Groundbreaking Reads Book Reviews, Week 5

The Victory Club by Robin Lee Hatcher        5 STARS
Four women working in an air base during WWII become friends, each from different backgrounds.  How they bonded together to hep each other and other people is amazing.  I like the book because I can take what I read and apply it to my life.  You don't have to have friends just like you.
-- Reviewed by JD

Spartan Gold by Clive Cussler        4 STARS
Remi and Sam Fargo discover an old Nazi mini-sub, then go on a dangerous journey to a sea cave, another island, France, and Italy, all in a search for Napoleon's cellar.  Bondaruk and Kholkov pursue them.  Bondaruk wants the treasure for himself. The treasure is Karyatid columns covered in gold. Both Bondaruk and Kholkov died in the caves where the Karyatids are located.  Eleven of the lost cellar bottles were found, the last seven in a home.  One of them broke.  I really liked this book, except for the supposed historical references and middle unraveling.  -- Reviewed by SB

Soul of the Samurai translated by Thomas Clearly     3 STARS
This was a translation of Zen/Bushido classic works that showed how Samurai mixed war and Buddhism.  The translator adds extensive commentary.  At times, this enhanced the works, at others it obscured and detracted from them.  As with any commentary, personal philosophy at times overshadows the primary text, while at other times adding vital context.  If you are seriously studying this subject, it's worth the read but less so for the casual reader.  -- Reviewed by NC

Snowfall at Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs     5 STARS
This book tells about how a middle-aged career women goes through the emotional turmoil of divorce and how she triumphs over her divorce to fall in love again.  -- Reviewed by LB

Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry
Patient Zero is my first Jonathan Maberry book, but it certainly won't be my last!  This is the first book in his series featuring Joe Ledger and the DMS (Dept. of Military Science). Ledger is a cop with Baltimore PD and has a long history of being involved in combat situations.  He is recruited into the DMS because of his background and experience.  He soon finds, though, that nothing could have prepared him for the walking dead.  Very well written and compelling.  Highly recommended! -- Reviewed by JC

Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah     5 STARS
A wonderful story about how a bond of sisterhood will help you through tough times, how problems draw you closer together and make you realize your priorities.  -- Reviewed by AM

Desperate Households by Kathy Peel     5 STARS
Kathy Peel is a family manager who shared practical tips for ladies (especially moms) to get various areas of their lives organized, such as morning routines, dinnertime, and cleaning.  I love how she shared true stories of how women transformed their lives by taking small steps -- including herself.  I am in the process of decluttering my home and I found her ten-minute solutions of tackling 1 or 2 things to be quite useful.  I really feel like this book pertains to all women who want to better organize their lives.  -- Reviewed by JS

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness by Kay Redfield Jamison     5 STARS
This book is a memoir of sorts written by Kay Redfield Jamison, who is the leading authority on bipolar disorder.  Her candid wit mixed with her imaginative prose in tandem with her clinical eye for mood disorders is a refreshing break from the humdrum dry manner of other scientific inquiries.  A poet and a scientist, a teacher and a student, Ms. Jamison is them all. Within her memoir she shares her personal realization, struggle, and knowledge on bipolar disorder.  As a psychology major with a love for literature, I view Ms. Redfield's work as a perfect coupling of creative genius with laser-precision science.  A true artist, pioneer, and inspiration.  In my various readings on mental illness, she paints the most vivid, indepth, and accurate depiction I've seen so far.  A must-read for those wanting to understand the complexities and nuances of manic-depressive disorder.  -- Reviewed by SF

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Additions to the August Calendar

Preserving Tomatoes and Salsas - Tuesday, August 6 from 3 to 5 p.m.
Registration Required
Canning tomatoes can be fun and very rewarding.  Guidelines for safely canning tomatoes and salsas from home gardens, revised with current research findings and updated for Wisconsin tomato and pepper varieties, conditions, and elevations, will be discussed and distributed.  These research-tested recipes have been reviewed to ensure safe, high-quality products for the entire family to enjoy!

Participants will also prepare their own fresh salsa to take home and enjoy.  Please bring a cutting board, knife, small container with a lid, and apron.

Workshop instructor if Jenny Wehmeier, Walworth County UW-Extension Family Living Educator and Master Preserver.  There is no fee for this class.  However, the class is limited to 20 people, so please register early!

