5/24: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Eragon
• Casino Royale

Books:

• Narn i chîn Húrin : the tale of the children of Húrin / J. R. R. Tolkien — reunites fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, Eagles and Orcs. Presented for the first time as a complete, standalone story, this stirring narrative will appeal to casual fans and expert readers alike, returning them to the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien.
• Maniac Magee / Jerry Spinelli — One night during high school, Spinelli watched the football team win an exciting game against one of the best teams in the country. While everyone else rode about town tooting horns in celebration, Spinelli went home and wrote “Goal to Go,” a poem about the game’s defining moment, a goal-line stand. His father submitted the poem to the Norristown Times–Herald and it was featured in the middle of the sports page a few days later. He then traded in his baseball bat for a pencil, because he knew that he wanted to become a writer. (Age Range: 9 to 12; read a sample chapter)
• Edenville Owls / Robert B. Parker — There is something evil in the air. Fourteen-year-old Bobby senses it. Who is that man he saw arguing with his pretty, new English teacher? And what was the real reason she missed school for days afterward? Bobby knows he should mind his own business, but times are confusing. World War II has just ended and the world is changing. Bobby's world, especially. There's his relationship with Joanie, for one-why does being her friend feel awkward all of a sudden? And then there are his buddies, the junior varsity Edenville Owls-a group of basketball players in need of a leader. Can they help each other off the court as well as they can on it? They will need to. (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Part of me : stories of a Louisiana family / Kimberly Willis Holt — The lives of four generations of one Louisiana family, woven together by a master storyteller Tracing a family’s roots is like taking a journey through the years. In the case of one Louisiana family, that journey can be charted by the books they read and loved. The journey begins in 1939 with Rose, who moves with her mother and siblings from rural Texas to live with their estranged grandfather in the Louisiana bayou. (Age Range: 8 to 12; read a sample chapter)
• Eggs / Jerry Spinelli — Nine-year-old David has recently lost his mother to a freak accident, his salesman father is constantly on the road, and he is letting his anger out on his grandmother. Sarcastic and bossy 13-year-old Primrose lives with her childlike, fortuneteller mother, and a framed picture is the only evidence of the father she never knew. Despite their differences, David and Primrose forge a tight yet tumultuous friendship, eventually helping each other deal with what is missing in their lives. (Age Range: 8 to 12)
• Hannibal rising / Thomas Harris — Hannibal Lecter emerges from the nightmare of the Eastern Front, a boy in the snow, mute, with a chain around his neck. He seems utterly alone, but he has brought his demons with him. Hannibal's uncle, a noted painter, finds him in a Soviet orphanage and brings him to France, where Hannibal will live with his uncle and his uncle's beautiful and exotic wife, Lady Murasaki. (Hannibal Lecter Series, #4; read an exerpt)
• The blue zone / Andrew Gross — Kate Raab's life seems almost perfect: her boyfriend, her job, her family . . . until her father runs into trouble with the law. His only recourse is to testify against his former accomplices in exchange for his family's placement in the Witness Protection Program. But one of them gets cold feet. In a flash, everything Kate can count on is gone. (read a sample chapter)
• Astrid & Veronika / Linda Olsson — Veronika, a young writer, rents a house in a small Swedish village as she tries to come to terms with a recent tragedy while also finishing a novel. Her arrival is silently observed by Astrid, an older, reclusive neighbor who slowly becomes a presence in Veronika's life, offering comfort in the form of companionship and lovingly prepared home-cooked meals.
• The year of fog / Michelle Richmond — Life changes in an instant. On a foggy beach. In the seconds when Abby Mason—photographer, fiancée soon-to-be-stepmother—looks into her camera and commits her greatest error. Heartbreaking, uplifting, and beautifully told, here is the riveting tale of a family torn apart, of the search for the truth behind a child’s disappearance, and of one woman’s unwavering faith in the redemptive power of love. (read a sample chapter)
• One naked baby / Maggie Smith — We count up from one to ten as baby gets out of the bath, gets dressed, has a meal, and heads outside with mom to play. Then we count down again from ten to one as baby notices flowers and birds, splashes in puddles, plays with puppies, and gets dirty enough . . . to need another bath. (Age Range: 5 to 6)
• Together / Jane Simmons — Have you ever noticed how being with your best friend makes your day brighter? Mousse and Nut have! They love walking together, playing together, and laughing together. Everything is wonderful—until they start to notice there are some things they just can't do together. Can Mousse and Nut really be friends when they're so different? Of course they can! (Age Range: 5 to 8)
• Ghost ship / Mary Higgins Clark — Thomas loved his summer visits to his grandmother's on Cape Cod. He spent hours wondering about the sailing ships of the past and imagining their stories. He dreamed of being on a sailing ship himself. One afternoon after a night of terrible thunderstorms, Thomas finds, deep in the sand, a weathered, old-fashioned belt buckle. When he picks it up, a boy his own age, Silas Rich, who was a cabin boy on a ship called the Monomoy that sailed almost 250 years ago, appears. (Age Range: 6 to 10)
• The boy raised by librarians / Carla Morris — When something interests Melvin, his librarian friends help him find lots and lots of books on the subject. When he collects creepy bugs in a jar, they help him identify, classify, and catalog the insects. When he is cast as the Enormous Eggplant in the school play, Betty reads aloud from Organic Gardening to help him find his motivation. As the years pass, Melvin can always find the answers to his questions - and a lot of fun - in the library. Then one day he goes off to college to learn new things and read new books. Will he leave the library and his friends behind forever? (Age Range: 4 to 8; download a pdf exerpt)

1/27: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Flightplan
• The matador
• Stealth
• The world's fastest Indian

Books:

• Heritage of Lancaster County / Beverly Lewis — The Shunning, The Confession, The Reckoning (read an exerpt, the front cover flap)
• Casa Mexicana / Tim Street-Porter
• Downsize this! / Michael Moore — Nothing but the truth is sacred in Michael Moore's hilarious screed on the state of America, Downsize This! With the same in-your-face tenacity that has made him everyman's hero, Moore gets under the skin of corporate giants, politicians, lobbyists, and the media - anyone who has made life tougher for the millions of Americans who are working longer hours for less pay and have had enough. (read an exerpt)
• Mexico : architecture, interiors, design / Mark Luscombe-Whyte — From simple rural adobe dwellings and ornately decorated churches to deluxe seaside retreats and high-tech modern structures they explore the evolution of Mexican style from the traditional dwellings of ancient civilizations to the cutting-edge examples of today's most influential architects and designers. (preview table of contents)
• Quilts in the tradition of Frank Lloyd Wright / Jackie Robinson — Wright's art glass designs (1900-1923) inspired these quilts. Take a tour with Jackie Robinson as she guides you through construction of your "Wright window" in fabric using machine piecing methods. Directions for 18 projects.
• The illustrated atlas of Hawaii / Gavan Daws — Along with detailed, full-color maps, this richly illustrated text brings to life the diverse landscapes and cultures of Hawaii in one concise source. (preview table of contents)
• How to design & build decks & patios / Lin Cotton — Shows how to create decks and patios to extend living spaces outdoors. Includes guidelines for developing a design, drawing up a working plan to obtain a permit, and calculating materials needed. Includes complete constructions details for finishing a project.
• Converting basements, garages & attics : expanding your usable space easily, attractively & affordably / Roger Dodge Woodson — Found space...that's what this book is all about. You'll learn how to maximize the usable but unfinished areas in your house-including the basement, attic, or garage-as new living space for your growing family, without the expense of a costly addition and without the trouble of moving to a larger house.

