The Roar of the Alpha Hero

August 9, 2016 peaadmin

We’ve begun a discussion on Villains, dear readers, so it only stands to reason that we pay a little attention to the heroes, as well. Today, I wanted to share a few thoughts with you on a very particular kind of hero–one who shows up most often in romance novels and about whom I (and, I suspect, many of you) have many, many thoughts: The Alpha Male.

First of all–what is an Alpha Male?

Very basically speaking, an alpha male is the top-ranking male in a mammalian social group. Some animals, like dogs, monkeys, horses, and lions, live in a social structure in the wild where survival isn’t guaranteed. Thus, in order for their group to survive, they have to identify the strongest, the fiercest, and the smartest within their group–those animals get the best food and breeding rights, in order to ensure the survival of the group as a whole. It is important to note that there are Alpha Females, and, in species that mate for life, Alpha Pairs. There is no hard-and-fast rule that says that all Alphas must be male, or that all males are alphas (if they were, no group would survive long, because they’d all be fighting all the time). Whether the Alpha is male or female, they are responsible for, and representative of the group as a whole.

Because we’re humans, this concept, like so many others, get super-complicated. We’re not pack animals in the same way that lions or wolves are, and our methods of communication, courtship, and interactions are specific to our human species, so this concept is a bit different for us, both in life, and in the stories we tell about that life. One of the specifics of our society is that we live in a patriarchy (defined as a system of society in which the father or eldest male is head of the family and descent is traced through the male line). Therefore, when we talk about heroes, we are not just talking about an individual person (even if we are, and even if that person is physical). We are talking about our society as a whole. Our heroes are representatives of our society–as it is, as it might be, as we want it to be.*

So what? You might be heard to ask.

So…

Romance novels, as we’ve said plenty of times before, are a place where we can talk about people finding their place–in their own lives, with others, and in their world, and they do that through their relationship with another person. In traditional romances, it is a woman finding her place with a man. The reason that romance novels so often center around an Alpha Male is because he is supposed to represent what a society values most (which is why we don’t have Alpha Heroines), in the same way, say, an alpha lion, has all the biological qualities that its pride values.

Romance novel heroes don’t have majestic manes (usually…unless they are, like, shape-shifters, or something…not that there’s anything wrong with that….). So we need to look a little closer at what qualities our heroes do have, and what that means. And we also have the right, as readers, to decide if we are willing to accept those qualities. It’s as radical a social statement as any I can imagine!

Scrooge McDuck--the quintessential rich alpha duck. — Scrooge McDuck–the quintessential rich alpha duck.

American romance novels, specifically, are filled with self-made men, who are all incongruously good-looking, absurdly young, and insanely, illogically wealthy. In fact, I find it really interesting to see how the genre has gone from making “The Millionaire” into “The Billionaire” as capitalism continues to raise the stakes. What is important here (for me, at least) is which is more important–the hero’s work ethic, or his money? If it’s the first, then I am definitely on this hero’s team. Even if times are hard–if his obscure real estate/investment/architecture/tech firm goes into the red, he has the fortitude to survive, and to try again. Captain Wentworth, from Jane Austen’s Persuasion is just such a man, who isn’t afraid of a lifetime of “honourable toil and just rewards”. If it’s all about the money, then we have problems. Because now we are glorifying privilege and not the person, and inherently not considering the ways in which he uses that privilege against others. Heathcliff managed to acquire a fortune–and then proceeds to swindle a bunch of men out of their houses. More recently, Cole, from J. Kenner’s Ignited, owns a strip-club, a career that is never properly interrogated in the story, because of his privileged status.

Does this mean that heroes can’t evolve? Absolutely not. Mr. Rochester is one of my all-time favorite heroes, in part because he goes from a rich-and-privileged hero to one who learns the value of what he has, and what he has lost. So is Rhys WInterborne from Lisa Kleypas’ latest–he can buy his fiance any ring she wants, but it’s his willingness to work for her heart that really counts, in the end.

We’ve all seen plenty of buff gentlemen on the covers of books. Which, again, shows a considerable work ethic and plenty of dedication (and a very good personal trainer). But it’s what a hero does with that strength that is so important. If he’s using it for a purpose, that’s great. Rocky Balboa is always my favorite example of this kind of hero. He’s got the brawn and the skills to pummel everyone. But he doesn’t. The closest he comes to fighting outside the ring is to defend Adrian…and still steps back when she realizes she’s strong enough to fight her own battles. When that strength is used to manipulate…again, we have a problem. In Collleen Hoover’s Hopeless, the female protagonist states, upon meeting the hero, “My instinct is telling me to run and scream, but my body wants to wrap itself around his glistening, sweaty arms.” This is especially important not only of the physical danger this can pose, but because it’s also an indication of plenty of other forms of manipulation that can be used to coerce another person…and it’s critically important that we give our characters the ability to recognize that none of them are cool.

