AHML Staff Choices

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Ninja zombies… who want to check out a book without a Library Card.

Alien warlords… who won’t return overdue items.

Yup.  That’s everyday stuff for us Library staff.  At last, someone is telling the truth about what it takes to defend truth, justice, and your right to check materials out.

And it’s a graphic novel!  We get to see the men and women of Middleton Public Library in dynamic action, blasting evil-doers.  Re-shelving.  Negotiating with Library Administrators.  Thrilling!

One minus- all those graphic images are surrounded with words.  Sometimes lots of words.  But sparkling among those words are glittering references to philosophy, warcraft, history and mythology.  In a whole new slant!

If ya’ like this, there’s more.  This is just the first in a series… And maybe this will become a movie!  Then everyone will know the real excitement us Library workers face every day!

Check this out!  (As we say in the trade.)

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You may remember this from High School… you probably had to read one or two of these poems in your survey of English Literature.  Cringing already?  Well, stop- you might need to think again!

I only read the required selections when I was in school, too.  But recently I ran into several references to this collection and decided to go exploring.

In these poems, former inhabitants of the imagined town of Spoon River look back on their lives and speak of their hopes and dreams, all too often thwarted, squandered or mislaid.  First published in 1915, could these short poems possibly be of any interest to a modern reader?

Yes, they could.  Surprisingly contemporary, these stories form a mosaic of lives stretching all the way back to revolutionary times.  Some stand alone.  Some dovetail in cool ways.

And the poetry is good stuff.  Not formal, stilted or antique, these people speak in their own colloquial voices.  And together, they create a powerful narration of lives lived to varying degrees of success.

I bet you will find your life reflected in one or two of these quick but pithy verses- none much longer than one brief page.   I know I did.  Which ones made you recognize yourself?  Tell me yours- I’ll tell you which ones showed me… me.

Great for quick browsing on a blanket in the park, or while grilling (yourself) on the beach.  Lots of these made me laugh.  Enjoyable…  and it’s poetry-  Who knew!?

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Global warming has taken its toll.  The oceans have risen, and much of the eastern seaboard has slumped into the sea.  The populations are stacked mercilessly upon each other, and there is no space- unless humanity expands in new directions.  And so colonies have begun to form under the surface of the oceans.

Ty’s parents have been among the first to try to build a life on the vast plains of the new continental shelf.  Ty and his sister have lived beneath the seas all of their lives.  And living at such depths has its effect- like the shimmer that covers their bodies from their diet of deep-sea life.  And there may be other changes, too.

But the world Kat Falls has built is not a peaceful one.  Renegades have taken to the seas, and have been raiding the supply ships of the world government.  These pirates may threaten the deep-sea settlers at any moment.  And the dry-land government seems to see the oceanic settlers primarily as a resource for food production and taxation- draining the settlers of all benefits from their risk-taking and their labors.

There is a lot happening in this world- and Ty and his sister are growing up.  When Ty meets Gemma, a Topsider girl, things start to move in unforeseen directions.

This novel has gotten a lot of attention in the book blogosphere, and it is a great read- especially for boys who will love the undersea lifestyle and the constant adventure.  We classify this new novel for grades 6 to 8, but readers much older (ahem) will love it too.

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A friend, Ultra V. (and there is Ne Plus Ultra!), recommended that I read the Tao Te Ching by Laozi and The Tao Of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff.  Laozi’s original Tao Te Ching is deep and subtle, like sunlight slicing down into the depths of the ocean.  But it is not necessarily instantly approachable.

Which is why Benjamin Hoff has written The Tao Of Pooh- to make the philosophy of the Tao easily and pleasantly approachable.  In conversation with that Silly, Willy, Nilly old Bear, Hoff brings out some of the fundamental principles of Taoism in a clear and simple way.  (And he gets to fire off a few broadsides against the foibles of our modern culture, too.)  This is not only approachable, it’s downright fun.

For myself, I paddled about in the safer but sufficiently profound shallows with Hoff’s Pooh, and found a great deal of value.  I may be ready to dive further (with other guides) into the depths of the original.

I will keep you posted.

