO IS PEPPA PIG? Peppa Pig is a little piglet that lives with her brother, George, and her mom and dad. She has lots of friends from the animal kingdom, including the Rabbit family, the Cats, the Sheep, the Dogs and many other assorted animals. She even has a pet goldfish named Goldie.
Peppa Pig is a children's television program in which every episode is five minutes in length. In each program, Peppa has an adventure: she goes swimming, she rides on a train, and she goes to the playground. Peppa always has a very busy day!
Look for new books about Peppa in the Library:
1. Peppa Pig: Peppa's Busy Day 2. Peppa goes to the Library 3. Peppa Pig: Oink! Oink! 4. Peppa and the big train
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MARCH 2014 ADULT FICTION The Paris Architect / Charles Belfoure In 1942 Paris, gifted architect Lucien Bernard accepts a commission that will bring him a great deal of money – and maybe get him killed. But if he's clever enough, he'll avoid any trouble. All he has to do is design a secret hiding place for a wealthy Jewish man, a space so invisible that even the most determined German officer won't find it. He sorely needs the money, and outwitting the Nazis who have occupied his beloved city is a challenge he can't resist.
But when one of his hiding spaces fails horribly, and the problem of where to hide a Jew becomes terribly personal, Lucien can no longer ignore what's at stake. The Paris Architect asks us to consider what we owe each other, and just how far we'll go to make things right.
The Lives of Tao / Wesley Chu For Roen Tan, overweight IT technician, discontented with his life, it was first contact with an alien when Tao hitch hikes in his mind. But he soon finds out the aliens have been here all along, since the times of the Dinosaurs, symbiotically entwined and manipulating human's history throughout the centuries. Roen is thrown into the middle of a secret war between the Quasing (the better guys) and the Genjix (the worse guys, who don't particularly care if humans die if it means they get back to the home planet they've been cut off from).
But not only is he thrown into the war--he's thrown into the deep end, having to get in shape, learn how to actually fight and run, and be able to handle himself in delicate political situations (sometimes only somewhat successfully). Throughout all this, he also starts dating.
Under the Wide and Starry Sky / Nancy Horan From the author of “Loving Frank”, comes her much-anticipated second novel, which tells the improbable love story of Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson and his tempestuous American wife, Fanny.
At the age of thirty-five, Fanny Van de Grift Osbourne has left her philandering husband in San Francisco to set sail for Belgium—with her three children and nanny in tow—to study art. It is a chance for this adventurous woman to start over, to make a better life for all of them, and to pursue her own desires. Not long after her arrival, however, tragedy strikes, and Fanny and her children repair to a quiet artists’ colony in France where she can recuperate. Emerging from a deep sorrow, she meets a lively Scot, Robert Louis Stevenson, ten years her junior, who falls instantly in love with the earthy, independent, and opinionated “belle Americaine.”
Fanny does not immediately take to the slender young lawyer who longs to devote his life to writing—and who would eventually pen such classics as Treasure Island and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In time, though, she succumbs to Stevenson’s charms, and the two begin a fierce love affair—marked by intense joy and harrowing darkness—that spans the decades and the globe. The shared life of these two strong-willed individuals unfolds into an adventure as impassioned and unpredictable as any of Stevenson’s own unforgettable tales.
MARCH 2014 ADULT NON FICTION The Smartest kids in the world and how they got that way / Amanda Ripley What is it like to be a child in the world’s new education superpowers? Author and Time magazine journalist Amanda Ripley follows three Americans embed¬ded in these countries for one year. Kim, fifteen, raises $10,000 so she can move from Oklahoma to Finland; Eric, eighteen, exchanges a high- achieving Minnesota suburb for a booming city in South Korea; and Tom, seventeen, leaves a historic Pennsylvania village for Poland.
Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth about Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar--Your Brain's Silent Killers Hardcover by David Perlmutter Renowned neurologist David Perlmutter, MD, blows the lid off a topic that's been buried in medical literature for far too long: carbs are destroying your brain. He offers an in-depth look at how we can take control of our "smart genes" through specific dietary choices and lifestyle habits, demonstrating how to remedy our most feared maladies without drugs. With a revolutionary 4-week plan, GRAIN BRAIN teaches us how we can reprogram our genetic destiny for the better.
GRAIN BRAIN is a #1 New York Times bestseller and a finalist for a 2013 Books for a Better Life award.
The Human Magnet Syndrome: Why We Love People Who Hurt Us Paperback by Ross Rosenberg Since the dawn of civilization, men and women have been magnetically and irresistibly drawn together into romantic relationships, not so much by what they see, feel and think, but more by invisible forces. Readers of the Human Magnet Syndrome will better understand why they, despite their dreams for true love, find themselves hopelessly and painfully in love with partners who hurt them. This book will guide and inspire both the layman and the professional.
MARCH 2014 JUNIOR FICTION The 13 Curses by Michelle Harrison (#2 in the 13 Treasures Series) When fairies stole her brother, Red vowed to get him back. Now trapped in the fairy realm, she begs an audience with the fairy court where she strikes a bargain. Her brother will be returned - but only if she can complete a task set by the court. In a world of trickery and deception, Red is about to find that not all is as it seems. For even if she succeeds, will the fairies keep their promise?
Shooting Kabul / N.H. Senzai In the summer of 2001, twelve year old Fadi’s parents make the difficult decision to illegally leave Afghanistan and move the family to the United States. When their underground transport arrives at the rendezvous point, chaos ensues, and Fadi’s little sister Mariam becomes lost in the crowd, just as Fadi is snatched up into the truck. With Taliban soldiers closing in, the truck speeds away, leaving Mariam behind. Adjusting to life in the United States isn’t easy for Fadi’s family and as the events of September 11th unfold the prospects of locating Mariam in a war torn Afghanistan seem slim. When a photography competition with a grand prize trip to India is announced, Fadi sees his chance to return to Afghanistan and find his sister. But can one photo really bring Mariam home?
Invisible City / M.G.Harris Joshua's life was pretty cool - until his father was reported dead in an air crash in Mexico.
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Was it simply a tragic accident? Why was the plane miles off course? Were there really UFOs in the sky at the time of the crash?
In the depths of the Mexican jungle, with a deadly international hit man on his trail, Josh must find the truth about an incredible, dangerous secret - and try to stay alive.
MARCH 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION A look at the newest DK Eyewitness Books in our collection
ROBOT Take a detailed look at the fascinating world of robots - from the earliest single-task machines to the advanced intelligence of robots with feelings. Readers will be amazed to learn all that robots can do: perform delicate surgical operations, clean city sewers, work as museum tour guides, or even battle each other in combat!
First Ladies First Ladies is an updated edition of DK s classic look at America s first ladies in addition to the CD, wall chart, and extra 8 pages, the book will be updated to include information about the first lady who moves into the White House in 2009, Michelle Obama.
Treasure Find out how the things that we consider as treasures were created, used, lost, and finally uncovered by explorers and scientists, This book takes a look at the wide variety of precious objects that have been the seeds of greed, conquest, crime, and adventure over the history of humankind.
MARCH 2014 CHILDREN Little Tug / Stephen Savage Little Tug may not be very tall or very fast, but when the big ships in the harbor need help, they know they can count on him to be there with a push, a pull, and a ride to safety. But what happens when Little Tug gets tired? This simple, endearing book with a charming retro feel and an emotional punch is the first book for Roaring Brook Press by the acclaimed author of Polar Bear Night (New York Times Best Illustrated book) and Where's Walrus?
Paw Prints on the Magic Sofa / Sarah Mounsey Bump, bump, bumpity, bump! Eddie's sofa is so much fun that all the animals jump right on as they travel around the world! Eddie, William and Oscar go on a magical journey that is perfect for inspiring a child's imagination.
Mr. Tiger Goes Wild / Peter Brown Are you bored with being so proper? Do you want to have more fun? Mr. Tiger knows exactly how you feel. So he decides to go wild. But does he go too far? From Caldecott Honor artist Peter Brown comes a story that shows there's a time and place for everything ...even going wild.
The Green Bath / Margaret Mahy Margaret Mahy and Steven Kellog, two the world's most beloved picture book creators, are reunited for this galloping, free-spirited romp. It begins with Sammy, whose obnoxious neighbors get to go to the beach in their brand new boat, while he has to get clean for a visit from grandma. Worse, it's a bath in the strange tub his dad just bought at a tag sale! But the magic of the tub soon has Sammy roaring out to sea, befriending a giant sea serpent, conquering pirates in a huge soapy battle, and returning home with the greatest of treasures. Bath time will never be the same!
Who Put the Cookies in the Cookie Jar? / George Shannon It’s easy to take a cookie out of the cookie jar: just reach in. But how does it get in there in the first place? It’s more complicated than you might think. Someone has to milk the cow, grow the wheat, harvest the sugar cane—everyone has a special job to do to make that cookie possible. George Shannon and Julie Paschkis take us on a delicious cookie journey, showing how many hands work together so that one hand can take the cookie out— and so that you can take a huge yummy bite!
Lulu and the Dog From the Sea by Hilary McKay Lulu loves animals. When Lulu goes on vacation, she finds there's a stray dog living on the beach. Everyone in the town thinks the dog is trouble. But Lulu is sure he just needs a friend. And that he's been waiting for someone just like her. This is the second book in this early chapter book series for young animal-lovers.
Wonderstruck / Brian Selznick Winner of the 2012 Children's Choice Book Award for Illustrator of the Year Winner of the 2012 Schneider Family Middle School Book Award
Ben and Rose secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the father he has never known. Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his mother's room and Rose reads an enticing headline in the newspaper, both children set out alone on desperate quests to find what they are missing.
Set fifty years apart, these two independent stories—Ben's told in words, Rose's in pictures—weave back and forth with mesmerizing symmetry. How they unfold and ultimately intertwine will surprise you, challenge you, and leave you breathless with wonder. Rich, complex, affecting, and beautiful--with over 460 pages of original artwork—Wonderstruck is a stunning achievement from a uniquely gifted artist and visionary.
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APRIL 2014 ADULT FICTION Still Life with Bread Crumbs / Anna Quindlen Rebecca Winter was once a famous photographer, and, with any luck, she will be again. Having achieved surprising early success with her feminist “Kitchen Counter” collection, Rebecca, now 60, finds herself on fame and fortune’s flip side. With her former torrent of royalties dwindling to a trickle, Rebecca has been forced to give up her perfect Manhattan apartment for a paltry upstate cabin, and with marauding raccoons, stray dogs, and trigger-happy hunters, life in the country is proving to be no walk in Central Park. Luckily, Rebecca still has her camera, and she soon finds inspiration for new work in unexpected places, often in the company of a bird-watching roofer named Jim, whose quiet companionship proves to be just the balm she needs to fully embrace her unfamiliar surroundings.
Brilliantly written, powerfully observed, Still Life with Bread Crumbs is a deeply moving and often very funny story of unexpected love, and a stunningly crafted journey into the life of a woman, her heart, her mind, her days, as she discovers that life is a story with many levels, a story that is longer and more exciting than she ever imagined.
Big Brother / Lionel Shriver Big Brother is a striking novel about siblings, marriage, and obesity from Lionel Shriver, the acclaimed author the international bestseller “We Need to Talk About Kevin”.
For Pandora, cooking is a form of love. Alas, her husband, Fletcher, a self-employed high-end cabinetmaker, now spurns the “toxic” dishes that he’d savored through their courtship, and spends hours each day to manic cycling. Then, when Pandora picks up her older brother Edison at the airport, she doesn’t recognize him. In the years since they’ve seen one another, the once slim, hip New York jazz pianist has gained hundreds of pounds. What happened? After Edison has more than overstayed his welcome, Fletcher delivers his wife an ultimatum: It’s him or me.
