My LINKcat AccountOnly a few more days, and Booky, our prognosticating badger, along with those weather-forecasting dilettante groundhogs that live in Pennsylvania and Sun Prairie, will be making their duration of winter forecasts. This means we will be at the beginning of the month of February which along with the two important holidays of Ground Hog Day and Valentine's Day is the beginning to the countdown of one-year anniversaries of events marking the arrival of Covid-19. We're not there yet, but we are getting close. Last year at this time, I was still blithely pulling together data for the annual report the library submits to the Department of Public Instruction which eventually ends up at the federal level at the Institute for Museum and Library Services. The data we will be reporting from the year 2020 is going to look a whole lot different from previous years (and future years, I hope!). The physical circulation of materials was greatly diminished as was the physical attendance at in-person programs. Digital use of materials and programs, however, was astounding. I'll keep you posted as the data comes together; I'm sure there will be data points that amuse as well as inform. With a winter weather advisory just finishing up over the past weekend and another one arriving on Monday evening, one would have to say that it's great weather for settling in with a good book. Below are some of the new titles that have recently arrived at the library. Enjoy!
New Non-Fiction
Ida B. the Queen:The Extraordinary Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells by Michelle Duster. Written by her great-granddaughter, a historical portrait of the boundary-breaking civil rights pioneer includes coverage of Wells' early years as a slave, her famous acts of resistance and her achievements as a journalist and anti-lynching activist.
Just As I Am: A Memoir by Cicely Tyson. The Academy, Tony, and three-time Emmy Award-winning actor and trailblazer tells her stunning story, looking back at her six-decade career and life.
Religion and the Rise of Capitalism by Benjamin Friedman. A leading expert on economic policy presents a major reassessment of the foundations of modern economic thinking to identify the historical religious influences behind today's fiercely defended beliefs about the free market.
Change: The Power in the Periphery to Make Big Things Happen by Damon Centola. Lays out a paradigm-busting new theory about the complex way innovative ideas, movements, and behaviors spread from the edges of society to impact everyone, and how to use these ideas to effect the change you want to see in the world.
Till Murder Do Us Part by James Patterson. A woman begins to suspect that her husband isn't actually who he says he is and a teenager has her life upended during the hunt for a missing girl in two true-crime stories from the prolific and best-selling author.
Work: A Deep History, from the Stone Age to the Age of Robots by James Suzman. An anthropological study of the role of work in human evolution challenges deeply held assumptions to explain the different ways our ancient ancestors conducted and regarded work prior to the eras of migration, food production and city development.
New Fiction
A Perfect Amish Romance, No.1 (Berlin Bookmobile) by Shelley Gray. In new series, a bookmobile driver-turned-matchmaker learns that her Amish patrons need a whole lot more than just new books to read.
A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes. An award-winning retelling of the Trojan War from the perspectives of its women follows the stories of a vigil-keeping Penelope, an Amazon princess rival of Achilles and three goddesses whose feud sparks a tragic conflict
Spin, No. 2 (Captain Chase) by Patricia Cornwell. Captain Calli Chase races against time to thwart a plot that leaves the fate of humanity hanging in the balance.
A Curious Incident, No. 6 (Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery) by Vicki Delany. After Gemma helps a little girl find her lost cat, the child returns seeking further assistance when her mother is accused of killing her garden club rival in the latest addition to the series following “There's a Murder Afoot”.
All the Colors of Night, No. 2 (Fogg Lake) by Jayne Ann Krentz. A sequel to The Vanishing finds a young man with rare crystal-energy abilities partnering with a disgraced paranormal artifacts finder to track down a mysterious relic that may be tied to a parent's sudden coma.
The Lost Boys, No. 26 (Decker/ Lazarus) by Faye Kellerman. Detectives Peter Decker and Tyler McAdams link two suspicious disappearances from an assisted living facility to the case of three missing campers, before the reappearance of a foster son's biological mother upends Decker's home life.
The Mitford Trial, No.3 (Granny Reid) by Jessica Fellowes. Approached on her wedding day by a mysterious stranger who asks her to spy on loved ones, lady's maid Louisa Cannon accompanies the Mitfords on a glitzy cruise that is shattered by an on-board assault.