saturday september 29
Ken Burns’ new series, The War, which debuted on PBS last week, has generated an enormous amount of buzz in the media the past few weeks. And why not? Not only is Ken Burns responsible for a number of absolutely terrific award-winning documentaries but World War II remains the most important event of the last century.
Despite this, I bet there’s more than a handful of folks out there who, like me, have only a sketchy understanding of the war that changed the world. Lucky for us, quite literally hundreds of books on the subject have been published. On the other hand…the sheer volume of titles can be bewildering. With that in mind, here are a few titles—some old, some new—to get you started.
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friday july 20
After turning the last page of a particularly breathtaking book, have you ever said to yourself, “Hmmm, I wonder where the inspiration for that came from?” You aren’t alone. Driven by the need to “tear down the invisible wall between us readers and them writers and see what’s really going on behind the page,” Dan Crowe and Philip Oltermann took an unusual approach to exploring the creative writing process. Instead of relying on the standard Q&A exchange, they asked the writers to “…think for a minute about which object, picture, or document in your study reveals most about the relationship between living and writing, and then send it to us.” The resulting essays and photographs, collected together in How I Write: The Secret Lives of Authors are surprisingly fascinating!
Some excerpts:
Jay McInery: “This is an Acheulian hand axe, approximately half a million years old, crafted by Homo Erectus, which was given to me by my friend Hamilton Russell…I like to heft it and hold it between paragraphs. It fits the palm beautifully. It reminds me of a friend and a beautiful landscape; sometimes I try to imagine its maker and his world.
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friday april 06
I’ve been hooked on The Sopranos since 1999, when it debuted on HBO. April 8—when the final nine episodes of the series begin airing—marks a bittersweet moment for Sopranos fans. On the one hand, we can’t wait to see how the wonderfully tangled plot lines are going to be resolved. On the other hand, we really hate to see this ground-breaking series come to an end.
So in honor of this momentous occasion, I thought I’d dive into our catalog and see what kind of Sopranos-related gems I could unearth. It turns out that there are plenty of titles for those of us who find Tony and his two “families” a source of endless fascination.
The “official” companion to the series, The Sopranos: A Family History, includes complete histories of the families, a season-by-season episode guide, cast profiles and interviews, and an interview with series creator David Chase.
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thursday february 22
Little Children, which is based on
Tom Perrrotta’s novel by the same name, has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture. This pleases me enormously—although I haven’t seen the movie yet, I thought Perrotta’s novel was terrific. (I wasn’t alone either. The Main Library’s Fiction Department picked
Little Children as one of
their favorite novels of 2004, describing it as “a smart, funny novel about marriage, domestic life, and unfulfilled dreams in suburbia.”)
I’ve been a fan of
Perrotta’s work for a long time. Since 1997, to be specific, when
The Wishbones, his first novel was published.
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thursday february 01
For the past year or so, millions of children, teens, and adults around the world have been breathlessly waiting for an announcement about the publication date for the seventh (and final) entry in the Harry Potter series. Finally…the moment has arrived! Today, J.K. Rowling posted an announcement on her website that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is going to be published at midnight on Saturday, July 21. Typically, she’s being very tight-lipped about the plot—although there’s been of frenzy of speculation amongst the Harry Potter faithful since Rowling hinted that a couple of characters might die.
Anxious to reserve your copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? Take advantage of the Library's Hot Authors service and a copy of the new book will be automatically held for you!
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thursday january 25
Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, the Man Who Would Cure the World by Tracy Kidder tells the story of Farmer’s quest to fight infectious disease in the poorest communities of the world. This critically acclaimed biography follows Farmer from childhood to his extraordinary career at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Farmer visits Xavier University on April 23 for an evening lecture open to the public.
thursday january 18
The British writer Ariana Franklin was in Cincinnati on Tuesday as part of a pre-pub swing through the Midwest in support of her new novel, Mistress of the Art of Death.
I was fortunate enough to be invited to attend a dinner hosted by her agent at Tellers that night. It was a very pleasant evening—Ariana was charming and graciously answered questions about her books, her interest in the Middle Ages, and her husband (film critic Barry Norman). And of course, it was lots of fun to chat about book-related stuff with all the Joseph Beth folks and the Enquirer’s Sara Pearce.
Coincidentally, City of Shadows, Ariana’s previous book, made it to Librarian’s Choice, our annual list of staff favorites. I haven’t read this “stunning novel of historical suspense” (in the words of our Fiction staff), but it’s on my nightstand at home so I’ll probably get to it soon. And yet…
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wednesday december 20
The Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library is accepting nominations for the first annual Ohio Advocates of Literacy and Literary Arts Award in honor of “grassroots efforts to advocate, promote, and celebrate reading, literacy, and the culture of the book within the State of Ohio.”
