New Books at the Library

ADULT FICTION

"The Alexander Cipher" by Will Adams - "A razor-edged thriller that delves into crumbling tombs and ancient secrets. Explosively paced and tautly told, the book demands to be read in one sitting." -- James Rollins, New York Times Bestselling Author

JUVENILE FICTION

"Mogo, The Third Warthog" by Donna Jo Napoli - As in Napoli’s Ugly (2006), the protagonist here is a young animal learning to survive on its own. The last of three male warthogs born in his litter, Mogo always walks behind his mother and his just-slightly-older brothers in the last position, the most vulnerable to the many predators on the savanna. In a convincing first-person narrative, Mogo tells how he survives after his mother forces the three brothers out on their own. Instincts, learned lessons, and reasoning are on his side, but luck and an unlikely friendship with a lone baboon also come into play. Though the final art for Judge’s illustrations was not seen, the sketches look very promising. Readers with no particular interest in African animals may find themselves unexpectedly caught up in this well-told, life-or-death adventure tale, while children who love animals, even those as apparently unlovable as the warthog, will be in their element here. Grades 3-5. --Carolyn Phelan, Booklist

New Books at the Library

ADULT MYSTERY

"Private Patient" by P.D. James - Both P. D. James and Adam Dalgliesh, both in their 80s, have aged like fine wine. Critics agreed that if The Private Patient, a closed-room mystery, is not among the best in the series, it nonetheless outranks most crime fiction. James brings her usual intellect to bear on this novel: literary references and philosophical discussions; an elegant, leisurely style; a highly atmospheric setting; suspicious distant relatives; and meaningful coincidences. Reviewers diverged, however, on the characterization and plotting. Some thought the characters were psychologically complex, while others thought they—along with the plot—were "reduced to a kind of box-ticking" (Guardian). Finally, Dalgliesh didn't seem completely present—perhaps in anticipation of his imminent retirement and marriage. -- Bookmarks Magazine

PICTURE BOOK

"Hook" by Ed Young - “This stirring story will remind readers of the Ugly Duckling, but its timeless message of determination reaches far past the fairytale genre.” —Starred, Booklist

“Young's suggestive dusky views are by turns confusing, comical, and striking. Along with the minimal narrative, they leave space for readers to ponder and question. They offer nice opportunities for shared reading and, of course, special moments of recognition for readers familiar with Andersen's tale.” —School Library Journal

"Ladybug Girl and Bumblebee Boy" by David Soman - Taking on the guise of her superhero alter-ego (including a red tutu and spotted wings), she makes her own fun on the way to the playground by leaping over sidewalk cracks and counting to infinity. However, once she and her mother arrive, Ladybug Girl faces a new challenge: she wants to play with her friend Sam, but they can't agree on what to do. Lulu is frustrated at first, but then suggests playing the Ladybug Girl game. Sam, clad in yellow and black, quickly turns into Bumblebee Boy, and the two "zoom around…looking to help anyone in trouble." When two girls ask to join in, but both want to be Butterfly Girl, Ladybug Girl tactfully defuses the situation by saying, "If we're going to play together...we don't fight each other." One youngster agrees to be Dragonfly Girl and the Bug Squad flies again. Like the previous book, this offering paints a realistic picture of the daily struggles in a youngster's life. The conflict and resolution ring true, as does the dialogue. The lesson is clearly stated, but not heavy-handed. The cartoon illustrations are bright, expressive, and beautifully presented. Pair this book with one of Mini Grey's "Traction Man" titles (Knopf) for a superb superhero storytime.—Rachael Vilmar, Eastern Shore Regional Library, Salisbury, MD


"Tale of Two Mice" by Ruth Brown - Tension builds as a feline predator, often hiding in plain sight, stalks two mice. Children will appreciate the efforts of cautious Billy, who repeatedly attempts to alert his older sibling, Bo, of their imminent danger. Happily, the mice make a narrow escape even as the ever-oblivious Bo cautions Billy, "If you ever see a cat, you must tell me AT ONCE." Muted watercolors in various hues of brown and blue depict the world of a gloomy old manor full of spooky surprises. Lift-the-flaps offer plenty of opportunity to explore these detail-laden pages. Brown plays with scale, sometimes showing the entire cat hidden in a corner; on other pages, readers see just a hint of an oversize tail, or a large gleaming eye from behind a cabinet door. The spare prose and large pictures make this good for sharing.—Madigan McGillicuddy, Los Angeles Public Library

