Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Match Me If You Can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips



Annabelle Granger is desperate to sign Heath Champion as a client to her matchmaking business. His high profile status as the agent for top athletes would help her business, and bring in some much needed income.

Heath Champion wants a wife, but has already hired a more successful company to help him find one. Meeting Annabelle is just a favor for one of his clients. He gives her one chance at a match. One match, and a professional relationship is born. Heath sees that Annabelle can help him with his dates, and Annabelle really needs him as a client. Of course, what starts as a professional relationship, just might be the start of something more.

Match Me If You Can is a fun, light romance that will have you laughing and rooting for the characters. The Midwestern setting will be familiar, and you will find yourself wanting to read about the other characters in the Chicago Stars series!

Friday, February 24, 2012

Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Frank W. Abagnale

Pan Am pilot, Columbia University pediatrician, Harvard Law School graduate, university professor - or 17-year-old high school dropout from New York with a penchant for the sweet life and a brilliant brain for the art of the steal?  Highly intelligent, elusive, charismatic, dapper ladies' man Frank Abagnale is sort of like James Bond - if 007 was funding his international escapades with swindles, cons, and counterfeit checks.  Follow Frank on his crime caper across the United States and Europe - and find out why you never ever ever want to get caught committing a crime in France - and check out Catch Me If You Can @the library!  And, when you're done reading the book, watch Leonardo diCaprio impersonate Frank in the movie.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The View from Mount Joy by Lorna Landvik

Joe moves to Minneapolis and becomes close with two of his high school classmates.  One is the head cheerleader he has a huge crush on and the other is a platonic friend.  Both have a huge influence on his life.  Joe realizes his calling in life (owning a grocery store), meets his wife, and starts a family.  His life turns out to be different than what he thought it would be but he realizes he wouldn’t change anything.
I really wish I could go shopping at Joe’s grocery store.  He actually makes grocery shopping fun!  To go grocery shopping with Joe, check out The View from Mount Joy @the library!

Friday, February 17, 2012

Seriously... I'm Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres

You don’t have to be a fan of Ellen DeGeneres to enjoy this book!  It gets you thinking (and laughing) about so many things that happen in everyday life along with mentions of current events.  I feel that the reader can identify with the various subjects Ellen talks about and makes a person almost feel like they are at a comedy club!

This book is one that should be read or listened to in a place where you are able to laugh out loud.  The chapters are short and the language is simple.  If you are a fan of Ellen DeGeneres, you will definitely know the book is 100% Ellen talking.  (You will know what I mean once you start reading it.)

I think the title of the book is so appropriate since, as with her jokes, you have to think for a second if what she is saying is true, a joke, or a mixture of both.  There are many chapter “subjects” addressed in the book.  The titles of only some of the many chapters are Common Courtesy, Dinner with a Psychic, Honesty, Girl Power, Gambling Tips, Sleep, Dreams. 

Seriously... I'm Kidding is a very light and funny read for someone who enjoys laughing at life and likes to feel that they are not alone!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan


L is for... lackluster, latitude, leery, lover.

O is for... obstinate, only.

V is for... vagary, viable, voluminous.

E is for... ebullient, elliptical, ephemeral, ethereal.

In his first novel for adults, David Levithan captures all the moments of a relationship - joyful, heartbreaking, buyount, comical, and quiet - in short vignettes in each entry in The Lover's Dictionary.  For anyone who's ever fallen in and out of love, and back again, this brilliant little novel will be the perfect treat this Valentine's Day!

Friday, February 10, 2012

Moonwalking With Einstein by Joshua Foer


It started with a simple question: Who is the world's smartest man? Of course this is something that is hard to quantify. There are measures for intelligence, however what about people that are masters in certain subjects? By asking this question, author Joshua Foer discovered the world of memory competitions, and the characters that compete.

Starting with the masters of these conversations, Joshua looks into the history of human memory, from the ancient Greeks and to modern studies at research universities. Drawn in by the world of memory, Joshua himself starts training to compete in the U.S. Memory Championship, where memory will be tested by memorizing numbers, poems, faces and names, and decks of cards.

From people who can't remember where they left their keys, to the reader with a vast knowledge of historical names, dates and places Moonwalking With Einstein is a great overview of how memory is perceived, what we know about it and what questions we still have.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Unbroken: A World War II Airman's Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Louis Zamporini is a promising track star preparing for the 1940 Olympics, where he’s sure to make a name for himself.  Unfortunately, the world has other plans for him.  With the Olympics canceled, he joins the air force.  On a rescue mission in 1943 his plane crashes into the ocean.  Only Louis and two fellow soldiers survive.   Presumed dead, Louis endures inconceivable conditions and emerges at the end of the war “unbroken”.   This enthralling read will give you a renewed faith in the human spirit.  After you've finished Unbroken, check out author Laura Hillenbrand's other bestseller, Seabiscuit: An American Legend!

Friday, February 3, 2012

A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty by Joshilyn Jackson

Mosey, Liza, and Big are three generations of women dealing with heartbreak and loss. Each of them is given a part of the story to narrate.  These different perspectives slowly reveal the layers of secrets in their family.  Joshilyn Jackson, a talented southern fiction author, creates yet another tale filled with surprises and memorable characters.  She manages to make the story an uplifting one, infusing laughter and love at every turn.  Check out A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty @ the library!