Entertainment Weekly Picks Top Nonfiction Books of 2014

The following nonfiction titles were among Entertainment Weekly‘s top picks for 2014.

blood will outBlood Will Out by Walter Kirn – The true story of a young novelist who meets and befriends an eccentric, privileged New Yorker when he delivers a crippled hunting dog to him from an animal shelter, and later discovers that his friend was a serial imposter and brutal double-murderer.wonder

The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore -A cultural history of Wonder Woman traces the character’s creation and enduring popularity, drawing on interviews and archival research to reveal the pivotal role of feminism in shaping her seven-decade story.

can't we talkCan’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast – A graphic memoir by a long-time New Yorker cartoonist celebrates the final years of her aging parents’ lives through four-color cartoons, family photos and documents that reflect the artist’s struggles with caregiver challenges. what if

What If? by Randall Monroe – The creator of the popular webcomic “xkcd” presents his heavily researched answers to his fans’ oddest questions, including “What if I took a swim in a spent-nuclear-fuel pool?” and “Could you build a jetpack using downward-firing machine guns?

smokeSmoke Gets In Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty – The blogger behind the popular Web series “Ask a Mortician” describes her experiences working at a crematory, including how she sometimes got ashes on her clothes and how she cared for bodies of all shapes and sizes.short

The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff Hobbs – Presents the life of Robert Peace, an African American who became a brillant biochemistry student at Yale University, but after graduation lived as drug dealer and was brutally murdered at the age of thirty.

 

Goodreads Best Book Award Winners Announced!

Every year Goodreads allows its registered members to vote on the best books of the year in a variety of genres and categories. The votes are done in three rounds, each round lasting about a week. This years voting for the final round ended on November 24th. The winners in each category are:

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Fiction: Landline by Rainbow Rowell
Mystery & Thriller: Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King
Historical Fiction: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Fantasy: The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness
Romance: Written Down in My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon
Science Fiction: The Martian by Andy Weir
Horror: Prince Lestat by Anne Rice
Humor: Yes Please by Amy Poehler
Nonfiction: The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan
Memoir & Autobiography: This Star Won’t Go Out by Esther Earl
History & Biography: The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport
Business Books:#Girlboss by Sophia Amoruso
Food & Cookbooks: Make it Ahead by Ina Garten
Graphic Novels & Comics: Serenity: Leaves on the Wind by Zack Whedon
Poetry: Lullabies by Lang Leav
Debut Goodreads Author: Red Rising by Pierce Brown
Young Adult Fiction: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Young Adult Fantasy: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare
Middle Grade & Children’s: The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan
Picturebooks: The Pigeon Needs a Bath! by Mo Willems

Cozy Mysteries for December 2014

mysteryIt’s a great time to curl up with the latest cozy mysteries.

Meow If It’s Murder (A Nick & Nora Mystery) by T.C. LoTempio

Aground on St. Thomas (A Mystery In the Islands) by Rebecca M. Hale

Inspector Specter (A Haunted Guesthouse Mystery) by E.J. Copperman

Death With All The Trimmings (A Key West Food Critic Mystery) by Lucy Burdette

Keeper of the Castle (A Haunted Home Renovation Mystery) by Juliet Blackwell

The Ghost and Mrs. Mewer (A Paws & Claws Mystery) by Krista Davis

The Chihuahua Always Sniffs Twice (A Barking Detective Mystery) by Waverly Curtis

 

 

 

 

Parenting Books for New and Experienced Families

About to become a parent, or just looking to read what all the experts and fellow parents have to say on the subject? Here are some useful collection or books to consider for reassurance, advice, and inspiration. Parenthood is not easy, no matter what ‘they’ say. Every child and every family is different, but it always helps to learn about the theories and recommendations that just might help you in the coming years. I have given three small lists here, one for parents to share, one that is particularly helpful to my fellow moms, and a list fabulous resources for fathers.

