Smythie
The monthly e-newsletter of the Smyth Public Library
October, 2019
Volume 13, No.7
Announcing ~Friends of Smyth Public Library~
Easy Fall Baking Contest
1~Check out a Smyth Library baking pan
2~Bake something using it!
3~Send us a photo of the finished product by November 18.
You will be entered to win a prize in our random drawing!
Good Luck and Happy Baking!
See our full brochure of available pans at the Front desk!
Pan shapes include: bears, a cross, bunny, crown, flower, letters & numbers, monkey, Mickey Mouse, a football, big and small hearts, doughnuts, Holly Hobbie, Princess, Enchanted Castle, Dora the Explorer, Dinosaurs, Baseball player, Ladybug, Snowman, Christmas Tree.
Events…
Lithuanian Cultural Presentation with Oonagh Williams
Wednesday, October 9th at 6pm
The presentation includes: Lithuanian generous tasting buffet with full recipes provided – Lithuanian soft cheese spread, Andrulis slicing cheese, cold soup in warm weather, hot soup in cold weather, no bake dessert in hot weather, hot dessert in cold weather.
Approximately one and a half hour talk by Oonagh Williams includes history, culture, food, and current events.
• About 200 vibrant photos
• 2 large photo/journals from her trip for the audience to look through
• 2 short videos
• Display of souvenirs, books, photo albums from Lithuania
British born, presenter Oonagh Williams gave Lithuanian cooking demos for many years at Chandler Library, Nashua and attended summer school at University of Vilnius in Lithuania. Both sponsored by Žylonis Foundation/Charles ŽylonisTrust. Oonagh continues to give monthly Lithuanian cooking demos at Hudson NH Library. Oonagh has a Culinary Arts degree, trained in London and Switzerland and spends her time now speaking and writing nationally on food for gluten free and other food allergy diets, while reminding people that most real food is naturally gluten free and we would all be healthier eating real food. Registration is required and can be completed in the library, at the front desk.
Sponsored by Žylonis Foundation/Charles ŽylonisTrust.
NH History Program on Daniel Webster: “The God-Like Daniel”
Wednesday, October 16th at 6:30pm
Daniel Webster was born in 1782 on a small farm in the New Hampshire wilderness. Despite beginning life in poverty, he became a legend in New England and across America, both in his own lifetime and for a century after his death. He was Congressman, Senator, and Secretary of State under three Presidents. He is thought to have been one of the most outstanding lawyers ever, as well as the greatest public speaker in American history. Eighty-five years after his death, he would be the hero in The Devil and Daniel Webster, the most popular short story ever written in America. In the words of the storyteller, “He was the biggest man in the country. He never got to be President, but he was the biggest man. There were thousands that trusted in him right next to God Almighty.”
Join us here at the library for this newly offered program where Michael Faiella, a retired history teacher, shall unveil Daniel Webster: the local boy, the man, and the legend!
Beatles Night
Saturday, October 19th from 7-9pm
This will mark the thirteenth year of the Beatles night at the Smyth Public Library! The evening will include rare films, music, trivia, and door prizes. Every year features a new program so come join the music and fun!
Mount Everest Program with Joe Pratt
Thursday, October 24th at 7pm
In 2012 only one amateur climber from America was able to summit Mount Everest from the north side. The climb was dedicated to the worldwide eradication of polio. Joe Pratt, through photos and video will tell his story of joining a Russian expedition, five weeks of training and acclimatizing on the mountain and the final 24 hour push to the summit in conditions that took the lives of six climbers that night. His talk will cover the history of polio in America and the current status of the effort to eradicate the disease worldwide. The presentation will be one hour with questions following.
Join us here at the library for this newly offered program!
Sponsored by The Raymond Area Rotary Club
Simplifying Medicare
Tuesday, October 29th at 6pm
Turning 65 or retiring in 6 months or a year? Get yourself educated, receive some guidance navigating through all the Medicare information, come understand the Medicare basic Parts A, B, C and D. Hosted by Donna Wilton, learn what Original Medicare covers and how supplement insurance works with your Medicare so you can make the best decisions for your health care needs in retirement. Know the importance of enrollment periods and making sure you avoid lifetime penalties.
