Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween One and All

This week I am taking a break from new books to tell you about my favorite Halooween stories. I am a big fan of Edgar Allan Poe's short stories - both his mysteries and his horror stories. Many years ago I had heard a recording of "The Telltale Heart" that really scared me. As the tension grows in this story about servant who kills his master, dismembers the body, and hides the pieces under the floor, a steady heartbeat grows louder and louder in the background of the storyteller. It is the same heartbeat that the killer hears leading to his confession. For many years I remembered that recording, but couldn't find it. There were many wonderful recordings of the story, but none had the beating heart sound. Finally I stumbled across another recording of Poe short stories -- and there was "The Telltale Heart" with the beating heart. Every Halloween I play the recording just to get in the mood.


My other favorite Poe horror story is "A Cask of Amontillado." The whole idea of being walled up - buried alive - sends chills down my spine. One of the best questions asked about that story is does the criminal get away with his crime. The answer lies in the three Latin words at the end of the story. The Lakeview IMC has several collections that include these great classic horror stories. Read them aloud on a dark and stormy night to get the full flavor of Poe's genius. Have a great Halloween.!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Calling All Time Travel Fans!

Join Sam Faulkner in his efforts to find his father who disappeared ten days ago. While searching for clues in his father's dusty antique bookstore, Sam finds a hidden room containing an old coin, a strangely carved stone, and a book about Vlad Tepes (basis of the Dracula legend). Within minutes Sam uses the coin and the stone to open a gateway through time and ends up in medieval Scotland just before a Viking invasion. In subsequent time trips Sam visits France in World War I, ancient Egypt, and Renaissance Bruges. Putting together the clues he has gathered, Sam finds a plea for help from his father who may be trapped in the castle of Vlad Tepes. Here ends book 1 of a proposed trilogy. I can't wait to read the rest of the series. Book 2 has just been published and is on order for the IMC.

Join me in enjoying this mystery adventure with book 1: The Book of Time by Guillaune Prevost.

Friday, October 17, 2008

Great Sports Teams

Let's take a break this week at look at the new sports team books that recently arrived in the IMC. These books are about professional teams from baseball, basketball, football, and hockey. Each book gives a brief history of the team and then highlights the biographies of several team players and coaches/managers. While not every team is covered in this series, there should be enough of interest so that every sports fan can find at least one book to enjoy. There are 4 basketball titles, 3 football titles, 4 baseball titles, and 3 hockey titles. While there is a book on the Chicago White Sox team, there is not a book on the Chicago Cubs. However, I did find an excellent chapter in the Arizona Diamondback book on Mark Grace which covers his Cub career too.

You can find these books on the New Book Shelves or get the whole list by searching the I.P.A.C. for the series - Great Sports Teams.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Bread and Roses, Too

This is the title of a new historical fiction book by Katherine Paterson. She tells us the story of two children caught up in the infamous Lawrence, Massachusetts mill laborers strike of 1912. First we meet Jake, an American boy who works in the mill with Irish immigrants as he is looking for a warm place to spend the night rather than go home to his drunken father. Then we meet Rosa, daughter of Italian immigrants who loves school and learning but worries about her family becasue the mill wages are so low. The two children cross paths throughout the book as we see how short wages started the strike and various ethnic groups met with outside union organizers to continue the strike for better wages and living conditions. This slice of history even has Rosa and Jake traveling by train to Barre, Vermont, in a plan to give at least some of the strikers children a safe haven and a chance at better food, clothing, and housing. This relatively little-known piece of American history is brought to life along with all the horrors and problems that the Lawrence strikers faced.

Friday, October 3, 2008

A Real Thiller

One of the IMC's new books may be the start of an exciting new series. Icercore, a Carl Hobbs Thriller, by Matt Whyman, has everything a good thriller needs - a young suspect whose prank got out of hand, a remote prison where real criminals are kept far away from regular people, a young girl caught in the same mess, some guards who enjoy keeping the prisoners under control with torture, an criminal mastermind who takes over the prison in an attempt to escape, and lots and lots of suspense. The way the book ends leads me to believe that more Carl Hobbs books are coming. I will keep my eyes open and see if I can keep the series going in the IMC.