A girl goes to meet her friend for a birthday dinner and realizes upon entering the restaurant that she has been gifted with the chance to play out the classic question, “If you could have a dinner people with five people, alive or dead, who would you choose?” She and her motley crew of guests have a night to remember full of love, heartbreak, the reopening of barely closed wounds, and philosophy. I LOVED “The Dinner List,” and am not one to give five star ratings easily. I can see myself re-reading this for ages, recommending it to anyone who asks, and this book having a lasting impact on the world around me.
Three words that describe this book: Heartbreak, Complex, Reconciliation
You might want to pick this book up if: You want something that will pack a big punch emotionally in a small amount of time (It is an under-six-hour audiobook).
-Molly
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share them throughout the year.
I enjoyed reading this adventure-filled travelogue. In the book “Coastal Missouri,” author John Drake Robinson makes it his personal mission, over the course of a dozen or so years, to drive every road in Missouri. Using his own brand of irreverent humor, he regales his readers with what he found, in culture, history and geologic wonder, while on this wild, long-term escapade. I especially appreciated reading his anecdotes about places that I have also visited in the 26 years of being a Missourian.
Three words that describe this book: Adventure, natural, wonders
You might want to pick this book up if: you want to learn more about Missouri history, culture, and geography, and if you enjoy travel adventures.
-Anonymous
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share them throughout the year.
Here we are in November. It has been a crazy month already. Many of us are feeling stressed and holiday prep has barely begun. But November is also a time for self reflection, gratitude, service, community and family as we celebrate Veterans Day (11/11), World Kindness Day (11/13), National Gratitude Month and Thanksgiving (11/28).
All of that makes this the perfect moment for me to have picked up the book “What’s Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service” by Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack. I know that seems like so much of the past, but I still love the show for so many reasons: the fast pace, the inside look at a place I’ll likely never be, and, of course, the incredible characters. (And yes, we do have all seven seasons on DVD.) I also love the idealism expressed in the show and the emphasis on service. Don’t get me wrong — it’s fun reading about the show’s inception, casting process and little tidbits behind the scenes — it is really the service that’s the inspiring legacy of the show. Every cast member had a cause including animal rescue, breast cancer, and prison reform, and they all supported each other in their causes — and still do. Continue reading “Welcome to November”
“Gerald & Elizabeth” is a lesser known novel written by one of my favorite authors, who herself is lesser known. D.E. Stevenson was a Scottish novelist who wrote during the ‘Golden Age’ of British fiction, before, during and for a decade or two after WWII.
This book is set after WWII, and tells the story of two adult siblings who are reunited in London and solve a mystery surrounding one of their births. There’s some intrigue about a diamond mine in South Africa and some light romance. Stevenson has a very distinctive style, she writes in clipped prose without a lot of description. Very clean story telling. It’s not my favorite of hers, but it’s enjoyable.
Three words that describe this book: Gentle mid-century fiction
You might want to pick this book up if: Want something to read that won’t stress you out at all.
-Anonymous
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share them throughout the year.
Here is a new DVD list highlighting various titles recently added to the library’s collection.
“Thelma” – Website / Reviews
In this action comedy, a 93-year-old grandmother who loses money to a con artist embarks on a treacherous journey across Los Angeles to reclaim what was taken from her.
“A Quiet Place, Day One” – Website / Reviews
When New York City comes under attack from an alien invasion, survivors try to find a way to safety in this sci-fi/horror prequel to “A Quiet Place.”
“Oddity” – Website / Reviews
A horror/thriller focusing on a blind psychic who attempts to uncover the dark truth behind her twin sister’s murder using supernatural means.
“The Night Agent” – Season 1 – Website / Reviews
This mystery/thriller series follows a low-level FBI agent who is thrown into a vast conspiracy about a mole at the highest levels of the United States government.
“Twisters” – Website / Reviews
The blockbuster disaster epic returns with whirlwind thrills as Kate and Tyler, rival storm chasers with distinct styles, race to survive a tornado season like no other. Continue reading “New DVD List: November 2024”
There are many basic truths that aren’t always treated as such, but here’s a huge one: people are people no matter where they were born. Another large truth: in the United States, studies show that not only do refugees and immigrants commit crimes at a lower rate than native-born citizens, but they indeed strengthen the economy and the communities in which they live.
