This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 44

21 by Adele
Although 21 came out in 2011, it’s one of those albums that you could listen to over and over again without complaint. No matter how many times you hear any song on the disc, the lyrics still move you and the melodies replay themselves in your head long after you’ve finished listening. I recently put it back in my CD player after having given it a rest for a couple of months and I’m wondering why I ever took it out in the first place. Not only does this album contain number one hits such as “Rolling in the Deep”, “Set Fire to the Rain”, and “Someone Like You”, but it also includes songs like “Take It All” and “One and Only”--hidden gems that, had they been released as singles, would have also topped the charts. Adele combines soul and rock in a way that puts her into her own unique category. This album is one that can be enjoyed by everyone no matter what type of music genre you prefer. I highly, highly recommend that you give it a listen. It’s definitely worth it. And it’s available at Acorn and through SWAN.

-Donna D., Reference

A Few of My Favorite Things…
Muppet Christmas Carol.  Gonzo, singing rats, Tiny Tim in polliwog form!

Elf.  ‘Nuff said.

Ref, The.  Denis Leary warming the cockles of cynics’ hearts with love and cursing.

Rudolph.  Just a misfit…Aren’t we all?  Let your nose glow!

Yule really, really love Love Actually.  Okay, I cheated.  Y’s are hard.

Christmas Vacation.  Oh, cousin Eddie…we love you, dickey and all.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  May all your hearts grow three sizes this holiday.

Ralphie and A Christmas Story.  Fra-Gee-Lay…it’s Italian, don’t ya know?

It’s a Wonderful Life.  You’ve all touched more lives than you realize.

Scrooge.  Alastair Sim owns this one…but McDuck is in the running!

To…

My new friends who’ve made me feel welcome and at home at…

Acorn Public Library this past year…

Season’s Greetings and Happy New Year!

And, whether your family is far or near,
At this most festive time of the year,
Stop, look around and be filled with cheer,
That none of them, not one of them, can be found here.

- Danielle, Tech Services


Christmas Tales by Charles Dickens
It has long been a tradition of mine to observe each passing Christmas by reading from Dickens’s Christmas Tales.  The obvious must-read in this collection is “A Christmas Carol,” but I would also encourage you to read two of his lesser-known works: “What Christmas Is as We Grow Older” and “A Christmas Tree,” both of which are short, powerful reflections on the Christmas season and what it means to us.  These pieces are somber, beautifully written essays that become more meaningful to me every year I read them.  If you hold Christmas dear in your heart, enjoy Dickens’s writing style, and have 15 to 30 minutes, I highly suggest you read these two selections. Christmas Tales can be found at Acorn or through SWAN. “What Christmas Is as We Grow Older” and “A Christmas Tree” are also freely available online.

-Zach, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 43

Detroit: An American Autopsy by Charlie LeDuff
In preparation for this month’s Barcodes Nonfiction Book Club, I read this account of Detroit’s decline into poverty. It is written from the point of view of Charlie LeDuff, a reporter who was born in Detroit, moved to New York to write for the Times, but “like salmon that swim upstream,” he returned home even though he knew of the terrible condition of his city. He tells many stories related to Detroit’s history, including that of Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick who was sentenced to twenty-eight years in prison just last month for extortion, bribery, and fraud. Not only does LeDuff recount the dilapidated, burnt condition of the homes, churches, and other various buildings, but he also tells of the broken-down Detroiters living there. While this isn’t a happy story by any means, he also demonstrates the resilience of Detroit’s people. He writes in such a way that you really feel connected to these individuals. His style is a no-holds-barred tell-all that leaves me genuinely interested to see what what the future of Detroit will hold.

-Donna D., Reference

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty
Set in Australia, this novel begins by introducing the lives of three different women who live in the same vicinity of each other. One of the women, Cecilia, finds a letter from her husband to be opened by her in the event of his death. However, even though her husband is very much alive and asks her not to open it, Cecilia finds it difficult to resist the temptation. What she finds changes her life and the lives of the other two women whom she hardly even knows.

At first I found it a bit confusing trying to keep up with who is who, as there are many characters introduced early on in the book. However, once I had a grasp on the three different storylines, I found the connections between all of them quite intriguing. The story as a whole quickly grabbed my attention, and I found myself trying to read faster so that I could find out what happened next. I highly recommend this book as a very enjoyable read and something that will keep you guessing until the end. This book can be found at Acorn or through SWAN.

-Lynn, Reference

Film
Movie lovers.  Cinephiles.  Film buffs.  Whatever we may be called, we all have one thing in common, the love of darkness and sticky floors!  No, wait, that’s not it.  I meant the love of those magical projections of light that have the power not only to entertain but to reach into our deepest depths, take what they find there and tear it asunder or, perhaps, gently ease it into the light or, on occasion, send it soaring to the heavens.  We, quite simply, love movies.

Now, everyone has favorites.  Mine, quite obviously, is Smurfs 2: Revenge of Smurfette.  (I kid.)  I never really could pick just one so, instead, I’m going to talk about another, perhaps even greater love…the making of movies.

An excellent and almost all-encompassing place to start is The Story of Film: An Odyssey.  This fifteen-hour (yes, you read that correctly…this rec is coming from someone who’s watched multiple Ken Burns documentaries as well as the seventeen-hour History of Britain!) chronological tribute to one man’s love of film takes you from the very beginning of film to the digitally recorded and increasingly unreal worlds of modern cinema.  I was absolutely enthralled by this documentary with a slight lull in my enthusiasm as we entered the 1970s and slogged through to the 1990s.  After that, things again brightened as we considered the future of cinema all the way to the 2040s.  So, yes, an odyssey it is but one well worth undertaking.

After you’ve finished your master class in film history, you’re ready for the nitty-gritty of building dreams with light.  Tales from the Script gives you the writer’s often missing perspective on the world of film. Directors: Life Behind the Camera gives voice to a multitude of directors on their individual visions and how they bring them to life.  Visions of Light explores the art of cinematography, where the flesh and light become one.  The Cutting Edge (alas, not the ice skating movie…and, unfortunately, available only through inter-library loan) celebrates the often misunderstood importance of editing as the ultimate device to breathe life into the stories we all love to lose ourselves in.  The last stop on our journey is Side by Side (available at Acorn) where the future of film in a digital age is dissected and discussed and where we are given hope that our beloved medium will not soon perish from the world.