Two awards will be issued:
- Literacy Advocate. This award “honors those who have dedicated time, energy, and resources to champion literacy within the state.”
- Advocate of the Literary Arts. This award “honors editors, authors, illustrators, teachers, bookmakers, publishers, booksellers, and others who have contributed to this field.”
Do you know someone who you’d like to nominate for one of these awards? Read on for more details...
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friday november 24
Sad news on Tuesday. Robert Altman, “one of the most adventurous and influential American directors of the late 20th century,” passed away. Over the course of his career, Altman directed an enormous variety of movies. Of course, there are the classics, such as M*A*S*H*, Nashville, McCabe and Mrs. Miller, California Split, and The Long Goodbye, but let’s not forget about his smaller, more eclectic movies: Quintet, Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, Vincent & Theo. What an amazing body of work—he will truly be missed.
So what better time than now to find out what the great man himself had to say about his films?
David Thompson and Robert Altman first crossed paths in 2001, when Thompson was working on a documentary for the BBC about the making of
Gosford Park. Afterwards, Thompson asked the director if he would be willing to sit down for some informal interviews about his career. The result is
Altman on Altman, a candid discussion of his life as a filmmaker.
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wednesday november 15
It’s pretty difficult to avoid the indefatigable Rachael Ray these days. She hosts her own TV talk show (The Rachael Ray Show), four Food Network programs (30 Minute Meals, $40 a Day, Inside Dish, and Rachael Ray’s Tasty Travels) and now she even has her own food and lifestyle magazine (Every Day with Rachael Ray). But wait, there’s more! She just published two new cookbooks, Classic Rachael Ray 30 Minute Meals and Rachael Ray 2, 4, 6, 8: Great Meals for Couples or Crowds, jam-packed with recipes for her trademark 30-minute meals.
Classic Rachael Ray 30 Minute Meals, a compilation of recipes from her earlier books, is organized by occasion. Need to pull together a quick weeknight dinner? You’ll find plenty of tempting candidates in the “Everyday” section. Or maybe you’re looking for something to prepare with the budding young cook in your family? There’s a nice variety of recipes (all categorized by age) in the “Kidchefs” section.
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friday october 20
At last! It’s been a long, hard week but Friday has finally arrived. And what better way to unwind than settling in with a good movie and a glass of wine?
But here’s the catch: you can’t decide what you’re in the mood to watch. What to do? Instead of wandering through the shelves aimlessly, why not turn for inspiration to
Movie Lust: Recommended Viewing for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason by Maitland McDonagh? In this compact guide, McDonagh (senior movie editor and
FlickChick columnist for
TV Guide) offers short, breezy reviews of 1,300 movies that, for one reason or another, have caught her attention over the years.
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monday october 16
On October 10, the
Man Booker Prize for Fiction was awarded to the Indian-born writer, Kiran Desai, for her memorable second novel,
The Inheritance of Loss. Described by the Chair of the judges as “a magnificent novel of humane breadth and wisdom, comic tenderness and powerful political acuteness,”
The Inheritance of Loss explores issues of cultural identity and displacement through the tribulations of a small community in the Indian foothills of the Himalayas and an illegal alien in Manhattan.
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monday october 02
I don't read
Glamour magazine very much these days, but when I do pick up an issue, I immediately flip to the back page and dive into the
notorious Dos and Don'ts. Truth be told, I tend to skim through the dos. It’s the don’ts, the hapless fashion offendors, caught by Glamour’s photographers, who hold my interest. Sure, there’s a kind of horrified fascination in seeing the fashion faux pas (Denin leg warmers?! Ankle boots, thigh highs, AND a mini skirt?!) committed by others, but mostly I’m just hoping to learn from their mistakes. Apparently, there are plenty of other women out there just like me because the magazine editors recently expanded their column into a book:
Glamour’s Big Book of Dos & Don’ts: Fashion Help for Every Woman.
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thursday september 21
This week, instead of writing about a particular author or title, I thought I’d share some bits and pieces of news from the book world with you. In no particular order…
Hannibal Rising, a novel about the early days of psychopathic killer Hannibal Lecter, will be published on December 5. According to the president of the Bantam Dell Publishing Group,
Hannibal Rising will give readers the chance to “learn of Lecter's beginnings and will see the evolution of his evil.”
Thomas Harris is also working on a screenplay for a movie by the same name. It has an estimated release date of early 2007. Unfortunately Anthony Hopkins (who won an Academy Award in 1991 for his performance in
Silence of the Lambs) will not reprise his role of Dr. Lecter in the new movie.
