July 2, 2009

Where's Bubbles?



Amidst all the tragedy of Michael Jackson's death, I couldn't help but wonder "Whatever happened to Bubbles the Chimp?" For those of you who may be too young to remember, Bubbles was Michael Jackson's pet chimp in the 80's. He used to travel with him everywhere and they used to dress in matching outfits. There is a great Wikipedia entry devoted to him here. Apparently, he got too aggressive in his old age to be kept as a pet, so he was moved to an animal sanctuary, where Anderson Cooper tracked him down. I thought this was a great story.

June 22, 2009

High School Summer Reading

summersun.gifNow that school is over, you can start focusing on summer reading. The staff and students at Staples High School have put together their summer reading list, but since it is so long, I have modified the list and added some of my own picks as well:
High School Summer Reads
Suggestions from The Westport Library and Staples High School Staff

The Alchemist: A Fable About Following Your Dream by Paulo Coehlo: A magical story of a shepherd boy’s travels from his home in Spain across the Egyptian desert to a fateful encounter with an alchemist.

Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff: An accompaniment to the book Tweak by Nic Sheff, this is the story of a son’s addiction to drugs and alcohol told through the perspective of his father, a journalist.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett: A band of gun-wielding terrorists burst into an elegant party, taking all guests hostage. During the long siege, the terrorists and hostages form unexpected bonds.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston: Aron Ralston’s account of his six days trapped in one of the most remote spots in America, and how one inspired act of bravery brought him home.

Blink: The Power of Thinking About Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell: A staff writer for The New Yorker weighs the factors that determine good decision-making.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: Set in Nazi Germany, a girl steals books to give to neighbors during bombing raids and finds that books feed souls.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz: Oscar grows up in a Dominican neighborhood in New Jersey as an overweight, homely lover of sci-fi and fantasy. His time is consumed by reading and writing, but what he really wants is love.

A Cook’s Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines by Anthony Bourdain: The only thing celebrity chef and internationally bestselling author Anthony Bourdain loves as much as cooking is traveling. Inspired by the question, "What would be the perfect meal?" Tony sets out on a quest for his culinary holy grail.

Devil in the White City by Erik Larson: Based on real-life events, an architect and a serial killer intersect during the building and opening of the great Chicago World’s Fair of 1892.

Franny and Zooey by J.D. Sallinger: Two interrelated stories about siblings in a family of geniuses.

The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls: Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. As her father succumbed to alcoholism and her mother became more detached, her home life became one of dysfunction and neglect.

The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb: Relocating to a family farm in Connecticut after surviving the Columbine school shootings, Caelum and Maureen discover a cache of family memorabilia dating back five generations, which reveals to Caelum unexpected truths about painful past events.

Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham: Grisham tells the actual story of Ron Williamson, a black minor league baseball player, who was sent to death row for murder and rape.

Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s by John Elder Robison: Ever since he was young, John Robison longed to connect with other people, but by the time he was a teen, his odd habits had earned him the label “social deviant.” However, it was not until he was 40 that he was diagnosed with a form of autism called Asperser’s syndrome.

Naked by David Sedaris: Sedaris has fashioned a hilarious memoir about his dysfunctional family and wonderfully offbeat life.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy: Profoundly moving story of a journey through a postapocalyptic future with no hope where a father and son struggle to survive. Soon to be a major motion picture. Written by the author of No Country For Old Men.

Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman: Klosterman takes the reader on a witty and highly entertaining tour through portions of pop culture not usually subjected to analysis and presents his thoughts on Saved by the Bell, Billy Joel, John Cusack movies, MTV's The Real World, and much more.

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger: Clare and Henry fall deeply in love, but Henry has a condition which periodically resets him in time (past or future). They desperately try to retain their complex relationship against unimaginable odds. Soon to be a major motion picture.

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri: Eight short stories dealing with various male/female relationships in the context of Indian immigration to the U.S.

White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean: Hearing-imparied Sym is fascinated with the Antarctic and the men who explored it, so when her Uncle Victor whisks her away on a trip to the South Pole, she is excited, yet unprepared for the dangerous journey that this madman has planned. Winner of the 2008 Michael L. Printz Award.

The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell: Essayist and public radio regular Vowell traces America’s Puritan roots through the 1630 journey of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, interspersing her history lesson with her trademark humorous anecdotes, like a colonial history lesson via The Brady Bunch.

Year of Wonders: A Story of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks: The Bubonic Plague comes to a small village in 17th century England and the villagers must make a choice: do they flee the village in hopes of outrunning the disease, or do they stay?

Do you have any summer reading suggestions of your own? Feel free to comment!

Edit: A super-awesome PDF version can be found here:High School summer reads.pdf.

June 16, 2009

Gossip Girl and Clique

gossip girl.jpgAre you looking for great beach reads this summer? Have you enjoyed the Gossip Girl or Clique series, but are looking for new books? I have just made readalike lists for both series! You can pick up a copy in the Teen section at the library, or download them here:

Gossip Girls.pdf
Clique readalikes .pdf

If you're looking for any other book recommendations, be sure to stop by the Reference Desk anytime this summer!

June 8, 2009

School Lunches From Around the World

lunch.jpg lunchusa.jpg

Love it or hate it, everybody has eaten school lunch. But have you ever been curious about what school lunches are like in other places? Today I stumbled upon this website in which people have submitted photos of school lunches from around the world. Above, I have posted a picture of a school lunch from France, which has a cup of steamed mussels and a whole artichoke. Pretty fancy, huh? I like seeing the juxtaposition of the American meals, containing tater tots and chicken nuggets, next to the Asian meals, which contain tofu-based soups and whole fish, sitting right there on the trays. It is an interesting set of photos to scroll through.

May 29, 2009

Audiobooks for IPod!

ipodbook.jpgGreat news! Those of us who use IPods can now take advantage of the Library's NetLibrary service! NetLibrary has added 700 titles that are IPod compatible, just in time for summer reading! The audiobook files last for three weeks- similar to the circulation on a library book- except that you can download them from the convenience of your home computer. All you need to register for a NetLibrary account is your library card number. You can get started by visiting here. If you have questions or problems, you can always contact the reference desk at 291-4840 or ref@westportlibrary.org.