Staff Recommendations
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Sometimes you have to lie : the life and times of Louise Fitzhugh, renegade author of Harriet the spy
by Brody, Leslie, 1952-
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionJune 8, 2021
Call Number: 813 F555Br
When the children's novel Harriet the Spy was published it received positive and negative criticism, and there was some alarm, even by librarians, about the main character, a cantakorous child, who is a spy. Harriet is an eleven-year-old who keeps a notebook, really a diary, with her observations about classmates, neighbors and family. When another child steals the notebook, classmates read Harriet's notes and start bullying her. In today's world the fictional Harriet would be considered an outlier... Read Full Review
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A Master of Djinn
by Clark, P. Djèli
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryJune 2, 2021
In Cairo in the 1870’s, an inventor and investigator of mysticism named al-Jahiz made a literal breakthrough unlike any other. He pierced the boundaries between our world and other worlds, allowing magic to bleed into ours. In the process, al-Jahiz was lost to another dimension before the rupture between worlds was sealed. For the intervening four decades the world has had to learn how to live with, or attempt to ignore, the magical beings that now populate our world.
The Egyptian government, as the locus of the magical in the world, set up the Ministry of Alchemy... Read Full Review
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The Dictionary of Lost Words
by Williams, Pip
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryMay 25, 2021
According to their website, the Oxford English Dictionary “is widely regarded as the accepted authority on the English language. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of 600,000 words— past and present—from across the English-speaking world.” Serially published in portions, or fascicles, the first fascicle, covering “A to Ant,” was published in 1884, 27 years after the project had begun. The first complete edition was finished in 1928. It took 71 years to complete the initial edition. To... Read Full Review
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Every Day is a Gift: A Memoir
by Duckworth, Tammy
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionMay 19, 2021
Call Number: 92 D836
It is one woman’s story of growth and achievement, comprised of innumerable personal and professional extremes, of opposing and contradictory experiences that took her to places, jobs and professions that she never ever could have imagined. Her life is like a complex Venn diagram or a mandala, with multiple overlapping layers. On the book jacket, beneath her name, she lists soldier, senator, mother. The life of a soldier propelled her on the road to becoming a senator and a mother.
She is biracial, multiethnic and multilingual. In 1989, from the University of... Read Full Review
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Let's make ramen! : a comic book cookbook
by Amano, Hugh
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionMay 11, 2021
Call Number: 641.5952 A484
Walk into any supermarket, peruse the soup aisle, and you will find the ubiquitous paper cups of ramen lining numerous shelves. The variety is terrifc. These instant cups have helped many of us get through a hectic day at work or home because they are convenient, inexpensive, have a relatively long shelf-life, and are easy to make in a microwave or with boiling water poured over the contents to provide a quick meal. Ramen has become a generic name for a large variety of instant noodle soups. What is ramen? Is it the name of a type of noodle, or the name of a soup? What is the difference... Read Full Review
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Boundaries
by Lin, Maya, 1959-
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionMay 4, 2021
Call Number: 730.914 L735-1
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most frequently visited public memorials under the maintenance and jurisdiction of the United States National Park Service. The memorial is a remembrance of those who gave their lives, and provides solace to those who are still alive--family, friends and veterans. What came to be known as the Vietnam War, and the involvement of the United States, was one of the most tumultuous, contentious and divisive periods in the modern history of our country. The history of the creation of the... Read Full Review
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Crazy Brave: A Memoir
by Harjo, Joy
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionApril 28, 2021
Call Number: 811 H2816H-1
Joy Harjo is the current Poet Laureate of the United States, whose tenure began on June 19, 2019, and is the first Native American to hold this position. Last year she was elected to a third term by Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress. Harjo began her first year with a poetry reading and concert. Never one to regard unexpected events as anything other than a part of the cycle of life, the pandemic fired up Harjo's exceptional resilience, versatility and... Read Full Review
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Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder
by Willberg, T. A.
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryApril 20, 2021
Imagine the following: A chilling murder, a secret detective agency with offices located in a myriad of tunnels located beneath London, and a young apprentice determined to find the killer in order to clear one of her closest friends of the murder. In her debut novel, which is the beginning of a new series, T.A. Willberg puts a decidedly fantastic spin on the mystery novel.
Marion Lane has had a few challenging years. When her mother died, she was forced to move in with her grandmother, who wants nothing more than for Marion to find a well-off young man, and... Read Full Review
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Start With a Small Guitar: Poems
by Thompson, Lynne
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionApril 14, 2021
Call Number: 811 T4733-1
In this collection by Lynne Thompson the poems are about love and longing that combine the ethereal, the earthy, with unexpected modern incantations to people, places, flora and fauna. These modern lyrical poems are not predictable. Poems of substance require at least a second reading, and these poems require more than that. They are mostly joyous and frequently made me laugh out loud, recognizing Thompson’s honesty about relationships: what we expect, what we get and how we deal with our thoughts and emotions in that context. The title of each poem is like wrapping paper around... Read Full Review
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Make Me Rain: Poems & Prose
by Giovanni, Nikki
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionApril 7, 2021
Call Number: 811 G5115-16
Poetry is the most intense and concentrated form of writing, using words, metre, rhyme and format to express thoughts, feelings and ideas that can be fact or fiction. It gets at the marrow of truth and truth-telling using words to create an image, not a picture, of an idea. In expository/essay writing, a subject statement is presented, then followed with paragraphs that have content to support the subject. An essay takes the time and space to implore, convince and to tell you something. Poetry slams on the brakes and makes you reconsider what was written. It may very well... Read Full Review
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The Narrowboat Summer
by Youngson, Anne
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryMarch 30, 2021
Eve has spent the last 30 years working for an engineering/manufacturing company managing various projects and climbing the corporate ladder. Suddenly, she has been “released” from her position. She is a corporate scapegoat for systemic problems within her company and, as the only woman at her management level, the seemingly obvious choice for where to place the blame. While she is excellent at her job, and planning/execution is her specialty, she has no idea how to deal with this unexpected development in her ordered life.
Sally has decided that she can no longer... Read Full Review
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Good Neighbors: A Novel
by Langan, Sarah
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryMarch 22, 2021
The first season of The Twilight Zone in 1960 included an episode written by show creator Rod Serling entitled “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street.” Serling presented a block of homes, filled with “typical” American families, on a summer evening. There is a bright flash of light, whose origin is unknown. Then various utilities, the foremost of which is their electricity, begin to behave unreliably. As the residents’ questions grow, panic begins to develop and overtake them resulting in wild accusations, and, ultimately death. Sterling’s closing narration for the... Read Full Review