Jennifer Chiaverini! & our October Magazines of the Month

Jennifer Chiaverini author of the popular Elm Creek Quilt series, as well as the stand alone historical novels Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker and The Spymistress will be speaking at Carnegie-Stout Public Library on October 14th. Due to limitations of space, tickets are required to attend this event. Unfortunately, all of the available tickets for this event have been claimed. In fact, all of the tickets were gone within 24 hours!

 

To learn more about Ms. Chiaverini, or to find some reading suggestions, check out our Jennifer Chiaverini Read Alikes blog post. And because our read alike post was written before she turned her pen to the Civil War, you might also enjoy this blog post of Historical Fiction of the American Civil War.

In anticipation of this exciting author visit, we've selected two magazines of the month for October: The Quilt Life and Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting

The Quilt Life magazine is a collaboration between the American Quilter's Society and the stars of the television program The Quilt Show. The magazine, which offers six issues a year, began publication in 2010. Their website provides more information, including patterns:
www.americanquilter.com/quilt_life

Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting is created by the team behind the Public Television program of the same name. There are six issues of the magazine every year that include patterns, tips and tricks, and more. There are some fun extras on their website as well, including recipes: www.fonsandporter.com/index.html

I Read Banned Books: Rainbow Rowell

I had a book review for a different title half composed before I started seeing stories about a Minnesota school district that had canceled a visit by author Rainbow Rowell, after parents complained that her YA novel, Eleanor & Park, was inappropriate for teens.

Attentive readers of the blog, and those of you whom I'm liable to offer unsolicited reading suggestions, are likely aware that I'm a bit of a fan. In fact, this isn't even the first time I've recommended Rainbow Rowell's books on the library's blog. You can read my review of her first novel, Attachments, by clicking here, and you'll see Eleanor & Park in this list of books I'd particularly enjoyed reading in the first few months of 2013.

You're probably not surprised if I say I find this school district's decision disappointing. Libraries, booksellers, and passionate readers of all stripes have been calling attention to censorship for more than 30 years with the annual celebration of Banned Books Week. That 2013's Banned Books Week is *this* week, Sept 22nd-28th, makes this story an excellent example of the ongoing challenges that books of all sorts continue to face.

You might think that book challenges and bans only happen in other place, countries with repressive dictators, or in some dim past, but they don't. Which is why we take the time every year to remind you that it's okay to say "I don't want to read this" or "I don't think my child should read this," but that is not at all the same as saying "No one should read this."

As I mentioned, I very much enjoyed Eleanor & Park, and I've strong-armed several people into reading it. It's a great story of first love and discovering your own strength in the face of (mild spoilers) bullying, abuse, poverty, racism, and all those other everyday challenges of being a teen. The idea that someone would prevent a teen from reading about these sorts of issues, the sorts of horrible things that teens face every day in the real world, in the name of protecting them, astounds me. You can't protect people from reality, but the right book can offer an individual a chance to escape their reality.

Which brings me to Rowell's most recent novel, Fangirl, which covers quite neatly the way that a reader can turn to a fictional world to help cope with the real world. Fangirl is also a YA title, though I suspect it has some appeal for readers of New Adult fiction too. It's an uplifting story of self-discovery, with quite a bit of drama, a sweet romance, and enough humor to keep the drama from overwhelming.

Cath, our protagonist, is unwillingly starting her freshman year at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Her twin sister, Wren, is much more eager for a fresh start, away from their needy dad, the mother who left them as children, and their shared identity as Simon Snow super fans. Simon Snow is the star of an incredibly popular fantasy series, in the style of Harry Potter, and Cath is in the process of writing one of the most popular Simon Snow fanfics* on the net.

So if you're looking for a good book to read for Banned Books week, I can recommend Rainbow Rowell. We do have a wait list for all of her books though, so you might also want to come in and check out our display of banned and challenged books by the Recommendations Desk. We're taking mugshots again this year, if you want proof of your controversial reading taste!

~Sarah, Adult Services

*fanfic, along with fan fiction and fic, are terms used to describe fan created stories that use the characters or worlds created in their favorite works of fiction, like Star Trek, Harry Potter, or Twilight, to create something new. Fun facts! Fifty Shades of Grey began as a Twilight fic, and City of Bones grew out of Harry Potter fic.

And while I'm down here, I'm going to point out Fangirl's awesome cover art by Noelle Stevenson, creator of the excellent webcomic Nimona.

Arrr! It be Talk Like a Pirate Day!

The wonders of the Internet, and the influence of Dave Barry spread the joy of Talk Like a Pirate Day to scallywags around the world. The Miami Herald has Mr. Barry's original column online for your enjoyment.

