Saturdays @ the South: Comfort reads – Picture Book Edition

I’ve talked about children’s books here in the past, but a recent article on the Publishers Weekly blog got me thinking about them again, specifically picture books. In her blog entry, Josie Leavitt talks about the comfort and stress relief of revisiting favorite children’s books. She’s currently using them as a cure for insomnia, which strikes me a bit of genius. I don’t know about you readers, but I’ve very often stayed up waayy past my bedtime in order to finish a chapter, section or sometimes even an entire book that has me engrossed. Books, love them though we may, can be a bit insomnia-inducing. So when Leavitt mentioned that picture books, particularly those containing her favorite characters offered her a certain amount of calm that, it’s implied, helps her with her insomnia, I started thinking more about why this might be.

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CBS Television: The Big Bang Theory

When I read picture books (and I do I do fairly often, if only to suggest great new ones to my littler patrons) I’ve noticed that even the new ones have several characteristics that could make them a form of comfort reading:

1) They’re short. Yes, this is an obvious one, but it does allow for a certain level of comfort. You know that you’ll reach the end of the book in one sitting, so there’s less anxiety when it comes to worrying about what will happen. You’re pretty much guaranteed not to stay up very far past your bedtime when it comes to reading a picture book that’s about 32 pages long.

2) They come to a satisfying conclusion. There’s certainly something to be said about open-ended fiction. It makes you think, opening up your neural passageways into speculations and ponderings. This is fantastic when it comes to open-mindedness, but not so great when you finish an open-ended book or story right before bed and then have to spend the subsequent hours you should be sleeping, lying awake thinking about the what ifs. There is no such worry with picture books. They end neatly in some form of satisfying way because they’re designed to. Picture books are there to enable children to think about what they’re reading, but also to give them an inherent sense of comfort with a solid ending. This allows kids to trust in what they read. It never hurts for adults to reap that benefit sometimes!

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3) They’re illustrated. I know, another obvious one, but illustrations allow the reader to visualize the story without being extraordinarily taxing. Words without images force the reader to conjure up their own mental illustrations which is great exercise for the brain and is another reason why reading is so good for people, but it can be somewhat taxing on an overstressed mind. Taking some of the burden off the reader for imagining things can allow the reader to still enjoy the story, but also relax the mind a bit to allow it to wind down.

There are arguments out there, like this one, and this one that say that kids shouldn’t be pushed out of picture books into chapter books because picture books still have value for teaching skills and reinforcing literacy skills. There’s really no reason for adults not to reap these benefits as well! Particularly in the summertime when people are looking for light, fun reads, there’s no harm in revisiting an old favorite to remind yourself of when you learned to love reading. Or maybe you can discover a new picture book to love that can connect you with your inner child and rediscover the fun of finding a new picture book to love.

With the goal of light, comfort reading in mind, here are a few of my favorite picture books, old and new that I’m always happy to go back to and share with young and old alike:

2201341Miss Nelson Is Missing! by Harry Allard

Having had a 1st grade teacher named Mrs. Nelson, this book is particularly endearing to me. I’ve never forgotten the illustrations and was thrilled to see that there are 2 more of these books with Miss Nelson and her class. This book can still appeal to adults in reminding us not to take the amazing people in our lives for granted.

3637336Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats by Alicia Potter

Considering the South Branch had Caturday! earlier this month, I’m sure it will come as no surprise that this book is among my favorites. It is a story about cat fostering and how furry litter critters who can’t talk can still somehow burrow their way deep into our hearts. I was so moved by this book that I contacted Alicia Potter almost as soon as I closed the back cover. Fortunately, she was as kind as her protagonist and she was a fantastic addition to Caturday!

1660531Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish

There are tons of Amelia Bedelia books out there and while the newer, younger versions of Amelia written by the original author’s nephew Herman Parish still have a lot of charm, my heart belongs to the original Peggy Parish creations. They are funny and contain puns that are as delightful to adults as they are to kids. My mom and I whiled away countless hours reading these books again and again and I’m always happy to revisit those wonderful, nostalgic times. You can start with the original, but really, pick any of them in the series. Trust me, you can’t go wrong!

