Page Turners

Here is a list of books that have been shared on KMA's Page Turners with the Shenandoah Public Library.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

DEWEY: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World--Vicki Myron with Bret Witter--Dewey is part biography (of the cat), part autobiography (of Vicki Myron), part history of the town of Spencer, IA and the surrounding area and part good story. It traces the 19 years of Dewey's life and the world-wide attention he gained with lots of stories of the cat's foibles and antics as well as the unfolding story of Myron's life, good parts and sad.
Now on the best-seller lists, it's being translated into 30 languages and latest gossip/news, is that it is being made into a movie. (What animal can play the part of the cat....well, could be a challenge!).

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

ANATHEM—Neal Stephenson—Erasmus (Raz to friends), a mathic pseudo monk (avout) in a Concent (cloister, sort of) on the world Arbre is the hero and guide thorugh this 890 page novel with a 20 page Glossary and an additional 25 page description of solutions to mathmatical problems posed in the text. This is not an easy book to read, but well worth it for the story line based on a concept of multiple universes, the physics, the growth and perpetuation of philosophical and mathematical ideas, examples of tight logical reasoning the list goes on. Stephenson's characters, and that they are, become full dimensional. He carefuly builds his world—treating the reader to a new vocabulary which, blessedly, is contained in the Glossary (and to which I frequently referred). As his world takes shape, it it threatened and the Avout are called to help the Seculars (those out of Concent) defend their world, their tiny place in the vastness of the universe, or universes. Challenging it is, but wonderful at multiple levels.

Monday, November 10, 2008

The Lover's Knot: a Someday Quilts Mystery by Clare O' Donohue - Nell has just been jilted by her fiance Ryan so she leaves New York City to spend some time in the small town of Archer's Rest in upstate New York. There her grandmother has a quilt shop and a group of Friday Night quilters who have made Nell's wedding quilt. While in Archer's Rest Nell starts to fall for the local bad boy handyman Marc. Then Ryan suddenly shows up in town trying to reconcile with Nell. When Marc is found dead in the quilt shop fingers start pointing at Ryan. Can Nell figure out what is going on in time to save her former fiance?