Titanic Centennial

April 15 marks the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. If you find yourself haunted by the thought of this tragic event, you may be interested in taking a look at one of these recently published titles available at the Glenview Public Library.

The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott
A spirited young maid on board the Titanic captures the attentions of two men including a kindhearted sailor and an enigmatic Chicago millionaire and barely escapes with her life before witnessing media scorn targeting her famous designer mistress. Fiction.

The Watch That Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic by Allan Wolf
Recreates the 1912 sinking of the Titanic as observed by millionaire John Jacob Astor, a beautiful young Lebanese refugee finding first love, "Unsinkable" Molly Brown, Captain Smith, and others including the iceberg itself. Non-fiction.

Building the Titanic: The Creation of History's Most Famous Ocean Liner by Rod Green
Features a detailed account of the creation of the Titanic, telling the story of how the ship was designed and constructed and why its legend continues to fascinate. Non-fiction.

Shadow of the Titanic: The Extraordinary Stories of Those Who Survived by Andrew Wilson
Wilson presents the post-Titanic lives of survivors, both rich and poor. Non-fiction.

Voyagers of the Titanic: Passengers, Sailors, Shipbuilders, Aristocrats, and the Worlds They Came from by R.P.T Davenport-Hines
A history of the Titanic and its ill-fated voyage focuses on the passengers, crew, and builders and illuminates the heroism, sacrifice, hope and love that emerged from the tragedy. Non-fiction.

How to Survive the Titanic: The Sinking of J. Bruce Ismay by R.P.T. Davenport-Hines
Accused of cowardice and of dictating the Titanic's excessive speed, Ismay was the first victim of a press hate campaign. He never recovered from the damage to his reputation and never spoke of his beloved ship, the Titanic, again. Wilson explores Ismay's desperate need to tell his story, and to find a way of living with the consciousness of lost honor. Non-fiction.

Forthcoming Fiction for April

Here are some titles coming out this April. You can reserve these by going to our Online Catalog, Bibliocommons or by calling the Reader Services Desk at 847-729-7500 x7600!

Aunt Dimity and the Village Witch by Nancy Atherton

The Innocent by David Baldacci

The Big Cat Nap by Rita Mae Brown

Gypped by Carol Higgins Clark

The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark

True Sisters by Sandra Dallas

An Accidental Affair by Eric Jerome Dickey

The Mysterium: A Hugh Corbett Medieval Mystery by P.C. Doherty

Calico Joe by John Grisham

Death Comes Silently by Carolyn G. Hart

The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King

What Doesn’t Kill You by Iris Johansen

A Wandering Heart by Thomas Kinkade

Beastly Things : A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery by Donna Leon

The Fiddler by Beverly Lewis

Capitol Murder: A Novel of Suspense by Phillip Margolin

The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall-Smith

Dorchester Terrace: A Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Novel by Anne Perry

Crystal Gardens by Amanda Quick

The Witness by Nora Roberts

Come Home by Lisa Scottoline

The Shoemaker’s Wife by Adriana Trigiani

The Beginner’s Goodbye by Anne Tyler

More Than You Know: A Novel by Penny Vincenzi

Harbor Nocturne by Joseph Wambaugh

Rage of the Dragon by Margaret Wise

Unnatural Acts: A Stone Barrington Novel by Stuart Woods

Think Green

St. Patrick's Day is this weekend, but here are some other ways to "Think Green". Try these fiction novels with a "Green" and Eco-fiction theme.

Ecotopia: the notebooks and reports of William Weston by Ernest Callenbach
Investigative reporter William Weston crosses the Sierra Nevada mountains and enters Ecotopia, the first American to do so since the Ecotopian secession from the U.S. in 1980.

Anthill by Edward O. Wilson
Presents the adventures of Raff, a modern-day Huck Finn in Alabama, whose love of ants transforms his life and those around him as he fights condo developers intent on destroying an endangered tract of land.

Endangered Species: an Anna Pigeon mystery by Nevada Barr 
Park ranger Anna Pigeon investigates the crash of a drug-interdiction plane on an isolated Georgia island. Was it an accident or sabotage that downed the plane, killing both the pilot and his passenger? It's up to Anna and her crew to solve the mystery.

Lady of the Butterflies by Fiona Mountain
Scandalizing her seventeenth-century Puritan community with her scientific experiments with butterflies that are believed by others to be the souls of the dead, Eleanor Glanville pursues a passionate desire to find an all-consuming love and sense of self-worth.

Saints at the River by Ron Rash
Maggie Glenn, a newspaper photographer sent to cover an incident in her home town, becomes caught in the middle of the conflict between environmentalists, opening old wounds and forcing her to revisit a past she wanted to leave behind.

Elephant Song by Wilbur Smith
An internationally renowned ecologist embarks on a quest to stop the ivory trade in Africa and resorts to violent measures after his lifelong friend is murdered by poachers.