Again, this doesn’t mean heroes can learn, and can’t change. But we need to realize that what the behavior that we sanction in our Alpha Males are the same behaviors that we sanction in real life. And books give us a space to think about those behaviors and those traits, and, especially, to understand how we think about them.

A final note, I noted about that we are talking about “traditional” romances, which are those that feature a man and a woman. We are really lucky to be reading at a time when there are a fast-growing number of romances that feature a range of identities–primarily gay and queer, but the genre is expanding day by day, and, in the process, reinventing our ideas of what it means to be a hero/heroine/protagonist. And I, for one, think it is sensational.

*If you’re interested in learning more about this concept, I urge you to check out Catherine Roach’s splendid article “Getting a Good Man to Love: Popular Romance Fiction and the Problem of Patriarchy“. My students got a kick out of it, and I hope you will, too!

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In Praise of the Villains

August 7, 2016 peaadmin

Now, before anyone gets too overly concerned about That Lady at the Circulation Desk, allow me to explain to you what, precisely it is that makes me love a good baddie.

Ford Sterling with the sledgehammer and Mabel Normand tied in the rails in Barney Oldfield's Race for a Life (1913) — Ford Sterling with the sledgehammer and Mabel Normand tied in the rails in Barney Oldfield’s Race for a Life (1913)

A good villain is so much more than a hunchbacked crone with a crooked nose (think of the Wicked Witch in Snow White, or the Wicked Witch of the West in the film version of The Wizard of Oz), and it isn’t just a rampant dislike of the hero or heroine…a lot of James Bond villains fall into this category…actually, they usually fall under the category of ‘inexplicably scarred’, as well…
These characters generally adhere to the old Victorian concept of physiognomy (which they borrowed from Aristotle), which said that ugly people had ugly souls. Oscar Wilde plays with this concept in The Picture of Dorian Gray, but his characters are far, far more complex than, say Mr. Hyde.

Some villains are villainous simply because they are mirror images of the hero, and exist to show up his or her darker traits. Take, for example, Mr. Hyde, of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. There is no doubt that Hyde is a bad guy, but he doesn’t have an independent agenda. He is, literally, the embodiment of all of Jekyll’s bad qualities. Similar, though a bit less obvious, is the character of Clare Quilty in Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, who literally and figuratively embodies all the evil, lascivious, and predatory qualities that Humbert refuses to see in himself. Indeed, there are plenty who believe that there was no murder in Lolita, because Quilty is nothing more than Humbert himself. The same argument has also been made for character of Professor James Moriarty from the Sherlock Holmes canon–that he is a figment of Holmes’ imagination, the man on whom he blames all the cases he cannot solve…or he might even be Holmes himself, who has all the makings of a master criminal, as well as a master detective.

There are other villains who are psychotic, sociopathic, or otherwise…warped. For the record, there is a huge difference between characters who are inwardly deformed and those who are mentally ill, both realistically and in a literary sense. The ones I am describing here are ones like Hannibal Lector, or Francis Dolarhyde, from The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon, respectively, or just about any villain from the Pendergast novels from Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. These villains are generally utterly chilling and terrifying, particularly because they are physically human (usually), but psychologically, they are totally untranslatable. Their psyche is so skewed that looking at them is like looking in a broken mirror. That line between human and monster is a very interesting one, but not an easy one to walk. It’s very, very easy for a character to become a caricature or cartoonishly wicked, which is why the good ones are so memorable.

But those villains who exist as independent entities…who have their own narrative arc, and drive, and desires? Those are the kind that really get my attention. Because it actually takes a lot of work to make a really good villain, because there is so much psychology, so much humanity, and so much passion that goes into making them really great. For villains like this, it’s not so much what they do, as why they do it, and the object that drives them–because we, as readers, are allowed to get close enough to them to understand this. This is a dangerous game to play with readers, because we are taught to sympathize with the hero of a story, to find a bit of ourselves in the protagonist and his quest. So to give us the chance to see the world through a villain’s eyes, to taste their desire and understand their drive, not only transforms them into something more like an anti-hero than a villain (in most cases), but also transforms us, by forcing us to realize that we may, in truth, have a little villain in us, as well.