YOUNG ADULT

"Bayou, Vol. 1" by Jeremy Love - Extremely beautiful, scary and wonderful, this Web comic takes readers to a pair of almost familiar, frequently threatening worlds. We first journey back in time to Mississippi, 1933, where a black sharecropper's daughter, Lee Wagstaff, is learning how to be strong in a segregated society. While Lee and her white friend, Lily, are playing near the bayou where black victims of racial violence are thrown, Lily is abducted by a monster—but Lee's father is blamed. To save him from a lynch mob by rescuing her friend, Lee enters the parallel universe of Dixie, where Southern folklore comes to life in disturbing echoes of our world. There she meets the eponymous character, a hulking creature living alone in a shack, troubled by disturbing memories and threatened by hateful embodiments of the South's violent past. When Lee convinces Bayou that he doesn't have to remain a victim, the two of them set off on a joint quest for understanding and redemption. Love's script and art, laid out in big blocks like Sunday comics, are lovely and eloquent; Morgan's coloring fills the panels with hazy sunlight and menacing darkness. --Publisher's Weekly Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

New Books

ADULT NON-FICTION

"Education of an American Dreamer" by Peter G. Peterson - For years, Pete Peterson has performed with distinction on the world’s stage—both in finance and public policy. But he still remains the same Nebraska boy who counted change in his father’s café. His journey is a remarkable story and his book is an entertaining and refreshingly honest account of his education in business and life.” – Warren E. Buffett

ADULT FICTION

"Mounting Fears" by Stuart Wood - With his usual blistering pace and dry wit, Stuart Woods has created another adventure that shows why he’s truly the master of the game. – inside cover

"Robert Ludlum's: The Bourne Deception" by Eric van Lustbader - “Lustbader’s cinematic vision is once again on display as he sends Bourne on a chaotic chase that leads from Washington to Moscow and back again, dogged by pursuers even as he himself pursues. This is one novel that will keep you reading long into the night.” – Bookreporter.com

"Awakening" by S. J. Bolton - “Page-turning suspense and spectacular snake science..Murky, abandoned churches and dark family secrets stretching back a generation lend a compelling gothic sensibility to this story of a woman who awakens to new possibilities.” – Booklist

"Finger Lickin' Fifteen" by Janet Evanovich - Published for 2009's summer reading season, a latest installment in the best-selling Stephanie Plum series features tested loyalties, cliff-hanger resolutions, and a tempting assortment of doughnuts.

"The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet" by Reif Larsen - “Fantastically charming, funny and smart. I felt my brain growing as I read it. Who knew the combination of cartography and adolescence could prove to be so touching and so much fun!” –Gary Shteyngart

"Wicked Prey" by John Sandford - “What’s the secret of Sandford’s success other than profligate talent? He insists on keeping his main characters flawed people instead of letting them calcify into iconic figures of truth or justice. Phantom Prey shows yet again why he’s just so good.” – Cleveland Plain Dealer

JUVENILE FICTION

"Rat Trap" by Michael J. Daley - “Short, snappy sentences, appealing characters, and tension …. combine with constant threats of ship malfunctions and Rat’s struggle to survive to create a fast-paced story sure to please.” --Booklist

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

"Lucy Long Ago: Uncovering the Mystery of Where We Came From" by Catherine Thimmesh - Uncovering a collection of bones, a mystery was revealed that would bring scientists around the world to study the find with regard to its ancestral connection to the human race in this chronicling of the discovery of the world's most famous hominid, enhanced with full-color photographs.

PICTURE BOOKS

"Elephants Cannot Dance!" by Mo Willems - “These masterful mini-dramas will delight and amuse easy-reader and picture-book audiences, alike.” –School Library Journal

"Fancy Nancy: Explorer Extraodinaire!" by Jane O'Connor - With her best friend Bree by her side, Fancy Nancy heads to the great outdoors to explore the many wonders the natural world has to offer; observing butterflies, watching birds, smelling wildflowers, and more!

