While I Was Gone

While I Was Gone
by Sue Miller

While I was gone tells the story of Jo, a woman who lives a seemingly happy life. She has a loving husband, three grown daughters, and a successful business. However, Jo seems restless and not quite comfortable with her life. An old roommate named Eli reenters Jo's life and turns her world upside down. Eli reminds Jo of her past in which she lived in a house with 6 other carefree twenty-somethings. He also brings back some painful memories and has a secret that will change what Jo believes about her past, and possibly her future. I became caught up in this book. The narration is wonderful as I thought I was really with Jo as she struggled to make decisions and come to terms with her life. -- recommended by Alyse S. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[Also available in book-on-cd format.]

[ Publisher's official While I Was Gone web site ] | [ Wikipedia page for Sue Miller ]

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Farscape

Farscape
created by Rockne S. O'Bannon [DVD Farscape]

Farscape, which ran on the Sci Fi Channel from 1999 to 2003, was one of the most inventive, imaginative, creative, emotional and mind-blowing science fiction series to have aired on television in the past 50 years. Produced by Rockne S. O'Bannon and the staff of Jim Henson Productions, Farscape combined human actors (many in heavy prosthetic make-up designs) and highly detailed muppets (think Yoda as he appeared in the original Star Wars film trilogy), to create an exotic cast of characters. The main character was human astronaut John Crichton, who is testing an experimental spacecraft design in near-Earth orbit when he is thrown through an unexpected wormhole to the far edge of another galaxy. There, he quickly finds himself on a living ship, fleeing a tyrannical military police force with a group of intergalactic escaped convicts. His fellow rebels include a gigantic warrior, a peace-loving and highly spiritual blue-skinned woman evolved from a plant, the dethroned leader of an alien race, and one of the military pursuers, whose interactions with the rebels have contaminated her beyond the ability to rejoin her military brethren. As the series progressed, characters both left and joined the series, making the cast fluctuate. But at the heart, it was Crichton's hot-and-cold relationship with ex-Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun that formed the core of the show. Over four seasons, there were some truly horrible villains, some bad guys who became good guys, and more bizarre alien species than you can possibly imagine. There was also some of the best writing, acting, set design and special effects you'll ever see in a genre-based television series. Farscape is a series not-to-be-missed by science fiction fans, and I would recommend it to non-SF fans as a good example of how mind-bending genre TV can be! I'm rating it 9 instead of 10 only because in four seasons there were a few scattered misfires, but on the whole this was a terrific series! -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ] | [ official Farscape web site from Jim Henson Productions ] | [ official Farscape web site from the SciFi Channel ]

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Picture This

Picture This
by Lynda Barry, with guest water colorist Kevin Kawula [741.5 Bar]

Picture This is part graphic memoir, part sketch book, part artist’s self help book and part drawing how-to book. Amidst all of these are decorative watercolors and drawings carefully illustrating the aforementioned parts. If paintings and drawings could talk, Barry’s writing is representative of what they would probably say. Strange and interesting musings throughout “Picture This,” cover diverse territories of her thoughts. Barry illustrates moments from her childhood in comic strips peppered throughout. She counters past insulting drawing critiques with written rebuttals, quirky collages and sketches. Her sense of humor comes in various short form drawings from her personification of a dust bunny (they do like gentle breezes, but hate vacuum cleaners) to a summer to-do checklist (don’t forget to stub your toe on a sprinkler or drink green Kool-Aid). All of these elements form a kind of storytelling collage. If you need some creative inspiration, a motivational pick me up after a bad critique or simply a road trip chuckle, this book is for you. Trivia: Friend and college classmate Matt Groening refers to Lynda Barry as, “Funk Queen of the Galaxy." Barry responded by noting that Groening is “Funk Lord of the USA.” [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try What It Is by Lynda Barry, One Hundred Demons by Lynda Barry, Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel, or Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli.] -- recommended by Glory B. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ Wikipedia page for Lynda Barry ] | [ an unofficial Lynda Barry web site ]

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The Yukon

The Yukon
by Pat and Baiba Morrow [917.191 qMor

The word Yukon conjures up images of gold miners from the late 1800s hiking over the Chilkoot pass, their backs bent from the weight of their packs. For people of my generation, it also brings to mind the old TV show, Sergeant Preston of Yukon. Every week I watched the Mountie with his faithful dog, Yukon King battle the elements and the criminals. This book is much more than a walk in the past of the Yukon. It is a travelogue of the Yukon today. Stunning photos grace each page, showing us the beauty of the territory from its southern border to the northern tip. There are images of breathing mountain vistas and close-ups of fuzzy, white rough-legged hawk chicks and ripe blueberries and cloudberries. Adventure photojournalists, Pat and Baiba Morrow take us on a tour of a part of Canada that they love. This book is a good reference for anyone who is planning a trip to explore the wilderness of the Yukon. Turning the pages is also a delight for armchair travelers. -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[ official Pat and Baiba Morrow web site ]