To join in the fun, all that needs doing is to sprinkle in a mix of vocabulary aquatic each September 19th. If, like me, your piratical knowledge isn't up to snuff, I recommend the official Talk Like a Pirate Day translator.

As well, Mango Languages, Carnegie-Stout's most excellent online language course, offers lessons in Pirate for beginners: www.mangolanguages.com/try-it.php?course_id=224. Be sure to check out the 30+ languages available to learn from the comfort of your own home!

If you're looking for some reading of a seafaring nature, you might try the classic Treasure Island, the romantic tale Her Forbidden Pirate, or the current The Pirates of Somalia. And, for the science fiction lovers, we have plenty o' space pirates! To find more books and movies, try an Exact Subject or Subject Keyword search for Pirates or Piracy in the library's catalog.

For a last bit of high seas fun, readers with a Facebook account can change settings to display Pirate-American. To do so, click on the Setting icon (it looks like a gear) on the upper right-hand corner of the page. From the menu that pops up, select Account Settings. In the Language options, select English (Pirate), and you'll have your sea legs in no time, matey.

Thankless in Death by J.D. Robb

Confession time.  I think I've read everything Nora Roberts has written including all 37, yes 37, of her In Death novels written under the pen name J.D. Robb.  I'm pretty sure I've read all the assorted novellas and short stories (I think there are 12) that go along with the In Death series too.  Another confession, I'm a series-aholic.  When I get involved in a series it is really, really hard for me to give up on it.  Have I loved all the In Death novels?  No, some of them I can barely remember.  Luckily they are pretty formulaic.

Lieutenant Eve Dallas of the New York Police and Security Department (NYPSD) investigates a murder or murders in the mid-21st century.  She enlists the help of the officers within her division, including her trusty sidekick Deliah Peabody.  During the case she will need to do something that almost crosses the line into being illegal and she usually calls upon her husband Rourke to perform those tasks.

In Thankless in Death, Robb's 37th entry into the series Eve is once again pursuing a murderer.  Even though Eve has to solve the mystery and find the bad guy we know exactly who and where he is right from the start. Jerald Reinhold has had enough of everyone telling him he is worthless and lazy.  Everyone who has ever crossed him, including his parents, must pay with their lives. By committing the act of murder Jerald is convinced he has finally done what everyone has been telling him to do, grow up and be a man.  Murder is the one thing Jerald seems to be good at and now he has New York's top cop pursing him.  For Jerald, having Eve Dallas on the case just makes him feel more powerful.  

This was a solid entry in the In Death series.  It lacked the frantic pace of many of the novels even though Eve wanted to solve everything before the Thanksgiving invasion of friends and family.   It was interesting reading the book knowing Eve was just one step behind Jerald and wondering when she was going to catch up with him.  Logically I knew that would happen at the end of the book, but the chase certainly moved the story forward. Jerald was a horrible person thereby making a pretty good "bad guy".  I think my favorite part of the book was the appearance of some characters from previous installments.  Another thing I really enjoyed in this book,  Eve is finally seems to be getting comfortable in her new life.

Eve and Rourke are two very flawed individuals who had terrible things happen to them growing-up.  Finding one another essentially began the healing process for both of them.  Despite their similar past they have different personalities.  Eve is socially awkward and has a really difficult time believing she is worthy of love.  Rourke is gregarious and easy with people.  Both are invested in their work, but Rourke knows when to stop, while Eve seems to push herself to the breaking point. I feel that Eve makes a pretty big step into having a normal life with family and friends in Thankless in Death.  She finally seems to be able to balance work and home, to take time to have a life outside of the job. 

Now here is the question many people ask when it comes to a series like In Death.  Do you need to read every book in order?  Though there are mentions of past cases and past people in nearly all the books I don't think it is imperative that you read every book or even read them in exact order.  However, for Thankless in Death, it does help if you have read Naked in Death (book 1), Survivor in Death (book 20), Origin in Death (book 21), and Delusion in Death (book 35).

In just 6 short months the 38th book will be in stores and, of course, the library.  Thankless in Death is out now and Concealed in Death is scheduled for publication February 25, 2014.  Check back in about mid-January to place a hold.  Another thing I enjoy about the In Death series; Robb has created a futuristic world where cars can hover and fly vertically, people can change their appearance on a whim, and all kinds of gadgets exist to make life easier.  I'm sure back in 1995 when Robb published the first book of the series two of those gadgets, a PPC (personal palm computer) and a 'link (cell phone) seemed very futuristic.  I know there were cell phones in 1995, but Robb's vision of the a small 'link that everyone owns and fits easily in a pocket probably seemed far-fetched.  In my mind a PPC looks very much like a tablet, possibly an iPad Mini or a Google Nexus 7.  Now when are we going to get cars that can hover and fly vertically? 


~ Amy, Adult Services