Tuesday, January 27, 2015

THEN AND ALWAYS


The February book for discussion is Then and Always by Dani Atkins.  Atkins novel follows Rachel, a girl with a perfect life until a single events tears her world apart.  Years later, Rachel is still struggling with the tragedy, and she is returning home for the first time for her friend's wedding.  Then, a sudden fall puts Rachel in the hospital, and she wakes up to find that nothing is how it was before.  


Already finished with Then and Always?  Try one of the titles listed below!


The Homecoming by Robyn Carr: Seth Sileski had it all - a great athlete and student as well as popular.  Then, he loses it all in a terrible accident.  The people of his hometown have never forgotten what Seth could have been, and Seth needs to come to terms with what happened.  Now, he has the chance to go home and show his family and friends that he has become a better version of himself. 


In Lavender Morning by Jude Deveraux, Jocelyn Minton inherits all of Miss Edi's possessions upon her death including an old home and a letter with clues to a mystery that began in the 1940s.  As she attempts to understand all that has been left to her, Jocelyn digs into the mystery and discovers some surprises about her family's history and a man with a mysterious past.


The Husband List by Janet Evanovich tells the story of Caroline Maxwell, a young woman who wants nothing more than to share in the adventures of her brother and his friend, Jack.  Instead, Caroline must stay home, fighting off the men that her mother hopes for her to marry.  This is an American gilded age romance - a time when new money from the United States married Old World social status.


The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger follows Henry DeTamble, a librarian who involuntarily travels through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist whose life follows a normal sequential course.  Henry and Clare's love endures across time and is a story of fate and one's belief in love.


The Lost Prince by Selden Edwards: Eleanor Burden has no choice but to settle into her place in society.  However, Eleanor possesses the belief that she knows of every major historical event to come in her lifetime before they happen.  When her script of events begin to unravel, Eleanor must find courage, discover the difference between fate and free will, and decided whether she will allow history to unfold on its own or to bend it to her will.

Overseas by Beatriz Williams follows an analyst who falls in love with a billionaire, a billionaire with a mysterious past in a romance with ties to a British World War I officer and a young American who knew vital information about a mission.


Outlander by Diana Gabaldon tells the story of Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, who has just returned from the war to be reunited with her husband.  However, she walks through a standing stone in an ancient circle and finds herself in Scotland in the year 1743. 


My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares is a story of true love.  Brashares writes about a man who spends centuries falling in love with the same girl.




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Monday, January 19, 2015

FEMALE DETECTIVES


There are many detective/crime shows on television from CSI to Criminal Minds to Castle.  Castle is a great fit for this blog entry as it is a show that centers around a female detective and an author who is allowed to work with her in order to get ideas for his books.  This got me thinking about all the book series out there with female detectives.  Give one a try today!

Heat Wave by Richard Castle is the first book in the Nikki Heat series.  This series follows an NYPD Homicide Detective and a reporter as they work together solving crimes.

A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton tells the story of the wife of a divorce lawyer that is the main suspect of of her husband's murder.  Kinsey Millhone is hired to find the truth.


One for the Money by Janet Evanovich: In the first book of the Stephanie Plum series, Stephanie begins working for her cousin's bail bonding company after losing her job.  If she can become an expert bounty hunter, then she make some money.  All she needs to do is get her man and keep herself from getting killed in the process.


Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke is the first entry in the Hannah Swensen series.  Hannah owns her own bakery and helps solve murders on the side.  All of the books in this series include recipes for the reader to try.


Naked in Death by J.D. Robb follows Lieutenant Eve Dallas as she attempts to solve the murder of three young women.  This is the first entry in the series.


The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith: This series follows Precious Remotswe as she solves mysteries such as missing husbands, abductions, and imposters in Botswana.

1st to Die by James Patterson begins the Women's Murder Club series.  This entry follows four women (a police detective, an assistant D.A., a reporter, and a medical examiner) as they pursue a killer.

Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie begins the Miss Marple series.  In this book, a man is found with a bullet through his head.  Nobody heard the shot, and there are no clues.  Even the Inspector is at a loss, so Miss Jane Marple decides to help.


Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear is the first book in the Maisie Dobbs series that follows a private investigator in the years following World War I.

Love You More by Lisa Gardner follows D.D. Warren as she searches for a missing child while solving a homicide case.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley is the first in the Flavia de Luce series.  This series follows an 11 year old girl as she sets out to solve various crimes.
 
Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters is the first Amelia Peabody book.  In this book, Amelia,a Victorian gentlewoman, travels to Cairo.  However, a murder and a homicidal mummy are waiting for her.




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Monday, January 12, 2015

COOKBOOKS

Whether your New Years Resolution is to eat healthier or to eat more at home, we have plenty of cookbook options for you!  Plus, the cold weather makes it nice to stay home and eat a nice, warm home-cooked meal!

To place a hold on one of the cookbooks listed below, you can click on the link which will take you to RockCat.  Or, you can give us a call, and we can place the hold for you! 










Dietary Restriction Cookbooks:
Cooking for Your Gluten-Free Teen by Carlyn Berghoff
Weightwatchers 50th Anniversary Cookbook
The Complete Allergy-Free Comfort Food Cookbook by Elizabeth Gordon
Chloe's Vegan Italian Kitchen by Chloe Coscarelli
The Smart Shopper Diabetes Cookbook by Robyn Webb

 General Cookbooks:
The Ultimate Panini Press Cookbook by Kathy Strahs
The Busy Mom's Cookbook by Antonia Lofaso
Weeknight Wonders by Ellie Krieger
Carla's Comfort Foods by Carla Hall
Egg by Michael Ruhlman
How to Cook Everything Fast by Mark Bittman
International Night by Mark Kurlansky
Back Home With the Neely's by Patrick Neely
You've Got It Made by Diane Phillips
Eat What You Love Everyday by Marlene Koch
Fix-It and Forget-It New Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good
The Can't Cook Book by Jessica Seinfeld
Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook by Beth Hensperger
The Big Book of Sauces by Anne Sheasby
Beating the Lunchbox Blues by J.M. Hirsch
The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman
Food Network Kitchens Cookbook


Dessert Cookbooks:
The Great American Chocolate Chip Cookie Book by Carolyn Wyman
One Bowl Baking by Yvonne Ruperti
Celebrating Cupcakes and Muffins by Michal Moses
The Flying Brownie by Shirley Fan
Complete Cake Mix Magic by Jill Snider

Don't see what you are looking for?  You can perform your own search in RockCat, or you can stop by the library and browse the cookbooks section!

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Monday, January 5, 2015

THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES

This month our Book to Movie Club is reading The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.  This is the story of Lily Owens, a girl whose life has been shaped by the faded memory of the day her mother was killed.  When Rosaleen, Lily's stand-in mother, insults three vicious men in town, Lily decides they should both escape.  Once they arrive in Tiburon, South Carolin, Lily and Rosaleen are taken in by an eccentric trio of sisters who introduce Lily to the world of beekeeping, love, and friendship. 

Novels by Sue Monk Kidd:
When the Heart Waits
Firstlight
The Dance of the Dissident Daughter
Traveling With Pomegranates
The Mermaid Chair
The Secret Life of Bees
The Invention of Wings

Looking for something similar to The Secret Life of Bees?  Try one of the works listed below.

The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg
We Are All Welcome Here by Elizabeth Berg

The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells



Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman



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