Rockin’ Reads, Part 4: More Reviews from Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on July 17, 2018July 13, 2018 by Tracy Dimond

These reviews from Adult Summer Challenge participants caught our attention:

Meaghan M. on Vox by Christina Dalcher: I had a hard time putting down this book about a future where the U.S. government is run by radical religious conservatives and women are limited to 100 words a day. It’s very Handmaid’s Tale-esque (Margaret Atwood does it better, but Ms. Dalcher certainly has promise!).

Ashley C. on How Hard Can It Be? by Allison Pearson: Almost as hilarious as I Don’t Know How She Does It and equally heartfelt. I wish it didn’t stray quite so much into mid-life crisis cliché, but certainly a funny and poignant read.

Monty P. on The Space Barons by Christian Davenport: NASA was very good at doing their thing…many years ago. Now the field has changed. It is private enterprise, not government agencies, that is driving innovation and exploration of outer space. What do Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the other billionaire entrepreneurs who are building spaceships have in common? They devoured science-fiction novels as young people and dreamed of working and living in space. Now they have the money to make that happen. Science fiction fuels the dreams, and engineering makes it happen. These guys are scientists and inventors as well as businessmen. Their business smarts are great, and they are VERY successful…but the money is there to fuel their dreams. And now their dreams are coming true. To learn about the present and future of mankind’s adventure in space, you must read this book.

Nancy P. on The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett: Based on a true story, this is an amazing look at the rare-book world, high finance, and obsession with books by people who cannot help themselves. It is laughable and perverse at the same time.

Lanedda S. on The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni: Every person in a leadership position should read this book. Most people play the blame game instead of seeking the root of the problem and solving it. The main character, Kathryn Peterson, teaches you how to find the root of the problem and fix it in an organized manner. Excellent book!

Rachel R. on Sourdough by Robin Sloan: Surprisingly cute! Not my usual genre but a fun, quick read. Loved that the bread literally sang.

Allie P. on Educated by Tara Westover: A thought-provoking memoir about the power of education but also how family and where we come from shapes who we are.

Stefanie M. on The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy: A twisty plot that keeps pages turning. An easy read and a bit stereotypical in its building of characters. Without giving too much away, the diary entries were a genius tool to string the ending throughout the story although the ending itself came crashing down a bit too quickly. But I mean any book slated to become a movie starring Kerry Washington can’t be too bad, eh?!

Join the fun! For a chance to win fabulous prizes in the Adult Summer Challenge, create a free Beanstack account and log each book you finish between June 13 and August 15.

Rockin’ Reads, Part 3: More Reviews from Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on July 6, 2018 by Tracy Dimond

Here are more great reviews from our Adult Summer Challenge participants:

Gordon B. on The List by Amy B. Siskind: Siskind was told that she needed to make a list of everything that she felt was out of the democratic norm for this administration, otherwise, she would not realize what she had lost when the time finally came to realize that her democracy was gone forever. She began recording and was amazed to see how many words and actions the Trump regime transgressed on. She was also surprised to observe how the actions and words mounted over the weeks that came. Many weeks were jammed with events that could have been scarcely expected when she began making “the list.” Carefully done so that judgment only is implied, this list is a house of horrors for those who want the Trump influence to be very light.

Melina T. on A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles: First of all, don’t be intimidated by the length/size of the book – it’s big but such a delightful read. The book takes place a couple of years after the Russian Revolution–the Count Rostov, who lives at the famous Metropol Hotel, is sentenced to life imprisonment within the hotel and declared a “former person.” How can a book so long be told just from within the confines of a six-story building? Towles does an amazing job at making the setting appear larger than life and his characters are so well developed and the hotel becomes as much a character in the novel as any of the human ones. This is a beautifully written book with so many lovely nuggets (too many to list here) and a wistfulness regarding how to comport oneself with class and graciousness. If you don’t fall in love with the Count and the many different characters that make up his world, well then….

Ellen L. on Come Sundown by Nora Roberts: Nora Roberts is a master storyteller of romantic suspense. This book takes place mostly on a family-owned ranch and resort in Montana and has superb dialogue. The plot revolves around a family member who has been missing for 25 years—it has a great surprise ending!

Nancy G. on The Kindness Cure by Tara Cousineau: Super-great, useful suggestions for ways to approach a stressed-out, fearful world with compassion and empathy. Great application of neuroscience information.

Cornelia B. on Florida by Lauren Groff: Spooky, unsettling, weird and internal, these stories probe the psyches and swampy landscapes of America’s weirdest state. This was perhaps the most anticipated book of the summer on lists all over the Internet!

Jana G. on The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang: This was a lovely book and super-quick read. I appreciated that the underlying story was one of acceptance and understanding, though felt the ending a bit contrived (a kids’ fairy tale for sure). the images were wonderful and the story heartfelt. I will likely reread the book again in the future.