1/21: New at the library this week

Videos:

• Hook
• Coyote ugly
• Panic room
• Mother's boys
• Hanoi Hilton
• SNL goes commercial
• Dumb and dumber
• With honors
• The three stooges: 4 episodes
• Death becomes her
• Housesitter
• Mrs. Soffel
• Duel in the sun
• Final analysis
• Return to me
• Mulholland Falls
• There's something about Mary

DVDs:

• Prime
• The man
• The white countess
• Birth
• The lake house
• L'enfant
• Take the lead

Books:

• True evil / Greg Iles — If you wanted to kill your spouse and get away with it, you had to do something truly ingenious: something that wouldn't even be perceived as murder. And that was the service that Andrew Rusk had found a way to provide. Like any quality product, it did not come cheap. Nor did it come quickly. And perhaps most important of all, it was not for those with weak constitutions. (read a sample chapter)
• Cross / James Patterson — Cross's former partner, John Sampson, calls in a favor. He is tracking a serial rapist in Georgetown, one whose brutal modus operandi recalls a case Sampson and Cross worked together years earlier. When the case reveals a connection to [his wife] Maria's death, Cross latches on for the most urgent and terrifying ride of his life. (Alex Cross Series, #12) (read a sample chapter)
• That wild berries should grow : the story of a summer / Gloria Whelan — Elsa is a precocious fifth-grade girl who cannot imagine living anywhere but amid the hustle and bustle of busy downtown Detroit. Even in the midst of the Great Depression there are many exciting things to occupy her time. But when the prescription for a sudden illness includes spending the summer at her grandparents’ country cottage beside Lake Huron, Elsa must learn to find excitement in "empty" places. (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• The Pox party, volume one (The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation) / M. T. Anderson — It sounds like a fairy tale. He is a boy dressed in silks and white wigs and given the finest of classical educations. Raised by a group of rational philosophers known only by numbers, the boy and his mother - a princess in exile from a faraway land - are the only persons in their household assigned names. As the boy's regal mother, Cassiopeia, entertains the house scholars with her beauty and wit, young Octavian begins to question the purpose behind his guardians' fanatical studies. Only after he dares to open a forbidden door does he learn the hideous nature of their experiments - and his own chilling role in them. (Age Range: Young Adult) (National Book Award winner)(download a study guide from the publisher)
• Web of evil / Judith A. Jance — The highway from Los Angeles to the Palm Springs desert is parched, unforgiving, and deadly. In the suffocating stillness of a car trunk, a man — his mouth and hands bound with tape — waits to learn his fate. Fortunately for him, he'll never know. What possible enemy could be bitter enough to commit such a heinous crime? And when will the monster make another move?

12/23: New at the library this week

DVDs:

The big valley (Season one)

A song for the season

The Christmas shoes

Cricket on the hearth

The original television Christmas classics (Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, Frosty the snowman, Santa Claus is comin' to town)

The retrievers

The Ponderosa: Comes a horse & The lesser of two evils

The Ponderosa: Brother against brother & Treasure

The tangerine bear

Frankie and Hazel

I was a rat

By dawns early light

The treasure seekers

Franklin's magic Christmas

Return to the secret garden

The penny promise

Rigoletto

Escape from Wildcat Canyon

A fariy tale Christmas

Summer of the monkeys

The princess stallion

Pit pony

A family for Joe

Books:

• Runaways : Pride & joy / Brian K. Vaughan — All young people believe their parents are evil … but what if they really are? Meet Alex, Karolina, Gert, Chase, Molly and Nico – whose lives are about to take an unexpected turn. When these six young friends discover their parents are all secretly super-powered villains, the shocked teens find strength in one another. Together, they run away from home and straight into the adventure of their lives – vowing to turn the tables on their evil legacy.
• Runaways : Teenage wasteland / Brian K. Vaughan — (Runaways Series, #2) (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Runaways : Missing: The good die young / Brian K. Vaughan — The world as we know it is about to end and the Runaways are the only hope to prevent it! But if our fledgling teenage heroes are going to succeed, they may have to become just as evil as their villainous parents. The Runaways have learned how their parents' criminal organization began, and now they must decide how it should end. As the Runaways' epic battle against their evil parents reaches its shocking conclusion, the team's mole stands revealed, and blood must be shed. Which kids will still be standing when the smoke finally clears? This is the story that changes everything (seriously!). (Runaways Series, #3) (Age Range: 12 and up)
• Runaways : True believers / Brian K. Vaughan — When a group of teenagers discovers that their parents are actually super-villains, they run away from home... but that's only step one! Now that the evil Pride is gone, nearly every bad guy in the Marvel Universe is trying to fill the power vacuum in Los Angeles, and the Runaways are the only heroes who can stop them! Plus: What does a mysterious new team of young heroes want with the Runaways, and which fan-favorite Marvel characters are part of this group? (Runaways Series, #4) (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Runaways : Escape to New York / Brian K. Vaughan — The team's lineup changes forever in the perfect jumping-on point for the series that Wizard said "could be the most original book to focus on teenaged super heroes since Spider-Man debuted all the way back in 1962!" When a dangerous alien invades Los Angeles, the Runaways' own Karolina Dean may be the only hero in the Marvel Universe who can stop him... but at what cost? (Runaways Series, #5) (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Gifts / Ursula K. Le Guin — When a young man in the Uplands blinds himself rather than use his gift of "unmaking"--a violent talent shared by members of his family--he upsets the precarious balance of power among rival, feuding families, each of which has a strange and deadly talent of its own. (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Voices / Ursula K. Le Guin — Ansul was once a peaceful town filled with libraries, schools, and temples. But that was long ago, and the conquerors of this coastal city consider reading and writing to be acts punishable by death. And they believe the Oracle House, where the last few undestroyed books are hidden, is seething with demons. But to seventeen-year-old Memer, the house is a refuge, a place of family and learning, ritual and memory--the only place where she feels truly safe. (Age Range: Young Adult)
• Nature girl / Carl Hiaasen — Honey Santana-impassioned, willful, possibly bipolar, self-proclaimed "queen of lost causes"-has a scheme to help rid the world of irresponsibility, indifference, and dinnertime sales calls.
• Naked / David Sedaris — Sedaris's message is pay attention to me. Whether he's taking to the road with a thieving quadriplegic, sorting out the fancy from the extra-fancy in a bleak fruit-packing factory, or celebrating Christmas in the company of a recently paroled prostitute, this collection of memoirs creates a wickedly incisive portrait of an all-too-familiar world.
• Three complete novels / Nelson DeMille — (Word of honor, Cathedral, By the rivers of Babylon)
• Our bodies, ourselves : a new edition for a new era / Boston Women's Health Book Collective — Read a sample chapter, Table of contents
• Arctic lace : knitting projects and stories inspired / Donna Druchunas — Qiviut, or musk ox down, is a world-class fiber--luxurious, warm, and lightweight. People who experience it become obsessed. Qiviut makes perfect hand-knitted lace, as demonstrated by the Alaskan artisans of Oomingmak Musk Ox Producers' Co-op. This book presents how-tos for knitting and designing lace, projects suited to new as well as experienced lace knitters, yarn sources, and comprehensive cultural background.
• A photographer's life : 1990-2005 / Annie Leibovitz —"I don't have two lives," Annie Leibovitz writes in the Introduction to this collection of her work from 1990-2005. "This is one life, and the personal pictures and the assignment work are all part of it."