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monday september 11
The days are getting shorter, the nights cooler, and the perennials in my garden are starting to look a little shabby—sure signs that fall is just around the corner! This year, I’m particularly eager for fall to arrive because a bumper crop of titles from some of my favorite authors will be released in the coming months. Here are some of the novels I’m looking forward to curling up with on crisp, cool fall evenings:
- Imperium by Robert Harris. Harris returns to Ancient Rome, the setting of his bestselling thriller, Pompeii. This is the first in a trilogy chronicling Cicero’s rise to power. (September)
- The Mission Song by John le Carre. A literary tale of political espionage from the always masterful le Carre. (September)
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy. A father and son scavenge to survive in post-apocalyptic America. Kirkus Reviews is hailing The Road “as a radical achievement, a novel that demands to be read and reread.” (September)
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tuesday august 29
The RITA (Romance Is Treasured Always) Awards were presented at the 26th Annual Romance Writers of America National Conference in Atlanta on July 29. Although they tend to be overshadowed by other more “literary” awards, the RITAs are a big deal in romance publishing circles.
This year’s winners include:
- Romantic Suspense: Survivor in Death by J.D. Robb
- Inspirational Romance: Heavens to Betsy by Beth Pattillo
- Short Historical Romance: The Texan’s Reward by Jodi Thomas
- Contemporary Single Title: Lakeside Cottage (Susan Wiggs)
- Novel with Strong Romantic Elements: Lady Luck’s Map of Vegas by Barbara Samuel
- Long Historical Romance: The Devil to Pay by Liz Carlyle (this book is on order—keep your eye on the catalog, it should show up shortly)
- Paranormal Romance: Gabriel’s Ghost by Linnea Sinclair (this one is also on order)
You’ll find the complete list of winners on the Romance Writers of America website.
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thursday july 20
Thirty-seven years ago, on July 20, 1969, millions of people around the world huddled around their television sets to watch Neil Armstrong’s historic walk on the surface of the moon. Despite the subsequent public accolades and honors, Armstrong—a quiet and intensely private man--has always been somewhat of an enigma. Until 2005, that is, when First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, the only biography to be authorized by the legendary astronaut was published. “Brimming with groundbreaking research, fresh anecdotes, and fair-minded analysis” (New York Times Book Review), James Hansen’s book is a fascinating examination of the life and career of a remarkable man.
Since that day, ten other astronauts have walked on the moon (and there will probably be more to come), but few of us wil forget Neil Armstrong, who had the honor of being first.
wednesday july 12
In 2005, when The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini) was selected as the featured novel for On the Same Page, our staff developed a further reading list in support of the program. At the time, I thought, “Hmm, there are all sorts of really interesting possibilities in here,” but was too busy to pursue it. Well, I’ve finally had the opportunity to dip into the reading list and it’s turned out to be every bit as rewarding as I anticipated. It offers a wide range of titles related to the setting and themes of The Kite Runner-- from examinations of the history of Afghanistan to memoirs and travelogues to novels that limn the ties between friends and family.
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friday june 30
The British novelist
Katie Fforde isn’t a household name here, but in England her engaging romantic comedies have won her a devoted following. I’ve been a Fforde fan since the late 1990s, when I picked up
The Rose Revived, the first of her books to be published in the States. Since then, she’s published a long string of charmers, including
Wild Designs,
Stately Pursuits, and
Second Thyme Around. The heroines of her
new book are Ellie and Grace, spirited thirtysomethings who find romance and the courage to make some dramatic changes in their lives after they decide to fix up a dilapidated mansion Grace inherited from her godmother. Predictable? Well…a little. Entertaining? Absolutely!
monday june 12
Robert Altman’s new movie, A Prairie Home Companion, which opened this weekend, is a warm-hearted, entertaining tribute to the radio show that inspired it. The Lake Wobegon faithful won’t be disappointed!
Garrison Keillor and the Prairie Home Companion cast and crew are coming to Music Hall on November 25 for a live two-hour broadcast. Details about what’s sure to be a hot ticket are coming soon from WVXU.
Although Garrison Keillor is best known for his work as the genial host of the PHC, he’s also written a number of irresistibly amusing novels. Unsurprisingly, a few of these books (Lake Wobegon Summer 1956, Wobegon Boy, Lake Wobegon Days) revolve around residents from the town “where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average,” but others venture further afield.
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wednesday june 07
For four weeks—beginning June 9—football (that’s soccer to Americans) fans around the world will be glued to their television sets watching the
World Cup unfold. You’ve probably heard the World Cup described as the most popular event on the planet, but what exactly does that mean? According to
an analyst for a London firm that buys media space for advertisers, the tournament is expected to attract a television audience of more than five billion. The final match is expected to attract 300 million viewers. (By contrast, 95 million people tuned in to Super Bowl XL.) Now that’s big! Ready to get involved in the hoopla?