Bring your questions to this informal educational session and simplify your understanding of Medicare.
Please stop by the front desk to sign up, or RSVP at (603)-553-0913.
HOW-TO’s
How to Edible Plants
Tuesday, October 8th at 6pm
Join us at the library for an event hosted by the educational environmental program from the NH State Park Rangers. In theory, if every grocery store on Earth suddenly disappeared and you were not permitted to consume any meat, you could survive nicely on what is grown in the soil and on trees alone. But would you know how to? New Hampshire is a small New England state in a region of the U.S. renowned for its lovely pine trees, its fall foliage and the allure of the forests at the northern reaches of the Appalachian Mountain range. New Hampshire, in particular,r boosts a number of edible wild plants; although you’ll want a field guide handy to confirm the safety of anything you decide to ingest, this program is a starter kit to some of the Granite State’s botanical and fungal snack offerings.
How to Labyrinth Walk
Thursday, October 10th at 6:30pm
Attend this how to program hosted by Judi Lindsey and discover the ancient practice of labyrinth walking. Used by many different faiths for spiritual centering, contemplation, and prayer, labyrinth walking has the ability to guide you in finding wisdom and sources of change or renewal.
“How To” Beekeeping
Tuesday, October 15th, 6:30pm
Ken and Kathy Kuhn of Candia’s own Jacks Honey are presenting a free class on Beekeeping!
This in-depth lecture will include all you need to know to begin your own hive and harvest your own honey.From equipment, hive types, bee anatomy, pollen & pollination to bee schools and local organizations, you will learn it all… and so much more!
Free and open to the public.
Sponsored by the AG Commission.
If you have a special talent you’d like to share, please see Heidi at the front desk
Check out our monthly calendar on our website for all our events and programs.
New on our shelves…
New Fiction…
Kill zone Anderson, Kevin J
Nothing ventured Archer, Jeffrey
The testaments Atwood, Margaret
Elevator pitch: a novel Barclay, Linwood
Night boat to Tangier: a novel Barry, Kevin,
The Swans of Fifth Avenue: a novel Benjamin, Melanie
When hell struck twelve Benn, James R
A single thread Chevalier, Tracy
The last train to London: a novel Clayton, Meg Waite,
The long call Cleeves, Ann
The water dancer: a novel Coates, Ta-Nehisi
Strands of truth: a novel Coble, Colleen
The titanic secret Cussler, Clive
Cantoras De Robertis, Carolina
Strangers she knows Dodd, Christina
Where the light enters Donati, Sara
Akin Donoghue, Emma
Blood in the water Flynn, Jack,
Lost and wanted: a novel Freudenberger, Nell
Because you’re mine: a novel Frey, Rea
The stalking Graham, Heather
Who was Sally Ride? Stine, Megan,.
The fifth column Gross, Andrew
Evvie Drake starts over: a novel Holmes, Linda
Sins of the fathers: a J. P. Beaumont novel Jance, Judith A.
