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Book reviews by library staff and guest contributors
I know they say don’t judge a book by its cover, but dang, the artwork for Oyinkan Braithwaite’s debut novel My Sister, the Serial Killer is a stunner. Especially when paired with its gag-worthy title.
The good news is that Braithwaite’s satirical thriller exceeds expectations.
Francis the donkey is a shoemaker. He does what he loves and makes the other animals very happy with his beautiful shoes. He has great friends and a comfortable routine.
I posted a couple "best of" lists last week. Today starts the 10 day #libfaves18 countdown. Each day for the next ten days library workers across the land will be posting their favorite 2018 titles, one day at a time. They'll use the hashtag #libfaves18 on Twitter so you can follow along. Tallying is happening each day and at the end of the countdown the biggest vote-getters will be posted.
With a musical rhyme scheme, big, bold illustrations, and a colorful cast of children, Play this Book is a fun, energetic read to cozy up with. Little ones are invited to play along with the instruments on each page. Great for toddlers and preschoolers.
What a time to be alive. What a time for poetry that gives life. Rupi Kaur, Nayyirah Waheed, Danez Smith, Ada Limón, Morgan Parker, Tommy Pico, Chen Chen, Kaveh Akbar, Ocean Vuong, Solman Sharif, Mai Der Vang, Yesika Salgado. There is no shortage of new school poets with distinctive viewpoints and a moving way with words. Add Hieu Minh Nguyen, the Minnesotan son of Vietnamese immigrants, to that list.
Tasha Suri is a librarian who studied creative writing at University and both of those facts are evident in her debut fantasy novel which is clearly well-researched and oh so creative.
But stay away, Gidget is spoken for! Who knows all of the lyrics to the theme song of Gidget, (Wait 'Til You See) My Gidget?" What about "Who Needs Wings to Fly?" the theme song from The Flying Nun? I do! If you spot me at the Central Library please ask and I'll perform them for you! Just kidding. I will not. But if you want to talk about Sally Field's new memoir, you know where to find me.
We are starting to see best of the year lists and In Pieces is high on mine. What a smart, compelling memoir.
It's that time of year when the world falls in love
Every song you hear seems to say, happy reading
May all your book dreams come true...
NPR's Book Concierge is back for 2018 and there are more then 300 titles for you to sort and peruse. You can look at all 319 titles or you can break it down by category. Or if you want to narrow it down even more, pick a couple of categories and see which titles fit your new criteria. There is quite simply something for everyone in this massive catalog. So take a look. Do you want to see which two books work for Art Lovers and Book Clubs? It's possible. How about the Comic/Graphic Novel that is Rather Short? You got it.
How often are two siblings really good at the same thing? There’s Venus and Serena Williams, Orville and Wilbur Wright, the Bronte sisters... it’s not unheard of, but it’s not super common either. Anyway, after reading An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green, I would definitely add John and Hank Green to the list of talented siblings. I’ve been a John Green fan for a long time and I knew that he and his brother Hank made great YouTube videos, but I didn’t have super high expectations for Hank’s debut novel.