Kick Keswick: Three Measures of Elegant Summer Fluff

Tue, 08/01/2006 - 3:58pm by Van

Kick Keswick did not know who her father was. Her mother lived in a trailer in the Oklahoma oil fields. Kick was a shoplifter of jewelry. After a year in juvenile detention, she goes off to college, takes a trip to London, skips out on the group tour, buys a very short Mary Quant miniskirt and some plastic boots, gets soaked in the rain, and is ushered into the limousine of Sir Cramner Ballantine, owner of the venerable Ballantine & Company Auctioneers. She becomes his mistress and the executive secretary of the auction house. She gradually becomes an elegant and self-possessed woman with a love for food, chocolate, wine, and jewels. She is a master jeweler and a master jewel thief (the Shamrock Burglar, leaving a “lovely crisp bouquet of shamrocks tied with an ivory satin ribbon” in the place of the stolen jewelry).

She wittily narrates three charming adventures (best read in order):

Brilliant 2003
Priceless 2004
Perfect 2005

Beach Reads #5 (admittedly borrowed...)

Mon, 07/31/2006 - 3:37pm by muffy

Billed as the British version of Oprah's Book Club, the vastly popular "Richard (Madeley) & Judy (Finnigan)" talk show has its very own RICHARD & JUDY'S SUMMER READ!.

The 2006 list is selected by Amanda Ross who is the joint managing director of Cactus TV, which produces the show, and was recently named the No. 1 most influential person in British publishing.

Instead of the authors or experts, a panel of celebrities is invited to discuss the books (only paperback titles are considered) on air. Richard & Judy are pleased that "The books are there to be read and enjoyed and talked about sensibly, not in the rarefied ways of a wine buff or a food critic, but in the way the rest of the world does".

Don't be surprised to find U.S. titles and some very familiar names, and what a great way to get to know new ones.

FolkTale Bits - African-American Tall Tales

Thu, 07/27/2006 - 6:07pm by ryanikoglu

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Zora Neale Hurston collected these "lies" from "professional liars" of the Gulf States, as she noticed there was a "decline in the quality of lies and it was just gone get worse, unless somebody did something." Christopher Myers, the adaptor and illustrator, "found them in a government office, which is where they are keeping all the llies nowadays." Each page is a new "lie". It could be great fun to create your own "lies" based on these examples. Can you top this?

New Fiction Titles on the New York Times Best Sellers List (7/30/06)

Thu, 07/27/2006 - 1:59pm by Mazie

Nora Roberts is a modern publishing phenomenon. She lands more titles on national best seller lists than any other author, outselling all others as well, commanding almost 10% of the book market. There is a formula but for her legions of fans, she refreshes the story every time and they keep coming back for more.

At #1 is Angels Fall by Nora Roberts: the undisputed queen of romantic fiction strikes gold once again with her latest thriller; after suffering a traumatic shock in Boston, a young chef takes off and ends up in Wyoming where she witnesses a murder. Or does she?

At #5 is Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs: fans of the TV show Bones will want to read the latest adventure of forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. Our appealing heroines keeps finding bodies around Charleston.

At #16 is Dragon's Fire by Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey: in their second collaboration in this series the authors (mother and son) return to Pern; in a race to stave off disaster, the inhabitants mine dangerous minerals and use slave labor. Fantasy or the real world?

A Mother and Daughter's Secret

Wed, 07/26/2006 - 9:28am by Sis

Secret Daughter by June Cross tells the emotional story of the bi-racial daughter of Norma, a white woman, and James "Stump" Cross, a well-known African-American comedian. Since the kinky hair and dark skin did not allow daughter June to "pass" as white, the mother made the choice to send June to live with an African-American family in Atlantic City. Thus began the secret as June shuttled between the two worlds of her "adoptive parents" and her show-biz mom, who later married actor Larry Storch. June was reunited with her dad shortly before his death and the secret was finally made public on a film documentary.

Boomers! Pay attention!

