“Kerplunk” and “The Book of General Ignorance” June 25, 2008

Suzanne says:

“Kerplunk!”
Patrick McManus’ collection of short stories describes, with self depricating humor, how I imagined many boys grew up in the 50’s and 60’s:
Huntin’, fishin’ and living moments that later become tall, tall tales.

“The Book of General Ignorance“
A fun read full of trivia snippets, it’s written by John Lloyd and John
Mitchinson and challenges many well know cultural “facts”. While it is
classified as nonfiction, the authors do not cite their sources. This leads
me to the question the veracity of the book’s factual content. Whether true
or not, the authors entertain and amuse.

Fountain Filled with Blood June 25, 2008

Regan says:

The townsfolk of Millers Kill, New York are worried about a new resort development which may stir up toxins in the water, but what the planned spa ultimately stirs up is more immediately tragic.  A popular local doctor, who happens to be gay, is attacked and then another local businessman as well.  Clare Ferguson truthfully answers that she is neither police nor reporter as she snoops around but sometimes neglects to explain that she is the local Episcopalian priest.  In addition to the tension in the community, Clare and the local police chief have their own balancing act going on adding a hint of romance to this well crafted mystery.

Fountain filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming

What are you reading? June 20, 2008

Hey Bloggers,

Click “comments” and tell us what you are reading!

Signed, A Curious Librarian

Charles Fort, The Man Who Invented the Supernatural June 11, 2008

Philiyra says:

Charles Fort, The Man Who Invented the Supernatural by Jim Steinmeyer is a fascinating biography of the man who brought us tales of unexplained and perhaps unexplainable phenomena.

The story of the Mary Celeste. The tale of Kasper Hauser, who was stabbed in a snowy field with no other tracks but his own, and no murder weapon.

Frogs, fish, stones, and blood falling from clear blue skies.

Charles Fort spent years of his life collecting these tales, years in the New York Public Library and the British Museum. He published four books on these phenomena, and for the most part, they were ignored by the general public.

The Fortean Society was created by Tiffany Thayer in 1930. But it wasn’t until after Fort’s death that the Society devolved into a conspiracy theorist’s haven, exactly the sort of thing Fort was not.

Jim Steinmeyer intersperses his book with selections from Fort’s autobiography to bring us the man himself and his thoughts as well as the thoughts of his contemporaries.

H.G. Wells said Fort was “One of the most damnable bores who ever cut scraps from out-of-the-way newspapers.

Fort’s friend Theodore Dreiser called him, “The most fascinating literary figure since Poe.

Which is the truth? Read Charles Fort and make up your own mind.

But the facts speak for themselves.

Soon I Will Be Invincible June 4, 2008

Suzanne says:

Austin Grossman turns the world of supervillains and superheros on it’s head by building the supervillain up as the supreme underdog. Filled with humor and surprising hits of compassion, this book  makes for a fast summer read.

Soon I will be Invincible

Apples, Gadget Nation, The Fairy Tale Detectives June 4, 2008

Philirya says:

This is going to be a long dark summer for me as my favorite television series ended in a cliff hanger. To distract myself, I’m taking off my floaties and jumping in the deep end of the reading pool, hoping to read books outside my comfort zone.

My first book is Apples are from Kazakhstan by Christopher Robbins.
 If you are anything like me, the only things you know about Kazakhstan are the name, and that it is a former Soviet Republic.
What I didn’t know before reading this book is that wild apples originated in Kazakhstan and spread around the world from there. I also didn’t know that both Fyodor Dostoyevsky  and Alexandr Solzhenitsyn were exiled there.
The book covers a year’s stay by Mr. Robbins as he takes a tour and learns the history of Kazakhstan.

The second book is Gadget Nation by Steve Greenberg.
 Mr. Greenberg profiles American inventors and their strange and sometimes useful inventions. For instance, Clocky, the alarm clock on wheels. When you press the snooze button, Clocky rolls off your table and across the room, forcing you to get out of bed if you wish to shut if off when the alarm goes off again.
Also there are Mac and Cool bowls. You place Mac and Cool bowls in the freezer. After you make supper, you place it in a Mac and Cool bowl.  This way, your child can eat supper when it is the right temperature for them.

Last, I have The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley.
 It is the first in a series of books about Sabrina and Daphne Grimm, descendants of Wilhelm Grimm. They are surprised to find out that Grimm’s Fairy Tales are a chronology of actual events as experienced by Wilhelm.
They are sent to live with their grandmother Relda Grimm because their parents are dead and there is no one else to care for them. When they come to live with Granny Grimm and her lodger Mr. Canis, they meet Puck, Jack the Giant Killer, and Mayor Prince Charming.
At this point, either you get why Mr Canis living with Granny is clever, or you don’t. Look up ‘canis’ if you don’t. I’ll wait.

See, wasn’t that clever? Granny Grimm takes the girls to find out why a local farmhouse appears to be flattened, with an imprint of a foot surrounding the wreckage. When Granny and Mr. Canis are kidnapped, it’s up to Sabrina and Daphne to save the day.