Hi everyone, here are our recommended reads for the week!
*More information on the three catalogs and available formats is found at the end of the list of recommended reads*
–
Weekly Suggested Reading postings are now published on Wednesdays.
And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, February 8, 2023.
–
Back In A Spell by Lana Harper
(Available Formats: Print Book)
Harper’s charming third Witches of Thistle Grove romance (after From Bad to Cursed) continues to plumb surprising emotional depths while maintaining a lighthearted rom-com vibe. Responsible pansexual witch Nina Blackmoore agrees to a blind date with spontaneous nonbinary bartender Morty Gutierrez, not realizing he’s from the same Gutierrez clan that her powerful family have been harassing into selling the bar. The date’s a disaster—but mystical forces are at work to keep this duo from calling it quits. After witnessing an apparition in the town lake, Nina wakes to find her powers are wildly magnified. Worse, somehow Morty now has powers of his own. The only way he could have acquired magic overnight is if the pair of them are witchbound, the metaphysical equivalent of marriage. Though Nina is desperate to regain control over her power and halt the connection rapidly growing between her and Morty, she also welcomes the unexpected benefit of the bond: having someone she can be herself with, who helps her to confront the damage her self-centered mother has wrought on her life. Harper doesn’t hold back in showing the effects of being raised by a narcissistic parent, grounding the witchy story in heartfelt reality. This is sure to enchant series fans and new readers alike. – Publishers Weekly Review
–
The Burnout Challenge: Managing People’s Relationships with Their Jobs by Christina Maslach
(Available Formats: Print Book & CD Audiobook)
A majority of American workers consider their jobs to be mediocre or bad, constituting a crisis in the workplace, according to this no-nonsense survey from Banishing Burnout coauthors Maslach, a UC Berkeley psychology professor, and Leiter, an organizational psychologist. They make a case that such bad feelings toward one’s work manifest as burnout, a miserable trifecta comprising crushing exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and alienation, and a sense of ineffectiveness. Burnout, they write, is the result of “the increasing mismatch between workers and workplaces,” and is not an individual problem but one that comes down to the relationship between an individual and their place of work. Solutions, therefore, must be systemic and structural. The authors break down how burnout affects workplace relationships (it can lead to workers “causing greater personal conflict and disrupting job tasks”) and lay out how organizations can ensure an ideal job-person match, which they posit involves six conditions: a sustainable workload; ample choice and control; recognition and rewards; supportive work community; norms of fairness, respect, and social justice; and well-aligned values and meaningful work. With the Great Resignation looming large, this timely, practical guide is worth a look for business leaders aiming to foster a healthy workplace. – Publishers Weekly Review
–
City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita
(Available Formats: Print Book)
DEBUT In Oscar-nominated screenwriter Yamashita’s first novel, a teen finds body parts in a cove in Point Mettier, a very small town in Alaska. The police assume the limbs are from a passenger from a cruise ship. Detective Cara Kennedy arrives from Anchorage on a personal search. A year earlier, her husband and son disappeared on a camping trip, and their body parts were only recently discovered. She hopes to make a connection to those murders. Instead, she finds a secretive town where all 205 residents live in one apartment building with services, including a two-man police department. When she finds no answers, she plans to leave town–but the only exit, a two-mile tunnel, is blocked due to an avalanche. She’s stuck in a town where everyone is lying, an isolated place where abused women flee for safety. It’s not so safe when a head is discovered, a gang storms into town from a nearby reservation, and a woman and her sons disappear. Cara teams up with a police officer on a rescue plan that leads to shoot-outs and violence in the tunnels.
VERDICT The claustrophobic atmosphere in this unique one-building town, isolated by tunnels, weather, and secrets, builds a memorable debut crime novel. – Starred Library Journal Review
–
Financial Feminist: Overcome the Patriarchy’s Bullsh*t to Master Your Money and Build a Life You Love by Tori Dunlap
(Available Formats: Print Book)
From the globally-recognized personal finance educator and social media star behind Her First $100K, an inclusive guide to all things money—from managing debt to investing and voting with your dollars
Tori Dunlap was always good with money. As a kid, she watched her prudent parents balance their checkbook every month and learned to save for musical tickets by gathering pennies in an Altoids tin. But she quickly discovered that her experience with money was pretty unusual, especially among her female friends.
It wasn’t our fault. Investigating this financial literacy and wealth gap, Tori found that girls are significantly less likely to receive a holistic financial education; we’re taught to restrain our spending, while boys are taught about investing and rewarded for pursuing wealth. In adulthood, women are hounded by the unfounded stereotype of the frivolous spenders whose lattes are to blame for the wealth gap. And when something like, say, a global pandemic happens, we’re the first to have jobs cut and the last to re-enter the workforce. It’s no wonder money is a source of anxiety and a barrier to equality for so many of us.
