What to Read Next: YA Horror

Blood Countess by Lana Popovic
The Companion by Katie Alender
Contagion by Erin Bowman
Dread Nation by Justina Ireland
The Glare by Margot Harrison
Horrid by Katrina Leno
House of Furies by Madeleine Roux
The Loop by Ben Oliver
Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer
Rules for Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall
The Sacrifice Box by Martin Stewart
Wilder Girls by Rory Power

Blood Countess by Lana Popovic

In 16th century Hungary, Anna Darvulia has just begun working as a scullery maid for Countess Elizabeth Báthory. When Elizabeth takes a liking to Anna, she’s vaulted to the dream role of chambermaid. She receives wages generous enough to provide for her family, and the Countess begins to groom Anna as her confidante. It’s not long before Anna falls under the Countess’s spell—and the Countess takes full advantage. Isolated from her friends, family, and fiancé, Anna realizes she’s not a friend but a prisoner of the increasingly cruel Elizabeth. Then come the murders, and Anna knows it’s only a matter of time before the Blood Countess turns on her, too.

The Companion by Katie Alender

The other orphans say Margot is lucky. But it wasn’t luck that made the prestigious Sutton family rescue Margot from her bleak existence at the group home. Margot was hand-picked to be a companion to their silent, mysterious daughter, Agatha. At first, helping with Agatha – and getting to know her handsome older brother – seems much better than the group home. But soon, the isolated, gothic house begins playing tricks on Margot’s mind, making her question everything she believes about the Suttons… and herself.

Contagion by Erin Bowman

After receiving an urgent SOS from a work detail on a distant planet, a skeleton crew is dispatched to perform a standard search-and-rescue mission. But when the crew arrives, they find an abandoned site, littered with rotten food, discarded weapons…and dead bodies. As they try to piece together who—or what—could have decimated an entire operation, they discover that some things are best left buried—and some monsters are only too ready to awaken.

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland

The dead began to walk the battlefields of Gettysburg and Chancellorsville—derailing the War Between the States and changing America forever. In this new nation, laws like the Native and Negro Reeducation Act require certain children attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead. Jane McKeene is studying to become an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. Almost finished with her education at Miss Preston’s School of Combat in Baltimore, she is set on returning to her Kentucky home. But when families around Baltimore County begin to go missing, Jane is caught in the middle of a conspiracy, one that finds her in a desperate fight for her life against some powerful enemies.

The Glare by Margot Harrison

After ten years of living on an isolated, tech-free ranch with her mother, 16-year-old Hedda is going back to the world of the Glare-her word for cell phones, computers, and tablets. Hedda was taught to be afraid of technology, but now she’s going to stay with her dad in California, where she was born, and she’s finally ready to be normal. Then Hedda rediscovers the Glare—the real Glare, a first-person shooter game from the dark web that scared her when she was younger. As Hedda starts playing the so-called “death game”, she realizes the truth behind her nightmares is even more twisted than she could have imagined. 

Horrid by Katrina Leno

Following her father’s death, Jane North-Robinson and her mom move to the dilapidated old house in Maine where her mother grew up. As the cold New England autumn arrives, and Jane settles in to her new home, she begins making friends, but also faces bullying from the resident “bad seed,” struggling to tamp down her own worst nature in response. Jane’s mom also seems to be spiraling with the return of her childhood home, but she won’t reveal why. Then Jane discovers that the “storage room” her mom has kept locked isn’t for storage at all – it’s a little girl’s bedroom, left untouched for years and not quite as empty of inhabitants as it appears….

House of Furies by Madeleine Roux

After escaping a harsh school where punishment was the lesson of the day, 17-year-old Louisa Ditton is thrilled to find employment as a maid at a boarding house. But soon after her arrival at Coldthistle House, Louisa begins to realize that the house’s mysterious owner, Mr. Morningside, is providing much more than lodging for his guests. The house is a place of judgment, and Mr. Morningside and his unusual staff are meant to execute their own justice on those who are past being saved. Louisa begins to fear for a young man named Lee who is not like the other guests. He is charismatic and kind, and Louisa knows that it may be up to her to save him from an untimely judgment. But in this house of distortions and lies, how can Louisa be sure whom to trust?