As of May 2024, there were 43.4 million refugees worldwide. The United States allowed 100,034 to enter during the 2024 fiscal year. Given the escalating impacts of climate change and war, the number of refugees will continue to grow dramatically. Our capacity for love and empathy ought to do the same.
Here are some recent titles that explore the immigrant and refugee experience and help demonstrate their place within this nation that is itself built on immigrants. Continue reading “Literary Links: Exploring the Immigrant and Refugee Experience”
In the book “The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System,” the main character Shen Yuan dies and is reborn into the same trashy web-novel that he cursed right before he died. Transmigrating into the body of the main villain of the novel, he has to balance changing the story in order to avoid a tragic ending for the villain while still being in character and unraveling the mysteries that were left unwritten.
I liked the book as it was easy to read; being in Shen Yuan’s point of view and inner dialogue made the story funnier than it should have been. Considering the original story he transmigrated into, I love how this book makes fun of the clichés, stereotypes, and tropes that surrounds fantasy harem novels.
Certain parts of the story might lean more into telling instead of showing, but remembering that Shen Yuan has an outsider/reader’s perspective, it makes sense and I didn’t dislike that part as much as I thought. Plenty of likeable characters, and an exciting start for a four-book series.
Three words that describe this book: Funny, rebirth, parody
You might want to pick this book up if: You’re interested in a story set in a fantasy Chinese landscape, with magic and cultivation, and is guided through by the funniest modern-age character as they escape death.
-Daisy
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share them throughout the year.
I really appreciate reading poetry anthologies as they are a good way to be exposed to many poets’ work at one time. I can then follow up on reading more poetry by the poets I liked in the anthology.
Spending time in nature and learning more and more about how to be a good steward with the natural world is near and dear to my heart so finding “You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World” at the library felt a little like discovering a pot of gold. The poems about the natural world in this book were written specifically for this collection and the breadth of insights offered by a very diverse group of poets makes for a wonderful immersion in poetry.
Three words that describe this book: diversity, authenticity, beauty
You might want to pick this book up if: You enjoy poetry and are a nature lover.
-Anonymous
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share them throughout the year.
Below I’m highlighting some nonfiction books coming out in November. All of the mentioned titles are available to put on hold in our catalog and will also be made available via the library’s Overdrive website on the day of publication in eBook and downloadable audiobook format (as available). For a more extensive list of new nonfiction books coming out this month, check our online catalog.
Top Picks
“What the Chicken Knows: A New Appreciation of the World’s Most Familiar Bird” by Sy Montgomery (Nov 5)
For more than two decades, Sy Montgomery — whose “The Soul of an Octopus” was a National Book Award finalist — has kept a flock of chickens in her backyard. Each chicken has an individual personality (outgoing or shy, loud or quiet, reckless or cautious) and connects with Sy in her own way. In this short, delightful book, Sy takes us inside the flock and reveals all the things that make chickens such remarkable creatures: only hours after leaving the egg, they are able to walk, run, and peck; relationships are important to them and the average chicken can recognize more than one hundred other chickens; they remember the past and anticipate the future; and they communicate specific information through at least 24 distinct calls. Visitors to her home are astonished by all this, but for Sy what’s more astonishing is how little most people know about chickens, especially considering there are about 20% more chickens on earth than people. Continue reading “Nonfiction Round-up: November 2024”
Once a year, local volunteers involved in the international Human Library organization come to Columbia Public Library and become “books.” On Oct. 12, titles included “Muslim American,” “young caregiver,” “postpartum psychosis,” “morbidly obese,” “witch,” and more.
What does it mean to be a book? It means during thirty-minute conversations around small tables in the Friends Room, these volunteers open up their lived experiences (some titled crudely to reflect society’s normative labels) for reading. And what does it mean to attend as a reader? It means I take a seat across from someone labeled “convicted felon” and ask them everything I want to know.
First we all agree on some guidelines, because such vulnerability can be dangerous without a collective intention to prioritize curiosity and respect. So I sit with my fellow readers and try to imagine how the next hour is going to feel while a library manager reminds us that this is a brave space for conversation, that all “books” are in mint condition and should be returned the same, that your “book” is a resource for information and should be questioned carefully and freely, that these rules serve to create a safe framework for sharing. Then the books walk in to a soft rush of applause, and it is time to read. Continue reading “I Went to the Human Library”
