Month: July 2021

Hot Days, Cool Reads

July 29, 2021 Book Lists

Do you need to beat the heat and humidity? Check out one of these books today. Featuring winter snow and ice in all their chilling glory, these books are sure to cool you down this August. Click the link in the title to place a hold on an item today! Stop by the library beginning August 1st to view a display table with even more cool reads. The table is located near the adult services reference desk. We highly encourage you to check out our display books. We love it when you do! 🙂

The Ice Lion by Kathleen O’Neal Gear

This cli-fi novel from a notable archaeologist and anthropologist explores a frozen future where archaic species struggle to survive an apocalyptic Ice Age.

Teen members of a group of archaic humans, Lynx and Quiller, flee the increasing coldness and monstrous predators for a new land, where they meet a strange old man who tells them how to save the world. (from Novelist)

Black Ice by Carin Gerhardsen

January in Gotland. The days are short, the air is cold, and all the roads are covered in snow. On a deserted, icy backroad, these wintery conditions will soon bring together a group of strangers with a force devastating enough to change their lives forever when, in the midst of a brief period, a deadly accident and two separate crimes leave victims in their wake. Four years later a single phone call is all it takes to bring back the terror of that day and to set in motion a plot for revenge.

Fast Ice by Clive Cussler

After a former NUMA colleague disappears while researching the icebergs of Antarctica, Kurt Austin and his assistant Joe Zavala embark for the freezing edge of the world to investigate. Even as they confront perilous waters and frigid temperatures, they are also are up against a terrifying man-made weapon–a fast-growing ice that could usher in a new Ice Age.

Terminal Freeze by Lincoln Child

Enduring a harsh existence as day laborers, orphaned brothers Gig and Rye Dolan are drawn to a feminist activist and a vaudeville singer whose experiences reflect an unjust world on the brink of upheaval.

Ice Cold by Tess Gerritsen

Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli receives the grim news that Maura’s charred body has been found in a mountain ravine. Shocked and grieving, Jane is determined to learn what happened to her friend. The investigation plunges Jane into the twisted history of Kingdom Come, Wyoming, where a gruesome discovery lies buried beneath the snow.

The Snowman by Jo Nesbø

Harry Hole investigates the disappearance of a woman whose scarf is found on a mysteriously built snowman, a case that is complicated by subsequent abductions and a menacing letter.

 

 

 

Our Digital Collections- Your Perfect Traveling Companions

July 22, 2021 Digital Resources

Taking to the road or sky this summer? Don’t forget to stock up on e-books, e-audiobooks, digital music, video and more from AAPLD!

Digital resources are easy to use, easy to access, and won’t clutter up the car or load down your luggage. If you haven’t used our digital collections before, vacation time is the perfect opportunity to give them a try. You’ll find everything from escapist beach reads to thought-provoking non-fiction, plus materials for kids and teens. In addition to e-books, choose e-audiobooks for listening on the road or in flight, without having to keep track of CDs. We also offer collections of films, and digital music.

Our Digital Collections page has tutorials and links to your favorite app store. Download the correct app for your digital device, enter your AAPLD card number, and enjoy entertainment on-the-go.

Ebooks, eAudiobooks, and more

Libby/Overdrive– Download up to 15 items per month with your AAPLD library card. Libby offers ebooks, eaudiobooks, and magazines for adults, teens and kids. The extensive collection includes the latest fiction and non-fiction, classic literature, and graphic novels.

 

 

Hoopla– Download up to 15 items per month, with no holds, no waiting. Just click and borrow! Hoopla’s collection includes e-books, e-audiobooks, and more.

 

Axis 360– Download up to 5 items per month. Browse the Axis 360 collection for best-selling fiction, non-fiction, e-books and e-audiobooks, for adults and kids.

 

Indie Author Illinois– Discover up and coming independent authors writing adult and young adult fiction and non-fiction. There’s no waiting for a title, and books can be checked out for as long as you like. However, you must be in the state of Illinois to access this collection.

 

 

 

 

Digital Audio and Video

In addition to books, Hoopla also offers CDs, movies, and television series, including selections from AcornTV, home to many popular British and Australian series.

 

 

Kanopy showcases more than 30,000 of the world’s best films, including award-winning documentaries, rare and hard-to-find titles, film festival favorites, indie and classic films, and world cinema. Check out up to 10 items per month. The Kanopy Kids collection offers unlimited streaming of TV classics like Sesame Street and animated storytimes from award winning books.

 

Freegal offers access to about 15 million songs, including Sony Music’s catalog of legendary artists and over 40,000 music videos. In total, the collection is comprised of music from over 40,000 labels with music that originates in over 100 countries. There is no software to download, and there are no digital rights management (DRM) restrictions. You can enjoy unlimited streaming and download up to 5 songs per week.

 

Are you a fan of the hit TV show Loki? Check out these books!

July 16, 2021 Book Lists

Are you a fan of the hit Marvel TV show Loki? Are you dying to find out what happens in the next episode? Check out one of these interesting books to read while you wait.

