Posts filed under ‘What We Are Reading’
Embrace your inner nerd at the Denton Public Library
Science Ink, Tattoos of the Science Obsessed
World of Geekcraft: Step by Step instructions for Super Cool Craft Projects
THE NERDIST WAY : how to reach the next level
We also have it on the Playaway!
Geek Wisdom: the sacred teachings of nerd culture
We also have an electronic version
Dream of Scipio by Iain Pears
The Dream of Scipio by Iain Pears is an Historical Fiction/Mystery novel that interweaves three distinct historical periods all set in the same locale: Avignon, France and its environs. The three periods share the confusion and anxiety that accompany major shifts in politics and culture: The Fall of the Roman Empire in Gaul, the arrival of the Black Death during Pope Clement VI’s reign in Avignon and the fall of France to the German occupying force in WWII.
Dream Cover
Two main threads run through each story: questions of ethics and morals in the affairs of men and anti-Semitism. In the first, a Classical philosopher named Sophia becomes mentor to Manlius Hippocratus, who has been elected Bishop. He seeks to protect his region from invasion by Germanic tribes and to preserve some remnants of his beloved Rome. Sophia is a hard task master and deals in pure philosophy and ethics.
In the second story, a student and poet attached to a bishop in Clement’s Papal administration, Olivier, has been researching the history of Manlius’ Gaul and Sophia. He falls in love with another strong female, Rebecca, and is forced to deal with the weightiest questions of right and wrong.
Finally, Julian is also researching both Olivier’s poetry and Manlius philosophy during the advent of WWII and becomes enamored with an artist who is Jewish and must balance the competing demands of friendship, politics and loyalty.
It was difficult for me initially to get used to the author’s style, although the stories were fascinating, but I’m so glad that I kept on with it. Far more going here than I am describing. Highly recommended!
posted by Chuck
Fargo Rock City
Taken from the title of song by the band KISS, “Fargo Rock City” is part memoir, part music review and part justification for the author’s obsession with 1980′s Heavy Metal music. Chuck Kosterman grew up on a farm in North Dakota-about as far from the glamour of the ’80s Hollywood Metal scene as one could get. Nevertheless, like many before him, a genre of music spoke to him and changed his life.
Fargo Rock City book cover
Do/did you have a musical obsession that perhaps can only be mentioned amongst certain (close) friends that is also regularly panned by the critics? (Mine is “Southern Rock”…). Well, stand up and be counted! Chuck does his level best to legitimize Heavy Metal/Glam Metal/ ? Metal as exemplified by Motley Crue, Poison, Winger and Guns and Roses. He has his work cut out for him but he will be the first to admit to the genre’s faults. What makes it funny as all get out is his style. Always honest and willing to poke fun at himself, I laughed so hard at one point I cried. Catharsis.
Highly recommended if you grew up in the 1980′s, love music and cultural history or just want to learn the best (and worst) Heavy Metal of the era.
I gotta try and find that Vinnie Vincent Invasion record…
posted by Chuck, 7.7.10
Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
Fans of topical nonfiction may want to check out Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. This book chronicles the experiences of New Orleans resident and Muslim American Abdulrahmen Zeitoun who, ignoring orders to evacuate, rides out Hurricane Katrina in his home and spends the days following distributing supplies, assisting others and feeding abandoned pets from his canoe, only to be mistakenly arrested a week later on suspicion of being a terrorist.
Here is what reviewers have said about the book:
“What Dave Eggers has found in the Katrina mud is the full-fleshed story of a single family, and, in telling that story, he hits larger targets with more punch than those who have already attacked the thematic and historic giants of this disaster. It’s the stuff of great narrative nonfiction.” Timothy Egan in New York Times Book Review
“ …an unusual book. It’s not a big-screen picture of New Orleans in crisis. It’s a portrait of one man — a patriotic and deeply religious immigrant — caught in a nightmare created by a natural catastrophe, exacerbated by government incompetence.” Deirdre Donahue in USA Today
“This is as accurate, sensual and readable an account of Hurricane Katrina as you can find in nonfiction.” Dan Baum in in San Francisco Chronicle
–Stacy
What We Are Reading
Atomic Lobster by Tim Dorsey
Totally new for me. All the action/crime/adventure is set in sunny Florida, one of my favorite spots in the world. Serial killer Surge E. Storms, is genius at finding creative ways to dispatch unsavory characters who violate his oddly sensible code of ethics. It’s a complicated plot that’s easy to follow, with mimes, clowns, drug kingpins, CIA operatives, real estate agents, former NFL players, and family values thrown together. The violence is sometimes gruesome, but the situations are hilarious and the denouement reads like the best lethal weapon/sitcom you’ve ever seen. For adults – language, situations. -Terri, Fowler Central Library
Breathe My Name by R.A. Nelson
Frances has a past. When she was a little girl, her mother murdered her three younger sisters. Frances was supposed to die with them, but was saved at the last minute. Now, her mother is being released from prison and wants to see her. Will Frances be able to see her mother and survive, or will she end up like her sisters? -Wylaina, North Branch Library
Missing Mark Julie Kramer When the advertisement for a Wedding Dress “Never Worn” is listed in the local paper, reporter Riley Spatz suspects there might be a juicy story behind the abandoned dress. What she finds leads her to a missing groom who may be a murderer or a victim, a kidnapped prize winning bass and the seedy world of stand-up comics. Julie Kramer creates a fast-paced and fun mystery with enough twists and turns to keep the reader turning pages until the end. -Kimberly, South Branch Library
Over the Edge by Suzanne Brockmann
Senior Chief Stan Wolchonok is the man who can fix anything. When pilot Terri Howe begins to have trouble with a coworker, Stan goes into fix-it mode assigning Terri to fly a simple training mission with him. Stan begins falling for the lovely Terri but he decides she deserves better and sets her up with one of his men. Meanwhile, the training mission becomes dangerous when the team is called to help with a high-jacking situation. Can Terri convince Stan that they deserve a chance or will his stubbornness end their relationship before it can begin?
