Book Review - Veil of Night by Linda Howard

I'm a huge fan of Linda Howard's work and I was really excited to read her newest book, Veil of Night. This book was vintage Linda Howard to me. I had concerns about plot similarities to To Die For, which I enjoyed, but this book was completely fresh. The main characters were likable and had definite chemistry, the details surrounding the plot were realistic and there was just the right amount of humor thrown in (with weddings featuring a football theme and a barn, how could there not be a couple of laughs?!?!). This is a great book for anyone who enjoys romantic suspense and this would also be a great introduction to Ms. Howard if you have not read any of her previous books.

Product Description: Jaclyn Wilde is a wedding planner who loves her job—usually. But helping Carrie Edwards with her Big Day has been an unrelenting nightmare. Carrie is a bridezilla of mythic nastiness, a diva whose tantrums are just about as crazy as her demands. But the unpleasant task at hand turns seriously criminal when Carrie is brutally murdered and everyone involved with the ceremony is accusing one another of doing the deed. The problem is, most everyone—from the cake maker and the florist to the wedding-gown retailer and the bridesmaids’ dressmaker—had his or her own reason for wanting the bride dead, including Jaclyn. And while those who felt Carrie’s wrath are now smiling at her demise, Jaclyn refuses to celebrate tragedy, especially since she finds herself in the shadow of suspicion. Assigned to the case, Detective Eric Wilder finds that there’s too much evidence pointing toward too many suspects. Compounding his problems is Jaclyn, with whom he shared one deeply passionate night before Carrie’s death. Being a prime suspect means that Jaclyn is hands-off just when Eric would rather be hands-on. As the heat intensifies between Eric and Jaclyn, a cold-blooded murderer moves dangerously close. And this time the target is not a bride but one particularly irresistible wedding planner, unaware of a killer’s vow.

Audio Book Review - American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson

The first thing that I need to say is that I went into the book adoring Craig Ferguson, so there, I'm admitting my bias up front.

Now on to the review, this is an audio book that both my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to on a recent road trip. Someone had the brilliant idea to let Craig Ferguson read his own memoir and the effect is absolutely perfect, you feel like you are on the journey with him. There were moments when we laughed, he is a terrific comedian, moments when we cheered him on and moments that had me near tears as he talked about his parents and the life that he led while falling deeper into alcoholism. The book is unflinching - it deals with the cliches: sex, drugs (alcohol, as well) and rock' n' roll, as well as the emotional cost of life decisions both good and bad. But, let me remind you, there are tons of moments that will make you laugh out loud (not at him, but with him). My husband and I have had a few discussions about things that this book made us consider in depth. We luckily don't have personal experiences with alcoholism or family members with the disease, but we do feel like it made us better understand some of the obstacles that people who battle with the disease face before they take the steps toward recovery.

In conclusion, I still adore Craig Ferguson (even more, if possible) and I would recommend this book to those who enjoy memoirs, and anyone who likes comedy with heart - this book has it in spades.

Product Description:

In American on Purpose, Craig Ferguson delivers a moving and achingly funny memoir of living the American dream as he journeys from the mean streets of Glasgow, Scotland, to the comedic promised land of Hollywood. Along the way he stumbles through several attempts to make his mark—as a punk rock musician, a construction worker, a bouncer, and, tragically, a modern dancer.

To numb the pain of failure, Ferguson found comfort in drugs and alcohol, addictions that eventually led to an aborted suicide attempt. (He forgot to do it when someone offered him a glass of sherry.) But his story has a happy ending: success on the hit sitcom The Drew Carey Show, and later as the host of CBS's Late Late Show. By far Ferguson's greatest triumph was his decision to become a U.S. citizen, a milestone he achieved in early 2008.

In American on Purpose, Craig Ferguson talks a red, white, and blue streak about everything our Founding Fathers feared.

Book Review - Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin

The Mt Laurel Book Club discussed Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin on August 5th.This book sparked intense, but always friendly, discussion among our members. The premise of the book is engaging. By using factual information about the lives of Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) and Alice Liddell, the author has created a fictional account of the life of Alice Liddell. Alice Liddell, as many of you will know, is the acknowledged inspiration for Dodgson's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The book's focus is on three eras of Alice's life: her childhood with Dodgson, her purported relationship with Prince Leopold in her twenties, and her life as a mother and wife. The author, Melanie Benjamin, does a wonderful job of giving Alice a distinct voice for each of the three ages covered in the book. This was a book that I enjoyed reading and have continued to discuss with friends. It has also kept me on the lookout for more information about these people and the events of their lives.

