Month: June 2023

Hi everyone, welcome to our Suggested Listening posting for this week!

Suggested Listening postings are published on Fridays; and our next Suggested Listening posting will be out on Friday,

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And here are the 10 recommended songs of the week!

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Beat Girl by John Barry & His Orchestra (Genre: Instrumental/Soundtrack)

From The Album: Ultra-Lounge: Mondo Hollywood (2009)

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Caravan by The John Buzon Trio (Genre: Easy Listening)

From The Album: Bachelor Pad Royale (1996)

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Dancing In The Dark by Jane Monheit (Genre: Vocal, Jazz)

From The Album: Taking a Chance on Love  (2004)

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A Hard Day’s Night by Peggy Lee (Genre: Vocal/Easy Listening)

From The Album: Pass Me By (1965)

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Hit The Road To Dreamland by Dean Martin (Genre: Vocal)

From The Album: Sleep Warm (1959)

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I Dig by Les Baxter (Genre: Jazz/Easy Listening)

From The Album: Ultra-Lounge, Vol. 12: Saxophobia (1996)

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In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning by Frank Sinatra (Genre: Vocal)

From The Album: The Wee Small Hours (1955)

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No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach’s In) / Tijuana Taxi & New Classic Singers (Genre: Lounge/Easy Listening)

From The Album: Ultra-Lounge: Bottoms Up! (1997)

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Scotch And Soda by Lou Rawls (Genre:Vocal)

From The Album: Ultra-Lounge: Hey Bartender! (2009)

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Stumbling by Tak Shindo (Genre: Easy Listening/Instrumental)

From The Album: Space Capades (1996)

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Hoopla Recommend Album of the Week

Mondo Hollywood (2009) by Various Artists

And from the album the song:

Never On A Sunday by Les Baxter

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Have a great weekend,

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Online Catalog Links:

StarCat

The catalog of physical materials, i.e. print books, DVDs, audiobooks on CD, etc.

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The Digital Catalog, web version of Libby

The catalog of e-books, downloadable audiobooks and a handful of streaming videos.

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The Libby App

Libby is the companion app to the Digital Catalog and may be found in the Apple & Google app.

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Hoopla

A catalog of instant check out items, including eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, comic books, TV shows and movies for patrons of the Southeast Steuben County Library.

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Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

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*

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Weekly Suggested Reading postings are now published on Wednesdays.

And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, July 5, 2023.

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Death Knells And Wedding Bells by Eva Gates

(Available Formats: Print Book, Hoopla Instant Checkout eBook & Audiobook)

The wedding of a North Carolina librarian and a dentist who’s been elected mayor would be perfect if not for the dead body. Nothing worse than some family squabbles mars the ceremony, held at a Nags Head hotel, until a corpse pops up in a utility closet the next morning. The dead man, Wayne Fortunada, had accompanied bride Lucy Richardson McNeil’s Aunt Joyce to the wedding, and he’d seemed pleasant enough until the reception, where he drank heavily and was reduced to monosyllabic conversation. Lucy’s already had an unfortunate amount of experience with murder, and her friendship with Det. Sam Watson has enabled her to give him information without risking snarky comebacks. This doesn’t apply to the newly hired Det. North, who’s helping Sam with the case; he’s suspicious of Lucy’s friendship with Sam and thinks he should be running the investigation himself. In addition to the murder, Lucy’s concerned about the tension between her brother Kevin and his estranged wife, Kristen, who came to the wedding with a date of her own. Lucy’s motivation to meddle is redoubled when absent-minded professor Eddie McClanahan, library director Bertie James’ date, vanishes on the night of the wedding and becomes the chief suspect. When she and her groom, Connor, track Eddie down at a friend’s beach cottage, he seems unaware of the murder but admits to having known the dead man years ago in New York and being blackmailed by him. Kristen’s date was an actor who also had a past with Fortunada. Blackmailers are obvious targets for murder, but which of the suspects was willing to go that far? Quirky characters enliven a mystery with a twisty payoff. – Kirkus Review

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East Indian: A Novel by Brinda Charry

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Shakespeare scholar Charry marks her U.S. fiction debut with a marvelous picaresque of a boy’s journey from 17th-century India to colonial Virginia. Tony, the narrator, lives on India’s east coast with his courtesan mother and her patron, Francis Day. After Tony’s mother dies when he is 11, Day arranges for him to travel to England as a servant. After his new employer dies on the voyage, Tony finds work in London as a dockworker and shelter in a boardinghouse run by a compassionate Bengali man. Watching a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Tony is fascinated by the “Indian boy” over whom Oberon and Titania compete, wondering if the nameless character is valued “as a child, as a servant, or simply as a rare thing?” Tony lives in England for eight months before being abducted and illegally shipped to the colonies to supply Virginia tobacco growers with labor. He reaches Jamestown in 1635, where he’s indentured for seven years to a wealthy landowner, then transferred to an even crueler master, but he manages to survive due to his bonds with fellow workers, both Black and white. Richly imagined characters and keen explorations of identity, place, and the power of imagination drive this luminous achievement. Readers of Esi Edugyan and Yaa Gyasi will be enthralled. – Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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If We’re Being Honest: A Novel by Cat Shook

