New BookTalk Booklist on BookGuide: Women in the West...and Some More Nebraska Books, with Meredith M.

Meredith M., the retired curator of the Heritage Room of Nebraska Authors, and also a long-time member of the Bethany BookTalks group, presented a booktalk to that Bethany BookTalks group on February 10, 2023, which featured not only a focus on “Women in the West” but also a selection of additional books by Nebraska authors.

Check out the list of titles Meredith shared at the following link: 

 

Women in the West…and Some More Nebraska Books

New Booklist on BookGuide: HerStory - Women Heroes of WWII

Are you interested in the real-life histories of the many women who were unsung heroes of the World War II era? Would you like to learn more about women like Noor Inayat Khan, Hannie Schaft, Mildred Harnack, Ola Mildred Rexroat, Elizebeth Smith, Dita Kraus, Nancy Love, Odette Sansom, Aline Griffith, Irene Sendler, Vera Atkins, and more?

If so, then you'll want to check out the recent HerStory: Women Heroes of WWII booklist addition to the libraries BookGuide readers advisory resources. Inspired by a new list on the A Mighty Girl website, we expanded on their titles, to offer up as many as 75 recommended reading suggestions for those who are fascinated by this historical topic!

Check out this new booklist on BookGuide at the following link:

HerStory: Books About Women Heroes of WWII

DVD Review: The 355

The 355

(DVD 355)

 

The 355 is a fast-paced and intelligent suspense thriller, from writer/director Simon Kinberg, better known as the producer of numerous similar action films from the past 15-20 years.

 

The key difference in this one is that most of the main characters are women, instead of the stereotypical men. Jessica Chastain is Mace, a disgraced American agent, out to avenge the death of the ex-flame she had recently reignited with (played by Sebastian Stan — Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes in the Avengers movies). Diane Kruger is vengeful German intelligence agent Marie. Penelope Cruz is Graciela Rivera, a psychologist called upon to become a woman of action. And Lupita Nyong’o is Khadijah Adiyeme, a wizard with surveillance technology. When all four women end up on the run and being hunted, they decide the turn the tables on the leaders of an international conspiracy (and attempt to clear their own names while they’re at it).

 

There’s a tremendous amount of well-choreographed action, fight sequences, chases sequences, and explosion, all in service of a plot that, if not brilliant, at least holds together well enough. All the performances across the board were excellent, but especially Chastain and Kruger, who grow from antagonists to allies.

 

Is it the best action film ever? No, but for taking the chance and breaking the mold from what audiences are used to seeing, I really enjoyed this one. Although the explanation for where the title of the movie came from could have been clearer.

 

( Internet Movie Database entry for this film ) | ( official Facebook page for The 355 )

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

Have you watched this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. 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. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Music Book Review: Revenge of the She-Punks by Vivien Goldman

Revenge of the She-Punks
by Vivien Goldman (Music 781.66 Gol)

 

I wish more books in the Polley Music Library came with suggested listening lists for each chapter! Revenge of the She-Punks is a fantastic history of women’s participation in the history of punk music, written by Viven Goldman, herself one of the first female music journalists in the UK back in the early 70s. The book is divided into four main sections, covering the broad topics of identity, money, love, and protest. As I mentioned, each of these sections has a suggested playlist made of music by the artists who are primarily featured within the section. The coverage starts in the 70s and continues through the present day. Feminism and the role of women in the music is of course the primary focus, but related intersectional topics from these eras are also explored.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try She Can Really Lay It Down by Rachel Frankel, or Girl in a Band by Kim Gordon.]

[ publisher’s official Revenge of the She-Punks web site ] | [ official Vivien Goldman web site ]

 

Recommended by Scott S.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Polley Music Library

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. 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. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Check out this, and all the other great music resources, at the Polley Music Library, located on the 2nd floor of the Bennett Martin Public Library at 14th & "N" St. in downtown Lincoln. You'll find biographies of musicians, books about music history, instructional books, sheet music, CDs, music-related magazines, and much more. Also check out Polley Music Library Picks, the Polley Music Library's e-mail newsletter, and follow them on Facebook!