- Danielle, Tech Services

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
If you are a fan of CBS’s hit sitcom, The Big Bang Theory, there is a very good chance you will enjoy Graeme Simsion’s hilarious and heartwarming novel, The Rosie Project. The book’s narrator and protagonist is Don Tillman, a 39-year-old genetics professor whose social awkwardness, lack of empathy, emotional shortcomings, and rigid need for rules and routine (think Big Bang’s Sheldon Cooper) are more likely to be clear indicators of an undiagnosed autism spectrum disorder rather than just cute personality quirks. With his 40th birthday soon approaching and still unmarried, Don embarks on the Wife Project, creating a 16-page, double-sided questionnaire that will connect him to the perfect woman. Unfortunately, the young, beautiful, and free-spirited woman he meets through the project, Rosie Jarman, is totally unsuitable; yet he struggles to understand why he can’t tear himself away from her, even going so far as to assist her with discovering her biological father. While I don’t typically read romantic fiction, I was truly moved as Don slowly realizes that he has strong feelings for Rosie. Think of The Rosie Project as Sheldon Cooper finds love and you will have a good idea of what this book is like. The Rosie Project can be found at Acorn or through SWAN.

-Zach, Reference

The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
I've been enjoying  the twists and turns of The Talented Mr. Ripley. Tom Ripley, a man of humble stock, grand ambitions, and one seriously discombobulated moral compass, insinuates himself into the graces of the Greenleafs, a wealthy New York family. They enlist Tom to persuade their son Dickie--lolling dissolutely as an aspiring artist in Italy--to return home in order to live as a proper scion. What happens when Tom's greed, fragile ego, and gaggle of personality disorders meet Dickie's haughty carelessness? Go to Acorn's shelves to find out!

-Megan, Reference

Patron Review: Dear White America by Tim Wise

Do white Americans benefit from white privilege?  Recently I was in group that was asked that question. Amazingly, or maybe not, one participant said that she has never so benefited.  This book is for her and others like her.

As Jim Wallis of Sojourners recently emailed me, America has been built by enslaving one race and ethnically cleansing another.

Tim Wise points out that whites have pretty much been able to go to school where ever each chooses, buy a house in most neighborhoods, get a mortgage at a somewhat reasonable rate, or go to another source to get a better rate, enroll in any college for which one has the funds and the test scores, and some even have the connections to get a good job with great benefits, when one has only mediocre abilities.

Regarding immigration, consider that our government passed NAFTA in 1993, for the benefit of multinational corporations.  “Since then, U.S. companies have flooded Mexico with agricultural goods (to the benefit of the U.S. farmer), which have driven down prices in Mexico, such that Mexican farmers cannot compete.  This causes Mexican farmers to leave rural areas for cities, but finding the labor market there glutted, they move farther North to support their families—as any of us would do, were we in their shoes.  In other words, to whatever extent migrants are crossing the border and thereby (ostensibly) taking other people’s jobs, it is only because the economy of Mexico has been considerably undermined by the policies of our country.” (Page 95).

I encourage all to read this letter and to become informed of the simmering racism that pervades the United States.

-Janice Gintzler, Acorn patron

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 42

Gobble Gobble Gobble
Twas the night of Thanksgiving and all through the house,
Relatives were screaming cuz Grandma saw a mouse,
That’s not a mouse, you crazy ol’ bat…
That’s Hannah and Her Sisters’ scrawny ol’ cat!
I can’t believe we’ve got to stay here for another two days,
Screw you and your “Ooh, let’s go Home for the Holidays!”
Now, honey, please calm down, let’s see What’s Cooking,
Oh, good lord, why is there fuzz on Aunt Polly’s plum pudding?
Cuz they’re trying to kill us! They’re nuts! I told you last year,
But, nooooo, you said, “That’s just crazy talk, dear.”
Now, go check the computer, there have to be some travel deals,
Please, I’ll take anything…Planes?  Trains?  Automobiles?
Honey, here, sit down, let me get you a drink,
They’re really not so bad, well, not as bad as you think,
You just need to give them a chance, you’ve got to be willing…
Willing?  Me?  Willing?  Come here, sweetie, it’s time…

…for a little Thankskilling!

- Danielle, Tech Services

The Bones of What You Believe by Chvrches
Hailing from Glasgow, Scotland, Chvrches (i.e., Churches with a “v” instead of a “u”) have crafted a synthpop masterpiece in their debut album, The Bones of What You Believe. I enjoyed this album so much that I quite honestly could not remove this album from my CD player. The songs are catchy to the point of infectious, and the energetic dance-inspired beats and the ethereal vocals are perfectly offset by the reflective, oftentimes melancholy, lyrics. Think Passion Pit, M83, Depeche Mode, and 80s-influenced electropop to get a general impression of what this band sounds like, but I suggest you check it out on your own if you have even the slightest interest in this music scene. The songs “The Mother We Share,” “We Sink,” and “Lies” come highly recommended as possible entry points. Put a hold on a copy today through SWAN.

- Zach, Reference

Golden by Lady Antebellum
The fourth album released by country group Lady Antebellum, Golden is an excellent mix of fun, upbeat songs as well as some slower ballads, all of which are great to sing along to. Even though the album has been out since May of this year, there are quite a few hits on the CD that have yet to be played on the radio. “It Ain’t Pretty” is my new personal favorite, but others such as “Better Off Now (That You’re Gone)” and “Can’t Stand the Rain” are quite catchy. I highly recommend checking out this CD, even for those who aren’t big country music fans. It’s available at Acorn and through SWAN.

-Lynn, Reference

Thank You For Your Service by David Finkel
Thank You For Your Service is a compilation of the true stories of several American soldiers after they have returned home from the war in Iraq. It is a sequel of sorts to The Good Soldiers, a work that tells the stories of these same soldiers while they were on the front lines. This book grabs your attention from the second you open it until you read the very last word. It is full of heartbreaking moments as well as a few happy ones. Not only does Finkel show us how the men were affected, but how their wives, doctors, friends, and children were affected as well. Finkel writes in such a powerful way that your heart will inevitably be touched by these stories. It is an absolute must-read.

-Donna D., Reference

Fitzgerald Family Christmas
The cover may seem schmaltzy, and the the title might scream Hallmark Channel, but you must believe me when I tell you that Fitzgerald Family Christmas is an incisive, witty little film about the ways in which parents and siblings inform our lives. Edward Burns (who also wrote and directed) stars as Gerry, the eldest son who became the grounded, acerbic patriarch when his father deserted the family two decades ago. His six siblings are in various states of disarray. For starters, Manhattan slickster Quinn (Michael McGlone) is plotting an ill-conceived proposal to his 22-year-old girlfriend, pampered Erin (Heather Burns) suffers from chronic unpleasantness, and baby-faced ruffian Cyril (Tom Guiry) has just completed a stint in rehab. The odds that this unbiddable clan will enjoy serene Yuletide blessings are further diminished when their father announces his intention of joining them for the festivities.

