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Book reviews by library staff and guest contributors
Evie Dunmore's debut novel Bringing Down the Duke made a splash last year both because of it's feminist love story and it's general sparkliness (is that a word?) both inside and outside. Inside was a sharp, funny, lovely story of opposites attracting and on the outside was a colorful, illustrated design that was part of a major trend in the publishing world.
Though we've been lucky this summer, every Midwesterner knows its keening sound, a reminder that tornado season is upon us once again. Tornadoes remain something of an enigma today, even as technology and YouTube videos make the prediction and experience of storms more routine. But our knowledge of tornados is a very recent phenomenon, as Lee Sandlin chronicles in Storm Kings: The Untold History of America’s First Storm Chasers.
Pirio Kasparov is a medical and biological anomaly. She survived for more than four hours in 40 degree water in the North Atlantic when the small fishing boat she was on was hit by a larger ship. Her survival in waters that would generally kill others within a short period of time is newsworthy, but for Pirio the much bigger issue is the fact that her friend Ned didn't survive the crash and she's beginning to suspect that his death was not an accident. The authorities conclude that the collision was an accident, but Ned's young son Noah is relying on Pirio to figure things out.
What is the road to hell paved with? Such a Fun Age is like that. Over and over again.
Emira is 25 years old and about to age out of coverage from her parents health insurance. Her B.A. in English from Temple University in Philadelphia holds zero interest for her and her college friends are moving on to jobs with 401(k) plans, dental coverage and larger apartments with adult furniture. Emira works two part-time jobs that are okay but she's kind of lost and doesn't know what to do with her life.
The pandemic has put the kibosh on the library being able to offer in person events - something we've been missing in a major way - and this is true for the Wisconsin Book Festival as well. Though they hold events all year long, they've had to come up with a new way of doing things. So if getting to the Central library, finding and paying for parking, and then finding a seat for a popular event were often just too much or just not feasible, here's your chance.
One of my favorite things lately is Japanese cartoonist Yoshiharu Tsuge.
Active from the 1960s-1980s, Tsuge has had a lasting influence on Japanese culture. Among other accomplishments, he helped pioneer manga’s “I-comics” genre, creating fiction out of his personal life, domestic strife and declining mental health included. Big in Japan for decades, Tsuge is finally getting an American roll-out.
Honor Holland thinks she's about to have the best night of her life. She's decided to propose to her lover, Brogan, and finally make their relationship official. Problem is, Brogan has always considered Honor to be a 'friend with benefits' rather then a true romantic partner. And to add serious insult to injury, after crying on her best friend's shoulder, Honor finds out that that same best friend is who Brogan plans to marry. Honor is not only devastated, she's also a little desperate. She's 35 years old and truly wants a family.
Neurodiverse thirteen-year-old Frankie has more than her share of challenges. She is learning to cope with multiple issues and manage her impulses. Meanwhile, Frankie’s twin sister, Tess, is handling the challenges of having a neurodiverse sibling.
This book has been checked out to me since winter and I kept waiting to read it until my brain was ready to absorb all its Michael Eric Dyson-ness. I realized that day might never arrive and decided to go for it. Reading something academic stretched my brain to its limits but this book was the perfect thing to read right now.
Recently someone asked me for recommendations for "intelligent" mysteries. Her description for these was "a combination of a dense, resonant setting with character and plot development that grab you but that are new and thought provoking; characters, attitudes, thoughts, insights you haven't read before but which strike a chord and reveal something about the world." That description helped me to help her find some books, but it also fits a science fiction title I read. Ancillary Justice is very well-written and complex.