Rich with Shriver’s distinctive wit and ferocious energy, “Big Brother” is about fat: an issue both social and excruciatingly personal. It asks just how much sacrifice we'll make to save single members of our families, and whether it's ever possible to save loved ones from themselves.
The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress / Ariel Lawhon They say behind every great man, there's a woman. In this case, there are three. Stella Crater, the judge's wife, is the picture of propriety draped in long pearls and the latest Chanel. Ritzi, a leggy showgirl with Broadway aspirations, thinks moonlighting in the judge's bed is the quickest way off the chorus line. Maria Simon, the dutiful maid, has the judge to thank for her husband's recent promotion to detective in the NYPD. Meanwhile, Judge Crater is equally indebted to Tammany Hall leaders and the city's most notorious gangster, Owney "The Killer" Madden.
On a sultry summer night, as rumors circulate about the judge's involvement in wide-scale political corruption, the Honorable Joseph Crater steps into a cab and disappears without a trace. Or does he?
After 39 years of necessary duplicity, Stella Crater is finally ready to reveal what she knows, and begins to tell a tale—of greed, lust, and deceit. As the novel unfolds and the women slyly break out of their prescribed roles, it becomes clear that each knows more than she has initially let on.
APRIL 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [ADULT] Things That Matter: Three Decades of Passions, Pastimes and Politics Audiobook CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Charles Krauthammer (Author, Reader) , George Newbern (Reader) Charles Krauthammer is a preeminent American columnist, named by the Financial Times as the most influential commentator in the nation, writes a weekly column which is a must-read in Washington and across the country. Readers will find in Things That Matter the country’s leading conservative thinker exhibiting a highly independent mind whose views—on feminism, evolution and the death penalty, for example—defy ideological convention. Krauthammer uses intelligence, erudition, and wit to reflect on the events that shaped his career and political philosophy. The chronicle takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the fashions and follies, the tragedies and triumphs, of the last three decades of American life.
The Good Lord Bird: A Novel Audiobook CD – Audiobook / James McBride (Author) , Michael Boatman (Reader) A slave in Kansas is mistaken for a girl due to the sackcloth smock he was wearing when Brown shot his master. The light-skinned, curly-haired 12-year-old ends up living as a young woman, most often encamped with Brown’s renegade band of freedom warriors as they traverse the country, raising arms and ammunition for their battle against slavery. Though they travel to Rochester, New York, to meet with Frederick Douglass and Canada to enlist the help of Harriet Tubman, Brown and his ragtag army fail to muster sufficient support for their mission to liberate African Americans, heading inexorably to the infamously bloody and pathetic raid on Harpers Ferry. Dramatizing Brown’s pursuit of racial freedom and insane belief in his own divine infallibility through the eyes of a child fearful of becoming a man, McBride’s The Good Lord Bird presents a historical novel with ironic humor. Winner of the 2013 National Book Award for Fiction; A Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, and Oprah Magazine Top 10 Book of the Year.
Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work Audiobook CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Chip Heath (Author) , Dan Heath (Author) , Kaleo Griffith (Reader) Decisions are disrupted by an array of biases and irrationalities: overconfidence; seeking out information that supports and downplaying information that doesn’t; and short-term emotions. Merely being aware of these tendencies doesn’t fix the problem, any more than knowing that we are nearsighted helps us to see. In Decisive, the Heath brothers, based on an exhaustive study of the decision-making literature, introduce a four-step process designed to counteract these biases. Written in an engaging and compulsively readable style, the audiobook takes readers on an unforgettable journey.
APRIL 2014 JUNIOR FICTION The Hollow / Jessica Verday When Abbey's best friend, Kristen, vanishes at the bridge near Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, everyone else is all too quick to accept that Kristen is dead...and rumors fly that her death was no accident. Abbey refuses to believe that Kristen is really gone. Then she meets Caspian, the gorgeous and mysterious boy who shows up out of nowhere at Kristen's funeral and keeps reappearing in Abbey's life. Caspian clearly has secrets of his own, but he's the only person who makes
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Abbey feel normal again as well as special. Just when Abbey starts to feel that she might survive all this, she learns a secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her best friend. How could Kristen have kept silent about so much? And could this secret have led to her death?
Prada and Prejudice /Mandy Hubbard Fifteen-year-old Callie buys a pair of real Prada pumps to impress the cool crowd on a school trip to London. Goodbye, Callie the clumsy geek-girl, hello popularity! But before she knows what’s hit her, Callie wobbles, trips, conks her head...and wakes up in the year 1815! She stumbles about until she meets the kind-hearted Emily, who takes Callie in, mistaking her for a long-lost friend. Sparks soon fly between Callie and Emily’s cousin, Alex, the maddeningly handsome - though totally arrogant - Duke of Harksbury. Too bad he seems to have something sinister up his ruffled sleeve...
Zoe and Chloe: On the Prowl / Sue Limb Zoe and Chloe need escorts for the forthcoming Ball, and one thing's certain: they're definitely not going to go with their mates Fergus and Toby who are simply not dreamboat material. Zoe yearns hopelessly for glamorous Oliver Wyatt: Chloe gets swept off her feet by dangerous Beast Hawkins. More realistically, they also advertise for young men to help with an "exciting project". Zoe, everybody's minder, also has to help her older sister Tam out of a serious fix. There are some excruciating interviews with various boys who have replied to their ad. Alas, the boys who have applied bring a heap of problems with them... Zoe and Chloe are at their wits' end, when suddenly, out of left field, an amazing solution appears. The experience is mind-blowingly liberating.
APRIL 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION The Most Stupendous Atlas of the Whole Wide World by the Brainwaves (DK) / Ralph Lazar
This book offers a funny and fascinating look at the countries of the world Meet the Brainwaves, hilarious little mischief-makers who are about to take you on an amazing journey around the world to discover everything about our planet. These pint-sized pals show what the planet is made of, where the highest football stadium is and why Brazil is called Brazil, amongst other amazing things. Packed with fantastic fold-out pages with mad maps, perfect pull-outs and fabulous facts on places and people, you will learn loads of stuff about climate, oceans and Earth in space.
How stuff works / Marshall Brain How Stuff Works is a lavish, full-colour, highly visual resource for those with hungry minds who crave an understanding of the way things work around them-from submarine ships to digital technology to toilets. With over 1,000 illustrations and photos showing step-by-step images, these easy-to-understand explanations cover the most popular and interesting subject areas, including Technology, Science, Health, Fitness, Transportation, and more Sample topics include: How CDs Work, How Car Engines Work, and How Nuclear Radiation and Power Work.
PlanetWatch / Blue Peter (DK) We live in a beautiful environment, but it is a changing and fragile place that needs looking after. How is it being altered? Why are these things happening? And what can we all do to help protect it? In this book you will take a look at our world so you can learn what can be done to preserve our environment for generations to come. Discover how oceans and animal life are affected by climate change and find out what the future holds for the food we eat, the air we breathe and the land we live on.
APRIL 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [CHILDREN] Leo the Lightning Bug (with Audio CD) [Hardcover] / Eric Drachman (Author) James Muscarello (Author) Leo is an enchanting little character who endears himself to young and old readers alike. Adults will be right there pulling for him to learn how to light up the night, just as children will. The listener will commiserate with Leo when his friends tease him and will be joyful when he practices until he finally gets it right. Leo the Lightening Bug wins listeners hearts as Leo gains self-confidence in his struggle to make his very own light.
Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged] [Audio CD] /Lewis Carroll (Author) (Author), Shelly Frasier (Narrator), Renée Raudman (Narrator) Lewis Carroll conjured up Alice in Wonderland one afternoon in 1862 to entertain young Alice Liddell, the daughter of the local church dean. A century and a half later, the original Alice and its sequel, Through the Looking Glass, are still entertaining children and adults alike. Full of nonsense and whimsical characters, sparkling word play, puzzles, and riddles, these audios also offer poignant moments of nostalgia for lost childhood. Classic, delightful audiobook for ages 8 and up.
APRIL 2014 CHILDREN Good News, Bad News / Jeff Mack Good news, Rabbit and Mouse are going on a picnic. Bad news, it is starting to rain. Good news, Rabbit has an umbrella. Bad news, the stormy winds blow the umbrella (and Mouse!) into a tree.
So begins this clever story about two friends with very different dispositions. Using just four words, Jeff Mack has created a text with remarkable flair that is both funny and touching, and pairs perfectly with his energetic, and hilarious, illustrations.
Good news, this is a book kids will clamor to read again and again!
The Three Little Pigs and the Somewhat Bad Wolf / Mark Teague Award-winning author and illustrator Mark Teague tells his humorous version of "The Three Little Pigs" with a zany twist!
Three pigs spend their money on different things: potato chips, sody-pop, and building supplies. It comes as no surprise that a wolf is able to blow down the first two pigs' houses. When the wolf can't blow down the third pig's brick house, everyone comes together and the fun begins. The first two pigs give him potato chips and sody-pop, and the third pig makes everyone a healthy meal. Since only one pig has a house left, the other two pigs and the wolf move in with her.
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The somewhat bad wolf is no longer hungry.
Nurse Clementine / Simon James It’s Clementine Brown’s birthday, and Mr. and Mrs. Brown have given her a nurse’s outfit and a first-aid kit just what she wanted! There is no shortage of “emergencies” that need her attention. Nurse Clementine sets to work, bandaging Mom and Dad—even the family dog! But her brother, Tommy, is a different matter. Even though he keeps crashing into things, he insists that he doesn’t need a nurse. Clementine is sad—nurses really need someone to help. But could it be that when a real emergency occurs, her skills will be needed?
The First Drawing / Mordicai Gerstein Imagine you were born before the invention of drawing, more than thirty thousand years ago. You would live with your whole family in a cave and see woolly mammoths walk by!
You might even see images of animals hidden in the shapes of clouds and rocks. You would want to share these pictures with your family, but wouldn't know how. Who would have made the world's first drawing? Would it have been you?
In The First Drawing, Caldecott Medal winner Mordicai Gerstein imagines the discovery of drawing...and inspires the young dreamers and artists of today.
Kelsey Green, Reading Queen / Claudia Mills (Book 1 of the Franklin School Friends series) Kelsey Kline is the best reader in the third grade—well, maybe tied for best with know-it-all Simon Ellis. When the principal Mr. Boone announces a school-wide reading contest, complete with a pizza party for the winning class and a special certificate for the top readers in each grade, she knows she's just the person to lead Mrs. Molina's third graders to victory. But how can they win when her classmate Cody Harmon doesn't want to read anything, and even Kelsey's best friends, Annika and Izzy, don't live up to her expectations? And could Simon possibly be reading all of those books that he claims he is, or is he lying to steal Kelsey's rightful spot at the top?
The Great Unexpected / Sharon Creech Humorous and heartfelt, this is a story of pairs—of young Naomi and Lizzie, both orphans in present-day Blackbird Tree, USA, and of Sybil and Nula, grown-up sisters from faraway Rook's Orchard, Ireland, who have become estranged. Young Naomi Deane is brimming with curiosity and her best friend, Lizzie Scatterding, could talk the ears off a cornfield. Naomi has a knack for being around when trouble happens. She knows all the peculiar people in town—like Crazy Cora and Witch Wiggins. But then, one day, a strangely charming Finn boy drops out of a tree. Just like that. And then the Dingle Dangle man appears, asking all kinds of questions. Curious surprises are revealed—three locked trunks, a pair of rooks, a crooked bridge, and that boy—and soon Naomi and Lizzie find their lives changed forever.
MAY 2014 ADULT FICTION Recent additions include two new science fiction bestsellers.