Just who are we talking about here?

I’m thinking of Lucifer from Paradise Lost, the fallen angel that Milton painted as the arch-enemy of God and Mankind, but whose real ‘crime’ was to demand the right to exercise his free will. His exile from Heaven only resolves Lucifer further to thumb his nose at the intractable deity that scorned him–and the fact that he is still a popular character on tv, in films, and in books, shows just how enduring Milton’s image of the Prince of Darkness has become:

What though the field be lost?
All is not lost; the unconquerable Will,
And study of revenge, immortal hate,
And courage never to submit or yield:
And what is else not to be overcome?
That Glory never shall his wrath or might
Extort from me. To bow and sue for grace
With suppliant knee, and deifie his power…

Or how about Mr. Kurtz from Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness? We only ever meet through the reminiscences of Marlow, the book’s narrator, and because of this, Kurtz’s real personality remains somewhat obscured. Nevertheless, Marlow (and Conrad, who took the same trip in real life) is able to describe the total incomprehensibility, size, and foreignness of the African jungle in such powerful terms, that it becomes frighteningly easy to see how one could become like Kurtz–how one could demand to control everything and everyone in the hope of imposing order, and how that need for control and dominance could warp a person’s soul permanently. In a time when colonialism and imperialism, particularly in Africa, was being held up as a duty and a privilege for the heroic White Man, Conrad’s depiction of Kurtz was all the more startling for its brutal honesty:

He began by saying that we whites ‘must seem like supernatural beings to savages, we must look like gods to them,’ and so on. ‘By applying our will, we can do endless good,’ etc. It carried me away, though it’s difficult to remember what exactly it said. I know it gave me the impression of an immense land overseen by gentle and noble rulers. It was exciting, so full of brilliant words. There was no practical advice at all, except for a note on the last page, which he apparently scrawled sometime later, in a shaky hand. It was a very simple method of rule that he proposed, and after reading all of those pages of pure poetry about helping the natives, it was like a terrifying flash of lightning in a clear sky: ‘Exterminate all the brutes!’… As it turned out, I had to handle his affairs after he died. After everything I’ve done, I should have the right to put his memory in the trashcan of history, but I don’t have a choice in the matter. He won’t be forgotten.

And finally, the whole reason for this post, is because of Draco Malfoy. In a discussion with the wonderful Melissa, who writes the fabulous “Wednesdays at the West” posts, I admitted to having a sort-of, kind-of thing for Malfoy, which I probably wouldn’t admit to in public. There just seemed to be so many layers to him, even when he was being a sneer-y, misogynistic jerk. There was fear there, and a sense that Malfoy was as lost in Voldemort’s plans as Harry was, at times. Apparently, I am not alone in my feelings, as J.K. Rowling went on record saying that Malfoy was not the guy you wanted him to be:

Draco remains a person of dubious morality in the seven published books, and I have often had cause to remark on how unnerved I have been by the number of girls who fell for this particular fictional character… All of this left me in the unenviable position of pouring cold common sense on ardent readers’ daydreams as I told them, rather severely, that Draco was not concealing a heart of gold under all that sneering and prejudice and that no, he and Harry were not destined to end up best friends.

AND YET. Once you’ve read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, perhaps we should revisit this discussion again, and accept that even some of the darkest of villains are far, far more human that any of us might like to admit.

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Saturdays @ the South: Change afoot…

August 6, 2016 peaadmin

The library as a concept is a living, breathing organism that changes all the time. We have to because the communities we serve are constantly changing. Needs change, tastes change and ideas change and it’s our job to try and keep up to make sure that our communities are able to use the library for exactly what they want and need, not what we tell them they want or need. Sometimes these changes come in the form of a new program or service, sometimes it’s a new policy designed to make sure that the patrons are treated fairly. Whatever it is, we always hope it’s for the best.

I’m sure many of you (perhaps all of you) use some form of inter-library loan (ILL). No matter how hard we try, any individual library (especially one as small as the South Branch) can’t have enough space or budget to purchase every single item that every patron would want (try though we may). That’s why being part of the NOBLE consortium is so beneficial to both North Shore library professionals and our patrons. Getting books from another library that your home library may not have is a huge boon for all of us, and this information is unlikely to surprise any regular library user. You may not know, however, that libraries in the NOBLE system have a feature called “holds go home.” This means that Peabody patrons have preference for books circulating from the Peabody Libraries.

