And the nominees for the World Fantasy Awards include: 2 debut writers (both just happen to be women...) and 2 set in Africa

Zoo City by Lauren Beukes-my personal favorite from this South African writer

Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin-she has written plenty of award winning short fiction,this is her first novel & part of the Inheritance Trilogy (the third book comes out in October)

Silent Land by Graham Joyce- genre mashup mostly of suspense fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown in; compared to writers Haruki Murakami and Ian McEwan

Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay- not unlike the fantasy writer George R R Martin did with his Song of Ice and Fire series, Kay tries to do with one book set in a world not unlike 8th Century China; lots of kudos from reviewers

Redemption In Indigo by Karen Lord- another first fiction retells a Senegalese folktale

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor-known for her young adult fiction, this book takes place in a postapocalyptic Saharan Africa where a young girl must use her magic to end the oppression of her people, the Okeke

Lifetime achievement awards go to Peter S. Beagle (of Last Unicorn fame) and Angélica Gorodischer.

The winner will be announced at the World Fantasy Convention held this year on October 30th in San Diego. So get your geek on!

Jennifer Close's debut novel Girls in White Dresses * is a perfect way to wrap up a lovely summer, like putting on your favorite frock just one more time.

"Wickedly hilarious and utterly recognizable, Girls in White Dresses tells the story of three women grappling with heartbreak and career change, family pressure and new love—all while suffering through an endless round of weddings and bridal showers." You get the picture.

Sunday after Sunday, Isabella, Mary, and Lauren in their pastel dresses, attend bridal shower after bridal shower, drink champagne, eat minuscule sandwiches and doll-sized cakes, all the while thinking when-it-would-be-their-turn.

"Close's novel in a series of linked stories, expresses the perfect blend of mid twenties angst, collegiate nostalgia, and plentiful laughter."

For fans of Melissa Bank's The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing and J. Courtney Sullivan's Commencement (in audio)

* = Starred review

YOU can access almost 1,000 digital music albums directly through our AADL.org catalog. Stream or download as much as you like, DRM free, on any device you choose. No waiting for a copy. No due dates. Hooray!

HIP HOP/ RAP
Marginal Prophets: Smart-Alecky, 'Semi-Conscious' Hip-Hop
San Francisco Bay Area favorites and indie best-sellers The Marginal Prophets have performed with Black Eyed Peas, De La Soul, Spearhead, Fishbone, and many other rap and rock royals alike. Their hugely entertaining hybrid of hip-hop and garage rock is smart-alecky and sultry, perceptive and playful -- kind of like what the Beastie Boys might sound like if they were being backed by Beck. Bohemian Rap won a California Music Award for Outstanding Rap Album and is a masterpiece of witty, riffy perfection.

CLASSICAL
Viviana Guzman: Virtuosic Flutist
Elegant baroque flute fantasies made alluring and modern. Georg Philipp Telemann (1681 - 1767) was a prolific, popular German Baroque music composer. The Telemann Flute Fantasies are miniature sonata gems. Published in 1732, each fantasy has a playing time of approximately 3 to 5 minutes. On this recording Viviana Guzman showcases her 9K Muramatsu Flute, giving the Fantasies an added golden touch.

ALT ROCK
Anton Cosmo: Rock Superstar to Be
Anton Cosmo, a native of Upstate New York, was raised in a home filled with music. He is the son of Fran Cosmo, former singer of the band Boston. On his album, The In Between, Anton gives a nod to influences such as U2 and Incubus, as well as echoes of visionaries like Peter Gabriel. Anton's lyrics and soaring pop arena rock sound have a dark edge, with some songs influenced by the public's current fascination with vampire sagas such as Twilight, and the popular HBO series True Blood.

WORLD / INDIAN
Suchita Parte: Ancient Indian Songs in a Modern Blend
Wow. Designer Bliss really brings out the natural softness and femininity of Suchita Parte's incredibly beautiful voice. The opening track, "Tvamekam Sharannyam" is deeply pretty, as are "Pandurangashtakam" and "Narayanam". The entire album is a very successful, subtle pop update of a classical Indian style. Completely sublime, highly recommended.

AMBIENT / NEW AGE
Paul Avgerinos: Beautiful Ambient Space Music
A glowing, watercolor wash of angelic choirs and ancient Greek chants, Gnosis is based on the Gnostic tradition and wisdom of ancient Greek mystery societies, and features perfectly integrated sounds of tabla, oud, sarangi, and cello. Allmusic.com named Paul Avgerinos "one of the giants of ambient music," and the stellar sound design on this release makes apparent how he earned the title. Standout tracks include the mellow "Journey To Now" and the title track, "Gnosis."