"It's a Secret!"by John Burningham - “With this whimsical story about one unforgettable night, the inimitable John Burningham brings to life another delightful and unique tale.” – inside front cover

"Llama Llama Misses Mama" by Anna Dewdney - “The expressive animal faces and attention to detail make it a charming addition.” – Publisher’s Weekly

"The Man Who Lived in a Hollow Tree" by Anne Shelby and Cor Hazelaar - With a storyteller’s lilt and a folk-artist’s eye, a writer and an illustrator have made something magical of an Appalachian legend. – inside front cover

YOUNG ADULT FICTION

"A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess - “A brilliant novel…a savage satire on the distortions of the single and collective minds.” –New York Times

New books at the Library

ADULT FICTION

"Angel's Game" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon - In 1920s Barcelona, David Martin is born into poverty, but,aided by patron and friend Pedro Vidal, he rises to become a crime reporter and then a beloved pulp novelist. David becomes a suspect in a string of murders, and his race to uncover the truth is a delicious puzzle: is he beset by demons or a demon himself? Zafón's novel is detailed and vivid, and David's narration is charming and funny, but suspect. Villain or victim, he is the hero of and the guide to this dark labyrinth that, by masterful design, remains thrilling and bewildering. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. -- Publisher's Weekly

"Knock Out" by Catherine Coulter - Bestseller Coulter's riveting 13th FBI thriller (after TailSpin) opens with a bang as psychic FBI agent Dillon Savich thwarts a gang of gun-totting robbers attempting to hold up the First Union Bank of Washington, D.C. Then a seven-year-old sends him a telepathic message that she's in danger. Though eager to help, Dillon is busy tracking a bank robber who escaped, a teenage girl now leaving a trail of bodies in her wake. Meanwhile, in Titusville, Va., a mother reports her daughter missing to sheriff Ethan Merriweather. After finding Autumn, Ethan discovers her sinister uncle, Blessed, has evil designs on his psychic niece. Before Dillon and his fellow FBI agent and wife, Lacey Sherlock, can get to Titusville, Autumn and her mother flee. Well-developed characters and an expertly paced plot that builds to a breathtaking conclusion make this one of the best in this paranormal suspense series. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. -- Publisher's Weekly

"Omen (Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi, Book 2" by Christie Golden - Series fans will enjoy this entry and the continued exploration of the huge and mysterious Star Wars galaxy. Demand makes this an essential purchase for all science-fiction collections. --Jessica Moyer, Booklist

"Relentless" by Dean Koontz - A bad book review propels this farcical thriller from bestseller Koontz. Bestselling author Cullen Cubby Greenwich is mortified when Shearman Waxx, the nation's premier literary critic, savages his work. Cubby manages to find the syphilitic swine at Roxie's Bistro in Newport Beach, Calif., where the author's six-year-old prodigy son nearly pees by accident on Waxx in the restaurant's men's room. In retaliation, Waxx threatens Cubby with doom and gets things started nicely by blowing up his house. With almost superhuman ease, the book critic keeps track of Cubby and his family as they flee for their lives. While some may take this as satire, the over-the-top villain's underdeveloped motivation and a jokey narrative tone that jars when juxtaposed with terrifying scenes of violence will leave others scratching their heads. By the time Koontz introduces a science fiction element, a lot of readers may have already checked out. (June)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. -- Publisher's Weekly

"Tunneling to the Center of the Earth" by Kevin Wilson - Four mutually loathing brothers fold hundreds of paper cranes for a contest to determine who will own the family plantation house. A young man counts every step to and from a factory in which he winnows the Qs from heaps of new-minted Scrabble tiles. Three new BAs spend months after graduation tunneling beneath the hometown of one of them. A professional substitute grandmother gets queasy about her new family when she discovers they also retain a faux child. That last story, “Grand Stand-In,” is the creepiest in the book, though the bad-dream pulp-noir exercise, “The Shooting Man,” is a close, gritty runner-up. Two stories of teens and sex, “Mortal Kombat” and “Go, Fight, Win”—the only third-person narratives here—express great though measured sympathy. Wildly imaginative in the manner of new weirdness fiction (see Feeling Very Strange, 2006), Wilson’s work is also warmly compassionate in tenor. He creates an appealing voice for each first-person narrator he invents, and in third person, he is flat-out magisterial, with more than a hint of the magical. Watch him closely. --Ray Olson - Booklist

"Ultimatum" by Matthew Glass - In 2032, newly elected president Joe Benton realizes that the effects of global warming have been greatly underestimated and must scramble to negotiate with other countries to come up with a plan to stop the crisis. "The novel is propelled by character and dialogue, but it’s solidly plotted, too, and given the current public interest in global warming, it may spark some interesting debate on the subject." --David Pitt, Booklist

ADULT NON_FICTION

"End of Overeating" by David Kessler, MD - Uncovers the influences that have conditioned people to overeat, explaining how combinations of fat, sugar, and salt; food cues; and the cultural norms that are difficult to ignore have hijacked our brain circuitry, and demonstrates how to regain control. "Dr. David Kessler has written a fascinating account of the science of human appetite, as well as its exploitation by the food industry. The End of Overeating is an invaluable contribution to the national conversation about the catastrophe that is the modern American diet." --Michael Pollan, author of In Defense of Food