The spirited ensemble cast is superb, and somehow each character has emerged with a discrete, compelling personality. Burns has a gently trenchant way with dialogue and plotting that yields unforced epiphanies and satisfying transformations. I also highly recommend  Newlyweds, another Burns effort from 2012.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 41

Haiku!
Gesundheit.  Bless You.  À tes souhaits.  Salud.  Na zdrowie.

Well, thank you very much but I promise this isn’t about sneezes.  No, this is about the short, sensual, simple and striking poetic form that is haiku.  Yes, that seventeen syllable painter of pictures and sculptor of scenes that all of you were assailed with in school.  You were probably even forced, through threats and assorted forms of teacherly torture, to write one yourself at some point.  Ah, memories…

Five-Seven-Five.  Five syllables, then seven, then five again.  That’s all there is to it but, like so many other things in life, there’s profundity hidden within those seemingly shallow depths.  Originally a Japanese art form used to contrast everyday images and lifescapes against nature’s grandiosity and/or utter simplicity, it’s been adopted by writers across the world.  And, although I prefer the strictures of the original syllabic format, haiku has evolved to embrace other forms of short poetry and image crafting that move far beyond the original definition of haiku.

A good place to start your haiku adventure is the shelves of Acorn’s children’s department where there are several books available.  Outside Acorn, you can visit the first 100 years of English Haiku or narrow your focus a little and try out some haiku about love or cats or gay guys or rednecks or zombies or single girls. You can even, if so inclined, use haiku to cultivate awareness and open your heart.  There is, literally, something for everyone in the world of haiku.  And, if I haven’t convinced you yet, the next time you’re in the employee restroom, take a look above the paper holder, contemplate the deeper meaning of those words and realize that haiku, in its many forms, surrounds you daily…and that someone at Acorn beat me to the haiku love!

-Danielle, Tech Services

What Maisie Knew
What Maisie Knew stars newcomer Onata Aprile,  who plays the title role told through the eyes of a six-year-old as she tries to find equilibrium as her parents go through a bitter custody battle. The film focuses on her face and eyes that create several layers of emotion and struggle. This is one of those films where you want to shake the parents’ foundation to make them aware of the damage being done.  Segments of childhood are slipped in where they can, Maisie adjusting to situations as they come with grace and maturity. Dysfunctional is the key word throughout, however. Leave it to Maisie to show us the intense awareness, but we are left wondering what she really knows and understands. The film also stars Julianne Moore, Steve Coogan, Joanna Vanderham, and Alexander Skarsgard  this film is available from SWAN.

-Darlene, Circulation

Welcome Home Mama and Boris: How a Sister’s Love Saved a Fallen Soldier’s Beloved Dogs by Carey Neesley
When Carey Neesley’s younger brother, Peter, enlists in the Army, she is devastated yet proud of him. Her brother is her best friend and a father figure to her little boy, Patrick. However, in December of 2007, Carey’s world is turned upside down when she receives news of her brother’s passing while he is stationed in Iraq. Carey works hard to keep her brother’s memory alive and to help bring home the two stray dogs he befriended while overseas. The story is heartbreaking, but at the same time it showcases how different people and organizations came together to honor Peter by getting the dogs he loved to the United States. This is a quick read that I found difficult to put down. The book is available through SWAN.

-Lynn, Reference


Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh
This hilarious book has ruined me on reading other humorous titles for a while!  I was only tangentially familiar with Brosh's blog by the same name, but I was immediately familiar with the author's cover art as it has found its way into many Internet memes, probably the most familiar being CLEAN ALL THE THINGS.  Most of the stories are comical, and feature intentionally simplistically crude artwork to fully illustrate the emotion and tone of the story.  While most illustrations provide a tremendous amount of comic effect, it is the chapters on depression that the artwork captures the perfect tone to accurately convey the mental state of Brosh while she suffered through the worst of this debilitating and seemingly endless condition.  I cannot choose any one story as a favorite, and after finishing the book, I read Brosh's entire blog the following weekend.  Brosh is currently on a promotional tour for the book, and was interviewed by NPR's Terry Gross for Fresh Air earlier this week- it's a must listen!  I am looking forward to seeing what Brosh's next project might be.

-Jennifer, Youth Services

Enough Said 
Starring actors such as Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld), Catherine Keener (Where the Wild Things Are), and the late James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), this romantic comedy tells the story of single mom and masseuse Eva (Louis-Dreyfus) as she attempts to cope with her only child’s departure to college. Along the way, she encounters Albert (Gandolfini), also a single parent with a daughter on her way to college. Eva and Albert hit it off, but Eva soon realizes that her new client is Albert’s ex-wife, Marianne (Keener). Not wanting Albert to know Marianne is her client and trying to keep Marianne from realizing she is dating Albert, Eva soon begins going to questionable lengths in hopes of maintaining her new-found friendship with Marianne, only to begin damaging her romantic relationship with Albert. Can she find a way to achieve balance? The chemistry between Gandolfini and Louis-Dreyfus is effortless and real. An absolute must-see.

-Donna D., Reference

Days Are Gone by HAIM
HAIM, a trio of L.A.-based sisters, recently released this assured, alarmingly catchy debut album. They've mined all the '70s and '80s radio staples you hadn't realized you missed, then added inventively tiered synthesizers to create something refreshing, resonant, and just plain fun. If you're wondering what the futuristic lovechild of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Rhiannon" sounds like, this one's for you. Days Are Gone can be requested from SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 40

Now You See Me
The film Now You See Me boasts a well-known cast of characters such as Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Zombieland), Woody Harrelson (Seven Pounds, Zombieland), Mark Ruffalo (The Avengers, Shutter Island), and Morgan Freeman (who needs no introduction). In this movie, a group of magicians known as the Four Horsemen combine their individual talents to pull off a magic trick never before seen--a series of bank heists. They then reward their audiences with the money that they have successfully stolen. Mark Ruffalo, a doubtful FBI agent, attempts to solve the mystery of these bank heists with the help of an enigmatic Interpol detective. While the ending is slightly lackluster, the rest of the film makes up for it with its witty cast and clever plot.