Great story! I fell in love with Stan for his steely determination, courage, and genuine concern for others. I felt Terri was a good match for him with her courage and perseverance. The plot was really involving and the secondary characters were engaging. This is part of Brockmann’s Troubleshooters, Inc. series so there are lots of familiar characters. I found this story had a good mix of action, humor, and romance. -Stacey, Fowler Central Library
The Rising by Brian Keene
A cross between Cormac McCarthy’s The Road and George Romero’s film Day of the Dead, The Rising is the story of a devoted father determined to rescue his son during a zombie apocalypse. Heartbreaking, intelligent, and extremely suspenseful, the Rising breathes new, um, life into the zombie genre (zombie animals!). -Stephanie, Fowler Central Library
South of Broad by Pat Conroy
Charleston native Leopold Bloom King narrates his own story about his troubled adolescent years in the 1960s that are highlighted with his older brother’s suicide and the realization that his mother is an ex-nun. He eventually finds a motley, yet close group of friends whose encounters span the 60s, 70s and 80s. This is my first Pat Conroy experience, and everyone is right, he is a fantastic writer! Conroy gives Leopold a voice so authentic that it’s hard to believe South of Broad is fiction. -Dana, North Branch Library
What We Are Reading
I am reading the M.C. Beaton series about Agatha Raisin. She is a hoot – a strong single woman, retired from the world of Public Relations to live out her dream in a Cotswold countryside cottage. She has a hunky neighbor who helps her solve the inordinate number of murders that affect her little village. Agatha is offputting, with an underdeveloped sense of emotional self control. She is very human, full of undesirable personality traits, but a sympathetic figure none the less.
The books are short and satisfying. Lots of summer fun – I am reading them in tandem with a friend.
-Terri, Emily Fowler Central Library
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami. I haven’t been able to put this book down. Murakami’s writing is vivid and dream-like, and the book has a mysterious, slightly unsettling, tone. -Becky, North Branch Library
I love the Bloody Jack series. It’s full of adventure which makes it hard to stop reading! If you love audiobooks the second book Curse of the Blue Tattoo has won an Audio book award… -Kayci, Emily Fowler Central Library
The Vampire of Ropraz by Jacques Chessex . Gloomy black metal novel based on a true story of a small town in Switzerland in 1903 plagued by a series of mysterious tomb violations of freshly buried beautiful young girls. -Andrew, North Branch Library
L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad of the Hills! I have a huge fan of the hills. The story is about a reality show contestant and how fame and fortune change her life and relationships. Hmmmmmm sounds a bit like Lauren’s life? -Celina, Technical Services
The Lost City of Z: a Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Gran. Gran investigates the life and final journey of British explorer Percy Fawcett who vanished in 1925 while searching for a mythical city deep in the jungles of the Amazon. Lots of adventure, intrigue and revolting insects. -Stacy, North Branch Library
I am reading The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks by E. LockHart. It is the story of a girl’s adventures while she is at boarding school. So far, I am totally wrapped up in it, but that may simply be because I am obsessed with boarding schools. The heroine is adorable, plucky and lovable so far.