2266602Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems

I would be remiss if I didn’t put in one of my new favorite children’s authors. The Knuffle Bunny (pronounced Kuh-nuffle) trilogy is a heartwarming group of ruminations on child development and the bond between parents and children. No, really. Yes, they’re also about a child and her favorite stuffed toy and many other things, but Willems has the rare gift of appealing equally to adults and children with themes to which both can relate. This was one of the books that the Kindergarten class I read to this year asked about repeatedly. It is completely deserving of re-readings with a small caveat: the third book is tear-inducing so it may not make the best bedtime reading for grownups unless you’re ready to cry yourself to sleep. (I can neither confirm nor deny that this is a caution from actual experience….)

1344417What’s Under My Bed? by James Stevenson

I must have read this book dozens of times when I was a kid. Stevenson’s sketchy watercolors were as soothing to me as the text. This book had the right combination of humor and lesson and to this day, I still crack up that the child version of grandpa also had a mustache, indicative of the way kids just can’t seem to think of adults outside of their adult form. I was thrilled to discover that this book is one that still remains in the collection of treasured picture books that have been kept from my childhood. This book is worth reading over and over again.

I hope that this entry has offered you, dear readers, another view of picture books and that you’ll consider picking one up as a cure for insomnia or just out of curiosity. Please feel free to stop by the South Branch to discuss them anytime. I love talking about the new ones that have come into our collection and have many more old favorites to share! Comments about your favorite picture books are most welcome as well. Till next week, dear readers, sweet reads and sweet dreams!

Five Book Friday!

Sometimes the world is a big, scary, heavy place.  And this week has seems to have been filled with Days Like That for a lot of you, beloved patrons.  So we’re going to get right down to Five Things to Make You Smile before we get to The Books.

  1. The earliest known iteration of “Facebook”, which seems a lot less stressful than today’s iteration (from The Western Times, 1902)enhanced-11179-1391521202-8

 

2. This cheerful plush teacup

With thanks to Teresa at sewingstars: http://sewingstars.deviantart.com/
With thanks to Teresa at sewingstars: http://sewingstars.deviantart.com/

 

3. A cartoon from the delightfully literary humorist Tom Gauld:

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Check out some more here: http://www.drawnandquarterly.com/youre-all-just-jealous

4. This video of a baby owl getting his pets.  Note: I still want a Library Owl, please.

 

5. New books!  Thank all that is good and right in this world, there are new books:

Five Books

 

97ae3f842a90c5b783b7e51b518a78a4-w204@1xFar From HomeRiptide Publishing is one of the very few publishing companies to promote LGBT romances–and their books are generally of the highest caliber.  Not only that, but their books aren’t afraid to deal with the tough stuff.  In this work, Rachel is dealing with an eating disorder, and the anxiety and insecurity that so often comes along with it.  Drowning in debt and in need of a little kindness, Rachel agrees to marry Pavi, her calm, quiet friend who is in desperate need of a green card.  But as their friendship begins to evolve into something much more intense, Rachel begins to realize that she can’t fully love Pavi until she learns how to trust herself.  Author Lorelei Brown has built her career on crafting smart, insightful romances, and this book promises to be another success, offering an inclusive, honest, and heartrending story, which  Publisher’s Weekly gave a starred review, saying, “The oddest of odd couples finds unexpected joy in Brown’s warm, sweet contemporary romance…drawing readers deep into the women’s tender romance.”

3765886I Am No OnePatrick Flanery’s high-tech thriller shows the very personal aspects of a world of increasing, and increasingly impersonal, surveillance, and uses one man’s search for answers to ask some very trenchant questions about the state of that world.  Jeremy O’Keefe has returned form a decade in England to work as a professor of German literature, living a life that is fulfilling, if a bit lonely.  But when a box full of records of his online activity appears on his doorstep, he begins to wonder if he has not indeed left a trace of some kind.  As the silent attacks begin to escalate, Jeremy is forced to question whether he has unwittingly committed a crime so heinous that it will destroy him–and what it could possible be?  The Associated Press wrote a brilliant review of this book, saying that it “reads like a collaboration between spy novelist John le Carre and Franz Kafka. . . . It’s at once a beautifully written slow-motion thriller, an unnerving story of fear and paranoia, and a cautionary tale about the perils of spy satellites, security cameras and electronic surveillance by faceless government bureaucrats.”