The Loop by Ben Oliver

It’s Luka Kane’s 16th birthday and he’s been inside The Loop for over two years. Every inmate is serving a death sentence with the option to push back their execution date by six months if they opt into “Delays”, scientific and medical experiments for the benefit of the elite in the outside world. But rumors of a war on the outside are spreading amongst the inmates, and before they know it, their tortuous routine becomes disrupted. The government issued rain stops falling. Strange things are happening to the guards. And it’s not long until the inmates are left alone inside the prison…

Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer

Nita doesn’t murder supernatural beings and sell their body parts on the internet—her mother does that. Nita just dissects the bodies after they’ve been “acquired.” But when her mom brings home a live specimen, Nita decides she wants out — dissecting living people is a step too far. But when she tries to save her mother’s victim, she ends up sold on the black market in his place — because Nita herself is a supernatural being. Now Nita is on the other side of the bars, and there is no line she won’t cross to escape and make sure no one can ever capture her again.

Rules for Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall

It’s been exactly one year since Sara’s sister, Becca, disappeared. With her sister gone, Sara doesn’t know whether her former friends no longer like her or are scared of her, and the days of eating alone at lunch have started to blend together. When a mysterious text message invites Sara and her estranged friends to “play the game” and find local ghost legend Lucy Gallows, Sara is sure this is the only way to find Becca. And even though she’s hardly spoken with them for a year, Sara finds herself deep in the darkness of the forest, her friends – and their cameras – following her down the path. Together, they will have to draw on all of their strengths to survive.

The Sacrifice Box by Martin Stewart

Sep, Arkle, Mack, Lamb and Hadley: five friends thrown together one hot, sultry summer. When they discover an ancient stone box hidden in the forest, they decide to each make a sacrifice: something special to them, committed to the box for ever. And they make a pact: they will never return to the box at night; they’ll never visit it alone; and they’ll never take back their offerings. Four years later, a series of strange and terrifying events take place, and Sep and his friends understand that one of them has broken the pact. As their sacrifices haunt them with increased violence and hunger, they realize that the box may want the greatest sacrifice of all: one of them.

The Wilder Girls by Rory Power

It’s been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. The Tox started slow: first the teachers died one by one, then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don’t dare wander outside the school’s fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything. But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence.

Call for Submissions: Morristown & Morris Township Quarantine Experience

The North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, Morristown and Morris Township Library, would like to know how residents of Morristown and Morris Township have handled being quarantined or self-isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic.  This unique time is worth preserving in writing so that we can help future generations understand how to handle a quarantine and what it is like for us being quarantined in 2020.  

Please tell us in 1500 words or less what being quarantined has been like for you. We would like to know:

  1. What has surprised you the most during this quarantine?
  2. What is your biggest fear?
  3. Have there been any positive impacts of this quarantine?
  4. What is the most difficult part of the quarantine?
  5. What are your hopes for the future when this quarantine is over? And how have those hopes changed from before this quarantine began?

 

Please let us know if you are willing to be contacted by the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center well after the quarantine is over.

All submissions must include your first and last name, age, other information including occupation, level of education completed, and whether you reside in the Town or Township. Please email your submission to njhgc@jfpl.org as an attachment or via USPS to North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, Morristown and Morris Township Library, 1 Miller Rd., Morristown, NJ 07960.

 

* Only send this work if in agreement that Morristown and Morris Township Library has permission to share the words with the public as part of the historical record and no benefit, financial or otherwise, is given or implied for the submitted material.

Originally Published April 10th, 2020

Book Lovers Recommendations October 2020

Recommendations by Sue Lipstein

A Room Called Earth-Madeleine Ryan
All About the Story:  news, power, politics and the Washington Post by Leonard Downie, Jr.
A Room Called Earth
By Madeleine Ryan
 
This is a debut novel and tells a very simple story.  A young Australian girl goes to a party.  Things appear normal, but when we get inside her mind, see the differences in how she perceives the world, as she is autistic.  The author identifies as neurodiverse herself.
 