I am also reading The Bible Illuminated, which is a glossy, magazine like version of the Bible. The authors condense much of what was in the original, which some may not like, but makes for an interesting read. -Sunni, Technical Services
Sarah Vowell
Ok, I’m on a BIG Sarah Vowell kick these days. I think I must’ve listened to her on NPR’s This American Life back in the late ’90s-early 2000s when I had a car that had FM radio. Her current title about early American colonial history and the Massachusetts Bay Colony is entitled The Wordy Shipmates. Like, who cares, right? Well, she has a knack for combining a post-modern, Gen-X-esque ironic take on American history with real passion for the subject. I have yet to read that one (I have it on hold-you did know you can put items on hold, didn’t you?) but was thoroughly taken in by the first title I read of hers, The Assassination Vacation. By the second chapter I already was wishing this book was twice (at least) as long as it is. Caveat: she does not write history with a capitol “H” but more like a combination of hipster commentary/road trip/ travelogue and musings of one who comes to the subject matter with an interest in trying to make sense of it.
Sarah at the grave of John Winthrop. The Granary graveyard, Boston, Mass.
I want to send her gooey fan mail and be her book tour roadie because she writes about possibly the most uncool subject from a young person’s point of view-American History. And, because I was a history major and am a history junkie, finding someone of my generation who actually likes going to Civil War battlefields and reading historic markers is like finding a kindred soul.
A critic has said of her that she manages to poke fun while not belittling her subjects which I think is accurate. While she certainly has her own views she is always ready with self-deprecating humor and an even-handedness in the end. At times she is too clever by half and one can see through her self-concious references to her “nerdiness” as code for “look how hip I am”. BUT, maybe thats the point. IE; would my attention-deprived, history-bereft generation read about Winthrop otherwise if not taken to his Massachusetts of almost 400 years ago by your cool cousin who also likes to listen to the same types of music as you while getting there?
Her books are not formal history-but you will learn history form reading them. What makes them entertaining is her humor and the connections she makes.
Chuck Voellinger, Emily Fowler Library
LBJ at the DPL
The Denton Public Library has a good collection of non-fiction and biographical titles about the 36th President. Also, in The Texas Collection at the Emily Fowler Library, there are rare and out of print titles that can be read but have to remain in the building. Good stuff.
LBJ (l.) and Sen. Richard Russell (D-Ga.), leader of the "Southern Caucus" ca. 1963
If you are obsessed with 20th Century American political history like me, there are a handful of major players that you have to get a handle on if you want to understand what happened. Along with Nixon, Roosevelt, MLK, Jr., Hubert Humphrey, Richard Russell and a few others, Johnson helped shape the politics and country we live with and in today.
Robert Caro's "Master of the Senate" (2002)
My favorite LBJ bios are written by Robert Caro: “The Path To Power” (1982), “Means of Ascent” (1990) and “Master of the Senate” (2002). A projected fourth volume covering the Vice-Presidency and Presidency is not yet completed. Caro writes almost in a literary style and has a gift for suspense. For instance, the recounting of both the 1948 Senate race and the struggle over the 1957 Civil Rights Act manages to give a sense of the high drama surrounding those events.
I wouldn’t call LBJ a hero because so much of what he did was motivated by naked ambition and by the darker forces in his personality. Yet, he did harness and moderate those forces along with his uncanny ability to use power for the advancement of social justice. Endlessly fascinating, frustrating, inspirational, disgusting, sometimes funny and angering, LBJ was, as much of a cliche as it is to say, a larger-than-life character.
Always the first person on my “Fantasy Dinner Party” list.
-Chuck Voellinger, Emily Fowler Library
What We Are Reading
The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell: This doorstop of a book, a quick and compelling, first person narrative/fictional memoir, demands quite a commitment and really weighs down my bike bag. -Bill, Tech Services
A Stillness At Appomattox by Bruce Catton. Details the last year of the American Civil War in the East and the Battles between Grant and Lee in Virginia. Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner. Very readable history although a bit heavy handed in the attempts at symbolism and poetic description. Still, manages to capture a mood. -Chuck, Emily Fowler Central Library
The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan. This weep inducing memoir relates Corrigan’s battle with breast cancer as a 36 year-old mother of two and her father’s simultaneous battle against bladder cancer. Corrigan’s subtle levity keeps the book from being sentimental, and brings some laughter in between the tears. -Dana, North Branch Library
I’m listening to The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker. It makes my commute go by pretty fast. I am liking it so far (about ½ way done!) and am reminded of The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. It is about a small town in New York, a very large woman, and the simple things in life. It takes place in the 50s-60s-70s (so far), and I find it really…soothing -Sian, Tech Services
First Comes Marriage by Mary Balogh. In Balogh’s new Regency series, we meet an ordinary family unexpectedly thrust into the aristocracy. In order to save her sister from a loveless marriage, Vanessa Huxtable offers to marry Viscount Lyngate herself even though he finds her to be one of the most outspoken and infuriating women he has ever met. Will this marriage of convenience turn into something more? -Stacey, Emily Fowler Central Library
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