Land of wolves Johnson, Craig
The siege of Troy Kallifatides, Theodor,
The institute: a novel King, Stephen
Let me lie Mackintosh, Clare
Bomber’s moon: a Joe Gunther novel Mayor, Archer
One good mama bone: a novel McClain, Bren,
Cut and run Michaels, Fern
The islanders: a novel Moore, Meg Mitchell
The starless sea Morgenstern, Erin
Dear Edward: a novel Napolitano, Ann,
Mary Toft; or, the rabbit queen: a novel Palmer, Dexter Clarence,
Robert B. Parker’s The bitterest pill Coleman, Reed Farrel
The Dutch house: a novel Patchett, Ann
Killer instinct Patterson, James
A better man Penny, Louise
Death in focus: an Elena Standish novel Perry, Anne
The secrets we kept Prescott, Lara,
Vendetta in death Robb, J. D
Ghost fire Smith, Wilbur A.,
The bone fire Sykes, S. D.,
Inheritance Toynton, Evelyn,
The stranger inside Unger, Lisa
New Non-Fiction…
Gods of the upper air: how a circle of renegade anthropologists reinvented race, sex, and gender in the twentieth century King, Charles,
Talking to strangers: what we should know about the people we don’t know Gladwell, Malcolm
The mighty queens of Freeville: a mother, a daughter, and the people who raised them Dickinson, Amy
Life undercover: coming of age in the CIA Fox, Amaryllis,
Lou D’Allesandro: lion of the New Hampshire Senate and thoughts for presidential hopefuls Bodanza, Mark C.,
Earl Warren: a life of truth and justice Herda, D. J.,
The generals: American military command from World War II to today
Ricks, Thomas E
Undersea warriors: the untold history of the Royal Navy’s secret service
Ballantyne, Iain
Sandworm: a new era of cyberwar and the hunt for the Kremlin’s most dangerous hackers Greenberg, Andy,
How to: absurd scientific advice for common real-world problems Munroe, Randall,
The body: a guide for occupants Bryson, Bill
Our dogs, ourselves: the story of a singular bond Horowitz, Alexandra
101 ways to go zero waste Kellogg, Kathryn,
Cider, hard & sweet: history, traditions, and making your own Watson, Ben,
Vegetable soups from Deborah Madison’s kitchen Madison, Deborah.
Soup of the day McMillan, Kate.
The mindful athlete: secrets to pure performance Mumford, George.
Tough luck: Sid Luckman, Murder, Inc., and the rise of the modern NFL
Rosen, Richard Dean,
Ted Williams, my father Williams, Claudia,
Into the planet: my life as a cave diver Heinerth, Jill,
Mountaineering: the freedom of the hills
Unbreakable: the woman who defied the Nazis in the world’s most dangerous horse race Askwith, Richard,
Good things out of Nazareth O’Connor, Flannery
The bell of treason: the 1938 Munich agreement in Czechoslovakia Caquet, P. E.,
Sudden courage: youth in France confront the Germans, 1940-1945 Rosbottom, Ronald C.,
Lincoln’s spies: their secret war to save a nation Waller, Douglas C
New Books on CD…
Nothing ventured CD (8) Archer, Jeffrey
The Titanic secret CD (9) Cussler, Clive
Lethal Agent CD (9) Flynn, Vince
Sins of the Fathers CD (11) Jance, J. A
The Institute CD (16) King, Stephen
Hot shot CD (7) Michaels, Fern
Killer instinct CD (6) Patterson, James
A better man: a novel CD (11) Penny, Louise
Vendetta in death CD (10) Robb, J. D
The new girl CD (9) Silva, Daniel
New Video…
John Wick DVD 1201 [R] — Chapter 3, — Parabellum /
Men in black DVD 1202 [PG13] — International /
X-Men DVD 1203 [PG13] — Dark Phoenix /
The sun is also a star DVD 1204 [PG13]
The Professor and the Madman DVD 1205 [PG13]
Spider-Man Far From Home DVD 1206 [PG13]
“You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.”
– David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest
Tip from the front desk
Make Books a Daily Habit: Why Regular Reading Matters, Especially in Print
Excerpt by Naomi S. Baron
Reading, like playing a musical instrument or speaking a second language or exercising, involves habit. There are times we spend the whole day reading a book. But we also go for stretches when at best we glance at news headlines or check incoming text messages. When we do pick up that book again, it can take some settling in before feeling we are home.
Constancy matters because over time, we may forget what the book we were reading is about. What is the story line? Who are the characters? What is the formal argument being presented? One magical quality of a good book is that you can get emotionally “lost” in it. You get mentally transported somewhere else. Putting a book down one day and picking it up the next, it’s easy to re-enter the world between those covers. The longer your absence, the harder the re-entry.
These days, we have multiple reading platforms from which to choose. Besides print, there are eBooks and audiobooks. Digital has many virtues, including the convenience of loading numerous works onto a single device, along with generally lower cost than print. Audiobooks are handy for commuting or working out at the gym. What’s more, we can feel the book is being read aloud just for us.
