September 3rd, 2004

Library Corner…
A true beach lover doesn’t limit his seashore enjoyment to the warm weather months. Themystical lure of the ocean can be as compelling in February as it is in July. Author Ken McAlphine’s “Off Season” is a salty account of his travels to some of the lesser known coastal towns along the Atlantic. One of his stops, Strathmere, NJ, is of particular local interest. If you’reinterested in reading Bill Clinton’s “My Life” and (a) the length of it scares you or (b) you are unable physically to lift it, you’ll be glad to know that the library has a CD version. This is anabridgment approved and read by the author. And I’m guessing all the good parts are still in there. “More French-Beaded Flowers” by Dalene Kelly takes her beautiful craft know-how and kicks it up a notch. It’s easy to create intricate designs with a few uncomplicated steps. The easy- to-follow instructions and beautifully photographed illustrations will propel your creativity to great heights. Are you longing for an exciting vacation destination? “Unforgettable Places to See BeforeYou Die” is a magnificent photographic journey to 40 famous and not so well-known sites. Author and photographer Steve Davey says you can travel and visit them all in two weeks or less. So get your airline ticket and pack your bag. And don’t forget your camera! Trash picking is addictive. “Mongo: Adventures in Trash” by Ted Botha explores the how-tos and whys of this universal phenomenon. According to the author, once you start, you don’t want to stop becauseyou’re afraid you’ll miss out on something really good. This interesting and informative narrativetakes you through the streets of New York and introduces you to those who believe that treasurescan be found in garbage. Because of popular demand the library will be continuing its bag salethrough the month of September. For three dollars you can fill up a shopping bag with your choiceof our discarded, but still enjoyable hardbacks. This is an economical way to expand your home library. And if you bring home a book you really don’t like you can always recycle it! Don’t forgetthat Springfield Library resumes its winter schedule after Labor Day. We will be open from 10 until 5 P.M. on Saturdays and from 1-4 P.M. on Sundays. Our Monday through Thursday hours remain the same, 9 A.M. to 9 P.M.

