My LINKcat AccountThe Summer Reading Program has ended. All that’s left is a big party on August 30th, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. (you are all invited, by the way). This year 692 people signed up and 542 read, earned a badge, and /or attended an event. Those participants read 28,193 books, took part in 3,938 activities, wrote 184 reviews, earned 9,764 badges, and attended 396 events. Whew! That’s a whole lot of reading and a whole lot of activity.
Every year, for more years than I care to remember, I have been reporting the number of pages read in concrete terms. I have converted the number of pages read (or pages listened to, or time spent reading) into inches, then converted those inches into miles, and then plotted that number of miles on a map. Since I have been doing this annually for enough years for this to have become a tradition, and since I’m wise enough not to tamper with a fine tradition, here goes!
Those 28,193 books read by those 542 people convert to 2,170,657 pages. That’s just over 4000 pages read by every participant!
Now, on to the calculations which begin with this question: “If you laid all the pages of the books that were read end-to-end how many miles would they stretch?” The average size of a page is 9 inches tall which gives us (2,170,657 times 9” or) 19,535,913 inches (always show your work if you want to receive full credit). Then we take those inches and divide by 12 to give us 1,627,993 feet and then divide by 5,280 to give us 308.33 miles. So 316 miles east of DeForest puts you somewhere in Detroit, MI. You’d be about 10 miles south of Indianapolis. You’d be 14 miles outside of St. Louis near the Gateway Arch. And if you headed northwest you’d be somewhere north of Duluth, MN – possibly in the boundary waters. No matter how you look at it, that’s a lot of pages read. If you want to add to your own personal total, below you will find some of the new books which recently arrived at the library. Enjoy!
New Non-Fiction
“Gambler: Secrets from a Life of Risk” by Billy Walters. The man described as “the Michael Jordan of sports betting” passes along everything he’s learned about sports betting and show bettors how to use the information we all have at our fingertips to develop a sophisticated betting strategy.
“How Trust Works: The Science of How Relationships Are Built, Broken, and Repaired” by Peter Kim. From the world's leading expert on trust repair comes a guide to understanding the most essential foundation of our relationships and communities.
New Fiction
“Star Wars Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade” by Delilah Dawson. A new group of former Jedi decide to serve the Empire under Darth Vader, including Iskar, who survived the destruction of her old Order to claim a new destiny in the Force and hopes to uncover her hidden past that the Jedi refused to share with her.
“California Golden” by Melanie Benjamin. Two teens in 1960s California grapple with the unconventional path of their mother, who defies societal expectations as a talented female surfer in the new novel from the “New York Times” best-selling author of “The Children's Blizzard”
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“Canary Girls” by Jennifer Chiaverini. During World War I, April Tipton, a nineteen-year-old former maid takes a job at Thornshire Arsenal filling shells where she befriends the wife of a star footballer and the decides to join the ladies' football club.
“Keeper of Hidden Books” by Madeline Martin. As bombs rain down on Warsaw and Hitler’s forces surround the city, childhood friends Marta and Janina join the war effort using one of the only weapons that still feel safe to them: literature, fighting to preserve their culture and community and finding hope in each other in order to survive.
“The Paris Assignment” by Rhys Bowen. After the death of her son, Madeleine accepts a request from the ministry to aid in the war effort and, returning to France, confronts the devastation of WWII as she fights to take down the Nazis, find her husband and ultimately survive against inconceivable odds.
“After That Night, No.11 (Will Trent)” by Karin Slaughter. After surviving a brutal attack that changed her life forever, an ER doctor battles to save a young woman who was similarly attacked, linking the crimes in the eleventh novel of the series following “The Silent Wife”.
“A Chateau Under Siege” by Martin Walker, When a French intelligence official is stabbed during an historical reenactment, Bruno, the mayor of Sarlat, must protect the victim's daughters, friends and secrets while investigating in the latest addition to the series following “To Kill a Troubadour”.
“Happiness” by Danielle Steel. A successful author of thrillers receives a mysterious letter about an inheritance of a manor and a title from a recently deceased uncle outside London and her plans to sell the place quickly fade as she contemplates a different life.
“Ravensong, No. 2 (Green Creek)” by T. J. Klune. In this second book in the beloved series, Gordo Livingstone, living a solitary life in a tiny Oregon mountain town, vows never again to involve himself in the affairs of wolves after being betrayed by his pack until fate intervenes.
“The Bone Hacker, No. 11 (A Temperance Brennan Novel)” by Kathy Reichs. Called in to help investigate the murders of young male tourists on the islands of Turks and Caicos, forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan makes a discovery that could have global significance, making herself a target.
“The Last Ranger” by Peter Heller. While investigating the background of a local poacher,
Officer Ren Hopper, an enforcement ranger at Yellowstone National Park, discovers a frightening conspiracy, in this masterful portrait of the American west where greed, love, family and community play out amidst the stunning beauty of the natural world.