What about print? A few years back, tech gurus were predicting eBooks would replace print. Recent trends are proving them wrong. Reading is now firmly a “both/and” world – both print and digital. Yet current research shows people are still more likely to have read a print book than a digital one. There are good reasons why.
The first is concentration. In a study I did with over 400 university students in five countries, 92 percent of participants said the reading platform on which they concentrate best is print. Students complained about distractions when reading onscreen. And as we know, if you’re distracted, your stress level can go up and attention span go down.
The second reason is that we probably remember more of what we read in print. I say “probably” because researchers are still figuring out how to move from laboratory-style comprehension tests to measuring memory that matters. Memory for abstract concepts or how the pieces of a story line fit together. Memory that connects our reading with other things we learn and with our everyday lives. Students tell us they remember more when reading in print. Not surprisingly, some report spending more time when reading print and reading more carefully than with digital texts.
Thirdly, research suggests it is easier to get “lost” in a print book than in an electronic one. This ease likely stems from our physical connection with what we are reading: holding it in our hands, turning the pages, tangibly measuring what portion we have read and how much of the book still awaits us.
And so: Try to read every day. In print, if you can.
Naomi S. Baron is a professor of linguistics at American University in Washington, DC. She is the author of Words Onscreen: The Fate of Reading in a Digital World (Oxford University Press)
Smyth Public Library can help you beat stress and get lost! Come in and pick up a book of any shape, size or medium and also some handy directions for downloading some too!
Then revel and enjoy the power of a story and words to fill your life with richness and satisfaction as your “turn” each page, physical, audio or digital!
Heidi Deacon, Director
Try out our new “Volunteer Your World” ideas at Smyth Public Library. Visit our Volunteer Your World Page
Coloring night for all ages, all supplies provided, Fridays 6-7 pm
Writers’ group
On the 2nd and 4th Friday of every month, 6:30pm
The Smyth Public Library hosts a gathering of writers once or twice a month where we work together on timed writing exercises using prompts and other sources of inspiration. The writing periods will be followed by sharing some of the work with each other. The goal of the group is to loosen up and get the pen moving on paper. We don’t seek to have a finished work by the end of the session and you don’t need to arrive with a finished piece of writing to share. The writer’s group is a place to meet with other writers and to flex your writing muscles. Please come ready with a writing medium of your choice: paper and pen/pencil, computer, tablet, etc.
Drop In Family Game Nights!!
First Friday of every month at 6:30
Knitting & Crochet Circle
Help with the cap, blanket, and scarf charity project, work on your own items, or just come to learn. Call Lisa 587-0603 for more info.
Third Thursday of the month, 6:30pm
Monthly Lego Night!
EVERY third Friday 6:30-7:30 for all ages.
Family Movie Night
Friday, October 25, 6:00 p.m.
“Aladdin”rated PG
Did you Know???
Dr. Seuss invented the word ‘nerd’, using it in his 1950 book ‘If I Ran the Zoo.’
LITTLE FREE LIBRARY
Brought to you by the Friends of the Smyth Public Library
The Little Free Library is up and running at the CYAA complex – anyone can take advantage!
In theGallery…
Mrs. Lindsey’s CCC Kids Club Art Show on Moles
ART WANTED!!!
Our art gallery and (locked) glass case is always available for the works of local artists. Just see Heidi at the front desk to display your works
#2 Did you Know???
Charles Dickens owned a bookcase which functioned as a secret door in his house, and was populated with fake books bearing amusing names including Jonah’s Account of the Whale, The Lives of a Cat which came in nine volumes, and The Art of Cutting Teeth.
LOVE TO SHARE A GOOD BOOK?
Now! 2 groups! 2 times!
How about sharing your thoughts on a book at the friendly monthly book discussion group?
Wednesday, October 30th, 7:00 p.m.
One Good Mama Bone
By Bren McClain
Extra titles of this book are available at the front desk
Thursday, October 31 at 11:00 a.m.
Master Thieves
By Stephen Kurkjian
Extra titles of this book are available at the front desk
Do you know how parkas are insulated?
They’re downloaded.
