Cheshire Library

Amazon Names Their Best Books of 2013 So Far

/ Linda / Leave a comment

With 2013 half over,  Amazon has chosen their top 10 books of the year so far (Jan-Jun). Their picks and brief summaries:

  1.  Life After Life by Kate Atkinson– What if you could be born again and again?  This brilliant, multi-layered novel answers that question as Atkinson’s protagonist moves through multiple lives, each one an iteration on the last, flirting with the balance between choice and fate.
  2. The Son by Phillipp Meyer – A multigenerational Western spanning the 1800s Comanche raids in Texas to the 20th century oil boom, The Son is a towering achievement.
  3. Frozen In Time by Mitchell Zuckoff – Two adventures in one …recounting the 1942 crash (and subsequent struggle to survive) of a U.S. cargo plane crew in Greenland, and describing the author’s own participation in a modern-day mission to uncover the mystery behind their disappearance.
  4. The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer – The characters in this novel pulse with life as Wolitzer follows a group of teenagers who meet at a summer camp for artsy teens in 1974 and work to maintain their friendship through the competitions and realities of growing up.
  5. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini – Following The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, Hosseini has written another masterwork, one that moves through war, separation, birth, death, deceit, and love – illustrating how people’s actions, even the seemingly selfless ones, are shrouded in ambiguity.
  6. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell – This Young Adult novel about two kids who fall in love on a bus is sweet without being saccharine.  And it’s a story adults can love, too.
  7. Gulp by Mary Roach – Roach is about as entertaining a science writer as you’ll find, and this book about how we ingest food will make you think, laugh, and wince as she covers all things alimentary.
  8. After Visiting Friends by Michael Hainey – Unfolding like a novel, this nonfiction gem starts with journalist Hainey uncovering inconsistencies within his own journalist father’s obituary – and while the truth behind the death will eventually be uncovered, greater truths await for Hainey, ones that will change the way he views the past and the present.
  9. Tenth of December by George Saunders – Saunders’ first collection of short stories in six years introduces his ironic, absurd, profound, and funny style to an army of new readers.
  10. The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker – This enchanting debut, set mostly in turn-of-the-century Manhattan, is both a well-researched historical novel and a spectacular work of fantasy.

To see Amazon’s list of top books in other categories, click here.

What’s the best book you’ve read so far this year?

Picturebooks on the Small Screen

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

If there is a child in your house that has a favorite book that you refuse to keep reading umpteen times a day, or are trying to pry small eyes away from the television and towards an actual book, I just might have a solution! I have discovered a series of DVD’s that my two children and I can enjoy without feeling guilty about watching.

Scholastic has a series of DVD’s that take favorite picturebooks, and some chapter books,  released in a form everyone can enjoy. The picturebook DVD’s typically include the words at the bottom of the screen with a read along feature and the original artwork. This just might get a young television fan interested in picking up a book that they have seen, or checking out more by an author on the library shelves. Many of the stories are read by the authors and some contain interviews with those authors that the adults will appreciate even more than the kids do. Here are some of my favorite examples of great children’s books that use the actual text of the book in order to excite children about reading.[Cover]

1. Chrysanthemum is a DVD with Chrysanthemum, Owen, and Weekend with Wendell by Kevin Henkes. It also has Picnic by Emily Arnold McCully, Monty by James Stevenson, and Wizard by Jack Kent. The DVD is recommended for ages 2 through 7 and has a read along option available. Narrators on this DVD include Meryl Streep, Sarah Jessica Parker, Mary Beth Hurt, and Marlene Danielle.

2. Click, Clack, Moo, Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Betsy Lewin and narrated by Randy Travis is the title story for my second pick in this section. Other stories on the DVD include The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash written by Trinka Hakes Noble and illustrated by Steven Kellogg with the voices of Brianna Kittrell and Heidi Stalling; The Pigs’ Wedding written and illustrated by Helme Heine; The Cow Who Fell in the Canal written by Phyllis Krasilovsky, illustrated by Peter Spier, and narrated by Rex Robbins; and Charlie Needs a Cloak written and illustrated by Tomie de Paola. This disc is recommended for ages 2 through 8 and includes English and Spanish language track (for title story only) with optional “read along” track. [Cover]

3. How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? by Jane Yolen is the title track on two different DVD’s. One also has In the Small, Small Pond by Denise Fleming, Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd MoMoss, All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka, The Napping House, Joey Runs Away, and Picnic. The stories are narrated by Jane Yolen, and Laura Dern;  the illustrators are Mark Teague and Marjorie Priceman. The other DVD with How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? as the title track  is a selection of several of Yolen’s How Does a Dinosaur series and other dinosaur related books.

