August 2011

Another year of Summer Library Club has come to an end at the Beloit Public Library. This year 618 kids read 3590 books and over 90 teens participated in the Teen Reading Program. Adults read books throughout the month of July and one lucky reader won an Amazon Kindle. Not to be left out of all the fun, the staff at the library had their own Reading Program as well. Ever wonder what librarians like to read? Well, here’s just a small sampling of the books that piqued our interest this summer:

Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater - A classic of American humor, adventures of a house painter and his high-stepping penguins have delighted children for generations.

Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men by Mara Hvistendahl - China has an extreme gender imbalance. It reaches beyond Asia. Historically, eras with an excess of men have produced periods of violent conflict and instability.

Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky – a haunting coming-of-age story about the dilemma of passivity vs. passion is told through Charlie's letters.

Brute: the Life of Victor Krulak, U.S. Marine by Robert Coram – A 34-year military career of applying creative ways of fighting. Krulak's almost single-handed accomplishment is stopping the U.S. government from abolishing the Marine Corps.

The Bog Child by Siobhan Dowd – In the 1981 height of Ireland's "Troubles," Fergus, 18, is distracted from his upcoming exams by his imprisoned brother's hunger strike, the stress of being courier for Sinn Fein, and dreams of a murdered girl he discovered in a bog.

Quinn by Iris Johansen - explores the darkest corners of human hearts as forensic sculptor Eve Duncan and former Navy SEAL turned cop, Joe Quinn fall in love while closing in on the killer who stole her daughter many years ago. Emotionally charged, with one shock after another.

Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri - Gogol Ganguli, named after his fathers’ favorite author, is born to Indian immigrants after their arranged marriage. American Gogol grows up resenting both his strange name and the yoke of Bengali culture imposed by his parents.

Buttercream Bump Off by Jenn Mckinlay - Melanie and Angie’s Fairy Tale Cupcakes bakery is gearing up for Valentine's Day. Unfortunately someone has iced Baxter Malloy on his first date with Mel's mother. Now Mom's a suspect, and they need to find time around frosting to dig into the man's shady past and discover who served him his just desserts.

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Vera Rigler - Jane Mansfield inexplicably awakens in Courtney's overly wired and morally confused L.A. life. For Jane, the modern world is not wholly disagreeable except memories that are not her and wondering if returning is an option.

Latehomecomer: a Hmong Family Memoir by Kao Kalia Yang - Hmong families made the escape from Laos where they were massacred for their collaboration with the United States during the Vietnam War, then to the overcrowded refugee camps of Thailand and onward to America. (Join us for a discussion of this book on Wednesday November 30th at noon.)

To find these books and many, many more, be sure to visit the Beloit Public Library or check us out on Facebook and at www.beloitlibrary.info.