Seré Prince Halverson's debut novel - The Underside of Joy quietly and immediately draws the reader in with : “For three years, I did back flips in the deep end of happiness. The joy was palpable and often loud. Other times it softened..... I also know now, years later, something else: The most genuine happiness cannot be so pure, so deep, and so blind."

Ella Beene's back flips in happiness are named Joe, Annie and Zach. She met Joe as she stopped at Elbow, a small, funky town along the Redwoods River in North California and never left, becoming stepmother to Joe's children when they married. When Joe died, Ella's grief was compounded with Paige, the children's biological mother showing up at the funeral.

As a bitter custody battle raged between the two women, long-buried secrets which Joe took great pains to hide from Ella came to light. Joe's once close-knit Italian-American family initially supportive, took sides, leaving Ella feeling abandoned.

"Weaving a rich fictional tapestry abundantly alive with the glorious natural beauty of the novel's setting, Halverson is a captivating guide through the flora and fauna of human emotion-grief and anger, shame and forgiveness, happiness and its shadow complement . . . the underside of joy."

'A poignant debut about mothers, secrets and sacrifices. "

Readers who enjoyed Jacquelyn Mitchard's A Theory of Relativity (2001); Marisa De Los Santo's Love Walked In (2006) and Belong to Me (2008); and Caroline Leavitt's Pictures of You (2011) will find much to like with this debut novel.

This is Ann Arbor District Library's online exhibit of the history of the Ann Arbor Police Department since 1847. This research database includes a searchable picture exhibit of the police department with images dating as far back as 1871. It also includes an interesting True Crimes section as well as the history of police department's pistol range. To access AAPD History, go to the Research page, select Ann Arbor under the Complete subject listing category, and choose Ann Arbor Police Department History.

The Taubman Health Sciences Library at the University of Michigan will host the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s traveling exhibition, Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race. The exhibition illustrates how Nazi leadership enlisted people in professions traditionally charged with healing and the public good, to legitimize persecution, murder and, ultimately, genocide.

Wednesday, February 7, Workantile will be offering a two hour design/manufacture how-to for 3D Printing. You'll be able to see how it works, learn how, and walk out with your own design in the same night! The class will be taught by David Erik Nelson, author of Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred: Seriously Geeky Stuff to Make With Your Kids, and the world-traveling Maker vagabonds Bilal and Alex. Together, the group will be making iPhone cases, belt buckles, jewelry--or whatever else you can design together. Just bring an idea and a laptop and you're all set.
Interested? More information can be found here.
or by emailing Dave at dave@davidericknelson.com
Happy Making!

One of the many perks of working in a library includes shelving books. It's often during shelving that I find some of my favorite reads that I'd likely not come across otherwise. One of those books (and the rest in the series) is Bitten & Smitten by Michelle Rowen. The bright cover caught my eye and the witty summary sucked me in (pun fully intended).

Sarah Dearly, the saucy yet reluctant heroine, finds herself just trying to live through what she has dubbed the "world's worst blind date" when she suddenly wakes up to find herself being buried, almost undead, in a shallow grave. She escapes only to witness her blind date being "taken care of" by what she soon learns are vampire hunters. Unfortunately, thanks to the "love bites" left by her undead date, she now has to escape the hunters or wind up sharing more than just a bad night with her toothy date.

Her escape leads her to Thierry de Bennicoeur, a moody vampire master who helps her evade the stakes of her stalkers. After stumbling through her first "undead days," Sarah realizes she's going to need a little more help than she thought when it comes to navigating the night. Michelle Rowen draws the reader into this light read with suspense and quick one liners.

It is so thrilling when a performer you have admired for years, hits the stage in Ann Arbor and you feel like you can share him with your favorite friends. Willy Claflin is an award-winning author, balladeer and storyteller. Not only will he teach us his hilarious voice techniques on Saturday, February 18 at 10 am at the Downtown Library, but he’ll entertain on Saturday evening for adults and Sunday afternoon for children at The Ark as part of their 25th annual Storytelling Festival.

At this hands-on workshop you’ll get a chance to pull your own screen printed tea towel to take home. We’ll also get you caught up on all things related to printing up stylish towels. Hand printed tea towels are a great way to add a bit of whimsy to one’s kitchen, as they’re both colorful and creative!

We’ll also have linoleum blocks carved and ready for you to use to stamp a design onto a fat quarter of fabric. You can then do what you will with the fabric! You can use it in a plethora of handmade projects, including: A throw pillow, a bag, a placemat, for appliques, and more. It’s up to you. You’ll leave the workshop with a tea towel and a fat quarter, ready to add some sparkle to your abode.

To expand upon the joy of printing on fabric, here are some crafty books to get you going.

This DIY event is for grade 6 – Adult, and takes place at Pittsfield on Tuesday, February 7, from 7-8:30pm.

wallstdemystified

If you've ever wanted to get a clear picture of your investments with qualified, unbiased advice take this class! Get independent and trusted stock and mutual fund analysis, research and ratings from Morningstar, the research database with a reputation for tough, independent-minded research that has led to invitations to testify before Congress on various financial issues. Just another of the great services provided to you by the Ann Arbor District Library.

No need to register, just join us Tuesday, February 7, 2012: 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm at the Downtown Library: Training Center.

Morningstar experts will give easy instructions on how to use their database. Then, practice what you've learned on our training center computers!

In addition, Morningstar's director of personal finance, Christine Benz has created a 30 Days to Financial Fitness guide. In this user-friendly booklet, she breaks down large financial goals into smaller, more manageable steps, one day at a time.

Sign in to your online Ann Arbor District Library account to access an electronic copy of the Morningstar 30 Days to Financial Fitness at Morningstar Investment Research.

See you next Tuesday!

J.L. Smith's The Vampire Diaries and Sara Shepard's Pretty Little Liars are popular teen novel series that have been made into successful television series. The shows are enjoyed by both adults and young adults, so don’t let the word “teen” scare you.

The Vampire Diaries TV series, now in its third season, takes place in Mystic Falls, Va., a small town haunted by supernatural beings. Two vampire brothers start at Mystic Falls High, one good and one evil, and both end up vying for Elena’s soul. The show focuses on the adventures of this love triangle and their friends as they deal with their dark pasts.

The television series Pretty Little Liars is set in the fictitious town of Rosewood, Pa. Now in its second season, the show follows four friends as their little group falls apart following the disappearance of their ring leader, Alison. A year after Alison's disappearance, the friends start receiving messages from someone called “A.” This mystery person threatens to reveal the clique’s dark secrets. Is it Alison? And if not, then who? The girls are on a mission to find out.

Sunday, February 5 | 1:00-3:00 PM | Downtown Library | Multipurpose Room | Gr. 6-Adults

Welcome cartoonists Audra Furuichi and Scott Yoshinaga from sunny Honolulu, Hawaii (via Skype), as they discuss how they work together to create comics and run their business.

Audra and Scott are the co-creators of nemu*nemu, an original, online comic that has been running since 2006. Not only are they inspired by anime and manga, but the duo also strives to bring a touch of Saturday morning cartoons and Sunday funnies with a good dose of “small kid time” nostalgia to everything they do.