Thursday, August 11, 2022

New Releases: September Edition

Check out these highly anticipated September 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 Witch and The Tsar by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore

As a half-goddess possessing magic, Yaga is used to living on her own. She mostly keeps to her hut in the woods, where those in need of healing seek her out, even as they spread rumors about her supposed cruelty and wicked spells. But when her old friend Anastasia-now the wife of the tsar, and suffering from a mysterious illness-arrives in her forest desperate for her protection, Yaga realizes the fate of all of Russia is tied to Anastasia’s, and she must step out of the shadows to protect the land she loves.


If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery

In the 1970s, Topper and Sanya flee to Miami as political violence consumes their native Kingston. But America, as the couple and their two children learn, is far from the promised land. Excluded from society as Black immigrants, the family pushes on through Hurricane Andrew and later the 2008 recession, living in a house so cursed that the pet fish launches itself out of its own tank rather than stay. But even as things fall apart, the family remains motivated, often to its own detriment, by what their younger son, Trelawny, calls "the exquisite, racking compulsion to survive."



For the first time in nearly four decades, Mary Alice Roth is not getting ready for the first day of school at Billington High. A few months into her retirement, Mary Alice does not know how to fill her days. At least there’s Ellie, who stops by each morning for coffee. When Mary Alice’s sister arrives on her doorstep with a staggering piece of news, it jeopardizes the careful shell she’s built around her life and puts her friendship with Ellie at risk.




Nonfiction

Teaching White Supremacy by Donald Yacovone

A powerful exploration of the past and present arc of America's white supremacy--from the country's inception and Revolutionary years to its 19th century flashpoint of civil war; to the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s and today's Black Lives Matter.





This is What it Sounds like by Susan Rogers & Ogi Ogas

This Is What It Sounds Like is a journey into the science and soul of music that reveals the secrets of why your favorite songs move you. But it’s also a story of a musical trailblazer who began as a humble audio tech in Los Angeles to became Prince’s chief engineer for Purple Rain, and then create other No. 1 hits (including Barenaked Ladies' "One Week") as one of the most successful female record producers of all time.



We all have a vague sense that social media is bad for our minds, for our children, and for our democracies. But the truth is that its reach and impact run far deeper than we have understood. Building on years of international reporting, Max Fisher tells the gripping and galling inside story of how Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social networks, in their pursuit of unfettered profits, preyed on psychological frailties to create the algorithms that drive everyday users to extreme opinions and, increasingly, extreme actions.

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

Read Beyond the Beaten Path: Summer Reading for Adults 2022

 


August 13th is the last day to join the Read Beyond the Beaten Path Adult Summer Reading Challenge!  For our grand prize, log at least 10 books for two chances to win a MoMA book lamp!
 
Find your next great read at our Reader's Corner, which features books recommended by WPL staff, or 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 Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon

Brilliantly done. It is mostly first-person narration, with some 3rd-person, and the style differences brilliantly convey the shifts in POV and also create the narrator character for us. This is the "Flowers for Algernon" of the 21st century. But it has a happier ending. ~Amy W. 

The Catch Me If You Can by Jessica Nabongo

The Catch Me If You Can documents the journey of the first Black woman to travel to all 195 countries. Warning: causes bouts of envy and serious wanderlust. ~Mary T. 
Mean Baby by Selma Blair

This was an easy summer read. It's amazing how many doctors Selma consulted over the years before anyone ordered the MRI that revealed her chronic illness when it was quite advanced and required a potentially-dangerous treatment. About half the book is about Selma's childhood and school years, which she tells in a wonderfully humorous way. Highly recommend! 
~Linda J. 


I swear, Colson Whitehead can write anything. He takes all manner of popular genres and turns them into high quality literary fiction. He's done it with the Zombie novel, historical fiction, magical realism. And now with a crime novel that is at the same time a love letter to New York City and particularly Harlem. ~Dale R. 

Tuesday, July 26, 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, high quality 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!

Spend your days on the beach with one of these popular novels from our Beach Reads 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.


A great read on financing and teaching money skills to kids. Not boring like most financial books. ~ Bianca L. 



Interesting, fictional account of Union troops in Civil War that were manned by freed and runaway slaves. ~ Karen L.

It's an interesting read. Liza Rodman was barely 10 years old when she met Tony Costa, and much of her experience with him was positive. I was left wondering if she still had positive feelings towards him. While the book explained his devilish side, I felt her characterization of him was more sympathetic/empathetic/tender. ~ Mary T.

Enthralling read. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in the series. ~ Sandra B.

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Together We Read: The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake

 



From July 13-27, library users can participate in the Big Library Read featuring The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake. This eBook club connects readers with the same book at the same time without any waitlists or holds. Download the discussion guide to start a conversation with other readers. You can also visit the discussion board to share your thoughts.

The Girl is His Shadow is an unforgettable historical fiction novel about one woman who believed in scientific medicine before the world believed in her. Raised by the eccentric surgeon Dr. Horace Croft after losing her parents to a deadly pandemic, the orphan Nora Beady knows little about conventional life. While other young women were raised to busy themselves with needlework and watercolors, Nora was trained to perfect her suturing and anatomical illustrations of dissections.

