Memphis Reads

[Book Review] SWEETHEARTS by Sara Zarr

2009-07-08T20:33:00.001-05:00

Fiction/Young Adult

Andrea King reviews SWEETHEARTS by Sara Zarr (Little, Brown and Company, 2008)

This book evoked a lot of emotions from me. There were some laugh-out-loud moments, as well as times that I cried. I would recommend this book to teenagers and adults alike.

Sweethearts is the endearing story of Jennifer Harris and Cameron Quick. The two were social outcasts and each other’s only friends in elementary school. The pair always took up for each other when school bullies picked on Jennifer or when Cameron’s dad abused him. Knowing the other was always there made life a little bit more bearable. Unfortunately, tragedy strikes, and Cameron disappears. Being told that he died, part of Jennifer herself fades away, as well.

Fast forward eight years. Jennifer has lost her “baby fat” and loser image and gained a new image and popularity as Jenna Vaughn. Jennifer Harris is no longer in the picture, just like Cameron Quick isn’t. But, Jenna’s world is turned upside down on her seventeenth birthday when she gets a letter from Cameron himself.

He’s back! No, this is not some supernatural thriller novel. Cameron and his family just had to move out of state to escape his abusive father. Jenna’s emotions are rightfully muddled, as she tries to make sure Cameron doesn’t reveal anything about her past while trying to include him in her new life. It is difficult and strained, but honest. This book is about second chances and friendship and what we as individuals decide to do with both.

[Book Review] RUNNING HOT by Jayne Ann Krentz

2009-07-06T13:29:00.001-05:00

Fiction

Beth reviews RUNNING HOT by Jayne Ann Krentz (Putnam, 2008)

I really enjoy books with a supernatural theme. This one had a bonus! The heroine is a librarian! Grace Renquist is a librarian who is able to see auras and dark flashes that show violence or evil. In this novel she is paired with ex-cop Luther Malone to do a psychic investigation for Jones & Jones. Luther, acting as Grace’s bodyguard, can use his psychic abilities to alter people’s moods through their auras.

Grace and Luther are sent to Hawaii, acting as honeymooners, to find a killer. Things quickly heat up between the two. Unfortunately, things also heat up as they contend with the bad guys. The deadly drug created by the Arcane Society’s founder has been recreated and is causing chaos within the supernatural community. Can Grace and Luther hold off the trouble until back-up arrives? Will they survive the lethal psychic La Sirene, who, like a siren of ancient myth, kills with her singing voice?

Things are a bit far-fetched at times but who doesn’t love a great mystery with romance and the supernatural thrown in?

Beth, Highland Branch Library

[Book Review] CRAZY LOVE by Leslie Morgan Steiner

2009-07-02T18:47:00.001-05:00

Nonfiction/Memoir

Andrea King reviews CRAZY LOVE: A Memoir by Leslie Morgan Steiner (St. Martin’s Press, 2009)

This is a story about a successful, 22-year-old woman who seemed like she had everything going for her. Working at Seventeen magazine and living in downtown New York City after graduating from Harvard, Leslie had the world at her feet. Meeting the attractive and funny Conor was the proverbial “cherry on top.”

Unfortunately, Leslie had a secret. A secret that millions of others shared with her.

Conor, although he seemed to adore Leslie outwardly, was beating her regularly. Leslie always had excuses for his behavior and a simple reason for putting up with his violence: she loved him. Don’t scoff- in our society many battered women feel this way.

Fortunately, Leslie got to the point where she had enough. After Conor relocated them time and time again to keep her isolated from friends and family so he could keep her “all to himself,” Leslie realized she had to get away from him. She concluded that the strength and power to escape Conor was within her. Not to spoil the ending but I am pleased to report Leslie did escape Conor and is now living out the fairy tale with her second husband and children.

This is a harsh, unsettling memoir that tells the first person account of a relationship that went from a fairy tale to its most extreme opposite. It is also a story of hope and having a second chance in life. Most importantly, the author shows readers how to live after just surviving. This to me is the most important lesson of all.

Andrea King,
Poplar-White Station Branch Library

[Book Review] REMEMBER ME by Sophie Kinsella

2009-06-03T16:53:00.000-05:00

Fiction

Andrea King reviews REMEMBER ME? by Sophie Kinsella (Dial Press, 2008)

People survive car accidents everyday. People wake up from comas every day, too. But, unfortunately, sometimes it takes a long time to recover mentally and physically from both of these traumatic circumstances.

