Month: June 2023

Staff Recs for Summer Reading

June 29, 2023 Uncategorized

What happens when you ask book lovers for recommendations? They deliver! The Adult Services Department and Eastgate Branch staff members share some of their recent favorites reads, covering a variety of genres, fiction and non-fiction. No matter what you're in the mood for, you're sure to find ideas for your Summer Reading!

Fiction

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

"This author also wrote A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway. I am so glad I finally read his first book, with characters and writing I instantly fell in love with. The setting is New York City in the late 1930’s, it will remind you of Fitzgerald/Gatsby in some ways. A great sentimental story to savor." Recommended by Kelly Kuningas, Adult Services Librarian, Main Library.

Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

"Chloe Brown is a chronically ill, socially awkward control freak. Redford is a gentle, tattooed, emotionally intelligent artist who is recovering from an abusive relationship. Their love story is moving, hilarious, and steamy--and one of the best romances I've ever read. The other two books in the trilogy are just as good." Recommended by Rachel Ruetz, Adult Services Librarian, Main Library

The Daydreams by Laura Hankin

"A fun behind the scenes Hollywood page-turner about the stars of a popular teen TV series who are reunited thirteen years after their show ended in a spectacular melt-down during the live season finale. With flawed but likable characters, plenty of backstage drama, betrayal and redemption, The Daydreams is the perfect summer vacation read." Recommended by Elizabeth Harmon, Adult Services Library Associate, Main Library

Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

"Great historical fiction set in the 1950s and 1960s exploring what it was like for women in science, TV, and domestic situations. The dog named 3:60 was really funny, and I loved that his perspective was included throughout the book. His perspective gave some levity to an otherwise somewhat heavy book." Recommended by Jennifer Griffin, Librarian, Eastgate Branch

Non-Fiction

Atomic Habits by James Clear

A very inspirational read for folks trying to break habits or create new ones. The realization that tiny changes, not major ones, create the foundation for lasting change, through a system of habit stacking and strategies for improvement. I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by the author, and I think that added to its appeal. Recommended by Kelly Kuningas, Adult Services Librarian, Main Library

A Mystery of Mysteries: The Death and Life of Edgar Allen Poe by Mark Dawidziak

This book dives into the mystery of how Edgar Allen Poe died. The chapters go back and forth between his early life and the days up until he died. If you don't know anything about him, this is the book for you! Recommended by Karrie Stewart, Library Associate, Eastgate Branch

Thrills, Chills, and Pride

June 8, 2023 Reading Challenge, Reading Suggestions

It's Pride Month, a great time to discover new authors and voices. For thriller, mystery and horror fans, there are plenty of gripping reads featuring Queer characters, sure to keep you turning pages on a long summer night. Click on the titles to place a hold, and add them to your Oceans of Possibility Summer Reading list.

Not signed up for Summer Reading? It's easy-- just register at the library or online, and read three books to win great local coupons and a Summer Reading t-shirt. AAPLD cardholders can keep reading, to earn up to 15 entries for our Grand Prize drawings at the end of the summer.

Have fun, stay cool, and keep on reading!

Mystery

The Last Drop of Hemlock by Katharine Schellman - New York, 1924. Vivian Kelly has gotten a job at the Nightingale, a speakeasy known to the young and fun as a place where the rules of society can be tossed aside. Of course, things were even better before Uncle Pearlie, the doorman for the Nightingale, was poisoned. Pearlie's death is ruled a suicide, but there have been rumors of a mysterious letter writer, blackmailing Vivian's poorest neighbors for their most valuable possessions, threatening poison if they don't comply. With the Nightingale's dangerously lovely owner worried for her employees' safety, Vivian finds herself digging through a dead man's past in hopes of stopping a killer.

Lavender House by Lev A.C. Rosen - In 1952 the recipes of recently deceased matriarch Irene Lamontaine, head of the famous Lamontaine soap empire, for her signature scents are a well guarded secret―but it's not the only one. The Lamontaine estate offers a unique freedom, where none of the residents or staff hide who they are. But to keep their secret, they've needed to keep others out. And now they're worried they're keeping a murderer in.