This week was the start of something new, not just for the Peabody Library, but for all the libraries in the NOBLE system. The due dates for books circulating through the ILL system have been standardized for when an item goes out from its home library. Peabody books picked up from a Peabody location will still have the same due date rules we always have: 2 weeks for a new book; 3 weeks for a book on the shelf more than 1 year, or audiobooks, or large print books; 1 week for DVDs and music CDs. However, if borrow an item from another NOBLE library and pick it up at a Peabody location, there will be a standard due date for any item from a library outside of Peabody: 2 weeks for any book, 1 week for a media item.

This is likely to cause a bit of confusion for a brief time because some libraries have wide due date discrepancies and post stickers on book spines such as “7 Day Loan” and some libraries will give as much as 4 weeks with a book or a DVD that’s a TV series. With the new system in place, regardless of what the item may tell you, if it came from a library outside of Peabody, you’ll have 2 weeks with a book and 1 week with a DVD. For most people, this won’t cause any issue, but for those of us who have extensive hold lists, we may have to adjust our strategies slightly. If you’re at all concerned as to whether you’ll be able to read/watch/listen to all of your items by the due date posted, might I suggest you take advantage of suspending some of your holds. I’ve talked about suspending holds previously here, with step-by-step instructions on how to do it. This will allow you to stagger when your holds come in and, if you’re in a long queue for an item you will not lose your place in line.

Because of the “holds go home” rule embedded in the system, if you have an item on hold and one of the Peabody Libraries has a copy, you are more likely to get the Peabody copy and possibly have a slightly longer due date. This standardization of due dates, however, will not affect our level of service and dedication to our patrons. The only thing that will possibly change is the due date on your receipt. (FYI- if you don’t have one already, feel free to ask about the magnetic receipt holders that have been generously provided by the Friends of the Peabody Institute Libraries.) You also have the opportunity to take advantage of our digital services like Overdrive and the newly added Hoopla for downloading and streaming of ebooks, audiobooks, music and videos .

Standardizing can be a good thing in a lot of ways; it allows procedures to be less confusing overall in the long run and it helps us treat everyone equally and fairly, which is something a public library should always keep as a top priority. But when any change takes place, it takes a bit of getting used to. If you ever have questions about library policies or any changes that have taken place, never hesitate to ask your friendly Peabody Library employee! We’re here to help and serve. Till next week, dear readers, know that we’ll never stop working, and occasionally implementing changes, to make the Library serve you the best it possibly can!

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Five Book Friday!

August 5, 2016 peaadmin

And a very happy birthday to the Statue of Liberty!

Well…sort of. On this date in 1884, the cornerstone of the pedestal on which the statue stands was laid on Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbor (the island would be renamed “Liberty Island” in 1956). Originally, Richard Morris Hunt, who was commissed to design and oversee the construction of the pedestal, wanted to use a solid block of granite, but it turns out that granite was no less expensive (comparatively speaking) than it is today, and Hunt was forced to scale back and construct his pedestal out of poured concrete, about 20 feet wide, and then face it with granite quarried from Connecticut. At the time, it was the largest concrete mass ever poured.

The pedestal would not be completed until 1886, when a national fundraiser was able to collect enough money from around the country to afford to erect the Statue. By that time, Lady Liberty herself had already arrived in pieces into New York Harbor, aboard the French steamer Isère. Nearly as soon as the concrete had set, work began to get the statue settled, and the dedication ceremony was held on October 28, 1886, with President Grover Cleaveland presiding as Master of Ceremonies. Though it was intended that the statue would work as a lighthouse, no one could figure out how to get the light in the torch to shine brightly enough to been seen at night, until 1916, when the torch was replaced with stained glass, and electic lighting installed.

And speaking of new arrivals (and graceless shifting of topics!), let’s take a look at some of the new books that meandered onto our shelves this week, and are eagerly waiting for you on our Free For All display!

The Games: A Global History of the Olympics: With the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics kicking off in Rio de Janiero tonight, this book seemed quite an appropriate choice for today. Noted and celebrated sports writer David Goldblatt takes a look not only at the history of the Olympics–both Winter and Summer–but also at the world events that took place around them, from World Wars and political upheavals, to the social and cultural movements that changed the game, including the fight for women to be included as equals, and Second World War veterans establishing the Paralympics. Without shrinking from the often overwhelming economic cost of the Olympics, Goldblatt also manages to show how the Games have in turn affected world events, including the worldwide Civil Rights movement, and the Cold War. The result is a book that sports fans, history buffs, and cultural observers alike can savor, and one which Kirkus called “A tour de force history of the Olympics in romanticized myth and political reality. . . . Gracefully written and compellingly argued, this is one of the best books of the year and one of the best sports books ever written.”