The Lives of Tao / Wesley Chu When out-of-shape IT technician Roen woke up and started hearing voices in his head, he naturally assumed he was losing it.
He wasn't.
He now has a passenger in his brain - an ancient alien life-form called Tao, whose race crash-landed on Earth before the first fish crawled out of the oceans. Now split into two opposing factions - the peace-loving, but under-represented Prophus, and the savage, powerful Genjix - the aliens have been in a state of civil war for centuries. Both sides are searching for a way off-planet, and the Genjix will sacrifice the entire human race, if that's what it takes.
Meanwhile, Roen is having to train to be the ultimate secret agent. Like that's going to end up well..
On Such a Full Sea / Chang-rae Lee In a future, long-declining America, society is strictly stratified by class. Long-abandoned urban neighborhoods have been repurposed as highwalled, self- contained labor colonies. And the members of the labor class—descendants of those brought over en masse many years earlier from environmentally ruined provincial China—find purpose and identity in their work to provide pristine produce and fish to the small, elite, satellite charter villages that ring the labor settlement.
In this world lives Fan, a female fish-tank diver, who leaves her home in the B-Mor settlement (once known as Baltimore), when the man she loves mysteriously disappears. Fan’s journey to find him takes her out of the safety of B-Mor, through the anarchic Open Counties, where crime is rampant with scant governmental oversight, and to a faraway charter village, in a quest that will soon become legend to those she left behind.
Below is a listing of beach books that are not too beachy. Books that are easy to read but also make you think. A majority of which have been a previous committee select.
• Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie • Lost lake, Sarah Addison Allen • Life After Life, Kate Atkinson • The Aviator's wife, Melanie Benjamin • The Paris architect, Charles Belfoure • I’ve got you under my Skin, Mary Higgins Clark • Missing You, Harlan Coben • Looking for Me, Beth Hoffman • Under the Wide and Starry Sky, Nancy Horan • Fever, Mary Beth Keane • The Daughters of Mars, Thomas Keneally
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• The Invention of Wings, Sue Monk Kidd • I shall be Near to you, Erin Lindsay McCabe • The Husband's Secret, Liane Moriarty • Sisterland, Curtis Sittenfeld • The Map of Love, Ahdaf Soueif • The Engagements, J. Courtney Sullivan • Beautiful Ruins, Jess Walter • The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress, Ariel Lawhon
MAY 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [ADULT] Flash Boys (Wall Street Revolt) Audio CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Michael Lewis (Author), Dylan Baker (Reader) Flash Boys is about a small group of Wall Street guys who investigate the big banks, the world’s stock exchanges, and high-frequency trading firms and expose the many strange new ways that Wall Street generates profits. The characters are completely different from what you think of when you think “Wall Street guy.” Lewis shines the light into the darkest corners of the financial world and, in the end, Flash Boys is an uplifting story.
The Invention of Wings: A Novel Audio CD – Audiobook / Sue Monk Kidd (Author, Reader), Jenna Lamia (Reader), Adepero Oduye (Reader) Inspired by the true story of early-nineteenth-century abolitionist and suffragist Sarah Grimké, the story paints a moving portrait of two women inextricably linked by the horrors of slavery. Sarah is the daughter of a wealthy South Carolina plantation owner and Handful is a slave in the Grimké household. Kidd masterfully paints the story of their unlikely friendship (characterized by both respect and resentment) from childhood to middle age. While their pain and struggle cannot be equated, both women strive to be set free—Sarah from the bonds of patriarchy and Southern bigotry, and Handful from the inhuman bonds of slavery.
Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder Audio CD – Audiobook, Unabridged by Arianna Huffington (Author), Coleen Marlo (Reader) As the cofounder and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group -- one of the fastest growing media companies in the world – and celebrated as one of the world's most influential women, Arianna Huffington relates her personal story about how our relentless pursuit of the two traditional metrics of success -- money and power -- has led to an erosion in the quality of our relationships, family life, and, ironically, our careers. In being connected to the world 24/7, we're losing our connection to what truly matters. In Thrive, she makes an impassioned and compelling case for the need to redefine what it means to be successful in today's world.
MAY 2014 JUNIOR FICTION A Drowned Maidens Hair / Laura Amy Schlitz Maud Flynn is known at the orphanage for her impertinence, so when the charming Miss Hyacinth and her sister choose Maud to take home with them, the girl is as baffled as anyone. It seems the sisters need Maud to help stage elaborate séances for bereaved, wealthy patrons. As Maud is drawn deeper into the deception, playing her role as a "secret child," she is torn between her need to please and her growing conscience — until a shocking betrayal makes clear just how heartless her so-called guardians are. Filled with tantalizing details of turn-of-the-century spiritualism and page-turning suspense, this lively historical novel features a winning heroine whom readers will not soon forget.
Clockwork Angel / Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices Series, book #1) The year is 1878. Tessa Gray descends into London’s dark supernatural underworld in search of her missing brother. She soon discovers that her only allies are the demon-slaying Shadowhunters—including Will and Jem, the mysterious boys she is attracted to. Soon they find themselves up against the Pandemonium Club, a secret organization of vampires, demons, warlocks, and humans. Equipped with a magical army of unstoppable clockwork creatures, the Club is out to rule the British Empire, and only Tessa and her allies can stop them...
Wicked Lovely / Melissa Marr (The Wicked Lovely Series, book #1) Three rules that Aisleen knows very well: Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries. Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries and most importantly Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention. But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King, who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost — regardless of her plans or desires. Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe so far are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.
MAY 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [CHILDREN & YOUNG ADULT] Allegiant CD (Divergent Series) / Veronica Roth; Audio CD Veronica Roth had her work cut out for her, ending a trilogy that had fans rabid for the final book, and she pulled it off like a champ. Allegiant kicks off right where Insurgent ended, and answers a lot of questions and delivers some jaw-dropping twists. Listeners will fully believe the two teens, the main characters, could outsmart self-centered and power-hungry adults to give society a brighter future.
Ellison the Elephant (with Audio CD) / Eric Drachman; Hardcover With the help of his imaginary friend, Weasel, Ellison finds his very own voice - a jazzy sound that charms all the other animals! The original music seamlessly blends in, and the story helps kids understand the beauty of being different and unusual.
MAY 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION Ninja Attack!: True Tales of Assassins, Samurai, and Outlaws / Hiroko Yoda Ninja Attack! is everything you always wanted to know about ninja but were too afraid you'd get a shuriken in the eye to ask! It introduces dozens of unforgettable real-life ninja straight out of the annals of Japanese history—many of whom are all but unknown outside their home country. Ninja masters. Solo assassins and operatives. Femme fatales as deadly as they were sexy. Swordfighters out of legend. And the Shogun and warlords who commanded them.
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Each individual is profiled with a full-page manga-style drawing and a dossier brimming with top-secret information, including photos, anecdotes, and dramatic stories of the individuals in action
Bob- No Ordinary Cat / James Bowen 'We are all given second chances every day of our lives, but we don't usually take them. Then I met Bob.' James Bowen was a homeless musician, busking on the streets of London to survive. But the moment he met an injured stray cat with ginger fur and big green eyes, his life began to change. Together James and Bob the cat faced the world - and won. A purrfectly true 'tail' of love and friendship to make you smile!
The Most Brilliant, Boldly Going Book of Exploration Ever... / The Brainwaves (Lisa Swerling, Ralph Lazar) The Brainwaves are back and they're taking young readers back in time as they discover the world and its many explorers. From Christopher Columbus to Magellan, the Age of Exploration is discussed in clear text and interesting colour pictures.
MAY 2014 CHILDREN See Me Run / Paul Meisel Happiness is a day in the park for this pack of joyful canines. They run, chase one another, jump in mud, go for a swim, and dig, dig, dig! Their doggy day becomes even more wonderful when they discover a mother lode of bones! But when the bones magically arrange themselves as a T-rex, the dogs find themselves running once again, this time away from the giant skeleton!
Bully / Laura Vaccaro Seeger Bully doesn't have a kind word for any of his friends. When the other animals ask him to play, he responds in the way he's been taught: Chicken! Slow poke! You stink!
Laura Vaccaro Seeger's bold, graphic artwork, along with her spare but powerful words, make for a tender, hilarious, and thoughtful tale.
Building Our House / Jonathan Bean Winner of the 2013 Boston Globe Horn Book Award for Best Picture Book Mom and Dad are going to make the new house themselves, from the ground up. From empty lot to finished home, every stage of their year-and-a-half-long building project is here. And at every step their lucky kids are watching and getting their hands dirty, in page after page brimming with machines, vehicles, and all kinds of house-making activities! As he imagines it through the eyes of his older sister, this is Jonathan Bean's retelling of his own family's true experience, and includes an afterword with photographs from the author's collection.
Planes Fly / George Ella Lyon World’s mighty big but there’s just one sky and it’s yours to travel. Planes fly!
Take to the skies with this fun, rhyming book about all that planes do! From jet planes to puddle jumpers, from the cockpit to the rudders, this book explores it all—and the bright, dynamic illustrations will keep even the youngest of readers engaged.
Knit Your Bit: A World War I Story / Deborah Hopkinson Mikey’s dad has left home to fight overseas during World War I, and Mikey wants to do something BIG to help. When his teacher suggests that the class participate in a knitting bee in Central Park to knit clothing for the troops, Mikey and his friends roll their eyes—knitting is for girls! But when the girls turn it into a competition, the boys just have to meet the challenge. Based on a real “Knit-In” event at Central Park in 1918, Knit Your Bit shows readers that making a lasting contribution is as easy as trying something new!
When Did You See Her Last?” [All the Wrong Questions] / Lemony Snicket I should have asked the question "How could someone who was missing be in two places at once?" Instead, I asked the wrong question—four wrong questions, more or less. This is the account of the second.
In the fading town of Stain'd-by-the-Sea, young apprentice Lemony Snicket has a new case to solve when he and his chaperone are hired to find a missing girl. Is the girl a runaway? Or was she kidnapped? Was she seen last at the grocery store? Or could she have stopped at the diner? Is it really any of your business? These are All The Wrong Questions.
Magyk (Septimus Heap, Book 1) / Angie Sage Septimus Heap, the seventh son of the seventh son, disappears the night he is born, pronounced dead by the midwife. That same night, the baby's father, Silas Heap, comes across an abandoned child in the snow—a newborn girl with violet eyes. Who is this mysterious baby girl, and what really happened to the Heaps' beloved son Septimus? Discover what Kirkus Review calls “a deliciously spellbinding series!”
SUMMER 2014 ADULT FICTION Strangle Vine / M. J. Carter Calcutta 1837. The East India Company rules India - or most of it; and its most notorious and celebrated son, Xavier Mountstuart, has gone missing.
William Avery, a down-at-heel junior officer in the Company's army, is sent to find him, in the unlikely company of the enigmatic and uncouth Jeremiah Blake. A more mismatched duo couldn't be imagined, but they must bury their differences as they are caught up in a search that turns up too many unanswered questions and seems bound to end in failure.
What was it that so captivated Mountstuart about the Thugs, the murderous sect of Kali-worshippers who strangle innocent travellers by the roadside? Who is
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Jeremiah Blake and can he be trusted? And why is the whole enterprise shrouded in such secrecy?
The Three / Sarah Lotz The world is stunned when four commuter planes crash within hours of each other on different continents. Facing global panic, officials are under pressure to find the causes. With terrorist attacks and environmental factors ruled out, there doesn't appear to be a correlation between the crashes, except that in three of the four air disasters a child survivor is found in the wreckage.
