The Privatization of Libraries

LSSI, Inc., a private company apparently owned by LSSI UK Ltd., will be taking over the administration of the Santa Clarita Library System. This privatization is alarming to many people. Read the article that appeared yesterday in The New York Times. Better yet read some of the over 300 comments already received.

I'd Know You Anywhere (2010)

I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Sometimes I like a book but am not particularly interested in reading other works by the author. That isn't the case with Laura Lippman. Her stories are suspenseful, insightful, and compelling.

In "I'd Know You Anywhere", Elizabeth receives a letter from the man who kidnapped her the summer she was fifteen. He is now on death row and wants to apologize. Elizabeth wants to protect her children from finding out about this episode in her life. And nothing is ever as simple as it seems.

Search for 'Laura Lippman' to see more of my posts. You can visit her site for more information. For example, did you know her mother was a librarian?!

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Other Uses for Books (Besides Reading)

 

Check out this library desk made from discarded books. Brilliant!

Never Look Away (2010)

Never Look Away: A Thriller by Linwood Barclay

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Once again Stephen King has recommended a great thriller and I wonder along with him about how we missed this author. Linwood Barclay has seven other titles listed in the front of his current book. The cover even touts him as "#1 Internationally Bestselling Author. . ." (and some other stuff that the library barcode covers up). When I checked him out, I discovered that he lives in Canada and has worked as a columnist for the Toronto Star.

David Harwood is a small town reporter working for a struggling newspaper. On this fateful day, he and his wife Jan and their four year old son head for the local amusement park for a day of fun when the unthinkable happens and his life begins to unravel around him.

There are so many twists and turns in the story that it will keep you turning pages to the end.

He has a new title coming out in 2011 and I will be busy reading some of his backlist until then!


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Twelve Rooms with a View (2010)

Twelve Rooms with a View: A Novel by Theresa Rebeck

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


There is something addictive about Theresa Rebeck's characters even though most of them are not very nice. You just can't look away.

Tina Finn and her sisters have just lost their estranged Mother but may be getting the extraordinary twelve room apartment with a view that was left to her. Tina, who has been cleaning people's homes and living in a trailer house, moves into the apartment much to the dismay of the building residents. From there it begins to get complicated.

It is clever having the building as a character in the fairytale. Some of the story rambles and the ending seems appended, but on the whole the book is an enjoyable read and Tina is a wily heroine.

Ms. Rebeck is a playwright of note. Her dialogue is wonderful and I wouldn't be surprised if either of her books (Three Girls and Their Brother) is optioned for film.



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Faithful Place 2010

Faithful Place by Tana French

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is Tara French's third book about the Dublin Murder Squad and each one introduces a different way of life. "In the Woods" was haunting while "The Likeness" was seductive. "Faithful Place" holds a mirror up to the past and reveals old loves, murders, and betrayals. Frank Mackey was going to escape his life and dysfunctional family in Dublin by running away with his girlfriend Rose when they were nineteen but she stood him up. Years later her suitcase shows up and everything in Frank's new world starts pulling him back home. Highly recommended. Great writing, characters, and dialogue.



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Librarians and Booksellers Finally Together?

Apparently Publishers Weekly has reported that Book Expo America, which is for booksellers and publishers, and the American Library Association's Annual Conference, which is for librarians and library vendors,  may merge into a single event. Read more about it HERE.

A Lost Art? Found on Boing Boing

You can make the image bigger by clicking on it!

The Shadow of the Wind (2001) (2004)

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


When this book was recommended to me, I was reluctant to read it. Translations are not always what the writer intended, but this book is exquisite and so beautifully written and translated that it is a delight to read. You will want to write down and remember the illuminating thoughts, truths and quotes.

If you are a passionate reader, you will fall into this story and follow Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer's son, in his quest to learn more about the author of The Shadow of the Wind, a book he has pledged to protect. The phrase "an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love" doesn't completely do justice to this magical tale.



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Movies from Books!

If you read and loved Olive Kitteridge, there are plans to make an HBO movie with Frances McDormand producing and playing Olive too! Take a look at the information at Deadline. McDormand is also involved with bringing Laura Lippman's Every Secret Thing to the screen.

Never Let Me Go Opens in Movie Theaters on September 15th

I just watched the trailer for Never Let Me Go and can't wait to see the movie. You can take a look by clicking HERE. Starring Keira Knightly, Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield, the story, considered by some to be science fiction, is rather speculative fiction considering a possible future that is as frightening as the one depicted in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. Whether you see the movie or not, you should read this book by Kazuo Ishiguro who also wrote The Remains of the Day among other great titles.