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Peter Cameron
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You
a favorite of Ed's, Fiction and Audiovisual Services
Peter Cameron's Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You is being touted by some critics as a modern Catcher In The Rye, which in and of itself is heady praise, but sells the book short. This book is a pitch perfect literary gem, with a comic precocious hero, James Sveck who is better read than most adults twice his age (this one included). The story spans the summer before James's admission to Brown University, an event which he is loath to contemplate and he is distracting himself from by house hunting in the Midwest over the Internet. James's mother, a woman of a certain age and pedigree with a failing Manhattan art gallery has returned from her third honeymoon, cut short due to her new husbands embezzlement of $3000 from her credit card for gambling and "personal entertainment expenses". She has given James a job at the gallery answering phones, which gives him plenty of time for his voracious reading. James's complete detachment from people his own age concerns his parents enough to put him into therapy. It is in these sessions where James duels linguistically with his psychiatrist, and his visits with his maternal grandmother, that gradually get James to come to terms with his fears and rejoin society at large. What I enjoyed most is the way Cameron challenged my intellect with James's precise use of language, and yet was approachable as he pined for a gallery colleague who was way out of his league. This is a mature read about a mature young man. 2/26/08

Peter Carey
Wrong about Japan: A Father's Journey with his Son
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Two-time Booker Prize winner, Peter Carey, has written a rather quirky travelogue about a trip he took to Japan with his very shy 12-year-old son, Charley. When Charley shows an interest in manga and anime, Carey decides to take him to Japan where they meet the most famous anime director, Hayao Miyazaki. Charley seems to blossom in this atmosphere. Their guide in Japan is a young man called Takashi, whom Charley met online. It seems that Carey is not able to get away from fiction, and in a later interview, he confesses that Takashi is really a fictional character. It is fascinating to learn how manga and anime have been deeply influenced by Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and the fire bombing of Tokyo in World War II. This definitely is a different but thoroughly informative and entertaining travelogue. 1/4/07
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Alice A. Carter
The Red Rose Girls: An Uncommon Story of Art and Love
a favorite of Sharon's, Administration
Three artists began living together at the Red Rose Inn in the early 1900's and provided for each other an inspiring counter against artistic isolation. A fourth woman ran the household, allowing the three to focus on their careers. Biographer Alice Carter's thorough research creates a complete picture of the social, economic, and international setting of their interwoven lives. Even for readers who are art novices, Carter is able to convey the significance of the three artists' commissions, achievements, and awards. Resplendent with reproductions of their work, some in full-color, this biography is also graced with elegant photographs of the women and their studios. Quotes from their letters and stories from those who knew them supply rich details of their personal lives. A romantic read for multiple reasons. 7/1/04
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Anupama Chopra
King of Bollywood: Shah Rukh Khan and the Seductive World of Indian Cinema
a favorite of Rashmi's, Information Services
Often called the Tom Cruise of India, Shah Rukh Khan is a household name in India. Anupama Chopra, a renowned film critic, depicts Khan's personal and professional life. Chopra also provides explanation of the word, "Bollywood" for her readers, "The name Bollywood, which combines Bombay (now Mumbai) with Hollywood, has long been a controversial construct. New York Times language guru William Safire traces it to crime fiction writer H.R.F. Keating, who first used it in 1976." This is a fascinating story of how a middle-class Muslim boy from Delhi, India became an international superstar. Here you will also learn a history of the Indian film industry. I agree with the biographer when she says, "Shah Rukh Khan is the face of a glittering new India. For Indians and varied non-Indian lovers of popular Hindi cinema, Shah Rukh Khan is bigger than Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt combined." 11/12/07
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Sonia Choquette
Trust Your Vibes: Secret Tools for Six-Sensory Living
a favorite of Robin's, Dole Branch Library
A presentation given by the author, a vibrational healer and psychic. This is an empowering, encouraging, and comforting audio experience that teaches how to live beyond the five-sensory life. You will learn how to awaken your intuition and live in a more soul-based harmonious way through Sonia's energetic and uplifting instruction. She is a delight to listen to. 11/19/07
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Nicholas Clapp
Road to Ubar: Finding the Atlantis of the Sands
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Using photography taken from space by NASA, and ancient maps and books, Clapp sets out to find the Atlantis of the sands. According to the Koran, the city sank into the sand about two millennia ago. It was filled with gold and incredible treasures as a result of its abundant water and its frankincense trade. Allah's wrath, however, fell on the debauched and sinful population causing it to vanish. Other expeditions in the 19th century searched but failed to find the legendary and possibly mythical Ubar. With the help of his wife Kay and Latvian archeologist Juris Zarins, this modern day Indiana Jones, succeeds in finding Ubar in what today is Oman. This is a most thrilling, intellectual, and unusual travel memoir. 10/15/07
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Robert Clark
Mr. White's Confession
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Against a backdrop of 1930s B movies, dime-a-dance halls, and shantytowns of the Depression era, Clark has written a dark and brooding mystery that is really a morality tale. God and Evil struggle against each other in the St. Paul, Minnesota of 1939. Mr. White is a pathetically overweight, reclusive filing clerk whose hobby is photographing dance girls from the Aragon Ballroom in decorous, chaste poses. When one of these beauties turns up dead, Mr. White is accused. He has a memory problem and can't remember a thing. Enter glum police Lieutenant Wesley Horner who thinks Mr. White must be guilty. Can he prove it? Is Mr. White really a murderer? The lives of these two men become inextricably linked. A very atmospheric but pessimistic tale. 2/2/01

