Ages 18+.
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Another Dillard classic
by Maxine
Annie Dillard, known for her evocative nature writing in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, fiction and poetry brings us a tender, beautifully written love story called The Maytrees. Set in Provincetown, Cape Cod, the novel is about Toby Maytree, poet and handyman and his livelong love, Lou Bigelow, a painter, who meet and marry in this bohemian town after World War II. They read books together, cook lots of soup and raise a son, Petie. Dillard evokes the windswept beauty of the Cape as a backdrop for changes that to others may seem cruel when Tobey, leaves Lou to live with another woman. The Maytrees is a poetically imagined story of love's resilience and proves once again that Dillard is truly a master of her craft.
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Any bug lovers out there?
by manz
The periodical cicada has invaded the Midwest by the billions over the past few weeks- particularly in parts of Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin. These red-eyed beauties (yes, I said beauties!) spend 17 years underground before they emerge, and when they emerge, boy are they en masse! Some people find them amazing, others find them loud and messy. You can be your own judge of that. Find more cicada facts, and colorful pictures too, here. Happy reading, and don’t let them bug you too much!
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #72
by muffy
I am sure if you are a reader of mysteries, you would have come across some very famous feline detectives. Occasionally, a dog or two have tried to get in on the act. Clever, I am sure, but they have always relied on their two-legged sidekicks.
Now Leonie Swann, in her debut mystery (translated from German) Three Bags Full* introduces fleecy ones who work alone!
In the bucolic Irish village of Glennkill, a flock of sheep has just come across the murdered body of its beloved shepherd George Glenn. Led by the very smart Miss Marple, they are determined to bring the killer to justice, not withstanding all the obstacles in their way (they can’t talk, their chief suspects is the BUTCHER!).
Already a bestseller in Europe, U.S critics are calling Three Bags Full a “quirky philosophical mystery”, “refreshingly original” and “magical”. Swann also “peppers the text with literary allusion that add humor and lighten the existential gloom of both people and sheep”.
* = Starred Review
Blog Post
New Fiction on the New York Times Best Sellers List (6/17/07)
by Mazie
I'm not a big fan of horror, in books or in films. I prefer mysteries for my chills and thrills. Along with Stephen King, however, Dean Koontz is bending the genres with dark and suspenseful tales that may feature a major plot element outside the norm. Think Hitchcock. Think classic film noir. Good Guy is his latest breathtaking thriller, featuring a "wrong man" and leaving readers enthralled.
The other new entries are Sacrifice by Karen Traviss, the latest addition to the Star Wars saga, and Lawman by Diana Palmer, another romantic thriller from this prolific author.
For a look at the entire List go to this site.
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #71
by muffy
If you enjoyed The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, (Did you like the movie too?) I would suggest The Last Summer (of you and me). It is teen author Ann Brashares's break into the adult market, and a summer read, perfect for the beach.
Paul (McCartney) named after Sir Paul by his wayward father, and sisters Riley and Alice have been pals since they were babies, growing up next door to each other summering on Fire Island. Tomboy older sister Riley and Paul have a strong connection that transcend the seasons, until the summer when Alice turns 21 and heading to law school.
That summer, she and Paul decide to act on their mutual attraction with unforeseen consequences. When a family tragedy strikes, it forever alters the course they have set for themselves. A coming-of-age story sure to please the Brashares fans.
Blog Post
Roots Anniversary
by Sis
It has been twenty years since the highly rated and watched televised adaptation of the first edition of Roots by Alex Haley. Roots: The 30th Anniversary Edition is the new edition of the book now available. This edition also includes an introduction by Michael Eric Dyson. If you did not read this book before or if you want to revisit the racial, cultural, social, and political dialogue presented in this saga of Kunta Kinte and his kin now is the time. The 30th anniversary edition of the dvds, Roots. Disc 1, Roots. Disc 2, Roots. Disc 3, and Roots. Disc 4 deserve a look too.
Blog Post
DVD Bits - Ballykissangel
by ryanikoglu
Ballykissangel. Catholic. Northern Ireland. Priest, Veteranarian, farmer, land developer, teacher, guard and the Pub. BBC Northern Ireland produced this 5 season series based on a small rural town in Ireland, and you probably never heard of it. If you liked Northern Exposure try this. The series is one hour segments of characters in the community and we have all five seasons of the series in the Library. Hollywood video can't even brag this.
Blog Post
".....of clay and wattles made...."
by Maxine
Today, June 13 is the birthday of Irish poet, William Butler Yeats who was born in Dublin in 1865. Although brought up in a Protestant family, he was not pro-British. Yeats as a young man was more interested in mysticism than politics and his early poetry reflects involvement with some teachers of the occult at that time. But after meeting and falling in love with Irish nationalist, Maud Gonne, Yeats became a spokesman for Irish independence, becoming a senator in the Irish Parliament in his later years. He was also a strong supporter of theater, co-founding the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. Yeats was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1923. As a lyrical poet, Yeats was able to evoke the magic of place as in one of his most famous poems, "The Lake Isle of Innisfree."
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all aglimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.
I will arise and go now, for always night and day I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
Blog Post
He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not
by french_film_grl
When you are a French Film luvr, as I am, you are usually an Audrey Tautou luvr as well. Audrey is a wonderful actress that posts high in my "A2-C2" actress list. This "A2-C2" categorization means Audrey embodies the characteristics of being attractive, adorable, charming, and classic. In the movie, He Loves Me, He loves me not Tatou plays a character, Angelique, that is reminiscent of Glenn Close's character, Alex, in Fatal Attraction. Instead of one climactic rabbit boiling scene in this film, the climax unfolds slowly as a series of seemingly innocent events. What REALLY is, is not what you were lead to think it was. Yes, it is all very sneaky, sneaky...but, we are misled so well. Misled so cleverly actually, that I had to go back into the film to verify that I saw what I actually thought I saw. Let's just say the love affair in this film between the two main characters is not based in reality, but pure fantasy. Feel the chill when you notice the pharmaceutical collage in the shape of Angelique's love interest in the final scene! The official FFG rating of this movie is a 9.
Blog Post
Portrait of a great photographer
by Maxine
First time novelist Emily Mitchell in her book Last Summer of the World, presents a compelling portrait of photographer Edward Steichen. She focuses on the period in which Steichen was a photographer on airborne reconnaissance missions during World War I. His pictures presented the horrors of war and are described in detail. A major part of the story takes place in France including a visit to sculptor Auguste Rodin. Also described is his stormy marriage to Clara, rocked by an affair. In this powerful narrative, Mitchell skillfully combines fact and fiction to create a profile of a visionary whose ego complicated the lives of others.