What’s Trending at Cheshire Public Library

movies dvd

Winter is over and Spring has sprung.  During the long winter months, lots of people spent their time watching movies.   So what movies were the most popular this Winter?  Here are the top 15 movies that were checked out during January, February and March.  See something you like?  Check it out!

the age of adalineThe Age of AdalineA young woman, born at the turn of the 20th century, is rendered ageless after an accident. After many solitary years, she meets a man who complicates the eternal life she has settled into.

 

jurassic worldJurassic WorldA new theme park is built on the original site of Jurassic Park. Everything is going well until the park’s newest attraction–a genetically modified giant stealth killing machine–escapes containment and goes on a killing spree.

 

missionMission Impossible: Rogue NationWith the IMF disbanded, Ethan and his team join forces with a disavowed British agent, who may or may not be a member of this rogue nation, as they must face off against a new network of highly skilled special agents.

downton abbeyDownton Abbey – Season 1Downton Abbey — a sprawling, lavish Edwardian mansion nestled in the Yorkshire landscape — needs an heir. Dame Maggy Smith stars as Violet, the stubborn Dowager Countess of Grantham & matriarch of Downton. Hugh Bonneville stars as her son, the stoic, unflappable Lord Crawley.

unbrokenUnbrokenAfter a near-fatal plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini spends a harrowing 47 days in a raft with two fellow crewmen before he’s caught by the Japanese navy and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp.

 

imitationThe Imitation GameDuring World War II, mathematician Alan Turing tries to crack the enigma code with help from fellow mathematicians.

 

 

stillStill AliceA linguistics professor and her family find their bonds tested when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.

 

 

ted 2Ted 2Newlywed couple Ted and Tami-Lynn want to have a baby, but in order to qualify to be a parent, Ted will have to prove he’s a person in a court of law.

 

selmaSelmaA chronicle of Martin Luther King’s campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965.  

 

second best exoticThe Second Best Exotic Marigold HotelAs the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel has only a single remaining vacancy – posing a rooming predicament for two fresh arrivals – Sonny pursues his expansionist dream of opening a second hotel.  

 

run all nightRun All Night Mobster and hit man Jimmy Conlon has one night to figure out where his loyalties lie: with his estranged son, Mike, whose life is in danger, or his longtime best friend, mob boss Shawn Maguire, who wants Mike to pay for the death of his own son.

 

paul blartPaul Blart, Mall Cop 2After six years of keeping our malls safe, Paul Blart has earned a well-deserved vacation. He heads to Vegas with his teenage daughter before she heads off to college. But safety never takes a holiday and when duty calls, Blart answers.

 

boyhoodBoyhoodThe life of Mason, from early childhood to his arrival at college.  

 

 

tommorrowlandTomorrowlandBound by a shared destiny, a teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.

 

trainwreckTrain WreckHaving thought that monogamy was never possible, a commitment-phobic career woman may have to face her fears when she meets a good guy.  

 

 

RT Book Reviews Magazine’s Author Career Achievement Awards 2015

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Each year, the editors of RT Book Review Magazine and 50 reviewers work together to narrow down a long list of nominees to find the one author who has made a great contribution in his or her genre.   Below are the 2015 winners.  Is your favorite author a winner?

Contemporary Romance – Linda Lael Miller is a #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of more than 100 historical and contemporary novels, most of which reflect her love of the West.

Paranormal Romance – Christine Feehan is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of over 40 published novels, including five series; Leopard series, Dark series, Ghostwalker series, Drake Sisters series, & the Sisters of the Heart series.

Historical Romance – Julia Quinn is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and one of only sixteen members of Romance Writers of America’s Hall of Fame.

Erotic Romance – Maya Banks is the #1 New York Times, #1 USA Today and international bestselling author of over 50 novels.

Romantic Suspense – Carla Neggers is a New York Times bestselling author of more than 60 novels, with translations in 24 languages.

