The Bookshelf

This Saturday October 24, Poisoned Pen Press and the Poisoned Pen mystery bookstore in Arizona are co-hosting the world’s first online mystery convention. For $25, you can log on to Poisoned Pen WebCon and participate in live interactive discussions, author panels, on-demand videos and audio presentations, book trailers and live chat rooms. Registrants also will receive a book voucher and free ebooks. Participating authors include a who’s-who of authors, including Dana Stabenow, Lee Child, Laurie R. King, Nevada Barr and others. Click here for a schedule of panel discussions and for a list of system requirements and the multimedia tools you’ll need to use to take part.

The Women’s National Book Association has deemed October as National Reading Group Month. According to WNBA president Joan Gelfland, “In the last five years, the book club population has increased 25 percent, rising from 4.6 million to 5.2 million adults.”

Along with sponsoring author events around the country, nine books considered Great Group Reads are being spotlighted: Appassionata by Eva Hoffman, The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist, The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë by Syrie James, The House on Fortune Street by Margot Livesey, Perfection: A Memoir of Betrayal and Renewal by Julie Metz, While I’m Falling by Laura Moriarty, Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson, Cost by Roxana Robinson and Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie. All are intelligent, thought-provoking books that are perfect for discussion or anyone who is a fan of smart fiction (and, in the case of Perfection, nonfiction).

Interested in starting your own group? Check out our Discussion Tips, Reviews and Resources page, which includes a list of books available for bulk loan to local groups. For information on Library book discussion groups, contact us online or at 847.673.7774.

The 2009 Booker Prize committee has selected Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel as this year’s winner of best novel written by an author from Britain, Ireland, or the Commonwealth nations. James Naughtie, leader of the panel of judges, described Wolf Hall  as “a thoroughly modern novel set in the 16th century,” which “probes the mysteries of power by examining and describing the meticulous dealings in Henry VIII’s court, revealing in thrilling prose how politics and history is made by men and women.”

I enjoyed Lev Grossman’s (a book critic for Time) The Magicians, but, then again, I am exactly the type of reader that would.

Grossman’s The Magicians is a play on C.S. Lewis’ Narnia, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, and even a little of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. But instead of wild-eyed youngsters being taken to magical worlds, it is brilliant and depressed recent high school graduates.  Instead of the students exploring and outwitting evil doers, they memorize, study, and drink too much booze (much like other college students– minus the studying and memorizing of course).

Quentin Coldwater, a high school student from Brooklyn, is the main character.  He experiences the tedium of studying, girls that are not interested in him, and magic.  Following graduation from magic college, Quetin and his friends discovery the world of Fillory (a Narnia like universe) which they had all read about as children.  Quentin has always been especially devoted to the the Fillory series. However, the story Fillory and the real Fillory are very different.

This book may sound like a Terry Pratchett like comedy but it most certainly isn’t.  It does have some comedic moments, but it is much grittier than anything in the comedic fantasy realm.

I recommend checking this book out.

Every year, the Macarthur Foundation presents a series an award to a number of people who are making a huge difference in their field. Whether in science, art, community work, literature, or another field, this $500,000 “genius grant” is meant to represent a firm belief in the recipient’s contributions to our culture, and a strong encouragement to continue their great work.

The 2009 Macarthur Fellows were just announced this morning. Among them are creators whose work can be found in the library:

Edwidge Danticat; memoirist and chronicler of the Hatian immigrant experience. Her most recent work is Brother, I’m Dying.

Rackstraw Downes; landscape painter whose work often illustrates the intersection of man-made structures in a natural landscape. He has written and edited a number of works on contemporary art, one of which is in our collection.

Deborah Eisenberg; short story writer who creates intimate portraits of contemporary American life.

James Longley; filmmaker and director  of the Oscar-nominated documentary Iraq in Fragments.

Heather McHugh; poet known for her deftly constructed works focusing on intricate wordplay and the joys of language.