Lexi Smart is having a hard time adjusting to life after her car accident. She has amnesia and even though the accident was less that a week ago, somehow she cannot remember the last three years of her life! Before the accident, she was a struggling 25 year-old working girl but she wakes up as a 28 year-old corporate hot shot. The last event she remembers about herself at 25 is getting drunk at a club and having to go to her father’s funeral the next day. She was barely making ends meet and was dating someone named “Loser Dave.” Her life at 25 was not something to be desired, to say the least.

Remarkably, over the last three years, Lexi has managed to grow up, get married to a multi-millionaire, and become boss at the company where she didn’t even receive a bonus before! Unfortunately, because of her amnesia, she remembers none of these events!

Lexi is, of course, floundering as Eric’s wife (she doesn’t even remember their wedding!) and as the director in her company. These troubles make it all the more difficult for her to get acclimated to her "new" life out of the coma! Who can she trust? Who are her friends? Who isn’t?
Writing with her usual humor, Sophie Kinsella (who is famous for the Shopaholic series) takes life-altering events that could be traumatic and makes them comedic.

Although the grass seemed so much greener when 28 year-old Lexi awoke from her coma, it’s just not for a variety of reasons! Kinsella teaches us as readers to always be careful what we wish for because we may just get it.

I enjoyed this story of Lexi Smart as she grapples to piece her life together before and after her awakening. Readers will laugh out loud as well as feel true sympathy for her.

Andrea King, Poplar-White Station

[Book Review] LOVE AMONG THE WALNUTS by Jean Ferris

2009-05-21T16:46:00.003-05:00

Fiction/Young Adult

Beth reviews LOVE AMONG THE WALNUTS by Jean Ferris (Harcourt, 1998).

I hadn’t planned on reviewing this book. It was simply a quick, pleasure read, but the more I read, the more I laughed. The more I laughed, the more I shared tidbits with friends. The next thing I know, my friends are insisting that I’ve “got to write it up!” So here is a teaser for this great young adult novel, Love Among the Walnuts.

Does money solve all your problems? Not according to self-made millionaire Horatio Alger Huntington-Ackerman. He is lonely and bored. His two brothers, Bart and Bernie, are mean and troublesome. His valet, Bentley, decides that a night at the theater is in order. Amazingly, Horatio attends and much to his delight falls in love with an actress. After a whirlwind courtship, Horatio and Mousey are married. With a child on the way, they decide to leave the city and settle into a luxurious life in the country.

The years pass and the family falls into a pattern of never leaving their country estate. Groceries are delivered and Bart and Bernie come each month for dinner. After one such evening, Horatio, Mousey and the housekeeper cannot be roused. The doctor checks them and determines that they are healthy but in a coma! Sandy, Horatio and Mousey’s son, hires a nurse to care for them. After being fed some of the leftovers, the pet chicken too becomes comatose. Bart and Bernie are furious that Sandy and Bentley are still awake and have the lawyers force Sandy to move the “sleepers” to a hospital or nursing home. Interestingly enough, there is such a place next door!

As time moves forward, Bentley tries to awaken the “sleepers” with different concoctions he creates. He uses the chicken as a guinea pig—she becomes blues, gets the hiccups and much more! Can Bentley truly cure them? Will Bart and Bernie finally win and get Horatio’s money? Can they all survive to see the end of the book?

Enjoy this great story and laugh at all the antics!

Beth, Highland Branch Library

[Book Review] TRIED BY WAR by James McPherson

2009-04-30T10:59:00.001-05:00

Nonfiction

Philip Williams reviews TRIED BY WAR: Abraham Lincoln As Commander in Chief by James M. McPherson (Penguin, 2008)

Leading Civil War Historian James McPherson offers this narrative of Abraham Lincoln’s role as Commander-In-Chief during America’s greatest time of crisis. With no real military background, Lincoln educated himself in military strategy and theory. He proved, during the course of the war, to have a better understanding than most of his generals of the military advantages the Union had over the South and the strategy needed to defeat it. Lincoln’s iron resolve to save the Union is known to all, but McPherson shows that by 1863 Lincoln had transformed the conflict into a War of Emancipation. Tried by War is certainly not a paean to Lincoln. McPherson does not gloss over the Lincoln’s controversial actions, namely Lincoln’s willingness to violate civil liberties during the war. But McPherson shows why Lincoln, despite facing monumental odds, was able to lead the United States to victory and establish himself as America’s greatest Commander-In-Chief.

Readers who enjoy Tried by War may also like McPherson’s one-volume history of the Civil War, Battle Cry of Freedom.

Philip Williams, Cordova Branch Library

[Book Review] STILL LIFE by Joy Fielding

2009-04-28T11:35:00.002-05:00

Fiction/Suspense

Andrea King reviews STILL LIFE by Joy Fielding (Simon and Schuster, 2009)

I am a huge Joy Fielding fan. Ever since I checked out See Jane Run as a new, seven-day book many years ago and read it in a day, I have been hooked. I have read her entire collection and own a majority of her books. You can imagine my excitement when I got my hands on her latest novel, Still Life.