The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

If you are enamored by Loki’s wit and humor, this book should be right up your alley. “In a world where one can literally get lost in literature, Thursday Next, a Special Operative in literary detection, tries to stop the world’s Third Most Wanted criminal from kidnapping characters, including Jane Eyre, from works of literature.” – from Novelist

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Can’t get enough of a mythical god living in and interacting with us mere American mortals? Neil Gaiman’s classic should hit the spot. “Days before his release from prison, Shadow learns that his wife has been killed in an accident. On the plane ride back home for the funeral, he meets Mr. Wednesday, who offers Shadow a job. Shadow accepts but soon discovers that Mr. Wednesday is far more dangerous than he could ever have imagined.” – from Novelist

All Our Wrong Todays by Elain Mastai

Maybe your favorite part of Loki is the alternate history and time-traveling. If so, you’ll want to read this exciting novel. “Living in an alternate world of flying cars, moon bases and plentiful food, aimless Tom Barren is blindsided by an accident of fate that leads to a time-travel mishap that lands him in our less-than-ideal 2016, where he discovers wonderful unexpected versions of his own life.” – from Novelist

The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland

Do you love the idea of the TVA from Loki and the idea of going back in time to alter major historical events? Then you’ll want to put Stephenson’s sci-fi thriller on your to-read list ASAP. “A discreet translation assignment enmeshes a linguistics expert and a military intelligence operator in the world-shattering revelation that magic was once widely practiced and can be reactivated if they travel back in time to make historical changes that are complicated by human treachery.” – from Novelist

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu

Maybe the quirky cast of characters if your favorite part of Loki. Yu’s creative novel also features a cast of memorable, offbeat characters to enjoy. “In a world transformed by time-travel technology, counselor Charles Yu searches for the father who invented time travel and vanished, a quest marked by quirky pseudo-companions.” – from Novelist

There you have it! If you simply cannot wait for the next episode of Loki or you want a similarly creative and exciting tale of time-travel mischief, consider giving one of these books a read.

July Reading Resolutions…#OWNVOICES

July 7, 2021 Reading Challenge

July’s Reading Resolutions theme is more than a trending hashtag. #OWNVOICES is a broad description for stories of marginalized people, told by authors from those same groups. It’s not only about celebrating diversity in our communities, and our reading choices,  it’s also a way to gain new perspectives and appreciation for those who have been traditionally under-represented.

Our #OWNVOICES online catalog includes fiction and non-fiction written by authors of color, LGBTQ, immigrants, and those with disabilities. The books cut across genre, and include everything from contemporary rom-coms, to hilarious memoirs, science fiction, thrillers, and more. Read on for genre-based suggestions:

If you love romance, try You Had Me At Hola by Alexis Daria. After a messy public breakup, soap opera darling Jasmine Lin Rodriguez returns to New York City to film the starring role in a bilingual romantic comedy. A casting shake-up pairs her with telenovela hunk Ashton Suárez, who is worried about his career after his last telenovela character was killed off. A disastrous first impression smothers the embers of whatever sexual heat they might have had, so Jasmine and Ashton agree to rehearse in private. Rehearsal leads to kissing, kissing leads to a behind-the-scenes romance worthy of a soap opera. Will the media spotlight on Jasmine destroy her new image and expose Ashton’s most closely guarded secret?

Horror fans won’t want to miss Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic.  After receiving a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. Noemí is an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid. Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.

A gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhood is the sinister setting for Alyssa Cole’s best-selling thriller, When No One Is Watching. Sydney Green’s  beloved neighborhood seems to change every time she blinks. FOR SALE signs are popping up overnight, and the neighbors she’s known all her life are disappearing. To hold onto her community’s past, Sydney channels her frustration into a walking tour and finds an unlikely and unwanted assistant in one of the new arrivals to the block–her neighbor Theo. But Sydney and Theo’s deep dive into history quickly becomes a dizzying descent into paranoia and fear. Their neighbors may not have moved to the suburbs after all, and the push to revitalize the community may be more deadly than advertised. When does coincidence become conspiracy? Can Sydney and Theo trust each other–or themselves–long enough to find out before they, too, disappear?

Groundbreaking science fiction author Octavia Butler’s  work has proven to be chillingly accurate, and her dystopian “Parable” books depict climate change, political extremism, domestic terrorism and more. In The Parable of the Sower, (1993) in 2025, Lauren Olamina and her family live behind the walls of their defended enclave, where Lauren’s father, a preacher, and a handful of others try to salvage what remains of a culture that has been destroyed by drugs, disease, war, and chronic water shortages. When fire destroys their compound, Lauren is forced out into a world that is fraught with danger. With a handful of other refugees, Lauren must make her way north to safety, along the way conceiving a revolutionary idea that may mean salvation for all mankind.

Comedian Jessi Klein’s memoir You’ll Grow Out of It offers-through an incisive collection of real-life stories–a relentlessly funny yet poignant take on a variety of topics she has experienced along her strange journey to womanhood and beyond. These include her “transformation from Pippi Longstocking-esque tomboy to are-you-a-lesbian-or-what tom man, ” attempting to find watchable porn, and identifying the difference between being called “ma’am” and “miss” (“Miss sounds like you weigh ninety-nine pounds”).

Want more suggestions? Stop by the display in the Adult Services department, or ask a staff member for help. And don’t forget to  count your Reading Resolutions books toward Summer Reading!