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The Walking Dead: Book One

The Walking Dead: Book One: A Continuing Story of Survival Horror
by Robert Kirkland (writer), Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard (artists) [741.5 qKir]

My first exposure to The Walking Dead was the AMC television series based on Kirkman's series of graphic novels. Having enjoyed that series tremendously, I thought I'd go back and read the original. I found this graphic novel series to be intense and engrossing. This is far, far more than merely "people trying to survive a post apocaplyptic scenario". The primary focus of this graphic novel series is on the characters, their relationships and their motivations -- you grow to care about these people and watching the chaos they find themselves in the midst of is truly scary. The graphic novel version of the story goes in a different direction than the AMC series, but there are enough similarities that fans of the show should enjoy the books as well. Just be prepared -- both the series and the books are graphically intense, and probably not for younger readers. I thought I would be disappointed that the art is B&W instead of full-color, but the stark quality is actually rather well accomplished. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try World War Z and The Zombie Survival Guide, both by max Brooks.] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library


[ Wikipedia page for The Walking Dead ] | [ official Robert Kirkman web site ] | [ official Walking Dead TV series web site ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

Liar, Liar

Liar, Liar
by K.J. Larsen

Caterina Delucia owns the Pants on Fire Detective Agency. When Cat isn't photographing straying husbands in the arms of their paramours, she's fending off her overbearing mother who thinks that she needs to go into a safer line of work. Cat gets more than she bargains for when she takes Rita Savino's case. Rita hires Cat to find proof that her husband Chance is cheating on her. Cat follows Chance around Chicago but nothing suspicious happens until Chance confronts her and tells Cat that Rita is not his wife. He then walks into a warehouse that promptly explodes. Flying debris hits Cat and just before she passes out she sees Chance escape the fiery conflagration. When Cat awakes in the hospital with a concussion she hears that Chance Savino was killed in the blast. Cat insists that the authorities misidentified the man killed in the explosion. Cat tries to find Rita but she has disappeared. Her investigation puts Cats life in danger and her family of Chicago cops and a few friends with dubious backgrounds come to her rescue. A trio of sisters writing under the pen name of K. J. Larsen has created a laugh-filled debut novel that lovers of the Stephanie Plum novels will enjoy. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the works of Janet Evanovich, Harley Jane Kozak and Stephanie Bond.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[ official Books page on the official K.J. Larsen web site ]

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New Booktalk Booklist - Never Again

Jim W., from the Gere Branch Library, presented an all-new booktalk at Bethany Branch on October 22nd, 2010 and and will be presenting the same talk at Gere Branch on April 18th, 2011, which includes both fiction and non-fiction for adults and youth, related to the Jewish Holocaust during World War II.

His list of titles -- Never Again -- is now available on the BookGuide web site on the Booktalk Booklists page. Check it out for some good reading and/or research suggestions!

Robin Hood (2010)

Robin Hood (2010)
[DVD Robin]

I've always been a fan of the Robin Hood series. The animated movie was my favorite growing up and I've read all the books, but they all tell the same story. He's an outlaw. He steals from the rich and gives to the poor. He's able to make the king look like an idiot. But, the great thing about the movie is that it shows how he became an outlaw. It tells the story of him fighting in the war, how he met Marian, and why the king hates him in the first place. It's action-packed and there are moments of comedy that really make you laugh. [If you like this, you may also enjoy the other well-known Robin Hood movies, including Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. -- recommended by Carrie K. - Bennett Martin Public Library and South Branch Library

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ] | [ official Robin Hood movie web site ]

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The Night Bookmobile

The Night Bookmobile
by Audrey Niffenegger [741.5 Nif]

I had read some positive comments about this "adult picture book", from the author of The Time Travelers Wife, and was happy to have a chance to read it. I had no idea Niffenegger was also an artist, although the art in this graphic novel is notably simplistic (for the most part). The tale she tells, however, is whimsical, nostalgic, thoughtful, depressing and uplifting all at once. Told in retrospect, this is the story of Alexandra, a young woman who stumbles across the Night Bookmobile, in a large Winnebago staffed by librarian Robert Openshaw. This mysterious mobile library is only open from Dusk until Dawn, and she discovers that it is ONLY stocked with the hundreds of books that she has already ready in her young life. Inspired to reconnect with the books she's always loved, Alexandra seeks out the bookmobile again, only to not find it whenever she's actually looking for it. It is only when she stop looking that it reappears to her at various times in her life. I found myself very moved by this work, despite its at-times childish art style. If you're a lover of books, you will connect with The Night Bookmobile's message -- that, as Neil Gaiman says, "what we read makes us who we are." Delightful and thought-provoking! [I have a hard time recommending that readers try her full-length novels, The Time Travelers Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry, but Niffenegger does have two experimental photographic novels that might appeal to fans of this graphic novel.] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ Night Bookmobile page on the UK's "The Guardian" site ] | [ official Audrey Niffenegger web site ]