Historical Mystery – Rhys Bowen is the New York Times Bestselling author of the Royal Spyness series, Molly Murphy Mysteries, and Constable Evans. She has won the Agatha Best Novel Award and has been nominated for the Edgar Best Novel.

Mystery – Janet Evanovich is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Stephanie Plum series, the Lizzy and Diesel series, twelve romance novels, the Alexandra Barnaby novels and Troublemaker graphic novel, How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Author, as well as the Fox and O’Hare series with co-author Lee Goldberg.

Urban Fantasy – Laurell K. Hamilton is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is best known as the author of two series of stories, the New York Times-bestselling Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series and the Merry Gentry series.

Inspirational – Irene Hannon is the author of 50 romantic suspense and contemporary romance/women’s fiction novels. She is a seven-time finalist for and three-time winner of the RITA award—the “Oscar” of romance fiction—and a member of the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame.

Mainstream – NancyThayer is the author of twenty-three novels about the mysteries and romance of families and relationships: marriage and friendships, divorce and love, custody and step parenting, family secrets and private self-affirmation, the quest for independence and the normal human hunger for personal connections.

Get up to Speed on Graphic Novels

Graphic novels are often put down or considered less than traditional books. However, the artistry and creative storytelling that is included in quality graphic novels is simply amazing.

I have to say that I have always loved graphic novels, and both the quality and quantity of available works seems to be increasing. Classic works, popular fiction, and new ideas are all being made into graphic novels at a pace I simply cannot keep up with. Here are some of the best, new, graphic novels available in our adult and young adult collections bestgn1that I would recommend. Keep in mind that if you do not see the titles you are hoping for in our physical collection we have even more available digitally. You could join my husband in reading through a variety of great graphic novels available through Hoopla!

Ms. Marvel. 1, No Normal by G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona
Kamala Khan, a Pakistani-American girl from Jersey City who lives bestgn3a conservative Muslim lifestyle with her family, suddenly acquires superhuman powers and, despite the pressures of school and home, tries to use her abilities to help her community.

March. Book One and March. Book Two by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
A first-hand account of the author’s lifelong struggle for civil and bestgn5human rights spans his youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., and the birth of the Nashville Student Movement.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
Lord Blackheart, a villain with a vendetta, and his sidekick, Nimona, an impulsive young shapeshifter, must prove to the kingdom that Sir Goldenloin and the Institution of Law bestgn4Enforcement and Heroics aren’t the heroes everyone thinks they are.

Lumberjanes. Volume one, Beware the Kitten Holy written by Noelle Stevenson & Grace Ellis
Best friends Jo, April, Mal, Molly, and Ripley spend a fun summer at Lumberjane scout camp where they encounter yetis, three-eyed wolves, and giant falcons while solving a mystery that holds the fate of the world in the bestgn6balance.

The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage by Sydney Padua
Presents an alternate history in which Charles Babbage and Ada, Countess of Lovelace, build the “Difference Engine” and use it to explore the wilder realms of mathematics and fight crime for the sake of both London and science.

bestgnbottomMore graphic novels that are must reads for anyone remotely interested include: The Sandman: Overture by Neil Gaiman, J.H. Williams III, Dave Stewart, Todd Klein,  The Sculptor by Scott McCloud, Rat Queens. Volume One, Sass and Sorcery by Kurtis J. Wiebet, Roc Upchurch, Black Science. Volume 1, How to Fall Forever by Rick Remender, Matteo Scalera, Pretty Deadly. Volume One, The Shrike by Kelly Sue Deconnick, Emma Rios, The Wake by Scott Snyder, Sex Criminals by Matt Fraction, Chip Zdarsky, Becka Kinzie, Christopher Sebela, Attack on Titan. 1, The bestgn2Desperate battle Begins! by Hajime Isayama, translated and adapted by Sheldon Drzka, and Saga. Volume 1  by Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples.