Music Review: Six: The Musical (on CD)

Six: The Musical
by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss (Compact Disc 782.14 Six)

Are you an anglophile, fascinated with British history? Did you also enjoy listening to the soundtrack of the Tony Award-winning, Hamilton: An American Musical? If you answered “Yes” to both those questions, then Six: The Musical is for you.

When trying to convince friends to listen to the soundtrack to Six, I recommend it as “the British Hamilton”. Six features six female performers, each portraying one of the six wives of England’s famous king, Henry VIII. The soundtrack features a mere 9 tracks. The six singers perform together on three — the opening track “Ex-Wives”, the closing track “Six”, and the track “Haus of Holbein” right in the middle. Otherwise, each of them gets a bravura solo that tells of her connections to Henry and her individual fate. Renee Lamb is Catherine of Aragon on “No Way”, Christina Modestou is Anne Boleyn on “Don’t Lose Ur Head”, Natalie Paris is Jane Seymour on “Heart of Stone”, Genesis Lynea is Anna of Cleves on “Get Down”, Aimie Atkinson is “Katherine Howard” on “All You Wanna Do” and Izuka Hoyle is Catherine Parr on “I Don’t Need Your Love”. The emphasis in this show is on the lives and loves of these six women — Henry’s had plenty of press. It’s time for “girl power”!

The comparison to Hamilton is in both the musical stylings and the color-blind casting. The songs of Six are fast-paced and raucous pop tunes, a mixture of hip-hop and dance club, with pounding beats and rapid-fire lyrics. The songs pack a massive amount of history into their lyrics, and if you have only a passing knowledge of the history of Henry VIII and his many wives, you’ll learn a lot by listening to this. The performers, all relatively young Brit gals, from a variety of cultural backgrounds, are all superb. The only minor drawback for me was clearly understanding the lyrics in a few spots, due to the thick British accents and the speed with which the lines were delivered. But, like Hamilton before it, it helped to have the CD booklet with its full lyrics to follow, and after a few listens, it was all pretty clear.

Six made headway in England and was preparing to open on Broadway. In fact, it had had some “preview” performances, and was set for a big run on the Great White Way in March. Its opening night turned out to be the day that COVID-19 safety concerns closed down Broadway. Here’s hoping the production can survive and re-launch once social distancing is no longer as big a concern. I do recommend looking online for pictures of the actresses in their fabulous costumes, and for a few video clips from Six on the show’s website and YouTube. It is a tremendous show, and the soundtrack CD is both entertaining and educational! As the snappy opening lyrics to the opening song cheekily say, “Divorced. Beheaded. Died. Divorced. Beheaded. Survived! And tonight, we are…LIVE!”

[ official Six: The Musical web site ] | [ Six background on Wikipedia ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library – Public Service

Have you listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. 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. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

The Kingdom of Women: Life, Love and Death in China's Mountains by Choo Wai Hong

The Kingdom of Women: Life, Love and Death in China’s Mountains
by Choo Wai Hong [305.488 Wai] 

This was a fascinating look into the rich history and the present day workings of this incredible tribe of matriarchal peoples deep in China’s mountains. Written from the perspective of an “adopted” tribe member Choo Wai Hong, she is able to weave her own personal outlook as a professional lawyer from the city, to how she came to love and eventually live with the Mosuo tribe.
[ British publisher’s official The Kingdom of Women web site ]

Recommended by Amy I.
Eiseley and Williams Branch Libraries and the Bookmobile

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. 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. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!

New Booklist - Spunky Old Ladies

Back in February we celebrated “Spunky Old Ladies Month”. In honor of this celebration,  Carrie K compiled a list of books written by or about spunky old ladies. Spunky Old Ladies are classified as "women over 50, who are interested in living a regret-free life."

Most of these spunky old ladies are still alive and kickin’, while others lived out their lives in a brazen and animated manner before they passed. Whether they're contemporary actresses, comedians and writers, or noted historical figures, we hope you'll find a spunky old lady here that you'll enjoy reading about!

Check out the Spunky Old Ladies booklist, on BookGuide!