The Gentleman Recommends: William Brewer

Posted on Friday, August 26, 2022 by Chris

For people who like reading and books, books about books are a boon. Not only are you reading a book (an activity that you like), but you’re reading a book about books (things that you like). While I’d like to explain this further, due to space constraints, I’ll move on to typing about the particular book I’d like to recommend.

You can tell William Brewer is a poet in part because he has written an award-winning book of poetry called “I Know Your Kind,” and in part, because the language in his novel “The Red Arrow” is clearly crafted with care, or, if crafted haphazardly, then with a poet’s gifts and instincts. You’ll savor these sentences.

Continue reading “The Gentleman Recommends: William Brewer”

Read The Recipe! Veganarian

Posted on Wednesday, August 24, 2022 by Jason Delpire

Vegan cooking. I know, if you’re not familiar with it, you may expect bark and berries. I have found vegetarian/vegan cooking to be very freeing. (I use both terms because I have not been able to give up cheese. Well, okay, I haven’t really tried.) When I was consuming animal protein, each meal planning was kind of the same: Take a protein, add a starch and a veg, maybe a sauce, blah, blah, blah. Veganarian cooking has forced me to be more creative and more seasonal, which has resulted in also more flavorful dishes. Continue reading “Read The Recipe! Veganarian”

Reader Review: Leviathan Wakes

Posted on Monday, August 22, 2022 by patron reviewer

Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey book coverThere are many good examples of hard science fiction, books that follow the scientific rules of space, but their accuracy is often bereft of compelling human interaction. “Leviathan Wakes” nails both! The complex characters face the possible end of humanity as humans would, with pain, anger, righteousness, and love the author demonstrates these human struggles with skill. The basis for the television show “The Expanse,” this is the first of several books about what happens when a molecule from another galaxy is introduced into a politically fraught solar system.

In the book, Earth, Mars, and the peoples who live on resource-strapped asteroids in “the Belt” are at each other’s throats as they battle for preeminence and access to resources. When an ice-hauling freighter is blown up by an unknown stealth ship, leaving five survivors, it launches a war between Mars and the Belt. But who is responsible? And why did they want to start a war? What are they covering up?

Three words that describe this book: What is humanity?

You might want to pick this book up if: You enjoy very well-written characters struggling to define humanity in the face of the unknown.

-Alexis

Memory Care Kits

Posted on Friday, August 19, 2022 by Abbey Rimel

If you have a friend or loved one facing dementia or memory loss, the library offers a tool to help you help them. Memory Care Kits are designed to help people with dementia engage with friends and family, exercise their brains and spend some pleasurable hours remembering experiences from their past. These kits were designed by DBRL staff. Our staff chose themes for these kits that explore common experiences like living on a farm, homemaking, gardening, using tools, and going to a baseball game or to the movies.

collection of books and other library materials with a movie theme

That list of themes grows as we release even more new kits through the rest of 2022, so be sure to visit our catalog regularly for more engaging kits. These kits contain music, movies, puzzles, books, tactile items and activities selected especially for a person living with dementia and their family. Continue reading “Memory Care Kits”

Reader Review: The Wife Upstairs

Posted on Wednesday, August 17, 2022 by patron reviewer

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins book coverI came across “The Wife Upstairs” as a suggestion from Overdrive on a Friday evening, and although I wouldn’t normally gravitate towards a thriller, I also cannot resist anything “Jane Eyre” related, so I decided to give it a chance. Fast forward to Sunday evening, and I had devoured it — definitely one of my fastest finishing-a-book times in the past few years, as a mom of young children. But with all the plot twists and turns, I just could not bear to put it down!

It is by no means a perfect book or an enduring classic, but that’s okay — I think it does what it intends to do: entertains in its own right while hearkening back to the original. My favorite bits were the well-known quotes from the classic novel, modified and spiced up with modern curse words — absolutely delightful! I also enjoyed the self-referential bits, as when Jane finds herself “creeping around the upstairs like I’m in a gothic novel or a bad horror movie.”

Three words that describe this book: twisty-turny, Southern gothic, classic-based

You might want to pick this book up if: You are looking for a quick summer read and enjoy thrillers and/or “Jane Eyre,” but don’t hold the classic up on such a pedestal that vulgarized quotes from it will upset you. Other retellings that you might enjoy (I know I did!) are “Jane Steele” by Lyndsay Faye and “Brightly Burning” by Alexa Donne.

-Erin

 

This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading 2022. We will continue to share these throughout the year.

LibraryReads: August 2022

Posted on Monday, August 15, 2022 by Kat

LibraryReads logoIt’s really summertime now, so grab a new book and sit in the shade (or stay inside, I won’t judge you!). We have a great lineup of LibraryReads books for August, so read on to find a favorite to get lost in.

Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood book coverLove on the Brain” by Ali Hazelwood

“Bee’s worked hard to get her big break leading a NASA project. However, she learns that she’ll be working with Levi, an old acquaintance who detests her. Or does he? Hazelwood’s done it again with another fantastic romance filled with the real-world struggles of being a woman in STEM. For fans of Helen Hoang and Christina Lauren.”
—Brenna Timm, High Plains Library District, Greeley, CO

Husband Material (London Calling) by Hall, Alexis book coverHusband Material” by Alexis Hall

“Luc has grown up and feels the pressure to get married. Oliver is still a devoted boyfriend, but his problems are now acknowledged. It’s great to see character development even in minor characters, and how they’ve progressed in the two years since ‘Boyfriend Material.’”
—Claire Sherman, Clearwater Countryside Library, Clearwater, FL

Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: R.F. Kuang book coverBabel” by R.F. Kuang

“What power do words really have? Kuang explores this question in a unique standalone fantasy where a magical system drawn from translation and silverwork fuels colonialism. With beautiful writing and welldeveloped characters, this is a fabulous book. For readers of Katherine Addison, Zen Cho and N.K. Jemisin.”
—Danielle Deaver, Montgomery County Public Libraries, Bethesda, MD

 Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney book coverDaisy Darker” by Alice Feeney

“Darker isn’t just Daisy’s surname: it’s the mood of this closed-room mystery as Daisy’s family members die one by one at a remote island home. Deftly told, this nod to Agatha Christie’s “And Then There Were None” mixes suspense and secrets with heartbreaking and poignant observations about family and childhood.”
—Jennifer Ohzourk, West Des Moines Public Library, West Des Moines, IA

Other new releases to check out:

 

One Read’s “The Big Door Prize” and Human Fulfillment

Posted on Sunday, August 14, 2022 by Seth

Big Door Prize by M.O. Walsh book cover“I could have been a contender.”

The Big Door Prize” by M.O. Walsh is described in a nutshell by Marlon Brando’s famous line from the movie “On the Waterfront.” The book faces, head on, a major exigency of the human condition: finding the meaning in your life and meeting your potential. Lost dreams are given new reality for the characters in the book simply by putting money into a machine. With a sprinkle of your DNA the DNAMIX machine creates shiny new possibilities. The DNAMIX can, likewise, magnify a person’s decided lack of potential in glaring and humiliating ways. “The Big Door Prize” also deals with family, loss and the unique experience of growing up and living in a small town. Underlying this conventional fiction wrapper, however, is a sleepy thread of science fiction or fantasy. Continue reading “One Read’s “The Big Door Prize” and Human Fulfillment”

New DVD List: Everything Everywhere All at Once & More

Posted on Friday, August 12, 2022 by Decimal Diver

Here is a new DVD list highlighting various titles recently added to the library’s collection.

Everything Everywhere All At Once dvd cover
Website / Reviews
Evelyn Wang, a flustered immigrant mother, is contacted from a parallel universe and told that only she can save the world. The unlikely hero must learn to channel her newfound powers and fight through the splintering timelines of the multiverse to save her home, her family, and herself in this big-hearted and irreverent adventure. Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert co-write and co-direct this adventure-comedy. Continue reading “New DVD List: Everything Everywhere All at Once & More”

Q&A With Elaine Strawn, Author of “Kiddie & the Major”

Posted on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 by Decimal Diver

Elaine Corum Strawn is a Columbia, MO author whose latest fiction book is “Kiddie & the Major.” The book is romantic historical fiction inspired by her real life grandparents, journalist and sports announcer Bill Corum and model socialite Kiddie Kolle. Readers can follow their ups and downs of dating, falling in love, getting married and growing together as they try to live their best lives in New York City during the decadent 1920’s. Elaine is a first grade teacher in Columbia Public Schools and is the founder of Off & Running Publications. She has written two nonfiction books, “Lessons Learned in a Primary Classroom” and “Going on a Bear Hunt.” Elaine was kind enough to take the time to be interviewed via email. Continue reading “Q&A With Elaine Strawn, Author of “Kiddie & the Major””

Reader Review: Speak

Posted on Tuesday, August 9, 2022 by patron reviewer

Speak by Tunde Oyeneyin book coverI met Tunde Oyeneyin while cycling on my Peloton bike and felt a strong connection with her workouts. She is authentic, strong, inspiring, compassionate, beautiful and caring. I picked up her book “Speak” because cycling is a lot like life you experience ups and downs, highs and lows; it pushes you to your limits; you have good days and bad, but you are getting stronger from each lesson, on or off the bike. She leads with love and teaches with true grit. Her leadership comes from deep down in her Nigerian roots, her personal trauma, her love and losses in relationships, her hard work, and her passion for others.

Three words that describe this book: Love yourself first.

You might want to pick this book up if: You are in a rut in life, or your job, maybe school or a relationship. Do you want more for yourself? Have you experienced loss? Have you felt like you didn’t fit in or looked different from others, or were treated differently because of the color of your skin? Perhaps you’re looking to connect with Tunde on your Peloton?

-Roxanne

 

This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. There is still time to submit your own book review here for a chance to have it featured on the Adults Blog.