James R. on The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn: Pretty good book with lots of references to Hitchcock and other old movies. I think this is one that will actually be better as a movie.

Join the fun! For a chance to win fabulous prizes in the Adult Summer Challenge, create a free Beanstack account and log each book you finish between June 13 and August 15.

Rockin’ Reads, Part Two: More Reviews from Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on July 3, 2018July 5, 2018 by Tracy Dimond

Looking for your next good read? Take a tip from one of our Adult Summer Challenge participants:

Noelani L. on The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish: Hilarious and heartfelt! Audiobook read by the author is excellent. Enjoyed this on my commute to and from work.

Leslie J. on The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian: Love his books. Can’t put them down. This one had me up late into the night trying to figure out who done it.

Laura M. on Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders: The book is written in a fascinating style of quotes from fictional characters and historical accounts of Willie Lincoln’s illness, and imagined experience in the graveyard neighborhood, during Abraham Lincoln’s presidential term. It’s emotional, touching, and imaginative. Quite funny in parts. If you liked Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, you will probably like Lincoln in the Bardo.

Robert B. on Grant by Ron Chernow: Most of us think of Ulysses Simpson Grant as a great general but a poor president. Ron Chernow’s tour-de-force biography casts Grant in a completely different mold, emphasizing his fight against the Ku Klux Klan in the post-Civil War South as well as his determined support for African American rights. Chernow also enumerates those qualities of Grant that made him the first modern general to emerge from the Civil War. This is a large book but definitely worth the time and effort it takes to make your way through it.

Holly T. on Cake Wrecks: When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong and Wreck the Halls: Cake Wrecks Gets “Festive” by Jen Yates: […]Cake Wrecks is an active blog in which people submit pictures of professionally made confections that are just freakin’ WRONG. The books are the best of the worst of these submissions. Laughable spelling and grammar, literal interpretations of instructions, and questionable icing choices are among some of the travesties you’ll find, and they’re made even more amusing by the author’s commentary. The way the world is right now, we could all do with some laughter, and the Cake Wrecks books deliver.

Lakeisha H. on Any Known Blood by Lawrence Hill : […]Walking the streets that I’m familiar with in this book was a comfort and joy. The main character finds not only his personal story but the very deep and historically valid and important story of African Americans in Baltimore. What is wonderful is Baltimore becomes a character in the book. It’s not often you get to read about Baltimore in any other capacity other than crime and violence. The glory of Uptown, the impact of the A.M.E., the beauty of Charles Village, and the people of Baltimore are showcased in this book that could be considered a historical fiction. Extremely worth reading.

Tammra F. on First Star I See Tonight by Susan Elizabeth Phillips: Cooper and Piper made for a very interesting storyline. Piper was a treat to read about. She reminded me of a little bit of myself. She seems to think out loud and it makes for a very funny and interesting read. Cooper is just wonderful and I love that he doesn’t give up on Piper and seems to understand her better than she understands herself.

Join the fun! For a chance to win fabulous prizes in the Adult Summer Challenge, create a free Beanstack account and log each book you finish between June 13 and August 15.

A Royally Mysterious Afternoon at the Roland Park Branch

Posted on July 2, 2018June 28, 2018 by Tracy Dimond

by Julie Johnson, Roland Park Branch Manager

On Saturday June 23, former Roland Park resident Eleanor Herman returned to her childhood library for an intriguing presentation on The Royal Art of Poison: Fatal Cosmetics, Deadly Medicine, Filthy Palaces and Murder Most Foul.

Herman explained that actual poisoning may have been hard to detect because royals used arsenic, lead, gold, and mercury in their cosmetics (got to keep that dewy, soft complexion, you know), did NOT use their chamber pots, decorated with lead paint, and physicians were certain that mercury, blood-letting and dead birds split in half and placed on the head of the patient would save the royal life. All those fatal practices create a conundrum for investigators.

The program got fantastic reviews. One attendee said, “This was a wonderful experience!” Another called it “a fabulous program” while a third said it was “thoroughly enjoyable.” The forty-plus attendees were treated to photo-illustrated talk with Ms. Herman in Renaissance dress.

Fans lined up afterward to buy a signed copy at The Ivy Bookshop’s table. Check out these short, fascinating videos from the book.

Join us for more Writers LIVE author programs #atthepratt. And of course, check out more titles by Eleanor Herman at the Pratt Library. Just click on the cover!

Celebrate Pride Month Through Music

Posted on June 27, 2018June 25, 2018 by Tracy Dimond

by Flory Gessner, Fine Arts and Music Librarian

Celebrate Pride Month, which occurs each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan, with us by digging into LGBTQIA+ materials in the Humanities and Fine Arts Departments. Check back all month for more recommended reading.

Click on a cover to reserve your copy today!