"Looting of America" by Les Leopold - “Les Leopold tells the story of our economic collapse so clearly, so broadly, so stylishly I didn’t get lost; in fact, to my great surprise, I kept going and going like Hansel and Gretel through the thick forest of mortgage finance, credit swaps, bubbles and bailouts. The Looting of America is a guided tour for people who wonder if the ups and downs of a free market are inevitable, or if we can’t make a few changes for a smoother ride.”--Robert Krulwich, NPR Science Correspondent and co-host of Radio Lab

"Magnificent Desolation" by Buzz Aldrin - Recounts the astronaut's life and career, including his childhood, the landmark 1969 moon landing, and his battles with alcoholism and depression after his fame. "An admirable account of an icon of the golden age of space flight."
–Kirkus Reviews

"Always Looking Up" by Michael J. Fox - Always Looking Up is a memoir of this last decade, told through the critical themes of Michael's life: work, politics, faith, and family. The book is a journey of self-discovery and reinvention, and a testament to the consolations that protect him from the ravages of Parkinson's.

"Howard Dean's Prescription for Real Health Care Reform" by Howard Dean - In a searing indictment of private insurers who put profits ahead of care, Dean advocates a public-health insurance option, posing the question: “Is private health insurance really health insurance? Or is it simply an extension of the things that have been happening on Wall Street?” Dean is most controversial when he proposes to fund reforms with a carbon tax on gasoline, and only slightly less so when asserting that a “reform bill is not worth passing” without a public option. This lively, detailed read should help shape the debate on one of the year's most pressing issues. - Publisher's Weekly

"Birds of North America" - Twenty experts, with renowned ornithologist Fran?is Vuilleumier as editor-in-chief, have assembled a wealth of information on more than 650 North American bird species.
A page is devoted to each bird, with colorful illustrations and photographs, color-coded maps, details of important plumage variations and descriptive texts. Details include information on behavior, nesting, voice (the bird's call), flight patterns and similar species. --Deseret News

MYSTERY

"Loitering with Intent" by Stuart Woods - Stone Barrington travels to Key West, Fla., in this easygoing entry in bestseller Woods's long-running series to feature the New York cop turned lawyer. Stone is supposed to track down Evan Keating, a young man whose signature is needed on documents allowing his father to sell the family business, except that Evan doesn't want to be found and when he is, doesn't want to sign the papers. Meanwhile, there's always time to enjoy good food and romance. Stone and Dino Bacchetti eat a lot of conch, while a beautiful Swedish doctor, Annika Swenson, learns the hard way that being involved with Stone is the most dangerous job in America. Woods handles the proceedings with dispatch and good humor, the pages fly by, and contented readers will sit back and eagerly await the next installment. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. - Publisher's Weekly

"Scared to Live" by Stephen Booth - Two gruesome homicides preoccupy Det. Sgt. Diane Fry and Det. Constable Ben Cooper. In England's Peak district, Fry looks into a suspicious house fire. Meanwhile, Cooper investigates the death of Rose Shepherd. Both cases yield few clues, and Fry and Cooper run into one dead-end after another. While the link that they eventually uncover between the murders of Shepherd and the Mullens and a notorious Bulgarian gang stretches credulity, Booth compensates with his energetic pace and memorable characters. Genre fans may find a subplot involving psychotic hallucination. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved -- Publisher's Weekly.

JUVENILE FICTION

"Antsy Does Time" by Neal Shusterman - When classmate Gunnar Ümlaut announces that he is going to die in six months from a rare disease, Antsy Bonnano prints up a formal contract that signs over a month of his own life to his gloomy buddy. This impulsive gesture of comfort unexpectedly nets Antsy a series of dates with Gunnar’s hot older sister Kjersten—but also takes on a life of its own when everyone who finds out about the good deed wants to get into the act. Meanwhile, Antsy and his closest friend, blind Lexie, plot to kidnap Lexie’s irascible grandpa “Creepy” Crawley, and Antsy’s father works his way toward heart-attack country struggling to get the Bonnano family’s new restaurant on its feet. Featuring a terrific supporting cast led by Antsy’s wise, acerbic mother, an expert blend of comedy and near tragedy, and the wry observations of a narrator whose glib tongue and big heart are as apt to get him into trouble as out of it, this will keep tween readers hooked from start to finish. Grades 6-9. --John Peters, Booklist

"Masterpiece" by Elise Broach - Broach's projection of beetle life, complete with field trips to the family's solarium and complex uses of human discards for furniture and meals, is in the best tradition of Mary Norton's The Borrowers (Harcourt, 1953) and similar classic looks at miniature life. Murphy's illustrations add perspective and humor, supporting the detailed narrative. A masterpiece of storytelling.—Beth L. Meister, Milwaukee Jewish Day School, WI

"Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie - Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he thought he was destined to live.