 
All About the Story:  news, power, politics and the Washington Post
By Leonard Downie, Jr.
 
Downie is the former executive director of the Washington Post.  He took over after Ben Bradless left, and Downie served from 1991-2008.  He spent 40 years at the Post, working his way up from intern to executive director.  So has lots of stories to tell.
 
 
Atomic Love
By Jennie Fields
 
Rosalind Porter worked as a physicist on the Manhattan Projects and had an affair with one of her colleagues.  Five years later, the FBI approaches her and asks her to spy on her former lover, as they suspect he passed secrets to the Soviets.  Rosalind soon finds she is torn between her old lover and the feelings she has for the FBI agent she is working with.
 
 
Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett
By Annie Lyons
 
Eudora is 85 and feels she is finished with her life and has even made an appointment with a clinic in Switzerland so she can choose to exit the world on her own terms.  Then she meets 10 year old Rose, who is so full of life that she drages Eudora back into the world.  And Eudora starts an unlikely friendship with her recently widowed neighbor.  Will she keep that appointment?
 
 
Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey
By Kathleen Rooney
 
The characters in this novel really existed.  Cher Ami is actually a British homing pigeon who was used during World War I and helped Major Whittlesey, an American soldier, save the battalion he commanded.  The story is told by both man and pigeon, and touches on both war and the challenges Major Whittlesey had as a gay man in the armed forces.
 
 
Dancing with the Octopus
By Debora Harding
 
This memoir deals with the childhood trauma of the author, who was kidnapped and assaulted when she was only 14 in 1978.  Year later, suffering from PTSD, she undertakes a search to meet her attacker and bring closure to her trauma.
 
 
Impersonation
By Heidi Pitlor
 
Allie, a single mother of a four year old, is happy to take on the job of ghostwriting a book about a high profile female lawyer who is considering a run for the Senate. She is also a single mother, raising a young child.  Because Allie has a difficult time getting the lawyer to give her material for the book, she starts to put in details of her own struggles.  Soon she will have to reckon with the impersonation.
 
 
Smallest lights in the Universe
By Sara Seager
 

The author was a MIT astrophysicist with two young children who depended on her husband to keep her grounded at home.  When he dies suddenly and leaves her a widow with two young children at age 40, she has to refocus her life.  No longer can she take solace solely in the stars-she connects to a Widows of Concord group which becomes a life saver.  A life affirming story of survival.

 
 
Thursday Murder Club
By Richard Osman
 
This is the debut of what the author hopes to be a series.  Four retires spend Thursday afternoon in their luxury retirement residence in Kent, England, examining old crime cases-until two new ones fall into their laps.  A fun and well written book.
 
 
What Are You Going Through
By Sigrid Nunez
 
This is not an escapist novel- the narrator, unnamed, as are all the characters, spends a lot of time listening to the experiences of others as she has found that most people want to talk about themselves.  Then a friend pulls her into a life crisis, where she needs to be more than just a passive reactor.  There’s a lot of stream of consciousness in this novel, but from the reviews, it sounds like another thought provoking book-a challenging read.

Online sources for Educators, Students, and Parents

With students and educators returning to the classroom both remotely and in-person this semester, they face renewed pressure to create innovative lesson material and locate sources for projects. The North Jersey History & Genealogy Center has made a variety of sources available both online and in our distanced reading room.

Online Sources

Materials include content for projects on topics as varied as the history of scientific discovery and engineering, retail and economic development, war, and land use and development. The History Center’s collections are particularly strong in telling the stories of local families, churches, philanthropic organizations, and businesses. They also document the changing roles of racial, ethnic, & religious groups.

Our collections tell the nation’s story through photographs and postcards, family papers, maps, historic newspapers, artifacts, and various ephemera. Materials document the breadth of New Jersey’s history; some predate the founding of the United States back to the colonial era.

Among the more than 10,000 items available online, the Historic Photograph Collection and Curtiss Photo Collection are some of the most frequently referenced resources. It includes documentation of agricultural development, and suburban growth in Morris County; commerce, manufacturing, retail, and labor; as well as education and medicine.