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New Customer Review - The Sugar House

Sugar House
by Laura Lippman

A young Jane Doe is killed, and then her killer is killed, while in prison. His sister suspects that if Jane Doe is identified, then she'll know why her brother was killed. Enter Tess Monaghan, detective. I thought you really needed a scorecard to keep track of who's who, doing what, to whom, but I found Sugar House both entertaining and suspenseful, with interesting characters. -- reviewed by Barbara R., a customer of the Gere Branch Library

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

The Huckleberry Murders

The Huckleberry Murders
by Patrick McManus

Blight County, Idaho where legal statutes are suggestions instead laws to be enforced -- this is the approach that Sheriff Bo Tully takes to his job. That attitude works until a crime wave breaks out in the area. Three young men are found shot to death, execution style, in a huckleberry patch on Scotchman Mountain. Then a longtime local rancher Orville Poulson, is reported missing by his estranged wife, Marge. She claims that Ray Crockett, Orville's ranch foreman is responsible. Bo uses his unorthodox methods to unravel the murders and Orville's disappearance. Patrick McManus is a retired humor columnist for Outdoor Life. Fortunately, he didn't retire his sense of humor when he left the magazine. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the works of James Doss and Craig Johnson.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[ official Books page on the official Patrick McManus web site ]

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Photojojo!

Photojojo: Insanely Great Photo Projects and DIY Ideas
by Amit Gupta [745.59 Gup]

In a time when digital photography has caused so many photos to be stuck in the pixelated worlds of hard drives and Facebook accounts, Photojojo reads like a breath of fresh air. For those who need motivation to print, this DIY photography project book is the answer. Photojojo is broken up into two parts; the first includes 'how to' creative uses for photographs and the second 'how to' use your camera in new ways. The step by step directions are concise and simple with descriptive illustrative photos. Most of the projects included are very simple to do or make with few supplies, a tight budget, and within a short time frame. This is a fun idea grab book for all ages and skill levels. Teachers and parents will find group and kid friendly projects. Photojojo is also a great read for photo enthusiasts who'd like yet another reason to print their photos and take their cameras for a spin around the block. If you want to know how to; make a monopod out of a string, turn a bottle-cap into a tripod head, make a poor mans fish eye lens, need a new lampshade, or how to create a "magnetic fridge-based Mr. You Head" this book is for you. P.S.: If you're in need of even more Photojojo, check out their snazzy website for more ideas, a fun photography blog, or connect your Flickr account to their "Time Capsule" project! at www.photojojo.com. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The A-Z of creative digital photography by Lee Frost, Creative digital scrapbooking : designing keepsakes on your computer. by Katherine Murray, Handmade Home by Amanda Blake Soule, and Craftcycle : 100+ eco-friendly projects and ideas for everyday living by Heidi Boyd.] -- recommended by Glory B. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ official Photojojo web site ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

Wintergirls

Wintergirls
by Laurie Halse Anderson

Wintergirls is a fictional account of Lia, an eighteen year old girl whose best friend just died, in a motel room, alone. Before she died, the two girls were not on speaking terms. The night Cassie died, she attempted to reconcile with Lia by calling her cell phone, 33 times. Now her childhood friend is dead and the guilt of not answering Cassie's calls as well as the secrets she holds are weighing heavily on her conscience. When in Junior High, the two girls had made a pact to be the skinniest, to be skinnier than one another. This pact triggered full blown anorexia nervosa, an illness that Lia has learned to hide very well, despite landing in treatment centers twice. Lia's mental health fades as she continues to deprive her body of food and secretly exercises obsessively in the middle of the night. Not only are voices in her head telling her she is worthless, stupid, fat etc., she is now followed around by a hallucination of Cassie's ghost, who praises Lia for not eating, encourages her to keep exercising, stay strong, so they can "be together" by New Years Eve. Using first person narrative and unique writing techniques, the author is amazingly talented by being able to demonstrate just how manipulative, secretive and mentally ill Lia has become while hiding her anorexia. Still, this character has so many redeeming qualities, including a special bond with her five year old sister, that you really want to see Lia conquer her illness. This is an amazing story, written by the author of both Speak and Chains. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Massive by Julia Bell, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson and Unbearable Lightness by Portia DeRossi.] -- recommended by Jessica H. - Walt Branch Library

[Also available in downloadable audio, book-on-cd formats.]