4. Swimmy is the title story in this collection of stories from Leo Lionni. The other stories included are Frederick, Fish is Fish, It’s Mine!, Cornelius, Each Peach, Pear, Plum, Hush Little Baby, and Let’s Give Kitty a Bath. These eight classic Leo Lionni animated stories are recommended for ages 3 through 9.

5. There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly is a classic tale. On this DVD is the version adapted by [Cover]Simms Taback which is narrated and sung by Cyndi Lauper. The disc also includes Antarctic Antics, written by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Jose Aruego & Ariane Dewey; Musical Max, written by Robert Kraus and illustrated by Jose Aurego & Ariane Dewey (narrated by Mary Beth Hurt); Keeping House written by Margaret Mahy and illustrated by Wendy Smith; and Waiting for Wings, written by Lois Ehlert. This disc is recommended for ages 3 through 8 and has a Spanish version of Musical Max.

6. Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems starts off a DVD that also has Shrinking Violet written by Cari Best and illustrated by Giselle Potter; Possum Magic written by Mem Fox and illustrated by Julie Vivas; Planting a Rainbow written and illustrated by Lois Ehlert; Brave Irene by William Steig;  and Will I have a Friend? written by Miriam Cohen and illustrated by Lillian Hoban. There is a read along option on the disc as well as an interview with Mo Willems. The disc is recommended for ages 2 through 8.

For more great picturebooks and short chapter books turned into DVDs,  you can search for the Scholastic Storybook Treasures series. But do not forget to take a look at the original versions of these great stories as well!

Crazy Weather? There’s a Book for That!

/ Linda / Leave a comment
Derecho

Derecho

It seems the weather has just been so crazy this year!  Recently, a new weather term (to non-weather experts, anyway) was being tossed around – derecho.   This refers to a widespread, long-lived, straight-line windstorm that is associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms.  The damage a derecho causes is similar to a tornado.  The swath of wind damage has to be 240 miles long and have wind speeds of 58 miles per hour or higher to qualify as a derecho.  Conditions were very favorable in the middle of June for a derecho to occur in the Midwest.  The potential existed for 70 million people being affected.   In June of 2012, a derecho caused 13 deaths and caused $1 billion in damages.

Windsor, CT

Windsor, CT

On July 1, 2013, Connecticut experienced a rare occurance – three tornadoes.  An EF0 (wind speeds from 65-85 mph) began in Greenwich and
ended in Stamford.  Another EF0 touched down in Enfield and an EF1 tornado (wind speeds from 86-110 mph) touched down in East Windsor, Windsor and Windsor Locks causing considerable damage.  On July 19th, an EF1 tornado started in Andover, then Coventry and ended in Mansfield.

The Cheshire Library has many books about weather.  They can be found in the Adult non-fiction section under the Dewey number 551.6 and in the Childrens’ section in the same Dewey section.

A few titles that might be of interest are:

  1. Weather by Simon Seymour
  2. Weather by Brian Cosgrove
  3. Wild, Wet and Windy by Claire Llewellyn
  4. The Weather Book by Jack Williams
  5. Complete Idiot’s Guide to Weather by Mel Goldstein
  6. Eric Sloane’s Weather Book by Eric Sloane
  7. The Winds of Change by Eugene Linden
  8. The Weather of the Future by Heidi Cullen
  9. Freaks of the Storm by Randall Cerveny

                 

O Say Can You See: Patriotic Books

/ Jenn / Leave a comment

Patriotism comes in many forms. Some people express it by joining the military and defending their country, both home and abroad. Some rally citizens through songs, speeches, writing, and art. And others instill patriotic values in their families, workplaces, places of worship, and in their own lives.

However you take pride in your country, here are a few books to celebrate your inner patriot.

