Read Beyond the Beaten Path: Summer Reading for Adults 2022

 

Read, Learn, and Connect with WPL

Sign up for this summer's adult reading challenge from June 4 - August 13 at mywpl.beanstack.org - a place to track reading, share reviews (which may shared on our blog and Facebook page), engage with the community through our classes and programs, and win prizes through our challenge drawings.

To be entered into drawings, earn badges by logging books AND activities 
such as attending WPL events, classes and programs.

Attend & Log Events, Classes, and Programs

• Summer Reading Kickoff: June 4 from 10 am -1 pm
• Adult Classes and Programs happening throughout the summer

Read & Log Books

• Visit WPL’s Reader’s Corner for staff picks, new titles, booklists, and more.
• Fill out a Book Recommendation form for personalized picks from a librarian.
• Borrow an e-book or audiobook to read or listen to on your device.
• Attend one of our librarian-led book clubs to discuss books and meet like-minded readers.
• Read whatever you like! Just be sure to log it.

Challenge Drawings*

Weekly drawings:

Log at least 3 books or 3 activities to be entered
 into weekly drawings to win a
$30 gift card to a local restaurant or a fun, handmade National Parks mug!

Earn any of these badges to be entered into Weekly Drawings:

• Logging Badge
• Kickoff Badge
• Learn Something New Badge
• Review Badge
• Survey Badge

Grand Prize Drawings:

Log at least 10 books for two chances to win a MoMA book lamp!

*Must be a Worcester resident to win prizes. Staff and members of their household are ineligible.

For mobile users, download the Beanstack Tracker app to get started
For more information, visit mywpl.org or call 508-799-1655 ext.3.

WooReads Spring Reading Challenge For Adults: Patron Book Reviews

 

Join the WooReads: Spring Reading Challenge for Adults for a chance to win a L.L. Bean tote bag featuring the WPL logo. All you have to do is log at least 9 books from March 1- May 31 to be entered into the drawing. 

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. View this booklist featuring titles that bring awareness to mental health issues.

Try one of our Bundles if you'd like a librarian to select books, magazines or DVDs for you. For information on adult classes and programs, visit mywpl.org. 

Enjoy these book reviews submitted by your fellow patrons through our WooReads challenge.

The Last Confessions of Sylvia P. by Lee Kravetz

Excellent book!!! This is Lee Kravetz's debut novel, and I'm excited to read more. Three notebooks containing Sylvia Plath's manuscript for The Bell Jar are found. Master curator, Estee has the task of authenticating and auctioning them to the highest bidder. Will she be able to hold these objects without forging feelings of ownership? Told in three narratives, for any Plath/poetry fan it's a story worth reading. ~ Mary T. 

The Guncle by Steven Rowley

Laugh out loud funny, a very enjoyable and touching story. Extra points for being even better in audio format! ~Linnea S.

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

I'd seen this book on the NYT top 20 books for a long time and contemplated reading it but wasn't sure because it focused on a mother's death by cancer, which I've experienced. However, I'm glad I picked it up while waiting for a "hold" book to become available. It's so well written that it was not depressing or angry or self-involved. The writer, a Korean-American young woman who has strong ties to both cultures - particularly around food - navigates the many feelings that surface when one knows the death of a parent is coming without being maudlin. ~ Linda J.

Sisters of the Great War by Suzanne Feldman

Although high school history books fail to include the actions of women who answer the call to action in difficult times, novelists have stepped into that gap . this story, while fictional, gives us a sense of life as a female ambulance driver and a battlefield nurse in WWI. ~ Karen L.

New Releases: June Edition

Check out these highly anticipated June releases featuring fiction and nonfiction titles. Click on the title to request a copy or get your name on the waitlist. Don’t forget to watch for more featured releases next month! 

Fiction

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

Four women are sitting together in the reading room of the Boston Public Library when there is a scream. The library is locked down until the threat is contained. The women strike up conversation and the story takes some thrilling twists and turns.

So Happy For You by Celia Laskey

Robin and Ellie have been best friends since childhood. When Robin came out, Ellie was there for her. When Ellie's father died, Robin had her back. But when Ellie asks Robin to be her maid of honor, she is reluctant. A queer academic, Robin is dubious of the elaborate wedding rituals now sweeping the nation, but loyalty wins out and Robin accepts. Yet, as the wedding weekend approaches, a series of ominous occurrences lead Robin to second-guess her decision. It seems that everyone in the bridal party is out to get her. Perhaps even Ellie herself.

Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley

A dazzling novel about a young Black woman who walks the streets of Oakland and stumbles headlong into the failure of its justice system. One night, what begins as a drunken misunderstanding with a stranger turns into the job Kiara never imagined wanting but now desperately needs: nightcrawling. Her world breaks open even further when her name surfaces in an investigation that exposes her as a key witness in a massive scandal within the Oakland Police Department.

Nonfiction

The Catch Me if You Can by Jessica Nabongo

In this inspiring travelogue, celebrated traveler and photographer Jessica Nabongo—the first Black woman on record to visit all 195 countries in the world—shares her journey around the globe with fascinating stories of adventure, culture, travel musts, and human connections.

The Monster's Bones by David K. Randall

From prehistory to present day, from remote Patagonia to the unforgiving badlands of the American West to the penthouses of Manhattan, this riveting narrative follows a fearless paleontologist who, after unearthing the first T-Rex fossils, saved NY’s struggling American Museum of Natural History.

Tree Thieves by Lyndsie Bourgon

Weaving together investigative reporting, colorful characters, logging history, political analysis and cutting-edge tree science, this gripping account takes us deep into the underbelly of the illegal timber market.

WooReads Spring Reading Challenge For Adults: Patron Book Reviews

 

Join the WooReads: Spring Reading Challenge for Adults for a chance to win a L.L. Bean tote bag featuring the WPL logo. All you have to do is log at least 9 books from March 1- May 31 to be entered into the drawing. 

Join us in celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! In addition to our book displays, check out this booklist featuring mysteries by Asian and Asian American authors. 

Try one of our Bundles if you'd like a librarian to select books, magazines or DVDs for you. For information on adult classes and programs, visit mywpl.org. 

Enjoy these book reviews submitted by your fellow patrons through our WooReads challenge.

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict & Victoria Christopher Murray

A wonderful historical novel that piqued my interest to explore nonfiction accounts and a visit to the museum, as well as a variety of documentaries available on Internet.               ~ Ann G. 

A Game of Fear by Charles Todd

A widow in an isolated manor house attached to a deserted airfield spots a ghost in her garden killing a man. In the cold light of the morning, no sign of death remains. Inspector Rutledge also suffers from "shell-shock": he hears the voice of a dead soldier constantly whispering in his ear. While hiding his PTSD from his superiors at Scotland Yard, Rutledge sets out to discover what is really happening at the old airbase. Thrilling! ~ Mary R. 

Half Lives by Lucy Jane Santos

Half Lives is an interesting history of Radium and the history of radiation in the 20th century - specifically in the UK. It starts with early experiments on the structure of atoms and research by Marie and Pierre Curie. The book then describes commercial attempts to use radium and radioactivity.  "Radium-mania" swept the UK and people were crazy for radium products. Eventually, people started dying from use of radioactive products and the public's fascination dwindled.  ~ David B. 

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

Exciting thriller that will leave you not knowing who or what to believe. Are the narrators telling the truth? Who is guilty? What exactly are they guilty of? The ending will leave you guessing! ~ Linnea S.