Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine for Gail Honeyman

This book could be about Eleanor Oliphant, a socially awkward creature of habit. She has a set schedule and very rarely deviates from it until one day she meets Raymond, the slovenly IT worker at her office. When they happen upon an elderly man in medical distress, they are thrown together as they get him to the hospital, see to the groceries that he dropped at the scene, and check in on his progress.  Raymond, in his patient and mellow way, eventually breaks down some of Eleanor’s ruts and helps her become a more socially confident person.

Or, this book could be about Eleanor Oliphant who has a survived a tragic past and is suppressing painful memories.  She calls her toxic monster mother weekly - taking her verbal vitriol and always coming back for more.

Or, this book could be about a one-sided crush, the adoration of a celebrity and the eternal internal hope that of course [insert famous person here] would love me if only he knew me. A little stalkering never hurt anyone, right?

Or the book could have all this and more. You’ll have to read it to see. 

Check out Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine @ the library!

Anatomy of a Song by Marc Myers

Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes of a great song? What does it take to write, record and produce a song that defines a year or genera of music? Then check out Marc Myers Anatomy of A Song, where he has collected 45 songs and interviewed the writers, performers and producers responsible for them. From 1952's Lawdy Miss Clawdy to 1991's Losing My Religion, Anatomy of a Song is not so much a direct pop music history, but a back track to how a song gets made, the people who could have made the music, and the songs that are surprise successes.

Personal drama, musicians trying new things, and surprising facts about musician's will keep you reading. Skip a head to your favorite songs, or read straight through to follow a line of music history. These essays first appeared in the Wall Street Journal, but make a great collection for fans of popular music and how it gets made.

Check out Anatomy of a Song by Marc Myers @ the library!

New Halloween Reads!

With Halloween falling on a Tuesday this year, this weekend is sure to be filled with pre-Halloween fun. Whether you are heading out to a fall-fest, getting ready for the trick-or-treaters, or just planning on staying at home with the porch lights out, here are some new Halloween books:

From Here to Eternity by Caitlin Doughty:  Author and mortician Caitlin Doughty travels around the world to research different culture's death customs. For the reader wondering what happens after death, here on Earth.

All I Want for Halloween by Marie Hart: Here's a romance novel about a spin the bottle game at a masquerade ball, and the hunt for the man she kissed. For the reader who likes holiday driven romance.

Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King: In a world where women are encased as they sleep, and become violent if the casing is disturbed, one woman is immune to this. Fans of Stephen King, and horror area probably already of the wait list, so why not join them!

The Apparitionists by Peter Manseau: I think the sub-title tells you what you need to know about this book, "a tale of phantoms, fraud, photography, and the man who captured Lincoln's ghost". For the historian or paranormal fan.

Basic Witches by Jaya Saxena: Looking for a self-empowering read, that might make mention of magic and spells? More of a self help book than actual witchcraft, this is for the reader looking to be a better more confident person.

If there isn't something on this list for you, check out this list of New Creepy Books for Halloween from the Book Bub blog!

Shrill by Lindy West

Quick, name a few role models you had growing up that you could both relate to, and see your self growing into their role. Now think about those role models, are they people you want to emulate? Are they people you can emulate? Are they reasonable? If not, can you (again quickly) think of more people closer to your self that look and have lives similar to yours? If not, welcome to Lindy West's world.

Shrill, Notes From a Loud Woman is a collection of essays that tell the story of journalist Lindy West's upbringing as a "big boned" kid who chose the worlds of fantasy over the real. Who did a presentation about her love for TV, specifically comedy, to the disappointment of a favorite teacher, who stood up for herself by claiming who she was, and who starting speaking up for those who might not be ready to stand up for themselves.

Funny and powerful, reading Shrill will both make you laugh and think. West is a writer and without knowing it you may have read her work for other sites. Recommended for readers who miss The Toast, check out Jezebel on occasion, and just want to read about someone who has stopped apologizing for who she is. 

Check out Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman @ the library!

Mister Hockey by Lia Riley

Jed West never knows what to expect with sports reporter Neve Angel, however this one interview ends up with him reading at a library as a favor to her sister, Breezy. What he doesn't expect is the vibrant "Super Reader" to have a bit of a wardrobe malfunction, that leads him straight to her home, and further into her arms. While he makes is a rule to never date fans, how can this quiet book worm even know who he is, other than what her sister tells her?

Of course, Breezy is Jed's biggest fan. Not only is he the star of her favorite hockey team, he's the star of her wildest fantasies. So when she has to face him more than once in one day, each interaction more embarrassing than the last, she hopes her half lie about being a fan won't cause her too much trouble. Of course, neither expected to find more than a fling in each other.

Mister Hockey is a fun fast read, that throws you into the whirl-wind romance between a star hockey player and a librarian. There's no lack of heat between the two characters, and even they know it's more than just a fling. In the tradition of Susan Elizabeth Phillips Stars series, readers can only hope to see more of the Angel family and the sports starts they love!

Check out Mister Hockey by Lia Riley @ the library!

The People We Hate at the Wedding by Grant Ginder

Family weddings tend to be perfect memories, preserved in photographs where we all put on our best smiles, for family and friends. Anyone involved in a wedding will tell you there is much more going on beneath the surface of those perfect family photos.

It starts with an invitation, and a guess at how much the invitations cost. Siblings Alice and Paul have always been a pretty united front against their half sister Eloise, a woman who lived a life of privilege and ease that made their middle-class American life seem so ordinary. Now Eloise is getting married, insisting that they come to England for the event, and showing them the life they could never achieve.

Paul is happily partnered with Mark, living in Philadelphia doing kind of controversial work, that most psychologists would kill to do. Alice is on the West Coast, sleeping with her boss, and a still bit lost after Mexico. Being forced to face their mother, and their half sister is enough to push them to breaking points they didn't know they had.

Written in the same dysfunctional vein as Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections and Cynthia D'Aprix-Sweeney's The Nest, you won't be able to look away from the train wreck of a family in The People We Hate at the Wedding by Grant Ginder.

The Lost Letter by Jillian Cantor

Much like Jillian Cantor's other works of historical fiction, The Lost Letter, beautifully weaves together two stories of love and loss. One part of the storyline, set in 1938 Austria, follows the Fabers, a Jewish family trying to survive as the Nazis march into Austria. Patriarch Frederick Faber is a master stamp engraver making postage stamps for the Austrian government. When the Nazis institute antisemtic legislation in Austria, the Fabers are forced to leave Austria leaving young Kristoff, Frederick's non-Jewish apprentice, in charge. When one of Frederick's daughters refuses to leave Austria, and becomes involved with the resistance movement, Kristoff finds himself falling in love.

Fast forward to 1989 shortly before the collapse of the Berlin Wall. Katie, the daughter of an avid stamp collector is sorting through her father's stamp collection as her father suffers from the late stages of Alzheimer. When Katie finds a letter with a unique stamp on it she begins to journey into the past to uncover the story behind the unopened letter.

Cantor, much like she does in her other historical fiction novels, tells a completely captivating story. With seamless incorporation of historical events, Cantor alternates between characters with ease, perfectly blending the two time periods together.