This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 30

Sexy Feminism: A Girl’s Guide to Love, Success, and Style by Heather Wood Rudolph and Jennifer Keishin Armstrong
Don’t let the title fool you - this is not some Cosmo-inspired booklet for tweens; it’s a genuine hands-on guide for getting in touch with your inner feminist at any age. When someone hears the word “feminist”, I’m sure that most people envision some version of a man-hating, opinionated, hairy-legged activist at rallies. But there’s more to feminism than the typical stereotypes and it’s a state of mind that every woman (and man, for that matter) can embrace.  This book not only gives a history of bikini waxing, plastic surgery, horrible dating myths and the like for those who want to know how these sometimes ridiculous rituals got started, but shows women how they can be positively feminist in their everyday lives. From supporting patronizing cosmetic companies with positive and proactive agendas to having healthy relationships, this book shows you how to make feminism uniquely yours while still having a positive impact to the ideals themselves.

The book is available through SWAN. If you want more feminist reading, check out the authors’ blog, Sexy Feminist.

-Judy, Reference

Play Ball!
Take me out to a Bolts’ game,

Take me out to Crestwood,

Buy some dollar hot dogs and a couple o’ beers,

We will be filled with nothin' but cheers.

Cuz it’s root, root, root for the home team,

They are the ones wearing blue,

And it’s only about three miles away,

From Acorn Library, too!

Okay, so it went a little flat there at the end but I digress…

Crestwood’s Windy City Thunderbolts Baseball is the perfect way to spend a summer afternoon or evening.  Tickets range from $8-$10, every night promises something extra in the form of various tchotchkes, dollar refreshments and food, seat-based raffles or fireworks.  There are also entertaining happenings on the field in between each inning to make everyone laugh and cheer…especially when the giant (and I do mean GIANT) underpants make their appearance!

On top of all that, there’s some really good baseball.  I don’t mean multi-million dollar dilettantes yawning their way through another game from the bench because they sprained their pinky with some overly zealous scratching and adjusting.  I’m talking down-and-dirty, love the game, hold down second jobs and sleep on the bus levels of dedication from these guys.  They love it and so will you.  So, grab some kids or a date or your grandparents or anyone else you think might enjoy baseball as it was meant to be and head on over to cheer for your real local team…just make sure to run the other way if you see about twelve square feet of white cotton briefs headed your direction!

-Danielle, Tech Services

Fables by Bill Willingham
Fables is a comic book series about well-known fairy tale and folklore characters known collectively in the series as Fables. The series focuses on a group of Fables who have left the Homelands after the invasion of an enemy who now rules an empire that includes most of the Homelands. The exiled Fables build their own city in what has become modern-day New York City. When the story begins, King Cole is mayor, Snow White is assistant mayor, the Big Bad Wolf (here known as Bigby Wolf) is sheriff, and other familiar characters play important roles. The compelling story, the fantastic artwork, and the humorous dialogue combine to make it a light-hearted, enjoyable read. We have the first two of eight hardcover volumes at Acorn.

-Mike, Reference

The Bling Ring
I'm a big Sofia Coppola fan, and her latest is an (okay, fine--another) exploration of the Bermuda Triangle that is youth, fame, and materialism. It chronicles the short-lived but incredibly prolific reign of a group of teens who used Google and the collective lack of a prefrontal cortex to stake out and pillage the homes of their favorite celebrities. In the process, they became their idols--wearing their clothes, hanging out in the same clubs, heedlessly seeking their next great sensory experience--and manage to shed light on our avaricious, sensationalistic culture.

As with Coppola's other movies, the casting is perfection. Two unknowns (Israel Broussard and Chicagoland's Katie Chang) confidently carry the movie with graceful, subtle performances. The supporting actors are also very strong, with Emma Watson killing it as Nicki, a vapid terror with a serious case of vocal fry, and Leslie Mann stealing every scene she's in as her misguided mother who worships on the alter of Angelina Jolie.

The movie is currently in theaters. It was based on a Vanity Fair article (naturally), which was expanded into a book, which can be requested from SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 29

Pomegranates!
Pomegranates are pretty awesome. The fruit itself has a unique history - ancient Egyptians used them as medicine and Persephone became Queen of the Underworld by eating their seeds. Their color is a vibrant red and are super tasty. However, the health benefits are out of this world; they are a great source of fiber and preliminary research has shown that when eaten in moderation pomegranates can reduce blood pressure and heart disease. But I like them even more when I can make a great sangria with them!

I got this recipe from the Food Network and I just had to try it. Instead of the traditional apples and oranges that go into this wine beverage, pomegranates and pears are featured. It’s a drink that definitely has a kick to it, but it’s great for a warm, summer evening. I substituted cloves for the star anise and it still tasted wonderful. (I would cut the recipe in half, unless you’re making it for a party - it makes quite a lot!)

Ruby Red Sangria

2 large pomegranates

2 red Bartlett pears, seeded and thinly sliced

2 star fruits, thinly sliced

3 bottles red wine, such as Rioja

1 cup brandy or cognac

1 cup pomegranate juice, such as Pom Wonderful

1/2-cup sugar

2 cinnamon sticks

2 star anise

1 liter club soda, chilled

Spread some newspaper out on the counter because the bright red pomegranate juice can stain. Cut the pomegranate in half, open it up and you'll see clusters of very juicy garnet seeds encased in a smooth off-white pulp. Gently pry out the ruby kernels with your fingers or a pointed knife, removing any of the bitter membrane that may adhere. Put the pomegranate seeds in a large pitcher or container and add the pear and star fruit slices.

Pour in the wine, brandy, and pomegranate juice. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and star anise; give the mixture a good stir to combine. Chill the sangria in the refrigerator overnight for the flavors to come together. Just before serving, top the sangria off with the club soda and mix to combine. Spoon the fruits into glasses or goblets and pour in the sangria to fill.

-Judy, Reference

Triple Feature for a Rainy/Hot Summer Weekend
If you need an infusion of magical realism on one of these endlessly rainy or super-hot summer weekends, here’s a triple feature that will fill you with so much joy that your heart may explode and you will have to fight the urge to randomly kiss strangers on the street.

There’s never been a movie that’s felt more like a giant hug than Amelie.  If you only have room for one movie, this is it (don’t let the subtitles scare you away).  It’s like an ice cream cone of hope with heart sprinkles.  It’s joie de vivre, made concrete.  It will make you believe in magic and love and fate.  It will make you believe in endless possibility.  It will make you run out to your garden to see if your gnome is still there…and then wish he wasn’t.

If, after that, you are not too filled with joy to move, you can put in Chocolat and experience a little more magical fairytaleishness (this time, in English).  One woman’s journey to a town that medieval time forgot and her fated impact on all the residents there will leave you with a feeling of infinite connectedness and hopefulness.  And, of course, a lingering belief in invisible kangaroos.  And, with Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp starring, there’s even eye-candy for everyone!

If, after all that, you still want more joy and hope and magic (you glutton, you!) and aren’t dissuaded by subtitles or surrealistic symbolism or some, shall we say, adult content, then let me introduce you to Antonia’s Line.  Yes, it’s Dutch.  Very, very Dutch.  Hope rings eternal and joy practically pours out of this movie at times…although that joy, here, as in life, is juxtaposed with pain and suffering.  Magic, again, finds its way into the essence of this film.  Matriarch, Antonia, and her kinship line represent Life with a capital ‘L’.  Antonia (the body), Daniela (the spirit), Teresa (the mind) and Sarah (the heart) represent the totality of the human experience in all its glories and tragedies.  They live, they love, they dream, they die, as we all do but they do it with a spirit and a cast of characters that we could only hope, or dread, to experience.

Amelie and Chocolat are available at Acorn. Antonia’s Line is available through SWAN.  Happiness and joy are available everywhere, if you just know where to look!  So, seek, find, embrace and enjoy...Vive la vie!

-Danielle, Tech Services

The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud
Nora Eldridge is a dutiful daughter, considerate neighbor, and exemplary third-grade teacher. She's also a seething cauldron of rage whose barely repressed id goes haywire when she encounters the glamorous Shahids. She quickly befriends Sirena--a revered artist and confidence conduit--who encourages Nora to rediscover her own creative ambitions, becomes a confidante to the entertaining, enigmatic Skandar, and an honorary aunt to their darling son, Reza.

Though plenty of e-ink has been spilled over Nora's "unlikability", Messud's surprising, astute  portrait of a misanthrope who is still seeking love and meaning will force you to care about her fate. And how will it end? Prison? A sanitarium? In a life with fulfilled artistic ambitions and satisfied material needs?  Read this unsettling, incisive, and psychologically suspenseful book to find out!

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 28

"The Last Question" by Isaac Asimov
I hereby recommend a short work of utter and staggering brilliance by one of the most prolific literary geniuses of the last century.  Blah blah blahdy blah blah.  Really?  Well then, let me try this again…

A story that fully and unequivocally evokes an unending mental discourse on the meaning of consciousness, time, being, religiosity and the purported infinite nature of the universe in a mere 4,000 words.  Yay!  What?  Pfffffffffffftttt.  Hmmph.  Okay, well fine, let me think…

Cool story!  Twist ending!  Honey Boo Boo, Lindsay Lohan and two of the three Kardashian sisters recommend this story! Get your tie-in toy at McDonald's today while supplies last!  Soon to be a movie starring Johnny Depp and the Kardashian sister who didn’t recommend the story in the first place in her big-screen debut!

Seriously, though, read it.  You’ll like it.  I promise.  Ninety-nine and three-quarters percent guaranteed.  There are also about eleventy gazillion other Asimov works available at Acorn and through SWAN, so, snap snap, my word-loving friends, time is running out!  Or is it?

-Danielle, Tech Services

Dark City: Director’s Cut
I recently read somewhere that Dark City is one of the most underrated science-fiction movies of the 20th century. Now, considering that I hadn’t heard of this movie until recently, I’d have to agree. An amnesiac named Johnny Murdoch sets out to find why he can’t remember who he is and encounters “the Strangers”, a race of beings who are performing experiments on humans. It’s a futuristic tale filmed in the typical noir styling, but what’s probably best about the movie is that there are very little computer-generated special effects. In the documentary on the DVD, the director Alex Proyas describes that filming took place on stage and oversized replicas of objects were used in particular scenes to make the film seem as realistic as possible. It has an all-star cast (before they were considered all-stars) featuring William Hurt, Jennifer Connelly, Rufus Sewell, and Kiefer Sutherland and the director’s cut of the film has twelve extra minutes of bonus footage. Several copies are available through SWAN!

-Judy, Reference

Nashville: The Complete First Season
This show is the ultimate in soapy, indulgent escapism. Connie Britton plays Rayna Jaymes, country music's longtime golden girl who is currently struggling to reinvent her sagging career and manage her strained marriage to a square-jawed cipher while keeping her powerful, manipulative family at bay. In the other corner, pop tart/money-making machine Juliette Barnes (Hayden Panettiere) tries to establish herself as a credible artist while living out a volatile post-adolescence that includes (but is not limited to) kleptomania, a quickie marriage, her mother's addiction, extortion, assorted PR disasters, and a whole lot of sequins. Not surprisingly,  Rayna and Juliette immediately dislike each other, but the show has the discipline and class (that's right, discipline and class) to show the conflict as a methodical war of attrition as opposed to a series of catfights. It is also but one of the show's roughly 317,000 subplots.

Though the writing is remarkably fertile, the acting is what elevates the show from clandestine guilty pleasure to something I am willingly sharing here. Britton (formerly of TV's beloved  Friday Night Lights and current host of the world's most coveted hair) gamely captures Rayna's coexistent warmth and egotism, but it is Juliette that gives Nashville its crazy, flashy heart. Panettiere takes on Juliette's many facets--charismatic performer, steely CEO, whiny Millennial, wily survivor, architect of her own destruction--with verve and eminently watchable chutzpah.

Full episodes can be viewed here and the first season will be released on DVD in September. Go ahead and hop on the waiting list via SWAN.

-Megan, Reference

This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 27

Patience (After Sebald)
My favorite thing this week has made my list of all-time favorite films. It’s Patience (After Sebald), an evocative homage to the writer W.G. Sebald’s 1995 book The Rings of Saturn. The film is a series of commentaries by his acquaintances and admirers played over images of the route that the character walked in East Anglia in the The Rings of Saturn. Both the film and the book weave an almost incomprehensible web of history consisting of individual parts that I guarantee will stick with you. You’ll learn about silkworms, Sir Thomas Browne, Virginia Wolfe, and English geography to name just a few. You can see the scope of the topics in this map. If you love the downbeat half as much as I do, you’ll love this film.

If you’ve read Sebald you owe it to yourself to see it. If you haven’t, it’s an accessible introduction that is worth your time even if you have no desire to read The Rings of Saturn. I recommend it if you like documentaries, art films, Sebald, or just want to watch something different. There is one copy available through SWAN.

-Mike, Reference

Daily Rituals by Mason Currey
Did you know that Schiller kept rotting produce in his desk and was inspired by the smell to write? Or that Balzac drank almost 50 cups of coffee a day? What is supposed to be probably the most boring parts of our day--our daily routines--are documented and dissected in 161 anecdotes concerning the most famous people in our cultural history. Patricia Highsmith’s obsession with snails, Flannery O’Connor’s sacrosanct prayers, and Nabokov’s chain smoking are all included and leave the reader with some interesting tidbits on why order is necessary for creation. I highly recommend this insightful book and it’s located in our New Books shelf and SWAN.

-Judy, Reference

Telescope Viewing Nights at Moraine Valley
Many of you, undoubtedly, have driven by Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills and seen a part of campus covered in prairie.  Well, that’s the Nature Study Area that was created and developed by the Natural Sciences and Biology departments over the last several decades.  An extended history and timeline of the development can be found here.

One of the newest features in the NSA is the small observatory.  In this case, it’s a six foot telescope that’s housed in a dome on the viewing deck in the middle of the prairie.  During the more clement parts of the year, Tom McCague (the dude who built the telescope!), holds monthly viewing sessions.  The large telescope and, usually, a few smaller ones, are put to use showing the gathered crowd the heavens, one small part at a time.  If you get bored with that (what’s wrong with you?!), you can just hang around the deck and watch the night overtake the prairie, the moon dance off the pond, and listen as the frogs and crickets try to out-sing each other…all while remaining on the look out for swooping bats and random jabbering astronerds like me.  (You’ve been warned!)

The next viewing is Friday, June 28 and starts at 8:45pm.  (note that viewings are cancelled if it’s raining, cloudy or very windy) Conveniently, this viewing follows Acorn Library's June 13 program on viewing the night sky with David Fuller. You can find the rest of the season's viewings in the NSA's schedule of events.  

To get there from Oak Forest, take Ridgeland or Harlem to 111th St., take a left, go a bit past Moraine Valley’s main entrance and take a right on Kean Avenue and just park on the side of the road with the other cars.  To get to the deck, walk to the small parking area, enter through the fence and take the mowed path to the left out to the deck with the big white dome on it.   If you get lost (Really?  I mean, there IS a big, white dome!), just yell and one of those random, wandering astronerds will surely come to your rescue!

-Danielle, Tech Services

Colossal Design Blog
Colossal is the brainchild of Christopher Jobson, an erstwhile web designer from Chicago. It features innovative design from an array of sources--including architecture, advertising, and technology. Recent examples include a man who nonchalantly carves entire objects out of a single piece of wood (and, it must be noted, is not this guy), a 3D printer pen, a San Antonio underpass beautified by chandeliers composed of recycled bicycle parts, and an animator's ingenious command of Vine's six-second video format. Jobson’s finds often have a playful, DIY approach that inspire as well as impress.

-Megan, Reference