Grandmothers

grandmother

Brotherly love

Brotherly love

I’m fairly new at being a grandmother and I’m enjoying every minute.  I am filled with love and joy every time I see my grandsons.

Grandmothers have a pivotal role in everyone’s lives.  Here are some books that feature grandmothers.

 

 

dont sing at the tableDon’t Sing at the Table: life lessons from my grandmothers Adriana Trigiani – A humorous book culled from the advice of the author’s two grandmothers offers answers to the seminal questions in a woman’s life, from getting married to saving money, from nurturing the soul to keeping calm in a crisis, from raising children to finding private comfort.

yes chefYes, Chef – Marcus Samulsson – The “Top Chef: Masters” winner and proprietor of Harlem’s Red Rooster journey began in his grandmother’s humble kitchen. He traces his Ethiopian birth, upbringing by an adoptive family in Sweden, and rise to a fame as a New York chef, sharing personal insights into his challenges as a black man in a deeply prejudiced industry.

burnt mountainBurnt Mountain – Anne Rivers Siddons- Thayer Wentworth marries an Irish professor and moves into her deceased grandmother’s house in Atlanta a short distance away from the summer camp she attended as a child, where she begins to question whether her husband is the man she thought she knew.

last bus toLast Bus to Wisdom – Ivan Doig – Rejected by his domineering great aunt during the summer of 1951, imaginative eleven-year-old Donal travels back to his ailing grandmother’s home accompanied by his German great uncle while experiencing haphazard adventures along the way.

probable futureThe Probable Future – Alice Hoffman – Struggling to cope with her unwanted ability to see the future, Stella must confront her legacy when her father is jailed, wrongly accused of homicide, and Stella joins forces with her grandmother and mother to uncover the truth.

my grandmother askedMy Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry – Fredrik Backman – Seven-year-old Elsa’s grandmother dies and leaves behind a series of letters, sending the girl on a journey that brings to life the world of her grandmother’s fairy tales.

last lessons of summerLast Lessons of Summer – Margaret Maron – Inheriting her family’s business, Amy Stedman reflects on her marriage to a man who loves her only for her money, her mother’s apparent suicide, her grandmother’s unsolved murder, and the possibility that she may be targeted next.

forgottenThe Forgotten Garden – Kate Morton – Abandoned on a 1913 voyage to Australia, Nell is raised by a dock master and his wife who do not tell her until she grows up that she is not their child, a situation that causes her to return to England and eventually hand down her quest for answers to her granddaughter.

mrs. sinclairMrs. Sinclair’s Suitcase – Louise Walters – A lonely bookstore clerk discovers a hidden letter that reveals her grandmother’s struggles with singlehood, a whirlwind affair during World War II, and the fateful choices that shaped decades of their family life.

 

irresistibleThe Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe – Mary Simes –  When New Yorker Ellen Branford travels to rural Maine to fulfill her dying grandmother’s last wish by delivering a long-overdue apology letter, Ellen’s near-drowning forces her to stay longer than she had planned.

 

 

 

 

Book Recommendations from Beyond

No, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke.  New Books Alerts brought a surprise to my inbox recently.

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Did you catch it? Not the book itself, although I did rush out to the shelves to see if it was there. The review. It is 2016 and a New Book Alert showed up with a review by none other than the great (and very late)  Dorothy L. Sayers, author of the beloved Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries.

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Now those who are not devotees of British crime fiction may never have heard of Miss Sayers, but to me her name was as eye-catching as a five-star review. She wrote the Lord Peter series between 1923-1937, twelve books in all. (If you are interested, author Jill Paton Walsh added four more titles to the series, bringing the Lord Peter tales to sixteen.)

JacketBy the way, the book, Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg, was on the shelf, so now I have a new story to read, recommended by an author, long gone but yet, still very much here. And that is one of the things I love about books. Old friends, both authors and characters, never completely leave us.