A Fond Farewell to 2008 December 31, 2008
Posted by stacey in Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
I really enjoyed parts of 2008. And because it may be almost impossible to have 365 days of sheer joy, I think that’s doing pretty well. Don’t you?
As previously mentioned, I love the lists that come out now: best books, movies, television shows, etc. I also try to abide by the Golden Rule. Put those two things together and I’m able to justify sharing a few of my favorite things too. Just to keep it interesting though, I’ve created a few Wordle pages. Now it’s fun for both of us! I get to share my lists of joy and you can either: 1. look at the pretty pictures, or 2. puzzle out the words/phrases! Win, win! Shall we?
Here are links to my wordle pages for:
Books!
T.V. shows!
Websites!
And a “you rock!” type, shout-out to the fab people in my department!
And 2009? I wish you and yours the best possible new year that could ever be dreamed of…
— Stacey
Don’t judge a book by its target audience December 30, 2008
Posted by Julie in Fiction.Tags: Young Adult
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I’ve always read and enjoyed many a book targeted at age groups other than my own. You can find some gems when you look beyond your usual fare. And of course, there is a list for doing just that! This one is for 2008 young adult fiction that adults would enjoy put together by columnist Angelina Benedetti for Library Journal.
—Julie
The Big Day December 24, 2008
Posted by stacey in Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
I live in a cold, snowy climate. I think a White Christmas is one of the few perks that I should be able to count on for putting up with the blustery weather. But that’s a double-edge sword now isn’t it? Enough new snow to make everything picture perfect can mean it’s hard for travelers, but old snow gets dirty so fast and it’s so unattractive to look at… sigh. So what do I hope for? This year -well, pretty much every year- I hope that Santa brings us all something nice, I hope that everyone is happy and healthy, and I hope for a smashingly snowy morning that sticks only to sledding hills but not to roadways!
Ha! I think I got it all… right? Now I just need Aladdin’s Genie to come my way. I’ll be ready for him and his tricky three wishes! Ooo, maybe that’s my Christmas gift this year? Thanks Santa!! And if I shared one of my wishes, what would you wish for?
Happy Holidays everyone!
— Stacey
Latest Additions December 22, 2008
Posted by stacey in Fiction.add a comment
Can you believe it? It’s mere days until the biggest gift giving occasion of the year. We didn’t want to make you wait for our gift to you. Go ahead. Open one of these books as our early gift to you!
Before the Frost by Henning Mankell
Fractured by Karin Slaughter
I Am Not a Cop! by Richard Belzer
The Gate House by Nelson DeMille
Green Revolution by Ralph McInerny
Netherland by Joseph O’Neill
Rough Weather: A Spenser Novel by Robert B. Parker
The Writing Class by Jincy Willett
White Nights: A Thriller by Ann Cleeves
It’s a nice long list, so there should be something for everyone. We like to be thoughtful that way… Enjoy!
—Stacey
My favorite Christmas book for 2008 December 18, 2008
Posted by Donna in Fiction, Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
My favorite book this Christmas season is Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem by Maya Angelou with illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher. Ms. Angelou first read her poem at the 2005 White House tree-lighting ceremony right after Hurricane Katrina. Now in 2008, Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher collaborated together to create a beautiful children’s picture book showing a young family joining their diverse community of the rich and poor, black and white, and of different faiths to celebrate the holidays peacefully together.
Check out this link for a slideshow on the art of Amazing Peace:
http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/amazingpeace/
Listen to Maya Angelou herself introduce her poem at this link:
Season’s Readings! ~Donna
Holiday Memories December 18, 2008
Posted by Dori in Fiction, Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
I heard a story on NPR this week about a family who has a special collection of holiday books that they take out after Thanksgiving and put away again until the next holiday season.
My family has a similar ritual. Last weekend, I went through the kids’ bookshelves and took out all the holiday and winter books and put them in a special spot. Trying to read one each evening, we started with The Secret Life of Santa Claus by Gregoire Solotariff – a very silly look at some of the funny habits of Santa and his elves. Other favorites include Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel, Christmas Tree Memories by Aliki and Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin. If you need other suggestions, there’s a great list at NPR.
Reading together is a lovely respite from the hectic pace of the holidays and it allows us to revisit old favorites and make new. Not to mention it keeps us warm and toasty on these freezing winter nights!
~ Dori
A List for Mystery Readers December 17, 2008
Posted by Ann in Uncategorized.add a comment
Yet another list of the best for 2008. This is a list for all of you mystery readers- Seattle Times crime-fiction columnist Adam Woog’s picks for best mysteries of 2008.
Seattle Times Best Mysteries of 2008
~Ann
Latest Additions December 15, 2008
Posted by stacey in Fiction.Tags: Latest Additions, The Reading Room
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Shopping getting you down? Why not take a little reading break. And wow, what a coincidence, I just happen to have a list of books you might be interested in!
The Dawn Patrol by Don Winslow
Getting Away is Deadly by Sara Rosett
Hot Mahogany by Stuart Woods
The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb
I Was a Non-Blonde Cheerleader by Kieran Scott
Private by Kate Brian
Airhead by Meg Cabot
Whadda think? Better than shopping? (p.s. books are free at the library. And when you’re done we have a no hassle return policy.) Nice!
Stacey
What a Lovely Time of Year December 12, 2008
Posted by stacey in Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
Sigh. I love this time of year. I love it because you can be as cornball as you want but for now that’s just business as usual. This is when the Hallmark Channel becomes my go-to channel, sappy books pack my reading list, and I might watch the evening news to see stories about people being good to each other.
Another thing I love about this time of year are The Lists. Everyone -and I mean everyone!- seems to have a Best of 2008 list for everything: books, movies, television shows, Broadway shows, songs, albums, famous and not-as-famous people, events, and so on and so on and so on… Fun, right?
I particularly love the endless list of books-what a surprise!- and I thought maybe other people might want to see a few of these lists too. Do you? If you said “yes” you’re in luck, ’cause here they come:
Washington Post’s Best of 2008
New York Times Magazine’s Top Ten
Library Journal’s Best Books 2008
plus School Library Journal’s Best Books 2008
L.A. Times Favorite Books 2008
NPR’s Best Books of 2008
But this is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s comforting -and intimidating at the same time- to know that there are more lists out there and more lists still being written. This will be my challenge to you now, think back over the year and see if you can come up with a list of your own top five or top ten favorite books. You can post your list in the comments, then we can see what’s what. I’m pondering what might be on my list already…
—Stacey
Happy Birthday Melvil Dewey! December 9, 2008
Posted by Donna in Thoughtful Ramblings.add a comment
Who was Melvil Dewey? He was the fabulous man who put Dewey in the Dewey Decimal System.
Born: December 10, 1851
Died: December 26, 1931
American librarian Melvil Dewey invented his famous decimal classification system for books in 1876.
It is used in libraries around the world. Thanks Melvil Dewey for making it easy for us to find books in the library!
He is my American Idol!
~Donna~