Dessert and a Movie:  Bucket List (PG-13) - Wednesday, August 7 from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
"You only live once, so why not die with style?"  Corporate billionaire Edward Cole and working class mechanic Carter Chambers have nothing in common except for their terminal illnesses.  While sharing a hospital room together, they decide to make a bucket list of all the tings they want to do before they die.  Then they leave to accomplish their lists, and in the process they heal each other, become unlikely friends, and ultimately find joy in life.  Dessert and a beverage will be provided, as will paper and pencils if you'd like to work on YOUR bucket list!

Fit Kids Achieve Peak Performance - Wednesday, August 28 at 6 p.m.
Registration Required
Want to give your child or teen a leg up on their competitors?  Fueling the body and making healthy choices is an important part of any person's life, especially when they're active.  Learn from Walworth County UW-Extension Nutrition Educator Karie Lutz exactly what your young athlete should be eating according to MyPlate guidelines, and how to fill in gaps with healthy snack choices.  Soon your child will be eating like a champion!

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August 2013 Library Events

Important Summer Reading Program Dates:

August 9 - Finale and last day to track reading time. Reading after August 9 does not count!

August 16 - Last day to turn in reading records

August 17 - Last day prize shop open

August 19 - Grand prize drawings

Tween/Teen For Your Eyes Only - Thursday, August 1 @ 1:30 p.m.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join Agent K and the rest of our covert staff at For Your Eyes Only on 1 August 2013 at 1330 hours.  Be prepared to get your spy on.  This message will cease in 3...2...1... *end transmission*

Tail Waggin' Tutors with Divot - Saturday, August 3 @ 10:00 a.m.

Come to the library and read to a furry friend!  Sign up for a time slot at the Children's Desk.

The main objective of Tail Waggin’ Tutors is to provide a relaxed and dog-friendly atmosphere, which allows students to practice the skill of reading.  This program improves children's reading and communication skills by employing a powerful method: reading to an animal.  But not just any animal.  TDI companions are registered therapy animals who volunteer with their owners/handlers as a team, going to schools, libraries and many other settings as reading companions for children.  By sitting down next to a dog and reading, all threats of being judged are put aside and, instead, the child is able to relax and focus on reading. Reading and communication skills improve because the child is practicing the skill of reading, building self-esteem, and associating reading with something pleasant.  Visit www.tdi-dog.org to learn more. 

And don’t forget to sign up in person at the Children’s Desk or by phone at 262-728-3111 Ext. 117.  Divot and Missy can't wait to meet you!

Board Games - Monday, August 5 - 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Come down to the library for an afternoon of board games!  Snacks and games will be provided.

Cork Journals - Monday, August 5 @ 6:30 p.m. - Registration Required.

What a fun way to capture this summer's memories!  Join us as we make small journals using cork coasters, fun papers, stamps, ribbons, and beads.  We will supply all the materials.  We just need you and your imagination! For age 16 to adult.

Sand Art & Pet Rocks - Tuesday, August 6 @ 1:30 p.m.

Do you love the look of swirled colored sand?  Or maybe you've always wanted a pet, but didn't want the hassle of walking, feeding, or cleaning up after one?  If either of these ring true, then this is the program for you!  Join us to create beautiful works of sand art and/or stony friends that rock.  Or are rocks.  (Yep, that too.)

Family Reads in the Park - Wednesday, August 7 @ 1:30 p.m.

Enjoy the beautiful weather and celebrate in all things reading by joining us at Veteran's Park for Family Reads in the Park!  We'll provide the necessities: books, snacks, and blankets.  Or feel free to bring your own, if you'd like!

Tween/Teen Black Out Poetry - Thursday, August 8 @ 1:30 p.m.

Newspaper/Magazine + Marker = Poetry!  Join us to try your hand at creating blackout masterpieces.

Beatrix Potter Celebration - Friday, August 9 @ 10:00 a.m.

Here at APL, we LOVE Beatrix Potter.  Come help us celebrate how wonderful she is with food, crafts, a game, and stories!

Friends of Aram PL BIG Summer Book Sale - Friday and Saturday, August 9-10

Put yourself into a Delavan Daze when you visit the Friends of APL’s biggest book sale ever!  A preview of selected titles will be offered to members of the Friends group on Friday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.  Saturday morning at 8 a.m., the sale opens up to the public under the tent on the library’s front lawn, and runs until 3 p.m. In addition to a large selection of books, videos, audiobooks, and music, the sale includes book bags, stationery, t-shirts, and more.  Support your local library, find quality reading material and reference books, and discover some outstanding values at the sale of the summer!