Tue, 07/25/2006 - 10:58am by sernabad

Boomers!

Do you pride yourselves on looking outwardly fabulous through good diet, lots of exercise, and a great attitude, but you're quietly noticing that your eyesight is no longer 30 years old?

Great News!

The Large Print collection has received a big infusion of hot new titles and the tell-tale boring generic covers are a thing of the past. Check out cool titles such as Intuition by Allegra Goodman; Got the Look, by James Grippando; A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby; and The Wave, by Walter Mosley, that have the same covers as the regular size print and STOP STRAINING.

Film Revolutionary

Sun, 07/23/2006 - 5:01pm by Maxine

July 26 is the birthday of film director, Stanley Kubrick. Born in 1928 in New York City, Kubrick began his film career shooting a documentary of a boxer, "The Day of the Fight" for which he made $100. Kubrick's films are known for their brilliant cinematography. More than any other director, most of his films were based on books. Some of his most famous were Dr. Strangelove and 2001: Space Odyssey. His last film before his death in 1999 was Eyes Wide Shut. Known as a perfectionist who demanded much from his actors and crew, Kubrick will be remembered as one of the most influential film directors of the 20th century.

New Non-Fiction DVDs

Sat, 07/22/2006 - 9:50am by fletch

The library has just added some new non-fiction DVDs to our collection. Why we Fight, a film from Sony Pictures directed by Eugene Jarecki, discusses the United States dealings with military engagement. It includes scenes with Dwight D. Eisenhower, John McCain, and Dan Rather. Other new DVDs that have been added to the non-fiction collection include The Gospel of Judas, The Untold Story of Emmett Till, The End of Suburbia, and Eugene O'Neill. Come in and check some out!

Celebrating American Women

Fri, 07/21/2006 - 11:33am by Maxine

Friday, July 21 is the 27th anniversary of the the founding of The National Women's Hall of Fame. The hall was founded to honor women who have been the most influential in the development of the United States. Located in Seneca Falls, N.Y., "the birthplace of women's rights," the Hall of Fame stands where the first Women's Suffrage Movement Convention was held in 1848.

Some recently acquired biographies of American women are:

Mary Evans Walker: Above and Beyond by Dale L. Walker. Walker was a physician during the Civil War.

Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Life of America's First Poet by Charlotte Gordon.

If the Creek Don't Rise: My Life Out West With the Last Black Widow of the Civil War by Rita Ann Williams.

Ladies First:40 Daring Women Who Were Second to None by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel.

Beach Reads 2006 (#4, mostly Fabulous Fiction Firsts)

Thu, 07/20/2006 - 5:31pm by muffy

Blow the House Down by Robert Baer. Riveting and complex debut spy thriller by an ex-CIA operative whose memoir inspired the film Syriana.

A Field of Darkness* by Cornelia Read. A tough-talking, shotgun-toting, ex-debutante being drawn into a cold case involving a double homicide. (A noteworthy FFF - primed as a mystery series opener).

The Futurist* by James P. Othmer. Wildly entertaining and deadly serious satire on global politics and personal integrity. (A FFF)

The Girls* by Lori Lansens. The lives, loves and dreams of a set of conjoined twins. Unforgettable, from a noted Canadian author.

Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn* by Sarah Miller. A wild ride inside the head of a sensitive, funny, and a bit lusty 15 year-old prep school hunk. (Another FFF!)

The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World by A.J. Jacobs. Entertaining nonfiction account of one man's attempt to read the whole Encyclopedia Britannica. (Recommended by Sancho Panza).

Little Beauties by Kim Addonizio. FFF from a noted poet, about a has-been junior beauty queen, a pregnant teenager and a baby girl determined to carve out her own future. Moving and engaging. Reminds me of Billie Lett's debut novel Where the Heart is.

Owl Island by Randy Sue Coburn. A romantic and wise look at first loves, set in the Pacific Northwest. You will be hard pressed to find a better beach read.

* = Starred reviews