Category: Reviews

Eight Great Reviews from 2017 Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on by Tracy Dimond

Our 2017 Adult Summer Challenge participants have discovered some fantastic summer reads. Here are some:

Latanya C. (Central Library) on Fun Home : A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel: This was the first time I ever read a graphic novel.  It was really fun and interesting.  The story was amazing.  To live with someone all your life and not know that they are living a secret life is mind-blowing.  I saw a lot of me in the author.  Even though the story was a comedy, you could feel her pain.  I recommend this book to everyone.

Catherine H. (Govans Branch) on Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman: A great read with a fascinating lead character, this story explores what happens when a woman accustomed to a life of isolation begins to make meaningful connections with others. Both funny and heartbreaking at times, Honeyman manages to strike a balance that keeps Eleanor from being too quirky or too sad.  By the end, you’ll be cheering for Eleanor and reveling in her transformation.

Mark C. (Govans Branch) on Born a Crime by Trevor Noah: An incredible memoir of the Daily Show host growing up in Apartheid and post-Apartheid South Africa. What a life! Easy to read and very engaging, filled with a mix of humor, poignancy, critique of Apartheid, history, and celebration of his mother.

Jenna H. (Hampden Branch) on A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman: A good read to help you think deeply about people and how to make a positive change in the lives of others.

Michael D. (Light Street Branch) on A World Undone: The Story of the Great War, 1914-1918 by G. J. Meyer: Consider this book as a beautifully researched update of Tuchman’s Guns of August. And then the history goes on for many readable pages, emphasizing European events on the battlefields of the Great Powers as well as some lesser events on the ground, giving general coverage to events at sea and in the colonies of the warring power through the end of 1917.  The author clearly benefited from the five decades of more released information since Tuchman. He will cover the impact of America’s entry into the war in the next volume…which I look forward to.

Nicole M. (Orleans Street Branch) on And Then There Was Me by Sadeqa Johnson: Great book! All women can relate with family, children, friendship, marriage, and infidelities.

Holly T. (Staff) on Dying To Be Me by Anita Moorjani: Anita Moorjani’s Near-Death Experience and complete recovery from stage 4 cancer is amazing and wondrous! It’s also hard to believe. But it’s a beautiful story. “I want to believe” as Fox Mulder’s UFO poster says.

Yvonne M. (Walbrook Branch) on The Shack by William P. Young: What a great read. The Shack makes you contemplate everything you’ve been taught about religion.

For a chance to win fabulous prizes, submit an entry to the Adult Summer Challenge here.

A Tribute to Prodigy

Posted on by Tracy Dimond

by Will Johnson, “The Uncommon Librarian,” Northwood Branch Manager

Hip Hop has lost another legend. Albert Johnson, also known as “Prodigy,” succumbed to his battle with Sickle cell disease at the age of 42. One half of the Mobb Deep duo, Prodigy was known for his poignant rhymes, storytelling, and bringing the struggle of growing up in Queens, New York to life.  Baltimore isn’t Queens, but Mobb Deep’s music spoke about the grittiness of growing up in Queensbridge Housing Projects, the biggest housing project in North America. His music also spoke to the struggle a lot of young black men deal with across the country.

Prodigy began his rapping career at the age of sixteen. His first album was called Juvenile Hell.  The album was not a commercial success however; it prepped Mobb Deep for their critically acclaimed second album The Infamous. The album produced four singles that reached billboard status; “Shook Ones Pt. II“, “Survival of the Fittest“, “Temperature’s Rising“, “Give Up the Goods (Just Step)“.  Rolling Stone listed “Shook Ones Pt. II” on their list of 50 Greatest Hip Hop Songs Of All Times.

Over the year’s Prodigy released five albums as a soloist and seven albums as a member of Mobb Deep. He also authored four books, including: My Infamous Life: The Autobiography of Mobb Deep’s Prodigy, H.N.I.C: An Infamous Novella and Commissary Kitchen: My Infamous Prison Cookbook.

Click on the images to link to materials in the library catalog.

You can also listen to a podcast of his 2011 Writers LIVE program.

R.I.Paradise,  Prodigy.

Seven Selections: Reviews from the 2017 Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on by Tracy Dimond

Check out these reading recommendations from participants in the Adult Summer Challenge:

Bobbi O. (Central Library) on Today Will Be Different by Maria Semple: Mothers in particular will relate to this book—or any woman who has experienced loss or just tries her best to look, feel, and be her best self. Witty, funny, poignant.

Melina T. (Govans Branch) on Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi: This is Ms. Gyasi’s first novel and it has so much to offer. The story follows two half sisters from Ghana and eight generations of each sister, one who remains in Africa and the other who is sold into slavery. I really like how Ms. Gyasi structures the book, with stories from each sister and then each successive generation. The sections dealing with West Africa are so lovely, lyrical, and painful. The second half of the book, in America, does not have as developed characters or insights, but still such an awesome first book and I know Yaa Gyasi will be an important voice in the future!

Robert B. (Light Street Branch) on Scars of Independence: America’s Violent Birth by Holger Hoock: So, here we are with another book discussing those familiar times and resonant with the names of America’s founders — Franklin, Washington, Hamilton, et al. You might wonder what could possibly be said that hasn’t been said before. This is where Hoock’s Scars of Independence distinguishes itself. Most of us believe that the American Revolution was a reasonably moral and ethical one with no resemblance whatsoever to some of the truly bloody upheavals that followed thereafter, such as the French Revolution. Hoock’s exhaustive research proves that our revolution is replete with examples of violence and cruelty, on the part of both Patriots and Loyalists, Americans and British. If you enjoy reading history, you won’t want to miss this one!