Gerald Clarke
Capote: A Biography
a favorite of Janet's, Dole Branch Library
The 2005 Oscar-winning movie, Capote, was based on this 1988 biography. Esquire touted this as a great summer read this year and proclaimed it "as big and juicy (Truman would approve!) and page turningly compelling as they come." True enough! When Truman died, his ashes were left to his partner. When he died, Truman's ashes were left to Gerald Clarke, who had come to know this complex man, perhaps as well as anyone could, during years of interviews and research for this book. Also recommended is Too Brief a Treat: the Letters of Truman Capote, edited by Gerald Clarke. 11/5/07
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Susanna Clarke
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
a favorite of Donna's, Maze Branch Library
This book has been described as Harry Potter for adults. Set in early 19th century England where magic has been reduced to theoretical treatises, Mr. Norrell's goal is to revive practical magic and seeks to become the empire's official magician. He earns recognition by raising from the dead the fiancé of a prominent politician and by aiding England in her ongoing battle against Napoleon. Suddenly a new practical magician arrives in London and Jonathan Strange becomes Mr. Norrell's apprentice. Can the secretive Norrell and the outgoing Strange work together? Can magic be useful to the Crown? Can Strange and Norrell keep their magic under control? This is Clarke's first novel in an expected series and she weaves the magicians into historic events. Perhaps most intriguing are her footnotes "documenting" Strange and Norrell's spells and providing the history of magic and its various practitioners. 5/2/05
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Hillary Rodham Clinton
Living History
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Clinton offers no revelations here but does give an insightful book about living in the White House and being in the political spotlight for 30 years. Her childhood is also of interest. She comes from a home where the father was a staunch Republican and the mother a quiet but stubborn Democrat. Clinton herself was a "Goldwater Girl." The transformation to a Democrat is interesting reading. The reader can follow her around the world and see how she interacts with world leaders. She writes with candor, humor, and passion about improving health care, raising economic and educational opportunities, and caring for children and families. Whether you love her or hate her, she is a formidably intelligent woman and probably will play an even greater role on the world stage. 8/2/04
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Harlan Coben
Tell No One
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Winner of the Shamus, Anthony, and Edgar Awards, best-selling author Coben brings us another nail-biting thriller. Dr. David Beck's wife was murdered eight years ago by a serial killer, and he has never gotten over it. When he receives a mysterious email with information that only Elizabeth could know, Beck wonders if she could still be alive. He will stop at nothing to learn the truth. The action takes off when this decent, gentle man becomes a fugitive and a prime suspect of the FBI. There is also an evil billionaire who will kill to keep the truth buried. This is a great read with non-stop action. 8/1/02

