My LINKcat AccountToday is Halloween, or All Hallows' Evening or Eve. This is the first day of the Christian celebration of Hallowmas. Hallowmas begins on Hallows eve which was when worshippers would prepare themselves with prayers and fasting prior to the feast day itself. All Saints (Hallows) Day is November 1st is a major feast day and honors the blessed who have not been canonized and who have no special feast day. The third day of Hallowmas is All Souls Day or the Commemoration of All Faithful Departed. All Souls' Day focuses on honoring all faithful Christians who have died. Surprisingly enough these three holidays (holy days) had very little to do with how the celebration of Halloween has evolved over the years. Remembering the dead and decorating graveyards was part of the traditions. In England, a popular tradition associated with All Souls' Day was souling, in which bands of children went round to the houses of the well-to-do on Souling Day, as they called it, begging money, apples, ale, or doles of cake. In some parts specially baked cakes were prepared in readiness to give away; they were called soul-cakes. Soul-cakes get us part of the way towards the idea of treats around this holiday. But enough historical information. Children in the area have already had their evening of trick-or-treating at the High School. Older "children" have had their Freakfest in downtown Madison. If you're a traditionalist, today is the day you should don your costume and go and ask your neighbor, "Trick or Treat?" I hope you get lots of treats, and speaking of treats, we have a lot of excellent books listed below that will make reading a real pleasure. Enjoy!
New Non-Fiction
40 chances : finding hope in a hungry world / by Howard Buffett. After his father challenged him to accomplish something great in the world, the son of legendary investor Warren Buffet set out to help nearly a billion individuals who lack basic food security through his passion of farming, in this inspirational story that is told through 40 stories of lessons learned.
Spelling it like it is / by Tori Spelling. The popular Hollywood starlet and best-selling author of "celebraTORI" presents a new collection of essays about the challenges of life in Hollywood, from navigating tabloid scrutiny and the latest headline-making feud to her visit to the set of the new "90210" and her baby nurse Patsy's health scare.
The Kennedy half-century : the Presidency, assassination, and lasting legacy of John F. Kennedy / by Larry Sabato. Published to coincide with the anniversary of JFK's assassination, a renowned political scientist explores the profound impact his short presidency had on the media, on the general public and on each of his nine presidential successors.
The men who united the States : America's explorers, inventors, eccentrics, and mavericks, and the creation of one nation, indivisible / by Simon Winchester. Following in the footsteps of America's most essential explorers, thinkers and innovators, the "New York Times" best-selling author of "Atlantic" delivers his first book about America that offers a new perspective on how the most powerful nation on earth came together.
Who discovered America? : the untold history of the peopling of the Americas / by Gavin Menzies and Ian Hudson. Combining in-depth research with an adventurer's spirit, a distinguished historian presents a radical rethinking and new revelations relating to the Beringia theory of how humans crossed a land bridge connecting Asia and North America during the last Ice Age.
Thank you for your service / by David Finkel. An award-winning staff writer for "The Washington Post" discusses the hardships faced by soldiers who have come home from service by following the men of the 2-16 Infantry Battalion originally depicted in his book "The Good Soldiers".
New Fiction
The goldfinch / by Donna Tratt. Taken in by a wealthy family friend after surviving an accident that killed his mother, 13-year-old Theo Decker tries to adjust to life on Park Avenue in this new novel by the author of "The Secret History".
Duck the halls : a Meg Langslow mystery / by Donna Andrews. When someone rigs a cage full of skunks in the choir loft of the New Life Baptist Church, Meg Langslow must stop some serious holiday pranksters from destroying the annual pre-Christmas concert, but when murder enters the picture, Meg must save Christmas from being ruined by a vengeful killer.
Fingal O'Reilly, Irish doctor / by Patrick Taylor. Newly married, Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly finds his domestic bliss interrupted by the complications of village life, in this captivating novel that shifts back and forth between the present and the past, where Dr. O'Reilly had once tended to the impoverished denizens of Dublin's tenement slums.
Ghost gone wild / by Carolyn Hart. A well-meaning ghost returns to earth and saves a young man from being shot, only to lose her ability to disappear in the latest book in the series following "Dead, White and Blue".
Gilt trip / by Laura Childs & Diana Orgain. After Jerry Earl is murdered at the Garden District party celebrating his release from a white-collar prison, scrapbooking shop-owner and friend of the departed, Carmela Bertrand, investigates in the 11th book in the series following "Postcards From the Dead".
Just one evil act / by Elizabeth George. Supporting a friend who has lost custody of his young daughter, Barbara and her partner, Inspector Thomas Lynley, are further shocked when the girl's mother reports that the child has been kidnapped from an Italian marketplace as part of a complex plot that risks Barbara's career.
Christmas on 4th Street / by Susan Mallery. After Nicole Perkins opens her store, The Christmas Attic, in Fool's Gold, California, business is booming; and, as a bonus, gorgeous army doctor Gabriel Boylan has offered to help out during the holiday rush.
A seaside Christmas / by Sherryl Woods. A successful Nashville songwriter returns home to Chesapeake Shores to collaborate on a Christmas production while her ex-boyfriend tries to win her back in this new novel from the "New York Times" best-selling author of "Never Let Go".