Night of the Animals: Bill Broun’s genre-defying debut is getting rave reviews from critics on both sides of the Atlantic for its powerful blend of dystopian science-fiction and innocent fairy tale. Set in London in 2052, the story centers around Cuthbert Handley, a homeless young man who believes that he has been given a gift to communicate with animals–and a calling to set them free. On the night he sneaks into the London Zoo to release the animals there, the rest of the world’s attention is on a suicide cult that threatening to destroy all of earth’s animals along with themselves. As Cuthbert and the legions of the cult flood the streets, it becomes increasingly more difficult to tell if Cuthbert is an agent of mercy, or a pawn in the hands of some truly dastardly people, creating a story that is both a nightmare, and a stunning dream. Publisher’s Weekly gave this book a starred review, saying “Through precise and eloquent prose and a hint of political satire, Broun creates a near future filled with bioelectric technology and characters with patois as diverse as their desires. Broun’s novel is strange, witty, and engrossing, skipping through madness and into the realm of myth.”

The Fire This Time: In 1963, James Baldwin wrote The Fire Next Time, one of the most significant and moving examinations of race relations in the United States. Now, National Book Award–winner Jesmyn Ward has taken Baldwin’s essay as a starting point for a re-evaluation of race in America, collecting essays, poems, and stories from a diverse and very talented group of young writers. The result is a collection that challenges us to re-think the idea that the post-Civil Rights era is one that is free of hypocrisy and oppression, and sheds a very sensitive, nuanced light on the way that we, as inviduals, and as citizens, interact with each other, and how we can do better. This book has been praised by cultural critics, historians, poets, and readers alike, for being both accessible and deeply thought-provoking, with Vogue saying “Perhaps what The Fire This Time does best is to affirm the power of literature and its capacity for reflection and imagination, to collectively acknowledge the need for a much larger conversation, to understand these split-second actions in present, past, and future tense, the way that stories impel us to do. This is a book that seeks to place the shock of our own times into historical context and, most importantly, to move these times forward.”

The Hike: Drew Magary has a reputation for creating utterly surreal, and yet bitingly insightful tales that are as wildly imaginative as they are grounded in social observations and analysis, and this latest work is no different. Ben is an everyday suburban family man on a busniess trip to Pennsylvania, and decides to take a walk through the woods behind his hotel to pass the time. What he finds is a wonderland of horror and fascination, of beauty and danger…and that he has no choice but to continue going forward, on the hunt for the ‘Producer’ who has created this dreamscape of a reality, and beg to be set free. With influences from film, video game, and fairy tales alike, this is a book that revels in its own weirdness, yet still manages to present a hero whose journey is emotionally spell-binding. Library Journal agrees, cheering that “Magary’s second novel…..is a reminder of not only how easy it is to get lost but also how difficult it can be to find one’s way back. Fast-paced and immensely entertaining, this is highly recommended for sf fans and adventurous literary readers.”

I’m Supposed to Protect You From All This: Nadja Spiegelman (daughter of Art Spiegelman, who created the Maus graphic novels), grew up believing that her mother was a fairy. The French-born New Yorker art director Françoise Mouly held a powerful sway over her family and career, over fantasy and reality alike. But, as Nadja grew older, she and her mother grew distant. It wasn’t until she graduated college that her mother told her about her own difficult childhood in France, and the volatile mother she had fled. This book is not only Nadja’s account of her relationship with her mother, but Françoise Mouly’s mother, whom Nadja tracked down in France, and whose stories totally contradicted the ones that Françoise had told, providing readers with a story that his haunting in its details, and utterly relatable, as are all tales of families and inheritance and memory. Booklist gave this a starred review, calling Spieglman’s book “Stunning and artistic…[a] touching, surprising consideration of the unclear inheritances of family, and the certain fallibility of memory… [Spiegelman] writes page-turning true stories of women, their work and love, which read like novels, and gains the rare sort of understanding that precludes the need for forgiveness.”

Until next week, beloved patrons–Happy Reading!

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Summer Reading: Staff Picks!

August 4, 2016 peaadmin

We are in the Dog Days of Summer, my friends….but do we know what that actually means?

