January Staff Picks

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Little by Edward Carey
This charming narrator takes us into her strange world —first one of poverty and servitude, later to a time at the palace of Versailles, and finally to glimpses of Paris at the time of the French Revolution. Her large capacity for work and love are what make this book compelling. Based on the early life of the wax artist Madame Tussaud. ~BJS

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


Ninety-Nine Glimpses of Princess Margaret
by Craig Brown
Unlike other biographies of this fascinating royal, these ninety-nine chapters show insight into the Princess’ personality from numerous points of view through vignettes about her life. Compulsively readable — a must-read for fans of The Crown. ~JF

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


An Atlas of Natural Beauty: Botanical Ingredients for Retaining and Enhancing Beauty by Victoire de Taillac and Ramdane Touhami
A beautifully illustrated and extremely thorough collection of botanical ingredients for a more natural you! With simple home beauty recipes. ~KC

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


The Dakota Winters by Tom Barbash
This family driven story is set in 1980. It is bittersweet, poignant chronicle of a moment in the history of New York City and the country at large. ~LQ

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Short Stories Anyone?

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Title: THE BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES 2018
Ed. By Roxane Gay
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (October 2, 2018)

Don’t have as much reading time as you would like? Ready to discover new literary voices or revisit some favorites? Maybe it’s time to try a short story collection, and this one is a great one to start with.
Author Ron Rash’s contribution, THE BAPTISM, is classic, no holds barred Rash. When an unrepentant, violent abuser demands to be baptized in order to marry the barely-teenaged sister of his former wife (who fled for her life), what is a Reverend to do? EVERYTHING IS FAR FROM HERE by Cristina Henriquez tells the tale of a woman and her son fleeing from the horrors of their country to the promise of a new life in another. What they endure on the journey and at their destination is not at all what was expected. Curtis Sittenfelds’s THE PRAIRIE WIFE introduces us to Kirsten and Lucy. Two women with very different lives but who share a brief, romantic past. Life, it seems, doesn’t always work out the way you think it will. In UNEARTH by Alicia Elliott, a 63 year old Mohawk woman is informed that the remains of her then 5 year old brother, missing for some 55 years, have been unearthed on the grounds of the Iroquois Residential School which they both attended. They were sent to the school to save their souls but it stole a life instead.
There are so many more moving, beautifully written stories in this edition for readers to lose themselves in, if only for a few pages.

If you would like more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Staff Picks For November

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Staff Picks For November

Rising Out of Hatred by Eli Saslow
Non-fiction. Recommended highly by three FPL librarians — this book explores the life of a young man raised in hatred and bigotry who steps into the wider world and opens his mind and heart to different people and ideas. ~Linda

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles by Mark Russell (author) and Mark Feehan (illustrator)
Heavens to Murgatroyd, it’s 1953! The closeted Southern playwright known as Snagglepuss is the toast of Broadway and the focus of the House Committee on Un-American Activities. This sophisticated graphic novel hits all the right notes. ~PB

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

A Key to Treehouse Living by Elliot Reed
For William Tyce, the only way to narrate his life is to put it to paper, separating each event and memory in glossary form. After the death of his mother, his father abandons him and he is left in the care of his uncle and cousin. This is truly a unique coming-of-age story told in the most unpredictable way. ~KC

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Loose Tongues by Chris Simms
First in a thrilling new series featuring DC Sean Blake. New to the Serious Crimes Unit, Blake and his colleagues race to solve a rash of gruesome murders. Heart pounding action throughout and a variety of characters we would like to get to know better. ~Sue B.

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Staff Picks for October

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The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle
If you could have dinner with five people living or dead, who would you choose? This is a thought-provoking book with a tender love story and Audrey Hepburn thrown in. What’s not to love?! Reminded me of One Day by David Nicholls. —Claudia

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

 

The Lido by Libby Page
When an upscale development threatens the local lido, two very different women bring the community together to try to save the pool. Along the way they find in each other strength, friendship and what real community means. —Linda

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

 

Who is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht
1962: A young woman discovering her sexuality during pre-Stonewall New York City is recruited as a spy for the CIA and then thrown into a dangerous mission in pre-coup Argentina. —PB

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

 

