Did you know the library offers a deal for movies on Thursdays?? It’s 2 for $1 day! It’s good in both the Children’s Room and the AV room so take some of each.

Spread the word! The best deal in town got even better on Thursdays.

Deb

Members of the library staff have been spending the last year reading books relating to various genres, so that we can help suggest the perfect books for you to read! This last month, we read novels that take place in New England. Here is a sampling:

• Staff Pick: The Last Hurrah by Edwin O’Connor
  Hardcover, Paperback, Feature Film
  This novel, loosely based on the life of Boston mayor James Michael Curley, tells the story of a longtime mayor in an unnamed East Coast city, his attempt for re-election, and the end of a political era.
  readalikes: All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren, The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides, The Rascal King by Jack Beatty, All Souls by Michael Patrick Macdonald
• Doreen’s Pick: The Good House by Ann Leary
  Hardcover, Paperback, Large Print, Audio CD, Playaway
  Hildy is a real estate agent and a recovering alcoholic dealing with small town life in the fictional town of Wendover, Massachusetts.readalikes: The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
• Jeanette’s Pick: The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King
  Hardcover, Paperback, Large Print, Audio CD, Español, русский
  While hiking in Maine and wanting some peace away from her brother and mother, Trisha gets lost in the woods. All she has for company is her walkman radio and she spends the time listening to Red Sox broadcasts, featuring her the exploits of her favorite player, closer Tom Gordon. A must for late 1990’s Red Sox fans, devoted listeners to Joe Castiglione, and anyone who knows the Giant Glass jingle by heart.
  readalikes: False Memory by Dean Koontz, The Empty Chair by Bruce Wagner, She Walks these Hills by Sharyn McCrumb
• Gerry’s Pick: Still Alice by Lisa Genova
  Original I-Universe edition, Simon and Schuster edition, Large Print, Audio CD
  Fifty year old Alice Howland, a Harvard professor, finds her life changed when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Lisa Genova is a native of Waltham.
  readalikes: The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks
• Laura’s Pick: Revere Beach Boulevard by Roland Merullo
  Hardcover
  Father Dom of Revere recounts four days in the life of the Revere based Imbesalacqua family, through the voices of the family members and their extended associates.
  readalikes: The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, Mystic River by Dennis Lehane
• Laura’s Pick: My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger
  Hardcover, Paperback
  Three friends from Brookline, TC, Augie, and Alejandra, write about their ninth grade year. The book is written in alternating viewpoints and features e-mails, diary entries, as well as traditional narratives. Fun fact: TC’s full first name is Tony Conigliaro.
  readalikes: P.S. Longer Letter Later by Paula Danziger and Ann M. Martin, Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan
• Louise’s Pick: Peyton Place by Grace Metalious
  Original 1956 edition, Hardcover (contains Return to Peyton Place), Paperback, Feature Film, Television Show
  This is the classic soap opera novel, detailing the lives of Peyton Place, a fictional New England town.
  readalikes: The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy, Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann, Empire Falls by Richard Russo, The Beans of Egypt, Maine by Carolyn Chute, Colony by Anne Rivers Siddons
• Maureen’s Pick: Run by Ann Patchett
  Hardcover, Paperback, Large Print, E-book, Audio CD, Playaway, Downloadable Audiobook
  Two young men, adopted as babies, and named Tip and Teddy by their political father, have an encounter with their birth mother, when she pushes Tip out of the way of an oncoming vehicle on a snowy night in Boston.
  readalike: Digging to America by Anne Tyler
• Anne’s Pick: The Headmaster’s Wife by Thomas Christopher Greene
  Hardcover, Large Print
  Arthur Winthrop, a headmaster of a prestigious boarding school in Vermont, is found wandering naked in Central Park in New York City.
  readalikes: Lost in the Forest by Sue Miller, The End of the Point by Elizabeth Graver
• Anne’s Pick: The Daring Ladies of Lowell by Kate Alcott
  Hardcover, Large Print, E-book, Audio CD, Playaway, Downloadable Audiobook
  Alice Barrow works at a Lowell mill in 1832 and becomes involved with the mill owner’s son. Everything is thrown into array, though, when her best friend is found murdered.
  readalikes: The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman, Triangle by Katharine Weber
• Anne’s Pick: The Chatham School Affair by Thomas H. Cook
  Hardcover, Paperback, Large Print
  In 1926, two teachers from a private school in Chatham begin a torrid affair which leads to murder!
  readalikes: An Educated Death by Kate Flora, Deception by Denise Mina
• Anne’s Pick: City in Amber by Jay Atkinson
  Hardcover
  This is the story of Lawrence and its residents, as told over a 100 year period.
  readalikes: The Girl in the Italian Bakery by Kenneth Tingle, Bread and Roses, Too by Katherine Paterson