According to The Farmer’s Almanac, which is one of the most remarkably founts of helpful, random, and utterly bizarre trivia, the “dog days of summer” are not just those days when we’re all too hot and weary and sluggish to get going–nor is it that it is so hot that dogs go crazy, which was a rumor I had never heard until now. The phrase actually describes the period of time when the Sun occupies the same region of the sky as Sirius, the brightest star visible from any part of Earth. Sirius, which is part of the constellation Canis Major, the Greater Dog, is also known as the Dog Star. As The Farmer’s Almanac explains:

In the summer, Sirius rises and sets with the Sun. On July 23rd, specifically, it is in conjunction with the Sun, and because the star is so bright, the ancient Romans believed it actually gave off heat and added to the Sun’s warmth, accounting for the long stretch of sultry weather. They referred to this time as diēs caniculārēs, or “dog days.”

Thus, the term “Dog Days of Summer” came to mean the 20 days before and 20 days after this alignment of Sirius with the Sun — July 3 to Aug. 11.

Those same ancient Romans believed that it was the combination of Sirius and the Sun which made this particular period of time so scorchingly hot–the truth is that the Earth is tilted in such a way that the Northern Hemisphere receives more direct rays from the Sun.

Regardless, however, it’s hot. And do you know some excellent ways to deal with said heat? First of all, drink lots and lots of water, and wear sunscreen. Second, come on into the Library, absorb some of our fantastic and aggressive AC, and pick out some new books! Seriously, it’s like a Book Refrigerator in here….
And here, to get you started, here are some selections from our staff!

From Upstairs at the Main:

The Dark Fields: Alan Glynn’s 2011 debut is a heady combination of techno-thriller, science fiction adventure, and cautionary tale about a wonder drug that makes the human brain function at perfect capacity. One dose allows a person to access not only all the information they have ever learned, but the tools to put that information to use, making the user not only intelligent and cunning, but attractive and charming. Eddie Spinola is just such a user, and the drug is known as MDT-48. But the more addicted Eddie gets (and his stash continues to dwindle), the more he is hampered by side effects; blackouts, violent episodes, and crippling outbreaks. If he has any hope of surviving, he’s going to have to find more MDT-48…but the journey into the drug’s dark past will turn up far more revelations than Eddie is prepared to find. If this plot sounds familiar, it was made into the blockbuster film Limitless starring Bradley Cooper, as well as a TV show.

Mine Till Midnight: We’re on something of a Lisa Kleypas kick this week–and with good reason. As one of the living legends of the historical romance, Kleypas’ books remain some of the most well-known and best loved books in the genre. In this book, the first in her stellar Hathaways series, Amelia Hathaway has risked a visit to a notorious gentleman’s gaming club in order to entreat the club’s owner, Cam Rohan, to help locate her wastrel brother, Leo. Cam, who is Romani, has no time or patience for English society, or for the milksops who frequent his gaming hell–but one look at Amelia, and Cam knows that he has found his match. The connection between these two protagonists is electric, and their chemistry is utterly delicious. But what makes this book such a success is that the emotional bond that forms between Cam and Amelia is stronger than anything else, and their love is real and tangible throughout this story. Better yet, if you enjoy this book, then be sure to check out all the tales of the Hathaways (particularly Leo’s book, Married by Morning!)

From the Circulation Desk:

In A Dark, Dark, Wood: Ruth Ware’s debut novel has been getting plenty of attention–and with good reason. This tale is taut, creepy, and weirdly haunting, even for those who figure out what is going on before the protagonist. When reclusive crime-writer Leonora (known by some as Lee and by others as Nora) is invited to a remote cabin in the woods for a weekend bachelorette party, her initial reaction is to refuse–not only because she hardly knows anyone on the guest list, but also because the bachelorette in question is a friend she hasn’t seen or spoken to since she was a teenager. Forty-eight hours later, Leonora is in the hospital, alone. She knows something horrible has happened, but she can’t remember all the details–or what her own involvement in the horror might be. Though the final revelations of this book might not be difficult for some to discern, what I found particularly wonderful about this book was the tone that Ware sets. I stayed up until 3am to finish this book, because I couldn’t bear not to know what was going on. When I finally did finish, I was so hyped up that an unexpected noise coming from the air conditioner had me leaping out of bed and running into the wall. I wish I was kidding.

Check back soon for more summer reading picks from your friendly Library staff!

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The Romance Garden!

August 2, 2016 peaadmin

If there’s one thing the world needs now, dear readers, it is more love. Thankfully, the Library Gods are kind and generous, and we have a treasure trove of sweet, sultry, heart-rending, and pulse-pounding romances for your delectation!

