All bookmobile stops are canceled this week. All library locations will be closed December 24 & 25.
Let us find your next great read!
Posted on Friday, April 23, 2021 by Alyssa
Books and beverages are a classic combination. The experience of curling up with a good book is always enhanced by having some kind of tea, coffee, or whatever else nearby. Matching the vibe of the drink to the vibe of the book really elevates the experience. As a self-proclaimed expert on books and Starbucks, consider me your literary, caffeinated sommelier. Continue reading “Starbucks & Book Pairings”
Posted on Wednesday, April 21, 2021 by Chris
Growing up I wanted to be a circus strongman or some sort of trickster god. Unfortunately, I could never choose a leotard and as of yet have not transcended the mortal realm, so, at least until the next leotard catalogue arrives in the mail, I will have to settle for reading about the fearsome and magnificent beasts and trickster gods, too. Continue reading “The Gentleman Recommends: Daniel Kehlmann (Again)”
Posted on Monday, April 19, 2021 by Seth
Have you ever taken a drive through the countryside in Mid-Missouri and were amazed at the vast lawns that people spend hours mowing, which otherwise could be used as arable land? Have you ever thought about the possibilities of “farming your yard,” even a small patch of land in a nice sunny spot on your front lawn? Did you know that most of the food that we enjoy invariably comes at a high fuel cost?
Each Earth Day we reflect on many different perspectives for how climate change can be mitigated. Some believe that producing a chemical cloud across the planet, thus reducing the heat of the sun, would be a good thing. Others feel that drastic policy measures on a global scale must be made. The Kyoto and Paris Accords, for instance, are a great examples of monolithic recommendations that would happen on a unfathomably large policy scale. However, what if the climate problems aren’t merely so fixable by pure policy? Perhaps they are also fixable though our attitudes toward human existence itself. Some thinkers believe that many of our environmentally destructive behaviors are actually created by globalism, manic consumerism and unfettered technological advances. Many writers, some of them quite obscure, others lost in the mists of time, have called for something slightly less futuristic to combat climate change: a return to localism. Continue reading “Earth Day and Localism”
Posted on Friday, April 16, 2021 by Reading Addict
I’m continuing my tour of the United States through literature by heading up the coast to the Pacific Northwest. My first stop on the way is Portland, Oregon with the science fiction classic, “The Lathe of Heaven” by Ursula K. Leguin. It tells the tale of George Orr, who can manipulate the world with his dreams, but they have become nightmares for him and so he tries to never sleep. He seeks help from a psychiatrist who quickly begins to use George, through hypnosis, for his own gain. But, in spite of things going horribly awry, the psychiatrist is not willing to stop. Continue reading “Travel Through Story: The Pacific Northwest, Alaska and Hawaii”
Posted on Wednesday, April 14, 2021 by Ida
Long ago, when I first had a yard that was mine to do with as I wished, my ignorance was vast. I bought plants based only on what looked pretty. Over the years, I’ve become aware of the importance of encouraging native plants and avoiding invasive species. My learning curve seems to have followed that of society in general.
For a years, the Callery pear tree — especially the Bradford variety — was a popular landscaping choice in the Midwest. Now we know it propagates with abandon, crowding out more beneficial greenery. But there’s a bit of good news for those suffering planter’s remorse. Continue reading “Callery Pear Tree Buy-Back”
Posted on Monday, April 12, 2021 by patron reviewer
Editor’s note: This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will be sharing more throughout the year.
The book “Endurance” details Ernest Shackleton’s doomed attempt to be the first to make a trans-Antarctic voyage. The story is true and absolutely amazing, and Shackleton’s leadership is inspiring. This is, unfortunately, the only book Lansing wrote, but his writing is excellent. He really captures the misery and suffering the men with Shackleton must have experienced, as well as many details about how they survived in impossible circumstances, and uses the men’s diaries to build understanding of their characters. It’s a well-written, and amazing adventure book. Some photos are included too.