3757351PondNot only does Irish author Claire-Louise Bennett’s debut feature a stunningly colorful cover, but the book itself is being hailed as a remarkable triumph.  Rather than telling a single, linear narrative, we as readers have the chance to see the world through the eyes of Bennett’s unnamed narrator.  As she looks around, as she moves through her day, we learn the secrets of her past, her dreams for the future, and the content of her small cottage.  Bennett’s heroine is as much an Everywoman as she is her own unique presence, and this remarkable, unexpected book is touching and connecting readers around the globe, including the London based Literary Review, which called this slim novel “A beautiful, lasting book that privileges modes of human experience that are so often undervalued, if they are acknowledged at all: neither formative encounters nor outward achievement, but rather the workings of a roving, inquisitive mind, open and receptive to all.”

3772497The Big SheepI love literary puns, and I think sheep are great, so naturally, I had to stop and take a look at Robert Kroese’s book, and saw critics drawing comparisons to both Philip K. Dick and Terry Pratchett…and I was sold.  This book opens in Los Angeles in 2039, where P.I. Erasmus Keane is asked to investigate the disappearance of some genetically-modified sheep.  But as Keane begins chasing lost sheep, his partner finds himself entangled in the case of a mysterious, stunning client–who doesn’t remember hiring them.  As the two cases become impossibly, inextricably linked, Keane realizes that the secrets he is seeking may be the darkest of his memorable career.  NPR had plenty of good things to say about this book, including this: “Kroese’s story is intricate, and his pace is refreshingly relentless, but what really carries The Big Sheep is the laughs. Clever, wry, and not above a little groan-inducing wordplay of the very best kind, the book’s humor not only keeps the mood light, it cements Keane and Fowler’s characters.”

3769669The Accidental AgentReaders who have eagerly awaited the close of Andrew Rosenheim’s Special Agent Jimmy Nessheim trilogy can rejoice, and those who have waited to binge-read this taut, historical thriller, get ready to enjoy.  This story opens in 1942, with Nessheim requesting a long-term leave from the FBI to pursue a law degree at the University of Chicago.  But another man is also heading to the University of Chicago with big dreams–Enrico Fermi has begun work on what will soon become the Manhattan Project, and Nessheim soon finds himself re-enlisted to guard the work that Fermi is doing against a suspected Nazi infiltrator–and confronted with his ex-girlfriend, whose reappearance may not be as coincidental as it seems.  Publisher’s Weekly loved this book, too, giving it a starred review, and cheering, “Rosenheim’s outstanding third Jimmy Nessheim novel (following 2013’s The Little Tokyo Informant) combines a crackerjack plot and multiple nuanced characters with a convincing portrayal of WWII America…The dramatic twists work to propel the plot to a powerful and moving conclusion. Fans of Joseph Kanon’s thrillers of the same period will find a lot to like.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!

The Man Booker Prize Longlist!

It’s that time of year again, dear readers, when the good judges of the Man Booker Prize, one of the most prestigious awards for fiction, and my personal favorite award, as well, put out their longlist (a baker’s dozen) for this years’ prize!  Because this prize is awarded based on British publication dates, some of the books haven’t been released in the US–but consider them a preview of the great books still to come!
We’ll break down some of the highlights below, but here is the list, as announced yesterday morning:

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Author (nationality) – Title 

Paul Beatty (US) – The Sellout

J.M. Coetzee (South African-Australian) – The Schooldays of Jesus (Will be released in US on February 21, 2017)

A.L. Kennedy (UK) – Serious Sweet (Will be released in US on October 18, 2016)

Deborah Levy (UK) – Hot Milk

Graeme Macrae Burnet (UK) – His Bloody Project

Ian McGuire (UK) – The North Water 

David Means (US) – Hystopia

Wyl Menmuir (UK) –The Many (No official US release at this date)

Ottessa Moshfegh (US) – Eileen

Virginia Reeves (US) – Work Like Any Other

Elizabeth Strout (US) – My Name Is Lucy Barton

David Szalay (Canada-UK) – All That Man Is (Will be released in US on October 4, 2016)