Interior designer Casey seems to have it all together--good looks, a loving husband, lifelong friends, and a small inheritance. But, as much work as it takes to "get it all together," it only takes a brief moment for everything to be shattered. And, in the one of most traumatic ways imaginable, Casey’s life is almost completely destroyed. There are no witnesses to the hit-and-run accident in which a SUV driver leaves her for dead in a parking garage. Casey has multiple broken bones and is in a coma.

Medical authorities are conflicted about whether Casey can hear what is going on around her while comatose. But the more Casey heals and hears, the more she realizes this hit-and-run was no accident. Most upsetting is her realization of who set up the crime.

Joy Fielding will have readers sitting on the edge of their seats with this story of suspense and intrigue. This reviewer stayed up until 2:00 a.m. to finish the book because it’s just that good!

Andrea King, Poplar-White Station Branch Library

[Book Review] CROSS COUNTRY by James Patterson

2009-03-30T08:38:00.011-05:00

Fiction/Suspense

Beth reviews CROSS COUNTRY: A Novel by James Patterson (Little, Brown & Company, 2008)

I admit it; I’m a huge James Patterson fan. I’ve read almost all of his novels, young adult titles included! Cross Country is a little different than his usual Alex Cross novels.

Alex Cross is usually a slow-to-act detective who relies on his intellect. He's worked with the best and has become the best. But in this novel he’s thrown off course by the grisly murder of his first real love, Ellie Cox, and her family. It appears to be a senseless act of violence until other families are murdered in a similar fashion. Alex comes to learn that “the Tiger” is responsible for these murders. Alex takes these murders to heart and decides to follow the Tiger to Africa in search of justice for Ellie and all those that the Tiger has murdered.

What Alex doesn’t realize is that many people in Africa resent his presence. In Nigeria he encounters many corrupt government officials and confronts the horror that they bring—to him and to their people. Will Alex be able to find the Tiger and bring him to justice or will the Tiger and his gang of murderous lost boys best our favorite detective?

This novel depicts the dire situation in places like Darfur and the diamond mines of Sierra Leone. It is very graphic.

Beth, Highland Branch

Read-A-Likes for TWILIGHT by Stephenie Meyer

2009-03-23T15:19:00.000-05:00

Since the movie recently came out on DVD and with many fans having finished the series, Beth from Highland Branch Library recommends the following titles for readers who enjoyed Stephenie Meyer's TWILIGHT.

Anderson, M.T. THIRSTY
From the moment he knows that he is destined to be a vampire, Chris thirsts for the blood of people around him while also struggling to remain human.

Bray, Libba. A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY
After the suspicious death of her mother in 1895, sixteen-year-old Gemma returns to England after many years in India to attend a finishing school. There she becomes aware of her magical powers and ability to see into the spirit world.

Cole, Stephen. WOUNDED
Sixteen-year-old Tom Anderson and seventeen-year-old Kate Folan try to escape Kate's werewolf family--and fight becoming werewolves themselves--by making a cross-country journey in search of a mysterious man who might have a cure.

Cruz, Melissa De La. BLUE BLOODS
A group of teenagers from some of New York City’s wealthiest and most socially prominent families learn a startling secret about their bloodlines.

Hahn, Mary Downing. LOOK FOR ME BY MOONLIGHT
While staying at the remote and reputedly haunted Maine inn run by her father and pregnant stepmother, sixteen-year-old Cynda feels increasingly isolated from her father's new family and finds solace in the attentions of a charming but mysterious guest.

Jones, Frewin. THE FAERIE PATH
Anita, an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl, is transported from modern-day London to the realm of Faerie where she discovers that she is Princess Tania, the long-lost daughter of King Oberon and Queen Titania.

Klause, Annette Curtis. THE SILVER KISS
A mysterious teenage boy harboring a dark secret helps Zoe come to terms with her mother’s terminal illness.

Pierce, Meredith Ann. THE DARKANGEL
The servant girl Aeriel must choose between destroying her vampire master for his evil deeds or saving him for the sake of his beauty and the spark of goodness she has seen in him.

Schreiber, Ellen. VAMPIRE KISSES
Sixteen-year-old Raven, an outcast who always wears black and hopes to become a vampire some day, falls in love with the mysterious new boy in town, eager to find out if he can make her dreams come true.

Smith, Cynthia Leitich. TANTALIZE
When multiple murders in Austin, Texas threaten the grand re-opening of her adopted family's vampire-themed restaurant, seventeen-year-old Quincie worries that her best friend-turned-love-interest, Keiren, a werewolf-in-training, may be the prime suspect.