12/2: New at the library this week

Videos:

• The Alamo
• Open range
• The hunted
• Spy game
• Fascination
• North and south : Book 1 & Book 2

DVDs:

• The sea inside
• Vengeance valley
• Casablanca express/Swiss conspiracy
• Mystery woman
• Night of the living dead
• Paradise now

Books:

• Murder below zero / Ronald P. Lovell — Professor and sometime amateur sleuth Thomas Martindale leaves campus to sign on as a science writer for a research expedition to the Arctic for a change of pace from the often mundane world of the university. The work is unique: an attempt to study ice as a tool for national security. Soon after the members of the team board a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker for the journey to their base—a remote island in the Beaufort Sea—Russian scientists join the group with unpleasant consequences. (read a sample chapter)
• The end / Lemony Snicket — This book is the last in A Series of Unfortunate Events, and even if you braved the previous twelve volumes, you probably can't stand such unpleasantries as a fearsome storm, a suspicious beverage, a herd of wild sheep, an enormous bird cage, and a truly haunting secret about the Baudelaire parents. (A Series of Unfortunate Events, #13)(Age Range: 9 to 12) (read a sample chapter)
• The life and times of the thunderbolt kid / Bill Bryson — Bill Bryson's first travel book opened with the immortal line, "I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to." In this hilarious new memoir, he travels back to explore the kid he once was and the weird and wonderful world of 1950s America. He modestly claims that this is a book about not very much: about being small and getting much larger slowly. But for the rest of us, it is a laugh-out-loud book that will speak volumes - especially to anyone who has ever been young.
• Happy feet : the movie storybook — Little Mumble isn't like the other penguins--he loves to dance! When the penguin elders blame Mumble's unique "happy feet" for the shortage of food, Mumble bravely sets off on an epic quest to prove them wrong . (Age Range: 3 to 6)
• Santa cruise / Mary Higgins Clark — Alvirah Meehan, the lottery winner turned amateur sleuth; her husband, Willy; recently hitched private detective Regan Reilly and her groom, Jack, head of the NYPD Major Case Squad; and Regan's parents, Nora and Luke, are guests on the Royal Mermaid's maiden voyage, the Santa Cruise. The cruise is Commodore Randolph Weed's gift to a select group of people who in the last year "made the world a better place." What he really wants is good publicity that will generate future bookings for his struggling new venture. He also plans to scatter his beloved mother's ashes at sea during this four-day odyssey in the Caribbean. What he doesn't know is that his ne'er-do-well nephew, Eric, has smuggled two escaping criminals on board. (read a sample)

11/18: New at the library this week

Videos:

• Wallace & Gromit: A grand day out
• Wallace & Gromit: A close shave
• Wallace & Gromit: The Wrong Trousers

DVDs:

• To be or not to be
• United 93
• High school musical
• Love, Ludlow
• West Side waltz
• Music from another room
• The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
• A good woman

Books:

• More bitter than death / Dana Cameron — In an historic, if isolated, New England hotel, some of the most respected names in archaeology are coming together to celebrate the work of Julius Garrison, a legend in the field. It's a conference Emma Fielding is determined to attend -- braving a furious winter storm to get there -- even though Garrison is no friend to her or her family.And when the honoree's lifeless body is discovered outside the snow-bound inn, Emma suddenly finds she is a murder suspect, along with a surprising number of the other guests.
• Missing justice / Alafair Burke — Newly promoted Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid's first assignment back after a much-needed vacation is a hot one: Judge Clarissa Easterbrook has gone missing from a wealthy Portland neighborhood, and Sam has to make the DA look good until the prodigal judge returns. Yet it soon becomes clear that the woman didn't vanish voluntarily-and it's no surprise when her bludgeoned body turns up at a local construction site. (Samantha Kincaid Series, #2)
• Good-bye, Boise—hello, Alaska : True Story of a Family's Move to a Remote Island Ranch / Cora Holmes
• Antarctica : both heaven and hell / Reinhold Messner — Detailed account of Reinhold Messner's and Arved Fuchs' 1,800-mile, 92-day journey on foot across Antarctica.

10/21: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Madea's family reunion
• Diary of a mad black woman
• Nanny McPhee
• Millions
• Iron monkey

Books:

• Invasive plants of Alaska
• Chicken soup for the gardener's soul/ Jack L. Canfield — Whether you're a master gardener, a struggling beginner, or someone who appreciates all things green, Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul will brighten your day and lift your spirit like the first crocus of spring.
• Under orders / Dick Francis — Sadly, death at the races is not uncommon. However, three in a single afternoon was sufficiently unusual to raise more than one eyebrow. It's the third death on Cheltenham Gold Cup Day that really troubles super-sleuth Sid Halley.
• The king of lies / John Hart — When Work Pickens finds his father murdered, the investigation pushes a repressed family history to the surface and he sees his own carefully constructed façade begin to crack. Work's troubled sister, her combative girlfriend, his gold digging socialite wife, and an unrequited lifelong love join a cast of small town characters that create no shortage of drama in this extraordinary, fast-paced suspense novel.
• The widow / Carla Neggers — Four days after Abigail Browning's wedding, her life changed in a way she never expected: her husband was shot, meeting his death along the rocky Mount Desert Island coast. Was it a random act of violence, or could someone have wanted Christopher dead? That's the question that has haunted Abigail, now a homicide detective, for the past seven years. As determined as ever to find her husband's killer, she returns to the foggy Maine island -- and the home she has inherited there.
• On, off / Colleen McCullough — At the heart of this brilliant blend of suspense, forensic science, eerie and sadistic sexuality, and good old-fashioned storytelling is a dedicated but lonely detective, Lieutenant Carmine Delmonico. The year is 1965, the setting a university town in Connecticut, and serial killers are still referred to as "multiple murderers." Profiling hasn't even begun, so Delmonico has to go it alone on a frantic learning curve that has the killer always two steps ahead of him.
• One drop of blood / Thomas Holland — As the director of the Department of the Army's Central Identification Laboratory, Robert Dean "Kel" McKelvey has made a career solving some of the country's most complex identification cases. But after fifteen years at the CIL, Kel is fast approaching emotional meltdown. And that's when he encounters his thorniest case yet: the recovery of Jimmie Carl Trimble, a soldier from Arkansas who died a hero's death during the Vietnam War.
• Artemis Fowl : the eternity code / Eoin Colfer — Ever the resourceful young criminal mastermind, Artemis has found a way to construct a supercomputer from stolen fairy technology. Called the "C Cube," it will render all existing human technology obsolete. Artemis then arranges a meeting with a Chicago businessman, Jon Spiro, to offer to suppress the Cube for one year in return for gold, his favorite substance. But the meeting is a trap. (Artemis Fowl Series, #3) (Age Range: 9 to 12
• Artemis Fowl : the lost colony / Eoin Colfer — Artemis Fowl, teenage criminal mastermind, has solved temporal equations that no human can. So when a confused and frightened demon pops up in a Sicilian theatre, Artemis is there to meet him. Unfortunately, a second mysterious party has also solved the equations and has managed to abduct the demon. (Artemis Fowl Series, #5) (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• Artemis Fowl / Eoin Colfer — When a twelve-year-old evil genius tries to restore his family fortune by capturing a fairy and demanding a ransom in gold, the fairies fight back with magic, technology, and a particularly nasty troll. (Artemis Fowl Series, #1) (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• Artemis Fowl : the opal deception / Eoin Colfer — Artemis is in Munich preparing to steal a famously well-guarded painting from a German bank. Little does he know that his every move is being watched by his old rival, Opal Koboi. The evil pixie has spent the last year in a self-induced coma, plotting her revenge on all those who foiled her attempt to destroy the LEPrecon fairy police. And Artemis is at the top of her list. (Artemis Fowl Series, #4) (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• Artemis Fowl : the Arctic incident / Eoin Colfer — Artemis is at boarding school in Ireland when he suddenly receives an urgent video e-mail from Russia. In it is a plea from his father, who has been kidnapped by the Russian Mafiya. As Artemis rushes to his rescue, he is stopped by Captain Holly Short of the Leprecon fairy police. But this time, instead of battling the fairies, he is going to have to join forces with them if he wants to save one of the few people in the world he loves. (Artemis Fowl Series, #2) (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• The Artemis Fowl files / Eoin Colfer — Two original short stories, plus puzzles, interviews with characters, and other writings that unlock secrets of the Artemis Fowl books, which feature a twelve-year-old evil genius and his dealings with fairies and other magical beings. (Artemis Fowl Series) (Age Range: 9 to 12)
• Snow blind / P. J. Tracy — With the holidays over and the long cold winter looming, January can be a bleak month in Minneapolis. So what better way to bring a little cheer to the good people of the city than by sponsoring an old-fashioned snowman-building contest? In a matter of hours, a local park is filled with the innocent laughter of children and their frosty creations. But things take an awful turn when the dead bodies of police officers are discovered inside two of the snowmen - sending the entire department and Detectives Magozzi and Rolseth on high alert.
• The saddlemaker's wife / Earlene Fowler — Ruby McGavin isn't quite sure what she's doing in the small town of Cardinal. After the death of her husband, Cole, Ruby is shocked to learn from his will that she had inherited part of a cattle ranch in the rustic grasslands of Tokopah County, California. But she is even more surprised to find out that the family he claimed died years ago is very much alive.
• The river killings / Merry Bloch Jones — Zoe Hayes, a divorced art therapist with a six-year-old adopted daughter, returns with another gripping tale set in Philadelphia, this time taking place on the famous Boathouse Row. On summer vacation from her job as an art therapist, Zoe takes a sculling class for fun with her best friend, Susan Cummings. One evening, while her daughter, Molly, waits with Susan's children at the boathouse on the banks of the Schuylkill River, Zoe rows off with Susan to practice for an upcoming regatta. When Susan's oar catches on some flotsam (which turns out to be a woman's dress), the boat flips, and the two find themselves in deep waters with not just one but an entire throng of floating bodies.
• Mercy Watson fights crime / Kate DiCamillo — Leroy Ninker is a small man with a big dream: he wants to be a cowboy, but for now he's just a thief. In fact, Leroy is robbing the Watsons' kitchen right this minute! (Age Range: 6 to 8)
• Mercy Watson goes for a ride / Kate DiCamillo — Mr. and Mrs. Watson's porcine wonder, Mercy, loves nothing more than a ride in the car. It takes a fair amount of nudging and bribing and a "You are such a good sport, darling" to get the portly pig out of the driver's seat, but once the convertible is on the road, Mercy loves the feel of the wind tickling her ears and the sun on her snout. (Age Range: 6 to 8)
• Mercy Watson to the rescue / Kate DiCamillo — To Mr. and Mrs. Watson, Mercy is not just a pig -- she's a porcine wonder. And to the portly and good-natured Mercy, the Watsons are an excellent source of buttered toast, not to mention that buttery-toasty feeling she gets when she snuggles into bed with them. This is not, however, so good for the Watsons' bed. (Age Range: 6 to 8)
• I'll be seeing you / Jerry Borrowman
• The last spymaster / Gayle Lynds — Charles "Jay" Tice was a spy's spy. The chief of the CIA's elite Clandestine Services, he was a legend throughout the world of international intelligence. But secretly he was also a traitor, reputedly selling information that will seriously compromise the security of the United States for decades to come. Since his treachery was exposed, Tice has been kept under strict surveillance in a maximum security prison. Then one morning, his cell is discovered empty.
• Temping fate / Esther Friesner — Temping Fate by Esther Friesner - Until she stumbled upon the Divine Relief Temp Agency, Ilana Newhouse was having a hard time finding a summer job. But when she reports for her first day as a temp, Ilana discovers why Divine Relief isn't shy about hiring someone a little left of ordinary. Ilana, is temping for the extraordinary, life- controlling, Greek mythological goddesses, the Fates. Now her summer is going to be less about surviving a stuffy office and more about avoiding being turned into a pig, or worse! (Ages 12 and up)