Three words that describe this book: Thrilling, intense, inspiring
You might want to pick this book up if: You like history, true stories, explorers, the Antarctic.
-Ruth
Posted on Sunday, April 11, 2021 by Anne
When I first began working at the library, I quickly learned that most staff could walk directly to the true-crime section, having long ago memorized its Dewey Decimal classification. Novels of mystery and suspense fly off the library shelves, so it’s not surprising that their nonfiction counterparts are also hugely popular. Like a good mystery novel, true crime provides a glimpse into the darker side of human nature. Unlike the fictional stories where the good guy almost always wins out, true-crime books often feature crimes that remain unsolved or criminals whose true motivations are scarily unclear. But true crime also offers a satisfying look into the process involved in crime solving and the real-life individuals whose dogged pursuits are often the key to solving the case. Let’s take a look at some of the new true-crime reads on the library’s shelves. Continue reading “Literary Links: True Crime Reads”
Posted on Friday, April 9, 2021 by Decimal Diver
Here is a new DVD list highlighting various titles recently added to the library’s collection. Click on the website links to see the trailers.
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Website / Reviews
Based on the book that was the 2018 One Read runner up, this film follows Capt. Jefferson Kyle Kidd in 1870 America as he crosses paths with a 10-year-old girl taken by the Kiowa people. Forced to return to her aunt and uncle, Kidd agrees to escort the child across the harsh and unforgiving plains of Texas. However, the long journey soon turns into a fight for survival as the traveling companions encounter danger at every turn. Continue reading “New DVD List: News of the World & More”
Posted on Wednesday, April 7, 2021 by Reading Addict
April is Autism Acceptance Month. Even though there are still a lot of stigmas and misconceptions surrounding autism, there is beginning to be a shift in perspective from autism as a disease to autism as a neural divergence, and from autism awareness to autism acceptance. According to the CDC, “Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. There is often nothing about how people with ASD look that sets them apart from other people, but people with ASD may communicate, interact, behave, and learn in ways that are different from most other people. The learning, thinking, and problem-solving abilities of people with ASD can range from gifted to severely challenged. Some people with ASD need a lot of help in their daily lives; others need less.” In 2013, the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) replaced Autistic Disorder, Asperger’s Disorder and other pervasive developmental disorders with the umbrella diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Continue reading “Autism Acceptance Month: Autism in Women”
Posted on Monday, April 5, 2021 by Liz
Spring publishing is in full swing with lots of great new books to check out! All of the mentioned titles are available to put on hold in our catalog and will also be made available via the library’s Overdrive website on the day of publication in eBook and eAudiobook format (as available). For a more extensive list of new nonfiction books coming out this month, check our online catalog.
“Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty” by Patrick Radden Keefe (Apr 13)
This is the saga of three generations of a single family and the mark they would leave on the world, a tale that moves from the bustling streets of early twentieth-century Brooklyn to the seaside palaces of Greenwich, Connecticut, and Cap d’Antibes to the corridors of power in Washington, D.C. The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied institutions: Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford the Louvre. They are one of the richest families in the world, known for their lavish donations to the arts and sciences. The source of the family fortune was vague, however, until it emerged that the Sacklers were responsible for making and marketing Oxycontin, a blockbuster painkiller that was a catalyst for the opioid crisis. “Empire of Pain” chronicles the multiple investigations of the Sacklers and their company, and the scorched-earth legal tactics that the family has used to evade accountability. The history of the Sackler dynasty is rife with drama — baroque personal lives; bitter disputes over estates; fistfights in boardrooms; glittering art collections; Machiavellian courtroom maneuvers; and the calculated use of money to burnish reputations and crush the less powerful. “Empire of Pain” is a masterpiece of narrative reporting and writing, exhaustively documented and ferociously compelling. It is a portrait of the excesses of America’s second Gilded Age, a study of impunity among the super elite and a relentless investigation of the naked greed and indifference to human suffering that built one of the world’s great fortunes. Continue reading “Nonfiction Roundup: April 2021”
Let us find your next great read!