Smith, L.J. THE VAMPIRE DIARIES SERIES
The tale of two vampire brothers and the beautiful girl torn between them.

Vande Velde, Vivian. COMPANIONS OF THE NIGHT
When sixteen-year-old Kerry Nowicki helps a young man escape from a group of men who claim he is a vampire, she finds herself faced with some bizarre and dangerous choices.

Westerfeld, Scott. PEEPS
Cal Thompson is a carrier of a parasite that causes vampirism, and must hunt down all of the girlfriends he has unknowingly infected.

[Book Review] THE HOUR I FIRST BELIEVED by Wally Lamb

2009-01-28T17:20:00.000-06:00

Fiction

Andrea Bledsoe reviews THE HOUR I FIRST BELIEVED by Wally Lamb (Harper Collins, 2008)

Okay, I am not going to lie. This was a difficult book to read. Not only is it 740 pages, it is also a very emotional story. Because I have already read and enjoyed Wally Lamb’s other fictional works (She’s Come Undone and I Know This Much Is True), I knew I would enjoy his latest book.

Lamb has packed a wallop in The Hour I First Believed. Told from the point of view of Caelum Quirk, it the story of a national tragedy and how a couple deals with it. Caelum is a former Columbine High School teacher, and Maureen, who Caelum terms his “three strikes and you’re out” wife, is the part-time school nurse. The couple has had their share of martial problems-including infidelity and abuse- but after the Columbine Massacre, their problems seem trivial.

Lamb does an excellent job of blending historical facts with fiction. Using police archives, journal entries from Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, and other documentation, Lamb places Caelum and Maureen right in the thick of tragedy. Although the couple escaped from the massacre physically unscathed, the emotional aftermath they face is torture in itself.

This book is an emotional one, without a doubt, but there are laugh-out-loud passages, too. I also enjoyed the author’s placement of characters from his previous work throughout this novel. If a reader can make it through the bulk of 740 pages, I honestly think he or she will be better for reading such a heartrending story.

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Branch Library

[Book Review] AFTER THE DANCE by Lori Johnson

2009-01-15T15:47:00.005-06:00

Fiction/African-American

Doris Dixon reviews AFTER THE DANCE by Lori Johnson (Dafina Books, 2008)

With her debut novel After The Dance, former Memphian Lori Johnson offers a gift to readers who enjoy well-crafted, character-driven stories about love and intimacy. The smart dialogue and humorous banter will remind some readers of classic Hollywood love stories. Others will appreciate that this is a story about "grown folks" determined not to repeat the mistakes of the past. The language is sharp but never profane and the plot is provocative without being tawdry.

Tired of playing romantic games, Faye creates a series of rules for potential lovers. She is not interested in romantic relationships, wants to avoid emotional entanglements, and refuses to have sex with any man more than three times. Faye's new neighbor, Carl, is intrigued by if not instantly attracted to her. Their brief time together, watching movies, talking, and dancing, convinces him that, despite the obstacles she has created, Faye is someone he wants to know better. Carl accepts her conditions (three strikes and you're out) with the hope that his charms will wear down her defenses.

Doris Dixon, Raleigh Branch Library

[Book Review] PIECES OF MY HEART by Robert Wagner

2009-01-06T16:43:00.001-06:00

Nonfiction/Memoir

Philip Williams reviews PIECES OF MY HEART: A LIFE by Robert Wagner with Scott Eyman (Harper Entertainment, 2008)

In Pieces of My Heart, Robert Wagner, "RJ" to his friends, recounts that he first knew he wanted to be an actor when he was 12 years old. He was caddying on a Bel-Air golf course and saw a foursome composed of none other than Clark Gable, Fred Astaire, Cary Grant, and Randolph Scott. His dream came true when he became a contract player at Fox Studios in 1948.

Wagner's fascinating and entertaining account of his life and 60-year acting career is replete with dozens of recollections, stories, and memories of his time in Hollywood, where he was friends with such screen luminaries as Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable. He reminisces about his work in many films and on three successful television shows.

Readers may not know that, as a young man, Wagner had a four-year relationship with Barbara Stanwyck, who was twice his age, and that he later dated Elizabeth Taylor and Debbie Reynolds. Because of a business deal he made with Aaron Spelling in the 1970s, he shared in the considerable profits of the hit TV show "Charlie’s Angels." To younger people, he may be much better known for his work in the popular Austin Powers movies. His dream life, though, was marred by the tragic death of the love of his life, his wife Natalie Wood, and Wagner offers his account of the circumstances of her death, the deep depression it caused him, and his ultimate resignation to it. This engrossing memoir is, in many ways, very moving and written in a very engaging style.