Folk musician and teacher Beth Battey has an endless repetoire of fun traditional songs and action games to play with your classroom or your own children! So bring only your INNER child for music and games on Tuesday, August 16 at 7:00 pm at the Pittsfield branch.

Picking exactly the right BOCD for a long family car trip can be very important. For a steady stream of witty, engaging stories, try The Wayside School Collection, by Louis Sachar. For newbies, Wayside School was supposed to be 30 classrooms on one level, but accidentally it was built 30 stories high with one classroom on each level. Characters -- both kids and adults -- are engaging, hilarious, and entirely believable (at least to me). The BOCD collection has 7 discs each lasting 77 minutes -- for a total of almost 9 hours of listening. Hit the road, pop in Disc 1, and prepare for happy listening!

YOU can access almost 1,000 digital music albums directly through our AADL.org catalog. Stream or download as much as you like, DRM free, on any device you choose. No waiting for a copy. No due dates. Hooray!

HARD ROCK / METAL
Atomic Opera: Progressive World-Influenced Hard Rock
With dark, heavy grooves and a big, sweeping sound, Atomic Opera is firmly rooted in a rock and metal tradition that began with Black Sabbath and was continued by Metallica, but adds lilting, irresistably Beatles-ish melodies and unexpected, towering harmonies evocative of prog rock bands like Rush and Yes. Add the presence of Frank Hart's sophisticated arrangements for cello, acoustic guitar, mandolin, dulcimer, organ, recorders and hand percussion, and you get a stellar old world art rock sound with a progressive folk metal edge. This brooding yet accessible music was born of same fertile Houston scene that produced Galactic Cowboys, The Awful Truth, and King's X.

POP / ELECTRO ROCK
The Kokoon: 1980's Style New Wave
For a decidedly new wave album, there's a lot of passion and emotion on Erase. Danyx's brooding, Nico-esque voice carries highlight tracks like "Face," "Delicate," the Cure-tinged "Tied," and "Take Me to the World," a bittersweet but ultimately upbeat song. Or try the band's second release Berlin. It's just so damn sexy. Angular, androgynous, pouty? It's a Bowie/Siouxsie-influenced urchin of an album that'll have you strutting around the house like a Milanese model on a Fashion Week catwalk. Highlights include the smouldering opener "Impressions," possibly the world's only New Wave drinking song "We Didn't Go," and the deliciously disaffected "Tap At Floes." No 3 is The Kokoon's most recent album - check that one out too.

WORLD
Middle-Earth Ensemble: Sultry and Percussive Mid-East Fusion
Middle-Earth Ensemble creates a unique gypsy infused sound inspired by music of the Mediterranean and Middle-East. Their music has fueled the hips of many a belly dancer. Their latest album, Passage, emphasizes their original material while continuing to draw on traditional and fusion styles as varied as Arabic, Turkish, Moorish, Spanish, Gypsy, Celtic, and Classical. The title track includes Indian tablas and exemplifies the fusion that Middle-Earth has created. Belly dance aficionados will surely recognize the new renditions of " Rompi Rompi" and "Tamr Henna". This release transcends the belly dance genre and includes a variety of styles and sounds that would be sure to please anyone interested in or curious about Middle-Eastern music.

ALT ROCK
Seconds Before: Minneapolis Modern Rock
Seconds Before fuses high octane rock, memorable pop sensibilities, and progressive arrangements into a sound that's as hard to pigeonhole as it is to resist. These five music junkies have a wealth of experience as songwriters and performers, and their enthusiasm and professionalism come across both in their recordings as well as their explosive live shows. Change Is The Only Constant features songs that you just might not be able to get out of your head (in the good way, not the annoying way). Give the newest Seconds Before album a spin, but don't get too comfortable, because change is... well, you know.

JAZZ / NEW AGE
Ehren Starks: Piano and Cello
Lines Build Walls, the second album from pianist Ehren Starks, is both strikingly modern and completely evocative. Cleanly elegant piano compositions show great attention to both structure and melody, and Starks demonstrates deep fluency and depth of feeling for his instrument throughout. There's an internal logic to this music that calls to mind contemporary architectural forms, yet it's incredibly lyrical too—the streamlined poetics of a young master. Highly recommended.

YOU can access almost 1,000 digital music albums directly through our AADL.org catalog. Stream or download as much as you like, DRM free, on any device you choose. No waiting for a copy. No due dates. Hooray!