Elyn Saks; attorney and mental health rights advocate. Author of The Center Cannot Hold, a personal chronicle of her own struggle with schizophrenia.

The other Fellows include environmentalists, papermakers, and ornithologists, among other fields.

If you had the opportunity, who would you give a “genius grant” to? Let us know in the comments!

Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

(and on audio)

Teen romance with a twist: 17- year-old Jessica is learning that she has a different life than she thought. Jessica is really a vampire princess and she is the head of her clan, expected to marry the hunky leader of a rival vampire family – thus ensure peace… Yeah, this was a lot of fun to read. It’s not serious stuff, which is why I liked it so much. Jessica is experiencing a lot of “typical” coming of age transitional/identity realizations, etc. There is much humor in the novel mixed with truthful themes and on-target observations about teens. I can see why copies of this book are always checked out from the Library. It is not a Twilight wannabe. However, it is a good one to recommend to those that have read all the Stephenie Meyer books and need something else. I look forward to more from author Beth Fantaskey.

Think your job is tough? You can get an idea of what other people go through from these unvarnished accounts of life on the job. Once you read these books, you might look at your own career in a whole new light.

Answering 911: Life in the Hot Seat by Caroline Burau

Bad Cop: New York’s Least Likely Police Officer Tells All by Paul Bacon

Confessions of a Tax Collector: One Man’s Tour of Duty inside the I.R.S. by Richard Yancey

Happy Hour Is for Amateurs: A Lost Decade in the World’s Worst Profession by the Philadelphia Lawyer

Other People’s Dirt: A Housecleaner’s Curious Adventures by Louise Rafkin

Plane Insanity: A Flight Attendant’s Tales of Sex, Rage, and Queasiness at 30,000 Feet by Elliott Hester

Quiet, Please: Dispatches from a Public Librarian by Scott Douglas

Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip–Confessions of a Cynical Waiter by The Waiter [i.e., Steve Dublanica]

To publish anything – a book, an album, even a blog post – requires you to develop a pretty thick skin. Even a book as widely acclaimed as Cormac McCarthy’s The Road (probably the closest thing we’ve had to a Great American Novel in quite some time, and loved by Oprah and the Pulitzer committee alike) has its detractors. Over 1600 people on Goodreads have given the book 1 measly star.

So if a work as widely acclaimed as The Road isn’t safe from this kind of vitriol, where does that leave everyone else?

Mystery author Brad Meltzer has one approach. His most recent title, The Book of Lies, was just released in paperback. To celebrate, he’s compiled some of the choicest nuggets from his harshest reviews – but presents them in a way that makes you laugh rather than cringe:

Great stuff, and proof positive that when life gives you critics, you make … critic-ade. What about you? Are there any universally-loved books that you can’t stand? How about “awful” books that you love?

“The Capture of Cerberus” is available at the Daily Mail, a British newspaper.  This is great news for all you Agatha Christie fanatics.

This is my “beach book” list (part 1 teens and kids). Yes, these are written for a younger audience. But I enjoyed them. All are light reads and recommended. The 39 Clues series is my favorite so far.

The Sword Thief (39 Clues, bk. 3) by Peter Lerangis, audiobook

One False Note (39 Clues, bk. 2) by Gordon Korman; audiobook

The Maze of Bones (39 clues, bk. 1) by Rick Riordan; audiobook

The Old Willis Place: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn; audiobook

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn; audiobook

Vibes by Amy Kathleen Ryan; audiobook

The Magician (Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Famel, bk. 2) by Michael Scott; audiobook

The Alchemyst (Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flam, bk 1) by Michael Scott; audiobook

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot; audiobook

The Tail of Emily Windsnap by Liz Kessler; audiobook

Gilda Joyce: The Ghost Sonata by Jennifer Allison; audiobook

Gilda Joyce: The Ladies of the Lake by Jennifer Allison; audiobook

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale; audiobook

Cupcake by Rachel Cohn; audiobook

The Princess Plot by Kirsten Boie; audiobook