From Product Description:

Few works of literature are as universally beloved as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Now, in this spellbinding historical novel, we meet the young girl whose bright spirit sent her on an unforgettable trip down the rabbit hole–and the grown woman whose story is no less enthralling.

But oh my dear, I am tired of being Alice in Wonderland. Does it sound ungrateful?

Alice Liddell Hargreaves’s life has been a richly woven tapestry: As a young woman, wife, mother, and widow, she’s experienced intense passion, great privilege, and greater tragedy. But as she nears her eighty-first birthday, she knows that, to the world around her, she is and will always be only “Alice.” Her life was permanently dog-eared at one fateful moment in her tenth year–the golden summer day she urged a grown-up friend to write down one of his fanciful stories.

That story, a wild tale of rabbits, queens, and a precocious young child, becomes a sensation the world over. Its author, a shy, stuttering Oxford professor, does more than immortalize Alice–he changes her life forever. But even he cannot stop time, as much as he might like to. And as Alice’s childhood slips away, a peacetime of glittering balls and royal romances gives way to the urgent tide of war.

For Alice, the stakes could not be higher, for she is the mother of three grown sons, soldiers all. Yet even as she stands to lose everything she treasures, one part of her will always be the determined, undaunted Alice of the story, who discovered that life beyond the rabbit hole was an astonishing journey.

A love story and a literary mystery, Alice I Have Been brilliantly blends fact and fiction to capture the passionate spirit of a woman who was truly worthy of her fictional alter ego, in a world as captivating as the Wonderland only she could inspire.

New Audio Cds in the Young Adult Department!!!

We are now offering Audio CDs in the Young Adult (YA) Department. The following titles are now available:

Demi Lovato: Here We Go Again
Miley Cyrus: Can't Be Tamed
Justin Bieber: My World 2.0
Rihanna: Rated R
Twilight: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
New Moon: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Eclipse: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Glee: The Music, Season One, Volume Two

If you liked The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins...

We have all loved The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and based on how often we get requests for books that are similar, we're guessing that most of you are fans or have one in your household! Hopefully, you'll find a few books that will help you pass the time as you wait for the final installment, Mockingjay, to be released on August 24th. This list incorporates a ton of books that are on different reading levels. All books share a theme or characteristic with Ms. Collins wonderful series. If you have questions about these books (or any others), stop by the YA (young adult) department and ask -- we love to talk about books! :-)

Read-a-likes for The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
Taken by Edward Bloor
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
The White Mountains by John Christopher
The Supernaturalist by Eoin Colfer
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman
Gone by Michael Grant
Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Dr. Franklin's Island by Ann Halam
Worldshaker by Richard Harland
Epic by Conor Kostick
The Giver by Lois Lowery
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
Z is for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
The Storm Thief by Chris Wooding
The Last Book in the Universe by W.R. Philbrick

*This list was adapted from http://www.provolibrary.com/booklists.

NSL Teen Contributed Book Review - Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Review contributed by Alexis K.
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is one of the most moving and empowering novels I have ever read. The main character, Melinda, is a not quite popular soon-to-be freshman who decides to attend a party that irrevocably changes her life. At that party, she is raped by a popular senior after becoming drunk, and spends the entire school year trying to hide that fact, while become a social and academic failure. The pain and fear is only made worse when her best friend begins to date that senior. Everything finally culminates when he tried to rape Melinda again, but this time her screams are heard.

This book should be read by all teenagers, especially females, over the age of 13. It will no doubt change your perspective on life, love, and friendship. The obvious pain of Melinda can make this book seem almost depressing, and much of the content necessitates a more mature audience. I can imagine anyone affected in any way by sexual abuse will be able to connect with the novel on a even deeper level.

Help Clean Marine Mammals in Gulf

Tuesday, July 13th
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Meeting Room
Ages 10 and Up
Registration Required

The North Shelby Library is participating as part of Craft Hope’s Project 8: Gulf Coast Oil Spill. Craft Hope have partnered with The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies, the Audubon Nature Institute, and the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge to assist them in their efforts in caring for and cleaning oiled marine mammals, mostly dolphins, other marine mammals, birds, and sea turtles. They are asking for people who can sew, knit, or crochet to create sets of hand towels and/or wash rags to send. Please join us as we knit some rags to send to the gulf to help.

For more on Craft Hope go to http://crafthope.com

Note: You do not need to know how to knit. We will be using a Knitting Loom with help from an instructor if you don’t already know how.

Also, if you can’t make it, we will be taking donations of rags and washcloths to send to the gulf