Irene’s widow hires Evander Mills to uncover the truth behind her mysterious death. Recently fired from the San Francisco police after being caught in a raid on a gay bar, Andy is happy to accept. Andy had never imagined a world like Lavender House. He's seduced by the safety and freedom found behind its gates, where a Queer family lives honestly and openly. But that honesty doesn't extend to everything, and he quickly finds himself a pawn in a family game of old money, subterfuge, and jealousy―and Irene’s death is only the beginning.

Thriller

The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis - Bret Easton Ellis's masterful new novel is a story about the end of innocence, and the perilous passage from adolescence into adulthood, set in a vibrantly fictionalized Los Angeles in 1981 as a serial killer begins targeting teenagers throughout the city. Set against the intensely vivid and nostalgic backdrop of pre-Less Than Zero LA, The Shards is a mesmerizing fusing of fact and fiction, the real and the imagined, that brilliantly explores the emotional fabric of Bret's life at 17-sex and jealousy, obsession and murderous rage. Gripping, sly, suspenseful, deeply haunting and often darkly funny, The Shards is Ellis at his inimitable best.

The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz Kelly’s new life in Philadelphia has turned into a nightmare: She’s friendless and jobless, and the man she gave up everything for has just called off their wedding. The only bright spot is her newly rekindled friendship with her childhood friend Sabrina. When Sabrina and her handsome husband offer Kelly the spare room of their remote Virginia mansion, she jumps at the chance. There, Kelly finds herself falling for both her enchanting hosts. At first, Kelly loves being part of this risqué new world. But when Kelly discovers that the last woman Sabrina and Nathan invited into their marriage is missing, she starts to wonder if they could be dangerous . . . and if she might be next.

 

Horror/Fantasy

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw - From USA Today bestselling author Cassandra Khaw comes The Salt Grows Heavy, a razor-sharp and bewitching fairytale of discovering the darkness in the world, and the darkness within oneself. You know how the fairytale goes: a mermaid comes to shore and weds the prince. But what the fables forget is that mermaids have teeth. And now, her daughters have devoured the kingdom and burned it to ashes. On the run, the mermaid is joined by a mysterious plague doctor with a darkness of their own. Deep in the eerie, snow-crusted forest, the pair stumble upon a village of ageless children who thirst for blood, and the three 'saints' who control them. The mermaid and her doctor must embrace the cruellest parts of their true nature if they hope to survive.

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey - “Come home.” Vera’s mother called and Vera obeyed. In spite of their long estrangement, in spite of the memories -- she's come back to the home of a serial killer. Back to face the love she had for her father and the bodies he buried there. Coming home is hard enough for Vera, and to make things worse, she and her mother aren’t alone. A parasitic artist has moved into the guest house out back, and is slowly stripping Vera’s childhood for spare parts. He insists that he isn’t the one leaving notes around the house in her father’s handwriting… but who else could it possibly be?
There are secrets yet undiscovered in the foundations of the notorious Crowder House. Vera must face them, and find out for herself just how deep the rot goes.

Discover June’s Library Reads

June 2, 2023 Library Reads, Reading Suggestions

Way to go! You're all signed up for Oceans of Possibility, AAPLD's Summer Reading program for 2023. Now, what to read?

As you've probably guessed, your friendly library staff has plenty of suggestions, starting with the June Library Reads picks! If you're not familiar with Library Reads, they're new releases that have been selected by librarians across the  country as their favorites. Browse the selections here, or stop by the Main Library, where recent Library Reads can be found on the square shelf beside the New Releases display.

We've highlighted a few of this month's picks, including a heart-wrenching novel about a suburban neighborhood's response to one family's tragedy, the launch of a new trilogy by best-selling author Claire Legrand, and  the story of Hollywood's first Asian-American movie star Anna May Wong, who overcame poverty and prejudice to build a career in film, radio, the stage and television.