9/23: New at the library this week

Videos:

• New Port South
• Solaris
• The getaway
• Second nature
• The cell
• Crime spree
• Turn of faith
• Rising sun
• The quick and the dead
• Enough
• Sphere
• Donnie Brasco
• Smoke signals

DVDs:

• Young Adam
• The black & blue collection
• Gardens of stone
• About Schmidt
• The rats
• Mazes and monsters
• Skeleton man
• Waterborne
• Muhammad Ali : through the eyes of the world
• Bats
• The grudge
• Man on the moon
• Best of Gallagher : Volume 1
• Young Ivanhoe

Books:

• Slim to none / Taylor Smith — After losing custody of her young son, security specialist Hannah Nicks has one goal: earn enough money to retire and raise her child. The fastest way to accomplish that is to take on a covert, privately funded mission in the Middle East, and in a war fueled more by money than morality, Hannah is on only one side—her own.
• The five lost aunts of Harriet Bean / Alexander McCall Smith — Alexander McCall Smith takes readers into the world of 9-year-old Harriet, who lives alone with her father, an absentminded inventor of extraordinary but useless things. When Harriet's father tells her one day that she has five aunts-his sisters-that he's never told her about before, and with whom he tragically lost touch in childhood, Harriet is delighted, and determined to track down each of her colourful aunts one-by-one. (Harriet Bean Series #1, Age Range: 7 to 9)
• Harriet Bean and the League of Cheats / Alexander McCall Smith — Harriet is invited to help her two mind-reading detective aunts, Thessalonika and Japonica, investigate serious cheating in the world of horse racing. Cunningly disguised by Aunt Thessalonika as a jockey, 9-year-old Harriet works to uncover the dastardly deeds of the unscrupulous League of Cheats. (Harriet Bean Series #2, Age Range: 7 to 9)
• The book of fate / Brad Meltzer — A two-hundred-year-old code devised by Thomas Jefferson becomes the key to a present-day conspiracy at the highest levels of Washington and the power elite of Palm Beach.
• Bread Alone : bold fresh loaves from your own hands / Daniel Leader, Judith Blahnik — In a richly told tale, Leader chronicles his crossings of America and Europe to locate the most vital ingredients at the source, to learn from the methods of the world's great bakers, and to perfect their traditional techniques. His recipes are ones that have been used for centuries: large sourdough ryes, rich and dark raisin pumpernickel loaves, real French pain au levain, big round wheats with walnuts, crusty baguettes, high and airy breads, and more.
• Changeling / Delia Sherman — Neef is a changeling, a human baby stolen by fairies and replaced with one of their own. She lives in "New York Between," a parallel Manhattan of elves, fairies, demons, and mythological spirits. Neef has always been protected by her (rat) nursemaid,Astris, until she winds up breaking Fairy Law. Now, unless she can meet the challenge of the Lady of Central Park, she'll be sacrificed to the bloodthirsty Wild Hunt. But Neef is a native New Yorker, streetwise and sharp, and she's determined to beat the rap.
• Hinduism and other Eastern religions: worship, festivals, and ceremonies from around the world / Trevor Barnes — World Faiths: Hinduism and Other Eastern Religions explores the major religions of the Eastern world, including Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism. From Hindu gods and goddesses to life in a Buddhist monastery, it reveals the origins of each religion, the key elements of its belief systems, and the appeal of Eastern religions to the West. (Age Range: 12 and up)
• Islam : worship, festivals, and ceremonies from around the world / Trevor Barnes — Islam is practiced by almost one billion Muslims worldwide. World Faiths: Islam covers the life and teachings of the prophet Muhammad, as well as the development and history of Islam, the sacred text of the Koran, and important geographic locations like Mecca and Medina. This beautifully illustrated book also presents the crowning achievements of Islamic art and a fascinating survey of Islamic customs. (Age Range: 12 and up)
• Christianity : worship, festivals, and ceremonies from around the world / Trevor Barnes Christianity is practiced by almost a third of the world's population. World Faiths: Christianity tells the story of Jesus and examines how different festivals, including Christmas and Easter, are celebrated around the globe. It also explores the many divisions within Christianity, as well as the architecture of the world's great cathedrals and churches. (Age Range: 12 and up)
• Judaism : worship, festivals, and ceremonies from around the world / Trevor Barnes — From the early history of Judaism to the festivals celebrated today, World Faiths: Judaism is the definitive guide to the world's oldest monotheistic religion. All of the significant events, including the destruction of the Temple and the Diaspora, are vividly recounted. The importance of tradition—both written and oral—and the central role of worship in Jewish life are covered, as well as key rituals and celebrations such as the Passover meal. (Age Range: 12 and up)
• The weight of water / Anita Shreve — On a small island off the New Hampshire coast in 1873, two women were brutally murdered by an unknown assailant. A third woman survived the attack, hiding in a sea cave until dawn. More than a century later, a photographer, Jean, comes to the island to shoot a photo-essay about the legendary crime.
• At home with Michael Chiarello : easy entertaining, recipes, ideas, inspiration / Michael Chiarello — Celebrated television, cookbook, and restaurant chef Michael Chiarello is a master of simple, casually elegant cooking—and a fabulous host. In this cookbook—packed with great recipes, gorgeous photographs, and inspiring entertaining ideas—he shares his secrets for celebrating in style (and having fun doing it too!).