(Michael Dwyer/AP Photo, image from abcnews.com)

One year ago today, I was at the Red Sox game with my father and my good friend getting very excited about a walk off win. My father and I, still ecstatic about the game, walked over to Kenmore Square to cheer on the Marathon runners. Suddenly I saw police officers run towards Commonwealth Avenue, which was followed by a mysterious text from my friend (who had left the area after the game), asking, “You didn’t go to the finish line, did you?” When I answered that I was on the marathon route in Kenmore, she said, “Good. Did you hear about the explosion? Be safe!” Eventually, the race was stopped in the Kenmore area, and we were evacuated, instructed by emergency personnel and National Guard to walk away, not towards Downtown, and to stay away from Beacon Street in Brookline for several blocks. Walking through Brookline, we heard different stories about explosions, then bombs in Copley Square, a fire at the John F Kennedy Library in Dorchester, and various threats in the city (thus the evacuation of parts of Beacon Street). It wasn’t until I got home, that I heard the actual facts, there had been two bombs at the finish line, and that the other stories were either not related or not credible. As mildly confusing as my day had been, I could not (and still can’t) imagine the horror of those directly impacted and what they must be going through today. If you are reflecting on the first anniversary, here are some relevant resources.

• Our Marathon: The Boston Bombing Digital Archive & WBUR Oral History Project
  This comprehensive project, spearheaded by Northeastern University and WBUR, puts together a collection of photos, memorabilia, text messages, and oral histories about the bombing and related events (such as the Shelter in Place order). Users are encouraged to share stories and related objects at the site.
• Dear Boston: Messages from the Marathon Memorial
  This exhibit at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square runs through May 11 and features items left at a makeshift memorial near the site of the bombings. The Boston Public Library will also be hosting a series of events to commemorate the one year anniversary.
• #BostonBetter
  This site, a project of various museums, libraries, and archives, including Gore Place in Waltham, offers a variety information on resources and events.
• Boston Athletic Association Press Room
  The Boston Athletic Association (BAA), sponsor of the Boston Marathon, outlines important news updates on its site, including safety and security information for those attending the race. You can also check results and a course map on the BAA Marathon site.
• Stronger: Fighting Back after the Boston Marathon Bombing by Jeff Bauman with Brett Witter
  The photo of Jeff Bauman in a wheelchair and getting helped by Carlos Arrendondo, who lost both his legs in the bombings, became a symbol of the marathon bombing. Reserve his book at the library.
• Long Mile Home: Boston under Attack, the City’s Courageous Recovery, and the Epic Hunt for Justice by Scott Helman and Jenna Russell
  This book, researched by Boston Globe reporters, gives extensive detail about the marathon bombings, and the subsequent aftermath, including the manhunt and the Shelter in Place order. The coverage led to the Globe winning the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting
• 4:09:43 : Boston 2013 through the Eyes of the Runners by Hal Higdon
  This is an oral history of the 2013 Boston Marathon told by the runners to a contributing editor of Runner’s World

posted by Laura