Online collections also depict the range of Morristown and Morris Township housing, from Gilded Age estates to modest 19th century apartments and modern suburban homes; in addition to commemorative events and monuments; extreme weather events; agricultural life; and the construction of municipal services such as libraries, water treatment, fire, police, and sanitation.

A recently digitized collection of oral histories allows over forty longtime Irish and African American residents tell their own experiences of living and working in Morristown, Morris Township, and the surrounding communities.

Our Historic Postcard Collection depicts many of the county’s historic sites, local businesses such as hotels and taverns, hospitals and schools, transportation systems ranging from canals to trolley lines, and some of the amusement parks and recreational facilities that no longer exist.

Onsite resources

The History & Genealogy Center Reading Room recently reopened to the public by appointment, and staff are available to assist visitors and supervise the handling of the collections. Appointments are limited to two parties at a time to encourage distancing and individuals are asked to limit their visit to two hours. Staff will retrieve all materials, which are placed in quarantine between use.

Onsite resources include over 60,000 published books and family histories, as well as state, county, and local histories. Archival materials consist of personal letters, diaries, scrapbooks; church and government documents, and records of local businesses and organizations. Visitors have access to historic newspapers from Morris County dating from 1798 to the present, as well as 10,000 maps depicting the County, New Jersey, and the United States.

Our selection of genealogy databases provide access to federal census records, immigration and naturalization information, military records, national historic newspapers, Revolutionary and Civil War era documents, city directories, agricultural and industrial schedules, Native American census rolls, and obituaries. Morristown and Township residents can access several databases from home with their Library Cards including HeritageQuest, MyHeritage,  and ProQuest Historic Newspapers – U.S. Northeast Edition.

The reading room is accessible by appointment, and due to reduced capacity guidelines researchers are encouraged to schedule their time slot well in advance. We also offer remote research assistance for those unable to visit in person and have temporarily waived research fees throughout the pandemic; however due to the volume of requests please allow two to four weeks for a response.

Book Lovers Recommendations September 2020 Part II

Recommendations by Sue Lipstein
 
 
All the Devils are Here
By Louise Penny
 
The is the 16th in the Inspector Gamache series.  This one takes place in Paris when a good friend of Gamache’s is killed in what was not an accident, but a deliberate attempt to kill him.  That sets the case in motion as Gamache starts to uncover more secrets
 
 
Anxious People
By Fredrik Backman
 
The anxious people referred to in the title are a group of people at an apartment open house who are taken hostage by a failed bank robber.  Each of them have their own issues and quirks, and are described as “the worst group of hostages in the world.”  A good excuse to get into the character development that Backman is so good at.
 
 
Caste: The Origins of our Discontent
By Isabel Wilkerson
 
Wilkerson writes about caste, which refers to the hierarchy of power in the US that we really don’t talk about, and possibly are not even aware of.  Caste is beyond race or class, but if we don’t recognize it, we can’t work to erase it.  
 
 
Monogamy
By Sue Miller
 
Annie is grieving the sudden death of her beloved second husband. They had had 30 happy years together-or so Annie thought.  She finds out after his death that he had been having an affair in the weeks before his death. 
She  has to grieve while at the same time, pull the pieces of her life together.
 
 
Once I was You
By Maria Hinojosa
 
This highly personal memoir serves as an immigration history as well.  Hinojosa was a baby when her father emigrated from Mexico to Chicago to join the faculty of the University of Chicago.  In 1986, she visited her first immigration detention center and has continued every since to advocate for immigrants.  She is the voice of people who came to America in search of the American dream and found a nightmare.
 
One By One
By Ruth Ware
 
Eight co-workers on a company retreat in the Alps find themselves trapped together, isolated in their chalet while cut off from the rest of the world.  There are enough work rivalries as it is, but soon they find that  they have a killer amongst them as well..
 
