Big Library Read:  The Four Corners of the Sky by Michael Malone eBook
Chidren's Book Week: May 13-19
Susanna Kearsley coming June 5!
Summer Reading Clubs Coming June 1!
OverDrive Next Generation site now live!
New eBook Collection from Freading
Big Library Read:  The Four Corners of the Sky by Michael Malone eBook
Chidren's Book Week: May 13-19
Susanna Kearsley coming June 5!
Summer Reading Clubs Coming June 1!
OverDrive Next Generation site now live!
New eBook Collection from Freading

LibraryPoint Blog

07/14/2011 - 4:20pm
Between Shades of Gray

We are all very familiar with the atrocities engineered by Adolph Hitler, but less is heard about the atrocities that occurred at the direction of Joseph Stalin.  Twenty million people were murdered under his leadership.  In the book Between the Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys gives a very compelling account of the Soviet invasion of the country of Lithuania in 1941.  Lists of people who were considered enemies of the state were compliled, and these people were removed from their homes and workplaces.  These people were often professors, teachers, writers, artists, and librarians.  The men were sent to prison and the women and children to forced labor camps--some of which were located in Siberia and the Arctic Circle.  These individuals were separated from family members and forced to live under extremely harsh conditions with none of the comforts of home.  They were not given food or medical attention.  The women and children were shoved into railroad cars and sent away without ever being told where they were going.

The main character in this book is named Lina.  She, her mother, and her younger brother are removed by force from their home and sent to Siberia.  In Siberia, which is harsh enough to begin with, they have to scrounge for anything to eat.  Even one potato becomes a luxury for the prisoners.  Beets become a treat.  The prisoners are forced to dig with shovels which have no handles, and they sleep on the freezing cold floor of a shack.

07/08/2011 - 9:22am

Starting this weekend, the talented storyteller Gary Lloyd will be visiting CRRL library branches and bringing to life familiar (and new) tales of spiders, the creepy critters we love to hate. The program "Come Into My Parlor, Please?" will share fun stories & fantastic facts about our 8-legged friends. Learn the truth about Little Miss Muffett and see storyteller, Gary Lloyd, transform into Anansi, the African spider trickster before your very eyes! Celebrate the 2011 Summer Reading Club, Amazing Tales at Your Library! Sponsored by the Friends of the Library. Grades K-6.

Saturday, July 9, 11 at Newton Branch and 1 at Montross Branch

Wednesday, July 13, 1 at Headquarters Library and 4 at Cooper Branch

Thursday, July 14, 1 at Snow Branch and 3 at Salem Church Branch

Wednesday, July 20, 10 at Porter Branch and 2 at England Run Branch

07/08/2011 - 3:31am
A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux

This readalike is in response to a patron's book-match request. If you would like personalized reading recommendations, fill out the book-match form and a librarian will email suggested titles to you. Available for adults, teens, and kids.  You can browse the book matches here.

Jude Deveraux's A Knight in Shining Armor: "Vacationing in England with her lover, Robert, and his spoiled teenage daughter, heroine Dougless Montgomery is abandoned by them in a remote country churchyard near the tomb of Nicholas Stafford, an earl who died in 1564. Almost immediately, an armor-clad swashbuckler materializes--Nicholas himself, reincarnated in the 20th century to clear his reputation, having been unjustly convicted of treason. Intrigued by his plight, Dougless agrees to help Nicholas learn his accuser's identity and restore his good name. They become lovers, and their adventures briefly lead Dougless back to the 1560s, allowing Deveraux to portray that period from a contemporary woman's perspective, as well as 1988 through the eyes of a confounded Elizabethan nobleman."

If you like Jude Deveraux's A Knight in Shining Armor, you may also like these suggestions: 

Beyond the Highland Mist, by Karen Marie Moning
"He would sell his warrior soul to possess her...An alluring laird... He was known throughout the kingdom as Hawk, legendary predator of the battlefield and the boudoir. No woman could refuse his touch, but no woman ever stirred his heart-until a vengeful fairy tumbled Adrienne de Simone out of modern-day Seattle and into medieval Scotland. Captive in a century not her own, entirely too bold, too outspoken, she was an irresistible challenge to the sixteenth-century rogue. Coerced into a marriage with Hawk, Adrienne vowed to keep him at arm's length-but his sweet seduction played havoc with her resolve. A prisoner in time... She had a perfect "no" on her perfect lips for the notorious laird, but Hawk swore she would whisper his name with desire, begging for the passion he longed to ignite within her. Not even the barriers of time and space would keep him from winning her love. Despite her uncertainty about following the promptings of her own passionate heart, Adrienne's reservations were no match for Hawk's determination to keep her by his side. (catalog summary)

Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon
This is the "Bible" of all historical romance time travel novels, and the best thing about it? There are sequels! "Absorbing and heartwarming, this first novel lavishly evokes the land and lore of Scotland, quickening both with realistic characters and a feisty, likable heroine.
English nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall and husband Frank take a second honeymoon in the Scottish Highlands in 1945. When Claire walks through a cleft stone in an ancient henge, she's somehow transported to 1743. She encounters Frank's evil ancestor, British captain Jonathan ``Black Jack'' Randall, and is adopted by another clan. Claire nurses young soldier James Fraser, a gallant, merry redhead, and the two begin a romance, seeing each other through many perilous, swashbuckling adventures involving Black Jack. Scenes of the Highlanders' daily life blend poignant emotions with Scottish wit and humor. Eventually Sassenach (outlander) Claire finds a chance to return to 1945, and must choose between distant memories of Frank and her happy, uncomplicated existence with Jamie. Claire's resourcefulness and intelligent sensitivity make the love-conquers-all, happily-ever-after ending seem a just reward." (Publishers Weekly)