Thursday, June 30, 2022

Read Beyond the Beaten Path: Summer Reading for Adults 2022


Join the Read Beyond the Beaten Path Adult Summer Reading Challenge for a chance to win a $30 gift card to a local restaurant or a handmade National Park mug. All you have to do is log at least 3 books or 3 activities to be entered into the drawings. For our grand prize, log at least 10 books for two chances to win a MoMA book lamp!

Enjoy cooking outdoors? Try some new recipes this summer with our Cookbooks for the Great Outdoors booklist

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.


Interesting and suspenseful read, keeps you guessing. Great historical capture of a time in American history that not everyone may be familiar with. ~ Megan B. 



Enjoyed the story - kept my attention & that can be hard to do! ~ Tara D. 






Raced through this book! Great commentary on how humans often act like crabs in a barrel and how women (mostly) keep others down especially in professional settings.
~ Kathryn K. 




Very good audio book, well narrated; some parts were quite predictable yet was still well written and enjoyable to the story line.        ~ Dina T. 

Wednesday, June 15, 2022

Read Beyond the Beaten Path: Summer Reading for Adults 2022

 



Join the Read Beyond the Beaten Path Adult Summer Reading Challenge for a chance to win a $30 gift card to a local restaurant or a handmade National Park mug. All you have to do is log at least 3 books or 3 activities to be entered into the drawings. For our grand prize, log at least 10 books for two chances to win a MoMA book lamp!

This month we celebrate Juneteenth. Browse this list of fiction and nonfiction titles to learn more about this important holiday.

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.


Lessons From Plants by Beronda L. Montgomery

Beautiful book! The author explains scientific concept in a way that it's easy to read. We can learn from plants how to cooperate, how to help each other and how to be a great teacher. Plants communicate with each other all the time in many different ways and it is so interesting to learn about that! ~ Heleen S. 

Learning that Lian Hearn is an incredible author and excited to read more by her. This was a very gripping read although I did not love as much as Tale of Shikanoko.~ Natalie H. 


Good read that keep me guessing until the very end. The narration was interesting and the story went in several different directions which kept things exciting. Would definitely recommend for any thriller fans. ~ Linnea S.

This book is brilliantly written. The prose is beautiful. But I think it could be compressed a bit! ~ Tochukwu O. 

Monday, June 13, 2022

New Releases: July Edition

Check out these highly anticipated July 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

Humans and the hybrids created by Dr. Moreau are living in a perfectly balanced and static world, until it is jolted by the abrupt arrival of Eduardo Lizalde, the charming and careless son of Doctor Moreau’s patron. Dr. Moreau keeps secrets, his daughter Carlota has questions, and in the sweltering heat of the jungle, passions may ignite.




Calling for a Blanket Dance by Oscar Hokeah

Told in a series of voices, Calling for a Blanket Dance takes us into the life of Ever Geimausaddle through the multigenerational perspectives of his family as they soldier through a myriad of difficulties. How will this young man visualize a place for himself when the world hasn't given him a place to start with? Honest, heartbreaking, and ultimately uplifting, Calling for a Blanket Dance is the story of how Ever Geimausaddle found his way to home.


In these twelve stories, Murata mixes an unusual cocktail of humor and horror to portray both the loners and outcasts as well as turning the norms and traditions of society on their head to better question them. Whether the stories take place in modern-day Japan, the future, or an alternate reality is left to the reader’s interpretation, as the characters often seem strange in their normality in a frighteningly abnormal world.




Nonfiction

Dirtbag, Massachusetts

Isaac Fitzgerald has lived many lives. He's been an altar boy, a bartender, a fat kid, a smuggler, a biker, a prince of New England. But before all that, he was a bomb that exploded his parents' lives-or so he was told. In Dirtbag, Massachusetts, Fitzgerald, with warmth and humor, recounts his ongoing search for forgiveness, a more far-reaching vision of masculinity, and a more expansive definition of family and self.




A true story of Rojas Contreras’ life that includes fortunetelling, amnesia, ghosts and a mother-daughter road trip. She weaves together family secrets, Colombian history and personal narrative with the distinct skill of a novelist to create a book that has the potential to convert readers who think they don’t care for nonfiction.





The Light We Give lays out how we can learn to integrate ethical living to achieve personal happiness and a happier life. It speaks to those who are inspired to take on positive change but don’t know where to begin. To those who crave the chance to be empathetic but are afraid of looking vulnerable. Singh reaches beyond his comfort zone to practice this deeper form of living and explores how everyone can learn the insights and skills that have kept him engaged and led him to commit to activism without becoming consumed by anger, self-pity, or burnout.


Wednesday, June 8, 2022

WPL Pride Guide




Join Worcester Public Library in celebrating Pride Month. View our resources below to learn more about the LGBTQ community and how you can become an ally by supporting Pride every month of the year. 
Click here to learn about Worcester Pride, which takes place in September. 


WPL Staff Picks Booklists






RecommendationsLooking for something new to read or watch featuring LGBTQ characters? Our librarians are here to help you find books, magazines, and DVDs you'll enjoy. Fill out the form and we'll let you know when your titles are available to pick up. 

KanopyA collection of films honoring the LGBTQ community. Free to use with your WPL card. 


History



Additional Resources







Happening at WPL

Join us on Friday, June 24 @ 3pm at the Main Library for a showing of the documentary Paris is Burning. No registration required. 

