Month: September 2021

Discover A New Author During Hispanic Heritage Month

September 27, 2021
Discover A New Author During Hispanic Heritage Month

Discover A New Author During Hispanic Heritage Month

September 15 marks the beginning of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which recognizes the contributions and culture of Hispanic people. It's also a great opportunity to discover a new author. At AAPLD, we're proud to highlight the Latinx authors in our collections. You'll find their work in every genre, with books for every age group.  For adult readers, we suggest one of these books, or browse our special online catalog for more selections.

 

Historical Fiction

Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende - The first book in the sweeping saga of the Del Valle family begins as Eliza, a young Chilean woman, arrives in 1840s California to search for her lover in the goldfields. Arriving as a stowaway, she finances her search with various jobs, including playing the piano in a brothel.

The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love by Oscar Hijuelos - In 1949, two young Cuban musicians make their way up from Havana to the big arena of New York, where they are workers by day, stars of dance halls by night. Hijuelos's portrait of the Castillo brothers, re-creates the sights and sounds of an era in music and an unsung moment in American life.

A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende - In the late 1930s, amid the Spanish civil war, a pregnant young widow flees the country in a treacherous journey over the mountains to France. Along the way, she meets and marries an army doctor, in order to emigrate with him to Canada. Over the course of their lives, the unlikely couple face test after test, as they search for a place to belong.

Romance

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa- A wedding planner left at the altar? Yeah, the irony isn't lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina's offered an opportunity that could change her life. There's just one hitch... she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials, her ex-fiance's whip-smart, stunning and absolutely off-limits brother.

A Lot Like Adios by Alexis Daria- Michelle Amato has built a thriving freelance business as a graphic designer. So what if her love life is nonexistent, as her marriage-minded family keeps pointing out. Gabriel Aguilar left the Bronx to escape his parents' demanding expectations, and broke Michelle's heart. Now, he's the successful co-owner of LA's hottest celebrity gym, with an investor who insists on opening a New York City location. When Michelle is hired to spearhead the new marketing campaign, everything Gabe's been running from catches up with him. As old feelings resurface, and facing mounting pressure from their families--who think they're dating--can they resolve their past mistakes?

 

Thrillers

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia- A riveting noir set in 1970s Mexico City. Maite, a lonely secretary, envies the exciting life of her beautiful neighbor, Leonora. When Leonora disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman. Elvis is an eccentric criminal who loathes violence and loves old movies and rock 'n' roll, and is searching for Leonora at the order of his boss. As Maite and Elvis come closer to discovering the truth behind Leonora's disappearance, they can no longer escape the danger that threatens to consume their lives.

 

Biography and Memoir

Trejo: My Life of Crime, Redemption and Hollywood by Danny Trejo - The full, fascinating, and inspirational true story of Danny Trejo's journey from crime, prison, addiction, and loss to unexpected fame as Hollywood's favorite bad guy with a heart of gold.

 

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado - An engrossing and wildly innovative account of a relationship gone bad, and a bold dissection of the mechanisms and cultural representations of psychological abuse. Tracing the full arc of a harrowing relationship with a charismatic but volatile woman, Machado struggles to make sense of how what happened to her shaped the person she was becoming.

Read an Ebook This Week!

September 15, 2021
Read an Ebook This Week!

Read an Ebook This Week!Saturday September 18 is Read An Ebook Day, but any day is a great day to discover the ease and convenience of digital reading. No matter where you are, or what time it is, your library's digital collections are just a few taps away!

Algonquin Area Public Library's four digital collections are easy to access from our website. Simply select the Virtual Library tab on our home page and choose Digital Collections from the drop-down menu. Each digital borrowing platform has its own rules about borrowing periods, limits, and holds. Some allow you to place items on hold, others offer instant borrowing.

To access each collection, AAPLD cardholders can simply click the link on the Digital Collections page, or download free apps for your mobile device. Once you're in, enter your AAPLD library card number, select Algonquin Area Public Library as your home library. If your card was issued by a library other than AAPLD, select the correct library from the list in order to check out materials from your home library's collection.

If you're unsure how, the Digital Collections page contains links to video tutorials. You can also stop by the Adult Services desk for in-person help or a printed brochure.

Here's a sample of what you'll find in each of our digital collections.

Libby/Overdrive

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid - In 1983, four famous siblings throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer. But over the course of twenty-four hours, the family drama that ensues will change their lives forever.

hoopla

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller - The debut novel by the author of the best-selling Circe, The Song of Achilles retells Homer's classic epic The Illiad, as a page-turning tale of adventure, gods, and heroes, war and love.

Axis 360

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth (audio) - When Fern decides to have a baby for her infertile sister Rose, it shakes the foundations of Fern's carefully structured life and routine, while bringing to light dark secrets from her family's past.

Biblioboard/Indie Author Project Select

Rock, Paper Scissors: Scenes from a Charmed Divorce by Cathia Leonard Friou - Friou's memoir of her marriage, separation, divorce and reentry into the dating world, is told through a series of vignettes that illustrate the sometimes painful, sometimes joyful moments of a family working toward healing and hope.

This month we’re celebrating the ’80s!

September 7, 2021
This month we’re celebrating the ’80s!

As part of the library’s Centennial Celebration, every month we have been celebrating a different decade. In September we are celebrating the totally tubular ’80s! Break out your leg warmers and your Aqua Net, it’s time to party like it’s 1985 by reading one of these books published in the ’80s.

The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum

Who is Jason Bourne? Is he an assassin, a terrorist, a thief? Why has he got four million dollars in a Swiss bank account? Why has someone tried to murder him?…

Jason Bourne does not know the answer to any of these questions. Suffering from amnesia, he does not even know that he is Jason Bourne. What manner of man is he? What are his secrets? Who has he killed? (from Goodreads)

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Four mothers, four daughters, four families, whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who’s telling the stories. In 1949, four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, meet weekly to play mahjong and tell stories of what they left behind in China. United in loss and new hope for their daughters’ futures, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Their daughters, who have never heard these stories, think their mothers’ advice is irrelevant to their modern American lives – until their own inner crises reveal how much they’ve unknowingly inherited of their mothers’ pasts. (from Goodreads)

Misery by Stephen King

Paul Sheldon is a bestselling novelist who has finally met his number one fan. Her name is Annie Wilkes, and she is more than a rabid reader—she is Paul’s nurse, tending his shattered body after an automobile accident. But she is also furious that the author has killed off her favorite character in his latest book. Annie becomes his captor, keeping him prisoner in her isolated house.

Annie wants Paul to write a book that brings Misery back to life—just for her. She has a lot of ways to spur him on. One is a needle. Another is an axe. And if they don’t work, she can get really nasty. (from Goodreads)

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known . . . of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect—a man divided in his soul . . . of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame . . . and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state and brother against brother.

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, this is Ken Follett’s historical masterpiece. (from Goodreads)