  1. A Patriot’s Handbook: Songs, Poems, Stories, and Speeches

    A Patriot’s Handbook by Caroline Kennedy

    Celebrating the Land We Love by Caroline Kennedy. This collection of more than 200 selections has themes like “The Flag”, “Freedom of Speech”, and “The Individual”. The Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are rewritten in full, along with presidential speeches, farewell addresses, and decisions from landmark Supreme court cases. Poems and selections from fiction, including authors like Alice Walker, Stephen Crane, and F. Scott Fitzgerald are included, along with popular patriotic songs. Kennedy also includes dissenting voices such as Thoreau, Oscar Wilde, and Frederick Douglass, reminding us that while we are the land of the free and the home of the brave, we still have much to do to make it so.

  2. Mr. and Mrs. Madison’s War: America’s First Couple and the

    Mr. and Mrs. Madison’s War by Hugh Howard

    Second War of Independence by Hugh Howard. Perhaps the most forgotten war, the War of 1812 celebrated it’s 200th anniversary last year. This conflict was truly our second war of independence, as Great Britain was looking to assert her dominance over us on both land and water. Author Hugh Howard presents this important war as James and Dolley experienced it. More came out of this war than Dolley running from the White House with the portrait of George Washington.

  3. Revolutionary Summer: The Birth of American

    Revolutionary Summer by Joseph Ellis

    Independence by Joseph Ellis. Joseph Ellis is the master of taking a large subject like the American Revolution and paring it down to the nitty gritty. His latest in his canon of American Revolution titles is Revolutionary Summer, where he examines the summer of 1776 and how it changed not only our history, but history across the world. Influential figures from both sides, including John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, General William Howe, and Admiral Lord Richard, help tell the story of one of the most important summers in human history.

  4. Patriot’s History of the United State: From Columbus’s Great

    A Patriot’s History of the United States by Larry Schweikart

    Discovery to the War on Terror  by Larry Schweikart. Schweikart believes that American history has been distorted by intellectuals searching for instances of racism, sexism, and bigotry in our history and seeks to right those wrongs by telling the history as it happened. He argues that more emphasis is placed on Harriet Tubman than George Washington,  and more on the Japanese internment during WWII than D-Day or Iwo Jima. I can’t say I entirely agree with this statement, as American history is full of those problems and “oversights”, but for the right person who appreciates reading about “old dead white men” this book is for you.

  5. Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. MacPherson. I would be

    Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. MacPherson

    completely remiss if I didn’t include something from the Civil War. During this 150th anniversary of the American Civil War, it is important to remember what led us to our nation’s greatest conflict, what happened, and what we can learn. MacPherson, a well-known Civil War scholar, makes the topic readable, approachable, and entertaining for readers of all ages, reading abilities, and knowledge. The most important lesson we today can learn from that terrible war is that divided horrific things happen, but together we can accomplish anything.

From the Children’s Room: Dig Into Reading This Summer!

/ cheshirelib / Leave a comment

The Cheshire Library presents its 2013 Summer Reading program “Dig Into Reading”.

Dig into your best summer yet with our annual Summer Reading Program! Register online for our Summer Reading Club. Read books, log what you’ve read, write reviews & get prizes! Program begins June 24th & continues through August 19th. Children and parents can come to the library after registering and receive the Summer Reading packet, which includes a bookmark, a packet of sunflower seeds, and promotional items from Quassy Park, Applebees, TD North Bank, Connecticut Higher Education Trust, the Sound Tigers, Connecticut Sun, and Pottery Piazza.

tshirt

2013 Summer Reading T-Shirt design by Laurie Lee

Children in preschool through grade two will read 6 books to receive a t-shirt and 12 books to finish the Reading Club. Children in grades three and up need to read 3 books to receive a t-shirt and 6 books to finish. T- shirts will be available while supplies last.

Children who finish the club will receive a ticket voucher for the New Britain Rock Cats and the Pawtucket Red Sox. Instructions for receiving the tickets and information about game dates will be forthcoming. Children will also receive a reading certificate and a ticket for a gift certificates drawing to be held at the end of the reading program.
The Summer Reading Program features wonderful programs all summer long, sponsored through the generous support of the Friends of the Library.
Register for programs on our website.

How many books will YOU read this summer?