JAZZ / R&B
Askold Buk: Guitar-Driven, Groove-Oriented Feel-Good Jazz/R&B Tunes
"I think a lot of today's instrumental music takes itself so seriously that it intimidates people - it's quite different from the great instrumentals I remember that were catchy, feel-good tunes with no pretense," observes guitarist Askold Buk. "My goal is to recapture that vibe by writing music that is as much fun to listen to as it is to play." Buk certainly creates a fun, unpretentious mood on his critically-acclaimed debut album, which is chock full of melodic, guitar-driven, groove-oriented jazz/r&b tunes.

ALT ROCK
Where's Moo: Moody, Atmospheric, Paranoid and Definitely Not Typical Rock and Roll
Los Angeles alternative rock outfit Where's Moo have reached new heights with their latest full length album, Dear Friend Dopamine. Fans have likened Where's Moo sound to R.E.M. and The Pixies having sex on a spaceship crashing into the sun. This album is a prime example of the sentiment, so perusing the disc on your iPod in a coffee shop is not recommended, as it is guaranteed to make you spill your latte. Where's Moo take the ball, run with it, and kick it all over the place. Dear Friend Dopamine is no mere collection of Xerox rock and roll, but the birth of something exciting and new.

OPERA
Philharmonia Baroque: Historically-Informed Classical Orchestra
Not only is this the only in-print recording of Handel's magnificent and rarely performed Atalanta but, as the Wall Street Journal observed in April 2006, this two CD release by San Francisco's Philharmonia Baroque also represents an important shift in the Classical world towards digital distribution. As a work of art, Atalanta is the most festive and idyllic of all Handel's operas—one brought to life by this fresh, charming performance under the direction of Nicholas McGegan.

AMBIENT / ELECTRONIC / NEW AGE
Sieber, Kammen and Fulton: Dreamy Music from the Acclaimed Video Game "Braid"
This haunting soundtrack is an eclectic, abstract and deeply emotive selection of modern Celtic music and medieval instrumentation. Not a gamer? No worries. Knowledge of the game is not required to appreciate the offerings from electric cellist Jami Sieber, Celtic musician Shira Kammen, and harpist Cheryl Ann Fulton. For those not in the know, Braid is a unique, painterly video game filled with puzzles, a princess in distress, and opportunities to manipulate time.

WORLD
Solace: Classical Middle-Eastern with Excursions into Electronica
Lose yourself in the intoxicating sounds of Opium Head. This aural narcotic is an experiment in structure and sound, designed without regard for genre. The songs contained herein are not compositions, but rather arrangements of various Indian Bhangra and Bollywood samples demodulated from their organic forms, modified, then arranged in a rhythmic/melodic mix. The parameter prescribed for this project was to create an organic mix laced with minimal electronica, as compared to an over-the-counter electronic mix dosed with minimal organic sounds. Music is our drug, take a listen and join us in our addiction.

After zipping through the novel Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar, I'm eager to hear the BOCD, narrated by Ryan MacConnell and the Full Cast Family. The novel is laugh-out-loud funny, as Scott navigates his first year of high school. English is his strong suit, and he hones his skills by writing to his soon-to-be-born baby brother. Very touching. The recorded book lasts 6 hours and 45 minutes, sure to be good entertainment on a summer road trip.

Amy Winehouse, who spent just four convulsive years as a British retro-R&B singing phenom, was found dead in London on Saturday. Cause of death will be determined once the autopsy results are released.

Her second album, Back to Black (2006), shot her to the top of the charts as she gave credit to the influence Frank Sinatra, Thelonius Monk, and rapper Nas for shaping her unique style.

While fans flooded Twitter and Facebook with expressions of sadness, no one was surprised. Her meteoric rise was riddled with almost as many stories of public meltdowns, drug abuse, failed rehab attempts, and cancelled concerts as it was with her hits and five Grammy Awards.

An unfortunate ghoulish blowback from Ms. Winehouse's death is the renewed fascination with the Forever 27 Club which Ms. Winehouse has now joined. What is it about the rocker lifestyle that causes so many of its brightest stars to flame out at age 27?

“I” was in Ms. Rachel’s letter box, so Preschool Storytime was brought to you by the letter "i" and "insects". You can repeat one of the stories or explore related titles from the following:
Go To Sleep Gecko is an Indonesian folktale about ecology that begins with fireflies.
Tiny Little Fly and Old Black Fly ... they never catch the fly!
Sing "Ants Go Marching" and other songs with the 50 Silly Songs CD.
You can learn real information by browsing books from two very popular series:
Insect, which is a DK Eyewitness Book, and
Insects, which is a True Book.

Take a field trip to Traverwood Branch Library and view the glass case with Cecropia larvae munching on walnut leaves. This display is from the Leslie Nature Center.