Philip Williams, Cordova Branch Library

[Book Review] THE KEEPSAKE by Tess Gerritsen

2008-12-15T11:13:00.007-06:00

Fiction

Beth reviews THE KEEPSAKE by Tess Gerritsen (Ballantine, 2008).

By now readers of this blog know that I love to read books full of suspense and horror. Well I’ve found another author, Tess Gerritsen, and she has this genre down pat. Her latest, The Keepsake, opens with the scanning of a newly discovered Egyptian mummy, Madame X. Unfortunately Madame X turns out to be a replica—the body of a recently murdered young woman that had been preserved as a keepsake. As the detectives begin their search, they uncover many clues. After several more victims are found, including tsantsa (shrunken heads) and a very well-preserved bog body, the police start to question the type of serial killer they are searching for. Dr. Josephine Pulcillo, an archaeologist specializing in Egyptology, is at the center of the case. But how does all the evidence tie together? And what is she hiding? Can the detectives keep the serial killer from adding another keepsake?

This novel pulled me in from the start and kept me guessing until the last pages. The twists and turns make this a classic. I can’t wait for Gerritsen's next book! But thankfully she has several previous works for me to enjoy until then!

Beth, Highland Branch Library

[Book Review] KEEPING YOU A SECRET by Julie Ann Peters

2008-12-05T15:59:00.005-06:00

Fiction

Andrea Bledsoe reviews KEEPING YOU A SECRET (Little, Brown and Company, 2003)

How far would you go to be with the person you love? How much would you sacrifice? These are eye-opening, tough questions seventeen year-old Holland Jaeger must deal with her senior year of high school. Completely burnt out from the expectations of her mother, boyfriend, guidance counselor, and teachers, Holland is ready to bolt from her environment.

When Cecelia Goddard (known as Cece) transfers to Southglenn High School, Holland’s life changes forever, little by little. Cece, a sixteen-year-old, self-proclaimed "loud and proud" lesbian, provokes feelings in Holland that are both confusing and intense.

Neither girl can deny their feelings for one another, so Holland dumps Seth, her boyfriend of one year. When her mother confronts her about her new relationship with "that girl," Holland has no choice but to tell the truth. She is immediately thrown out of her house and forced to live on her own. Struggling to make ends meet and keep a demanding senior year schedule, she suffers emotionally, physically, and academically.

This is a sad, realistic story about a young woman confronting extremely difficult choices.

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Branch Library

[Book Review] FAEFEVER by Karen Marie Moning

2008-11-24T16:00:00.001-06:00

Fiction

Beth reviews FAEFEVER by Karen Marie Moning (Delacorte, 2008)

The third installment in Karen Moning’s Fever series, Faefever focuses on the hunt for the Sinsar Dubh, a book that has been in existence for more than a million years. It contains dangerous and dark information. Mac, short for MacKayla, has left her home and the comfort of Georgia, USA, to search out her sister’s killer, the Unseelie Lord Master, in Ireland. Upon arriving, she discovers something surprising...her Celtic bloodline allows her to see the Fae. And they, non-humans from the faerie realm, move in our world. She, and she alone now, has the ability to sense OOPS (Objects of Power) from both the Seelie and Unseelie worlds. Mac must fight to find her loyalties between the very attractive V’Lane, a death-by-sex Fae, on the one hand, and her sister and Barron, her handsome boss, on the other. Can Mac survive through All Hallow’s Eve, when the human and the Fae worlds may collide? Will she be able to find the Sinsar Dubh--and whom does she trust to give it to?

If you like mysteries with some of the Faerie world mixed in, read the Fever series by Karen Moning. It's perfect for any reader who likes the Fae, as it contains mystery, romance and intrigue! Enjoy these great books!

Book 1: Karen Marie Moning, DARKFEVER (Delacorte, 2006).

Book 2: Karen Marie Moning, BLOODFEVER (Delacorte, 2007).

Beth, Highland Branch Library

Annual Compendium of "Best of" Lists

2008-11-24T15:01:00.002-06:00

From the blog Largehearted Boy:

"With 2008 drawing to a close, book lists are popping up online with increasing frequency. Just as I have done in 2006 & 2007 with online music lists, I will be aggregating 2008 year-end online book lists in this post and updating the list daily as new lists are added.

These year-end lists are one of my favorite things about the end of the year... I am constantly reading, but it seems like the more I read, even more books are published that look interesting. 'Best of 2008' lists often introduce me to wonderful books or remind me of those lost in the shuffle of my hectic reading life."