Family Movie: James and the Giant Peach (PG) - Tuesday, August 13

Two shows @ 10:00 a.m. & 1:30 p.m.

A young boy escapes from two wicked aunts and embarks on a series of adventures with six enormous insects he meets inside a giant peach.  Snacks will be provided. 

Sign up at the Children's Desk starting Friday, August 9 @ 9:00 a.m.

Family Movie: The Land Before Time (G) - Wednesday, August 14 

Two shows @ 1:30 p.m. & 4:00 p.m.

Five orphan dinosaurs travel in search of the Great Valley, while grieving the loss of their families and banding together to face the odds of survival. Snacks will be provided. 

Sign up at the Children's Desk starting Monday, August 11 @ 9:00a.m.

Family Movie: Holes (PG) - Thursday, August 15

Two shows @ 10:00 a.m. & 1:30 p.m.

As further evidence of his family's bad fortune, a wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where the warden has the inmates digging holes for some mysterious reason.  Snacks will be provided. 

Sign up at the Children’s Desk starting Monday, August 11 @ 9:00 a.m.

Aram Book Club - Wednesday, August 21 @ 6:30 p.m.

Defending Jacob by William Landay

A 14-year-old boy is stabbed to death in the park near his middle school in an upper-class Boston suburb, and Assistant District Attorney Andy Barber takes the case, despite the fact that his son, Jacob, was a classmate of the victim. But when the bloody fingerprint on the victim’s clothes turns out to be Jacob’s, Barber is off the case and out of his office, devoting himself solely to defending his son. Even Barber’s never-before-disclosed heritage as the son and grandson of violent men who killed becomes potential courtroom fodder, raising the question of a “murder gene.” Within the structure of a grand jury hearing a year after the murder, Landay gradually increases apprehension. As if peeling the layers of an onion, he raises personal and painful ethical issues pertaining to a parent’s responsibilities to a child, to a family, and to society at large.

Guilty Pleasures Book Club - Monday, August 26 @ 6 p.m.

Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning

MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death–a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone–Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed–a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae….

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane–an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women–closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book–because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands…. 

Family Reads in the Park - Wednesday, August 28 @ 1:30pm

Summer's coming to an end, so enjoy the beautiful weather and celebrate in all things reading by joining us at Veteran's Park for Family Reads in the Park!  We'll provide the necessities: books, snacks, and blankets.  Or feel free to bring your own, if you'd like!

Comment Cards

Do you have an idea that would make our library better?  We want to hear from you!  Both compliments and critiques are welcome in our Comment Card boxes, located at both service desks.

Groundbreaking Reads Book Reviews, Weeks 3 & 4

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnet     4 STARS
A great classic.  A wonderful story about what  you think you can do. Watch what you think. A great story of the goal of a person they can conquer anything.
-- Reviewed by AM







The Practical Homestead by Paul Heiney
The Practical Homestead  is an excellent introduction to becoming more self-reliant. Being a "DK" book, it is filled with truly excellent illustrations and photos.  This book covers topics as varied as churning butter, rotating crops, and making cheese. Each chapter is devoted to some significant area of homesteading, leading the reader through each step along the way.  Highly recommended!
-- Reviewed by JC

SEAL Team 666 by Weston Ochse
Seal Team 666 is a great combination of military action and horror. Jack Walker is a cadet about to finish his SEAL training when he is recruited into a top secret military outfit.  This organization, the titular SEAL Team 666, is tasked with handling all manner of paranormal threats to the United States. In this book, the team goes up against a truly world-class threat. At times alternately humorous and thrilling, this book would appeal to fans of the X-Files as well as Tom Clancy.
--Reviewed by JC



Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah     5 STARS
This book was a great story about friendship through life's different stages.  The book did a great job capturing the fears and joy of friendship.
--Reviewed by AM

Family Affair by Debbie Macomber     3 STARS
A woman who's been hurt by a divorce meets a man in her apartment building whom she does not trust.  Their initial meeting started with their cats.  I liked how it was entertaining, but I disliked that some of it seemed unreal.
--Reviewed by LJ






