Springfield Library Corner
December 12, 2002

ELEANOR'S CHOICE: FUN AND USEFUL WEBSITES FOR THIS WEEK

Implosionworld.Com at http://www.implosionworld.com/

Jewish Encyclopedia.Com at http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/

Joy of Baking.Com at http://www.joyofbaking.com

National Museum of Wildlife Art at http://www.wildlifeart.org

Thoreau Homepage at http://www.walden.org/Thoreau/

Tiny Travelers – Travel with Infants at http://www.tinytravelers.net/

JOY'S PICKS

Those of you old enough to remember life before McDonalds and before Dominos Pizza will recall a kinder and gentler form of fast food known as “The Automat.” Lorraine B. Diehl’s fascinating book traces the history of Horn & Hardart’s wonderful establishments where a handful of change could buy a fabulous meal. The author even includes recipes so you can duplicate your favorite memories in your own home.

Are you looking for new hobby this winter? “Knitting” can be wonderfully creative and lots of fun. Judy Ann Sadler’s book is written for
children, but the projects are interesting enough for adults. The directions are simple and easy to follow. This is a great craft to learn with your son or daughter.

Are you home repair “impaired?” Are you tired of paying big bucks to keep the little things in your life running smoothly? “How to Fix Just About Everything” by Bill Marken is a treasury of solutions to everyday problems. This book touches on everything from fixing your VCR to freshening smelly shoes!

EMS workers are a breed unto themselves. They crave excitement and the instant gratification that comes from dealing with life and death situations. J.A. Karam’s “Into the Breach” takes you into the violence of Newark, NJ and gives you an up close and personal look into the lives of these amazing medical problem solvers.

Halloween is our country’s second most popular holiday. David J.Skal explores the history of this celebration and examines its cultural impact on society. “Death Makes a Holiday” explains why we love to be scared and the huge marketing phenomenon that Halloween has become.

NAT'S "YOU SAW IT HERE AT SPRINGFIELD FIRST"

In a couple short weeks, many American families will be rejoicing in the birth of the Prince of Peace. This week, Nat looks at two books that remind us how much more reflection and work toward peace there is to do.

While the United States prepares to embark on a new war, a new book offers a look at a not-so-old war. In “The Lion’s Gate: Dispatches from Afghanistan,” New Yorker staff writer Jon Lee Anderson introduces us to warlords, fighters, and an American soldier of fortune. Who would have imagined that his story on the search for Osama, a man wanted “dead or alive’ by the most powerful nation on the earth, would still have no ending 16 months later?

Daniel Gordis sends “Dispatches from an Anxious State” in “If a Place Can Make You Cry.” A policeman chases a runaway donkey down the street, men dance in the street on Simchat Torah. Gordis moved with his family from Los Angeles to Israel in 1998, believing his children’s generation would be the first to grow up in peace. This is an edited collection of his email missives to friends and family. “Something dark and terrifying is happening here” he later reflects. Concluding with a letter to his children he comes close to asking for their forgiveness and understanding for deciding to staying put, recognizing their pain at having new friends move away from the conflict.

LIBRARIAN'S PICK OF THE WEEK

“Nine” by Jan Burke. Edgar Award winner Burke is in top form here in a thriller featuring Sheriff’s Homicide Detective Alex Brandon.

Brandon is a complicated guy with a history of personal problems and a sharp eye for details. His case involves a group of murders similar to serial murders committed years ago, which he also investigated. The murders are of criminals on the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list, so the public is heartily in favor of the vigilantes who are committing the brutal murders.

Brandon knows he has to catch the killers soon, but is missing a key witness, a young man who may have gone to school with the
perpetrators. You can’t help but stay up late reading this one; the pages fly past as fast as you can turn them.