Library Assets…
SERVICE FOR HOMEBOUND PATRONS:
Smyth Public Library is now offering home delivery of library materials for any Candia community residents in need. Please contact us for a registration form for this service or use the link to a form to fill out on our website.
The library is proud to now offer The Healing Library; reading kits to aid with coping with difficult situations. We offer The Death of a Loved One, The Death of a Pet, plus Alzheimer’s & Your Family. These are located in the children’s room, along with books relating to each topic. The kits are available now for check out.
STILL HERE!:
Digital Movies, Music and More –Instantly Available –24/7 –Free with your Library Card!
Movies, TV,Music Albums, eAudiobooks , eBooks, and Comics/Graphic Novels. All in one location, from your computer, tablet or Smartphone!
With hoopla, there are no hold lists, no extra apps or accounts needed or special steps to use it.
It just works! On a mobile device, borrowed content may be temporarily downloaded and accessed offline or, in either the app or on a computer, all borrowed content may be enjoyed while connected to the internet by streaming.
KANOPY
OUR NEW FILM STREAMING SERVICE
Smyth Library Patrons Now Have Access to Kanopy featuring more than 30,000 Films, For Free!
Library card holders can access Kanopy and view up to four films per month. Films can be streamed from any computer, television, mobile device or platform by downloading the Kanopy app for iOS, Android, AppleTV, Chromecast or Roku.
With the motto of “thoughtful entertainment,” Kanopy provides patrons with access to films of unique social and cultural value; films that are often difficult or impossible to access elsewhere, and programming that features diversity, with a wide array of foreign language films and films on race, and current affairs.
TRY IT AND DOWNLOAD NOW AT: smythpl.kanopy.com
Don’t forget – you can always borrow our internet hot spot, telescope and newly offered Ukulele and a dozen baking pans!
Making Your Life Easy:
By going to our website, you can search our entire catalogue for books, CD’s, DVD’s and movies. Once found, you can check to see if what you want is in. If so, just to our website and reserve the book. The next time you come in, it will be waiting for you at the front desk. WITH OUR NEW WEBSITE YOU CAN DO IT WITH YOUR MOBILE DEVICE!
PLUS!! Check out our smythpl.org website updates and Smyth Library’s Public Catalog featuring:
– A crawl of new items.
– “What’s Hot” now covers several choices.
-“Most Popular” titles (a combination of checkouts and reserves are used to determine this list).
– “More Search Options” includes Medium that lets members search by DVD or Large Print, etc.
More Research Options:
Full text articles from thousands of magazines, journals and national newspapers, plus NoveList. Call or e-mail us and provide your name and your library card number, and we’ll give you the password.
Smyth Library has available:
The Candia Heritage Commission is pleased to announce the acquisition of a valuable historical resource, bound volumes of the Rockingham County News encompassing the years 1978-1998. A two week loan of a volume can be arranged by contacting Sis Richter 483-2585, president of the Historical Society or Diane Philbrick 483-8239, chair of the Heritage Commission.
NEW! Needed! Your Nature photos!
For the Candia Conservation Commission Calendar. Only nature and animals within Candia please. No manmade objects or structures in the photos. And no domestic animals. See the CCC website for details and how to submit. www.candiaconservationcommission.org
We’re on Facebook!
Like the Smyth Public Library
Look at our page on Facebook for events and updates about our library!
Downloadable Books!!!!
Ipods and Kindles work and you can
Order right from our website!
Kids’ Stuff…
Check out our monthly calendar for children on the Children’s tab on our website.
CHILDREN’S FALL PROGRAMS Starting in October! Sign up now!
Candia Kids Conservation Club with Mrs. Lindsey
Monday, October 7&14 at 3 pm
Library Clubs! Meeting on Thursdays 3&4 pm
First Thursdays 3 pm
Art Club (K-5) October 3
Mask Making
Second Thursdays 3 pm
STEM Club (K-5) October 10
Balloons and Gravity
Third Thursdays 3 pm
Magic Tree House Book Club (K-2) October 17
Mummies in the Morning by Mary Pope Osborne
Fourth Thursdays 3 pm
Crafting Club (K-5) October 24
***Also, starting two new clubs at 4 pm!
First Thursdays 4 pm
Creative Club (Grades 4-7)
Second Thursdays 4 pm
Harry Potter Readers Club (Grades 4-7)
FOR TEENS!!
