Librarians on Summer Vacation!

We'll be taking a short break from the reading blog while some of the librarians are on summer vacation. Don't worry, we'll be back on July 1st refreshed and ready to share what we've read with you!

You can still join in our summer reading programs! Adults (ages 18+) read four books and are entered to win gift cards! Stop by the Adult Information desk for more information!

The Alphabet Sisters by Monica McInerney

Sisters Anna, Bett and Carrie used to be famous singing sisters called "The Alphabet Sisters". Now, estranged and called back for their grandmother's 80th birthday party in South Australia. Bett started a new life in London, England far from her ex-fiance, now married to her younger sister, Carrie. Anna is in Sydney, and is quick to get back home to remember better times. And Carrie is still there, wondering if she made the right choices.

Family drama starts to work its self out, as more drama starts to unfold. Each sister has her own worries, and each needs the other even though it's been three long years since they've seen each other. If you are looking for a beach read with a bit of weight, get lost in the world of Moncia McInerney's The Alphabet Sisters.

Check out The Alphabet Sisters by Monica McInerney @ the library!

Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris

Before the Great Recession of 2009, this country suffered through the Dot Com Bubble of 2001. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris explores the effects of this financial crisis on a group of office workers in a Chicago advertising agency. For years these writers had been well-paid for relatively easy work. Now, their workload shrinking, they band together as a group, waiting and watching as each week another co-worker is called into the office and fired. Collectively they are a predatory, seemingly insensitive group: lurking, spying, gossiping and pilfering former co-workers office supplies and furniture. Individually each one is a sympathetic, quirky character with big personal worries. Despite the subject matter, this is a pointedly funny book and an empathetic examination of the foibles of human beings. 

Check out Then We came to the End @ the library!

Landline by Rainbow Rowell

Georgie McCool is on the verge of something big. Her show, the show she has been working on with longtime friend and writing partner Seth has caught the eye of a network executive. He wants a scrips and to have a meeting on December 27th. It could work, if Neal and the girls just skip their Christmas trip to Nebraska, and she works through the holiday. It will be fine.

But it's not fine, as Neal and the girls leave for Omaha without her. Stuck without her family, but with her dream still intact, Georgie has time to work on her new show. Her mother thinks Neal has left her, and even Georgie isn't sure what his leaving means. If he would just answer the phone she could talk to him and figure it all out.

It's on landline at her mother's house that she finally gets a hold of Neal, but not current (December 2013) Neal, Neal from December 1998, right after a huge fight when he left her for Omaha the last time. Can Georgie balance her current dreams with her family? Or has she already lost Neal?

Landline is one of those comedic, dramatic, make sure you have some tissue on hand books that captures the way everyday life gets in the way of what we truly want. Georgie's current life flashes back to her college years when she was just meeting Neal, and becoming friends with Seth. The way Georgie struggles to balance work and family will resonate with many readers, looking for balance in their own life.

Landline will be published on July 8th, and this review was based on an Advance Readers Copy from the publisher. It's in the catalog, so you can put a hold on the book today!

Zealot by Reza Aslan

            Perhaps the most controversial book of 2013, Zealot by Reza Aslan examines the life of Jesus of Nazareth from a historical, not spiritual, perspective. By examining the political and economic circumstances of first century Palestine, Aslan speculates about the movements and motives of Jesus. The Jews of Palestine were cruelly oppressed by both the Roman Empire and corrupt High Priests. Aslan believes that Jesus was trying to raise an earthly rebellion against both. Many reviews have been written about this book and some scholars state that Aslan’s ideas are not new and some of his facts and hypotheses are questionable. Nevertheless, Zealot is an interesting book and a good introduction for those who know little or nothing about first century history. According to this book, Jesus was an illiterate peasant who struggled to overthrow the Romans and return Israel to the Law of Moses. Mr. Aslan is a skilled writer and his explanation of the early history of Christianity is engaging and easily understood. The struggle for control of the early Christian Church (between those who wanted it to remain a Jewish sect and those who wanted to accept Gentiles) is explained in depth. The late first century was a time of turmoil for Christians and Jews. A Jewish revolt against the Romans resulted in a crushing defeat, the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the expulsion of the Jews from Palestine. This series of events determined the future of the Christian Church as well as the fate of the Jewish people to this day. Regardless of religious belief, Zealot is a good introduction to a part of history many know little about.

Check out Zealot @ the library!

All The Birds Singing by Evie Wyld

Jake Whyte is living on a remote island off the coast of England. An Australian, a woman who is farming sheep on her own, she is an outsider who spurns the company of the locals. She prefers to live and work alone until someone or something starts to kill and eviscerate her sheep. Frightened, she seeks out the help of the man who previously owned her farm. Are the sheep being killed by teens, foxes, or something even more threatening? He is unable to advise her or assuage her mounting fear. She remains on her own. Alternating chapters tell the story of how Jake came to live on this island so far from her home. In reverse chronological order we learn the story of Jake’s life: her days traveling with a sheep-shearing crew; her life with Otto, a sheep farmer; her time as a prostitute; and her life with her difficult family. These chapters drive the story, building a page-turning tension that compels the reader to guess and guess again why Jake is always on the run, why she keeps to herself, why her back is covered with scars and why she maintains a tenuous connection with her estranged family. In All The Birds Singing, Evie Wyld has created a novel of suspense and mystery, a page-turner that will keep the reader enthralled to the last page.

Check out All The Birds Singing @ the library!

Bark by Lorrie Moore

In one of the eight short stories that make up the collection Bark, a woman comes to realize that, “Living did not mean one joy piled upon another. It was merely the hope for less pain…” Here, in one thought, is the theme of this collection by Lorrie Moore. Middle-aged men and women separate, divorce and try (without much success) to connect with new partners. Career choices and financial decisions have turned out to be mistakes. Children shock and disappoint. Illness looms in the future. Anxiety caused by financial collapse and a distant war hangs over society.  But this book is not as grim as it sounds. The characters in these stories are stoic. And, because Moore is an acclaimed wordsmith with a mischievous sense of humor, they deal with their problems by joking and wisecracking and punning. Moore also creates improbable scenarios that are gently humorous. A woman accidentally cooks a pan of chicken on the CLEAN setting of her oven but takes it to the party anyway. After a motorcycle gang realizes it is terrorizing the wrong outdoor wedding, they apologize and meekly drive away. The stories in Bark are about early 21^st century American life. They are sad, ironic and quirky, just like real life. 

Check out Bark by Lorrie Moore @ the library!