Most people can agree that this election season is exhausting to follow but difficult to escape. Do you need a distraction that still engages you in politics? Gain some perspective by watching these documentaries about how political campaigns navigate the attention economy to win your vote.
“We provide daily entertainment. What we are not providing is serious solutions to what’s going on in the country.” — Mark Goodin, campaign advisor for Oliver North’s ’94 Senate run
“Weiner” (2016)
No stranger to scandal, there was perhaps never anyone so tenacious about making a comeback as the former Congressman and 2013 New York mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner. Throughout the latter campaign, media outlets are just as tenacious about getting Weiner to speak honestly and at length about his snowballing improprieties. Much to the viewers’ delight, the fiery candidate doubles down in response to this pressure rather than wait for the storm of shame to blow over. Continue reading ““Do You Want the Measles or the Mumps?”: Docs About Political Campaigns”
While I am a strong proponent of celebrating spooky season all year round, sometimes you just don’t have the time to sit down with a good horror novel. Fortunately, there are plenty of horror podcasts and audiobooks that can spook things up while you commute, work out or do housework! Continue reading “Audible Horror”
I love October! It really is my favorite month with the air turning crisp and the leaves changing color and, of course, Halloween. But I have a small confession to make. I don’t really like scary stories. Except, that is, when the scary is served with a side of funny. Our family has a slew of movies that we watch throughout the month of October and I usually try to read at least one holiday themed book during the month. Continue reading “Horror with a Side of Funny”
This is the second blog post in a series that will focus on resources the library and community have to help out parents with distance learning and homeschooling. The resources I will be focusing on in this second post are digital resources that are available to library patrons through the library’s website. These resources will be listed under a few different categories depending on what they have to offer. Continue reading “Homeschooling and Distance Learning Resources: Digital”
As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, a young woman’s thoughts turn to horror. Not just any horror, but the strange brand of Italian horror cinema dubbed ‘giallo’. Gialli are known for blood and gore, a stylish yet menacing atmosphere and bizarre twists at the end. Giallo films are considered the inspiration for American slasher movies and it’s not hard to see why.
If you’re a fan of Italian giallo, you’ll find DBRL’s free streaming service, Kanopy, a virtual wonderland that will surely keep you enthralled for the remainder of this horrifying year. And on that note, here are some gruesome* highlights to get you started. Maybe, in comparison, they’ll make 2020 look almost normal.
*No kidding! Put the kids to bed! Continue reading “Italian Horror!”
Fall is my favorite season, and not for pumpkin spice reasons. All summer, I can’t wait for the cool weather so I can wear all the flannel, boots and cardigans, and curl up in a blanket watching horror movies. My personal spooky season started in late August this year; the first time there was a hint of chilliness in the air and maybe one leaf turned sort of orange — it was horror time for me. Here are a few of my horror film favorites.
The Shining
This is one of the first films that got me interested
in horror when I was in my tweens and I watch it almost every year around Halloween. Whether you’ve seen this movie or not, you probably know “REDRUM” and Jack Nicholson demolishing a door with an axe screaming “Here’s Johnny!” In this horror classic, Jack Torrance becomes the winter caretaker of the Overlook Hotel located in the Colorado Rockies. His son Danny begins having psychic premonitions, and as Jack learns more about the hotel’s dark past, he begins to terrorize his family. Director Stanley Kubrick does a great job at creating a general feeling of unease throughout the film. Continue reading “Horror Film Favorites”
It’s October and publishers are celebrating this spooky month by releasing an abundance of thrillers. Here are just a few of the many by debut authors coming to shelves near you this month. For a longer list of debut titles, please visit our catalog.
“She Lies Close” by Sharon Doering
5-year-old Ava Boone vanished without a trace six months ago. No witnesses, no sightings or arrests. But Grace Wright just moved in next door to the only suspect the case had: quiet, middle-aged Leland Ernest.
Recently divorced, Grace uprooted her two small children to start again and hopes the move will reset her crippling insomnia. With whispered neighborhood gossip and increasingly sleepless nights, Grace develops a fierce obsession with Leland and the safety of her children. Could she really be living next door to a child-kidnapper? A murderer?
With reality and dream blurring more each day, Grace desperately pursues the truth – following Ava’s family, demanding answers from the police — and then a body is discovered …
Continue reading “Debut Author Spotlight: October 2020”
Editor’s note: This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will be sharing more throughout the rest of the year.
I didn’t know what to expect from the book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.” I only knew it would have to do with ethics as it was recommended reading in a data ethics class I took. But I was very pleasantly surprised at how well the author blended the biography of the Lacks family, particularly Henrietta’s daughter Deborah, with the story of scientific progress in tissue culture due to the uniqueness of her mom’s HeLa cells. There were many moments I was very angry with scientists, balanced out with surprising responses from Deborah about how she didn’t want to stop the progress of science, she just wanted to understand what was happening to what remained of her mother and she wanted Henrietta to get recognition for her contribution.
This was a very powerful book to read (and listen to, in my case) as I begin PhD studies in health informatics, while Black Lives Matter protests are taking place across the country in the middle of a pandemic for which scientists are sprinting to get a vaccine and treatments out.
Three words that describe this book: insightful, unusual, provocative
You might want to pick this book up if: you want to understand how cell and tissue culture spring-boarded the study of viruses and cancer, or you’ve heard of HeLa cells but have no idea what that is.
-Anonymous
Here is a new DVD list highlighting various titles recently added to the library’s collection.
“The Mole Agent”
Website / Reviews
Shown earlier this year at the 2020 True False Film Fest, this documentary follows 83-year-old Sergio, who is sent as an undercover spy to a Chile retirement home to track suspected elder abuse. Through the lens of the hidden camera in his decoy glasses, viewers watch as Sergio struggles to balance his assignment with becoming increasingly involved in the lives of several residents. Continue reading “New DVD List: The Mole Agent, Shirley, & More”
Japanese Side-Sewn Journals With Beaded Bookmark
Yay! Autumn is finally here: apple cider, sweatshirts, a crackling fire and fragrant pots of soup. Maybe it is the crisp blue skies which accent some of the most beautiful scenery in nature that nudges my desire to be creative again. Maybe it nudges your creative spirits, too.
In light of all of this “creative nudging,” our fall DIY craft kits include the ingredients to make a personal journal with a beaded bookmark. Continue reading “Crafternoon-To-Go”
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