Wednesday July 8, 2009: 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm -- Pittsfield Branch: Program Room

The story of Shi Pei Pu and Bernard Boursicot is more proof truth is stranger than fiction.

Bouriscot, was a worker at the French Embassy in Beijing when he fell in love with Shi Pei Pu, an opera singer who was a man masquerading as a woman. Read the obituary for the incredibly strange story of love, espionage and music.

Did you know that for the first time ever, 826michigan is offering writing workshops for adults? Isn't that awesome!? The 826michigan 2009 adult workshop series is called How To Write Like I Do. Meet real-life writers, pick up a few of their trade secrets, and spend some time practicing your own writing with other local writers. The cost of the workshops includes coffee and Zingerman's treats and will help support 826michigan's free literacy programs for local kids. You can register here.

The Old Gray Lady has covered all these events and more:

Lincoln’s assassination, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Lindbergh’s solo flight across the Atlantic, WW I, the Normandy Invasion, the Titanic disaster, Watergate, and 9/11.

If you give this book to a history buff you may never see him or her again. About 300 of the most momentous front pages are printed in this mammoth book. Also included are 3 very user friendly DVDs that cover every single front page through 2008.

If you don't ever hear from me again you'll know what happened.

The Frightened Man* launches a historical mystery series set in Jack-the-Ripper era London. Author Kenneth Cameron also writes military thrillers with his son under the name Gordon Kent.

Infamous American ex-lawman Denton now lives a solitary life in London, (we will discover his tragic past) sporadically turning out sensational novels of questionable quality. He is smitten with a two-timing mistress, well-served by his Jeeves-like Sergeant Atkins, and gets himself tangled up in the gruesome murder of a young prostitute. It all started with the visit of a frightened stranger who claims to have witnessed Jack the Ripper at work.

“A gripping page-turner, Cameron's novel combines a devilishly clever plot, enigmatic characters, a foreboding atmosphere, and a shocking finale. A top pick for all crime collections.” ~ Booklist

Fans of atmospheric historical mysteries set in London might also like C.S. Harris’s Where Serpents Sleep (2008), 4th in the Sebastian St. Cyr series featuring a Regency-era gentleman sleuth. Dust and Shadow: An account of the Ripper killings by Dr. John H. Watson (2009) by Lyndsay Faye is a fictionalized documentary of the most famous serial killer in history.

* = Starred review

C.E. Morgan's first novel, All the Living, told in luminous prose, is the story of Aloma, a mission school girl, who falls for Orren, a tobacco farmer who is still greiving the loss of his family in a car crash. They live a hard scrabble life with Orren retreating further into himself through work and Aloma regretting her decision to desert her dreams of becoming a pianist. When Aloma gets a job playing piano at a nearby church, she develops a deep friendship with the preacher which confuses her intentions even more. Morgan grapples with some elemental questions: the power of work to instill love and the meaning of the "real world" Aloma longs for in what looks like isolation.

Want to invest in your home and make it worth more? AADL has a 24 part DVD series titled Today's Homeowner with Danny Lipford. Danny has over 25 years of experience doing home renovations, and these DVDs are realistic and practical. These DVDs include step by step instructions for: kitchen expansion, siding replacement, bedroom additions, bathroom additions, garden room additions, roofing, and painting. If you are thinking of starting a home renovation project, check out these DVDs first. They are sure to make your project run smoother, and turn out wonderfully!

Dr. Jerri Nielsen FitzGerald, author of one of the greatest South Pole survival stories, Ice Bound: A Doctor’s Incredible Battle for Survival at the South Pole, died June 23.

In 1999, Dr. FitzGerald was reeling from a bitter divorce and worn out from her long hours as an ER doc when she answered an ad for a physician at the National Science Foundation’s Amundsen-Scott research station. In May of that year she discovered a lump in her breast and, with the help of a welder and a maintenance worker, performed a biopsy which tested positive for breast cancer. She began chemo but couldn’t leave the station until the temps went from 118 below zero to minus 60. A daring rescue by the NY National Guard brought her back to the US where she did well until her cancer returned in 2005. Ice Bound is her spellbinding recounting of this incredible effort to save a life.

Dr. Fitzgerald was 57.

Michael Jackson, the brilliantly talented, deeply troubled, endlessly controversial, undisputed King of Pop, died yesterday in Los Angeles.

Jackson’s career began 45 years ago as the youngest of the Gary, Indiana, Jackson Five brothers whose career was managed by their father, Joe. When Motown signed them on, they were instantly hugely successful.

Jackson’s solo career, which he began in 1971, was enormous. Thriller, Billie Jean, Black or White – his list of hits which helped sell more than 750 million albums goes on and on. His stage presence, magical dancing feats, and stunning special lighting effects, mesmerized his audiences around the globe.

As his popularity soared, so did curiosity over his increasingly unusual behavior and troubling legal battles. He altered his physical appearance through countless plastic surgeries. His skin color changed. He was put on trial for child abuse. His finances were in disarray.

And yet, throughout all these difficulties, he remained the consummate, charming, inventive performer, who was weeks short of launching his This Is It, 50-concert, comeback tour in London.

Jackson, who was 50, is survived by his three children, eight siblings, and his parents.

Set in Belle Époque Paris, Chéri is the story of the love affair between the beautiful courtesan Léa and Chéri, the son of her old colleague and rival. When a marriage is secretly arranged for Cheri to another rich courtesan, they found out, too late, how much they meant to each other.

The sumptuous period drama with blinding star voltage (Michelle Pfeiffer, Kathy Bates) is based on a short novel by Colette, pen name for the flamboyant French novelist Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette. (Limited release - a chick pick)

The Hollywood adaptation of My Sister’s Keeper is based on popular novelist Jodi Picoult's 2004 bestseller.

Sisters Kate and Anna share a bond closer than most sisters. Throughout their young lives, the sisters endure various medical procedures and hospital stays. Kate has Leukemia, and Anna was conceived to save her sister's life. Anna, now 11 seeks medical emancipation, hires her own lawyer, and initiates a court case that would divide the family. (3 hankies)

Public Enemies is adapted from Bryan Burrough's Public Enemies : America's greatest crime wave and the birth of the FBI, 1933-34 - the true story of legendary Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger, the charismatic bank robber whose lightning raids made him the number one target of J. Edgar Hoover's fledgling FBI and its top agent, Melvin Purvis. Starring Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, and Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard, one would not be surprised to find this the action/thriller of the summer.