Madeleine Thien (Canada) – Do Not Say We Have Nothing (No official US release date at this time)

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There are some familiar faces here on this list.  J.M. Coetzee (The Schooldays of Jesus) was the first author to win the Man Booker Prize twice (for Life & Times of Michael K and Disgrace).  Deborah Levy has been shortlisted before for her novel Swimming Home, and A.L. Kennedy has actually been a judge for the prize before (in 1996).   In addition, OneWorld, which published Paul Beatty’s The Sellout also published last year’s winner–Marlon James’ A Brief History of Seven Killings.  OneWorld was the first small publisher to have a book win the Man Booker Prize, and there are a fair number of books on this year’s list that are from small presses, too.

Man Booker Prize 2016 logoThere are also a number of surprises here, as well.  His Bloody Project is, broadly speaking, a crime thriller/murder mystery, which is not a genre often seen on any Man Booker Lists.  It’s currently being given odds of 6/1 to win–which is second-best only to Coetzee, at 3/1.  In a pleasant turn of events, six of the authors nominated to the longlist are women, and the geographic range of the authors is pretty impressive, as well, with five American writers (this is the third year in which American authors have been permitted to compete) six British, one Canadian and one South African–and Massachusetts can boast a Booker longlist nominee:  Ottessa Moshfegh was born in Boston, and set her novel Eileen in the Boston area, as well!

As you might remember, the Man Booker Prize is an enormously important award; it carries an enormous amount of significance in the publishing world, having been accepted as a landmark award in fiction since its establishment in 1969, and traditionally boosts sales of the selected books, particularly the winner, considerably.   Often, the longlist is made up of books that have passed under most readers’ radars, finding that which is good, and great, not just popular.  Additionally, the award itself comes with a pretty hefty cash prize…£50,000, which is currently about $86,000.
If you’re interested, the full rules for submissions can be found here.

There will be much more to say about diversity and representation and literary awards, and lots of reading to be done before the shortlist is announced on September 13, and the winner is announced on October 25.  Until then, however, the chair of the 2016 judges, Amanda Foreman, made the following statement regarding the longlist, and how each book brings something revelatory to literature, and to the art of the novel:

‘This is a very exciting year. The range of books is broad and the quality extremely high. Each novel provoked intense discussion and, at times, passionate debate, challenging our expectations of what a novel is and can be…From the historical to the contemporary, the satirical to the polemical, the novels in this list come from both established writers and new voices. The writing is uniformly fresh, energetic and important. It is a longlist to be relished.’

Until tomorrow, dear readers–here’s to a summer of fantastic, and award-winning fiction!

Wednesdays @ West: Can you judge politicians by their reading list?

Vote-for-booksDuring the past two weeks, it has been all but impossible to avoid hearing the constant stream of news that is coming out of the Republican and Democratic  National Conventions.  We’ve been inundated by political speeches, pundits and polls.  Has it all helped you decide for whom to cast your ballot in November?

As a political science geek, I am fascinated by the complex factors that determine people’s political leanings: socioeconomic status, religion, age, gender, race and so on.  And this just in: your reading tastes may influence for whom you vote.  But can a candidate or a president’s taste in books tell you anything about how he or she will lead and govern?

mayflowerMany of our past presidents have been confirmed bibliophiles.  President George W. Bush had an ongoing competition with advisor Karl Rove to see who could read the most books each year.  Some of the titles President Bush enjoyed during these read-a-thons include Time of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin and Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick.  According to Rove, the President especially enjoys history and biographies and often read current event books on the Middle East while in office.  His fiction picks tended to be in the suspense or mystery genres: Next by Michael Crichton, the Travis McGee novels by John MacDonald, and Executive Power by Vince Flynn.

washingtonPresident Obama has often released to the public the names of the books he is bringing on vacation.  Last summer, he dove into Washington: A Life by by Ron Chernow and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.  In January his vacation reading list included Purity by Jonathan Franzen, The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin, The Wright Brothers by David McCollough.