Starting in October on the Second and Fourth Thursdays at 5pm.
NOW Teen Readers to Lead and Run a new monthly Book Club for Teens by Teens!
You pick the title, the time, and we pick up the pizza!
ANNOUNCING OUR NEW SERVICE:
Smyth Public Library presents:
Free Math Tutoring available starting on September 3rd with weekly drop in sessions Tuesdays from 4-6 pm.
With Candia resident, Scott Hewitt, retired Math teacher and current instructor at community college.
For all ages and abilities with help from Arithmetic to Calculus.
Baby—Preschool children-
Stories, games, crafts, music, puppets
During Thursday Story Time 10 a.m.
NOW presenting two Storytimes:
Thursdays, 10 am with Jessica
Thursdays, 6 pm with Linda
Preschoolers and babies welcomed
FUTURE ENGINEERS AND BUILDERS!!
Second Friday, 6:00 p.m.
We break out our snap circuits! Build exciting projects including computer interfaced experiments and solar cell applications. Build over 175 exciting projects now with lights. All new kits and all ages welcome! Check our Facebook page for some cool snap circuit projects.
1000 BOOKS before Kindergarten
Personal memory registers and book bags are available for parents.
New books for children…
Berenstain Bears and the Tooth Fairy Berenstain, Jan
When your grandparent dies: a child’s guide to good grief Ryan, Victoria.
Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge Fox, Mem
The invisible string Karst, Patrice.
Electric storm #14 Capeci, Anne
Expedition down under #10 Carmi, Rebecca.
Voyage to the volcano #15 Stamper, Judith Bauer.
To the future, Ben Franklin! Osborne, Mary Pope
New books for juni ors…
A very short, entirely true history of unicorns Laskow, Sarah.
Who was Sally Ride? Stine, Megan,.
Once upon a crime Buckley, Michael
Crush Chmakova, Svetlana,
Best friends Hale, Shannon
Lalani of the distant sea Kelly, Erin Entrada
The capture Lasky, Kathryn
The candymakers Mass, Wendy
The day the world stopped turning Morpurgo, Michael
The tyrant’s tomb Riordan, Rick
Changeling Ritter, William
Echo Ryan, Pam Munoz
Like carrot juice on a cupcake Sternberg, Julie,
The poison jungle Sutherland, Tui T
From the Junior Shelves~
Like Carrot Juice on a Cupcake
(Eleanor #3)
by Julie Sternberg,
Matthew Cordell (Illustrations)
I did a mean thing.
A very mean thing.
I HATE that I did it.
But I did.
This is worse than
carrot juice on a cupcake
or a wasp on my pillow
or a dress that’s too tight at the neck.
In the third installment from the team who created Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie and Like Bug Juice on a Burger, Eleanor’s relationship with her best friend, Pearl, experiences its first growing pains. When a glamorous new student transfers to school, at first Eleanor’s excited about the possibility of a new friend. But when Pearl is assigned to be the new girl’s buddy, Eleanor fears she can’t compete. To make matters worse, Eleanor’s been chosen for the lead role in the springtime musical, which means she has to sing a solo in front of the entire school!
From overcoming stage fright to having a secret crush, young readers will relate to Eleanor as she navigates the bittersweet waters of growing up.
Goodreads
New books for young adults…
The blacksmith queen Aiken, G. A
The ten thousand doors of January Harrow, Alix E.,
The chocolate maker’s wife Brooks, Karen
Sweet little lies: an L.A. Candy novel Conrad, Lauren
The girl behind the red rope Dekker, Ted
Hand of Isis Graham, Jorie
All the forgivenesses Hardinger, Elizabeth
The lost daughter: a novel Paul, Gill,
From the Young Adult Shelves~
The Girl Behind the Red Rope
by Ted Dekker, Rachelle Dekker
Ten years ago, Grace saw something that would forever change the course of history. When evil in its purest form is unleashed on the world, she and others from their religious community are already hidden deep in the hills of Tennessee, abiding by every rule that will keep them safe, pure–and alive. As long as they stay there, behind the red perimeter.