[Book Review] SWALLOWING DARKNESS by Laurell K. Hamilton

2008-11-13T14:12:00.004-06:00

Fiction/Fantasy

Beth reviews SWALLOWING DARKNESS by Laurell K. Hamilton (Ballantine Books, 2008)

Another great book (no. 7) from Laurell K. Hamilton in her Meredith Gentry series! Meredith, or Merrie for short, is a princess of faerie and is fighting for her throne. Her aunt, the Queen of Shadow and Darkness, has promised the throne to either her son, Prince Cel, or to Meredith. The winner will be the one to have a child first. And now Merrie is with child. Twins in fact. Her uncle, King Taranis of Light and Illusion, kidnapped Merrie and raped her. Now he claims the children are his. But to be queen, Merrie must survive the next 8 months and protect her future king(s).

If you haven’t enjoyed this series and enjoy tales of faerie, I suggest starting with Book 1. Click here to read my review of Book 6.

Beth, Highland Branch Library

[Book Review] SOUVENIR by Therese Fowler

2008-11-07T12:32:00.006-06:00

Fiction/Romance

Andrea Bledsoe reviews SOUVENIR by Therese Fowler (Ballantine Books, 2008)

When I received an advance copy of this debut novel by Therese Fowler in my mailbox, it was like Christmas in the spring. Anyone who knows me is aware how much of an avid reader I am, so if I receive any free books, it’s all the better! But, rarely, do I find a book as incredible as this one. This coming from someone who has read hundreds of books- easily! I hope this review does justice to a great book.

This is the story of Meg Powell and Carson McKay, who grew up as neighbors on adjoining farmland and eventually became a long-term couple. The people in their small, rural Florida community had reason to believe the two would always be together. But, just as Meg turns 21, a more prominent citizen in the small town proposes marriage. Seeing the proposal as a way to help her family keep their acreage, Meg accepts it. The marriage ultimately changes Carson’s life as well as Meg’s.

Seventeen years later, Meg has settled into the routine of marriage, her medical practice, and trying to pacify everyone around her. Carson has resurfaced in the small town as a rock star planning a wedding to a younger woman. Meg’s diagnosis of ALS (more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) and Carson’s unexpected arrival throw giant curveballs in her daily routine. Reaching out to her loved ones and ridding her life of those she cannot rely on, Meg does an emotional housecleaning.

This is a very powerful story about two people who rely on the love they had shared in the past to help make the present and, hopefully, the future that much more special. As I stated earlier, this was Therese Fowler’s first novel. I am eagerly awaiting more works from her!

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Branch Library

[Book Review] TURNING TABLES by Heather and Rose MacDowell

2008-10-14T16:27:00.006-05:00

Fiction

Andrea Bledsoe reviews TURNING TABLES by Heather and Rose MacDowell (Random House, 2008)

Before I started working at the Library, I waited tables. In fact, I waited tables for ten years. I began while I was in college, worked in various restaurants all through college, and even waited tables around three years after I graduated. Hey, when you have a Bachelor of Arts in English, aren’t certified to teach yet, and restaurant work is really your only job experience, what are you going to do?! Don’t get me wrong, I actually loved the fast paced energy of restaurants. It’s tough and grueling work, and the hourly rate ($2.13 plus tips) should be illegal. And, most importantly, it is not for everyone, even though I personally think everyone should wait tables at least once in their lives.

Erin Edwards is a rising star in the New York marketing and advertising scene. Due to the tough economy we are experiencing, Erin loses her executive job and is forced to waitress to make ends meet. Under the false impression that waiting tables will be easy compared to what she had been doing, Erin enters a whole new world. She quickly realizes that waiting tables is more than just bringing customers their food and drinks. She is humbled as she deals with a hot-tempered chef, verbally abusive restaurant owners, various servers’ personalities, and (no surprise here) the neediness of her customers!

Erin’s self-esteem takes daily beatings as the owners and the chef constantly remind her that she has no place in this upscale, hip Manhattan eatery. Determined to rise above the jeers, Erin tries to be more professional in her work as the insults get more personal. Does Erin finally have enough of the hurtful insults and just quit, or is she able to ignore them and overcome? This reviewer isn't telling, but I'll bet you will have a lot of fun finding out for yourself.

I thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel by the MacDowell sisters. They are former servers so they understand the restaurant business as much as I do. If nothing else, Turning Tables will teach readers how tough restaurant work is and maybe inspire them to be better tippers!

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Branch Library

Book Clubs at the Memphis Public Library, Fall 2008

2008-10-02T17:00:00.007-05:00

The Memphis Public Library & Information Center sponsors book clubs at many branches and at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library. Here's a list of the titles that will be discussed in upcoming months. For a book club's contact information, click the link for that branch or call (901) 415-2700.

