These are some more CDs I’ve been keeping in rotation as I put off replacing the dysfunctional AUX cord in my car. Thanks to the library, I always have an album accompanying me from point A to point B 🙂. What are you listening to in the in-between?
Smino “Luv 4 Rent” (2022)
When to Listen: Embarking on a day you’re not sure you’ll get through (a long shift, a difficult visit, a first meeting); on the way back home, when you remember how most things are survivable (enjoyable, even, when you rely on the people around you and let them rely on you, too).
Feels Like: Coffee in the evening. A good hair day. Telling your friend a sad story, realizing it’s kind of funny (They’re laughing, and now you’re laughing, and it doesn’t really matter why).
Favorite Lyric: “Not too great at relationships / At least I try” (“90 Proof” ft. J. Cole)
From the Artist: “This whole album… it’s about having fun and recognizing your inner love, you feel me? Straight up self-love vibe” (Apple Music). Continue reading “Songs for the In-Between II”
I know fall is close when the chrysanthemums show up for sale, popping their sassy color all over the place. They are a favorite replacement for fading annuals, cone flowers and zinnias that have begun to get a bit raggedy.
Did you know you could save your hardy or garden mums through the winter and tend to them so they revive in spring?
While we treat them as annuals, certain plants grow as perennials in their home countries. And while these autumn mums in pots are not necessarily hardy and won’t have a lot of time to settle, with care you can overwinter them. After they have bloomed, trim them back and plant them in an area of your garden with good drainage and protect them from the thaw/freeze cycle of Missouri’s winters. Uncover them in the spring and as they begin to leaf out, pinch the new growth back to encourage multiple blooms or let them grow as nature intended. Missouri Botanical Gardens offers a care sheet with more details. Continue reading “Recycle That Plant!”
The book “Nimona” is about a girl who wants to become the best villain sidekick ever. The reader quickly finds out there’s more to Nimona than meets the eye, as the character reveals her shapeshifting powers. The relationship between Nimona and the ‘villain’ Ballistar Blackheart is so charming as they warm up to each other. I enjoyed how their struggle against society was portrayed, despite how light that touch was. The setting was also delightful: a medieval futuristic mashup!
Three words that describe this book: Funny, Endearing, Exciting
You might want to pick this book up if: You enjoyed the Netflix animated movie, have fun with graphic novels/comics, like silly puns, love seeing LGBTQ+ representation.
-Anonymous
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share reviews throughout the year.
“The True Love Experiment” is the love story of the year! The main character Fizzy is an effervescent joy! Her unabashed truth-telling and lust-having makes her the juiciest lens with which to view falling in love. So often, I find the female leads to be so reserved and passive and that doesn’t inspire me the way fearless Fizzy does. The main male character Connor is an earnest, wonderful man that a I couldn’t help but also fall for through the eyes of Fizzy.
Author Christina Lauren is an absolute legend when is comes to dynamic connections and emotional expressions. I legitimately highlighted more of this book than I ever have any other book, simply because the prose was so beautiful. Even the spicy parts were gorgeously poetic!
Three words that describe this book: Romantic grumpy/sunshine comedy
You might want to pick this book up if: This book is SPICY and hilarious! Not recommended if you don’t enjoy shocking, crass humor. If you do, this will be an absolute delight!
-Anonymous
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. We will continue to share reviews throughout the year.
The first time I read “The One and Only Ivan” it upset me. I grew up spending many, many hours watching Ivan the gorilla at the B&I shopping center in Tacoma, Washington. My grandfather would take me on errands with him, then get himself a coffee and each of us a donut, so we could sit with Ivan for a while before going home. I read all the articles pasted on the walls, saw all the photos, and mostly just enjoyed my time with Ivan. Even as a small child, I knew he didn’t belong there.
Ivan was such a character. Some days he just sat around doing nothing. Other days he threw me balls, wiped boogers on the glass, made faces and played. The days he was quiet I was incredibly sad for him, but the days he was active are some of my happiest memories. He placed his hand on the other side of the glass from mine many, many times. I like to think he recognized us, but that may be a pipe dream. As an adult, I have a sense of guilt about enjoying his captivity as much as I did. I wasn’t the one that captured him. I never teased him, and I always loved him, but I still sat there and enjoyed seeing him. Was that wrong? Probably, but as a child, even though I knew better, my NOT watching him would not have freed him. It’s an eternal dilemma.
