All posts by Jessica FitzHanso
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Chelmsford Library’s Best of the Year 2019!
It’s finally here – our latest best of the year list! Whether you’re looking for a satisfying respite from the holiday rush, or you’re still deciding what to give the book-lover in your life, check out our favorites of 2019 for tips on what to try. The list has everything from picture books to graphic memoirs; teen romance to social science; cookbooks and everything in between, and all come recommended by your very own Chelmsford librarians!
Did we miss your genre? Contact our Bookwise team and we’ll find something for you too!
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Give Thanks for New Books!
Hopefully you can find some time to relax with a few new stories this busy holiday season. At least we’ve taken the guess work out of the equation! Below you’ll find all of the best and latest from many genres, including a funny little essay collection from comedian Jenny Slate; a couple of sweet new contemporary romances from new perspectives; a poignant memoir from an award winning author; a new family saga from Ann Patchett, as well as the latest from Margaret Wilkerson Sexton and Alan Furst, new mysteries and much more. Read through the list to find your next read!
Fall in love with these titles, on the shelf right now!
Now that school has started and the daylight is becoming scarce, who can possibly think about pausing to browse for a new book to read? If you have only five minutes between school and soccer practice, stop in for one of these guaranteed great reads on display by the circulation desk.
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What should you read next? Ask us!
Over the summer, as part of our Summer Reading Bingo Challenge, we asked readers to try out our BookWise service. We’ve just finished answering a few requests, and I thought I’d share the results so far. How did we do? Let us know, or try the service for yourself!
Person 1:
Liked: Number one Chinese Restaurant, Chemistry (a novel), The Tenth Muse
Did not Like: The Signature of All Things
Looks for most in a book: Believable characters
What I want now: Something like A Gentleman in Moscow
- The Tiger’s Wife, a lush, mystical novel. It is incredibly absorbing and the language is lyrical with captivating authentic characters and a mythic quality, as in The Tenth Muse. Obreht is a beautiful writer.
- Another well-known novel that is similar to A Gentleman in Moscow is Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto. It’s sophisticated and compelling and deals with well-to-do characters humbled by political circumstances and held captive in luxurious surroundings. It’s character-driven, though in this case, a cast of characters take turns being in the spotlight.
- Based on some of the other selections, try The Sympathizer, an excellent novel about a Vietnamese spy hiding out in Los Angeles who relates his tales of war from the perspective of having been captured. It’s very sharp, smart, funny and a little dark at times too, but ultimately poignant and unforgettable.
- Also try A Tale for the Time Being, by Ruth Ozeki. It’s a character-driven, engaging novel about a struggling writer who happens upon the letters of a troubled Japanese teenager who is determined to write the story of her grandmother. It’s a moving tale and a challenging one, but like the previous recommendation, won’t easily be forgotten.
- Finally, if you’re looking for something to follow up on the The Number One Chinese Restaurant, I would suggest either The Nest by Cynthia D’aprix Sweeney, or Family Trust by Kathy Wang. Both are character-laden, and engaging. They both concern the children of successful families forced to reckon with the realities of what their parents have sacrificed for their state of being.
Person 2:
What I liked: The Giver, The Hunger Games, Amazonia, The Host
What I didn’t like: Angry Housewives Eating Bon-Bons, The Plague Dogs
What I look for most in a book: Something at least a little suspenseful, whether a simmering romance, criminal investigation or legal proceeding, or something “unknown”.
What would you like this time: Something that leaves me with a sense of satisfaction with the resolution.
Our recommendations:
- The Stand, by Stephen King: “A monumentally devastating plague leaves only a few survivors in a desert world who move toward the ultimate confrontation of good and evil, in the expanded original version of King’s novel.”
- The Program, by Suzanne Young: “When suicide becomes a worldwide epidemic, the only known cure is The Program, a treatment in which painful memories are erased, a fate worse than death to seventeen-year-old Sloane who knows that The Program will steal memories of her dead brother and boyfriend.”
- The Rule of One, by Ashley and Leslie Saunders: “In the near-future United States, a one-child policy is ruthlessly enforced. Everyone follows the Rule of One. But Ava Goodwin, daughter of the head of the Texas Family Planning Division, has a secret—one her mother died to keep and her father has helped to hide for her entire life. She has an identical twin sister, Mira.”
- The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, N. K. Jemisen: After Yeine Darr is summoned to the majestic city of Sky and named an heiress to the king of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, she is thrust into a vicious power struggle with cousins she never knew she had, drawing ever closer to the secrets of her mother’s death and her family’s bloody history.