Literary Fiction

The Whispers by Ashely Audrain From the author of THE PUSH, a page turner about four suburban families whose lives are changed when the unthinkable happens--and what is lost when good people make unconscionable choices

The Loverlys sit by the hospital bed of their young son who is in a coma after falling from his bedroom window in the middle of the night; his mother, Whitney, will not speak to anyone. Back home, their friends and neighbors are left in shock, each confronting their own role in the events that led up to what happened that terrible night: the warm, altruistic Parks who are the Loverlys' best friends; the young, ambitious Goldsmiths who are struggling to start a family of their own; and the quiet, elderly Portuguese couple who care for their adult son with a developmental disability, and who pass the long days on the front porch, watching their neighbors go about their busy lives.

The story spins out over the course of one week, in the alternating voices of the women in each family as they are forced to face the secrets within the walls of their own homes, and the uncomfortable truths that connect them all to one another. Set against the heart-wrenching drama of what will happen to Xavier, who hangs between death and life, or a life changed forever, THE WHISPERS is a novel about the quiet sacrifices of motherhood, the intuitions that we silence, the complexities of our closest friendships, the danger of envy, and the reverberations of life's most difficult decisions.

Historical Fiction

The beloved bestselling author of The Color of Air, Women of the Silk, and The Samurai's Garden returns with this magnificent historical novel based on the life of the luminous, groundbreaking actress Anna May Wong—the first and only Asian American woman to gain movie stardom in the early days of Hollywood.

The Brightest Star by Gail Tsukiyama - At the dawn of a new century, America is falling in love with silent movies, including young Wong Liu Tsong. The daughter of Chinese immigrants who own a laundry, Wong Liu and her older sister Lew Ying (Lulu) are taunted and bullied for their Chinese heritage. But while Lulu diligently obeys her parents and learns to speak Chinese, Wong Liu sneaks away to the local nickelodeons, buying a ticket with her lunch money and tips saved from laundry deliveries. By eleven Wong Liu is determined to become an actress and has already chosen a stage Anna May Wong. At sixteen, Anna May leaves high school to pursue her Hollywood dreams, defying her disapproving father and her Chinese traditional upbringing—a choice that will hold emotional and physical consequences. After a series of nothing parts, nineteen-year-old Anna May gets her big break—and her first taste of Hollywood fame—starring opposite Douglas Fairbanks in The Thief of Bagdad . Yet her beauty and talent isn’t enough to overcome the racism that relegates her to supporting roles as a helpless, exotic butterfly or a vicious, murderous dragon lady while Caucasian actresses in yellowface” are given starring roles portraying Asian women. Though she suffers professionally and personally, Anna May fights to win lead roles, accept risqué parts, financially support her family, and keep her illicit love affairs hidden—even as she finds freedom and glittering stardom abroad, and receives glowing reviews across the globe. Powerful, poignant, and imbued with Gail Tsukiyama's warmth and empathy, The Brightest Star reimagines the life of the first Asian American screen star whose legacy endures—a remarkable and inspiring woman who broke barriers and became a shining light in Hollywood history.

Fantasy

A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand - Lady Gemma Ashbourne seemingly has it all. She's young, gorgeous, and rich. Her family was Anointed by the gods, blessed with incredible abilities. But underneath her glittering façade, Gemma is deeply sad. Years ago, her sister Mara was taken to the Middlemist to guard against treacherous magic. Her mother abandoned the family. Her father and eldest sister, Farrin—embroiled in a deadly blood feud with the mysterious Bask family—often forget Gemma exists.

Worst of all, Gemma is the only Ashbourne to possess no magic. Instead, her body fights it like poison. Constantly ill, aching with loneliness, Gemma craves love and yearns to belong.

Then she meets the devastatingly handsome Talan d'Astier. His family destroyed themselves, seduced by a demon, and Talan, the only survivor, is determined to redeem their honor. Intrigued and enchanted, Gemma proposes a bargain: She'll help Talan navigate high society if he helps her destroy the Basks. According to popular legend, a demon called The Man With the Three-Eyed Crown is behind the families' blood feud—slay the demon, end the feud.

But attacks on the Middlemist are increasing. The plot against the Basks quickly spirals out of control. And something immense and terrifying is awakening in Gemma, drawing her inexorably toward Talan and an all-consuming passion that could destroy her—or show her the true strength of her power at last.