-Donna D., Reference

Waiting to Be Heard: A Memoir by Amanda Knox
In 2007, Amanda Knox was accused of murdering her British roommate, Meredith Kercher, while studying abroad in Perugia, Italy. She was convicted, serving four years in prison until her conviction was overturned in 2011. While several books have been written about the trial and conviction of Amanda Knox, this is the first to be told in Amanda’s own words. In this memoir, she recounts the day she found her friend brutally murdered in their apartment, her unsettling experience with the Italian police during the investigation, and the details of her trial and time spent as a prisoner in a foreign country.

Although at times the details of the investigation and trial can be a bit redundant, this is still a very intriguing read, as it shines new light on things that may have been previously overlooked. With the retrial of the case going on now, this book will give quite a bit of insight to those interested in the outcome. The book can be found at Acorn and can also be requested through SWAN.

-Lynn, Reference  

The Heat
 Hahahahahahahahahaha…*breathe*…hahahahahahahaha…*wipe away tears of laughter*…hahahahahahahaha…*snort*

That was me for almost the entirety of this Sandra Bullock/Melissa McCarthy buddy cop comedy extraordinaire.  I’m a big fan of Bullock and almost everything she does (I refuse to believe that was her in Speed 2!).  On the other hand, I wasn’t a big fan of Bridesmaids, which introduced many of us to McCarthy.  I enjoyed Identity Thief where McCarthy played opposite the delightfully puddish Jason Bateman with hit-or-miss results, many of which involved literal hitting.  In The Heat (soon to be available at Acorn), however, there is a great balance struck between the rather priggish and starchy Sarah Ashburn (Bullock) and the, shall we say, rough and tumble Shannon Mullins (McCarthy).  Add in the rest of the Mullins clan and their assorted consorts along with a cast of characters that would make any season of COPS proud and you get a movie that has me remembering scenes and laughing again days after viewing.

The movie is filled to the brim with wonderfully timed crudeness that never veers to the scatological, sexploitative or grimace-inducing extremes of many of the other ‘edgy’ comedies offered up over the last few years (Hangover 1-3, I’m looking at you…but only askance so as to not have to actually see too much of you).  The crudeness here is wonderfully balanced by an underlying sweetness epitomized in a couple of scenes toward the end of the movie, one involving a ‘found’ cat and one a yearbook inscription, the latter of which, in all honesty, put a little lump in my throat.  The relationship and chemistry between the two leads is the focus around which everything else in the movie orbits and it is fantastic.  Whatever the female equivalent of bromance is (and, no, to the English language’s shame, there isn’t a good word for it), these two have it and I eagerly await joining them on their next comedic misadventure.

- Danielle, Tech Services        

My Brief History by Stephen Hawking
I’ve been enjoying this delightful tour through Hawking's mischievous youth, quandaries in physics, and ALS diagnosis--which gave him an appreciation for his relatively quick stay on earth and effectively kicked his rear into gear. Hawking is simply the coolest; and I recommend this memoir to anybody seeking irreverent, humble, and wise company.

-Megan, Reference

Patron Review: An Invisible Thread by Lauren Schroff

An Invisible Thread, by Laura Schroff can be read in a day, but it will stay with you forever.

Laura works and lives in Manhattan.  After a business appointment falls through, she is walking on Broadway, when an 11-year-old panhandler requests some change.  She crosses the street, but mid-roadway, turns around and speaks to the youngster.  She takes him to McDonald's and buys two of what the youngster orders.

Such begins an almost 30-year relationship that opens doors for both of them. For it is an invisible thread that connects us all.

-Janice Gintzler, Acorn patron

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 39

Norm Macdonald Live
Remember Norm Macdonald? I love Norm Macdonald. Some people don’t think he’s funny, but I do. If you liked him as the host of  "Weekend Update" on Saturday Night Live, seen the film Dirty Work, or are interested in deadpan interviews with celebrity comedians including Gilbert Godfried, Super Dave, Larry King(?) Andy Dick, and Russell Brand, you should watch the video podcasts on YouTube. He seems like he is intentionally losing sponsors, so watch it while you can before it abruptly ends (like his two short-lived TV shows.

-Mike, Reference

ThinkGeek: Stuff for Smart Masses
Do you have any smart masses in your life?  Is your home overrun with smart masses?  Is your office mate a secret smart mass?  Does your best friend exhibit latent smart mass tendencies?  Perhaps, when you look in a mirror, there’s even a smart mass staring right back at you?!  Well, fret not!  We, er, I mean they (yeah, they, uh huh, them…those ones, over there) aren’t dangerous.  Smart masses are just shy, misunderstood creatures yearning for connection and meaning and any number of the most craptacularly stupendous oddities ever created or collected by humankind.

I’m here to tell you that today is your lucky day.  They made a place for you to find everything you need to calm, distract and befriend any and all smart masses you may find wandering through your life.  ThinkGeek.com has everything (yes, EVERYTHING!) you could ever imagine imagining.  But, I must warn you, once you enter the emporium of geek, you may lose all concept of linear time.  You didn’t realize it but up there, right around the time I typed ‘EVERYTHING’, you lost me for a good thirty minutes as I was sucked into the vortex of awesome oddness.  But, I fought my way back to you even though resistance is, indeed, futile.  I can feel the pull right now…it’s waiting for us.  So, take the quantum leap into a world filled with things you never knew you wanted to want, needed to need or loved to love…join me in Nerdvana.        

- Danielle, Tech Services

Cool Gray City of Love by Gary Kamiya
Gary Kamiya riffs on San Francisco's beauty, eccentricities, and cyclical cataclysms in this new book. First, the specs: this seven-by-seven mile square sits on a craggy peninsula on the edge of the continent and hosts seven unpredictable microclimates. It was built by the feverish Gold Rush of 1849, then survived earthquakes in 1906 and 1989, the sudden emptying of Japantown due to Executive Order 9066, the AIDS epidemic, and the silly exuberance of the dot-com boom and its acrid bust. Kamiya, a former cab driver, is a masterful guide who combines a fluid, encyclopedic knowledge with his own madcap experiences. Cool Gray City of Love is wonderful, and it's available from SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 38

Wither by Lauren DeStefano
While dystopian novels are one of young adult literature's most popular genres, Wither by Lauren DeStefano is a novel marketed as a utopian novel. Wither takes place hundreds of years in the future after a cure for ailments has gone awry. While scientists were able to cure children of any and all diseases, healthy girls began dying at the age of 20 and boys at 25. While scientists are busy looking for the new cure, Rhine Ellery is separated from her twin brother and forced into marriage to bear children. Although Rhine eventually gets along with her shy, somewhat clueless husband, she is horrified to learn what lengths her father-in-law is willing to go to find the cure and begins looking for a way to escape. All the books in The Chemical Garden Trilogy are the perfect antidote to the deluge of violent dystopian books like Veronica Roth's Divergent and Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games. DeStefano's protagonists are realistic, while the villains are multidimensional, and the plot moves quickly making reading all three books in a sitting entirely plausible. While the book may be better suited to older young adults, the themes and questions that arise throughout concerning women, genetics, family, and responsibility are provocative and substantial.