Dubbed 'The Three' by the international press, the children all exhibit disturbing behavioral problems, presumably caused by the horror they lived through and the unrelenting press attention. This attention becomes more than just intrusive when a rapture cult led by a charismatic evangelical minister insists that the survivors are three of the four harbingers of the apocalypse. The Three are forced to go into hiding, but as the children's behavior becomes increasingly disturbing, even their guardians begin to question their miraculous survival...
The Secret Life of Violet Grant / Beatriz Williams Manhattan, 1964. Vivian Schuyler, newly graduated from Bryn Mawr College, has recently defied the privilege of her storied old Fifth Avenue family to do the unthinkable for a budding Kennedy-era socialite: break into the Mad Men world of razor-stylish Metropolitan magazine. But when she receives a bulky overseas parcel in the mail, the unexpected contents draw her inexorably back into her family’s past, and the hushed-over crime of an aunt she never knew, whose existence has been wiped from the record of history.
Berlin, 1914. Violet Schuyler Grant endures her marriage to the philandering and decades-older scientist Dr. Walter Grant for one reason: he provides the necessary support to her liminal position as a young American female physicist in prewar Germany. The arrival of Dr. Grant’s former student at the beginning of Europe’s fateful summer interrupts this delicate détente. Lionel Richardson, a captain in the British Army, challenges Violet to escape her husband’s perverse hold, and as the world edges into war and Lionel’s shocking true motives become evident, Violet is tempted to take the ultimate step to set herself free and seek a life of her own conviction with a man whose cause is as audacious as her own.
As Vivian digs deeper into her aunt’s past and the mystery of her ultimate fate, Violet’s story of determination and desire unfolds, shedding light on the darkness of her years abroad . . . and teaching Vivian to reach forward with grace for the ambitious future––and the love––she wants most.
SUMMER 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [ADULT] The Museum of Extraordinary Things: A Novel Audio CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Alice Hoffman (Author), Judith Light (Reader), Grace Gummer (Reader), Zach Appelman (Reader) Mesmerizing and illuminating, Alice Hoffman’s The Museum of Extraordinary Things is the story of an electric and impassioned love between two vastly different souls in New York during the volatile first decades of the twentieth century. With its colorful crowds of bootleggers, heiresses, thugs, and idealists, New York itself becomes a riveting character as Hoffman weaves her trademark magic, romance, and masterful storytelling to unfold the stories of the main characters, Coralie and Eddie, in a sizzling, tender, and moving story of young love in tumultuous times. The Museum of Extraordinary Things is Alice Hoffman at her most spellbinding.
Focus : The Hidden Driver of Excellence Audio CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Daniel Goleman (Author, Reader) In Focus, Psychologist and journalist Daniel Goleman, author of the #1 international bestseller Emotional Intelligence, offers a groundbreaking look at today’s scarcest resource and the secret to high performance and fulfillment: attention. Combining cutting-edge research with practical findings, Focus breaks attention into a threesome: inner, other, and outer focus. Drawing on rich case studies, he shows why high-achievers need all three kinds of focus, and explains Smart Practices—mindfulness meditation, focused preparation and recovery, positive emotions and connections, and mental “prosthetics” -- to shows habits they have to help them excel.
Orphan Train: A Novel Audio CD – Audiobook, CD, Unabridged / Christina Baker Kline (Author), Jessica Almasy (Reader), Suzanne Toren (Reader) Between 1854 and 1929, so-called orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children whose fates would be determined by pure luck. Would they be adopted by a kind and loving family, or would they face a childhood and adolescence of hard labor and servitude? As a young Irish immigrant, Vivian Daly was one such child, sent by rail from New York City to an uncertain future a world away. Moving between contemporary Maine and Depression-era Minnesota, Orphan Train is a powerful tale of upheaval and resilience, second chances, and unexpected friendship.
SUMMER 2014 JUNIOR FICTION A Greyhound of Girl / Roddy Doyle Mary O'Hara is a sharp and cheeky 12-year-old Dublin schoolgirl who is bravely facing the fact that her beloved Granny is dying. But Granny can't let go of life, and when a mysterious young woman turns up in Mary's street with a message for her Granny, Mary gets pulled into an unlikely adventure. The woman is the ghost of Granny's own mother, who has come to help her daughter say good-bye to her loved ones and guide her safely out of this world. She needs the help of Mary and her mother, Scarlett, who embark on a road trip to the past. Four generations of women travel on a midnight car journey. One of them is dead, one of them is dying, one of them is driving, and one of them is just starting out.
Simon Bloom, The Gravity Keeper (Book #1) / Michael Reisman Sixth-grader Simon Bloom can’t believe his luck when he finds a book that enables him to control the laws of physics. By simply reciting the formulas it contains, he can cancel gravity to fly around his bedroom, or decrease friction so he can slide down the street as if he were on Rollerblades. When two thugs with evil intentions come after Simon, he must use the formulas to save himself and the book from falling into their hands.
Danger Society: The Young Bond Dossier / Charlie Higson This dossier takes you right into the heart of Young Bond’s world and includes a never-seen-before EXCLUSIVE Young Bond story by Charlie Higson, A Hard Man to Kill.
Encounter daredevil escapades, deadly weapons and explore the real-life history featured in the series, while discovering how to survive the searing heat of the Mexican desert or an avalanche in the Alps. Uncover more of James’s life at Eton, from the Danger Society to the Hellebore Cup – plus photos and maps from all
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of his adrenalin-fuelled adventures.
SUMMER 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION Chew on This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food / Eric Schlosser & Charles Wilson It’s no secret that kids love fast food. And the fast food industry definitely loves kids. It couldn’t survive without them. Did you know that the biggest toy company in the world is McDonald’s? It’s true. In fact, one out of every three toys given to a child in the United States each year is from a fast food restaurant. But toys aside, do kids really know what they’re eating? Where do fast food hamburgers come from? And what makes those fries taste so good? In Chew On This, the authors share the fascinating and sometimes frightening truth about what lurks between those sesame seed buns , what a chicken ‘nugget’ really is, and other fascinating but important food facts.
Horrible Science: Frightening Light: AND Sounds Dreadful / Nick Arnold Science with TWICE the squishy bits! Want to know...*why farts are so noisy? *What stops your eyeballs from falling out? FRIGHTENING LIGHT puts some illuminating facts under the spotlight. Discover how eclipses turn day into night and why rattlesnakes could still find you in the dark. SOUNDS DREADFUL will leave you shouting for more! Find out how sound waves make your ear drums tremble and why you might get a nose bleed listening to church bells!
The Secret History of Balls: The Stories Behind the Things We Love to Catch, Whack, Throw, Kick, Bounce and Bat / Josh Chetwynd You may fancy yourself a sports fan, but chances are you don't know: (i) A fish eyeball was used as the centre of some nineteenth-century baseballs (ii) The race to make better billiard balls led to the invention of plastics and (iii) The Nerf ball was originally created to be part of a board game featuring cavemen Balls are the unsung heroes of sports. They are smacked, flung, dribbled, crushed, thrown, and kicked. In this book you’ll learn the stories and lore of sports and recreation to offer insight into 60 balls-whether they're hollow, solid, full of air, or stuffed with twine or made of leather, metal, rubber, plastic, or polyurethane-that give us joy on playing fields and in every arena from backyards to stadiums around the globe.
SUMMER 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [CHILDREN] The Rain Came Down / David Shannon (Author) Caldecott Honor artist and bestselling author David Shannon's creates a charming and amusingly illustrated picture book and CD. Once upon a sunny day, the sky clouded over and the rain came down. The chicken squawked, the baby cried, the traffic snarled, the groceries fell, the people bickered, and still, the rain came down. In pictures full of wit and good-natured humor, Caldecott Honor artist, David Shannon, captures the chaos that follows an unexpected downpour. Rain or shine, here is an engaging story that will brighten the day of all readers.
Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims: Time-Travel Adventures with Exceptional Americans Audio CD – Audiobook, CD, Unabridged / by Rush Limbaugh (Author, Reader) Nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh makes American history come to life for children. The character of a fearless middle-school history teacher named Rush Revere travels back in time and experiences American history as it happens, in adventures with exceptional Americans. In this book, he is transported back to the deck of the Mayflower.
SUMMER 2014 CHILDREN My Daddy / Curtis Jobling Sophie and Sue and Molly like to go to the park. They swing and they talk, they talk and they swing, but they can't always agree. Sophie and Sue boast about their daddies. Each one is sure that hers is the best in the whole wide world. Sophie's daddy always wins everything! But Sue's daddy isn't ever afraid! The boasts get bigger and bigger...My daddy's a Super Hero! My daddy's a Super Dooper Hero! My daddy's Father Christmas! But Molly is very quiet—I wonder what her daddy does? With its bright, cartoony artwork and exuberant text, this is a book that’s great fun for sharing and reading aloud.
Exclamation Mark / Amy Krouse This is a story about an exclamation mark. And this exclamation mark’s story is really everyone’s story. It’s about fitting in…and standing out…and, with the help of others, finding your way. Because we all have an inner exclamation mark, the question is, how to find it…
The Watermelon Seed / Greg Pizzoli With perfect comic pacing, Greg Pizzoli introduces us to one funny crocodile who has one big fear: swallowing a watermelon seed. What will he do when his greatest fear is realized? Will vines sprout out his ears? Will his skin turn pink? This crocodile has a wild imagination that kids will love. With bold color and beautiful sense of design, Greg Pizzoli's picture book debut takes this familiar childhood worry and gives us a true gem in the vein of I Want My Hat Back and Not a Box.
Journey / Aaron Becker A 2014 Caldecott Honor Book A lonely girl draws a magic door on her bedroom wall and through it escapes into a world where wonder, adventure, and danger abound. Red marker in hand, she creates a boat, a balloon, and a flying carpet that carry her on a spectacular journey toward an uncertain destiny. When she is captured by a sinister emperor, only an act of tremendous courage and kindness can set her free. Can it also lead her home and to her heart’s desire? With supple line, luminous color, and nimble flights of fancy, author-illustrator Aaron Becker launches an ordinary child on an extraordinary journey toward her greatest and most exciting adventure of all.
Toys in Space / Mini Grey A very silly (not-too-scary) story about losing a beloved toy. That summer night, the toys were left outside…For the very first time, the Wonderdoll, the helpful wind- up robot, the thoughtful green dinosaur, and the rest of their plucky gang lie in the grass, gazing up at the stars. But one star seems brighter than the rest. As it grows bigger and bigger, the toys realize it may not be a star at all! Soon they're venturing into the unknown, traveling by spaceship, where they meet a lonely alien in need of help, and some friends. From ever-inventive, award-winning author-illustrator Mini Grey comes a hilarious and heartfelt new adventure: a motley group of toys left outside in the garden become true friends and brave heroes--in space!
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The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy / Jeanne Birdsall A National Book Award Winner This summer the Penderwick sisters have a wonderful surprise: a holiday on the grounds of a beautiful estate called Arundel. Soon they are busy discovering the summertime magic of Arundel’s sprawling gardens, treasure-filled attic, tame rabbits, and the cook who makes the best gingerbread in Massachusetts. But the best discovery of all is Jeffrey Tifton, son of Arundel’s owner, who quickly proves to be the perfect companion for their adventures. The icy-hearted Mrs. Tifton is not as pleased with the Penderwicks as Jeffrey is, though, and warns the new friends to stay out of trouble. Which, of course, they will—won’t they? One thing’s for sure: it will be a summer the Penderwicks will never forget.