allquietonthewesternfrontWhen asked recently about his taste in reading material Republican nominee Donald Trump told reporters he was currently reading Unlikeable: The Problem with Hillary by Ed Klein and an unspecified biography of Richard Nixon.  When on the stump, Mr. Trump often references his own book, The Art of the Deal.  He has also stated that his favorite book is All Quiet on the West Front by Erich Maria Remarque.

returnoftheprodigalsonIn the many years she has been in the public eye, Hillary Clinton has answered questions about her reading interests quite a few times.  She has mentioned Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov and Henri Nouwen’s The Return of the Prodigal Son as particularly influential.  She has also expressed a fondness for mysteries written by Jacqueline Winspear and Donna Leon and books by Maya Angelou, Alice Monroe and Barbara Kingsolver.

The recently named vice presidential candidates have, according to my searches, not yet had their reading tastes scrutinized by the public.  But never fear, dear readers.  My political and bibliographic nerdiness knows no bounds, so I have contacted both Governor Pence and Senator Kaine to ask them for their book suggestions.  Should they reply to me, you will be among the first to know.  In the meantime, if the contentious election proves to be too much for you, feel free to try one of the books mentioned in this post.  You can always claim you’re just doing research on the candidates.

At the Movies: Ghostbusters

It isn’t often that summer blockbusters stir much controversy…unless one’s definition of “controversy” includes “Why Will Smith didn’t appear in Independence Day: Resurgence“.  However, there is one film currently gracing the silver screen that has been getting a lot of attention, and not always for the most inspiring of reasons.

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There had been talk about the production of a Ghostbusters 3, which would reunite the original cast (which includes Bill Murray and Dan Ackroyd) for years, but the death of Harold Ramis in 2014 put an end to those discussions.  It was decided, instead to make a reboot of the franchise with a new cast that, according to director Paul Fegis, would borrow from the growing popularity of supernatural and paranormal thrillers (like The Walking Dead), and would “tell a story you haven’t seen before. Or tell a story you’ve seen before, but in a way you haven’t seen it.”  In January 2015, it was also announced that the new film would star  Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones.

And that’s when it started.  From out of the woodwork came those who utterly rejected the notion that a movie could, or should, have an all-female cast.  Comment sections of any number of website became vitriolic quagmires of anti-feminist, misogynistic, racist, angry verbiage.  The situation was not helped by the release of an a 5fd866dfe646374688bb29b1ca68df03early trailer in March that…well, it wasn’t very funny, or terribly coherent.  And Those In The Woodwork took it as a sign that women were inherently not funny, not capable of starring in a movie without a leading man, and that the film itself was a complete waste of everyone’s time and money.  There was a movement to get the trailer the “most hated” upload to Youtube, and to make it the lowest rated film ever on IMDB.  Before anyone had ever seen the film.  There was even sizeable criticism directed at the cast for visiting The Floating Hospital for Children in Boston in costume during filming.  Since its release, Leslie Jones was subjected to such an onslaught of racist abuse on Twitter that it caused a national debate about hate speech, and resulted in the banning of several users, including a writer for Breitbart.

Now, we here at the Free For All are not ones to shy away from a controversy, and have always been vocal about our beliefs that women and men are both equal human persons, who deserve equal recognition of their talents and creations.  And it is with that in mind that I state, here and now, that it is a delightful film.

03dc73f6bc290067c61ed4490376b3eafbe1201c0ac4b61d3e9f9a08e609df43Is it Citizen Kane?  No.
Does it ever try to be Citizen Kane?  No.
What it is, is a funny, occasionally whip-smart, generally family-friendly comedy with enough jump-scares to satisfy horror fans, and enough humor to comedy fans entertained, as well.  Running through it all is a really positive message about teamwork, self-confidence, resilience, and keeping a firm hold on your sense of humor in the face of darkness (and a few quips about ignore the comments section of websites, which filled me with real, true joy).  It’s also worth noting Chris Hemsworth’s irresistible and wonderfully understated turn as the world’s most…unique…administrative assistant.  Not only it the film’s willingness to play with large- and small-scale stereotypes a treat, but this cast works together so well that, honestly, it’s a welcome relief from the furor surrounding it. Cameo appearances by original Ghostbusters stars Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, and Sigourney Weaver will surely give long-time fans something about which to smile, and Sony has already released plans for a sequel,  which certainly made me happy.