"Slam" by Nick Hornby - Fifteen-year-old Sam’s girlfriend gets pregnant. What should he do? He doesn’t want to repeat the mistakes of his mother, who got pregnant as a teen. Distressed Sam talks to his poster of skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, which helps his troubled teenage soul. This moving, bittersweet work is packed with Hornby’s trademark insight and incisive wit. -- Booklist

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

"Slavery: Real People and their Stories of Enslavement" by Reg Grant - Featuring breathtaking photographs, illustrations, letters, and personal histories, a comprehensive discussion of slavery throughout history examines its lasting impact on societies and people around the world.

PICTURE BOOKS

"Fancy Nancy Tea Parties" by Jane O'Conner
"Goldilicious" by Victoria Kann
"Homework" by Arthur Yorinks
"Oddly" by Joyce Dunbar
Superhero School by Aaron Reynolds
"Two of a Kind" by Jacqui Robbins

YOUNG ADULTS

"Clover: Omnibus Edition" by CLAMP - In the far future, a mysterious government organization monitors and confines psychic children in the Clover program. A professional singer and one-leaf ranked psychic named Ora has only the ability to predict her own death. The most powerful psychic in the world, a four-leaf girl named Sue lives a life of voluntary isolation inside a gilded cage. Sue hears Ora s singing inside her head, befriends her via telephone and hopes to meet her one day. Events in the book unfold in a reverse chronology, as the first chapter takes place after Ora s death and proceeds backwards in time. CLAMP manages to present a richly detailed retro-mechanical future using a minimum number of panels per page; reading this book is like looking into a dystopic future through one tiny, perfectly square frame, as the story unfolds across nearly blank pages scattered with repeating love song lyrics. The character designs are magnificent and tiny details on the clockwork birds and imaginative effects are stunning. Though CLAMP s most experimental work, it s still accessible to a wide audience. --Publishers Weekly

New Books

Adult Non-Fiction

"Three Books: Body Rags, Mortal Acts, Mortal Words, The Past" by Galway Kinnell - This volume brings together BODY RAGS and MORTAL ACTS, MORTAL WORDS and THE PAST, three books that are central to the life"s work of one of the masters of contemporary poetry. Included here are many of Galway Kinnell"s best-loved and most anthologized poems. Kinnell has revised some of the poems for this new edition, and comments on his working method in a prefatory note. Amazon


"The Book of Nightmares" by Galway Kinnell - Galway Kinnell's poetry has always been marked by richness of language, devotion to the things and creatures of the world, and an effort to transform every understanding into the universality of art.

About the Author
Galway Kinnell is a former MacArthur Fellow and has been state poet of Vermont. In 1982 his Selected Poems won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. For many years he was the Erich Maria Remarque Professor of Creative Writing at New York University. He is currently a chancellor of the Academy of American Poets. For thirty-five years--from WHAT A KINGDOM IT WAS to THE BOOK OF NIGHTMARES to THREEE BOOKS--Galway Kinnell has been enriching American poetry, not only by his poems but also by his teaching and his powerful public readings. - Amazon

New books and DVD's

Adult Non-Fiction

"Strong is Your Hold: Poems" by Galway Kinnell - In his first new collection, Kinnell begins with homey lyrics in praise of an enduring marriage, parenthood, and friendship. These are tranquil poems, sweet, amusing, and wholesomely sexy. Sage, too, as in the charming "Conversation," a witty exchange between the poet and his daughter... Kinnell's poems are contained, even plain, but there is mineral power in his freshly turned language, and the carefully stacked kindling of his lines leaps into sky-high conflagrations... Seasoned and forthright, Kinnell wisely turns to nature for instruction, noting "the crawling of new life out of the old, / which is what we have for eternity on earth." – Booklist, Donna Seaman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserve

"Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human" by Richard Wrangham - Tracing the contemporary implications of our ancestors’ diets, Catching Fire sheds new light on how we came to be the social, intelligent, and sexual species we are today. A pathbreaking new theory of human evolution, Catching Fire will provoke controversy and fascinate anyone interested in our ancient origins—or in our modern eating habits. – Amazon