Every month, our genre aficionados bring you our favorite romances that we’ve read in the past month, and this month we have two sensational picks for you, both historical and contemporary. We’re all looking forward to the summer’s new romance releases, so keep watching this spot for more updates–or drop into the Library, and check out our Free For All display, where we keep our top picks from the Romance Garden: because every mind needs a little dirt in which to grow….

Bridget:

The Wedding Pact by Katee Robert

I’ve been a big fan of Katee Robert for some time now, and now that her series are now coming out in print, as well as e-book, I have the chance to share her with all of you!

The premise of Robert’s books always sound quite racy–and many of them are–but they are also, at their heart, really touching stories about two people finding their way to each other, giving each other strength to overcome their fears, and the courage to be themselves. And this book, featuring two warring crime families in a very fictionalized Boston, is no different.

Carrigan O’Malley’s family has been at war with the Hallorans for as long as she can remember, and she has always known that her duty is to continue (and win) that battle. That’s why she’s been engaged to a family ally for years: in order to make her family strong, not because there is any real emotion between her and her fiance. James Halloran is still reeling from his own family drama, and worried about his wild younger brother. But when Carrigan meets James Halloran in a bar, both of them know that there is something between them–something that could very easily destroy both of their families. Yet, try as they might, neither Carrigan or James can seem to ignore the other.

I had some problems with the first book in this series (The Marriage Contract, in case you want to read that first), primarily because the two protagonists couldn’t communicate like grown-ups. Thankfully, this was not a problem with Carrigan and James. Instead, they each served as a haven for the other, offering trust and security, as well as escape and release, and, as a result, they can be totally honest with each other. That honesty, and the bond that results, makes for a truly passionate forbidden romance that is achingly sweet and spicy at the same time. And, much like Kelley’s pick below, I loved that the characters didn’t hem and haw, or lie to themselves and each other about what they wanted. They took matters into their own hands, and made the ending of this book one that had me cheering out loud.

Though this is the second book in the O’Malley Series, you really don’t have to have read the first book to enjoy this one; the plot details that you need to know are covered, and Carrigan’s romance with James is definitely one that stands on its own beautifully. I do have to take a bit of umbrage at the use of Boston as a setting though, as I am a stickler for details. However, if that is the worst I have to say about this book, then it really is quite a winner.

Seriously, there really was no reason to drive all the way up to Maine for That One Scene…..

Kelley:

Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas

Since beginning my romance reading journey last year, I find that I keep a running mental list of my favorite historical romance heroes, and a new one is vying for a top spot: Rhys Winterborne.

So, you may ask, what makes Mr. Winterborne so special? Unlike most historical romance heroes who carry family titles of duke or earl or marquess, Rhys Winterborne is the Welsh son of a shop owner who earned his fortune and position in society through determination and hard work. The owner of the largest department store in London, despite his financial success, just his being Welsh at the time of this story makes him an underdog and who can resist rooting for the charming guy with an unfair disadvantage? But perhaps the most refreshing thing of all about this unique historical romance hero is that he is a man with the freedom that money and power allow, but without the restrictions that a title would force upon him, a combination that reveals him to be forthright and honest about his feelings and desires even when they are overwhelming to him or potentially unpopular with his peers. That kind of directness is often absent in historical romances, where the characters dance around society’s dictates, and it’s exactly what makes this book something special.

When Mr. Rhys Winterborne and Lady Helen Ravenel first come together in Kleypas’ Cold Hearted Rake, readers had no doubt where the next book in the series would lead. Marrying Winterborne opens with the renewal of the couple’s engagement, but of course things can’t be that simple. First, Helen has to convince her disapproving family that she truly desires a marriage with an untitled man. Along the way, secrets of the past come to light that complicate things, but throughout, Helen manages to be the softening and caring presence Rhys has needed all his life, and Rhys is the supporting force that allows Helen to finally find the courage to step out of her role as the quiet and protected oldest Ravenel daughter. And when she does, get ready, because the choices she makes will entirely change her life as she has always known it.

In addition to a great male protagonist, this romance thoroughly succeeds where many others come up short. All too often, I feel that historical romance authors draw out deceptions between couples and the fall-out of their reveal ad nauseum. In Marrying Winterborne, Kleypas creates enough conflict to keep the pages turning, but leads the characters to their happy ending before readers find themselves completely fed up with the evasions of truth that inevitably come between couples in this genre. The supporting characters are also top notch, well drawn drawn individuals that I look forward to reading about in forthcoming books in this series. And most importantly, Kleypas also transcends the norm in her characterization of the Helen. Quiet and gentle by nature, Lady Helen’s fiery Ravenel family is protective of her, but when they make a major decision about her future without consulting her first, she knows it is time to take control of her own life. Step one in the process: Marrying Winterborne….