So if you’re looking for a way to get out of the heat this week, consider seeing Ghostbusters, and see what all the fuss is about for yourself.  Or, you could come into the Library, where we have plenty of related recommendations for you, too!  Here are just a few to get you started:

2627943Ghostbusters: A movie-fest involving the original film, written by Harold Ramis and Dan Ackroyd, is always a good idea, along with the sequel, made in 1989, which reunited the cast for another ghostly, messy adventure.  This thirtieth anniversary DVD also features deleted scenes, outtakes, commentaries, and a whole bunch of extras to really help you get full immersed in the world of this series, and the throughly wonderful early-modern special effects that will really help you appreciate how far CGI has come since 1984!  Keep an eye out for that ghost in the library, which is a perennial favorite scene.  Don’t worry, though–our ghosts aren’t nearly as messy.  Or as loud.

3222876Goosebumps: As a child of the ’90’s, I was convinced that these books were the scariest things they would let you read in grammar school.  Though time and age has diminished my terror of R.L. Stine’s immortal series, featuring such chilling characters as Slappy the Ventriloquist Dummy, or the evil Lawn Gnomes pictures on the left, nothing can diminished the over-the-top thrills and drama woven into each scene of these books.  Last Halloween, Jack Black also starred in a movie based on this series in which he plays a fictionalized R.L. Stine.  Though enormously fun for kids, I think the real intended audience of this film are those of us who grew up sneaking Goosebumps books into school and trading them under our desks, shivering in delight at the cameras that took pictures of the future, or the neighbor’s demon cat.  If you’re honestly looking to scare the pants off your inner child, try the series Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.  The illustrations alone are enough to have you hiding under the bed.

3521499 (1)Silence for the DeadSimone St. James is single-handedly bringing the Haunted House genre back into popularity, and each of her stories feature admirably strong women who survive and thrive despite all everything the world throws at them.  This story is set in Portis House, a sprawling, remote hospital for shell-shocked patients in the decade after the First World War.  Though Kitty Weekes is willing to do anything necessary to get a nursing job at Portis House, she isn’t ready for the overwhelmingly depressing atmosphere, the secrets that everyone seems to be hiding…and the nightmares that plague each patient, as if the house itself were trying to drive them mad.  St. James creates characters who are so vivid that it’s difficult to remember they live only on the page, and that is what makes her stories so gripping, and the darkness they face so chilling.  The romantic subplot in this book is completely charming as well, providing a welcome balance to a novel that deals frankly with very real tragedies, as well as supernatural suspense.

A Saturdays @ the South IF/Then: Outlander Edition

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It’s fairly safe to say that patrons at the South have been sufficiently woo’d by Outlander, both the TV series and the book series. What surprises me most is not the popularity of Outlander in general, but the wide-ranging reasons for it’s popularity. Patrons (and librarians) have exulted the complex romance, swooned over the historical aspects, been captivated by the Scottish locale, fascinated by the time travel and, in one memorable instance, a friend of mine noted on Goodreads that the main character is a seriously amazing nurse (my friend is a nurse herself so she found this aspect particularly appealing).

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Outlander has been on my “to read” list for some time as I find several of the aspects mentioned above appealing to my own reading sensibilities, but I’ve found myself paralyzed by the release of the TV show. What do I do first? Do I watch the TV show to alleviate some of the anxiety of suspense in the books and then read the books? Do I read the first book and then watch the TV series? Do I commit myself to reading all of the books before watching the  series? (A fairly hefty commitment given that the series thus far covers 6936 pages!) Recommendations in the comments section or at the South Branch are welcome as I’ve yet to overcome this paralysis, but am eager to do so! The South Branch certainly has options when it comes to getting started offering the first season of the TV series, several of the books in the series (including the first and e-books of all of the titles currently published in the Outlander series, individually, or, in a particularly fascinating encouragement to binge-read, as a complete e-book set of all of the titles in one file.

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For those of you who have already overcome the paralysis, have finished reading the series and have seen both seasons (and are eagerly awaiting the next 2 seasons for which Starz has committed the show), there are many options to fuel your Outlander fire. I don’t even really need to flex my librarian muscles to find new titles that will appeal to fans of the many of the different aspects of Outlander. There are already no fewer than four book lists with titles ranging from classics to brand-new books that Outlander fans can enjoy.