"How Rome Fell: Death of a SuperPower" by Adrian Goldsworthy - In AD 200, the Roman Empire seemed unassailable. Its vast territory accounted for most of the known world. By the end of the fifth century, Roman rule had vanished in western Europe and much of northern Africa, and only a shrunken Eastern Empire remained. What accounts for this improbable decline? Here, Adrian Goldsworthy applies the scholarship, perspective, and narrative skill that defined his monumental Caesar to address perhaps the greatest of all historical questions—how Rome fell.--Amazon

Fiction

"Ghostwritten" by David Mitchell - Nine disparate but interconnected tales (and a short coda) in Mitchell's impressive debut examine 21st-century notions of community, coincidence, causality, catastrophe and fate. Each episode in this mammoth sociocultural tapestry is related in the first person, and set in a different international locale....Mitchell's wildly variegated story can be abstruse and elusive in its larger themes, but the gorgeous prose and vibrant, original construction make this an accomplishment not to be missed. 5-city author tour. -- Publishers Weekly
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Juvenile Fiction

"The Secret Book Club (Main Street)" by Ann M. Martin - The books show life as an exciting adventure but in a very sweet way. It is like going back to my childhood where life was slow but a lot of fun. I like the main characters, who have a lot of depth and act like real kids. Maybe because these stories are told from the perspective of small town America they seem to be sweeter than most, and I would definitely want my children to have these experiences. These are worth the time so check them out. -- Reviewed by: Marta Morrison from TeensReadToo.com

DVD

"Midsomer Murders" - The cozy villages of Midsomer County reveal their most sinister secrets in these contemporary British television mysteries...Inspired by the novels of Caroline Graham, a modern master of the English village mystery.
1. "Country Matters"
2. "Four Funerals and a Wedding"
3. "Death in a Chorus"
4. "Last Year's Model"

New Books

Adult Non-Fiction

"A Failure of Capitalism: The Crisis of 08 and the Descent into Depression" by Richard A. Posner - Richard Posner presents a concise and non-technical examination of this mother of all financial disasters and of the, as yet, stumbling efforts to cope with it. No previous acquaintance on the part of the reader with macroeconomics or the theory of finance is presupposed. This is a book for intelligent generalists that will interest specialists as well.- Amazon

Juvenile Non-Fiction
"Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change" by Michelle Cook - Celebration, inspiration, and connection are the themes that drive this big, handsome picture book with art by 13 leading artists. ... as Marion Wright Edelman says in her foreword, the book’s message of hope will inspire parents and grandparents to share their memories and talk with children about the future. Preschool-Grade 3. --Hazel Rochman, Booklist

"TinTin: Cigars of the Pharoah (The Adventures of Tintin)" by Herge - This 2006 hardcover reissue of Cigars of the Pharaoh is a must for the Tintin completist. It's a black-and-white facsimile edition of the story as it appeared in the 1930s, before Herge revised, shortened, and redrew it to for the style of the later adventures. So it's 129 pages compared to the standard 62, though the larger panels mean it isn't really twice as long as the familiar version. But there are noticeable differences. The detectives Thompson and Thomson call themselves X33 and X33A, frequent nemesis Captain Allan is no longer involved, and when Tintin is forced to enlist, rather than happening in Abudin, it's in Mecca in the middle of a Christian-Muslim dispute. The anachronistic glimpse of Destination Moon is now gone, replaced by the more logical Tintin in America, and most interestingly, Tintin encounters additional perils (two involving cobras) while on the trail of the fakir. When he revised Cigars in the 1950s, Herge left pretty much all of the story intact, but his layouts and storytelling were vastly improved. If you've read all the standard Tintin adventures, this is fascinating stuff. --David Horiuchi


Picture Books

"Moon Rabbit" by Natalie Russell - Little Rabbit loves the hustle and bustle of city life, but at night on her balcony, she wonders if there is anyone to laugh and have fun with... Brown Rabbit is playing his guitar. He plays, she dances... Then, once more the city lights beckon, and no matter how hard he tries, Brown Rabbit can’t get Little Rabbit to stay... True, to adults this might have elements of a sappy breakup movie, but hopefully those aspects will elude children, who will instead be captivated by the joys of friendship and, more subtly, the longing to be oneself...The story’s considerable appeal is amplified by Russell’s exceptional artwork. A charming offering reminiscent of the city mouse–country mouse tale. Preschool-Grade 1. --Ilene Cooper, Booklist