No Doors, No Windows

Are you in the mood for a scary story? I just read one that was super creepy. No Doors, No Windows by Joe Schreiber tells the story of the Mast family and the curse they are suffering from. Scott Mast returns to his hometown for his father's funeral and is surprised to discover that his brother Owen is an alcoholic raising a little boy on his own. Scott's ex girlfriend Sonia is still living in town, although she's not happy about it. Scott finds a ghost story written by his father about a creepy old house in the woods that has some connection to the Mast family. Scott feels beckoned to visit this house and discovers a dark, hidden corridor where unspeakable horrors took place.

Faithful Place by Tana French

Faithful Place is a poor neighborhood in Dublin, Ireland. Frank Mackey is a nineteen year old guy waiting for his girlfriend Rosie. They plan to leave Faithful Place and elope to England, but Rosie never shows. Frank is confused and heart broken thinking Rosie changed her mind. So he decides to leave Faithful Place without her to get away from his alcoholic father and his critical mother. Twenty two years later, Frank receives a call from his sister saying that someone found Rosie's suitcase behind a fireplace in an old abandoned house. Reluctantly, Frank goes home to get to the bottom of the mystery of Rosie's disappearance.

I listened to Faithful Place, hoping to get an earful of the Irish brogue, which I did.

Room by Emma Donoghue

I was hesitant at first about reading Room. It seemed pretty dark, and even though I enjoy reading dark fiction, I thought it might be too dark, even for me. But it struck me as such an interesting story, so I downloaded it to my ipod and let the journey begin. Room is the story of a mom and her 5-year-old son Jack being held captive in an 11 x 11 foot space by a man Jack calls Old Nick. Ma and Jack live, eat, play, watch TV, and sleep in this room 24/7. Even though Ma tries very hard to give Jack a normal life under the circumstances, Jack begins to question what's beyond their room and Ma eventually tells him the truth. Room is not a depressing story, although if you you read between the lines of what Ma is saying to Jack, you can feel the horror of her situation. Room also offers a look into the love between a mother and child and the patience, strength and bravery it takes to live a life in captivity while keeping hope alive. Emma Donoghue stated that she was inspired by the true story of Felix Fritzl, a 5-year-old boy and one of seven children born to Elisabeth Fritzl. Elisabeth and three of her children were imprisoned for 24 years by her father in Amstetten, Austria between 1984 and 2008. This story created the spark to write the story of Ma and Jack. The Room is about "a boy's story of courage and love." Emma Donoghue

Busy Moms' Book Club

The Busy Moms' Book Club group meets in Meeting Room B from 10:00 am to 11:00 am.

The group will discuss Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker on Tuesday,
February 8, 2011 and Welcome to the Great Mysteries by Lorna Landvik on Tuesday,
April 12, 2011.

Please ask for a copy at the Adult Services desk on the second floor.
Strollers Welcome!

Mystery Book Club

The Mystery Book Club meets on the third Wednesday of every month at 1:30 pm in the First Floor Meeting Room. New members are always welcome. Books are located at the reference desk on the second floor. Please ask a staff member for a copy.

Here are the 2011 selections:

Jan 19, 2011 The Surrogate Thief by Archer Mayor

Feb 16, 2011 Manslaughter by Parnell Hall

Mar 16, 2011 Killing Floor by Lee Child

Apr 20, 2011 Faithful Place by Tana French

May 18, 2011 Murder on Gramercy Park by Victoria Thompson

Jun 15, 2011 The Stingray Shuffle by Tim Dorsey

Jul 20, 2011 A Conspiracy of Paper by David Liss

Aug 17, 2011 The Dead Cat Bounce by Sarah Graves

Sep 21, 2011 Booked to Die by John Dunning

Oct 19, 2011 A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny

Nov 16, 2011 Body Work by V.I. Warshawski

Dec 21, 2011 A Christmas Grace by Anne Perry

Happy Reading!

Adult Book Club

Hi everyone,

Here is the list of the 2011 selections:

Jan 12 Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran

Feb 9 Bleeding Kansas by Sara Paretsky

Mar 9 Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Apr 13 Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean

May 11 The Soloist by Steve Lopez

Jun 8 The Crescent by Diana Abu-Jaber

Jul 13 Home Safe by Elizabeth Berg

Aug 10 The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Sep 14 A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve

Oct 12 Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan

Nov 9 The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Dec 14 Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler

The group meets on the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. in the board room on the first floor.
New members are always welcome! Hope you can make it!

Objects of Our Affection: Uncovering My Family's Past, One Chair, Pistol, and Pickle Fork at a Time

Objects of Our Affection: Uncovering My Family's Past, One Chair, Pistol, and Pickle Fork at a Time by Lisa Tracy is not the typical book I read on genealogy. I normally look for resources for finding ancestors, you know where they lived, who they married, how many children they had, what they did for a living. I willingly admit the words Pickle Fork did it for me. I had to read this book.

I have in my possession a number of heirlooms handed down through the years from my mother and grandmother. They are priceless in my eyes. I have even argued with my siblings why I needed to be the person to keep these treasures!

Look around your house, see what you have collected from relatives; a bible, photo album, quilt, jewelry, or perhaps your relatives home? Have you ever wondered how your parents or grandparents or another relative came to acquire these items? Why did they cherish the quilt? Was it handmade by another relative? Could it have been a birthday present, wedding present or a baby gift? What was the significance of the present?

I was hooked by the end of the first chapter. I can tell you who gave me my heirlooms, but I really can't tell you HOW my relatives acquired them in the first place. Typical of my genealogy research when one question is answered you have three more.

The story follows the author as she deals with her mother's death and handling her estate. Heirlooms that had been acquired over one hundred years ago, from all over the world, for several of the author's grandparents and great grandparents were stationed all over the world. There was so much furniture, china, dishes, etc., that needed to be gone through. What to keep, what to sell. More importantly, where did all of it come from? The family shares their stories and memories of these heirlooms and materials items that have for so long been in their family.

The author takes us on a journey of finding connections. Finding connections through the history of the items we collect and pass down to our descendants.

As an amateur genealogist who searches for family roots I would highly recommend this book. Through this book, I've discovered that there is much more to my family genealogy than the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins I search for. The whole story includes the heirlooms I been blessed to receive--handmade quilts, the photographs, the jewelry, the books and the history and stories each holds. Happy reading!