Thursday, October 31, 2013

Never Go Back

Book Jacket for: Never go back : a Jack Reacher novelLee Child continues his Jack Reacher series with Never Go Back in his usual suspenseful fashion.  Here Jack finds himself accused of manslaughter and slapped with a paternity suit (neither of which things he remembers happening) and so must find out why this is occurring

Fans of the Reacher series will not be disappointed with this book.  Newcomers can easily enjoy this book without having to read earlier in the series – though I would encourage you to try the earlier books too.

Definitely a series to recommend to anyone with a taste for action & adventure.   

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Arroyo Book Club pick for November….

Book Jacket for: On the beachThe Arroyo Book club will be reading On the Beach by Nevil Shute.  This classic from the cold war era tells the tale of a group of survivors of a WWIII nuclear catastrophe awaiting their own death from drifting radioactive clouds.  Pick up a copy at the library and find out what happens.

We will be showing a related film on 11/16 at 3:00 and will be meeting to discuss the book (& film) on 11/23 also at 3:00.  Join us for both events. 

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Events for the Week of October 28…

Things going on at the library during this week include:
  • Little Ones’ Storytime on Wednesday (10/30) at 10:30
  • Introduction to Word Processing also on Wednesday at 12:00
  • STAR Reader on Wednesday at 3:00
  • Halloween Party & Stories with Grandma Silverlocks on Thursday (10/31) at 3:00
  • Teens Decorate a Sugar Skull on Thursday at 4:00
  • Drop in Computer Lab on Friday (11/01) at 3:30
You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

Friday, October 25, 2013

Mist

Book Jacket for: MistMist by Susan Krinard is an urban fantasy tale.  The heroine, Mist, is a Valkyrie living in contemporary San Francisco when things start. We then embark on a traditional battle against the gods.  I will confess that I did not finish this book.  Our heroine’s boyfriend turned out to be the villain of the piece (the God Loki) within the first chapter & that whole scenario was way too “rapey” for my taste, so I put the book down.

The premise is interesting so if you can overlook the problematic beginning it might be worth a try.  I wouldn’t recommend it though.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Project Cain

Book Jacket for: Project CainThe premise of Project Cain by Geoffrey Girard is that the government has secretly raised clones of notorious serial killers.  Now some of them have broken out the “facility” they were being held in and are on a rampage.  Our narrator is one such clone (Jeffrey Dahmer) who was raised by the lead scientist on the project.  He has just discovered the truth about his origins and is co-opted by a government agent type to help find his missing adoptive father and the other clones.

Exciting premise to be sure and as far as plot goes this book is quite interesting.  Unfortunately the author weaves a hell of a lot of pseudo-science & crackpot conspiracy stuff into the narrative.   Now some of this could be to establish the type of individual our narrator is but I’m left wondering how much of this the author actually believes.

All in all a good book for those willing to accept outrageous plots. 

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

TOW (& Answer)...

The question was what is meant by “nacelle”?  Nacelle comes from the French and means an enclosure for protecting an engine.

The question (& answer) were found on p. 215 of the Harper Dictionary of Foreign TermsThe book was edited by Mawson and published by Harper & Row in 1987. 

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Dexter’s Final Cut

Book Jacket for: Dexter's final cut : a novelBefore there was the TV show Dexter there was a book series by Jeff Lindsay.  In Dexter’s Final Cut we follow our hero (anti-hero really) as actors studying for roles in a police procedural type TV show shadow him.  It’s difficult to say anything more about the plot without giving away spoilers, suffice it to say that Dexter is his usual self & a lot of things happen.  If you’ve been following the series you’ll want to pick this up.  If you haven’t, I would recommend starting at the beginning with Darkly Dreaming Dexter

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Events for the Week of October 21…

Things going on at the library during this week include:
  • Little Ones’ Storytime on Wednesday (10/23) at 10:30
  • STAR Reader on Wednesday at 3:00
  • STAR Reader on Thursday (10/124) at 3:00
  • Computer Basics Class also on Thursday at 6:30
  • Drop in Computer Lab on Friday (10/125) at 3:30
  • Arroyo Book Club on Saturday (10/26) at 3:00
You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

Friday, October 18, 2013

History of Highland Park (library version)…

Here (http://dbase1.lapl.org/webpics/calindex/documents/11/520721.pdf) we have a 9-page list of people who donated for the original Carnegie branch library that stood where our library stands now.  This would have been about 100 years ago.  Do you recognize any of our generous original donors?

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

The Bat

Book Jacket for: The batThe Bat by Jo Nesbo is a mystery set in Australia, specifically Sydney and its environs.  In the book we follow Harry Hole (pronounced Holy) a detective from Norway who is in Sydney to help the local police solve the murder of a Norwegian woman.  As the story progresses we learn that she was only the latest in a string of murders & more people are killed.

I found this book fascinating at the beginning because it has a Norwegian author holding a lens up to the culture of Australia.  Then the book took a decided turn toward the bleak (dare I say typically Scandinavian) in the middle and I lost interest in it. 

This book is definitely for fans of the author and would be enjoyed by people who’d get a kick out of the culture on culture mirror thing it has going on.  Not for someone looking for a “cheerful” or “cosy” tale. 

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Far From the Tree

Book Jacket for: Far from the tree : parents, children and the search for identityIn Far From the Tree Andrew Solomon explores the connection between parents & children when the children in question differ in unexpected and drastic ways from the parents.  He explores questions of defining identity in the children & parental love and determination in the parents.  In the course of this book he examines deafness, dwarfism, Down Syndrome, autism, schizophrenia, multiple disabilities, prodigies, children of rape, criminals, and the transgendered. 

This is a meaty work that raises many thorny questions.  I found the book a bit long in the end & a bit repetitive (granted the repetition was necessary to highlight situational similarities but it did make things drag on, at least for me).  In recommending this book then I might actually start by recommending it to someone in sections.  Refer an individual to a particular chapter rather then the whole book & then hope they are drawn to the whole book from that chapter.  It is a book that rewards reading even if it is not an easy read.

Monday, October 14, 2013

TOW (& Answer)...

Book Jacket for: Great American trialsThe Rosenbergs and Sobell were charged with conspiracy to commit wartime espionage.  The Rosenbergs were sentenced to death and Sobell got 30 years.  To quote the source: 
The Rosenberg case, coming at the height of the anit-Communist hysteria in America produced the harshest possible result: the deaths of two defendants who, as U. S. Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter put it, “were tried for conspiracy and sentenced for treason.”
 The question & answer were taken from p. 452 of Great American Trials edited by Edward Knappman.  The book was published by Gale Research in 1994.