Ivy and Bean Make the Rules / Annie Burrows Bean's older sister, Nancy, is going to Girl Power 4-Ever Camp, where she will do Crafts and Music and First Aid and other secret things that Bean will never know about because girls have to be eleven to go to Girl Power 4-Ever Camp. Bean doesn't care. She doesn't want to go to camp. She wouldn't go even if they begged her. So ha. So ha ha. So—wait a second! Bean and Ivy can make their own camp, their own better camp: Camp Flaming Arrow, where counselors Ivy and Bean will give a whole new meaning to Crafts, Music, First Aid, and hands-on learning!
Anton and the Battle / Ole Konnecke Starring Anton from Anton Can Do Magic (USBBY winner and ReadBoston Award finalist), this is another funny, child-centered picture book, full of imagination. Anton and his friend Luke fight an epic battle to be declared the strongest—but will they be outdone by a puppy?
Crankee Doodle / Tom Angleberger “Yankee Doodle went to town / a-riding on a pony / stuck a feather in his hat / and called it macaroni.” Many know the song “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” but few understand it. This unapologetically silly picture book reveals that the legendary ride to town (and the whole macaroni thing) was all suggested by Mr. Doodle’s overeager pony. This just makes Mr. Doodle cranky: “I do not want macaroni. I do not want a feather. I do not want any other clothing, any other pasta, or any other parts of a bird. I do not want anything that they have in town!” A historical note ends this colorful, comical take on a nonsensical old song.
Mommy’s High Heel Shoes / Kristie Finnan This is a story about a little girl nicknamed Cakes (because of her LOVE of cupcakes!). After Mommy leaves for work, Cakes plays in Mommy’s closet with her brother and imagines she is Mommy! While Cakes is trying on Mommy's shoes, her brother is being a typical little boy, playing with his toy penguin and making trains/building forts out of Mom's shoes. Cakes discovers that Mommy wears so many different shoes because Mommy has lots of jobs. This story explores the subject of why mothers work outside the home and the many important jobs mommies have inside the home. This book celebrates a busy working mother and her sweeter-than-cupcakes relationship with her children! In addition, everyone will have fun finding the hidden pictures inside this book. There is a hidden cupcake, ladybug and heart on each page of the story!
The Special Blankie / M. Christina Butler Little Hedgehog and his cousin, Baby Hedgehog, set out for a fun spring day, hunting bluebells in Wild Flower Woods. But when Baby Hedgehog loses his very special blankie, their day turns into an even bigger adventure. From the bestselling team of the beloved books, Snow Friends and One Snowy Night, comes a charming new story which celebrates fun and friendship on a beautiful spring day.
Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn / Heart by Mary Ann Hoberman When you learn a poem by heart, it becomes a part of you. You know it in your mind, in your mouth, in your ears, in your whole body. And best of all, you know it forever.
From the creators of the bestselling You Read to Me, I'll Read to You series comes this new collection of poems especially suitable for learning by heart and saying aloud. With personal introductions by former Children's Poet Laureate Mary Ann Hoberman—as well as her own time-tested tips and tools for memorization and recitation—and vivid illustrations by Michael Emberley featuring his trademark wit and lively characters, Forget-Me-Nots includes more than 120 works from both classic and contemporary poets, from childhood favorites to lesser-known treasures. This anthology will inspire a love of learning poetry!
Jinx / Sage Blackwood The highly acclaimed first book of a fantasy adventure series set in a mysterious forest starring a daring new hero. Readers will thrill to journey with Jinx, a wizard's apprentice, as he sets off on a quest through the dangerous Urwald, a magical forest full of wizards and were-creatures, and discovers that it is more complex than he could imagine, and that it needs him more than he could ever guess. This humorous and smart tween fantasy adventure is perfect for fans of Septimus Heap, The Sisters Grimm and Fablehaven.
Fallout / Todd Strasser In the summer of 1962, the possibility of nuclear war is all anyone talks about, so Scott's dad builds a bomb shelter to hold his family and stocks it with just enough supplies to keep the four of them alive for two critical weeks. In the middle of the night in late October, when the unthinkable happens, the same neighbors who scoffed at building a shelter themselves force their way into the shelter before Scott's dad can shut the door. With not enough room, not enough food, and not enough air, life inside the shelter is filthy, physically draining, and emotionally fraught. But even worse is the question of what will—and won’t— remain when the door is opened again. Internationally best-selling author Todd Strasser has written his most impressive and personal novel to date, exploring the terrifying what-ifs of one of the most explosive moments in human history.
SEPTEMBER 2014 ADULT FICTION & Sons / David Gilbert The funeral of Charles Henry Topping on Manhattan’s Upper East Side would have been a minor affair (his two-hundred-word obit in The New York Times notwithstanding) but for the presence of one particular mourner: the notoriously reclusive author A. N. Dyer, whose novel Ampersand stands as a classic of American teenage angst. But as Andrew Newbold Dyer delivers the eulogy for his oldest friend, he suffers a breakdown over the life he’s led and the people he’s hurt and the novel that will forever endure as his legacy. He must gather his three sons for the first time in many years—before it’s too late.
So begins a wild, transformative, heartbreaking week, as witnessed by Philip Topping, who, like his late father, finds himself caught up in the swirl of the Dyer family. First there’s son Richard, a struggling screenwriter and father, returning from self-imposed exile in California. In the middle lingers Jamie, settled in Brooklyn after his twenty-year mission of making documentaries about human suffering. And last is Andy, the half brother whose mysterious birth tore the Dyers apart
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seventeen years ago, now in New York on spring break, determined to lose his virginity before returning to the prestigious New England boarding school that inspired Ampersand. But only when the real purpose of this reunion comes to light do these sons realize just how much is at stake, not only for their father but for themselves and three generations of their family.
The Last Magazine / Michael Hastings The year is 2002. Weekly newsmagazines dominate the political agenda in New York and Washington. A young journalist named Michael M. Hastings is a twenty-two- year-old intern at The Magazine, wet behind the ears, the only one in the office who’s actually read his coworker’s books. He will stop at nothing to turn his internship into a full-time position, and he’s figured out just whom to impress: Nishant Patel, the international editor, and Sanders Berman, managing editor, both vying for the job of editor in chief. While Berman and Nishant try to one-up each other pontificating on cable news, A. E. Peoria—the one reporter seemingly doing any work—is having a career crisis. He’s just returned from Chad, where, instead of the genocide, he was told by his editors to focus on mobile phone outsourcing, which they think is more relevant. And then, suddenly, the United States invades Iraq—and all hell breaks loose. As Hastings loses his naïveté about the journalism game, he must choose where his loyalties lie—with the men at The Magazine who can advance his career or with his friend in the field who is reporting the truth.
The Last Magazine is the debut novel from Michael Hastings, discovered in his files after his untimely death in June 2013. Informed by his own journalistic experiences, it is wickedly funny, sharp, and fast-paced: a great book about print journalism’s last glory days, and a compelling first novel from one of America’s most treasured reporters.
The Book of Unknown Americans / Christina Henriquez A boy and a girl who fall in love. Two families whose hopes collide with destiny. An extraordinary novel that offers a resonant new definition of what it means to be American.
Arturo and Alma Rivera have lived their whole lives in Mexico. One day, their beautiful fifteen-year-old daughter, Maribel, sustains a terrible injury, one that casts doubt on whether she’ll ever be the same. And so, leaving all they have behind, the Riveras come to America with a single dream: that in this country of great opportunity and resources, Maribel can get better.
When Mayor Toro, whose family is from Panama, sees Maribel in a Dollar Tree store, it is love at first sight. It’s also the beginning of a friendship between the Rivera and Toro families, whose web of guilt and love and responsibility is at this novel’s core.
Woven into their stories are the testimonials of men and women who have come to the United States from all over Latin America. Their journeys and their voices will inspire you, surprise you, and break your heart.
SEPTEMBER 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [ADULT] The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business – Audiobook, Unabridged / Charles Duhigg (Author), Mike Chamberlain (Reader) The Power of Habit was named one of the best books of the year by The Wall Street Journal and Financial Times. In The Power of Habit, award-winning New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg takes the listener to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. With penetrating intelligence and an ability to distill vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives, Duhigg brings to life a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential for transformation. At its core, The Power of Habit contains an interesting argument: the key to exercising regularly, losing weight, raising exceptional children, becoming more productive, building revolutionary companies and social movements, and achieving success is understanding how habits work.
The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet: Activate Your Body's Natural Ability to Burn Fat and Lose Weight Fast Audio CD – Audiobook, Unabridged / Mark Hyman (Author), Author (Reader) The key to losing weight and keeping it off is maintaining low insulin levels. Based on Dr. Hyman's groundbreaking Blood Sugar Solution program, The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet presents strategies for reducing insulin levels and producing fast and sustained weight loss. Dr. Hyman, a medical doctor on the advisory board of The Dr. Oz Show, explains how to: activate your natural ability to burn fat--especially belly fat; reduce inflammation; reprogram your metabolism; shut off your fat-storing genes; de-bug your digestive system; create effortless appetite control; and soothe the stress to shed the pounds. The audiobook contains practical tools designed to achieve optimum wellness, including meal plans, recipes, and shopping lists, as well as step-by-step, easy-to- follow advice on green living, supplements, medication, exercise, and more.
Capital in the Twenty-First Century – Audiobook / Thomas Piketty (Author), L.J. Ganser (Reader) What are the grand dynamics that drive the accumulation and distribution of capital? Questions about the long-term evolution of inequality, the concentration of wealth, and the prospects for economic growth lie at the heart of political economy. In Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Thomas Piketty analyzes a unique collection of data from twenty countries, ranging as far back as the eighteenth century, to uncover key economic and social patterns. Piketty shows that modern economic growth and the diffusion of knowledge have allowed us to avoid inequalities on the apocalyptic scale predicted by Karl Marx. The main driver of inequality—the tendency of returns on capital to exceed the rate of economic growth—today threatens to generate extreme inequalities that stir discontent and undermine democratic values. Capital in the Twenty-First Century reorients readers’ understanding of economic history and confronts them with sobering lessons for today.
SEPTEMBER 2014 AUDIO BOOKS [CHILDREN] How Do Dinosaurs Go To School? – Audio book
Everyone's favorite dinosaurs are back--and this time they are going to school. These prehistoric pupils are in a class of their own! The bestselling, award- winning team of Yolen and Teague have created another hilarious dinosaur tale for young children about how dinosaurs behave at school.
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How to Train Your Dragon Audio CD / Cressida Cowell (Author), David Tennant (Reader)
Chronicles the adventures and misadventures of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III. When he and the other boys of his tribe are sent on a mission to fetch dragons to train, Hiccup's unorthodox dragon-training techniques prove successful and he and his unique beast become true heroes. Sprinkled throughout with funny sketches, scribbles, and ink blots, this is a delightful tale of an underdog who proves that brains can be just as important as brawn. Kids will hoot at the ridiculous names and sympathize with Hiccup's exasperation with his truly obstinate but strangely lovable dragon. (How to Train Your Dragon audiobooks 1- 6 are in the American Club’s library collection.)
SEPTEMBER 2014 JUNIOR FICTION The Eye of Minds (Book # 1 of The Mortality Doctrine Series) / James Dasher Michael is a gamer and a hacker. He almost spends more time on the VirtNet than in the actual world. The VirtNet offers total mind and body immersion, and it’s addictive. And the more hacking skills you have, the more fun. But one gamer is going beyond what any gamer has done before: he’s holding players hostage inside the VirtNet. The effects are horrific—the hostages have all been declared brain-dead. Will Michael give up his safe gaming and join the government to catch the hacker? This is the first book in The Mortality Doctrine, a new series set in a world of hyperadvanced technology, cyberterrorists, and gaming beyond your wildest dreams . . . and your worst nightmares.