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friday june 02
Over the last several months, 124 prominent authors, critics, and editors participated in an informal survey hosted by the New York Times Book Review. Each participant was asked to select “the single best work of American fiction published in the last 25 years.” As NYT columnist A.O. Scott notes in his essay, "In Search of the Best," the selection process raises all sorts of interesting issues. What exactly does “best” mean? Would a different panel of judges come up with the same list of titles? And is it possible to select a single work that best represents the tremendous variety of styles and genres in contemporary American literature?
So which novels came out on top? The winner is Beloved by Toni Morrison and the runners-up are: Underworld (Don DeLillo), Blood Meridian (Cormac McCarthy), Rabbit Angstrom: The Four Novels (John Updike), and American Pastoral (Philip Roth). Other novels that received multiple votes include Housekeeping (Marilyn Robinson), The Things They Carried (Tim O’Brien), and, a personal favorite of mine, The Known World (Edward P. Jones).
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One of the hallmarks of Michael Connelly's hard-boiled police procedurals about LAPD detective Harry Bosch is his meticulous attention to investigative detail. Connelly's understanding of the world of cops and criminals comes through hands-on experience--he worked as a crime reporter for South Florida and Los Angeles newspapers for 14 years. The crime beat influenced his writing enormously (“I could not write about my fictional detective Harry Bosch without having written about the real detectives first. I could not create my killers without having talked to a few of the real ones first.”) and laid the foundation for his work as a novelist.
Crime Beat: A Decade of Covering Cops and Killers, a collection of articles Connelly wrote in the 1980s and 1990s, offers his fans the opportunity to read the stories that inspired some of his plots and characters. It's also a fascinating chronicle of his development as a writer.
On April 26, writers, editors, and other luminaries from the mystery community donned their finest party attire for the annual Mystery Writers of America Gala for “outstanding contributions to various categories of mystery, crime, and suspense writing.” The honorees included:
Check out the Mystery Writers of America website for the complete list of nominees and winners (including Best Short Story, Best Fact Crime, and Best Television Feature/Miniseries).
One hundred years ago, one of the strongest earthquakes on record swept through the San Francisco area and left the west coast’s most vibrant city in ruins.To mark the centennial, NPR produced a series of terrific stories about the aftermath of the earthquake and how the Bay Area is preparing for future seismic events. Take a few minutes to listen to them--I thought they were absolutely fascinating. On the companion website, you’ll find photographs, eyewitness account, oral histories, even a silent film from the Library of Congress archives that was shot on April 18, 1906! And don’t miss these recent additions to our collection:
Who can resist a juicy tidbit of celebrity gossip? Especially when one of the key players in the New York Post's infamous Page Six is in the hot seat for allegedly trying to extort thousands of dollars from a California billionaire.
In honor of the fine art of dish, why not dig in to one of these "juicy" titles from our collection!
Dishing: Great Dish--and Dishes--from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist by Liz Smith. The title says it all!
The First Lady of Hollywood: A Biography of Louella Parsons by Samantha Barbas. A fascinating biography of the gossip columnist who reigned over Hollywood for 30 years.
Dish: The Inside Story on the World of Gossip by Jeannette Walls. A former gossip correspondent for "E" channel offers a fascinating insider's look at five decades of dish.
Fame, Ain't It a Bitch: Confessions of a Reformed Gossip Columnist by A.J. Benza. The "ultimate inside story" from the host of E Television's Mysteries and Scandals.
thursday may 18
Although die-hard grillers don’t think twice about braving sleet, snow (even rain!) in pursuit of a well-prepared steak, the rest of us wait until warm weather arrives before pulling out our trusty Weber Grill. Now that summer is just around the corner, it seems like a good time to spotlight some recent favorites from our cookbook collection:
- Weeknight Grilling with the BBQ Queens by Karen Adler
- The Big Book of Outdoor Cooking and Entertaining by Cheryl Alters Jamison
- New Grilling Book: Charcoal, Gas, Smokers, Indoor Grills, Turkey Fryers, Rotisserie (Better Homes and Gardens)
- Semi-Homemade Grilling by Sandra Lee
- The Cook's Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue
- Peace, Love, and Barbecue: Recipes, Secrets, Tall Tales, and Outright Lies from the Legends of Barbecue by Mike Mills
And of course, loads of terrific recipes and grilling tips can be found on the Web. A good place to start your search is Epicurious.com.