Happy reading, romance lovers! You can thank me later.

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Books in the Headlines

August 1, 2016 peaadmin

So, how many of you were at a midnight release party for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child? The release of the printed script for the West End production is one of the biggest releases of the year…indeed, of the past few years….and calls to mind the release parties held around the world in honor of the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, as readers everywhere waiting for hours in line, in the dark, on the streets, desperate to find out if Harry Potter ultimately defeated his lifetime nemesis Lord Voldemort.

To be perfectly honest, I was a bit behind the curve when it came to Harry Potter….ahead of the curve?

…Whatever. The point is that I was a few years older than Harry, so I missed to opportunity to grow up with him, as so many did. So I never attended a release day party for the young wizard. Besides, I had already spent years holding my own one-person release parties for the books I was beside myself with excitement to read before it became cool. I pestered bookstore and library staffs to hand me the books calmly and quietly before I held my breath and turned blue. I sat on the floor in the middle of book stores and libraries until I found out just what happened. And, more than once, I cried at a random stranger when I got to the end (to that end…my apologies to That Man In The Blue Blazer).

And while I realize that telling these stories makes me sound old and cranky, the truth is, that I am thrilled to see the way that Harry Potter changed the act of reading. J.K. Rowling’s books didn’t just defined a micro-generation of readers, and didn’t just shape the reading lives of people around the world. Her books also made reading a public, and a cooperative event (see the sign from the Harvard Bookstore above, which hosted one of the largest parties in our area). And as Harry Potter helped to reshape the publishing industry and, specifically, the teen reading markets, those fans diversified, finding new series to love, and spread the love of reading even farther.

We also have social media to thank for this phenomenon. Harry Potter and Facebook both emerged within the same period of time, making it infinitely easier for readers to organize, to discuss, and to support each other. And ever since then, the internet has supported readers of other genres, series, and topics, as well.

Which is why I found it infinitely entertaining to read today that, even while the book world was reeling with the joy of a new Harry Potter book to read, and savoring all the details of the script of The Cursed Child, a reliving all that has made the series so great, the internet was simultaneously exploding with another book-related furor.

On Thursday, Elon Musk–designer of the Tesla car, darling of the tech world, and that guy who wants to set up a habitation on Mars–told Bloomberg about a book that had made a big difference to him: a book called Twelve Against the Gods by William Bolitho, saying “It’s really quite good.” And, with those few words, the price of Bolitho’s 1929 book, which is only available secondhand, skyrocketed from $4.99 to $99.99 on A**** (you know what that site’s called). Abebooks sold out of its 13 copies in under a day.

Bolitho himself was born William Bolitho Ryall in South Africa in 1890, and served in the First World War, experiencing firsthand some of the true horror that mankind can inflict. He was buried alive during a mine explosion at the Battle of the Somme, and was the only man rescued alive. Though he was initially assumed dead, as well, it turned out that he had been knocked unconscious, and suffered a broken neck, among other injuries. He spent a year recovering in hospital, and though he was able to walk, he never fully regained his health. Following the war, he worked as a journalist for the Manchester Guardian, covering the Versailles Peace Convention, as well as the attempted Communist uprisings in Germany. He was friends with Noel Coward and Ernest Hemingway, both of whom wrote charming tributes to him, He would go on to write a book called The Cancer of Empire (1925) and Italy Under Mussolini (1926), in which he detailed Mussolini’s public abuses of power. In 1929, Bolitho published Twelve Against the Gods, which provides biographical sketches of twelve people who Bolitho felt used their adventuring spirit to achieve greatness. Though each people endured hardships and danger, Bolitho celebrated their lives because they didn’t let those challenges deter them from their goals.

And you know what also brings Harry Potter and William Bolitho together, apart from their sudden popularity on the internet, and their focus on heroes who refuse to let adversity keep them from success?

…Both their books are available at the Library. For free.

So why not come in and check them both out, and see what all the fuss is about? I can guarantee you that there are plenty of fellow readers just waiting to share the joy of reading with you!

Free for All

Monthly Archives: August 2016

The Roar of the Alpha Hero

In Praise of the Villains

Saturdays @ the South: Change afoot…

Five Book Friday!

Summer Reading: Staff Picks!

The Romance Garden!

Books in the Headlines

"Once you learn to read, you will be forever free." ~Frederick Douglass