But what if money didn’t mean restriction, and instead, choice? The ability to luxuriously travel, quit toxic jobs, donate to important organizations, retire early? The freedom to live the life you want, and change the world while you do it?
Tori founded Her First $100K to teach women to overcome the unique obstacles standing in the way of their financial freedom. In Financial Feminist, she distills the principles of her shame- and judgment-free approach to paying off debt, figuring out your value categories to spend mindfully, saving money without monk-like deprivation, and investing in order to spend your retirement tanning in Tulum.
You will learn:
– Exercises to help you understand your current relationship with money, figure out what you want to change, and how to make that happen
– How to decide on your investment goal, and discover the three steps to meeting it
– Learn how to source the data you need to negotiate the money you deserve
Featuring journaling prompts, deep-dives into the invisible aspects of the financial landscape, and interviews with experts on everything money—from predatory credit card companies to the racial wealth gap and voting with your dollars—Financial Feminist is the ultimate guide to making your money work harder for you (rather than the other way around.)
–
Independence by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)
Divakaruni’s (The Last Queen, 2021) latest brilliant novel coincides with the seventy-fifth anniversary of the independence of India from British rule and its partition into India, Pakistan, and East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). With great attention to detail regarding the political and religious upheaval this caused and its impact on ordinary citizens, Divakaruni tells a highly nuanced tale of a Hindu Bengali family living in the village of Ranipur near Calcutta. The oldest child, Deepa, is as dutiful and responsible as she is beautiful, and she is determined to be an asset to her family through marriage. Priya, the middle sister, is the firebrand, independent and idealistic, on a mission, against societal odds, to become a doctor like their father. Jamini, the youngest, is deeply religious like their mother and jealous of her more accomplished sisters. The innocence and safety of these sisters in their cocooned village where Hindus and Muslims are enmeshed in each others’ lives are shattered in the turmoil, and the sisters are torn asunder. Deepa follows her husband to Bangladesh. Priya’s dream leads her to America to study medicine, while Jamini is the glue that holds their mother’s life together. Woven throughout their stories is the violence, rage, and anguish of a divided nation, all stirringly depicted by Divakaruni in unforgettable prose. –Booklist Review
–
The Ingenue: A Novel by Rachel Kapelke-Dale
(Available Formats: Print Book)
Saskia Kreis has finally returned home, but this isn’t the homecoming she had planned. A former piano prodigy, Saskia had a tempestuous relationship with her mother, Evie, now dead before they can reconcile or even say goodbye. At least she will inherit her ancestral home, the once grand Elf House on the Milwaukee lakefront. However, Saskia is shocked to learn that Evie willed the house to her colleague Patrick, a man with whom Saskia shares a secret past. Pursuing legal options, Saskia attends a photographic exhibition that shatters the illusion that she was unique in her relationship to Patrick. She was one of many underage girls Patrick groomed, and the idea of giving him her home is unthinkable. Questioning whether anyone would believe her story, Saskia wrestles with moving forward. Kapelke-Dale’s (The Ballerinas, 2021) absorbing novel delves into the repercussions of sexual abuse, interspersing tantalizing extracts from Evie’s feminist fairy-tale retellings and fragments of Saskia’s teen years with present events that crescendo to a stunning conclusion.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Aptly compared to Kate Elizabeth Russell’s much-buzzed-about My Dark Vanessa (2020), The Ingenue is poised to garner similar attention. – Booklist Review
–
Liberation Day: Stories by George Saunders
(Available Formats: Print Book)
Booker winner Saunders (Lincoln in the Bardo) returns to the short form with a wide-ranging collection that alternates his familiar fun house of warped simulations with subtler dramas. In “Ghoul,” actors playing demons at an Inferno-esque attraction called “Maws of Hell” succumb to workplace rivalries under the watchful eye of their managers. “Love Letter,” set in a Trumpist dystopia where “loyalists” report dissenters for infractions, takes the form of a man’s cautionary letter to his defiant grandson. The title story imagines a sinister company whose employees, little more than programs, are forced to recreate Custer’s last stand. Other stories probe loss, regret, and hopefulness. “The Mom of Bold Action” follows a frustrated writer and housewife facing turmoil when her son is attacked by at least one of two identical old creeps. “Mother’s Day” explores the inner life of a once feisty elderly woman now living at a remove from the world after her daughter runs away from home. “Elliot Spencer” combines futurism and pathos as a mind-wiped counterprotester suddenly recovers his identity. Saunders’s four previous collections shook the earth a bit harder, but he continues to humanize those whom society has worn down to a nub. Despite the author’s shift to quieter character studies, there’s plenty to satisfy longtime devotees. – Publishers Weekly Review