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Venice!  Opera!  Murder!

Commissario Guido Brunetti is the thoughtful, charming family man who is charged with unraveling such crimes as may disturb the peaceful repose of Venice, the urban complex called “The Most Serene One.”

And Maestro Helmut Wellauer, world-renowned opera conductor, has had an unfortunate encounter with cyanide during an intermission.

We run through humane encounters in society- high and low; the thousand political tussles that make Venice so Italian; and exceptional individuals who are fun to follow.  Death At La Fenice is the first in a series that continues into its 18th volume, which was released earlier this year.  And we can all be happy about that.  “Brava!”

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This small book is based on the commencement address Ann Patchett gave at her alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College.

I sat down and read this during the celebration of New Year’s Eve, 2009.  What a perfect choice for that moment.  I hope I can remember to revisit this piece from time to time in the future.

100 pages. Worth it.

Ann Patchett is the author of several notable books, including Bel Canto, Run, and The Patron Saint Of Liars.

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Another culture, on the fringes of our own.

In a small village on Alaska’s coast, peopled mostly by the native Inupiat (who we commonly call Eskimos) an Alaskan State Trooper is  faced with unusual deaths.  Suicide is not unknown in this struggling backwater.  But can these be suicides?  As he investigates, Trooper Nathan Active is also deciding how his own Inupiat heritage fits into his life.

Altogether, a sharp image of a community I knew nothing about.  A mystery that will grab you, with strong characters and a real feel for a region and a way of life that are striking.

This kept me up most of the night; I didn’t want to stop.  Fortunately, it’s the first in a series, and I’ll be following up on the other Nathan Active stories.

If you enjoy a taste of other cultures and a feel for other lives, you might really enjoy White Sky, Black Ice.  (Some adult content but little graphic violence.)

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How do you define a “great book”?

Technically, this is science fiction.  It’s a story of time travel, a contrast between the years 2048 and the 1300’s;  between a time proficient in science, particularly medical science, and a time of  horrifying physical want and disease.  Between future scholarly Oxford and a medieval rural community struggling to be self-sufficient miles outside ancient Oxford.

But at it’s core, this is a study of people trying to survive, and human relationships.  What happens when history stops being an academic study and becomes a personal experience?  When names carved in stone become living, breathing individuals?

I think I’ve mentioned in other reviews that I am coming to understand that a “great book”, to me, is a book that changes the way I see or understand the world.  The Doomsday Book did that.

It doesn’t surprise me that this book won the Nebula and the Hugo Awards, the top awards in the sci-fi field.

I have also read Connie Willis’ Bellwether.  I enjoyed it very much.  I’m beginning to feel that if I see her name on the spine of a book, I want to pick that book up and jump in.  Wanna join me?  We might have some great discussions!

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Ya’ know all those news segments and newspaper columns titled “Someone You Should Know!” ?  Well have I got an introduction for you!

Alan Bradley has just written his first novel- a mystery involving a dead jack snipe (a kind of bird), a Penny Black (a kind of postage stamp- which, by the by, is curiously orange), and a most remarkable heroine, Flavia de Luce.  Believe me, Flavia is the most interesting item on that list.

I’m glad I tripped over Ms de Luce… quite a windfall!  I think we’ll all be looking forward to meeting her again- and again.

Mr. Bradley won the Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger Award for this first mystery, and the mystery is not the most perfect part of this book.  Personally, I’m looking forward to future visits  to Ms de Luce’s Sanctum Sanctorum; curious things are sure to be bubbling…

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Remarkable.  A mystery taunt with psychological suspense, unusual events, interesting locales, and very distinct characters.  All this wrapped in skillful, eloquent writing.  Don’t let anyone know this might be literature.

When a body is found at an archeological dig in a small community in Ireland,  Detectives Rob Ryan and Cassie Maddox of the Dublin Murder Squad  are assigned to the investigation.  But Detective Ryan has some history of his own.

This is Ms French’s first novel.  Her second,  The Likeness, is already out.  We all have great things to look forward to.

And… a great discussion in our future!  This novel will be our Mystery Group’s subject on December 7.  Make plans!