books

For those who share my demographic (Remember Bill Haley & Rock Around the Clock?) these books ameliorate feelings of isolation which you will recognize.  Each author dives into the fears and frustrations, the joys and sorrows, the satisfactions and regrets that intensify as we age.read more

Are you a Mad Men fan?  What were you doing in the 1960s? The current Newsweek magazine is full of 60s nostalgia, including a quick comparison of best-selling books then and now.  Even the ads for contemporary goods and services are graphic reminders of the ads of fifty years ago. Fun!

At the top of the bestseller list in 1966 was the "non-fiction novel" In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Creating a sensation at the time, Capote reported a horrific crime as if it were a murder mystery. The book still provokes interest and discussion.

Remember the passion for Eric Berne's Games People Play ?  Why do "they"  do what they do? This question has been answered in countless ways by many authors  through the years. The latest "self-help" hit is Quiet: the Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain.

One of my all-time favorites topped the fiction list in 1966. The Source by James Michener is still my Michener-of-choice. One piece of land in the Middle East is excavated and each layer tells the story of its inhabitants from a different era.

Valley of the Dolls by Jacquelyn Susann was a guilty pleasure for many fiction readers  who were unaccustomed to admitting an interest in drugs and sex. Shocking then, not so noticeable now. Did you read about Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James? This British import of erotica (compared to porn by the New York Times) tops the Library most popular list this week.

Accolades were heaped on Bel Kaufman for her memoir of a new high-school teacher. Up the Down Staircase took adults inside the halls of their kids' school with authentic details. Today, the memoir is one of the most common types of books in a culture where it sometimes seems as if no detail of one's life is too insignificant for publication.  

Books do mirror our culture and provide a fascinating record of where we have been and where we are going.

Have you tried it yet?  What is Freading?

Freading is a brand new service at the Westport Library. A different way to borrow books, Freading allows you to borrow eBooks and read them on your computer or on your eReader. Find out more about Freading... or bring your eReader -  (sorry, Kindle is not compatible, except for the Kindle Fire) - into the Library where staff will help you test drive this new service.  There are no holds on titles, because many people may download the same book at the same time. The loan period is two weeks, with one renew possible.

Here are some of the selections featured by  the Library on the Freading home page:

Mudbound by Hillary Jordan

In 1946, a city girl tries to adjust to life on her southern husband's farm. Two men return from the war to work the land and a saga of family, friendship, jealousy, and prejudice unfolds.

When She Woke by Hillary Jordan

In this modern version of The Scarlet Letter, a young girl suffers through the consequences of her love affair and abortion.

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Meet Hillary Jordan at the Library on Wednesday March 7 at noon.

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Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo

Similar to his book Golfing with God, this story pairs an ordinary, no-nonsense guy with a Buddhist guru. As the pair travels across middle America, a spiritual journey unfolds with wisdom and humor.

1969 by Rob Kirkpatrick

A man on the moon, the "Miracle Mets," Woodstock, Easy Rider, Slaughterhouse-Five by Vonnegut, punk music... read all about it!

Something To Declare by Julia Alvarez

Here are the events that inspired her fiction, as she reveals her family history of self-imposed exile in New York , after they fled the Dominican Republic and her own mastery of assimilation, identity, and her writing career.

The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi W. Burrow

Autobiography of a biracial girl, orphaned and living with her strict African American grandmother and dealing with society's ideas of race and class.

The Frozen Rabbi by Steve Stern

A mystery, a comedy, a time-travel story...full of Jewish history and requiring a suspension of disbelief to follow the adventures of a rabbi frozen in 1889 and thawed to live on in 1999.

The Ghost of Milagro Creek by Melanie Sumner

Set in a barrio in Taos, New Mexico and narrated by the ghost of a medicine woman, this is a love story that turns tragic.

The Da Vinci Notebooks

Love Leonardo? Here is a collection of his sketches, diagrams & writings on architecture, town planning,  engineering, naval warfare, music, medicine, mathematics, science, and philosophy.  Wow!

Have you ever finished a book and wondered about the ending? Or, about how the author chose  the subject or  characters? Or, if the author considered a different storyline?  At the Library, you have the opportunity to converse with many authors.

In February, these authors will be speaking at the Library. Their books are available at the Library.read more