Parenting Books for All:
1. All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood by Jennifer Senior

2. Good Kids, Tough Choices: How Parents Can Help Their Children Do the Right Thing by Rushworth M. Kidder

3. You Might as Well Laugh: Surviving the Joys of Parenthood by Sandi Kahn Shelton

4. Nurture the Nature: Understanding and Supporting Your Child’s Unique Core Personality by Michael Gurian

5. Parenting Experts: Their Advice, the Research, and Getting it Right by Jane L. Rankin

6. The Business of Baby: What Doctors Don’t Tell You by Jennifer Margulis

7. Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids by Bryan Caplan

8. Babyproofing your Marriage by Stacie Cockrell, Cathy O’Neill, and Julia Stone ; illustrated by Larry Martin

Especially for Mothers:
1. Why Have Kids?: a New Mom Explores the Truth about Parenting and Happiness by Jessica Valenti

2. The Hidden Feelings of Motherhood:
Coping with Stress, Depression, and Burnout
by Kathleen A. Kendall-Tackett

3. The Girlfriends’ Guide to Toddlers by Vicki Iovine

4. I Was a Really Good Mom Before I Had Kids by Trisha Ashworth and Amy Nobile

5. Because I’m the Mother, That’s Why by Stephanie Pierson ; illustrations by Mary Lynn Blasutta

6. The 7 Stages of Motherhood by Ann Pleshette Murphy

Especially for Fathers:
1. The Book of Fathers’ Wisdom: Paternal Advice from Moses to Bob Dylan by Edward Hoffman

2. The Playskool Guide for Expectant Fathers by Brian Lipps

3. Father Knows Less, or, Can I Cook my Sister? by Wendell Jamieson

4. The Expectant Father by Armin Brott

5. Rookie Dad Tackles the Toddler by Susan Fox

6. Dad Handbook by Peter Baylies

This is of course far from a comprehensive list, and we would be more than happy to help you find a book that best fits your needs. We do have a Parent’s section in the children’s room full of helpful books as well as a variety of books in the nonfiction section. If you are look for specific information please stop by the Children’s Desk or Reference Desk and we will gladly help.

Librarians Pick Their Favorite Books of 2014

The top ten titles that public library staff most enjoyed recommending in 2014 have been announced. As part of LibraryReads first-year celebration,  library staff members across the country voted on their favorite LibraryReads’s picks from the monthly lists beginning with the first one in September, 2013.

The resulting list, in order of most votes received, is:

1. The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. A middle-aged bookseller mourning his lost wife, a feisty publisher’s rep, and a charmingly precocious abandoned child come together on a small island off the New England coast in this utterly delightful novel of love and second chances.

2. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. Don Tillman, a brilliant geneticist, thinks that having women fill out a six-page, double-sided questionnaire before a date is logical and reasonable. Rosie Jarman, an impetuous barmaid, thinks Don should loosen up and learn to live a little. Follow the unlikely pair in this laugh-out-loud, feel-good story of unexpected joys, discovery and love.

3. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. Set during World War II Europe, this novel is sobering without being sentimental. The tension builds as the alternating, parallel stories of Werner and Marie-Laure unfold, and their paths cross.

4. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. At turns funny, sweet, smart, and sad, Fangirl traces Cath’s journey to independence as she begins college, struggles to have an identity separate from her twin sister, find her voice and passion as a writer, and fall in love for the first time.

5. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Readers who love the novelist for her richly developed, dark, multi-layered characters and thoroughly researched topics will not be disappointed. Tartt pulls together many threads of a story across a long span of pages and into a complete masterpiece.

6. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. This brilliant and heartbreaking novel tells the story of a prestigious family living on a private island off the coast of Massachusetts. Full of love, lies, secrets, no shortage of family dysfunction, and a shocking twist that you won’t see coming.

7. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. An actor playing King Lear dies onstage just before a cataclysmic event changes the future of everyone on Earth. What will be valued and what will be discarded? Will art have a place in a world that has lost so much? What will make life worth living?

8. One Plus One by Jojo Moyes. A single mom, her math genius daughter, her eye-shadow-wearing stepson, a wealthy computer geek and a smelly dog all get into a car…it sounds like the start of a bad joke, but it’s actually another charming novel from Jojo Moyes.

9. Landline by Rainbow Rowell. Landline explores the delicate balance women make between work and family, considering the tradeoffs and pain. Rowell has a special gift for offering incredible insights into ordinary life. Never heavy-handed, Rowell’s writing is delivered with humor and grace.

10. Longbourn by Jo Baker. Using Pride and Prejudice’s familiar setting and characters, Baker tells a very different story of family, love and self-discovery.beautiful, uplifting novel full of mystery, hope and romance. Highly recommended for Austen fans and historical fiction readers.