[ official Wintergirls page on the official Laurie Halse Anderson web site ]

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Dollhouse

Dollhouse
created by Joss Whedon [DVD Dollhouse]

Dollhouse is one of the quirkiest television offerings from producer/writer Joss Whedon, the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and the cult hit Firefly. Eliza Dushku (who played the recurring character Faith on Buffy) stars in this ensemble series as Echo, an "Active" who is a tool of a mysterious organization called Dollhouse. Actives are programmable human beings -- capable of having complete personalities and memory sets downloaded into them, so that they can temporarily perform certain jobs or tasks (for the Dollhouse's elite clients) -- burglar, lover, spy, etc. -- then they can be blanked out and reprogrammed for their next task. Actives are not supposed to remember anything from their previous roles, but Echo is starting to remember her "past lives". And she's not the only one. Dollhouse ran for two seasons, and the second season was a tour-de-force of science fiction brilliance. Though this first season wasn't quite as strong, it definitely set the stage with some creepy and provocative storylines, as well as some truly impressive performances by Dushku and the rest of the recurring cast. I recommend both seasons, but watch this one with an eye towards appreciating the second season even more! I'd rate season one a 6 and season two a 9, with an 8 average. -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ] | [ official Dollhouse web site ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

The End Game

The End Game
by Gerrie Ferris Finger

Moriah Dru, owner of Child Trace Inc., teams up with Atlanta Police detective, Richard Lake to finding two missing girls. The girls, Dottie and Jessie Rose, vanish when their home catches on fire and their foster parents, Ed and Wanda Barnes die in the flames. As Moriah and Richard search for the girls they learn that Dottie and Jessie are not first children to have disappeared from the Cabbagetown neighborhood of Atlanta in the past eight years. A tip from an informant leads Dru and Lake to believe that the girls may be in the hands of child traffickers planning to sell them to wealthy South Americans. They work to find the girls before they can be taken out of the country. This fast paced novel won the 2009 Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery Novel Competition. Gerrie Ferris Finger tackles the grim topic of child trafficking with sensitivity. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the works of Linda Castillo, Anne Holt and John Hart.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[ official The End Game page on the official Gerrie Ferris Finger web site ]
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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

Packing for Mars

Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void
by Mary Roach [591.091 Roa]

The latest from Roach (Stiff, Spook and Bonk) brings her sense of humor and scientific curiosity to bear on the the various scientific pursuits that are required when preparing astronauts for trips into outer space -- both to near-Earth orbit and for a theoretical mission to Mars. Roach specializes in unearthing the tiny, trivial details about topics...the things an ordinary person would never think to ask about, yet which turn out to be endlessly fascinating once they're revealed. In this volume, in addition to looking at the physical and psychological testing and training of astronauts, she poses such questions as "how would you have sex without gravity?", "could you die if you threw up in your spacesuit helmet?", "what are the long-term effects of not bathing?", "why do astronauts often faint when they return to Earth", and "what's really going into those strange space foods the scientists are preparing for future exploratory missions?". Roach's sense of humor infuses every page, but so does her sense of curiosity. You'll move from cringes and winces on one page, to laughing out loud on the next. An essential read for space enthusiasts and fans of "observational humor." -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[Also available in downloadable audio and book-on-cd formats.]

[ official Mary Roach web site ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

The War to End All Wars: World War I

The War to End All Wars: World War I
by Russell Freedman [j 940.3 Fre]

When this book was recently returned, the production value of it really caught my eye and I couldn't help but start browsing it. Aimed at young history researchers, this is a marvelous history of the first World War, filled with numerous photographs, clean and simple maps, and very simple text that tells the details about that era in world history. From explanations of the political, religious and ethnic conflicts that led to the start of the war, through the numerous bloody combat campaigns, to the historic Treaty of Versaille that brought the war to a close, this volume brings history to life. Includes a short chapter about the aftermath of the war, and the circumstances that led to the rise of Adolf Hitler into power in Germany in the 1930s. Excellent reference work, for both teens and adults! -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

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Flight of the Conchords - The Complete Season One

Flight of the Conchords - the Complete Season One
[DVD Flight]

My sister had told me about this show a few years ago, and I'm glad I finally got around to watching the first season. The Flight of the Conchords is a band made up of two guys from New Zealand named Jemaine and Bret. The guys are trying to make it big in New York City with the help of their agent, Murray and their number one fan, (actually only fan) Mel. The cast is small but great. Jemaine and Bret write off the wall songs that make you scratch your head, but their innocence is endearing. My favorite character is actually Murray, the band's manager played by Rhys Darby. Murray refuses to give up on the band, even though Jemaine and Bret never make his job easy. The band meetings are some of my favorite parts of each episode. It is hilarious to see Murray at work in his attempt to make Flight of the Conchords a success. This series is quirky and fun, and with only 12 episodes in the first season, it is a fairly quick series to watch. -- recommended by Alyse S. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this series ] | [ official Flight of the Concords web site ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.