Her older brother’s questions and the arrival of the first outsiders she’s seen in a decade set in motion events that will question everything Grace has built her life on. Enemies rise on all sides–but who is the real enemy? And what will it cost her to uncover the truth?
For the first time, bestselling authors Ted Dekker and Rachelle Dekker team up and deliver an intense, tightly focused ride through the most treacherous world of all.
Goodreads
Trivia Time!
Every month we ask a trivia question. If you know the answer, drop it off at the front desk or e-mail it here. We will randomly select the winner from the correct answers and the WINNERwill win ONE FREE WEEK of OVERDUE FINE AMNESTY ON ONE BOOK
Last month’s question and answer:
Q. Strunk & White wrote the classic Element of Style, the Bible of good writing. What other classic did White write?
A. E.B. White also wrote Stuart Little, Charlotte’s Web, and The Trumpet of the Swan.
No Winner!
This Month’s Trivia Question:
Which novel opens and closes with the letters of Robert Walton?
From the New and Recent Shelves~
We (being I) are always looking for contributors to this reviews section. The editor has a limited range of taste, so any reviews would be more than welcomed. Just e-mail them in reply to this, or to librarian@smythpl.org
I admit to a rather limited taste in reading materials. I generally eschew science fiction, fantasy and what are euphemistically referred to as “chic books”. I realize this is a deficiency in not only me, but the “From the New and Recent Shelves” section of “The Smythie”.
I may therefore resort to pilfering reviews from Goodreads.com for a book at times to widen the breadth of this service. I’d much rather have a contributing reviewer (or twelve). If you’ve read a book you’ve loved, please shoot me a review so we can enjoy a more personal perspective.
Fiction…
City of Windows is Robert Pobi’s terrific debut novel. For fans of Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme, the main character, Lucas Page, is a physically disabled genius at crime solving.
As New York City is attacked by a 100 year blizzard, it is also under attack from an incredibly sniper whose shots defy all reason.
Page is a wonderful character whose depth and background story are portrayed by the author seamlessly. The back story is told naturally and, like Lincoln Rhyme, you can’t resist rooting for the acerbic crime solver.
Very highly recommended for fans of this genre.
More Fiction…
The police say it was suicide.
Anna says it was murder.
They’re both wrong.
One year ago, Caroline Johnson chose to end her life brutally: a shocking suicide planned to match that of her husband just months before. Their daughter, Anna, has struggled to come to terms with their loss ever since.
Now with a young baby of her own, Anna misses her mother more than ever and starts to question her parents’ deaths. But by digging up their past, she’ll put her future in danger. Sometimes it’s safer to let things lie…
The stunning, twisty new psychological thriller from number one bestseller Clare Mackintosh, author of I Let You Go and I See You. Goodreads
Non-fiction…
American Predator tells the story of the man who may, in fact, be America’s worst and most prolific serial killer, of whom hardly anyone has heard.
Maureen Callahan tells of his capture and how the FBI learned that a killer of a young lady in Anchorage, Alaska probably killed scores more.
As intriguing as an unknown serial killer is, the account of the ineptitude of some FBI agents and law enforcement officers was overcome by a few to get more of the story. The fact so much more is unknown (thanks partly to that ineptitude) is chilling.
This account is well told and a very good read.
Ever want to be one of those know-it-all reviewers?
Got a book to recommend?
Want to write a blurb?
Have a child with a favorite book who would like to contribute to the Smythie?
We welcome contributors (less for us to write!), especially children and teens to review and recommend favorite books. Just drop Heidi Deacon an e-mail at librarian@smythpl.org or “reply” to this and we’ll include it here. It need not be a new book – it can be a golden oldie, a classic, a trashy beach book or whatever you have enjoyed.
I hope you have enjoyed this edition. Comments, suggestions and, of course, reviews are always welcomed.
Rick Mitchell and the library staff
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