Visit our Teen Space to view the Artivism Gallery featuring artwork created by teens about the issues that are important to them. You can also follow our Teen Department on Instagram @mywplteen. 

Tuesday, June 7, 2022

Kanopy: Celebrating Pride Month



Celebrate Pride Month with Kanopy, a streaming service that is free to use with your WPL card.  Sign in to mywpl.kanopy.com to watch on your computer or download the Kanopy app to watch on your mobile device or smart TV. Click here for instructions on how to create an account. 

 
Check It 

This film festival favorite follows a group of African-American gay and transgender youth in one of Washington D.C.'s most violent neighborhoods. After being subjected to constant torment and assault, the group formed their own gang for camaraderie and protection.


United in Anger: A History of Act Up

An inspiring documentary about the birth and life of the AIDS activist movement from the perspective of the people in the trenches fighting the epidemic. Utilizing oral histories of members of ACT UP, as well as rare archival footage, the film depicts the efforts of ACT UP as it battles corporate greed, social indifference, and government neglect. 


Call Her Ganda

When Jennifer Laude, a Filipina transwoman, is brutally murdered by a U.S. Marine, three women decide to investigate the case: an activist attorney, a transgender journalist, and Jennifer's mother. Together, they galvanize a political uprising, pursuing justice and taking on hardened histories of U.S. imperialism.

Funeral Parade of Roses

Director Toshio Matsumoto's shattering, kaleidoscopic masterpiece is one of the most subversive and intoxicating films of the late 1960s: a headlong dive into a dazzling, unseen Tokyo night-world of drag queen bars and fabulous divas, fueled by booze, drugs, fuzz guitars, performance art and black mascara. Stanley Kubrick cited the film as a direct influence on his own dystopian classic A Clockwork Orange.

Political Animals 

Emotionally charged like its subjects, the film follows four ground-breaking women who took the fight for gay rights off the streets and into the halls of government.



Viva

Jesus is a young hairdresser working at a Havana nightclub that showcases drag performers, which he hopes to be one day. But when his father has different expectations, the men struggle to understand one another and reconcile as a family.

Saturday, June 4, 2022

Culinary Arts Collection

Looking to broaden your culinary knowledge?  Checkout the Culinary Arts Collection! Brought to you by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, this database contains articles from over 250 major cooking and nutrition magazines.  You'll find thousands of recipes and articles on cooking, nutrition, restaurant reviews and industry information. Search articles from popular magazines such as Prevention, Bon Appetit, Mother Earth News, Environmental Nutrition, and more.  You can easily print, save, share and download articles. Click here to access it with your library card!

Search for these magazine titles on some popular topics:


For articles on food and the environment check out Mother News & Environmental Nutrition

Environmental magazine featuring activities and ideas which are based on self-sufficiency.




An independent consumer newsletter offering practical guidance on food and nutrition, including food safety, nutritional supplements,recent research findings, and nutrition comparison charts that identify best buys for shoppers among brand-name foods.


For articles on Health and Nutrition check out Prevention & Health Science Journal


A consumer magazine featuring new developments in nutrition, preventive medicine, fitness, natural living and drugless therapies.


Health Science Journal focuses on healthful living and wellness. Articles cover health issues, nutrition, and physical fitness, and address such topics as the benefits of a plant-based diet, exercise and rest, a healthy environment & psychological well-being. (official publication of the National Health Association)


Want to learn about food sustainability and climate change?   Check out this recent article from Grocer Magazine:

Need some new cooking ideas?  Check out these recipes for meatless tacos from Vegan Journal:


Sushi Tacos 


Wasabi-Avocado Aioli:

1 medium avocado, pitted and peeled

2 Tablespoons rice vinegar

1-2 teaspoons wasabi paste, to taste

1 clove garlic

Salt, to taste, optional

Prepare the Wasabi-Avocado Aioli so it's ready for dipping when you are. Place the ingredients in a blender or food processor. Puree on high speed, pausing as needed to scrape the sides of the container, until completely smooth. Add more wasabi to taste, if needed, and adjust the consistency with a splash of water if you'd like it a bit thinner. Store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to serve. It will keep for about three days if prepared in advance, but be

aware that it will turn brown over time. 


Sushi Fillings and Nori Shell:

1 cup cooked and cooled sushi rice

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

Salt, to taste, optional

One 0.35 ounce package roasted nori snacks

(15-20 rectangle sheets)

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup shelled edamame

1/2 seedless English cucumber, thinly sliced

1 scallion, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

In a small bowl combine the rice, vinegar, and salt. Press about 1 heaping Tablespoon in an even layer across the surface of one sheet of nori. Gently fold in half and fill with a small amount of the shredded carrots, edamame, and cucumbers. Finish with a pinch of sliced scallion and sesame seeds. Serve with Wasabi-Avocado Aioli.


Total calories per entree serving: 285

Carbohydrates: 15 grams

Sodium: 188 milligrams

Fat: 15 grams

Protein: 6 grams

Fiber: 9 grams


To access: 

  • Go to www.worcpublib.org
  • Go to the Resources tab and click on Online Databases under the Research column
  • Select Gale OneFile: Culinary Arts / Home (for remote access)
  • Enter your library card and PIN
  • You can search by subject or publication title