Fall 2008

Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library

Central Readers' Book Club

OCTOBER
The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
Monday, October 20, 7:00 p.m.

NOVEMBER
Home to Holly Springs by Jan Karon
Monday, November 17, 7:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
I, Rhonda Manning, Go Hunting with My Daddy, and Other Stories by Ellen Gilchrist
Monday, December 15, 7:00 p.m.

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

Cordova Branch Library

Cordova Book Club

OCTOBER
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (replaces Eat, Pray, Love as the book selection)
Tuesday, October 21, 12:00 p.m.

NOVEMBER
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
Tuesday, November 18, 12:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
Beloved Impostor by Patricia Potter
Tuesday, December 16, 12:00 p.m.

"We are excited that on December 16, Ms. Potter, who lives in Cordova, will be coming to the Book Club Meeting herself, to talk about her book and also to talk about the art of writing." --Phillip Williams, Moderator

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

East Shelby Branch Library

Book Lover's Book Club

OCTOBER
The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve
Tuesday, October 21, 1:30 p.m.
Meet at Olive Garden Restaurant, 7778 Winchester Road, Memphis, TN 38125

NOVEMBER
To Be Announced
Tuesday, November 18, 1:30 p.m.

DECEMBER
To Be Announced
Tuesday, December 16, 1:30 p.m

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

Highland Branch Library

Second Saturday Book Club

OCTOBER
The Appeal by John Grisham
Saturday, October 11, 1:30 p.m.

NOVEMBER
From Baghdad, With Love: A Marine, The War, and a Dog Named Lava by Jay Kopelman and Melinda Roth
Saturday, November 8, 1:30 p.m.

DECEMBER
No meeting.

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

North Branch Library

North Renaissance Men's Book Club

OCTOBER
Never Go Home Again by Shannon Holmes
Saturday, October 18, 2:00 p.m.
Meet at Hollywood Branch Library

NOVEMBER
The Real Cool Killers by Chester Himes
Saturday, November 15, 2:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
The Knees of Gullah Island by Dwight Fryer
Saturday, December 20, 2:00pm
Joint Meeting with North Women's Book Club
Learn more about the Renaissance Men's Book Club

North Women's Book Club

OCTOBER
The Legend of Quito Road by Dwight Fryer
Saturday, October 25, 2:00 p.m.

NOVEMBER
Miracle at St. Anna by James McBride
Saturday, November 22, 2:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
The Knees of Gullah Island by Dwight Fryer
Saturday, December 20, 2:00pm (Joint Meeting with North Renaissance Men's Book Club)

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

Parkway Village Branch Library

Parkway Village Book Club

OCTOBER
The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
Wednesday, October 15, 2:00 p.m.

NOVEMBER
Wish You Well by David Baldacci
Wednesday, November 19, 2:00 p.m.

DECEMBER
Christmas Books
Wednesday, December 17, 2:00 p.m.

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

Raleigh Branch Library

Raleigh Book Club

OCTOBER
Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Saturday, October 25, 12:00 p.m.

Library Location, Hours, and Contact Information

[Book Review] LOOK ME IN THE EYE by John Elder Robison

2008-09-30T10:00:00.000-05:00

Nonfiction/Memoir

Andrea Bledsoe reviews LOOK ME IN THE EYE: MY LIFE WITH ASPERGER'S by John Elder Robison (Crown Publishers, 2007)

Recently, I have begun reading a lot more nonfiction, or memoirs to be exact. Earlier this month, I finished reading all of Augusten Burroughs’ books, which I will review at a later time. I noticed in two of the books that he mentions a brother who has a form of autism. After a little bit of research, I found out his brother is another bestselling author, John Elder Robison.

And here we are now.

John Elder did not have an easy childhood in the 1960s. It’s hard enough for children to make friends when they are considered "normal," but when teachers, psychologists, or any other authority has deemed the child to have some "abnormality," it’s that much harder, I’m sure. John Elder struggled to make friends in kindergarten, but, when the kids rejected him, he immediately withdrew socially and had a better time with his toys and other inanimate objects.

For every sad memory John recalls, there are laugh-out-loud funny moments, too. When John was eight, his mother gave birth to another son. His recollections of the tricks and pranks he pulled on Christopher (who later changed to his name to Augusten) are just hilarious. Although John was brilliant, his grades did not reflect this, so he dropped out at sixteen. He started touring with rock and roll bands as the sound technician. He met the members of KISS in the late 1970s and even designed the smoking guitar Ace Frehley is famous for playing. Growing disinterested in the rock scene, John later became an engineer for Milton Bradley, which enabled him to play more practical jokes on people. Eventually, John's lack of emotion, antisocial personality, and robot-like behavior were diagnosed as Asperger’s Syndrome. This diagnosis enabled him to understand himself better.