Murder at Mykenai / Catherine Mayo A voice slid like a knife into his ear. “You vermin,” it said. “In a moment you’ll be nothing, no more than a lump of dead meat. That will silence our little secret, won’t it?” Friendship vs. Treachery in Ancient Greece, a decade before the Trojan War. Menelaos, teenage son of the assassinated High King of Greece, is tumbling ever deeper into danger. Odysseus, his best friend, tries to help – but Odysseus’s great ideas have a tendency to come unstuck …
Oblivion (Book #5 of the Gatekeepers series) / Anthony Horowitz Having escaped from Hong Kong, the five gatekeepers - Matt, Pedro, Scott, Jamie and Scarlett - are scattered in a hostile and dangerous world. As they struggle to re-group and plan their next move, the malevolent King of the Old Ones gathers his forces in Oblivion: a desolate landscape where the last survivors of humanity must fight the ultimate battle.
SEPTEMBER 2014 JUNIOR NON FICTION The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World's Most Notorious Nazi / Neal Boscombe A thrilling spy mission and a moving Holocaust story combined. In 1945, at the end of World War II, Adolf Eichmann, the head of operations for the Nazis' Final Solution, walked into the mountains of Germany and vanished from view. Sixteen years later, an elite team of spies captured him at a bus stop in Argentina and smuggled him to Israel, resulting in one of the century's most important trials -- one that cemented the Holocaust in the public imagination. THE NAZI HUNTERS is the thrilling and fascinating story of what happened between these two events.
Earth in 30 Seconds: 30 Amazing Topics for Earth Explorers Explained in Half a Minute /Anita Ganieri In this beautiful book, every inch of our planet is explored and explained, from the air in the atmosphere to the molten magma beneath our feet. 30 key topics from deserts to oceans are covered, each presented in neat 30-second soundbites and supported by 3-second flash summaries and cool, colourful artwork.. Six themed sections cover the Earth in Space, the Earths Structure, Weather and Climate, Watery World, Amazing Ecosystems and the Future of the Earth.
Starry Messenger / Peter Sis In every age there are courageous people who break with tradition to explore new ideas and challenge accepted truths. Galileo Galilei was just such a man--a genius--and the first to turn the telescope to the skies to map the heavens. In doing so, he offered objective evidence that the earth was not the fixed center of the universe but that it and all the other planets revolved around the sun. By changing the way people saw the galaxy, Galileo was also changing the way they saw themselves and their place in the universe. This was very exciting, but to some to some it was deeply disturbing. Galileo upset the harmonious view of heaven and earth that had been accepted since ancient times. He had turned the world upside down.
SEPTEMBER 2014 CHILDREN Flora and the Flamingo / Molly Idle In this innovative wordless book, a tentative partnership blossoms into an unlikely friendship between a girl names Flora and a graceful flamingo. With a twist, a turn, and even a flop, these unlikely friends learn at last how to dance together in perfect harmony.
Truck Stop / Anne Rockwell Early each morning, before the sun is even up, the Truck Stop opens for breakfast, and the trucks start pulling in. Eighteen wheeler, milk tank, moving van, and flatbed! Their drivers order eggs and bacon, pancakes with syrup, and a blueberry muffin. For the boy who helps his parents at the counter, there is nothing better than seeing all the trucks roll in; he knows every single one… and can tell when one is missing! Here is a story for very young truck lovers, worth stopping for again and again.
This Is a Moose by Richard T. Morris
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MOOSE? Yes, Moose! When a movie director tries to capture the life of a moose on film, he's in for a big surprise. It turns out the moose has a dream bigger then just being a moose--he wants to be an astronaut and go to the moon. His forest friends step in to help him, and action ensues. Lots of action—like a lacrosse-playing grandma, a gigantic slingshot into space, and a flying, superhero chipmunk. In this hilarious romp, Richard T. Morris and bestselling illustrator Tom Lichtenheld remind us to dream big and, when we do, to aim for the moon.
How to Bicycle to the Moon to Plant Sunflowers / Mordicai Gernstein In this simple, step-by-step instructional picture book, learn how you too can visit the moon on your bicycle! All you need is a very long garden hose, a very large slingshot, a borrowed spacesuit, and a bicycle…and plenty of imagination. With tongue firmly in cheek, Caldecott Medal winner Mordicai Gerstein outlines the steps needed in glorious comic book-style panels and a deadpan voice, leaving nothing out: the food you'll eat, how to deal with loneliness in space, how to water those sunflower seeds once they're planted—even how to deal with the media attention back home after a successful trip. A spacefaring adventure for daydreamers and a starter kit for the imagination.
Bailey / Harry Bliss Meet Bailey, a dog who surprises and charms his fellow human classmates with his irrepressible antics. Follow Bailey as he gets ready and goes to school. Should he wear the red or blue collar? Both are so fashionable! Will he be late? That squirrel is a distraction! And what about Bailey's homework? Would you believe he ate it? That is what dogs do, after all. In this funny new book from the best selling children's illustrator Harry Bliss, school proves to be an unexpected place for Bailey to do all sorts of things he loves: reading, fetching, painting, digging, singing—and making friends!
The Show Must Go On! (Three-Ring Rascals) / Kate Klise Author Kate Klise and illustrator M. Sarah Klise blend a story bursting with jokes, puns, and wordplay with playful black and white illustrations. When Sir Sidney, a kindly old circus owner, becomes too tired to travel with his show, he places a Help Wanted ad in the newspaper. Enter Barnabas Brambles: “I have a degree in lion taming from the University of Piccadilly Circus.” But does Leo the lion need taming? Will Elsa the elephant still get her gourmet peanuts? And what will Brambles say when he discovers Bert and Gert—two mice who travel with the circus on popcorn cleanup patrol? Brambles has big plans: More cities! More shows! No more free popcorn. Soon he’s made a big mess of Sir Sidney’s Circus, but Leo, Elsa, Bert, Gert, and the rest of the performers agree: The Show Must Go On!
Because of Mr. Terupt / Rob Buyea Features seven narrators, each with a unique story, and each with a different perspective on what makes their teacher so special. It’s the start of fifth grade for seven kids at Snow Hill School. There’s Jessica, the new girl, smart and perceptive, who’s having a hard time fitting in; Alexia, a bully, your friend one second, your enemy the next; Peter, class prankster and troublemaker; Luke, the brain; Danielle, who never stands up for herself; shy Anna, whose home situation makes her an outcast; and Jeffrey, who hate school. Only Mr. Terupt, their new and energetic teacher, seems to know how to deal with them all. He makes the classroom a fun place, even if he doesn’t let them get away with much…until the snowy winter day when an accident changes everything—and everyone.
OCTOBER 2014 ADULT FICTION
All the Light we Cannot See /Anthony Doerr All the Light we Cannot See is about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. Marie-Laure lives with her father in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where he works as the master of its thousands of locks. When she is six, Marie- Laure goes blind and her father builds a perfect miniature of their neighborhood so she can memorize it by touch and navigate her way home. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great-uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel. In a mining town in Germany, the orphan Werner grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments, a talent that wins him a place at a brutal academy for Hitler Youth, then a special assignment to track the resistance. More and more aware of the human cost of his intelligence, Werner travels through the heart of the war and, finally, into Saint-Malo, where his story and Marie-Laure’s converge.
Everything I Never Told You /Celeste Ng Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet . . . So begins the story of this exquisite debut novel, about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee; their middle daughter, a girl who inherited her mother’s bright blue eyes and her father’s jet-black hair. Her parents are determined that Lydia will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue—in Marilyn’s case that her daughter become a doctor rather than a homemaker, in James’s case that Lydia be popular at school, a girl with a busy social life and the center of every party.
When Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together tumbles into chaos, forcing them to confront the long-kept secrets that have been slowly pulling them apart. James, consumed by guilt, sets out on a reckless path that may destroy his marriage. Marilyn, devastated and vengeful, is determined to find a responsible party, no matter what the cost. Lydia’s older brother, Nathan, is certain that the neighborhood bad boy Jack is somehow involved. But it’s the youngest of the family—Hannah—who observes far more than anyone realizes and who may be the only one who knows the truth about what happened.
A profoundly moving story of family, history, and the meaning of home, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, exploring the divisions between cultures and the rifts within a family, and uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another.
One Plus One /Jojo Moyes Suppose your life sucks. A lot. Your husband has done a vanishing act. You’re trying to keep the family afloat, with two jobs and two children. You’ve always been an optimist, but it isn’t easy.
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Jess’s oddball teenage stepson is being bullied, and your math whiz daughter has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you can’t afford to pay for. Jess has spent her life Doing the Right Thing. But what if, just this once, she did something that was definitely The Wrong Thing that might make all the difference for her family?
Ed Nicholls is a brilliant tech millionaire whose life is falling apart when he happens upon Jess and her family stranded on the side of the road. She’s stunned to realize that her knight in shining armor is Geeky Ed – a man she considers obnoxious in the extreme and whose vacation home she happens to clean. But in perhaps his first unselfish act ever, he agrees to drive them – plus their pungent dog, Norman – to the Math Olympiad and a prize that could change things for Jess’s family forever….
OCTOBER 2014 ADULT (AUDIOBOOKS)
Think Like a Freak CD / Stephen J. Dubner With their trademark blend of captivating storytelling and unconventional analysis, Levitt and Dubner teach listeners to think a bit more productively, more creatively, more rationally—to think, that is, like a Freak. They offer a blueprint for an entirely new way to solve problems, whether your interest lies in minor lifehacks or major global reforms. As always, no topic is off-limits: from business to philanthropy to sports to politics, all with the goal of retraining your brain. Along the way, you’ll learn the secrets of a Japanese hot-dog-eating champion, the reason an Australian doctor swallowed a batch of dangerous bacteria, and why Nigerian e-mail scammers make a point of saying they’re from Nigeria. Levitt and Dubner plainly see the world like no one else. This audiobook invites you to do the same.
All the Light We Cannot See /Anthony Doerr All the Light We Cannot See is a magnificent, deeply moving novel about a blind 14-year-old French girl who flees to the countryside when her father disappears from Nazi-occupied Paris and a gadget-obsessed German orphan whose skills admit him to a brutal branch of Hitler Youth. The story by award-winning author Anthony Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another.
The Curmudgeon's Guide to Getting Ahead: Dos and Don'ts of Right Behavior, Tough Thinking, Clear Writing, and Living a Good Life / Charles Murray Charles Murray, Harvard and MIT graduate and W. H. Brady Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, creates an entertaining primer on the hidden rules of the road in the workplace and in life from the standpoint of an admonishing, but encouraging, workplace grouch and taskmaster. Drawing on the core values that have historically made good manners the best lubricant to social and professional advancement, The Curmudgeon's Guide to Getting Ahead is a resource for anyone hoping to land the job of their dreams or get ahead in their career of choice.
OCTOBER 2014 CHILDREN (AUDIOBOOKS)
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything / Linda Williams and Megan Lloyd Just in time for Halloween, the audiobook tells of the little old lady’s fearless attitude and her clever solution as to what to do with the lively shoes, pants, shirt and pumpkin head that are chasing her. The audio will enchant young audiences and the accompanying book contains brilliantly colored, detailed folk art illustrations.
Littlest Pumpkin / R. A. Herman In this Halloween story, the Littlest Pumpkin dreams of being the center of attention. Throughout the day, children come and go, picking their pumpkins. And when Bartlett's Farm Stand closes, only the Littlest Pumpkin remains. But just then, a group of mice scurrying around the stand make the Littlest Pumpkin's dream come true in a most unexpected way on Halloween night. The popular story of one little pumpkin's high hopes for Halloween will delight children listeners.
