Credits

Maya Angelou 1928-2014

“Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with shades of deeper meaning.” I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

What a voice Maya Angelou provided us for so many years. We are sad to learn of the death of this poet (and so much more) who inspired so many. If you would liked to be introduced to or revisit her works you can select from the following titles available from our collection:

All God’s children need traveling shoes

All God’s children need traveling shoes [electronic resource]

Amazing peace: A Christmas poem

Celebrations: Rituals of peace and prayer [sound recording]

Celebrations: Rituals of peace and prayer [electronic resource]

The complete collected poems of Maya Angelou

The complete collected poems of Maya Angelou [electronic resource]

Even the stars look lonesome

Gather together in my name

Great food, all day long : cook splendidly, eat smart

Great food, all day long : cook splendidly, eat smart [electronic resource]

Hallelujah! The welcome table: A lifetime of memories with recipes

The heart of a woman

The heart of a woman [electronic resource]

I know why the caged bird sings

I know why the caged bird sings

I know why the caged bird sings

I know why the caged bird sings

I know why the caged bird sings [electronic resource]

I know why the caged bird sings [sound recording]

I shall not be moved

King, a musical testimony [sound recording]

Letter to my daughter

Letter to my daughter [electronic resource]

Madea’s family reunion [videorecording]

Mom & me & mom

Mom & me & mom [electronic resource]

Mom & me & mom [electronic resource]

Mother : a cradle to hold me

Phenomenal woman: Four poems celebrating women

A song flung up to heaven

A song flung up to heaven

Soul looks back in wonder

Wouldn’t take nothing for my journey now

Posted by Lisa

This Week’s Best Seller Lists — May 25, 2014

Here are links to the best seller lists for the week of May 25, 2014

What’s the Staff Reading? (or watching or listening)

As you prepare for the long weekend, check out what some members of our staff are reading or enjoying from our DVD collection:

  • Lisa: “I just read the Dairy Queen series (YA): Dairy Queen, The Off Season and Front and Center. They were fabulous!”
  • Gerry C.: Gerry is listening to Missing You by Harlan Coben and W is for Wasted by Sue Grafton. “Coben doesn’t disappoint!” Gerry is also reading The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism by Naoki Higashida.
  • Laura: “I just finished The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh, a great suggestion from my co-worker, Nancy D! I also recently read Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, a YA/adult hybrid about a fan fiction writer navigating her way through her freshman year of college and family struggles. I just started Kay Thompson: From Funny Face to Eloise by Sam Irvin, a biography of the author of my favorite children’s series.”
  • Virginia: “Here’s what I just finished reading:
    • Field of Prey John Sandford’s 24th ‘Prey’ series featuring Minnesota police investigator Lucas Davenport. It was like all of his books a non-stop read but it is a little grisly so reader beware.
    • Finding Me the true story by Michelle Knight who was kidnapped & held prisoner in a Cleveland neighborhood for 11 years. It pulls no punches & is extremely violent. But it is also enlightening as to how much a person can go thru yet remain hopeful that the bad times will finally end & good will survive.
    • Daniel Palmer’s thriller Desperate. I couldn’t put it down. An Arlington Mass. couple arrange for a young. woman to bear them a child but then something goes terribly wrong. The narrator actually works in Waltham. I finished this in one day. There is a totally unexpected twist at the ending which will leave you saying “Wow!”.
    • Girl at the End of the World by Elizabeth Esther, a true story about a woman who was raised in a Christian cult & the religious abuse she suffered. Even after she left the cult the teachings haunted her & controlled her life. This is about her liberation from a cruel background which she had to fight to overcome.
  • Pat O: Pat is almost finished with North of Boston by Elisabeth Elo. “It’s a good story with lots of local color.”
  • Janice: “My most recent read was The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel. This was the basis for the movie-fascinating story of the little-known near loss of art pieces during WWII.”
  • Jacquie: Jacquie is reading The Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline.
  • Libby: Libby has just read Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara, just watched Going Postal and is listening to the music CD The Outsiders by Eric Church.
  • Paula: Paula recently read The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian, a historical mystery taking place in 1943 Italy.
  • Marie: Marie has recently shared that she will be re-reading her favorite book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
  • Nancy D.: “I am currently reading My Name is Resolute by Nancy E. Turner.”
  • Maureen: Maureen just finished reading The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh and is currently reading The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman. She is listening to The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult on Playaway and just finished listening to The Ripper by Isabel Allende, courtesy of our digital media catalog!

How the School Reading list Became My Must Reads

I didn’t think I liked YA fiction. I took a class on it in library school and didn’t like many of the books we read. However, the library recently ordered over 100 digital items (downloadable electronic books and audiobooks) from the high school’s Summer Reading lists. These items become available to Waltham patrons through our digital catalog the day after they are purchased. However, we also enter them into our entire catalog so that people can know their different options (print, audiobook, downloadable e-book, and/or downloadable audiobook) when they search for a title. This has been my job for the summer reading items. My reaction to the descriptions of multiple of the realistic fiction titles has been “Ooh, I might have to read that.” Even though my teens were half my lifetime ago, the experiences of and challenges faced by the protagonists in these stories speak to issues I have faced and/or continue to face. I have already stayed up too late reading a couple of them.

If you want to try these or other items from our digital collection you will need to sign in with your card number and PIN number. If you don’t have a PIN already you can set it up through the Minuteman catalog or ask a staff member to assist you. **Note: It is best to sign in right when you enter the digital catalog because many of the items on the list are only available to Waltham patrons and you will not see them listed until you sign in.

Posted by Lisa

This Week’s Best Seller Lists

Here are the links to the best seller lists for the week of May 18, 2014.