 

Jeannette T. (Pennsylvania Avenue Branch) on Bahama Love by Khara Campbell: Breathtaking! Full of fire and desire. […]It was good to the very end and kept you on the edge. It had a beautiful ending. Read the book!!! You won’t be disappointed.

Yvette J. (Reisterstown Road Branch) on All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes by Maya Angelou: A biography woven together with rich history, humor, colorful imagery and emotion.

Rob G. (Southeast Anchor Library) on Night Film by Marisha Pessl: So exciting I finished it in one day!

Lisa G. (Staff) on Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders: Abraham Lincoln, Buddhism, and ghosts: what more could you want from a novel?  I loved this!

For a chance to win fabulous prizes, submit an entry to the Adult Summer Challenge here.

 

Six Picks: More Reviews from the 2017 Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on by Tracy Dimond

Looking for reading suggestions? Here’s another round of wonderful reviews from participants in the Adult Summer Challenge:

Nicole J. (Edmondson Avenue Branch) on Hidden Blessings by Kim Cash Tate: This book was excellent. It showed her journey through breast cancer and also told a story of true love.

Cecelia A. (Forest Park Branch) on Black Man, White House: An Oral History of the Obama Years by D. L. Hughley with Michael Malice: I loved this book.  It provided an “inside” (tongue-in-cheek) view of the major players and their “reactions” (also tongue-in-cheek) to some of the more momentous events in the White House.  Not only did I laugh (and who couldn’t use a good laugh now), but I learned a few things about politics/politicians and was reminded of events that I had forgotten.  If you’re a news junkie, like me, you will enjoy this book and if you’re not you may be when you finish it.

Whitney J. (Hamilton Branch) on Conclave by Robert Harris: While I’m not a Catholic, I’ve often been intrigued by the process of selecting a new pope. There are so many books and movies about this topic. Conclave deals with it beautifully. Truly engrossing.

Krista L. (Light Street Branch) on Bad Houses by Sara Ryan: It’s an amazing graphic novel about letting go…. I related so much of this to my life and the things that I’m dealing with now.

Shana B. (Roland Park Branch) on The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon: Second book in a series of seven and very good! The master plot is starting to shape up and the characters are so interesting!

Anthony B. (Waverly Branch) on Americanah by Chimamandah Ngozi Adichie: A reflective book about the immigrant experience: how experiencing two cultures at a young age can lead you to view the world in a more critical perspective. You begin to understand that no culture is perfect and that socialization can, with time, claim all people, including yourself, as a victim. It is a coming of age, romance, critical, sociological, political, and historical reading. A beautiful and must-read novel that exposes the power of fiction to create empathy across all boundaries and to build bridges over walls.

For a chance to win fabulous prizes, submit an entry to the Adult Summer Challenge here.

Five Favorites: Reviews from the 2017 Adult Summer Challenge Participants

Posted on by Tracy Dimond

We’ve received many great reviews from participants in the Adult Summer Challenge, “Build a Better World.” Here are some of our favorites:

Helen B. (Central Library) on Cruel Mercy by David Mark: A promising Irish boxer and his trainer, a legend in the Irish Romany community, meet with shocking violence in New York City, leaving one of them dead and the other comatose. Married to a Romany woman and familiar with the victims, Detective Sergeant Aector McAvoy is sent from Yorkshire to assist with the investigation. He also has a personal mission: to find his brother-in-law, another boxer who vanished at the same time. McAvoy soon stumbles upon troubling links to a power struggle among organized crime families, money laundering, and a revered priest. But is he a player or a pawn? A gripping addition to the D.S. McAvoy series, Cruel Mercy examines how loyalty, faith, and love can be tested by the temptations of contemporary life.

Mycala W. (Govans Branch) on Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans: Not only is this book helpful in leading us to look at our life situations in completely new and different ways, it is also very funny. Most of the humor is in the first half of the book where they say things that cause light bulb moments, such as, why are we so hard on ourselves if we don’t know what we want to do with the rest of our lives in our teens? Would we want a 17-year-old telling us what to do with our lives? Even if it WAS us at 17? Good point! Then it goes on to the exercises. Have a notebook and pen at the ready. There are some really fun exercises in here to think creatively about work, hobbies, and how we want to spend our time. Excellent book!

Katie M. (Hamilton Branch) on Delicate Monsters by Stephanie Kuehn: Yowza! What a surprising and edgy YA novel. Two antagonists and no protagonists make for an interesting character development process.  Simultaneously fascinating and repulsive. Great read!!

Nina W. (Hampden Branch) on Night School by Lee Child: We read all the Jack Reacher books on our road trips.  This one kept us entertained on a weekend jaunt to Richmond.  We encountered traffic slowdowns both ways so were glad to have this book to keep up from going nuts.

Himani S. (Light Street Branch) on Swing Time by Zadie Smith: You will read and see yourself, your mother, your best friend in these pages.  Just a wonderful commentary on the strengths and flaws of character that pull us through or that we survive[…]. A rich depiction of life with poverty, glamour, urban and remotely rural, and how the interplay of this has sculpted the main character.

For a chance to win fabulous prizes, submit an entry to the Adult Summer Challenge here.