Alessandra’s Book Bites: Baby boomers will be interested in reading Allen W. Smith’s “The Looting of Social Security: How the Government is draining America’s Retirement Account.” Smith claims that “every cent generated by the 1983 Social Security tax increase - money specifically earmarked for the retirement of the Baby Boom generation - is gone, spent by our government.” Chris Mercogliano’s “Teaching the Restless: One School’s Remarkable No-Ritalin Approach to Helping Children Learn and Succeed” issues an urgent call to change how our society perceives hyperactive (ADHD) children. Master teacher Mercogliano’s has developed numerous ways of teaching hyperactive children without the use of Ritalin. If you enjoy tales of fishing and adventures at sea, then you’ll want to read “All Fishermen Are Liars: True Tales from the Dry Dock Bar” the newest collection of “absolutely true sea stories” by Linda Greenlaw, the New York Times bestselling author of “The Hungry Ocean” and “The Lobster Chronicles.” In “Lightning Man: The Accursed Life of Samuel F. B. Morris” Pulitzer Prize-winning author Kenneth Silverman gives the reader a detailed look at the long and amazing life of a fascinating and profoundly troubled American genius. Bob Welch’s “American Nightingale: The Story of Frances Slanger, Forgotten Heroine of Normandy” is the compelling biography of Lt. Frances Slanger the first nurse to die in Europe after the landings in Normandy in 1944. Slanger the daughter of a Jewish fruit-peddler was born in Poland and after surviving a chilling childhood in World War I immigrated to America at the age of seven. Other biographies of interest are Robert K. Landers “An Honest Writer: The Life and Times of James T. Farrell” author of “Studs Lonigan”; Scott Stossel’s “Sarge: The Life and Times of Sargent Shriver”; Carolly Erichson’s “Lilibet: An Intimate Portrait of Elizabeth II”; and David Pietrusza’s “Rothstein: The Life, Times, and Murder of the Criminal Genius Who Fixed the 1919 World Series.”Librarian’s Pick of the Week: “The Hummingbird Wizard” by Meredith Blevins. This book has already gotten high praise from writers like Jonathan Kellerman, Loren D. Estleman and Tony Hillerman, so it doesn’t need any from me, but what the heck, I’m adding my two cents anyway. This being Ms. Blevins’ first novel, I didn’t have any idea what to expect. It’s not exactly a mystery novel, although there is a death and certainly enough mystery surrounding it, and it’s not your everyday tale of a family swept up in grief and life problems. What it is, is a mystical trip to a world in which the laws of the everyday are swept away, where people are larger than life, certain people are tuned into the mysteries of the universe and everything is accepted as perfectly normal – unless you are on the outside looking in. Annie Szabo was married to a Gypsy, who gave her three beautiful children and then accidentally killed himself while swept up in the glory and freedom of riding a motorcycle. Annie has lost touch with the Szabos from choice, until her best friend Jerry, who had also married into the family, is murdered. This brings Annie back in touch with her mother-in-law, Madame Mina, the powerful heart of the family, and a mysterious man called the Hummingbird Wizard, who awakens her to the wonders of life. The language of this book is the most evocative, expressive and beautiful that I have ever read – a mind-expanding experience for lovers of the written word. I can say no more. Also new and recommended: “The Passing of the Day” by Elizabeth Ann Hill; “Rain Storm” by Barry Eisler; “Dirty Sally” by Michael Simon; “The Silver Screen” by Maureen Howard; “No Just Desserts” by Elisabeth Bastion; “A Wicked Wench” by Anne Herries; “Life Mask” by Emma Donoghue; “The Patron Saint of Red Chevys” by Kay Sloan; “Wedding Ring” by Emilie Richards; “No Man’s Dog” by Jon Jackson; “High Country Fall” by Margaret Maron; “The Last King” by Nichelle D. Tramble; “Dead Water” by Barbara Hambly; “The View from Delphi” by Jonathan Odell; “Hear No Evil” by James Grippando; “Vamped” by David Sosnowski; and “My Wife and My Dead Wife” by Michael Kun. We have new biographies: “Namath” by Mark Kriegel; “Longfellow: A Rediscovered Life” by Charles Calhoun; “Inigo” by Michael Leapman; “Dr. Martens: the Story of an Icon” by Martin Roach; “Mistress of the Elgin Marbles: by Susan Nagel; and “Jerome Robbins” by Deborah Jowitt. Some of you have asked for Talking Books on CD; we aim to please, so here are some new additions: “My Life” by Bill Clinton; “A Death in Vienna” by Daniel Silva; “Dance With Me” by Luanne Rice; “Hard Revolution” by George Pelecano; “The Princes of Ireland” by Edward Rutherford; Digital Fortress” by Dan Brown; “Bad Business” by Robert B. Parker; and “The Birth of Venus” by Sarah Dunant. Please remember that CDs are more expensive (sometimes much more expensive) than cassettes, so please handle them with care. Many of our CDs and DVDs come back to us with networks of fine and not-so-fine scratches all over them, and too many times they can’t be resurfaced, so the Library loses money. In order to keep the collection available, please use care in handling the disks: don’t touch them on their playing surfaces, don’t leave them lying around without their protective cases, and please, don’t let young children or children whom you have not shown how to handle a disk load or unload them into the player. We want to keep the collection as viable as we can for as many users as we can, and your thoughtful care of the disks will keep them available for everyone.

Alessandra’s Web Bites:
Teacher Resources
Children’s Books
Back to School Cartoons
Back to School Safety
Back to School Tips
Center on Reinventing Public Education

Some exciting new stories are going into our new graphic novels collection. Some may think that a graphic novel is little more than a new style of comic book, but the pictures in these novels are not the comics from your teen years. A new book by Will Eisner, called “Graphic Storytelling & Visual Narrative” shows the budding graphics artist how to tell a story in vivid, kinetic pictures that move the story along at top speed, much like Japanese anime. These novels are fast and fun to read, and adults can enjoy them as well. Try “Planet of the Capes” by Brandon McKinney. On the other hand, there is still something to be said for a print novel. These, too, have changed since the ‘90s. What used to be a genre that relied on pat endings now explores circumstances of the teen-aged life and offers opportunities for thought and introspection, as well as situations that don’t end well, as life experiences often don’t. Not surprisingly, many adults read YA novels, possibly because the stories can touch a chord in their lives, too. Your own imagination adds another layer to every story. So here are some recommendations for you and your teenager: “The Song of an Innocent Bystander” by Ian Bone; “A Crack in the Line” by Michael Lawrence; “Luna” by Julie Anne Peters; “The Year of Secret Assignments” by Jaclyn Moriarty; “Blood on His Hands” by Willo Davis Roberts; “The Pearl of Anton” by Gene Del Vecchio; “Going for the Record” by Julie Swanson; “An Order of Amelie, Hold the Fries” by Nina Schindler; and a title that parodies those older YA books, “One of those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies” by Sonya Sones. Happy Reading!