John Elder Robison is a brilliant storyteller who deserves compassion for his struggles with Asperger's, but, at the same time, he will have his readers laughing out loud at his pranks.

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Library

Save More, Spend Less

2008-09-23T09:31:00.016-05:00

Because of the economic downturn, many people are looking for ways to be more frugal. Here are some titles that offer useful suggestions on how to spend less and save more.

Don't Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew, and Reuse to Make Things Last by Lori Baird (Rodale, 2007)

Offers money-saving tips on how to extend the life of everything from appliances, furniture, and outdoor equipment to clothing and cosmetics.

Check out other books about reusing and recycling

It's All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff by Peter Walsh (Free Press, 2007)

This book promises help for those of us who are sometimes tempted to "buy a new one" instead of organizing all of the clutter to find that item that seems so essential at the moment. Peter Walsh is the organizational guru from TLC's "Clean Sweep."

Check out other books about home organization

Yankee Magazine's Living Well on a Shoestring: 1,501 Ingenious Ways to Spend Less for What You Need and Have More for What You Want (Yankee Books, 2000)

Offers general advice on frugality including budgets, repairs and smart shopping.

Check out other books about household saving strategies

Doris, Raleigh Branch Library

New and Notes

2008-09-16T16:39:00.003-05:00

Agatha Christie Recordings Discovered

From BBC News:

"A collection of previously unheard recordings of crime writer Agatha Christie talking about her life and work has surfaced in Devon after lying undiscovered for 40 years.

The reels of tape, over 13 hours long, were discovered by the author's grandson in a cardboard box during a spring clean-out at Christie's former home in Torquay.

They date back to the 1960s and are working notes for her autobiography which was published posthumously in 1977."

Read full article

UPDATE: "Extracts from the recordings made by Agatha Christie were published on telegraph.co.uk by her Estate for 24 hours only and are no longer available" (telegraph.co.uk).

[Book Review] STOLEN INNOCENCE by Elissa Wall

2008-09-09T13:41:00.003-05:00

Nonfiction/Memoir

Andrea Bledsoe reviews STOLEN INNOCENCE: My Story of Growing up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs by Elissa Wall (Harper Collins, 2008)

This is the true and devastating tale of Elissa Wall, one of the key witnesses in the trial of the State of Utah versus Warren Jeffs. Recalling her early years growing up in a First Latter Day Saints (FLDS) household, Elissa shares how she was exposed to polygamy firsthand through her own father and his three wives. It was the norm in this environment for men to have multiple wives and for the husbands to sire many children with these women.

Elissa tells her story of how Warren Jeffs rose from the Devotional teacher and principal of the FLDS school, Alta Academy, to the chosen prophet of the congregation after his father Rulon became ill. In this position of power, Jeffs was the person who told the young women’s fathers who their daughters would marry. To Jeffs, it did not matter if the girls were very young teenagers or even related to their future husbands.

In Elissa’s case, Jeffs expected her to marry her first cousin, Alan, when she was only 14-years-old. Because students at Alta Academy were taught that members of the opposite sex were evil and were “snakes,” the young married population did not know how to cope with marital relations of any kind. Fourteen year-old Elissa and nineteen year-old Alan were no exception to these conflicting feelings. Many a time, Elissa pleaded with Warren to “release” her from her marriage to Alan because divorce does not exist in the FLDS community. Finally, after 3 years of begging Jeffs, Elissa escapes from Alan and becomes pregnant by another man. When Jeffs views her pregnancy as an adulterous act, the young couple is released from marriage.

Elissa’s life hasn’t been easy. From being one of many siblings, to getting married very young, having 4 miscarriages when she was under 18, and facing life on the outside, away from the FLDS, Elissa has struggled. I learned a lot from this very sad book.

Andrea Bledsoe, Poplar-White Station Library

[Book Talk] WYPL Live Tapings

2008-09-04T13:34:00.001-05:00

"BOOK TALK" is an informal, radio interview show featuring authors discussing their work. The show is produced at the studios of WYPL and can be heard Saturdays at 6 p.m. on FM 89.3.

The public is invited to attend live tapings. All interviews last approximately 30 minutes.

Haven Kimmel
Monday, September 8, 11:00 a.m.

Carol Goodman
Wednesday, September 10, 3:00 p.m.

Porter Shreve
Thursday, September 11, 2:00 p.m.

Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
Friday, September 12, 2008, 3:00 p.m.

"Book Talk" is taped in the WYPL radio studios, located in the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library, 3030 Poplar Ave., Memphis, TN 38111. For more information, please call (901) 415-2752.