Harry’s Trees by Jon Cohen
This is the story of an unlikely relationship between a widower, a widow and her 10-year-old daughter, who are all trying to save each other. Meanwhile an aging town librarian desperately seeks to rescue her beloved library. —KC

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

 

Murder at Half Moon Gate by Andrea Penrose
The second book in the Wrexford and Sloane historical mystery series.
Strong and fiercely independent Charlotte Sloane joins forces with handsome Lord Wrexford to track down the vicious killer of a gifted inventor. —Sue B

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Leonardo da Vinci

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Title: Leonardo da Vinci
Author: Walter Isaacson
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; October 2017

Summary/Review: I am not generally a reader of biographies, or pretty much any non-fiction so I was very impressed with how interesting this book was. I am not a Da Vinci historian or expert but I am definitely a fan, particularly of his incredibly expressive drawings. 

The author tells the artist’s life story by taking us through the day-to-day life of a working renaissance craftsman-artist. After all, artists have to put food on the table too, and one way to do that was to acquire the patronage of powerful and wealthy merchants, noblemen and church officials. 

We learn that Da Vinci, even though he is widely considered one of the great masters of all time, had very little interest in finishing and delivering his assignments. This lead to some very lean times and a frequent search for patronage. His curiosity about all things scientific and the relationships of creatures and their environments ruled his days as he sought to understand and describe nature, the human anatomy and interestingly enough, a lifelong compulsion to describe the physics of the flow of water. 

In this book he is credited with very forward-thinking treatises on anatomy, the relationship of all things in nature as they relate to humanity and engineering designs hundreds of years in advance of their actual execution. Flying machines, war engines, city planning, the list is seemingly endless. 

But it was the drawing, the notebooks, the analysis of light and dark which really kept me turning the pages. I knew the Master was prolific but I had no idea just how many undeveloped ideas and theories are found in the hundreds of sketchbooks and thousands of pages he left behind. 

Give it a try. I just received my hold on another Isaacson biography about Steve Jobs, the creator of all things Apple. I hope it’s as interesting as the Da Vinci biography.

Recommended by: Mark Z., guest reviewer.

If you would like to check our catalog or place a hold on this book, please click here.

Spotlight on Author Paul Doiron

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If you haven’t read the Mike Bowditch series by author Paul Doiron, you’re missing out on some great thrillers. This series is a favorite among staff and patrons alike. If you would like to take a look, we’ve provided a list of the titles in the series, in order, below. Happy reading!

THE POACHER’S SON
“Doiron’s strong debut features Mike Bowditch, a newbie game warden, who hears that his estranged father, a hard-living poacher, has been accused of murdering two men and has escaped into a wilderness area. Ignoring the orders of both his superior and the police, Bowditch sets out to find his father and prove his innocence.” ~ Publisher’s Weekly

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

TRESPASSER
“Doiron serves up a tense thriller that stars a memorable main character and brings the rugged Maine landscape vividly to life.” ~Library Journal

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

BAD LITTLE FALLS
“Doiron’s third Bowditch entry is riveting and honest, with full-depth characters and a landscape that isn’t cutting any slack. Readers of Nevada Barr and C. J. Box will enjoy this similar tale, with the added surprise of a refreshing hero whose youth and inexperience Doiron skillfully twists into an asset.” ~Booklist

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

MASSACRE POND
“This series follows Bowditch from the start of his warden career, and his evolution creates a constantly fresh perspective, nicely paired with solid procedural details and an outdoors education. Massacre Pond, arguably the best yet, boasts fair-minded exploration of Maine’s conflicting environmental and economic interests and marks a turning point for Bowditch, who questions his fit with a career that constantly requires suppressing his instincts.” ~Booklist

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

THE BONE ORCHARD
“Thoughtful plotting and strong characters raise this above the crime novel pack.”         ~Publisher’s Weekly

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

THE PRECIPICE
“This is one of the finest entries in a uniformly strong series that has quietly taken its place among the very best outdoors-based crime dramas.” ~Booklist

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

WIDOWMAKER
“The seventh Mike Bowditch novel (after The Precipice) continues to deliver vivid descriptions of rural Maine, a satisfying mystery (this one with tantalizing loose ends), and a conflicted main character.” ~Library Journal

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

KNIFE CREEK
“This solid eighth entry in the Mike Bowditch series, following Widowmaker (2016), is full of strong characters, great dialogue, and Doiron’s signature command of the rugged and natural Maine setting.” ~Booklist

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

STAY HIDDEN
“The extraordinary sense of place makes this Doiron’s strongest novel yet. This is not Jessica Fletcher’s Maine. It is a much darker place, more like C. J. Box’s Wyoming. With foghorns.” ~Booklist

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

What Are Your Neighbors Reading?

