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MADreads

Book reviews by library staff and guest contributors

Told from the distaff side

Cover of Milady
A review of Milady by Laura Sullivan

As a kid I loved the Three Musketeers (book and movies) but as an adult when I revisited the story I found my interest had waned. I think that fading interest comes from the fact that the parts for women just aren't that enthralling and in fact if you think spend any time thinking about it, their treatment by the heroes is pretty bad. That said, there was one female character who always intrigued me. She is the Musketeer's frequent antagonist, Milady de Winter. In Ms. Sullivan's re-imagining we get to experience Milady's story from her point of view.

Sep 9, 2019

The authors are coming

WBF graphic
Wisconsin Book Festival

Enjoy Wisconsin Book Festival events all year round! Several incredible authors are headed your way in September, so make plans to join us.

Plus save the date for the 4-day festival October 17-20, 2019. The complete list of events can be found at wisconsinbookfestival.org.

All Wisconsin Book Festival events are free and open to the public, no tickets or registration required. 

Sep 4, 2019

Read a little, talk a little, talk, talk, talk

Reading group engraving
Book Discussions at the Library

Every few months I write a book report on the books my mystery book group at Lakeview has discussed. But in thinking about it recently I realized I've neglected to mention (at least recently) all of the other book discussion happenings at the library. Every one of our locations has groups you can join to talk books if you'd like.

Aug 27, 2019

How to budget for lamb and strychnine

Cover of Etiquette & Espionage
A review of Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger

It's been a while since I've read such a delightful novel. And not only is this one great and good, I'm thrilled that there are several more books in this young adult series that I can read next. Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger is set in the same world as her adult Parasol Protectorate series (a combination steam punk/romance/paranormal series that is also super-fun). This YA entry takes place a number of years earlier and introduces Sophronia Angelina Temminnick.

Aug 21, 2019

Vets with a little something extra

Cover of Hex Vet: Witches in Traini
A review of Hex Vet: Witches in Training by Samantha Davies and Mike Fiorentino

What could be cuter than young witches training to be vets? Magical pets, that's what!

Nan and Clarion are apprenticed to veterinarian witches at Willows Whisper Veterinary Practice and things get a little wild when one of the supernatural creatures unexpectedly hypnotizes all animals within its gaze. It's up to the two apprentices to restore order to the clinic.

Aug 16, 2019

O Juno! Or, the tribulations of Rome’s hardest working private informer

Cover of Ides of April
A review of Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

Ancient Rome could be a tough place for a woman, but it takes a lot to faze Flavia Albia, Rome’s only female private informer. But in The Ides of April, her first case might be her last. Hired by one of the neighborhood’s more detestable characters, Flavia is tasked with defending the woman from charges stemming from a fatal accident with a runaway cart that killed a toddler. Flavia doesn’t relish working for her client, but the daughter of famed informer Marcus Didius Falco doesn’t back away from a challenge—especially when the coffers are running low. But when Flavia’s awful clie

Aug 12, 2019

Moving on

Cover of Yard Sale
A review of Yard Sale by Eve Bunting

Sometimes a yard sale can mean discovering marvelous treasures, fun times with parents or loved ones, or simply a summer day activity. But for Callie, the young protagonist in Yard Sale by Eve Bunting, it means that she has to give away all of her beloved things and move to a small apartment. Callie watches as a lady buys her bed “with crayon marks on it” and sees a man loading up her favorite red bike onto his truck. In Callie, we see (and feel) the heartache of leaving behind the much-loved and the familiar.

Aug 9, 2019

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