9/16: New at the library this week

Videos:

• The Sicilian
• Sweet dreams
• Cabaret
• Once upon a time in the west
• Broadcast news
• The neon empire
• The Family Man

DVDs:

• Red eye
• The greatest game ever played
• Saraband
• The family Stone
• Rent
• Tristan + Isolde
• Munich

Books:

• Water for elephants / Sara Gruen — When Jacob Jankowski, recently orphaned and suddenly adrift, jumps onto a passing train, he enters a world of freaks, grifters, and misfits, a second-rate circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression, making one-night stands in town after endless town.
• Peter and the Starcatchers / Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson — Discover richly developed characters in the sweet but sophisticated Molly, the scary but familiar Black Stache, and the fearless Peter. Treacherous battles with pirates, foreboding thunderstorms at sea, and evocative writing immerse the reader in a story that slowly and finally reveals the secrets and mysteries of the beloved Peter Pan. (Peter Pan Series)
• Peter and the shadow thieves / Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson — Peter leaves the relative safety of Mollusk Island - along with his trusted companion, Tinker Bell - for the cold, damp, dangerous streets of London. On a difficult journey across the sea, he and Tink discover the dark and deadly slithering part-man/part-creature Lord Ombra, who is intent on recovering the missing starstuff - celestial dust that contains unimagined powers. (Peter Pan Series)
• Behind the curtain / Peter Abrahams — In echo falls you never know what's coming next -- and everyone has a secret. Things are amiss at 99 Maple Lane: Ingrid's dad's job is in jeopardy, but he won't explain why. Ingrid's brother, Ty, is getting buff -- really buff -- but when Ty starts getting moody, Ingrid wonders if there's more to his physical fitness than lifting weights. Meanwhile, Ingrid's beloved soccer coach is replaced by an icy newcomer named Julia LeCaine, who seems a little too savvy to be in it for the post game pizza. True to her hero, Sherlock Holmes, Ingrid begins fishing around to find out who's really pulling the strings in Echo Falls. Age Range: 12 and up (Echo Falls Mystery Series, #2)
• The rookie club / Danielle Girard — A seasoned inspector in the Sex Crimes department, Jamie Vail is on a terrifying case: female officers brutalized by a stranger who leaves no clues to his identity and whose sick game is turning into a deadly vendetta. As she hunts a killer, who could be one of their own, Jamie's time is running out-because she's the killer's ultimate prize.
• This dame for hire / Sandra Scoppettone — New York, 1943. Almost anything in pants has gone to serve Uncle Sam in the war - including Woody Mason, the head of a detective agency in midtown Manhattan. Left to run the show is his secretary, Faye Quick, who signed on to be a steno, not a shamus. At twenty-six and five foot four, there's not much to Faye, but she's got moxie - which she'll need when she stumbles over a dead girl in the street and takes on her first murder case. (Faye Quick Series, #1)
• The 5th horseman James Patterson — Somebody dies. A young mother is recuperating in a San Francisco hospital when she is suddenly gasping for breath. The call button fails to bring help in time. The hospital's doctors, some of the best in the nation, are completely mystified by her death. How did this happen? Apocalypse nears. This is not the first such case at the hospital. Just as patients are about to be released with a clean bill of health, their conditions take a devastating turn for the worse. (Women's Murder Club Series, #5)
• The complete book of boat electronics / Ernest A. Zadig —
• Long shadows / Susan Saxton D'Aoust — Story of the MacTavish family, set in Alaska

9/9: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Memoirs of a geisha

Books:

• Why Darwin matters : the case against intelligent design / Michael Shermer —A creationist-turned-scientist demonstrates the facts of evolution and exposes Intelligent Design's real agenda.
• Digging to America / Anne Tyler —In what is perhaps her richest and most deeply searching novel, Anne Tyler gives us a story about what it is to be an American, and about Maryam Yazdan, who after thirty-five years in this country must finally come to terms with her 'outsiderness.'
• Copper River / William Kent Krueger —This book finds Cork O'Connor running for his life from professional hit men who have already put a bullet through his leg. Desperate, he finds sanctuary outside a small town called Bodine on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in an old resort owned by his cousin, Jewell DuBois. (Cork O'Connor Mystery Series)
• Crime beat : a decade of covering cops and killers / Michael Connelly —Before he became a novelist, Michael Connelly was a crime reporter, covering the detectives who worked the homicide beat in Florida and Los Angeles. In vivid, hard-hitting articles, Connelly leads the reader past the yellow police tape as he follows the investigators, the victims, their families and friends--and, of course, the killers--to tell the real stories of murder and its aftermath.
• Living rooms / Amanda Harling
• The complete book of floorcloths : designs & techniques for painting great-looking canvas rugs / Kathy Cooper —Two dozen different methods for creating and embellishing a design; eight projects ranging from geometric patterns to freeform squiggles; 63 artists showing off a glorious range of contemporary work: and dozens of luscious pictures: in short, it's the home decorator's dream guide to making the perfect floorcloth.
• The Hawaiian quilt / Reiko Mochinaga Brandon
• Hand-painting china : how to design and paint your own beautiful ceramics, without the need for kiln-firing / Lesley Harle
• The book of beads : a practical and inspirational guide to beads and jewelry making / Janet Coles
• The garden problem solver / Reader's Digest Association —Few sites offer ideal conditions for the gardener. An eyesore, such as an old (but useful) storage shed, might dominate the scene. Or perhaps your site has a steep slope making garden design difficult. Still other gardens are shady or have very acidic or poor alkaline soil. For any and all of these situations, help is finally at hand.
• 52 McGs. : the best obituaries from legendary New York Times writer Robert McG. Thomas Jr. / Robert McG. Thomas —Among his devoted fans, his pieces were known simply as McGs. With a "genius for illuminating that sometimes ephemeral apogee in people's lives when they prove capable of generating a brightly burning spark" (Columbia Journalism Review), Robert McG. Thomas Jr. commemorated fascinating, unconventional lives with signature style and wit.
• Messenger of truth / Jacqueline Winspear —London, 1931. The night before an exhibition of his artwork opens at a famed Mayfair gallery, the controversial artist Nick Bassington-Hope falls to his death. The police rule it an accident, but Nick's twin sister, Georgina, a wartime journalist and a infamous figure in her own right, isn't convinced. When the authorities refuse to consider her theory that Nick was murdered, Georgina seeks out a fellow graduate from Girton College, Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and investigator, for help. (Maisie Dobbs Series, #4)
• Cover of night / Linda Howard —In the charming rural town of Trail Stop, Idaho, accessible to the outside world by only a single road, young widow Cate Nightingale lives peacefully with her four-year-old twin boys, running a bed-and-breakfast. Though the overnight guests are few and far between - occasional hunters and lake fishermen - Cate always manages to make ends meet with the help of the local jack-of-all-trades, Calvin Harris, who can handle everything from carpentry to plumbing. But Calvin is not what he seems, and Cate's luck is about to run out.
• Blue screen / Robert B. Parker —Buddy Bollen is a C-list movie mogul who made his fortune producing films of questionable artistic merit. When Buddy hires Sunny Randall to protect his rising star and girlfriend, Erin Flint, Sunny knows from the start that the prickly, spoiled beauty won't make her job easy. And when Erin's sister, Misty, is found dead in the lavish home they share with sugar daddy Bollen, there doesn't seem to be a single lead worth pursuing. (Sunny Randall Series, #5)
• Kinds of love / May Sarton — Friendship, marriage, and intertwined lives in a small New Hampshire town.
• George Washington : a life / Willard Sterne Randall —Randall tells the fascinating tale of a man who turned an impoverished childhood into a life of creative rebellion and creation. He follows Washington's rise to greatness as he turns from managing plantations to becoming a professional soldier and eventually joining in the fight again taxation without representation, which would spark the American Revolution.
• Alaska's sky follies : the funny side of flying in the far north / Joe Rychetnik —You know those outlandish tales you've heard about early bush pilots of the Far North? Turns out some of them are true.
• The Esprit quilt collection / Julie Silber
• Dr. Seuss goes to war / Theodor Seuss Geisel —For decades, readers throughout the world have enjoyed the marvelous stories and illustrations of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. But few know Geisel's work as a political cartoonist during World War II for the New York daily newspaper PM. In these marvelously trenchant cartoons, Geisel captured the Zeitgeist - especially the attitudes of the New Deal liberals who read PM - with a wonderful Seussian flair.
• The quilt design workbook / Beth Richardson Gutcheon
• Last climb : the legendary Everest expeditions of George Mallory / David Breashears —George Leigh Mallory is not the only man to have died tragically on the forbidding heights of Mount Everest, but he is surely the most famous. When he and Andrew Irvine disappeared into the mists not far from the summit in June 1924, they climbed into mountaineering legend. For more than 70 years, the fraternity of high-altitude adventurers could only speculate on their fate--until 1999 when Mallory's body was found at last, 2,000 feet below the summit.
• Calming crafts : relaxing crafts to inspire your creativity / Dawn Frankfort