 
Tales from the Ant World
By Edward O. Wilson
 
Wilson is a two time Puliltzer Prize winner and scientist, who has always been fascinated by ants.  This is a personal account as well as a scientific one.  He has had experience with over 15,000 ant species-however, he writes in this book about only 25 of them.  It’s always fascinating to get a peek into the passions of others, especially when they are such good writers.
 
 
Transcendent Kingdom
By Yaa Gyasi
 
This is a novel about a Ghanaian family in Alabama.  The daughter is studying neuroscience at Stanford, using mice to understand depression and addiction, two problems that have plagued her own family.  
 
 
Twenty Five Great Sentences and How They Got That Way
By Geraldine Woods
 
Woods takes sentences from such great writers and speakers as Toni Morrison, Virginia Woolf and Yoda-and reveals the craft that goes into creating a memorable sentence.  For those who admire great writing, this is a different way to look at the craft of writing.  It can also help would-be writers hone their craft.
 
 
Vesper Flights
By Helen MacDonald
 
This is a book of essays that are connected through what the author calls “the eye of the beholder.”  Most of them are tied into the world of science.  The author also used her essays to discuss how important it is to treasure all the species on our planet, not just our own.

Book Lovers Recommendations September 2020

Recommendations by Sue Lipstein

Daughter of the Reich
By Louise Fein
 
Hetta, a young girl in the 1930’s, is the perfect German child-except that she has fallen  in love with her brother’s best friend from childhood-a Jew.  Slowly Hetta sees that the changes in her German town reflect the changes in German society, and she realizes how the thoughts of her neighbors have been controlled by the party.
 
 
Hieroglyphics
By Jill McCorkler
 
Lil and Frank, now in their 80’s, return to Frank’s hometown to help him put memories of his childhood tragedy to rest.  He becomes involved with a young single mother who is trying to deal with her past as well.  The author writes well-drawn characters, all bound together by past tragedies not of their making.
 
 
Hindsight
By Iris Johansen
 
A renowned investigator is assigned to uncover the murderer of two people who were employed at a school she once attended. She soon finds that the murderers are, in fact, connected to her.
 
 
In Five Years
By Rebecca Serle
 
The book is based on an interesting premise-how differently would you lead your life if you knew the future.  Dannie has the next five years of her life all planned out-except that when she falls asleep and awakens five years in the future, the hour she spends in her future life then changes how she plans her life when she awakens back in the present.
 
 
Less Dead
By Louise Mina
 
Margo Dunlop’s adoptive mother has died, and a way to ease her grief is to try to locate her birth mother-only to find out that not only had her birth mother been murdered years before, but the murderer has never been found. Now  Margo starts getting threatening letters from him.
 
 
Lost Orphan
By Stacey Halls
 
In London, in 1754, Bess returns to the Foundling Hospital where she had left her illegitimate daughter.  Now, with enough money to support the child, she is shocked to find that someone has impersonated her and claimed the child for herself.  Bess crosses paths with a widow with a child that would be the same age as Bess’s daughter, and gets a job as her maid.  
 
 
Memorial Drive
By Natasha Trethewey
 
This Pulitzer Prize winning poet has written the story of her childhood, focusing on the brutal murder  of her mother by her step-father.  But this is also a book about inter-racial marriage during a time it was illegal, and the challenges of growing up as a mixed race child in that kind of atmosphere.
 
 
Party Upstairs
By Lee Conell
 
A debut novel that takes place during one day in an apartment in New York City.  Ruby, the daughter of the building’s caretaker, is forced to come home to live in the basement of their building as she cannot find a job after college.  She is invited to a party given by her childhood friend who lives in the penthouse upstairs.  The difference between two classes of society is reflected in this story told in the voices of Ruby and her father, Martin.
 
 
Patient
By Jasper DeWitt
 
Scientific suspense story with a touch of the supernatural.  A young psychiatrist takes a job in a decaying New England state hospital, where he decides to take on the most mystifying case-a forty year old man who has been there since he was 6 years old in solitary confinement.  The new doctor has been warned that every other person who has been in contact with him has either been driven to madness or suicide.  Just what is going on here?
 