Women face dire consequences if caught practicing medicine, but in Croft’s private clinic Nora is his most trusted—and secret—assistant. That is until the new surgical resident Dr. Daniel Gibson arrives. Dr. Gibson has no idea that Horace’s bright and quiet young ward is a surgeon more qualified than even himself. In order to protect Dr. Croft and his practice from scandal and collapse Nora must learn to play a new and uncomfortable role—that of a proper young lady.

 
-Click here to borrow The Girl in His Shadow. To read this book on a handheld device, download the Overdrive app or Libby app.

-Read a letter from Audrey Blake. 

-Join the hosts of the Professional Book Nerds podcast for an interview with Audrey Blake on July 26th at 2 pm EST. Register here. 
 
-Share your thoughts on social media by using #biglibraryread to be entered to win a Big Library Read giveaway bag. See official rules here. 

Thursday, July 14, 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!

July is National Ice Cream Month! Browse this booklist titles to learn more about this perfect summer treat and how to make your own!

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 Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore

Absolutely fantastic and heartbreaking book! Couldn’t put this impeccably researched 500 page book down. ~ Amelia F. 

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

A graphic novel aimed at young adults but for everyone about growing up trans while learning as they go. I have trans friends and am a supporter of the community but have never talked to anyone about the day to day struggles pre transition. This had a level of depth that led to a visceral understanding of the experience. Should be required reading. ~ Jen M. 


A little bit of romance, a little bit of politics, a little bit of religion, a lot of adventure. In The Siege of Isfahan, we find the apothecary happily living in Persia with his wife and daughter. Unfortunately, a friend is in trouble; the Afghans are at the gates; more romance, more adventure...if possible, this book is even better than its predecessor. If you like a bit of history with your swashbuckling, this is your book. Don't let the small print dissuade you: it's a quick read! ~ Nicole A. 


This book was so informative and connected everything together in a seamless way.             ~ Tyesha P. 

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

New Releases: August Edition

Check out these highly anticipated August 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

Carlotta Mercedes has been misunderstood her entire life. When she was pulled into a robbery gone wrong, she still went by the name she'd grown up with in Brooklyn. But not long after her conviction, she took the name Carlotta and began to live as a woman. In her fifth appearance before the parole board, Carlotta is at last granted conditional freedom and returns to a much-changed city. Over a whirlwind Fourth of July weekend, she struggles to reconcile with the son she left behind, to reunite with a family reluctant to accept her, and to avoid any minor parole infraction that might get her consigned back to lockup. 



Graduating into the long maw of an American recession, Sneha moves to Milwaukee for an entry-level corporate job.  She soon develops a burning crush on Marina, a beguiling  dancer who always seems just out of reach. But before long, trouble arrives. Jobs are lost, secrets are revealed. Sneha struggles to be truly close and open with anybody, even as her friendships deepen, even as she throws herself headlong into a dizzying romance with Marina. It’s then that her friend Tig begins to draw up a radical solution to their problems, hoping to save them all.


At thirty-five, Mika Suzuki’s life is a mess. Her last relationship ended in flames. Her roommate-slash-best friend might be a hoarder. She’s a perpetual disappointment to her traditional Japanese parents. And, most recently, she’s been fired from her latest dead-end job. Mika is at her lowest point when she receives a phone call from Penny—the daughter she placed for adoption sixteen years ago. Mika must face the truth—about herself, her family, and her past—and answer the question, just who is Mika in real life?





Nonfiction


Written in intimate, gleefully TMI prose, Knocking Myself Up is the irreverent account of Tea’s route to parenthood—with a group of ride-or-die friends, a generous drag queen, and a whole lot of can-do pluck. Along the way she falls in love with a wholesome genderqueer a decade her junior, attempts biohacking herself a baby with black market fertility meds (and magicking herself an offspring with witch-enchanted honey), learns her eggs are busted, and enters the Fertility Industrial Complex in order to carry her younger lover’s baby.



When Casey Parks came out as a lesbian in college back in 2002, she assumed her life in the South was over. Her  mother shunned her, and her pastor asked God to kill her. But then Parks's grandmother, a stern conservative who grew up picking cotton, pulled her aside and revealed a startling secret. "I grew up across the street from a woman who lived as a man," and then implored Casey to find out what happened to him. Diary of a Misfit is the story of Parks's life-changing journey to unravel the mystery of Roy Hudgins, a small-town country singer, all the while confronting ghosts of her own.


Chef Keith Corbin got his start cooking crack at age thirteen, becoming so skilled that he was flown across the country to cook for drug operations in other cities. After his criminal enterprises caught up with him, though, Corbin spent years in California’s most notorious maximum security prisons. After his release, Corbin got a job managing the kitchen at LocoL, an ambitious fast food restaurant spearheaded by celebrity chefs Roy Choi and Daniel Patterson. As he battles private demons while achieving public success, Corbin traces the origins of his vision for “California soul food."

Friday, July 1, 2022

NEW! Virtual Author Talk Series with Best Selling Authors

 


Worcester Public Library now offers a new virtual author talk series connecting our patrons with best selling, contemporary authors. This exciting new series will cover a wide range of fiction and nonfiction genres including historical fiction, contemporary fiction, romance, OwnVoices, poetry, business, personal growth, social justice, history, art, culture and more. Each talk will include Q&A sessions. Patrons can look forward to multiple talks each month.

Patrons can view and register for upcoming events here. All talks will be recorded and can be viewed here. 

Get the books by visiting our booklist and placing your hold today.

Visit our Adult Classes and Programs page for more programming.


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.