Great Explorers /David Angus (Author), Kerry Shale (Narrator), Sam Dastor (Narrator) The stories of nine great adventures and the lives of the men who took part in them, including Marco Polo, Columbus, the great Moslem explorer Ibn Battutta, Lewis & Clark, and Magellan, are masterfully told for elementary school ages and above. They pushed back the frontiers of man's knowledge of the world by their vision, courage and sheer doggedness. They were very different people - from bold adventurers facing the unknown with enjoyment to careful, more scientific individuals. Their journeys are placed within their historical context, but also contain the words of the men themselves.
OCTOBER 2014 CHILDREN
See Me Run / Paul Meisel Happiness is a day in the park for this pack of joyful canines. They run, chase one another, jump in mud, go for a swim, and dig, dig, dig! Their doggy day becomes even more wonderful when they discover a mother lode of bones! But when the bones magically arrange themselves as a T. rex, the dogs find themselves running once again, this time away from the giant skeleton!
I Scream Ice Cream!: A Book of Wordles / Amy Krouse Rosenthal What do "I Scream!" and "Ice Cream!" have in common? Nothing—besides the fact that they sound the same! The ever-surprising Amy Krouse Rosenthal unleashes her prolific wit in this silly and smart book of wordplay. Perfectly complemented by equally clever illustrations from the talented and internationally renowned Serge Bloch, this mind-bending book will have young readers thinking about words in an entirely new way!
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The Tiny King / Taro Miura Once upon a time there was a tiny king who lived in a big castle guarded by lots of big soldiers. Every day the tiny king eats dinner at his big table (he can never finish it all), rides on his big horse (he is thrown off every time), bathes in his big bath (not much fun), and sleeps, not very well, in his big bed. The tiny king is very sad and lonely, until one day he meets a big princess and asks her to be his queen. Not long after, they are blessed with children—lots of children. Now everything is just the right size, bath time is a real riot, and the tiny king sleeps soundly at last. With bright, bold cutouts and a whimsical use of collage, Japanese artist Taro Miura creates a witty, heartwarming story with huge appeal for readers big and small.
Skeleton for Dinner / Margery Cuyler Big Witch and Little Witch have made stew, and now they want to have their friends for dinner! But when Skeleton mistakes the guest list for a menu, he takes off running, and soon Ghost and Ghoul join him too! But poor Little Witch has no idea there’s a misunderstanding. Luckily there’s one creature in the haunted forest who can help everyone figure it all out. This spooky and silly read-aloud is just right for Halloween.
Five Little Monkeys Trick-or-Treat / Eileen Christelow Five excited little monkeys dress up for Halloween. They are going trick-or-treating with their favorite babysitter, Lulu. “Ghost, princess, goblin, banana, and alien,” Mama reminds her. “Don’t lose the rascals!” But soon those mischievous monkeys meet other costumed friends and decide to try “the best Halloween trick ever!” Will Lulu be fooled? Or will those five little rascals get tricked by their own monkey business? Vibrant, silly, and perfect for reading aloud, this non- scary Halloween story is sure to delight fans of this best-selling series. Includes recipes for “eyeballs” and “worm juice” so kids and their grownups can make their own holiday “trick” treats at home.
The Year of Billy Miller / Kevin Henkes Kevin Henkes introduces second-grader Billy Miller in this fast-paced and funny story about friendship, sibling rivalry, and elementary school. When Billy Miller has a mishap at the statue of the Jolly Green Giant at the end of summer vacation, he ends up with a big lump on his head. What a way to start second grade! As the year goes by, though, Billy figures out how to navigate elementary school, how to appreciate his little sister, and how to be a more grown up and responsible member of the family and a help to his busy working mom and stay-at-home dad. Henkes delivers a short, satisfying, laugh-out-loud-funny school and family story that features a diorama homework assignment, a school poetry slam, cancelled sleepovers, and epic sibling temper tantrums. This is perfect for fans of the Ramona books, Frindle by Andrew Clements and the Clementine series.
Schooled / Gordon Korman Capricorn (Cap) Anderson has never watched TV. He’s never tasted a pizza. Never even heard of a wedgie. Since he was little, his only experience has been living on a farm commune and being homeschooled by his hippie grandmother, Rain. But when Rain falls out of a tree while picking plums and has to stay in the hospital, Cap is forced to move in with a guidance counsellor and her cranky teen daughter and attend the local middle school. While Cap knows a lot about tie-dyeing and Zen Buddhism, no education could prepare him for the politics of public school. Right from the beginning, Cap’s weirdness makes him a moving target at Claverage Middle School (dubbed C Average by the students).
NOVEMBER 2014 ADULT FICTION
Big Little Lies By Liane Moriaty
Big Little Lies follows three women, each at a crossroads:
Madeline is a force to be reckoned with. She’s funny and biting, passionate, she remembers everything and forgives no one. Her ex-husband and his yogi new wife have moved into her beloved beachside community, and their daughter is in the same kindergarten class as Madeline’s youngest (how is this possible?). And to top it all off, Madeline’s teenage daughter seems to be choosing Madeline’s ex-husband over her. (How. Is. This. Possible?).
Celeste is the kind of beautiful woman who makes the world stop and stare. While she may seem a bit flustered at times, who wouldn’t be, with those rambunctious twin boys? Now that the boys are starting school, Celeste and her husband look set to become the king and queen of the school parent body. But royalty often comes at a price, and Celeste is grappling with how much more she is willing to pay.
New to town, single mom Jane is so young that another mother mistakes her for the nanny. Jane is sad beyond her years and harbors secret doubts about her son. But why? While Madeline and Celeste soon take Jane under their wing, none of them realizes how the arrival of Jane and her inscrutable little boy will affect them all.
Big Little Lies is a brilliant take on ex-husbands and second wives, mothers and daughters, schoolyard scandal, and the dangerous little lies we tell ourselves just to survive.
Remember Me Like This By Bret Anthony Johnston
Four years have passed since Justin Campbell’s disappearance, a tragedy that rocked the small town of Southport, Texas. Did he run away? Was he kidnapped? Did he drown in the bay? As the Campbells search for answers, they struggle to hold what’s left of their family together.
Then, one afternoon, the impossible happens. The police call to report that Justin has been found only miles away, in the neighboring town, and, most important, he appears to be fine. Though the reunion is a miracle, Justin’s homecoming exposes the deep rifts that have diminished his family, the wounds they all carry that may never fully heal. Trying to return to normal, his parents do their best to ease Justin back into his old life. But as thick summer heat takes hold, violent storms churn in the Gulf and in the Campbells’ hearts. When a reversal of fortune lays bare the family’s greatest fears—and offers perhaps the only hope for recovery—each of them must fight to keep the ties that bind them from permanently tearing apart.
Above the East China Sea
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By Sarah Bird
Luz James, a contemporary U.S. Air Force brat, lives with her strictly-by-the-rules sergeant mother at Kadena Air Base in Okianawa. Luz’s older sister, her best friend and emotional center, has just been killed in the Afghan war. Unmoored by her sister’s death and a lifetime of constant moving from base to base, Luz turns for the comfort her service-hardened mother cannot offer to the “Smokinawans,” the “waste cases,” who gather to get high every night in a deserted cove.
In 1945, Tamiko Kokuba, along with two hundred of her classmates, is plucked out of her elite girls’ high school and trained to work in the Imperial Army’s horrific cave hospitals. With defeat certain, Tamiko finds herself squeezed between the occupying Japanese and the invading Americans. She believes she has lost her entire family, as well as the island paradise she so loved, and, like Luz, she aches with a desire to be reunited with her beloved sister.
On an island where the spirits of the dead are part of life and your entire clan waits for you in the afterworld, suicide offers Tamiko the promise of peace. As Luz tracks down the story of her own Okinawan grandmother, she discovers that, if she surrenders to the most unbrat impulse and allows herself to connect completely with a place and its people, the ancestral spirits will save not only Tamiko but her as well.
Above the East China Sea is at once a remarkable chronicle of how war shapes the lives of conquerors as well as the conquered and a deeply moving account of family, friendship, and love that transcends time.
NOVEMBER 2014 ADULT (AUDIOBOOKS)
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown (Author), Edward Herrmann (Reader) Audio CD
The Boys on the Boat tells the remarkable story of the gold-medal-winning effort by the eight-man rowing team from the University of Washington. It describes the convergence of a British boatmaker, the quiet yet deadly effective UW men’s varsity coach, and an unlikely gaggle of young rowers who would grow up together, a rough-and-tumble bunch, not very worldly, but earnest and used to hard work. Brown profiles the principals in this story while using the 1936 games and Hitler’s heavy financial and political investment in them to pull the narrative along. A vivid picture of the socioeconomic landscape of 1930s America (brutal)and the relentlessly demanding effort required of an Olympic-level rower, this is a story that informs as it inspires.
The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (Author), Robert Glenister (Reader); Audio CD
Private investigator Cormoran Strike returns in a new mystery from Robert Galbraith, author of the #1 international bestseller The Cuckoo's Calling. When novelist Owen Quine goes missing, his wife calls in private detective Cormoran Strike. At first, Mrs. Quine just thinks her husband has gone off by himself for a few days--as he has done before--and she wants Strike to find him and bring him home. The Silkworm is a compulsively readable crime novel with twists at every turn and is the second in the highly acclaimed series.
Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II's Most Audacious General by Bill O'Reilly (Author, Reader), Martin Dugard (Author); Audio CD
Listeners around the world have been enthralled by Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, and Killing Jesus—riveting works of nonfiction that journey into the heart of the most famous murders in history. Now from Bill O’Reilly, anchor of The O’Reilly Factor, comes the most epic audiobook of all in this multimillion-selling series: Killing Patton. General George S. Patton, Jr. died under mysterious circumstances in the months following the end of World War II. For almost seventy years, there has been suspicion that his death was not an accident—and may very well have been an act of assassination. Killing Patton takes readers inside the final year of the war and recounts the events surrounding Patton’s tragic demise, naming names of the many powerful individuals who wanted him silenced.
NOVEMBER 2014 CHILDREN (AUDIOBOOKS)
Thanksgiving is... by Gail Gibbons
Thanksgiving is turkey, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. It is a holiday for remembering the Pilgrims and the Indians. Most of all, it is a time to share with family and friends, and a time to give thanks for many blessings.
Duck on a Bike (Read Along Book & CD) by David Shannon (Author, Illustrator)
Caldecott Honor winner David Shannon applies his wonderful off-beat humor to the story of a duck who decides to try riding a bike--and loves it!
One day down on the farm, Duck got a wild idea. "I bet I could ride a bike," he thought. Duck rode past Cow, "Hello, Cow!" said Duck. "Moo," said Cow. But what she thought was, "A duck on a bike? That's the silliest thing I've ever seen!" And so Duck rides past sheep, horse, and all the other barnyard animals.
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NOVEMBER 2014 CHILDREN
Mr Wuffles! by David Wiesner
A 2014 Caldecott Honor Book
In a near wordless masterpiece that could only have been devised by David Wiesner, a cat named Mr. Wuffles doesn't care about toy mice or toy goldfish. He's much more interested in playing with a little spaceship full of actual aliens—but the ship wasn't designed for this kind of rough treatment. Between motion sickness and damaged equipment, the aliens are in deep trouble. When the space visitors dodge the cat and take shelter behind the radiator to repair the damage, they make a host of insect friends. The result? A humorous exploration of cooperation between aliens and insects, and of the universal nature of communication involving symbols, "cave" paintings, and gestures of friendship.
