Category: Booklists

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Booklists Recommendations

Fantastical Detectives in Magical Realms

by Public Service Associate Autumn

I love a good mystery novel, though I came to them much later than I should have. As a teen, when I had run out of my own books to read (for the week) and my family could not make it to the library, my grandfather gave me several Agatha Christie novels from his collection.1 But I didn’t read them that week. In fact, I didn’t read them until after I watched BBC’s wonderful adaptation, Poirot. But then, I was hooked: the twists and turns, the rooting out of each motive and link, fishing through all the red herrings, and perhaps most importantly, the satisfaction of knowing how all the pieces fit together in the end. It warms my order-loving soul.2 I immediately went back and read the Agatha Christie originals, then moved on to Arther Conan Doyle, Rex Stout, Stephen Spotswood and many more.

Sometimes though, I feel as though I have read every possible combination of who done it, why, how, with what, and how it affected the neighbors. For all the cleverness and brilliance of my favorite mystery writers, they are still bound by annoying practical restraints, like physics and the nature of the space time continuum. On occasion, I just need something a little out of the box. I still want the mystery, just a very non-traditional one. What better way than to find a mystery set in worlds not governed by our laws? If you’re like me and need an occasional fantasy kick to your mystery enjoyment, pursue these novels and be transported. I have read most of them, and several are completely off the wall.3 And if you’re only willing to try one, I highly recommend The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennet.

  • The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennet Book | eBook
  • Midnight Riot by Ben Aaronovich Book | eBook
  • A Potion to Die For by Heather Blake Book | eBook
  • The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall Book | eBook
  • Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty Book | eBook
  • The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Ann Older Book | eBook
  • Guards! Guards! By Terry Pratchett Book | eBook
  • The Undetectables by Courtney Smyth Book | eBook
  • Titanshade by Dan Stout Book | eBook

Footnotes

1The scarring of that day may be why I generally have thirty books checked out at a time.

 2Which I desperately need, as it’s getting colder out now.

3My comment about the space-time continuum? You’re looking for The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall.

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Booklists Recommendations

Our Incredible Bodies and the Importance of Homeostasis

By Public Service Associate Autumn

Everyone knows that humans (unlike much cooler reptiles) are warm blooded, or homeothermic.1 Our bodies try very hard to keep us at one consistent temperature, normally about 98 degrees. Even a four degree change in body temperature in either direction can cause us irreparable harm and a spiral into death. Understandably, this means that humanity has a pretty universal “comfortable” living temperature, between about 68- and 77-degrees Fahrenheit,2 where maintaining your core temperature isn’t too metabolically taxing. Despite this, humans live in basically every ecological niche there is, from Siberia and Northern Canada to the Sahara. Some of this adaptability is technological,3 but a fair amount of it is our bodies’ astonishing ability to cool us off and heat us up. What’s most interesting, to me at least, is how the body does this and what happens when those adaptations fail.

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Book Club Booklists

“Stories of Exile”: Last Reading Group Discussion

By Associate Librarian – Readers’ Advisory Specialist Debbie

The Yiddish Book Center “Stories of Exile” Series concludes this February and March with the powerful novel Beloved by the Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison. Beloved, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, is a moving story of an African American family in post-civil war America recovering from the trauma of enslavement.

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Booklists Recommendations

Hibernation

by Public Service Associate Autumn

All living things adapt to the onset of winter.1 Birds tend to migrate.2 Foxes, hares, bison and plenty of other animals grow thicker, denser coats, often in cooler, more winter-camouflaged colors. Humans bundle up in thick winter coats and gloves and complain about having to preheat their cars in the morning. Some creatures like bears, however, hibernate. 

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Booklists Recommendations

Don’t Panic!

by Public Service Associate Hannah

September is National Preparedness Month — a time to prepare for natural and man-made disasters and emergencies. As a library user*, this PSA gets me thinking of all the thrilling apocalypse-type plot lines and thought-provoking stories on our shelves. But Hannah, you say, very real water, fire, and wind cause devastation every day. Where’s the entertainment in that?! Well, without making light of very real situations, think of these books and movies like you would visiting a haunted house or riding a roller coaster. A part of you is scared, and in my case screaming regret, while another part of you knows this is a manageable way to experience hardship and fear in a safe environment. Studies have even shown natural disaster films might teach us to take climate emergencies more seriously while providing tips for how to act in similar circumstances. Plus, it’s cathartic and rewarding to root for a protagonist as they seek shelter and find hope. 

Now set your solar flashlight out to charge as we dive into my disaster book and movie recommendations.

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Booklists Recommendations

Ghost Stories

by Public Service Associate Hannah

It’s said that Halloween is a time when the veil between our earthly plane and the spiritual world is thin. And a thin veil means it is easier for spirits to cross and walk among the living. Whether you believe in phantasms or not, telling ghost stories is a timeless, cross-cultural tradition. Even Pliny the Younger (c. 61 – 113 CE) wrote about the specter of an old man, complete with a long beard and rattling chains, haunting his home in Athens. So without further ado, allow me to share some of the latest ghost stories haunting the library shelves!

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Booklists Recommendations

Beach Reads

by Public Service Associate Hannah

Having clicked on this blog, I’m going to guess that you associate your vacation and time off with time to read. I might even wager that you are seeking a particular type of book — the beach read!

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Booklists Online Resources Recommendations

Armchair Travel: Istanbul

by Public Service Associate Juliana

When I ask myself what I know about Istanbul, my knowledge appears limited to Turkish cuisine. Baklava, hummus, babaganoush, stuffed grape leaves, tabouli, falafel, kebabs. What I know about Istanbul extends about as far as the library parking lot, across the street to Cafe Istanbul. 

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Booklists Recommendations

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

by Public Service Associate Hannah

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month officially became an annual affair in 1992. The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States in 1843 and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.

So this May, celebrate the generations of Asian or Pacific Islanders who have enriched America’s history, and continue to be instrumental in its future success, with your Library! How? By checking out their stories in the form of books, films, and digital library resources of course!

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Booklists Online Resources Programs Recommendations

Library Lovers’ Day

by Public Service Associate Hannah

Ah, Valentine’s Day, or as we like to celebrate Library Lovers’ Day! Whether your plans lean romantic or platonic, allow me to share several ways in which Bexley Public Library makes for the perfect valentine.

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