My childhood created a lifetime fascination with gorillas. I recently purchased prints of a few of Ivan’s paintings. Upon their delivery, I fell down a rabbit hole of research. This is not the first time I’ve fallen down this particular Ivan deep dive, but it did lead me to reread this book. Having a bit of distance made me more appreciative.
This book upset me the first time I read it because it painted Ivan in abject misery. I didn’t want that to tarnish my happy memories of him. But that’s selfish. How could he have been happy there? I was complicit in his captivity, and although I could have done nothing about it, I can’t be pleased with my nostalgia. Author Katherine Applegate first made me feel guilty, then made me think. That made me mad at first, but isn’t that what good writing is supposed to do? Especially with literature aimed at youth? Continue reading “Reader Review: The One and Only Ivan”
Here is a new DVD list highlighting various titles recently added to the library’s collection.
“The Last of Us”
Season 1
Website / Reviews
After a global pandemic destroys civilization, a hardened survivor takes charge of a 14-year-old girl who may be humanity’s last hope. This television series brings the acclaimed video game to life, painting a grim vision of the future of humanity — and the lives of those who would risk everything to save it. Continue reading “New DVD List: The Last of Us & More”
Want a little color for your summer outfit or an upcoming gathering? Paint, decorative paper and a little Mod Podge will provide that bling! Join us on Monday, August 21 at 6 p.m. as we Crafternoon at night. Your imagination is the only limit, so come prepared to paint and decorate away. All supplies provided. This program is for adults and registration is required — register early as these classes fill quickly.
For more ideas on DIY bracelets, check out these library resources. You can also explore CreativeBug, which is our database on arts and crafts activities. You can view tons of creative jewelry ideas with instructional videos, on everything from wire-wrapping to beading to leathercrafts, and more are added monthly! You will need your library card and pin (your birthdate in MMDDYYYY format) to use this database.
Stay tuned for our September Crafternoon in our program guide, on our website and on social media!
What book combines the obscure art of horse diving, otherworldly hauntings, unusual animals, World War I veterans and Wild West shows, all taking place under the long shadow of Manifest Destiny and racial segregation in America? Look no further than this year’s One Read book, “When Two Feathers Fell From the Sky” by Margaret Verble. The novel, Verble’s third, is a wildly entertaining but also compassionate examination of the treatment of those on the margins of society in early 20th century America, a time when the tenets of a humanistic progressivism were all too slowly supplanting long-held beliefs about race and gender.
In her other novels, “Maud’s Line,” “Cherokee America” and “Stealing: A Novel” Verble does not shy away from offering entertaining narratives and characters alongside unsparingly realistic narratives about the displacement, violence and marginalization aimed at Native Americans in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century. Verble herself is a registered member of the Cherokee Nation, and each book asks one overarching question: What is it like to be a member of a nation of people, with immense territory and a complex and advanced civilization, and to have all of that stripped away by an often violent, racist and land-greedy government? Continue reading “Literary Links: One Read Author Margaret Verble”
“A Cosmology of Monsters,” Shaun Hamill’s debut novel, is an instant horror classic. The book is a perfect mix of creature-feature horror and a dark, modern fairy tale. The story keeps the reader guessing — just when you think it’s going one way, the story zags in a whole different direction. Yet, the narration is always easy to follow and neither the pacing nor tension ever slacken. Fans of Eldritch Horror will enjoy all the references to H.P. Lovecraft’s short fiction.
Be advised, possible content warnings include: Suicide, mental health, and an adult/minor relationship. There are also a couple of sex scenes. If the story were a film, I’d give it an R-rating. Although the book deals with dark, disturbing subject matter, these subjects are not described with explicit language or overly gory detail. In fact, the juvenile nature of Hamill’s prose is my only complaint about this book. I often felt like I was reading a YA novel right up until the content reminded me that I was in fact not. “A Cosmology of Monsters” is an unpredictably thrilling novel, perfect for fans of the fantasy/horror genre.
Three words that describe this book: Exciting, Clever, Creepy
You might want to pick this book up if: You’re in the mood for a good horror novel.
-Joe
This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. Submit your own book review here for a chance to have it featured on the Adults Blog.
I have really been struggling with food and cooking lately. It’s not that I don’t love food (because boy do I love food!) but I just can’t seem to get the energy or inspiration to cook. Maybe it’s the heat. Or maybe I’m just bored with the same five things I’ve been making forever. But I’m hungry. And I’m not sure exactly what I’m hungry for. Connection? Community? Comfort? Curiosity? I need inspiration but I just find it difficult to sit down and read a cookbook. I need stories. So here goes my quest for food inspiration through memoirs. Continue reading “Tasty Memoirs”
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