Ol’ Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein
Ol’ Mama Squirrel has raised lots of babies, and she knows just how to protect them. Whenever trouble comes nosing around, she springs into action with a determined “Chook, chook, chook!” and scares trouble away. Her bravery is put to the test, however, when a really big threat wanders into town and onto her tree. But no matter what, Mama’s not about to back down! Caldecott Honor winner David Ezra Stein’s lively tale is a fantastic read-aloud, and feisty Mama Squirrel will have fierce mamas everywhere applauding! Turkey Tot by George Shannon
Turkey Tot can’t reach the blackberries. No sweet treat today! But he finds some string. If he finds a balloon, he can float up and reach those berries! His friends think he’s silly. But turkey Tot will NOT be discouraged! He’s always been like that! Shannon's writing is simple, clean, and cheerful, and his message of stick-to-itiveness is delivered perfectly. He also incorporates refrains that kids will have fun repeating during storytimes.
How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow? by Wendell Minor
Every year, giant pumpkin contests take place at fairs across the country—the 2012 record-holder weighed over a ton! The latest craze is to carve the most enormous pumpkins into racing boats. But what’s next? Why not think really big? Award-winning artist Wendell Minor does just that as he imagines larger- than-life pumpkins decorating some of America’s favorite places—as immense as the Capitol dome, Mount Rushmore, the Brooklyn Bridge, even the Grand Canyon! This celebration of famous landmarks and landscapes plays with concepts of size and scale and is full of fun facts.
Paperboy by Vince Vawter A 2014 Newbery Honor Book
Little Man throws the meanest fastball in town. But talking is a whole different ball game. He can barely say a word without stuttering—not even his own name. So when he takes over his best friend’s paper route for the month of July, he’s not exactly looking forward to interacting with the customers. But it’s the neighborhood junkman, a bully and thief, who stirs up real trouble in Little Man’s life.
The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata Winner of the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature
There is bad luck, good luck, and making your own luck—which is exactly what a 12-year-old Japanese-American girl named Summer must do to save her family. Summer knows that kouun means “good luck” in Japanese, and this year her family has none of it. Just when she thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong, an emergency whisks her parents away from their farm in Kansas to Japan—right before harvest season. Summer and her little brother, Jaz, are left in the care of their grandparents, who come out of retirement in order to harvest wheat and help pay the bills.
DECEMBER 2014 ADULT FICTION
An Unnecessary Woman By Rabih Alameddine
Seventy-two-year-old Beirut native Aaliya Sobhi, living a solitary life, has always felt herself unnecessary. The father who adored her died young, and her remarried mother focused attention on Aaliya’s half brothers, leaving her to describe herself as “my family’s appendix, its unnecessary appendage,” an attitude reinforced by her Lebanese culture. Divorced at 20 after a negligible marriage, she lived alone and began her life’s work of translating the novels she most loved into Arabic from other translations, then simply storing them, unread, in her apartment. Sustained by her “blind lust for the written word” and surrounded by piles of books, she anticipates beginning a new translation project each year until disaster appears to upend her life The richness here is in Aaliya’s first-person narration, which veers from moments in her life to literature to the wars that have wracked her beloved native city during her lifetime. Studded with quotations and succinct observations, this remarkable novel is a paean to fiction, poetry, and female friendship.
Redeployment By Phil Klay
In "Redeployment", a soldier who has had to shoot dogs because they were eating human corpses must learn what it is like to return to domestic life in suburbia, surrounded by people "who have no idea where Fallujah is, where three members of your platoon died." In "After Action Report", a Lance Corporal seeks expiation for a killing he didn't commit, in order that his best friend will be unburdened. A Morturary Affairs Marine tells about his experiences collecting remains—of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers both. A chaplain sees his understanding of Christianity, and his ability to provide solace through religion, tested by the actions of a ferocious Colonel. And in the darkly comic "Money as a Weapons System", a young Foreign Service Officer is given the absurd task of helping
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Iraqis improve their lives by teaching them to play baseball. These stories reveal the intricate combination of monotony, bureaucracy, comradeship and violence that make up a soldier's daily life at war, and the isolation, remorse, and despair that can accompany a soldier's homecoming.
Station Eleven By Emily St. John Mandel
A flight from Russia lands in middle America, its passengers carrying a virus that explodes “like a neutron bomb over the surface of the earth.” In a blink, the world as we know it collapses. “No more ballgames played under floodlights,” Emily St. John Mandel writes in this smart and sober homage to life’s smaller pleasures, brutally erased by an apocalypse. “No more trains running under the surface of cities ... No more cities ... No more Internet ... No more avatars.” Survivors become scavengers, roaming the ravaged landscape or clustering in pocket settlements, some of them welcoming, some dangerous. What’s touching about the world of Station Eleven is its ode to what survived, in particular the music and plays performed for wasteland communities by a roving Shakespeare troupe, the Traveling Symphony, whose members form a wounded family of sorts. The story shifts deftly between the fraught post-apocalyptic world and, twenty years earlier, just before the apocalypse, the death of a famous actor, which has a rippling effect across the decades. It’s heartbreaking to watch the troupe strive for more than mere survival. At once terrible and tender, dark and hopeful, Station Eleven is a tragically beautiful novel that both mourns and mocks the things we cherish.
Lila By Marilynne Robinson
This third of three novels (the others are Home and Gilead) set in the fictional plains town of Gilead, Iowa, is a masterpiece of prose in the service of the moral seriousness that distinguishes Robinson’s work. Lila is a superb creation. Largely uneducated, almost feral, Lila has a thirst for stability and knowledge. As she yearns to forget the terrible memories and shame of her past, Lila is hesitant to reveal them to her loving new husband. The courtship of the couple— John Ames: tentative, shy, and awkward; Lila: naïve, suspicious, wary, full of dread—will endure as a classic set piece of character revelation, during which two achingly lonely people discover the comfort of marital love. Robinson carefully crafts this provocative and deeply meaningful spiritual search for the meaning of existence. What brings the couple together is a joyous appreciation of the beauty of the natural world and the possibility of grace.
DECEMBER 2014 ADULT (AUDIOBOOKS)
A Christmas Memory Book and CD by Truman Capote
Originally published in 1956, A Christmas Memory is the story from Capote's childhood of lovingly making fruitcakes from scratch at Christmas-time with his elderly cousin, and has stood the test of time to become known as an American holiday classic. In testament to the enduring appeal of the story, following along while listening to the audio version is a true delight.
How Google Works Schmidt, Eric, Rosenberg, Jonathan, Graham, Holter, Eagle, Alan; Audio CD
How Google Works is an entertaining, page-turning primer containing lessons that Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg learned as they helped build the company. The authors explain how technology has shifted the balance of power from companies to consumers, and that the only way to succeed in this ever- changing landscape is to create superior products and attract a new breed of multifaceted employees whom Eric and Jonathan dub "smart creatives." Covering topics including corporate culture, strategy, talent, decision-making, communication, innovation, and dealing with disruption, the authors illustrate management maxims with numerous insider anecdotes from Google's history, many of which are shared here for the first time.
What I Know For Sure Winfrey, Oprah; Audio CD
After fourteen years of offering her profound and inspiring words of wisdom in her "What I Know For Sure" column in O magazine, Oprah’s gems have been revised, updated, and collected in What I Know For Sure, a beautiful audiobook packed with insight. Organized by theme—joy, resilience, connection, gratitude, possibility, awe, clarity, and power—these essays offer candid, moving, exhilarating, uplifting, and dynamic words that listeners may turn to again and again.
DECEMBER 2014 CHILDREN (AUDIOBOOKS)
The Biggest Snowman Ever - Audio Kroll, Steven; Audio CD
An adorable story for little children, The Biggest Snowman Ever is the tale of the mayor of Mouseville announces the town snowman contest, Clayton and Desmond claim that they will each make the biggest snowman ever. But building a huge snowman alone is hard! They work and work, but their snowmen just aren't big enough. As the day of the contest approaches, these friendly little mice join forces to build the biggest snowman ever!
The Spirit of Christmas Tillman, Nancy,Dale, Jim; Audio CD
The Spirit of Christmas is lovely children’s story in which all the delights of the season are presented. Treasured holiday scenes are brought to life. A toy-soldier band, a lion and lamb, snow angels, and Santa Claus are beautifully depicted and lead to the Christmas tree and the meaning behind the celebration. No matter how fancy one's decorations, no matter how elaborate one's feast, or how many pretty packages wait beneath the tree, it is love that makes the season bright.
I Am Malala, Young Reader's Edition: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World
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Malala Yousafzai, Patricia McCormick; Audio CD
I Am Malala is the memoir of a remarkable teenage girl who risked her life for the right to go to school. Raised in a changing Pakistan by an enlightened father from a poor background and a beautiful, illiterate mother from a political family, Malala was taught to stand up for what she believes. I Am Malala tells her story of bravery and determination in the face of extremism, detailing the daily challenges of growing up in a world transformed by terror. Malala received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014.
DECEMBER 2014 CHILDREN
Little Santa by Jon Agee
Little Santa loves the North Pole. The rest of his family? Not so much. So, when they decide to move to Florida, Santa is miserable. Lucky for him, a blizzard foils their plans. The only way out of the house is up the chimney. Up goes Santa, to look for help, and along the way, he meets a reindeer and a large group of elves, who are more than eager to join in the rescue! With the sly humor of Jon Klassen and the read-aloud pleasure of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, this tale of Santa’s beginnings is perfect for every kid’s holiday library.
Dear Santasaurus by Stacy McAnulty
Ernest desperately wants to stay on Santa’s Nice List. But Ernest is also full of energy, ideas, mischief. Naughty comes easily to Ernest. Nice is harder. But maybe if Ernest writes to Santasaurus about all the ways he’s tried to be helpful and well-behaved, he can get that Jurassic Turbo Scooter X9 with the working headlight, racing fin, and secret compartment he has his eye on…
The Smallest Gift of Christmas by Peter H. Reynolds
Roland can’t wait for Christmas Day, and when the morning finally arrives he races downstairs to see what is waiting for him. What he sees stops him in his tracks. Could that tiny present really be what he had waited all year for? It has to be the smallest gift he had ever seen! So Roland wishes for something bigger…and bigger…and bigger. But he’s still convinced there must be a bigger gift somewhere in the universe. Will he know it when he sees it? In Peter H. Reynolds’s whimsical holiday story, young Roland learns that more isn’t always better — and rediscovers the magic of home.
Black Dog by Levi Pinfold
When a huge black dog appears outside the Hope family home, each member of the household sees it and hides. Only Small, the youngest Hope, has the courage to face the black dog, who might not be as frightening as everyone else thinks.
The Book of Lost Things by Cynthia Voigt
Max's parents are missing. They are actors, and thus unpredictable, but sailing away, leaving Max with only a cryptic note, is unusual even for them. Did they intend to leave him behind? Have they been kidnapped? Until he can figure it out, Max feels it's safer to keep a low profile. Hiding out is no problem for a child of the theater. Max has played many roles, he can be whoever he needs to be to blend in. But finding a job is tricky, no matter what costume he dons. Ironically, it turns out Max has a talent for finding things. He finds a runaway child, a stray dog, a missing heirloom, a lost love…So is he a finder? A detective? No, it's more. Max finds a way to solve people's problems—he engineers better outcomes for them. He becomes Mister Max, Solutioneer. Now if only he could find a solution to his own problems…
Who Stole New Year’s Eve? by Martha Freeman
Between Christmas and New Year's Eve, College Springs has a winter carnival, complete with ice sculptures; however, this year someone has stolen all thirty- seven of them, including one on Chickadee Court. Unfortunately, the twelve-year-old sleuths, Yasmeen and Alex, are having friendship issues—Yasmeen thinks that she's being replaced by a new girl who has come to Chickadee Court. Then, the whole gang comes together to solve the frosty mystery. Believe it or not, the clues lead to a fracking operation and the laboratory of a professor who is racing to invent a new alternative fuel before his competitors do.
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