Paula Cohen
Gramercy Park
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
This book-on-tape is hailed as "Daphne du Maurier meets Edith Wharton." Throw in some Dickens and a big dash of Danielle Steel and the story is complete. Mario Alfieri, the world famous tenor with the nightingale voice, is preparing to make his Met debut. He rents a house facing Gramercy Park and finds a mysterious, frightened young woman hiding in the music room. She is Clara Adler, the penniless ward of the extremely wealthy but now deceased former owner. Alfieri recognizes that she is the love of his life. Clara has horrible secrets that could destroy Alfieri's career and drive her to madness. It is read with flair by Alyssa Bresnahan. 4/1/03
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John Connolly
The Book of Lost Things
a favorite of Mandy's, Fiction and Audiovisual Services
Just because I work in a library doesn't mean I'm above judging a book by its cover. If anything, it's exactly the opposite. And perhaps because I'm such a bibliophile I'm also immediately drawn to any novels with the word "book" in the title. So Connolly's book doubly captivated me, even before I read the intriguing premise which involves a 12-year old boy named David whose books begin speaking to him and lure him into another land filled with twisted versions of familiar fairy tale characters and a creepy villain called the Crooked Man. Young David ventures through your standard hero cycle, meeting friends and foes who often tell tales in a very Chaucerian manner. Well-developed characters and an engaging plotline make this well-known mystery author's first attempt at fantasy a definite success. 6/5/07
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Jill Ker Conway
Road from Coorain
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
An absolutely beautiful memoir about growing up as a woman in the thoroughly British Australia of the 1930s and 40s. Jill's idyllic childhood was spent on a 30,000 acre sheep ranch in New South Wales. Aside from her two brothers, she was seven before she saw another child. At eight, she was galloping all around the ranch helping her father round up sheep. Jill's descriptions of the lonely, vast landscape are stunningly beautiful. The ranch was very successful until an eight year drought brought total ruin. The father commits suicide and eleven-year-old Jill and her mother are forced to move to Sydney. Jill is now tossed into a totally new life of people, schools, and scholarly studies. She also must care for her once radiant mother who has fallen into a deep depression after the death of her husband and son. Jill manages to overcome all obstacles. She goes on to the university in Sydney to study history, continues her studies at Harvard, and then becomes the first woman president of Smith College. A memorable read. 12/3/07
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May Estelle Cook
Little Old Oak Park
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
All of you Oak Parkers out there must read Cook's witty remembrances of Oak Park. When she was 93 years old, the Nineteenth Century Woman's Club asked her to be a part of a program called the "Past, Present, and Future of Oak Park." Her talk was so charming and informative that she was asked to write it down. She did. Born in Chicago in 1865, she came to what we now call Oak Park in 1870. There are chapters on the first settlers, the Kettlestrings, the nascent fire and police departments, the schools, and the Scoville Institute. The abundant churches and how they affected family life are also touched upon. You will love Oak Park even more after you have read this delightful, little memoir. 7/2/01

Robin Cook
Seizure, audiobook narrated by George Guidall
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
If you love medical mysteries then this book is for you. Guidall, who has had a 40-year career in the theatre, does a wonderfully evocative reading, as usual. Seizure explores the dark side of genetic experimentation. Blustering Senator Ashley Butler fervently opposes any legislation supporting biotechnology. He wants to get it banned in the Senate until he himself is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, which would put a stop to his Presidential aspirations. Dr. Daniel Lowell has almost perfected a procedure that would reverse the effects of several critical diseases, including Parkinson's. Butler set his political beliefs aside and offers himself to Lowell as a guinea pig. When the new procedure is released in Butler's brain, the results are devastating. Listen to this suspenseful book while driving. Just don't drive off the road. 4/2/07
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Philip R. Craig
Vineyard Shadows
a favorite of Trish's, Information Services
Everyone loves to vacation on Martha's Vineyard, even the Boston mob. But when the mob brings its muscle to J.W. and Zee Jackson's home, the mob is the one who gets surprised. Full of local color and familiar characters, the latest of the Martha's Vineyard Mystery series pits the mob against J.W. and Zee. This is definitely an easy vacation read whether or not you are enjoying a sunny island beach on Martha's Vineyard. 9/2/01

Robert Crais
L.A. Requiem
a favorite of Irene's, Information Services
Elvis Cole and reclusive former cop Joe Pike have run a detective agency for the past twelve years in Los Angeles. When Pike's former girl friend is murdered, her distraught father asks them to find the killer. Soon they realize that they have a serial killer on their hands but how are all of the victims related? Not only must they find a killer before he kills again, but they also end up battling a hostile and uncooperative L.A. police department. Meanwhile Cole's personal life is falling apart and his inner turmoil is tearing at his soul. These gripping heroes and heroines drive the plot at a furious pace. 8/1/02

Elizabeth Crane
All This Heavenly Glory
a favorite of Lindsay's, Fiction and Audiovisual Services
Variously described as a novel, a fictional memoir, and a short story collection, this book contains 18 stories about protagonist Charlotte Anne Byers, told from several different points of view and out of chronological order. The result is a funny, poignant portrait of Charlotte through a series of failed relationships, career changes, and different cities. Crane's writing style tends toward extremely long sentences and lots of lists--if you like the first story (a seven-page-long, single-sentence personal ad), you'll love the rest of them. 2/1/07
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