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Want to know what your friends and neighbors are reading and enjoying this summer? Take a look at the sampling below.

THE SIXTH DAY by Catherine Coulter and J.T. Ellison

“Coulter and Ellison smoothly mix contemporary political issues with eerie historical legend in this fast-paced outing sure to appeal to fans and newcomers alike.”  ~Publishers Weekly

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

O’S LITTLE BOOK OF LOVE & FRIENDSHIP by the editors of O, The Oprah Magazine

“With essays and anecdotes from some of the best contributors to O, The Oprah Magazine, this charming collection warms the heart and stirs the soul. ~Amazon.com

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

BENEATH A SCARLET SKY by Mark Sullivan

“Sprawling, stirring, like the richest of stories, and played out on a canvas of heroism and tragedy, Beneath a Scarlet Sky is like one of those iconic World War II black and white photos: a face of hope and tears, the story of a small life that ended up mattering in a big way.” Andrew Gross, author of The One Man

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

THE JOY LUCK CLUB by Amy Tan

“In quietly elegant prose, Tan weaves the memories of four Chinese women who fled their homeland and came to San Francisco into a moving narrative that becomes a revelation for the women’s Chinese American daughters.” ~Booklist

THE JOY LUCK CLUB is also on the PBS list “The Great American Read”, an initiative to find America’s favorite novel. Check out our displays at both libraries to see more titles on the list.

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

 

Staff Summer Reading Picks, Part 2

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The Other Mother by Carol Goodman
Two women suffering from post-partum depression become friendly and their lives become intertwined. A page-turner that keeps you guessing. ~ Jan, Administration

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


Stay Hungry by Sebastian Maniscalco
The comedian recounts his experiences on the long road to fame, filled
with laughs along the way. His strong work ethic and family values are inspirational.                ~SR, Circulation

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


Our Little Secret by Roz Nay
You never forget your first love, especially when the police detectives want to hear the whole story. ~Jess, Reference

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Staff Summer Reading Picks, Part 1

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High Season by Judy Blundell
The North Fork of Long Island comes alive in this tale of family dynamics that examines how far a woman will go when she feels her life is being upended. Perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand. ~Linda, Reference

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


That Kind of Mother by Rumaan Alam
A big city mother overwhelmed after the birth of her child hires a nanny who then dies in childbirth. ~KC, Circulation

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


Less by Andrew Sean Greer
Winner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Arthur Less tries to run away from his life just as he turns 50. Laugh out-loud funny. ~PB, Reference

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.


Paper Ghosts by Julia Heaberlin
A suspected serial killer suffering from dementia and the sister of one of his alleged victims go on a road trip. One of them might not be coming back. ~Sue, Circulation

For more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Damnation Island

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Title: Damnation Island: Poor, Sick, Mad & Criminal in 19th Century New York

Author: Stacy Horn
Publisher: Algonquin, May 2018

Summary/Review: Though we all know how awful many if not most mental health facilities were, even into the 20th century, this book was a revelation.

In the 1800’s, Blackwell’s Island, now Roosevelt Island in New York’s East River, was home to a lunatic asylum, prisons, hospitals, poor houses and work houses. All built with the greatest of intentions, but all ending as abominations. From over-crowding, physical abuses, and utter disregard for sanitary practices, these buildings meant to protect, rehabilitate, and heal were actually death traps and torture chambers.

Horn focuses on a few major and minor players for a well-rounded look into lives that were so tragically affected, and a few who tried in vain to change the system.

Who will like this book: For readers who like narrative non-fiction and history.

If you would like more information, or to place a hold, please click here.

Recommended by: Sue B., Circulation