–
Mr. Breakfast by Jonathan Carroll
(Available Formats: Print Book)
Graham Patterson wanted to be a famous comedian but didn’t have the edge that would make him a star. Ignoring the smart suggestions of his longtime girlfriend Ruth, he found himself without another gig. Buying a red Mustang off the showroom floor, Graham started searching for something he couldn’t name. Breaking down on the road, he impulsively chose his first tattoo without knowing the design contained magic. Now Graham can experience three possible lives at three different times, from the present into the future, but must pick only one for the rest of his days. What ensues is a wild ride as characters continuously change and grow through their experiences, which are full of surprises for characters and readers alike. As always with the exceptionally imaginative Carroll, he creates complex worlds for his hero to inhabit and with clever crossovers between realms that are carefully thought out and fun to explore. Carroll’s attention to details is impressive, and the unexpected prevails. Although not exactly comparable, this should appeal to fans of Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library (2020). –Booklist Review
–
No One Left To Come Looking For You: A Novel by Sam Lipsyte
(Available Formats: Print Book)
At the start of this charming comic mystery set circa 1993 from Lipsyte (Hark), 20-something Jonathan “Jack” Shit, who plays in “the Shits, a fast-disintegrating band” on the fringes of Manhattan’s East Village music scene, is awakened by a call from Dyl Becker at King Snake Guitars. Dyl tells Jack that the band’s smack-addled lead singer, the Banished Earl, was just in his store with Jack’s bass guitar trying to sell it days before a big gig. Earl disappears, and the stolen bass, probably swapped for drugs, ends up in the hands of a thug named Mounce, whom Jack confronts as Mounce also tries to sell the instrument. A subsequent murder raises the stakes. Jack soon connects Earl’s disappearance with an aggressive real estate mogul known for stiffing his business associates while scheming to profit at any cost from the urban renewal of New York City. A wild array of neighborhood characters and scenesters guide Jack, including Corrina, an affectionate devotee engaged in mysterious art projects. This whodunit homage comes complete with dark satirical observations of New York 30 years ago. Spinal Tap fans will want to check it out. Publishers Weekly Review
–
One: Simply One-Pan Wonders by Jamie Oliver
(Available Formats: Print Book)
One is the ultimate cookbook that will make getting good food on the table easier than ever before . . . Jamie Oliver is back to basics with over 120 simple, delicious, ONE pan recipes.
This edition has been adapted for the US market.
In ONE, Jamie Oliver will guide you through over 120 recipes for tasty, fuss-free and satisfying dishes cooked in just one pan. What’s better: each recipe has just eight ingredients or fewer, meaning minimal prep (and cleaning up) and offering maximum convenience.
Packed with budget-friendly dishes you can rustle up any time, ONE has everything from delicious work from home lunches to quick dinners the whole family will love; from meat-free options to meals that will get novice cooks started.
With chapters including . . .
· Veggie Delights
· Celebrating Chicken
· Frying Pan Pasta
· Batch Cooking
Simple dishes like Juicy Tahini Chicken and Hassleback Eggplant Pie and will soon become your new favorites.
There are plenty more no-fuss, tasty recipes that make ONE sit alongside 5 Ingredients and Ultimate Veg as your go-to kitchen companions.
–
Have a great week!
Linda Reimer
–
*Information on the three catalogs*
Digital Catalog: https://stls.overdrive.com/
The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, digital magazines and a handful of streaming videos. The catalog, which allows one to download content to a PC, also has a companion app, Libby, which you can download to your mobile device; so you can enjoy eBooks and downloadable audiobooks on the go!
All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.
–
Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/
The Hoopla Catalog features instant checkouts of eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV series. Patron check out limit is 6 items per month.
Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.
The Hoopla App is available for Android or Apple devices and most smart TVs & media streaming players.
–
StarCat: The catalog of physical/traditional library materials: https://starcat.stls.org
Card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can access StarCat to search for and request materials available at libraries through out the Southern Tier Library System.
–
Format Note: Under each book title you’ll find a list of all the different formats that specific title is available in; including: Print Books, Large Print Books, CD Audiobooks, eBooks & Downloadable Audiobooks from the Digital Catalog (Libby app) and Hoopla eBooks & Hoopla Downloadable Audiobooks (Hoopla app).
–
Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.
–
Have questions or want to request a book?
Feel free to call the library! Our telephone number is 607-936-3713.
Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.
Tech & Book Talk at SSCL 