- In The Woods, by Tana French: “Detective Rob Ryan and his partner, Cassie Maddox, investigate the murder of a 12-year-old girl near a Dublin suburb. The case resonates with similarities to a murder committed twenty years before that involved two children and the young Ryan.”
Person 3:
Liked: Circle of Friends – Maeve Binchy, The Nightingale – Kristin Hannah, The Secret History – Donna Tartt
Did not like: The Little Paris Bookshop – Nina George (Wanted to like it but couldn’t even finish it)
Look for most in a book: Good pacing, interesting characters, beautiful sentences
What would you like now: Something that sucks me in immediately and I can’t put down. But not dense or bleak. A hearty “summer read”
Our recommendations:
- Try The Guest Book by Sarah Blake. Despite its size it moves quickly. It’s a family saga that looks back from the present generation to the 1930s and the late 1950s, as secrets about this very wealthy, white, New York family are slowly uncovered. Blake writes really well, and the first chapter will shock you and compel you to read on.
- Next, try The Furies by Natalie Haynes, about a teacher in Scotland sent to instruct a small drama group for troubled youths. The teens in the program are mesmerizing characters, and the result is a good slow-burn suspense novel, not unlike The Secret History.
- Speaking of suspense and excellent characters, have you read Tana French’s novels? She can be a bit dark, but she is a really great writer with good pacing. The second is very good, The Likeness, but a lot of people claim the third is the best, Faithful Place. The first is In the Woods. They can be read out of order, though the stories are linked.
- You might also like Meg Wolitzer’s The Interestings, a coming-of-age story about a group of friends who call themselves The Interestings. Wolitzer is a very engaging writer. What it’s about: Forging a powerful bond in the mid-1970s that lasts throughout subsequent decades, six individuals pursue respective challenges into their midlife years, including an aspiring actress who harbors jealousy toward friends who achieve successful creative careers.
- Finally, Elin Hildebrand is a great writer for a weekend getaway. She writes lighter reads, but with authentic characters and engaging plot lines. She also really loves her setting. Here’s to Us is a popular one: “Gathering at a ramshackle Nantucket cottage, a late celebrity chef’s former wives and children confront the sources of their bitter rivalries and slowly let go of resentments as they remember positive times and share long-held secrets.”
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New Midsummer Reads
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Get your summer books here!
Read below for some info on each, and then run in and pick them up from our display!
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Adult Summer Reading is Back for 2019
Now Adults can join in the summer reading fun too!
Adult summer challenge Bingo cards can be downloaded and printed, or you can pick one up at the Circulation Desk on the main floor starting June 1st.
Cross off spaces for reading different genres, but also for attending summer programs, downloading music and movies, connecting with us on social media and much more! Turn in your completed card to the Main desk and be entered into a raffle for prizes by August 31
Also check out our displays in the library and our monthly Friday Fiction lists for suggestions on what to read this summer. If nothing there looks good, we’re here to help!
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Start summer with the right book!
This month’s list is packed with highly anticipated reads from all genres. Miracle Creek, by Angie Kim, is a compelling court room drama that tackles some pretty heavy issues. I couldn’t put it down. Also, Sarah Blake’s latest, The Guest Book, a lush family saga that already has over 50 holds. For those interested in wading into speculative fiction, there’s the thoroughly original and engaging Light From Other Stars by Erika Swyler.
Read through the whole list to find many many more, (we’ve included some RA hints as additional guides) and don’t forget to join us in July for our next live event! In the meantime, we’ll have another list in June (Yay summer!), and if you need even more ideas contact us anytime!
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Join us for Book Tastings!
Have recent recommendations left a bad taste in your mouth? Looking for a new book to devour? Join us for a book tasting! We’re curating a delectable selection of new fiction to pique your appetite, from all genres so we’re certain you won’t leave hungry for new book to read. Sample each title, chat with your fellow diners, and enjoy some sweet treats. Next Wednesday evening at 7PM we’ll have the tables set so come and take you seat – your reservation awaits! Click here for our calendar entry.
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We’re Mad for March at the Library!
Join us for Library March Madness: help us decide the best book of the last decade! Vote on Facebook or Twitter every other day as we pit popular bestsellers against literary darlings to determine the ultimate champion!
Round 2, Elite 8! Vote through 3/28/19 (Cast your vote on our Facebook or Twitter Page):