Calico Joe by John Grisham     4 STARS
I am more of a mystery/suspense reader, and this book didn't have it.  It was a good story about a father and son.  The father was a pro baseball player who intentionally hit another player in the head.  The story is about the son getting his father to apologize.  I was surprised in the end that the father did apologize.
--Reviewed by MG



Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt     3 STARS
It's about a boy who's born in American and moves at a young age to Ireland. He's Catholic, and extremely poor because of his alcoholic father. It takes place in the 1940's.  It was interesting to read about his life, but also depressing because of the extent of the poverty he endures.
--Reviewed by LJ





The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks  
I enjoyed this book, although not as mush as some of Sparks's other books. The characters, Logan and Beth, are very likable and it is easy to root for them to get together.  The deputy is harder to figure out -- just when you are hating him, the author throws in something to try and make you like him.  A good read that is hard to put down.
--Reviewed by MD


Conspiracy of Kindness by Steve Sjogren     5 STARS
A very different book on evangelism,written for the lay person.  I've never read anything about or heard about this approach.  It is so very simple, requires little money, and brings great results!  "Showing God's love in a practical way . . ." this book makes evangelism easier, nothing to be afraid of.  It's practical, fun to read, and the new way (to do evangelism) is refreshing.  I'm going to give it to the evangelism committee at the church I attend.
--Reviewed by JD

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks     5 STARS
The book is about "The Haggadah," a Jewish book about the Passover feast. The author takes the reader to the different moments of history in which the book survived violence and religious intolerance.  It was an excellent book because the writing style made the topic fascinating and moving.  The changes of times and narrative styles highlighted how, through violent times, there are people who are willing to protect other's religions and artifacts.
--Reviewed by ML




Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanley     4 STARS
This was a fun, easy read.  It's an interesting read as the author tells the story from the viewpoint of various characters.  The characters are very believable and it's easy to root for Bella.  A happy ending where the "bad guys" get what they deserve.
--Reviewed by MD

Groundbreaking Reads Book Reviews, Week 2

Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult     4 STARS
Overall, I enjoyed the book.  It discussed some ideas I never thought about . . . being a celebrity, abuse, Native Americans. But I felt the ending lacked something. -- Reviewed by AM

Book Description from Library Journal:  Anthropologist Cassie Barrett, suffering from amnesia, is rescued from a church cemetery by Native American cop Will Flying Horse, only to be reclaimed by her Academy Award-winning husband, Alex Rivers. A positive pregnancy test triggers memories of abuse at the hand of her star husband, and Cassie turns to Will, who secrets her away in Pine Ridge with relatives for the remainder of her pregnancy term. All of the characters in this book come from dysfunctional families and offer sad tales of childhood contrasted with details of life among Hollywood's rich and famous.

The Complete Illustrated Manual of Handgun Skills by Robert Campbell     3.5 STARS
This book is a serious but not too technical introduction to handguns and their uses for competition, hunting, and defense.  The author is not a gifted writer, but his style becomes easier as you complete the book.  He has a lot of good information and draws from a wealth of experience.

Pros:

• Author is generally fair, with solid advice.
• Excellent look at safety and competition options.
• Advanced tips on hand loading and ballistics make it a lasting reference.
• Balances responsibility and recreation very well.
• Good for both beginners and intermediates.

Cons:

• Illustrations and directions inadequate at times.
• Author mixes good information with rambling passages, requiring a close read.
• Too many pictures that serve no real purpose.

-- Reviewed by NC

Animals Make Us Human by Temple Grandin     5 STARS
This is a great book to read for those who are not only pet owners, but also for people who care about how animals are treated.  This book helps you understand why animals -- pets, farm animals, and animals in the zoo -- act the way they do.  It also discusses human treatment when animals are brought to slaughter houses.  The book is very informative, and an eye-opener of animal behavior, why they act the way they do. I now want to read her other book, Animals in Translation, and I don't read books about animals.  Loved this book!  -- Reviewed by JD

Mr. Midshipman Hornblower by C. S. Forester   3 STARS
Midshipman Hornblower sails on a ship in the early 1800s. He eventually becomes Admiral and is released from a captured prison of Spain.  He is from England and is even shipwrecked halfway through the story.  I did like this story, but it had a lot of sailing terms that I didn't understand too well.  -- Reviewed by SB