 
Royal Governess
By Wendy Holden
 
Historical fiction based on the real life story of Marion Crawford, a spirited young woman who wanted to work with children of poverty, but instead is convinced she can make more change if she takes on the job of raising two  special young girls and gives them a modern education.  She takes on the job of governess-and they just happen to be two young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret Rose.  Definitely a book for royal lovers.

NJHGC Reading Room reopens to researchers

We are now taking appointments for onsite research visits at njhgc@jfpl.org and 973.538.3473. Before contacting us, please visit our online catalog and finding aids to create a list of materials you would like to consult so we can prepare for your visit.  For those unable to visit us in person, we have temporarily waived fees for Remote Research requests for individuals.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, our hours and policies have changed, and they are outlined in the Plan Your Visit section of our site. All visits must be scheduled in advance (walk in appointments are not allowed) since we are limited to two researchers in the reading room at a time. All items are quarantined for 72 hours after each use, and the Library has also enacted enhanced cleaning and social distancing practices. You may refer to the Library’s main page for the most up to date information on our operations and hours.

Phased Reopening

The Library will begin its next phase of reopening with public access to the Library building with limited services on Monday, August 31. 

 

The Library will move into its next phase of reopening with the opening of the Library building to the public with limited services on Monday, August 31 during the following hours: 

Mon.–Thur., 11:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.
Fri., 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Sat., 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Closed Sunday

Only 25% of the building’s patron capacity will be allowed into the building and patrons are asked to limit their time in the Library to 45 minutes per day.  There will be no access to public restrooms, individual study rooms or the lower level meeting room at this time.

According to State regulations and CDC recommendations, all patrons over the age of 3 must wear face coverings, utilize hand sanitizing stations when entering and leaving the building and practice social distancing while on Library property. 

The back parking lot entrance will be closed to the public, please use Media or South Street entrances. 

The Children’s, Young Adult, Fiction, Non-fiction, Media and new book collections will be open for patron browsing.  Returned collection items should go into the Library’s book drops and should not be returned to staff or public desks.  

A limited number of public computers will be available for use in the Media Center.  Unsecured Wi-Fi is available throughout the building and on the Library grounds.  Wireless printing is also available to be picked up curbside or in person through the PrinterON App or website.  For more information see the Library website or contact the Reference Department at (973) 538-2592.

The North Jersey History & Genealogy Center will be open by appointment only. Patrons interested in utilizing NJHGC materials should call (973) 538-3473 or e-mail njhgc@jfpl.org to set up an appointment.

Curbside Pick-up will continue to be offered as an option for patrons, you can view information on Curbside pick-up here.

There will be no fines charged on Library collection items through September 8.   Patron cards that were set to expire during the Library closure were extended through September 8. 

All incoming library collection materials will be quarantined for 7 days and where applicable, cleaned/disinfected before being allowed to be checked out by other patrons.  This is to ensure patron and staff safety, but it will result in a delay in those items being checked out by the next patron.  During this period, items will remain on a patron’s card, but again, no fine will accrue on the patron’s card for these three days. 

The Library’s mission is to remain a resource for our residents.  These safety measures are being taken out of an abundance of caution and to be consistent with recommendations for social distancing. We appreciate our patrons’ patience and understanding. If you have any further questions, please email the Library at info@jfpl.org or call (973) 538-6161. 

Please note that patrons can also access the Library from Home. 

Resources from Home for Adults

Resources from Home for Teens

Resources from Home for Kids

Resources from Home for Parents and Educators

 

Statement on Library Preparations related to COVID-19 (coronavirus)

In an effort to protect the high-risk populations that we serve, as well as minimize the potential exposure/transmission of COVID-19, The Morristown & Morris Township Library is taking precautions with its reopening to the public and is putting in place a phased reopening to ensure public safety.  This plan is based upon recommendations from the Center for Disease Control, the County of Morris, local health departments, the State of New Jersey, the New Jersey State Library and Library Link NJ in order to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the community.  We will reassess the situation regularly to ease restrictions and expand services, but it may also be necessary to reinstate restrictions, limit some services or even close the Library facility to ensure public health.  For any information on changes in Library services and hours, please follow updates on the Library’s website at: www.MMTLibrary.org

The Library takes the safety of its patrons and staff seriously, all patrons (especially those in high-risk categories) wishing to use the Library should exercise caution.  The Governor has asked for people to wear facial protection when in public, social distancing of at least six feet from other individuals and frequent hand washing to help ensure the virus is not spread.