9/2: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Oliver's travels

Books:

• Killer instinct / Joseph Finder — Jason Steadman is a thirty-year-old sales executive living in Boston andsworking for an electronics giant, a competitorsto Sony and Panasonic. He's a witty, charismatic guy who's well liked at the office, but he lacks the "killer instinct" necessary to move up the corporate ladder. To the chagrin of his ambitious wife, it looks as if his career has hit a ceiling. Jason's been sidelined.
• The foreign correspondent / Alan Furst —an epic story of romantic love, love of country, and love of freedom- the story of a secret war fought in elegant hotel bars and first-class railway cars, in the mountains of Spain and the backstreets of Berlin. It is an inspiring, thrilling saga of everyday people forced by their hearts' passion to fight in the war against tyranny.
• Telegraph days / Larry McMurtry — Told in the voice of Nellie Courtright, a spunky, courageous, attractive young woman whose story this is in part, Telegraph Days is the big novel of the Western gunfighters that people have been hoping for years Larry McMurtry would write.
• Full of grace / Dorothea Benton — Hilton Head, a South Carolina retirement heaven -- at least it's supposed to be, but for Big Al and Connie Russo, the move from New Jersey to this southern paradise has been fraught with just a few complications. Especially for their daughter, Grace.
• Frank Spencer and the wildfire / Hannah C. Watkins — Another disaster-related story book for young readers, published in cooperation with the Kenai Peninsula Borough. Previous stories in the series have focused on other common threats like tsunami and earthquake.
• Slaves in the family / Edward Ball — First-time author and award-winning journalist Edward Ball confronts the legacy of his family's slave-owning past, uncovering the story of the people, both black and white, who lived and worked on the Balls' South Carolina plantations. It is an unprecedented family record that reveals how the painful legacy of slavery continues to endure in America's collective memory and experience. (1998 National Book Award for nonfiction)
• The hunt club / John T. Lescroart — A federal judge is murdered, found shot to death in his home - together with the body of his mistress. The crime grips San Francisco. To homicide inspector Devin Juhle, it first looks like a simple case of a wife's jealousy and rage. But Juhle's investigation reveals that the judge had powerful enemies...some of whom may have been willing to kill to prevent him from meddling in their affairs.
• Don't know much about geography : everything you need to know about the world but never learned / Kenneth C. Davis — The author of the critically acclaimed national bestseller Don't Know Much About History now takes us on a fascinating, breathtaking and hilarious grand tour of the planet Earth — opening our eyes and imaginations to a wide, wild, and wonderful world we never knew.
• E=mc2 : a biography of the world's most famous equation / David Bodanis — In this lucid and brilliant book, one of the best popularizers of science illuminates one of science's most complex concepts. Ranging widely from Exit signs in theatres to the future fate of the earth, from smoke detectors to black holes and the structure of the atom, David Bodanis delivers a scintillating and colourful account of the real meaning of E=mc2.
• Lost angel / Mike Doogan — Moses Wright founded the Christian commune of Rejoice. The rough-and-tumble interior of Alaska may seem a strange place for such a community, but for twenty years it has served as a beacon in the wilderness. Two decades later Moses granddaughter, Faith, is the star of the younger generation. Pretty and intelligent, she's the first teenager in the town to choose to experience the outside world. When Faith disappears, the elders of Rejoice look beyond their village for help.
• In the company of soldiers : a chronicle of combat / Rick Atkinson — For soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division, the road to Baghdad began with a midnight flight out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in late February 2003. For Rick Atkinson, who would spend nearly two months covering the division for The Washington Post, the war in Iraq provided a unique opportunity to observe today's U.S. Army in combat. Now, in this extraordinary account of his odyssey with the 101st, Atkinson presents an intimate and revealing portrait of the soldiers who fight the expeditionary wars that have become the hallmark of our age.
• There's no place like hope : a guide to beating cancer in mind-sized bites / Vickie Girard —

8/29: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Howl's moving castle (fully-redubbed English version)
• good night, and good luck

Audiobooks:

• Before the dawn / Carol Warburton — plot synopsis

Books:

• Freshwater fishing secrets / North American Fishing Club —
• The secret of sigma seven / Franklin W. Dixon —The aliens are invading! No, they're not from another galaxy. They're not even from Mars. They're from Hollywood! A science fiction convention has come to Bayport, and movie director Simon Devoreaux has lost his billion-dollar baby: the film of his latest blockbuster has dematerialized before his eyes. (Hardy Boys Paperback Mystery Stories Series, #110)
• Day of the dinosaur / Franklin W. Dixon — A new museum is under construction outside Bayport--and it's like no museum Frank and Joe have ever seen. Its theme is prehistory, and its #1 attraction is sure to be the dinosaur park. But when the boys sign on to help prepare for opening day, they make a startling discovery: Not only are the dinosaurs incredibly lifelike...they are potentially lethal! (Hardy Boys Paperback Mystery Stories Series, #128)
• Footprints under the window / Franklin W. Dixon — Hardy Boys Mystery Stories Series, #12
• Fear on wheels / Franklin W. Dixon — A quarter of a million in cold cash - that's how much an unknown extortionist is demanding to insure the safety of the monster truck and hot rod show at the Bayport Arena. Promoter Grant Tucker asks Frank and Joe to go underground and crush the crooked plot before the cook delivers a crushing blow. (Hardy Boys Paperback Mystery Stories Series, #108)
• Cleese encounters / Jonathan Margolis — The introverted and awkwardly tall boy (six feet, four and three-quarter inches at the age of thirteen) from the dreary English village of Weston-super-Mare nearly became a lawyer, until he discovered Cambridge and the footlights at the dawn of the Swinging Sixties. Today, after masterful roles in films like Life of Brian ("miserable little film" - Malcolm Muggeridge), Clockwise, and A Fish Called Wanda (thought to be incredibly sexy in Japan), John Cleese may at last have the answer to that tormenting question from Wanda: "Do you have any idea what it's like being English?"
• Complex cloth : a comprehensive guide to surface design / Jane Dunnewold — Discover textile artist Jane Dunnewold's secrets to creating visual complexity and depth in fabric. In this comprehensive guide, Jane explains her system of layering simple processes to produce intriguing surface designs. Full-color photographs of fabric, quilts, and clothing provide a sampling of her beautiful results.
• French by design / Betty Lou Phillips — Demonstrates how interior designers create a French country look in contemporary American homes.
• The complete stenciling handbook / Sandra Buckingham — Beginning with the simple stencil — a template that lets you easily create a painted shape on a surface and allows you to repeat the exact pattern wherever and as often as you wish — renowned stenciler Sandra Buckingham literally transforms the world around her.

8/16: New at the library this week

Videos:

• Deceived
• Entertaining Angels
• Tora! Tora! Tora!
• Gladiator
• Crossing Delancey
• Spy who came in from the cold
• The North Avenue irregulars
• Bennies from heaven
• Face/off
• City slickers
• A midsummer night's dream
• Jagged edge

DVDs:

• The Manchurian candidate
• The quick and the dead
• A fool and his money
• Copper Mountain

Books:

• Promise me / Harlan Coben —Because of the simple urge to protect two neighborhood high-school girls from the all-too-dangerous and all-too-common mistake of getting in a car with a drunk driver, Myron has them make him a promise: If they are ever in a bind but are afraid to call their parents, they should call him rather than get in a car with someone who's been drinking. Several nights later, the call comes at 2:00 am, and true to his word, Myron picks up one of the girls in midtown Manhattan and drives her to a quiet cul-de-sac in New Jersey where she says her friend lives. The next day, the girl's parents discover that their daughter is missing. And that Myron was the last person to see her. (Myron Bolitar Series, #8)
• Out of my mind : the discovery of Saunders-Vixen / Richard Bach —Bach's journey begins as he puzzles over design modifications for his airplane, a Piper Cub. Perfect designs--simple and practical--seem to come to him out of the blue. But one day when a design appears, along with a fleeting glimpse of an intriguing woman, Bach sets out to discover the source of the visions. The journey leads to a startling destination: a parallel universe where a British airplane manufacturer--Saunders-Vixen Aircraft Company Ltd.--makes superb biplanes and solves problems for perplexed aviators.
• Lonely hearts / John Harvey —British detective Charlie Resnick--middle-aged, overweight, divorced and disillusioned--investigates the murders of two women who shared nothing except their use of the local paper's lonely-hearts column to meet men. (Charlie Resnick Series, #1)
• A girl named Zippy : growing up small in Mooreland, Indiana / Haven Kimmel —When Haven Kimmel was born in 1965, Mooreland, Indiana was a sleepy little hamlet of three hundred people. Nicknamed "Zippy" for the way she would run around like a circus monkey, this small girl was possessed of big eyes and even bigger ears. In this lovingly told memoir, Kimmel takes readers back in time to when small-town America was still trapped in the amber of the innocent post-war period—people help their neighbors, go to church, keep barnyard animals in their backyards.
• Plainsong / Kent Haruf —In the small town of Holt, Colorado, a high school teacher is confronted with raising his two boys alone after their mother retreats first to the bedroom, then altogether. A teenage girl — her father long since disappeared, her mother unwilling to have her in the house — is pregnant, alone herself, with nowhere to go. And out in the country, two brothers, elderly bachelors, work the family homestead, the only world they've ever known.
• House beautiful : decorating with books : use your library to enhance your decor / Marie Proeller Hueston —From grand bookcases in home libraries to casual stacks artfully arrayed on chairs, House Beautiful presents countless eye-catching ideas for displaying and arranging your hardcovers, paperbacks, encyclopedias, and even valuable first editions. Useful tips shed light on how to organize a large collection; situate bookcases in the room for the best effect; and make the most of books' appealing visual and tactile qualities.

7/31: New at the library this week

Videos:

• Curtain call

DVDs:

• Stay
• Iron Monkey 2
• The phantom of the opera
• A sound of thunder
• Be cool

Books:

• At risk / Stella Rimington — An announcement is made at a meeting of the BritishIntelligence Joint Counter-Terrorist group: "The opposition may be about to deploy an invisible." Intelligence officer Liz Carlyle has had to prove herself in countless ways as she's come up through the ranks of the traditionally all-male world of Britain's Security Service, MI5. But this announcement marks the start of an operation that will test all her hard-won knowledge and experience-and her intelligence and courage-as nothing has before.
• Before I wake / Anne Frasier — Anne Frasier delivers a new blockbuster about a one-time criminal profiler who will risk everything-even her own sanity-to lure out of hiding the madman who murdered her family. Even if it means she becomes the number-one suspect.
• The house on the point : a tribute to Franklin W. Dixon and the Hardy Boys / Benjamin Hoff — Hoff sets this recast story, based on the original Hardy Boys The House on the Cliff, in 1947, when the Swing Era was giving way to the Baby Boom, and gives it a plot involving a post-war smuggling racket, a young newcomer to town who may have something to hide, and a police chief who's in no hurry to investigate. And he does so with a greater attention to detail, more fully developed characters, and a modern ear for dialogue.
• The road to Inconceivable / J. M. DeMatteis — Kate's little brother Matt is missing, and Kate thinks she will never see him again. But then she finds out that Matt is trapped in the world of Abadazad. Will Kate have the courage to look for her brother? And if she leaves home -- will she ever return? (Abadazad, #1; age range: 9 to 12)
• The dream thief / J. M. DeMatteis — Kate needs all the help she can get when she encounters the Lanky Man. He's mean and heartless, and he wants to steal children's dreams. Everyone seems to be against her -- which only makes her more determined to find her brother. And Matt is getting closer -- isn't he? (Abadazad, #2; age range: 9 to 12)
• The vacation / Polly Horvath — When his mother decides on a whim to be a missionary in Africa and drags his unwilling father with her, Henry is left in the care of his Aunts Magnolia and Pigg. Henry's sure they dislike him and he's trying to keep his distance, but that becomes more difficult when Mag decides they should take a destination-less road trip. (Age range: 12 and up)
• The touch / Colleen McCullough — When Alexander Kinross -- remembered in his native Scotland only as a shiftless boilermaker's apprentice and godless rebel -- summons his bride Elizabeth Drummond to Australia, his Scottish relatives realize that Kinross has made a fortune in the goldfields and is now a man to be reckoned with. (Large print edition)

7/22: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• Doom

Audiobooks:

• Finding paradise / Michele Ashman Bell
• Forget me not / Michele Ashman Bell
• Double cross / Betsy Brannon Green

Books:

• Semi-homemade cooking 2 / Sandra Lee — Family-friendly recipes for every palate and mood, created from an inspired pairing of fresh and convenience products. Recipes feature ethnic flavors, barbecue, comfort food, slow cooker creations, and everyday and special occasion meals.
• The happy hooker : stitch 'n bitch crochet / Debbie Stoller —Written in the author's cheeky chick style, this heavily illustrated book--featuring four-color photographs and instructional illustrations throughout -- is chock-full of instruction, inspiration, and to-die-for designs, from a Fishnet Skullcap to a lacy evening wrap. For knitters and new crafters exploring the hook comes the primer: the advantages of crochet and the ways in which knitters (and nonknitters) benefit by learning this sister craft; a discussion of tools; all the cool yarns available, and what the different gauges mean; plus basic techniques and stitch patterns--including the chain stitch, picot, flowers, filet crochet, changing yarns, and finishing.
• Susannah's garden / Debbie Macomber — When Susannah Nelson turned eighteen, her parents sent her to school abroad. She said goodbye to her boyfriend, Jake -- and never saw him again. She never saw her brother again, either; Doug died in a car accident while she was away. Now, at fifty, she finds herself regretting the paths not taken.
• Sullivan's evidence / Nancy Taylor Rosenberg — Ten years ago, Carolyn Sullivan recommended a forty-four year sentence for vicious murderer and serial rapist Carl Holden. Cold, cunning, and without remorse, Holden was the kind of criminal the death penalty was made for, and the forensic evidence had him nailed – or so everyone thought. But when the evidence is discredited, Holden is a free man again, and Carolyn is his assigned parole officer.
• Borrowed time / Robert Goddard — It is a golden evening of high summer. Walking a ridge on the Welsh Borders, Robin Timariot meets by chance an elegant middle-aged woman who seems strangely out of place. They exchange only a few words, but those words prove to be unforgettable. A few days later Timariot learns from the newpapers that, just hours after their meeting, the woman was raped and murdered.
• The winemaker's daughter / Timothy Egan — Brunella Cartolano is passionate and high-spirited, an accomplished architect and a daughter of the American West who tends to fall in love with lost causes. While she is trying to protect the Seattle waterfront from development, she also finds her father’s vineyard east of the Cascade Mountains enduring the worst drought in history. Water is the base ingredient of winemaking, and for people who believe in the transformative power of wine, water has become the new petroleum—hoarded and stolen, the target of greed and the source of treachery, even among friends.
• Critical mass / Steve Martini — Jocelyn "Joss" Cole, a burned-out public defender from L.A., has opted for a quieter life in the San Juan Islands of Washington state. Joss has no significant clients other than a group of commercial fishermen suffering from a strange and serious illness, a condition doctors cannot diagnose, which Joss believes has an industrial cause. Then into her office comes Dean Belden, a well-heeled client in search of a lawyer to help him set up a business in the islands.
• Killing critics / Carol O'Connell — NYPD sergeant Kathleen Mallory, a wild child turned policewoman, possessed of a ferocious intelligence and a unique inner compass of right and wrong, is about to be sorely tested. Killing Critics begins with a discreet murder - the almost unnoticed death of a hack artist at a gallery opening - but quickly connects with a much more brutal crime - a twelve-year-old double homicide and dismemberment originally investigated by Mallory's now deceased adoptive father, Louis Markowitz. (Kathleen Mallory Series, #3)
• Deadly pleasures / P. D. James — Contains: The black tower, Death of an expert witness, The skull beneath the skin
• The three little pigs buy the White House / Dan Piraro — In the fine tradition of scorched earth, take no prisoners political satire, The Three Little Pigs Buy the White House pokes fun at a certain trio of Republican politicians who are living high on the hog. Watch out: these little pigs have no problem replacing brick with straw when it comes to your nation's security.
• Best of the best from Alaska cookbook : selected recipes from Alaska's favorite cookbooks / Gwen McKee — Discover the wonder of Alaska...one delicious dish at a time...one fascinating fact at a time. How and what Alaska cooks is incredibly unique! This outstanding new cookbook is a comprehensive collection of the state's most popular recipes, surrounded by the history, customs, grandeur, and enormity that is Alaska.
• Arctic dance : the Mardy Murie story / Charles Craighead — Based on the critically acclaimed documentary film, Arctic Dance: The Ml Murie Story tells the story of one ordinary woman who accomplished extraordinary things. This remarkable biographic photo-essay features photos from Murie's personal collection, excerpts from her letters and journals, along with a concise essay detailing her life story.

7/10: New at the library this week

DVDs:

• King Kong
• Casanova
• Crash

Books:

• Shining water / Kim Andrew Buchman — poetry by a former Seldovian
• Kachemak Bay years : an Alaska homesteader's memoir / Elsa Pedersen
• Strong women, strong bones : everything you need to know to prevent, treat, and beat osteoporosis / Miriam E. Nelson — Increasingly, women know that it's so important to maintain their bones as they get older, but they're uncertain about the best strategy to follow. I decided to write this book so I could pull together all the information women - and men - need to beat this terrible disease.
• A hunt for justice : the true story of a woman undercover wildlife agent /Lucinda Delaney — For thirty years, Lucinda Delaney Schroeder held an unusual government position: she was one of the handful of women special agents with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Her job: to investigate crimes against wildlife. Unlike the majority of hunters who respect both their prey and the laws, evidence was piling up against an unscrupulous outfitter who was decimating populations of big game in Alaska's Brooks Range. In August 1992, she accepted an assignment that forever changed--and endangered--her life. She left her husband and seven-year-old daughter behind in Wisconsin and posed as a big-game hunter in Alaska in order to infiltrate an international ring of poachers out to kill the biggest and best of that state's wildlife.
• Niagara Falls, or does it? / Henry Winkler — Inspired by his own experiences with undiagnosed dyslexia, actor/director Henry Winkler presents this new series about the high-spirited and funny adventures of a fourth-grader with learning differences. When Hank Zipzer has to write an essay on what he did over the summer, he decides instead to "show" what he did.
• Summer school! : what genius thought that up? / Henry Winkler — Summer school are two words in the English language that Hank Zipzerdoesn't want to learn. But there's no getting out of this one for Hank—summer school, here he comes! Will Hank have to spend the summer bored to death inside a sweltering classroom, or will he actually learn a cool lesson or two?
• I got a "D" in salami / Henry Winkler — After getting three Ds on his report card, a panicked Hank and his friends go to his mom's deli. His report card winds up in the meat grinder, and Hank watches as his Ds are ground into a big salami--and this particular salami is being made for a very important client. How will Hank get out of this one?
• Help! Somebody get me out of fourth grade! / Henry Winkler — Fearing that he may be failing fourth grade, Hank enlists the help of his friends, and even his annoying younger sister, in an effort to prevent his parents from attending a parent-teacher conference.
• The night I flunked my field trip / Henry Winkler — Fourth-grader Hank, while on a field trip aboard "The Pilgrim Spirit," tries to learn knot tying in his own unique way, which causes unforeseen problems.
• James and the volcano / Hannah C. Watkins — Emergency preparation written for children by a Kenai Central High School student
• Mr. Whitekeys' Alaska bizarre : direct from the Whale Fat Follies Revue in Anchorage / Mr. Whitekeys — The lowfalutin' look at the biggest, wildest state in the Union, from the originator of the Fly By Night Club's zany musicomedy show.
• Learning to Quilt / Lori Yetmar Smith
• The illustrated biographical encyclopedia of artists of the American West / Peggy Samuels
• Criminal intent / William Bernhardt — When a priest with radical ideas and a parish council with traditional values lock horns over the beliefs they hold most sacred, there's bound to be controversy—and consequences. But murder crosses the line between committing a sin and committing a crime, turning a battle over faith into a battle for justice.
• Those who walk in darkness / John Ridley — "Officer Soledad "Bullet" O'Roark loathes her nickname - and the notoriety it represents. She didn't join L.A.P.D.'s elite M-Tac squad to fight the Brass or make rookie cops idolize her. She joined M-Tac to kill freaks." "Freaks, muties, metanormals - back in the day, they were called superheroes. They had amazing powers, lurid costumes, and snappy names: Nightshift, Civil Warrior, Nubian Princess, The Giggler. They seemed to be saviors and gods. But where there are heroes, there are villains.