-Anna, Youth Services

All the World’s a Stage…
 Yes, I’m going to do it.  Prepare yourself.  Banish from your mind all the terrifying memories brought on by the word ‘Bard’.  Forget the forced memorizations.  Forsake the droning, nonsensical interpretations you were wrongly programmed to abhor.  Embrace the fear of the name that could make your brain quake and your eyeballs sweat in mere anticipation.  Baby, it’s Shakespeare time!

I promise, no reading required...not one single word. In fact, I promise an enthralling mix of pageantry, beauty, humor, action, adventure and romance all ending, as is always the case with Shakespeare, in either marriage or death (but, hey, that’s life, right?).  And, as if that’s not enough, it’s all available practically in your own backyard.  Chicago Shakespeare Theater is located right in the middle of Navy Pier and offers a breathtakingly beautiful and surprisingly intimate re-imagining of the original Globe Theater.

This season’s Shakespearean offerings include the comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor, a shortened version of the comedic fantasy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and the drama, Henry V.  My recommendation for those taking their first steps into the world of masterfully produced Shakespeare is the Short Shakespeare! presentation of Midsummer.  My introduction to this theater and its amazing troupe of actors was through a full length production of that very play complete with a punk-rock fairy world and a pink-haired king of the fairies holding court while the real world slumbers.  It was magical and unforgettable and I promise the experience will be nothing less for you.

So, good night unto you all.
Give me your hands, if we be friends...

- Danielle, Tech Services

The Act of Killing
I had the chance to see a screening of Joshua Oppenheimer’s 2012 documentary The Act of Killing at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago and I recommend watching it when it comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray on Nov. 25. The film follows a few leaders of a pro-government paramilitary force that killed between 500,000 and 1 million alleged Communists and ethnic Chinese in Indonesia in 1965. Oppenheimer offers the unapologetic murderers a chance to make a celebratory film about their deeds and the proud “gangsters” (as they call themselves) take him up on the offer. The result is a documentary of interviews and behind-the-scenes looks at the disturbing filming process of the gangsters/death squads reenactments. The documentary is a bit disturbing, but well worth the uncomfortable experience. Plus it’s executive producers include Werner Herzog and Errol Morris, so you know it’s a decent documentary.

-Mike, Reference 

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 37

For the Children Within Us All:
Mortgages.  Car repairs.  Root canals.  Taxes.  Wrinkles.  New aches and pains.  Retirement planning. Sweaters when it hits 68 degrees.  Is that a gray hair?  Where’d I put my stupid keys?  Wait, where’d I park the car?  All of this either has or will happen to you.  Why?  Because you’re an adult and you’re getting older by the second!  You are being stalked by old man time himself.  Rip Van Winkle was make-believe,  Peter Pan was a fairy tale, the fountain of youth is bull-hockey, time stops for no one and that just plain sucks. But, wait…what’s this?  Is it magic?  Why, yes, yes it is.

Do you want to feel the vigor of youth again shoot through your brain without thought of needing a nap?  Do you want to giggle like a gap-toothed school girl?  Do you want to have the aged curmudgeons in your life look at you like you’ve lost your mind?  Well, then, Pixar Short Films Collection, Volumes 1 and 2 (both available at Acorn), are here to save you from becoming your parents!  In fact, if you can watch these without a single moment of childlike glee coursing through your oh-so-grown-up self, then it’s just too late for you.  Don’t let it be too late!  Go now.  Save yourself.  Just don’t trip on your way…you might break a hip.

Danielle - Tech Services

The Silver Star by Jeannette Walls:
I finally got around to reading Walls’ first novel this past weekend. I read it within a day and I couldn’t help but embrace Walls’ rejection of strong female characters. Characterization of the fairer sex can be a bit daunting in books and movies (see this great article by the New Statesman) and we get used to the old stereotypes. The characters of Bean, Liz, and their Mom, Charlotte, all start out being typical “strong females”. But by the end, these women have defied that role and have been vulnerable, scared, incensed, forgotten, and annoyed. The relationship between Charlotte and her daughters is a strained one (to say the least) - yet the power struggle between them is so level that it is hard to tell who’s the mother and who are the daughters. But the fact remains: these women are real. They make mistakes, they sometimes don’t know what to do, and end up living out the consequences of their choices. You’ll end up rooting for them, even when they are completely in the wrong. The Silver Star is available on our Hot Copy display or holds can be placed through SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

Gabriele D'Annunzio: Poet, Seducer, Preacher of War by Lucy Hughes-Hallett:
Gabriele D'Annunzio was, as the subtitle suggests, a multi-dimensional figure. Hughes-Hallett can easily have added "psychopath", "monster", or "fascist" to her title. That fact that she does not do so is impressive and it benefits her storytelling. D'Annunzio, for those who are unfamiliar, was an Italian poet, playwright, and novelist who almost single-handedly led the Italians to war on the side of the Allies. The proto-fascist did it for glory, not for any noble reason. As a fervent nationalist, he was a precursor to Mussolini and actually made himself dictator (Duce) of Fiume (in Yugoslavia) for 15 months.

Hughes-Hallet chose to write on a series of non-chronological themes and events that shaped D'Annunzio. It is a puzzling look into the creation of a monster in a society that was rapidly going mad itself. If you’re interested in 20th century European politics, art, or the Great War you need to read this book. It can be found on our New Books shelf and is available through SWAN.

-Mike, Reference

Days of Heaven
This 1978 movie is a singular tale of struggle and love, American style. Richard Gere plays Bill, a volatile steelworker who flees 1916 Chicago for the Texas Panhandle after a violent encounter with his boss. He brings his sister, Linda, (the excellent Linda Manz), as well as Abby (Brooke Adams), his girlfriend who poses as his other sister for the sake of propriety.

They begin working for a young farmer (Sam Shepard), a man in possession of a great fortune and a gloriously madcap Queen Anne mansion. He's also in want of a wife, and quickly falls in love with Abby. Tension, deception, and tragedy mythically unfold.

Though it was panned upon its release, it is now regarded as a masterpiece, as well as one of the most beautiful films ever made. Indeed, director Terrence Malick and his cinematographers turn everything they observe--trains, blast furnaces, horses, storms, artificial light, oceanic wheatfields, human frailty--into resolute poetry. Acorn owns Days of Heaven, and it can be requested from SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 36

Solitude, Peace, Beauty and Truth
Everyone, at one time or another, has wished for the world to disappear, if only for a moment. We’ve wished for space to breathe, for a clarity only available when the harsh glare of the everyday disappears, for a silence so clarion in its call that time slows as we try to discern the meaning in an absence. The experience of these moments is fleeting in our modern world of cacophonous resonances that echo everywhere, endlessly.

But, perhaps, it isn’t as endless as it seems. The unironically entitled documentary, Happy People (available at Acorn), is about a group of people happily living the most basic of existences in the Siberian Taiga. The main focus is on a trapper and the life he ekes out for himself and his family in one of the harshest biomes in the world. The unforgiving nature, and the unrelenting beauty, of the area act as touchstones by which to measure the true nature of human existence, peace and true happiness.

For me, however, the ultimate definition of true solitude, peace, happiness and beauty comes by the way of a man named Dick Proenneke. He left the world behind and never looked back. He spent decades living alone in the Alaskan wilderness and he captured it all in a series of diaries and on film. Alone in the Wilderness and its sequel, Alaska, Silence and Solitude, capture the heart of humanity laid bare. What truths the human heart and mind and body hold are all here: the meaning of living versus existing; the power of true beauty to blur the human eye and touch the human heart in unimaginable ways; the triumph of the spirit when survival is at stake; and the ingenuity and resourcefulness inherent to the unbroken, billion-year line of human heritage that connects us all.

So, join me in a celebration of spirit, solitude, beauty and peace, if you will…oh, wait, you already have.

Danielle, Tech Services

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen
An international bestseller recently released in the US, A Street Cat Named Bob tells the real-life account of a recovering heroin addict barely scraping by as a street musician in London, when he comes across a wounded stray cat in his apartment building. Bowen (who charmingly resembles a cleaned-up Kurt Cobain with a thoughtful-looking cat perched on his shoulder on the book's cover) can hardly take care of himself and initially resists the added responsibility and expense of caring for a pet, but quickly the two form a unique and remarkable bond. Their relationship inspires Bowen to continue putting his life back together after several years of addiction, poverty and feelings of inadequacy and invisibility. Though Bowen's circumstances are not entirely relatable for everyone, his feelings and emotions are, as is his bond with Bob. You can follow Bob on Facebook and Twitter, and pick up this great read at Acorn!

-Jen, Youth Services

A First-Rate Madness: Uncovering the Links between Leadership and Mental Illness by S. Nassir Ghaemi
Ghaemi makes some pretty interesting claims in this 2011 nonfiction title. He thinks world leaders with mental illness or those that have a history of mental illness lead better under duress that those who are considered normal. While those who have mental illness are more unpredictable in their behavior, their point of view is more realistic and complex, allowing for them to solve problems more successfully.

While I’ve only listened to part of it so far, Ghaemi writes about the mental history of famous figures in a very intriguing way. He makes examples of Churchill and Chamberlain, Robert E. Lee and General Sherman, and even George W. Bush. (Apparently George W. was unsuccessful as president because he was too sane. Go figure.)

It’s an enlightening point of view to hear especially because it talks about the positive aspects of mental illness, something that we definitely do not hear about nowadays. It’s available as an eBook & eAudiobook through Media On Demand and through SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann
I’ve only read a third of the book, but it’s been an interesting read. The first lesson to take is that much, if not most, of what you learned about pre-Columbian America is not considered inaccurate. Important discoveries have been made in pre-Clovis sites in South America, the hemispheric population was potentially more than that of Europe, and disease may have killed nearly half of the population before the first successful settlements were established. Mann is a journalist, not a historian and the book is written for a wide audience. If you’re interested in pre-Columbian history, it is a great place to start. Bonus: The nonfiction book club will meet to discuss it on September 5th at Olivers Bar and Grill. We have copies available at the Reference Desk. It is also available as an ebook.

-Mike, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 35

The Room
I have to recommend this movie solely on the basis of it being the worst movie ever made (at least, as far as I know of). It’s like a train wreck: horrible to watch but you just can’t look away. There is some horrible acting, plot twists that don’t make sense, inconsistencies galore, and just really REALLY bad acting (I can’t emphasize this fact enough). Tommy Wiseau - who is the writer, director, and lead actor for the film outdoes anything you’ve ever seen. If you’re a glutton for punishment, The Room is what you need to watch this weekend. It’s available through SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

Laughter
I’m using my favorite thing of the week as a shameless plug for next Thursday’s “Laughter Jest for the Health of It” program, which you can (and should) register for at the Circulation Desk. Kathy O’Brien is a RN and Certified Laugh Leader who will demonstrate the positive effects of laughter. We had Kathy come to the Library last year and I still think about what she said on an almost daily basis.

I may not be the most neutral advocate for the program; anyone who knows me can tell you that I laugh a lot - at just about anything, whether it’s appropriate or not. All I can do is tell you to consider coming because you will leave smiling and, possibly, sore from laughing so much. If you can’t make it, just remember Kathy’s advice to make smiling or laughing a part of your morning ritual.

-Mike, Reference

Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell
I've been listening to Cheap on audiobook. It delves into various aspects of America’s obsession with discount culture—including its often irrational psychology, sociological and environmental implications, and controversial inception in the 1920s. Shell is a fiery and provocative guide who forces you to consider all sides of a complex issue that has both local and international implications. It’s available from SWAN and as an eAudiobook from Media On Demand. And, really, what goes better with that ice-cold lemonade and those breezy summertime tunes than a sobering diatribe?

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 34

Point Your Face at This: Drawings by Demetri Martin

Demetri Martin is an unlikely comedian. He graduated from Yale University, went to NYU’s School of Law on a full scholarship, and grew up in a traditional Greek family setting. Yet, his style of humor is soooooo off-the-wall. He’s known for his one-liners, incorporation of music, and - most importantly - his drawings that he does during routines. His newest book is filled of sketches that comment on current pop culture, dating, his extreme allergy to peanuts, and life in general. Some are really ridiculous (like his drawing comparing death to a game of golf) while others are extremely poignant and insightful, filled with wisdom and truth by someone twice his age. Fans of deadpan humor and unconventional essays will be pleasantly surprised with this collection. The book is available through SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

What’s a Syfy?

Does the thought of watching a science fiction movie bore you to tears?  Are you one of the reasons that the Sci-Fi channel changed its name to Syfy?  Are aliens and ray-guns and cheesy background shots that are supposed to be Mars but are clearly a desolate canyon in the middle of Arizona not your thing?  Do you hate James Cameron?  (Okay, bad example.)  Do Sheldon, Leonard, Raj & Howard bring to mind ‘law firm’ instead of ‘geeky awesomeness’? 

If your answers to all the above are ‘Yes.’ or ‘What the heck is she going on about now?’, then keep reading!  If your reactions to the above are, in order, ‘No way!’, ‘Unbelievable!, ‘Ooh, retro!’, ‘Yes!’ and ‘Bazinga!’, then there may still be something here for you, too.  The following movies are, by definition, science fiction but there’s something here to fulfill almost everyone’s movie viewing tastes.

Pandorum is for those of you who like psychological horror, including cannibalistic creatures and claustrophobia.  Red Planet, Pitch Black and The Arrival are for those of you who like action/suspense movies and/or have a thing for Val Kilmer, Carrie-Anne Moss, Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell or Charlie Sheen (eww, really?), respectively.  For those of you possessing a more philosophical bent to your movie viewing pleasure zone, Moon, District 9 and Gattaca are about class-ist societal structure and the ultimate search for, and meaning of, human identity and the dreams and fears engendered therein.  And, as if that wasn’t enough, they are actually good and entertaining films and they are all available through SWAN.  (Pandorum, Moon and District 9 are even conveniently located right on the shelves of Acorn!)

Happy viewing!  Live long and prosper.  Geek girl out.

-Danielle, Tech Services

The Conjuring

James Wan’s latest horror movie tells of the story of real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren’s experience helping a family deal with a supernatural presence in their new farm home. Horror fans will recognize the familiar plot, but Wan managed to make the movie feel original by avoiding cheesy cliches and cheap scare tactics. It remains thoroughly creepy throughout - the idea of playing “hide and clap” may be too much for you after watching this movie. Seeing this will remind you to do a little research on the property before you buy a home. Or, ask a librarian to help with the research.

-Mike, Reference

Sharknado

With Shark Week coming up in a little over a week, I have to recommend Syfy's recent made-for-TV movie, Sharknado.  As the title suggests, there is a freak meteorological disturbance in California, causing sharks to rain down and attack the flooded population of Los Angeles.  Though the premise is improbable and most of the plot points laughable, this is a really entertaining movie.  Ian Ziering didn't stray too far away from his former 90210 zip code, starring as our protagonist Fin Shepherd, who tries to rescue his ex-wife played by Tara Reid and their teenage daughter from the killer sharks and rising flood waters. 

Though at one point Ziering chainsaws his way out of a shark's digestive tract, rescuing himself and another character the shark had recently consumed, he gives a strong and relatively believable performance.  Other performances aren't quite as solid, but the outlandish plot twists and absorbing action more than make up for any other shortcomings.

-Jen, Youth Services 

Patron Review: The Gatekeepers

As one former head of Israel’s secret service, Shin Bet, states “We won every battle, but lost the war.”

Recently released on DVD, The Gatekeepers is a series of interviews with six former heads of Shin Bet.  They acknowledge that a strategy did not exist in their organization for dealing with Palestinians.  Shin Bet relied upon tactics of fear, intimidation, targeted kills, and deathly torture, in response to rock throwing and more serious responses to occupation.  Shin Bet leader Avraham Shalom recalls that control of Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank was the goal and it was easy to achieve.  While listening to these powerful Israeli men, I thought about our yearly payments to Israel of $3 billion that probably finances the military, into which almost all Israeli men are recruited.  It takes money to put into place all the military apparatus with which to control an occupied people.

Of course, in order to understand why the Palestinians would rebel, this might be informative.

Another revelation concerns the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. We may not remember that the Prime Minister was killed by a young Orthodox Jew of the belligerent religious right. Rabin was seeking an end to settlements in occupied territories.  But ultra conservative rabbis were successfully urging huge rallies of followers that were calling for violent removal of Rabin from power.  This sector of Israeli society wanted no end to settlements in Palestinian territory. One former head of Shin Bet from that period of history states that the settlements of Israelis in the West Bank were never approved by the Israeli government, yet no government ever stopped them; this most obviously because politicians realize that they need that sector in their corner in order to remain safely in power.

Considering that our Congress seems to love showering Israel with financial aid, in spite of recession here, I believe The Gatekeepers a worthy use of time.  Apprise yourself of current events. 

-Janice Gintzler, Acorn patron

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 33

Flash Fiction 

For Sale.  Baby shoes.  Never worn.

The quintessential flash fiction, perhaps written on a bet by a master of meaningful brevity, Ernest Hemingway.  Also known as short-short fiction, sudden fiction and micro-fiction, flash fiction is the telling of a full story in as few words as possible.  The extremes, as demonstrated above, are able to convey emotion and move a reader with fewer words than the usual curse-laden, road-rage rant.  

I like to think of these stories as the place where poetry melds with prose and where brevity and beauty collide.  This type of storytelling has been around for a long time (think Aesop’s fables and Kipling’s Just So Stories) and crosses many cultural boundaries.  It has been particularly embraced by Latin American and science fiction/fantasy authors.

The internet has added a new dimension to the writing style.  Along with the proliferation of the 'drabble', numerous websites are available for those who want to either read or, perhaps, give writing some short-short fiction a shot.  (I would love to read anything anyone reading this comes up with if you do give it a try!)  Whether you have two seconds or two minutes, there is literally nothing to lose by getting lost for a while in some beautiful and brief prosetry!

-Danielle, Tech Services

The Baffler

Despite the rhetoric of the impending collapse of print media, I am always finding new and interesting magazines. The Baffler is my most recent discovery. It’s in its second year of continuous printing - the editors aim for three issues per year, but have not come close to that goal in a decade. The streak is now four issues printed on the intended date! Here’s hoping they make it at least five. 

Thomas Frank (of Harper’s) is the editor and has a lengthy article attacking John Galt and this issue has articles by David Graeber (who I’ve written about before) and Slavoj Žižek, a piece on silicon valley guru Tim O’Reilly, and Fifty Shades of Grey/Late Capitalism. The Baffler is muckraking at its finest.  Hopefully it will last long enough to warrant a subscription. Until then, B&N should have it or you can try your luck with a subscription.

-Mike, Reference

Blue Plate Special: An Autobiography of My Appetites by Kate Christensen

Novelist Kate Christensen's recently released memoir frames her peripatetic life through her love of food. She describes how her mother--a domestic abuse survivor and single parent to three girls--lovingly assembled budget meals that transformed her impoverished Arizona youth into a nurturing pep rally. While working as an au pair in France she discovers that zucchini can be magical and Nutella should be a controlled substance. And as an adult, she evolves from reluctant ramen preparer into some kind of culinary alchemist as she comes into her own as a writer and full-fledged human being.

Christensen is frank, funny, and delightfully unpretentious about her lively, sometimes nutty, and occasionally harrowing experiences. Plus, she’s kind enough to share her recipes. Acorn owns this book, and you can request it through SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

Dinner with the Smileys: One Military family, One Year of Heroes,and Lessons for a Lifetime by Sarah Smiley
Sarah Smiley wrote Dinner with the Smileys: One Military Family, One Year of Heroes,and Lessons for a Lifetime (2013). Smiley's husband, Dustin, was deployed to Africa for 1 year and she stayed in Maine with 3 boys, ages 11, 8 and 4.  As the family talked about missing a husband and father at the dinner table, they decided that once a week for the whole year they would invite someone to dinner and call this event "dinner with the Smileys."  They had a wide range of people over including school teachers, politicians, athletes, authors, artists, friends, neighbors, and even a zookeeper. 
This heartwarming story was enjoyable, honest, and gripping.  Smiley skillfully weaves in stories of her sons, the guests, her foibles as a temporary single parent, her love and commitment she shared with her husband, and the beauty of the community as they rallied around the Smileys to help and care during this time of separation. I heartily recommend this book! 

-Janice, youth services 

Side Effects
Emily and Martin are rolling in the dough and are living out their own American dream - that is, until Martin is taken away in cuffs for insider trading. The scenario is all too real for Emily and tries to cope with the subsequent depression by taking antidepressant medication. However, when the newest drug on the market comes with surprise side effects, Emily does something terrible without even knowing it. Or does she? A financially struggling therapist, played by Jude Law, gets caught up in the chain of events and makes discoveries and decisions that will affect everyone involved - and change their lives forever. If you love plot twists, check this film out! It’s available through our new movie shelf or through SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 32

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
This book’s release was highly anticipated and some bloggers even thought that there was too much hype surrounding the book. But there’s a reason for all the hype -- because it’s a really great fantasy that incorporates magic and evil spirits -- and it’s geared toward adults. It’s fairly quick at less than 200 pages and if you’ve ever wished you could be seven years old again, you should definitely check out this book. Holds can be placed for the book via SWAN or the eBook can reserved through MediaOnDemand.

-Judy, Reference

Philip Glass
I have three words for you…modern. classical. music.  Hey, where’d everybody go?

My introduction to one of the most prolific modern composers of avant-garde music today was through the score of The Hours.  Philip Glass’ haunting scores cascade through films too numerous to list but as diverse as The Illusionist (available at Acorn), Kundun, Candyman, The Fog of War and a re-visitation of Bela Lugosi’s Dracula.  He’s written operas, symphonies and, seemingly, most of that evocative music you hear in almost every movie trailer ever made…ever.

Personally, I prefer his more melodious experiments in repetition and resonance as represented by The Hours soundtrack that is playing as I write this.  Here we encounter the hypnotic sound experience of being enveloped in a heartbeat;  a sensual building of silences and crescendos, an ebb and flow, indicative of reserved passions, or ultimate despair, faltering at a precipice before finally crashing into being;  an exaltation of the search for hope and the possible repercussions of that search symbolized in the film by the discovery that that search can only end in one of three ways...love, forbearance or death.

For the more sonically adventurous, Glass has numerous works to cater to your tastes as well.  For a taste sampling, you could give The Essential Philip Glass a try, although, I would recommend listening to "Floe" with your hand firmly planted on the volume control unless the chaotic sound of two clowns trying to beat each other to death with squeaky toys appeals to you.  I do highly recommend the five-disk set, Philip on Film, (especially the fifth disk) where there is something for everyone to enjoy whether your tastes run toward the melodious or are more firmly planted in the murderous clowns end of the spectrum.      

-Danielle, Tech Services

Danceinayear.com
Web designer Karen Cheng dreamed of becoming a dancer. And she got there in one year by taking classes and practicing everywhere—in the checkout line, at the bus stop, while on her computer at work, etc.  She also used lift.do to chart her progress, get statistical feedback, and gain support from an online community. Before long, she was completely consumed by her new passion; and you can watch Cheng transform from a robot-hand greenhorn into a confident, graceful performer here.  Even if you wouldn’t dream of cutting a rug in public, you can find a way to adopt Cheng’s thoughtful, practical methodology and inspiring enthusiasm to embark on a journey of your own.

-Megan, Reference

The Dissolve
The Dissolve might have had some launch issues this past Wednesday, but the web site is finally up and running. The site, which is comprised of many former writers and staff of the Chicago-based The A.V. Club's film section, promises to provide coverage of everything movie-related, from obscure Blu-ray releases and exclusive interviews, to standard film reviews. Although I might tune in from time to time, I actually like the idea of Letterboxd better. Letterboxd is a social network/database for sharing movies you've seen and making lists of favorite directors or actor retrospectives, as well as a place to share reviews and ratings or comment on movies you've seen. The site no longer requires an invite from a pre-existing user, which makes it the perfect time to start keeping track of your viewing habits.

-Anna, Youth Services

Swamp Thing
The Swamp Thing aka Alec Holland is back as part of DC Comics’ The New 52 with Scott Snyder writing and Yanick Paquette as the artist. The first paperback volume is available through SWAN. It’s a pretty good start, but living up to Alan Moore’s Saga of the Swamp Thing is going to be difficult. Moore’s storytelling and Stephen Bissette’s artwork are outstanding in the 1984 comics. Moore, who also wrote V for Vendetta and The Watchmen among other things, made the Swamp Thing a fully realized character who is part human and part plant. While Swamp Thing struggles with his humanity, not unlike Dr. Manhattan in The Watchmen who considers letting humans perish because they've become inconsequential to him, the reader gets an entertaining story that reflects our society’s troubling coping with nature. Moore’s environmentalism is often grotesque and the comics have their share of body horror, but the eco-friendly message is clear. It is available through SWAN so go green with the Swamp Thing.

-Mike, Reference