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I was hoping to list below the books that overlapped on the four different lists, but was surprised (pleasantly so) to discover that I couldn’t see any repeats in the book lists and each list had a satisfying explanation as to why the book was recommended and to which aspect of Outlander it will appeal the most. Instead, I’m simply going to give you a link to the library’s catalog here, where you can search for any of the recommended books (several of which we have at the South Branch) and give you the links to the book lists so you can explore and choose for yourself what your next read may be. Till next week, dear readers, I hope these lists lead you to a new, wonderful discovery, and maybe even a new series to devour!

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BookBub lists 9 new books (new as of the publication of the article in September of 2015) reminiscent in some way of Outlander here.

PopSugar, whose reading challenge I mentioned earlier this year, focuses on a wide range historical romances in this slide show.

Here is a slightly older list from BookBub listing 11 titles that bear resemblance to Outlander.

Finally, Bustle offers another 9 books for Outlander fans with a wonderfully diverse set of offerings here.

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Five Book Friday!

And a very happy birthday to S.E. Hinton, author of that perennial classic, The Outsiders!

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Susan Eloise Hinton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma on this date in 1948.  She was always a reader, but was never satisfied with the books she was given to read in school–and quickly set about changing that.  While attending Will Rogers High School (also in Tulsa), she began to observe the two rival “gangs” (groups or cliques might be closer to the mark here) that had established themselves in the school–the Greasers and the Socs.  Both gangs were very much products of their time, defined by their looks and their class.  The HEADER-P7“Greaser” subculture tended to be ‘working class’ young men who posited themselves against a number of traditional societal norms; they reveled in their isolation and individuality, they smoked, they cursed, they loved rock ‘n roll, they formed some of the first motorcycle gangs, and they tended to grease their hair back (à la James Dean), which was how their name was developed–check out the picture on the left for great example.  Though this was primarily a men’s thing, women were allowed to become ‘Greasers’ by the 1950’s.  The Socs, on the other hand, tended to be upper class young men, the children of the elite and the powerful who knew from a very young age that they, too, would grow up to assume those mantles of power.

2282039Society, as a whole, tended to favor the ‘Socs’, because they embodied all that society told people they should want to be–rich, beautiful, powerful, and confident.   But Hinton decided to write a book that was sympathetic to the Greasers–not only to explore the stereotypes surrounding them, but to explain what it was like to be an outsider in a society that condemned without understanding.  She completed the book in 1965 (at the age of 17), and it was published by Viking Press in 1967, when she was a freshman at the University of Tulsa.  Hinton used her initials when publishing as a way to ensure that book reviewers (who, at the time, were nearly exclusively male), would not dismiss the book because of the author’s gender.   The idea was a successful one, in the end.  The Outsiders was an immediate hit, and, to date, has sold more than 14 million copies worldwide.

So we would like to take a moment to thank S.E. Hinton, not only for giving us a book that was a pleasure to read in middle school (and, I can speak from experience, there aren’t many about which I can say that), and for reminding us that everyone deserves sympathy and a voice.

….And, speaking of books….let’s take a look at a few that have sprung up onto our shelves this week!

Five Books

3737618Underground AirlinesBen H. Winters’ book has been making a splash lately, with a number of references in “Best Of” and “Must Read” lists, not in science fiction, but outside the genre, as well.  In Winters’ book, America looks pretty familiar–technology is the same, capitalism rules…the only difference is that the Civil War never happened.  In this America, slavery still exists in four states, and a talented young Black man named Victor is hard at work as a bounty hunter.  Victor’s latest assignment takes him to Indianapolis, where he must attempt to infiltrate an abolitionist group known as the Underground Airlines.  Though he’s always considered himself a good man with bad employers, as he interacts with the people of the Undergroun Airlines, Victor begins to question everything he thought he knew about himself, and about freedom in general.  Christian Science Monitor raved about this book, and the richness of its layers, calling it “a masterful work of art with a gripping mystery at its most basic level. It’s also a complex allegory woven throughout with sparking rich dialogue and multiple shades of awareness. Passengers, fasten your seat belts. The ride may be turbulent, but that’s what makes it great.”