Spring is in the Air

Yes, this past Winter was talked about, not for the predicted record snowfall, but rather the lack of it. Regardless of, or perhaps because of the mild winter season, I think we are all looking forward to Spring - the promise of new beginnings and new life.

It is only March, but it’s never too early to start thinking about our lawn and garden. What should we be doing now? What new plants will be available this year? If you need some help or just looking for new ideas on what to do, here are a few good sources.

Garden Gate – the latest issue has articles on the best new plants, what to do now, and how to grow a green garden.

Chicagoland Gardening –  Read about the best  flowering trees, gardening basics, and Chicagoland native plants in the latest issue.

Fine Gardening – the April issue has columns on picking the best peonies, spring containers, and pruning.

Natural Home and Garden – among other topics, you will find articles on spring planting, a quick-start garden plan, and an alternative to having a lawn.

Fresh Home – offers solutions on how to turn problems in your garden such as too many weeds and “puddling” into paradise.

Just looking through the pages of these magazines will inspire you. Planting season will soon be upon us,  and not too long after, it'll be time to smell the flowers.

New Audiobooks at the Glenview Public Library

Be sure to check out the following new audiobooks that have recently become available at the Glenview Public Library.  You can reserve these titles through our online catalog by clicking on the titles below or by calling the Audiovisual Desk at 847-729-7500 ext. 2602.

Fiction:
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
Plugged by Eoin Colfer
Believing the Lie by Elizabeth George
When She Woke by Jordan Hillary
Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante
On Canaan’s Side by Barry Sebastian

Nonfiction:
Here Comes Trouble by Michael Moore
The Man Who Couldn’t Eat by Jon Reiner
Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow
Spontaneous Happiness by Andrew Weil

National Book Critics Circle Finalists

Founded in 1974, the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) honors the best literature published in English in six categories: autobiography, biography, criticism, fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Previous winners of the award for fiction include Marilynne Robinson, Ian McEwan, Penelope Fitzgerald, Alice Monro, and Roberto Bolano. To find a list of finalists and winners for all categories over the years, visit the National Book Critics Circle website. 

Finalists in the fiction category for 2011 announced on January 21, 2012 include:

Open City by Teju Cole

A Nigerian resident in psychiatry wanders around in Manhattan pondering “everything from Goya and the novels of J.M. Coetzee to the bankruptcy of Tower Records and the rise of the bedbug epidemic… Julius pines over a recent ex, mourns the death of a friend, goes to movies, concerts, and museums, but above all he ruminates, and the picture of a mind that emerges in lieu of a plot is fascinating, as it is engaged with the world in a rare and refreshing way” (Publishers Weekly). This book has been described variously by critics as “a psychological hand grenade” (Alexis Madrigal), “a compassionate and masterly work” (The New York Times Book Review), and “intelligent and panoramic…engaged with the world in a rare and refreshing way” (Publishers Weekly).


The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

Eugenides’ latest book covers about a year in the lives of three college seniors at Brown in the early 1980s. A love triangle of one young woman and two young men is examined as the three friends reach the end of their student days and start moving toward adulthood. Several reviewers mention the book as having a particular appeal to English majors, probably because, according to the Wall Street Journal, “his send-ups of the pretensions of chic undergraduate subcultures are hilarious and charmingly rendered.”

The Stranger’s Child by Alan Hollinghurst

 In another story of a love triangle, Hollinghurst “stages a splendid satire on the English social strata of the 20th century...grandly capturing the beauty, despair, and desire of the British upper class,” according to critic Michael Leonard. The story stretches from 1913 to the present in a witty, insightful generational saga that one reviewer calls a “thrilling, enchanting work of art.”

Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman

Pearlman’s collection of stories include a love affair between young cousins, an elderly couple's decision to shoplift, a young girl’s deathbed secret revealed, a young college graduate intent on fulfilling an obligation to herself, and a retired gastroenterologist deciding how she wants to leave this world, along with other enticing plots. Her characters range across different eras and geographical locations, and each is rendered with precision.

Stone Arabia by Dana Spiotta

After retreating from his once-promising career, aging rock singer Nik has created his own alternate biography from invented news clippings, fake photographs, and fictional reviews. His sister Denise and niece Ada think maybe he is a genius, and Ada sets out to make a film about him.

Winners in each category, including fiction, will be announced on March 8^th.

It's Almost Oscar Sunday

The 84th Annual Academy Awards airs Sunday at 7:30 PM. Most award show pundits have this year's program penciled in to be a fairly predicable affair with a lot of the attention going to Michel Hazanavicious' The Artist. That said, there's always enough interesting surprises to warrant tuning in. Billy Crystal hosts the show for the ninth time, stepping in after Eddie Murphy bowed out late last year. Nine films will compete for the Year's Best Picture and while they are not all available on DVD yet, this is a good time to check out some of the nominated films, in all of the categories, that we do own here at the library including Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, The Help, or Tree of Life.