 

Book Lovers Recommendations August 2020

Recommendations by Sue Lipstein
 
 
Color of Air
By Gail Tsukiyama
 
In 1935, Daniel, a young doctor returns to his native Hawaii after practicing medicine in Chicago.  He returns to a family filled with secrets that slowly unravel against the background of the Mauna Loa volcanic eruption.
 
 
Cut to the Bone
By Ellison Cooper
FBI agent and neurologist Sayer  Altair, one of the few black women in this field, is desperately searching for 24 high schoolers whose bus has been hijacked.  Then the first body shows up-and the pressure is on.  The scenes switch from Altair’s investigation to find the hostages, to the hostages themselves, who are plotting an escape.  A page turning thriller.
 
 
Death Comes To Durham
By Jeanne M. Dams
 
Retired American school teacher Dorothy is visiting the historically rich and quaint tourist town of Durham, England, with her husband, a retired English policeman, when the aunt of the friend they are visiting is accused of killing a fellow resident of her nursing home.  The couple are determined to prove her innocence.
 
 
Florence Adler Swims Forever
By Rachel Beanland
 
This family saga, a debut novel, is loosely based on the author’s own family story.  It is 1934 in Atlantic City and Florence Adler is training to swim the English Channel.  In a tragic practice swim, Florence drowns-and her mother decides to keep the death secret from her other daughter, Fannie, who is pregnant and on best rest.  Lots of complications ensue, and there is a tie-in to the tragedy that is unfolding in Germany.
 
 
Hamnet
By Maggie O’Farrell
 
The story of the courtship and marriage of a penniless Latin tutor, who falls in love with an eccentric woman, who knows healing arts and has visions, and what happens when their young son, age 11, dies of bubonic plague.  No matter that the Latin tutor turns out to be Shakespeare-this is a beautiful story that tells us what happens when a couple loses a child.
 
 
The Mist
By Ragnar Jonasson
 
This is the third in the Hidden Iceland series featuring Hulda Hermansdottir.  This novel gives us the background of Hulda’s life while it also involves Hulda in a murder that she tries to solve that brings back her past.
 
 
Mother Land
By Leah Franqui
 
Rachel Meyer has married after a quick courtship and has moved to Mumbai with her Asian-Indian husband.  When her mother-in-law moves in, the two women have to navigate their way between their two cultures and personalities. 
 
 
Outsider
By Linda Castillo
 
Castillo continues her series starring Kate Burkholder as a former member of the Amish community who now serves as the police chief in a small Ohio town, where she uses her knowledge of the Amish to help solve crimes.  In this case, Kate has to help a former colleague find a safe place to hide. Against  her better judgment,  she involves an Amish widower to help her.
 
 
Pull of the Stars
By Emma Donaghue
 
It is Dublin in 1918, and young nurse Julia finds herself in charge of a ward of pregnant women who are fighting to stay alive during the flu pandemic.  The story takes place over the course of 3 days while 3 women have to take charge of a ward on the verge  of disaster.
 
 
What You Wish For
By Katherine Center
 
Center writes what I call “happy books,” and this one is no exception.  A young librarian in a progressive school has to stand up to the new principal whose beliefs are totally opposite to those of the beloved founder of the school, who has unexpectedly died.  And it’s complicated since she once worked with new guy -and has had a crush on him ever since.

Announcing Curbside Concierge

Not sure what your next great read should be? Let us pick for you! Fill out our Curbside Concierge form to let us know your reading habits, likes and dislikes, and our Reader’s Advisors, Children’s Librarians, or YA Librarians will pick a handful of books just for you (or your kids)! 

After we have made our selections for you we will notify you when they’re ready for pickup. Please allow 2-3 business days for us to get your bundle ready. Happy reading!