3756073A Green and Ancient Light: Frederic S. Durbin’s haunting novel also features a world very similar–and yet uniquely different from–our own, but this tale is set during the Second World War, when a young boy is sent away from the terrors of the Blitz to live with his grandmother in a rural fishing village.  There is little escape from war, however, and a downed enemy plane in their village immediately shatters the peace of the village.  Then  Mr. Girandole, grandmother’s friend arrives, with tales of fairies and magic.  But it with the discovery of a riddle in the sacred grove of ruins behind grandmother’s house that these erstwhile allies truly begin to find their purpose together, and a world that offers an escape from the brutality around them.  Durbin’s book has drawn comparisons to Neil Gaiman (high praise indeed!), and Booklist drew another admirable comparison of it, saying “Durbin’s gorgeously atmospheric novel solidly shares the fantasy-and historical-fiction genres…a delicate dance between reality and fantasy, ominous soldiers and late-night fairy music. Fans of John Connolly’s The Book of Lost Things will enjoy this bittersweet fantasy with a mystery at its core.

3762216The Tyrannosaur Chronicles: Everyone I know went through a ‘dinosaur phase’ growing up.  I know first grade, for me, passed in a blur of brontasauri and raptors…and it seems that some people’s obsessions really can last a lifetime.  David W.E. Hone has made quite a career for himself as “the face of dinosaur research”, and in  this book, he brings us face to face with the T-Rex, defender of Jurassic Park, and the Big Scary Lizard of every little kid’s imagination.  This book is part history, discussing the first discovery of the T-Rex in the 1880’s, and part science, explaining the evolution of the dinosaur itself, as well as the field of paleontology that gets to study them.  And if that description doesn’t have you jumping up and down by now, I don’t know what to say.  Except, perhaps to relate this review from Publisher’s Weekly, which cheers, “Hone…lets his dinosaur-obsessed inner child run wild in this well-organized, up-to-date fact book about Tyrannosaurus rex and its 25 or so near relatives… Hone provides a solid meal to feed the popular fascination with these tyrant lizards, easily digestible but made from ingredients that, at least in paleontological terms, are quite fresh.”

3717689The Curse of the Tenth Grave:  Fans of Darynda Jones’ fiesty, no-nonsense PI (and grim reaper) Charley Davidson will be delighted with this tenth series’ installment, which finds Charley as busy as ever.  You’d think that helping a desperate homeless girl, saving an innocent man from a murder charge, and locating a pendant that has the entire supernatural community in a panic would be enough work for one day, but Charley is facing an ever greater threat here: three gods have arrived on earth with the express purpose of killing her daughter.  And there is nothing Charley won’t do to protect her family, no matter how long the odds might seem.  This series has consistently received rave reviews from critics and readers alike, and many fans have been expressing delight that Charley seems to be back on track at last, sorting out her issues and dealing with all the drama from previous books, making this a stand-out part of the series, and causing RT Book Reviews to rave, “Jones’ gift for storytelling shines through as she manages to keep the apocalyptic story-lines packed with enough humor and weirdness to make them flat-out fun!”

3762163Champagne, Uncorked: Alan Tardi spent a year at the world-renown (and apparently quite secretive) Krug winery in Reims, and his book tells the tale of the creation of the illlustrious Krug Grande Cuvée (the champagne of champagnes, we are told).  In it, we not only get the tale of Krug, but of champagne itself–it’s creation, it’s cultural significance–apparently we have Napoleon Bonaparte to thank for making it the drink of all good toasts–and the hardships that vinters and wine-makers endure in order to produce it.  The result is a fascinating, well-researched, and easily-disestible book that seeks to understand the real essence of champagne, and will certainly make your own toastable moments that much more memorable.  Newsday agrees, saying the book “Sparkles with information about the beverage of celebration and specifically the making of Krug Grande Cuvee, a great Champagne from arguably the greatest producer. History, harvesting, tasting, blending, marketing, presented with easy going style. You’ll want to make a pilgrimage to Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.”

 

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading!