Staff Picks
Anita's Picks
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
Whether or not you are a fan of Stephen King’s novels, this terrific memoir should be required reading for anyone who cares about books and the highly individual process of writing them.
Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris
Set in an English boys’ school, and told through the voices of three ‘players’, the plot of this smart and suspenseful story twists and turns to an astonishing denouement.
One L: The Turbulent True Story of a First Year at Harvard Law School by Scott Turow
A slim, surprisingly exciting, and dramatically-paced account of the author’s first year at Harvard Law School.
Deadheads by Reginald Hill
An early entry in the excellent Dalziel and Pascoe series, this is, quite simply, one of the most unsettling books I’ve read, penned by a master of the genre.
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
A compelling and beautifully-written family saga, set in northern Ontario, which chronicles the fates of four siblings, orphaned when their parents are killed in an auto accident.
The Travelling Hornplayer by Barbara Trapido
A critic once compared reading Trapido’s wonderful novels to being “showered with sequins”. This one - with prose so good you can almost taste it - is subversive and tragi-comic, packed with quirky characters and wild narrative twists.
Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir by Diana Athill
At the age of 92, unconventional, often outrageous, and always interesting, memoirist and former book editor Athill, reflects bracingly on the changes wrought by age, and a life lived to the full.
Ordinary Thunderstorms by William Boyd
Whitbread-winner Boyd’s intelligent and multifaceted thriller is anything but ordinary. For climatologist, Adam Kindred, a chance encounter turns into a personal nightmare which ultimately transforms his very identity.
Emily, Alone by Stewart O’Nan
I had a hard time putting down this slow-paced, but absorbing tale of an elderly widow’s day-to-day life, so rich with domestic detail and small, vivid glimpses at the web of family relationships.
The Apprentice: My Life in the Kitchen by Jacques Pépin
An enchanting account, complete with recipes, of Pépin’s upbringing and traditional Chef’s training in France. If you enjoy culinary memoirs, you will love this one.
Diane's Picks
The Gift Of An Ordinary Day: A Mother’s Memoir by Katrina Kenison
This is story about a woman with two teenage boys transitioning from a mother of children to a mother of teenagers to a mother of adults. The letting go, the keeping the mouth shut, the trusting you’ve taught them well, and the stepping back. It is beautifully written. There are about 2 or 3 sentences on every page that I would like to write down and keep handy to remind me how precious every moment is, even the tiniest ones.
Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen
This is my favorite Jane Austen novel and I have read it many times. Whether you're a hopeless romantic or you just love the classics, you will be drawn in to the chemistry between Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
I think I read Little Women first as a pre-teen. I identified strongly, probably like most girls, with Jo, a tomboy who struggles to find her place in society. An American classic about a family of women trying to survive while their father is gone during the Civil War.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
I, like most others I have spoken to, loved this book. The story takes place in Jackson, Mississippi, in the very turbulent 1960s. It is a story about the lives of African American maids and the white women who employ them. When they come together for a secret, potentially dangerous project, you just want to root them on and cheer for them.
Snow Flower And The Secret Fan by Lisa See
I admittedly knew very little, if anything, about all the different customs of 19th century China, where men are in charge and women are treated as second-class citizens. It follows the everyday lives of two women from age 7 into womanhood as they learn "nu-shu”, the secret writing of Chinese women, share their secret dreams, and the day-to-day challenges of being wife, mother, daughter-in-law in a culture where women are prized not for their intellect or talents but for the size of their feet. A beautiful story about the bonds of friendship.
The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks
This is a story of love lost and found. You absolutely can't help but fall in love with Noah and Allie. As the characters age, Allison and Noah are both in a nursing home and Allison has lost her memory, but every day Noah walks down the hallway to her room to retell the story of their love. If you are a romantic at heart that loves to read sappy love stories, this book is definitely for you.
Jenny's Picks
Click here to place a hold on the Sister Wendy DVDs.
Click here to place a hold on the Brideshead Revisited DVDs.
Jessica's Picks 
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
Speare has created a genuine heroine in Kat, and I can’t help but to imagine her every time I travel through Old Wethersfield.
Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver
A range of essays on natural environment, war, human behavior and political consequences; Kingsolver’s writing is thought provoking and memorable.
The Summer Fletcher Greel Loved Me by Suzanne Kingsbury
The characters in this one are gritty and vivid and so is the portrayal of their backwoods Mississippi home. Your heart will fall to pieces as tension involving racism and cruelty mount, but you’re sure to remember the well-drawn characters long after its end.
Blink by Malcom Gladwell
An interesting take on snap judgments, going with your gut and the intricacies of human behavior.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper E. Lee
I admire the way that Atticus Finch raises his children. I also appreciate the realness of the children that Harper Lee invents. Her handle on human nature astounds me.
Whatever You Do, Don’t Run by Peter Allison
Hilarious and informative, it’s hard not to learn a thing or two from 19-year-old Australian suburbanite gone Botswana safari guide Peter Allison.
Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork
Marcelo Sandoval is a high-functioning, extremely self-aware teenager with a cognitive disorder. He has an authentic voice and takes on the “real world” courageously.
PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives by Frank Warren
The secrets found here go from frightening to awe-striking to hilarious. The anonymity of this book makes it easy to relate to the hidden thoughts and confessions of real strangers.
Savvy by Ingrid Law
For the Beaumont family, it’s all about learning to scumble a savvy. It’s hard to read this one and not imagine savvy of your own.
The Days are Just Packed by Bill Watterson
I never fail to laugh loudly when reading this book. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t relate to the loveable nightmare that is Calvin and his imaginary friend Hobbes.
Marge's Picks
Daring Young Men : the heroism and triumph of the Berlin Airlift, June 1948-May 1949 by Richard Reeves
This had a lot of interesting details about the airlift including that not all the Allies were for it and that pilots died in it.
Founding Brothers : the revolutionary generation by Joseph J. Ellis
History books seemed to gloss over the bickering between among these men. And Ellis is excellent at telling a story.
Death Of A Perfect Wife by M.C. Beaton
The Hamish Macbeth mystery series is set in a small village in northern Scotland. I have no idea how true it is to real life, the whole series is fun, humorous, short with an unassuming police constable who always catches the wrongdoers.
The Joe Leaphorn Mysteries by Tony Hillerman
These books are good not only for the mystery but because of what you learn about the American Southwest and the Navaho culture.
The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
This is one of those books you don’t want to put down. It might seem as if it’s impossible to tell a full story in the form of letters, but you really learn about the thoughts of many characters while hearing what they went through during World War II.
The Pilot’s Wife by Anita Shreve
A young wife finds that not only has her pilot husband died but that he had a whole other life that she knew nothing about.
The Villa by Nora Roberts
There are times you just need a good romance and Roberts is excellent at this. Some of her novels are more thrillers than romances. This one is set in California’s vineyards.
The Audacity Of Hope by Barack Obama
Obama tells his own story. Of course he probably left out a lot of unpleasant details but this still tell a lot about the man who is our president.
The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister
Just a nice cozy read about a woman who runs a cooking school and the people in her class.
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
Don’t pick this up unless you have plenty of time, because it is long. But this book, written in 1868 and sometimes called the first detective novel, has mystery and humor.
Richard's Picks
Exit Music
by Ian Rankin
I’m generally not a fan of thrillers or detective novels. In my opinion, however, Rankin’s Inspector Rebus series does not fit neatly into either of those genres. It’s true that John Rebus is a Detective Inspector with Edinburgh’s Lothian and Borders Police, and each book’s plot centers around the way in which he goes about helping to solve a particular crime. Ultimately, however, it’s what makes the characters, (all of whom are very human), tick that drives the narrative. The criminals are neither masterminds nor fools, and the police are prone to the same foibles and have to deal with the same real life problems that confront any other person. Perhaps most interesting of all is the way Rankin uses the city of Edinburgh, itself, as a character - a place that he skillfully portrays as being, by turns, charming or sinister, provincial or sophisticated. Exit Music examines the inner conflict Rebus struggles with as he participates in the investigation of his final case, a murder that takes place less than two weeks before his announced retirement. Although he knows the time has come for him to move on, acceptance of that fact is another matter. Over the years Ian Rankin has developed a true talent for writing excellent character studies and I highly recommend the entire series of Inspector Rebus books to anyone who is unfamiliar with them. Although Rebus has now retired, there are hints in Exit Music that other characters who have appeared regularly in Rankin’s books may take his place as the subject of future titles. His readers can only hope that such is the case.