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Gathered for a funeral in small-town Georgia, a close-knit family gets the surprise of their lives. When Ellen Williams asks Fred Clark to give the eulogy at her husband Gerry’s funeral, she has no doubt he’s the man for the job: Fred was Gerry’s best friend, a second father to the three now-middle-aged Williams children, and beloved by Ellen as well. Oops, bad call. After weaving his way to the pulpit, “white hair sticking up in odd places like a toddler just waking from a nap,” Fred delivers a drunken tribute that ends with a stunning assertion about who Gerry really was–and leaves the Williams family reeling. If the patriarch they adored was living a lie, what does that say about his marriage, his love for his family, and whether anyone is who they seem? Debut novelist Shook is juggling a lot of balls here, and in a tight space. The action takes place over one week in Eulalia, Georgia, between Gerry’s funeral and a wedding the four grown grandkids are sticking around for, and in that time nine Williamses grapple with their shock while probing their own emotional lives. Will Delia get back with her ex? Will Alice, who has her own secret, follow her heart? Can Red reveal his true identity; will his parents mend their marriage; can Ellen ever forgive? It’s hard to keep the characters straight at first, but by the time they’ve finished the neighbor-donated casseroles and talked it all out, you’re engaged and rooting for them. Also occasionally irritated, but that’s what relatives are for. “Families are crazy–I mean, look at mine,” granddaughter Alice finally tells the man she loves. “But it’s what I want.” An appealing, astutely observed debut about familial love and the secrets we keep. – Kirkus Review

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The Last Sinner by Lisa Jackson

(Available Formats: Print Book & Hoopla Instant Checkout eBook)

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Survived delivers a gripping novel of suspense featuring two veteran homicide detectives matching wits with a twisted serial killer lurking in the shadows of New Orleans.

There are killers so savage, so twisted, that they leave a mark not just on their victims, but on everyone who crosses their path. For Detectives Bentz and Montoya, Father John, a fake priest who used the sharpened beads of a rosary to strangle prostitutes, is one such monster.

Bentz thought he’d ended that horror years ago when he killed Father John deep in the swamp. But now there are chilling signs he may have been wrong. A new victim has surfaced, her ruined body staged in deliberate, unmistakable detail. Either it’s a terrifying copycat, or Father John, the detective’s own recurring nightmare, has come back to haunt New Orleans.

Another death, and another. Bentz is growing convinced that Father John isn’t just back.

He’s circling closer, targeting those Bentz loves most.

And this time, he won’t be stopped until the last sinner has paid the ultimate price..

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Night Flowers by Sara Herchenroether

(Available Formats: Print Book)

In Herchenroether’s poignant debut, research librarian Laura MacDonald is perusing a crime website while awaiting a double mastectomy in a Connecticut hospital when a post catches her eye: in 1983, hikers lost in Sierra County, N.Mex., found barrels containing the skeletons of a woman and two girls. Thirty years later, the victims remain unidentified, so Laura decides to use her professional skills to investigate. Meanwhile, despite pressure from her husband to retire and help the couple’s single daughter raise her child, Det. Sgt. Jean Martinez has reopened the Sierra County Sheriff’s Department’s case file on the same hikers, hoping recent media coverage triggered by the discovery’s anniversary will turn up a lead. As the women’s investigations converge, Jane Doe’s ghost worries that if her killer is caught, she’ll only be remembered for how she died. Nuanced characters and artful prose complement the intricately crafted mystery, but what distinguishes Herchenroether’s tale is her visceral, resonant recounting of Laura’s cancer experience: Laura “had no voice. No identity outside her diagnosis.” This author is off to a strong start. – Publishers Weekly Review

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The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Multiple Hugo and Nebula Award winner Willis (Blackout/All Clear) returns with a delightful, intergalactic twist on the romantic comedy. Francie only agrees to show up for her college roommate’s doomed wedding in Roswell, N.Mex., because she hopes her presence will make the bride-to-be realize she’s making a mistake. That, and she’s the maid of honor. The wedding and the town’s annual UFO Festival are not falling on the same weekend by coincidence; the groom is a true believer. Meanwhile, skeptical Francie can barely stand every moment she has to spend hearing about sightings, theories, and abductions. Then she herself is abducted by an alien who needs her help navigating the New Mexican desert. Her abductor, nicknamed Indy, is described as looking like a “animate tumbleweed,” with dozens of quick, strong tentacles that it has no issue using to keep Francie acting as its chauffeur. A chance encounter with a friendly and handsome hitchhiker, Wade, a con man, adds one more to the madcap road trip, and each subsequent stop continues to grow the wacky crew. For Francie, terror turns to acceptance that turns to curiosity that turns to care as she comes to believe that Indy is just trying to get home. Willis makes Francie’s journey to, from, and around Roswell an absolute blast with abundant humor, copious references to old westerns, and sweet budding love between Francie and Wade. Readers will not be disappointed. – Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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A Spell Of Good Things: A Novel by Ayobami Adebayo

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Adébáyọ̀ follows up Stay with Me with this bright and distinctive tragedy set in modern Nigeria. Ẹniọlá, a teenager whose father has lost his job, can no longer pay the tuition at the private school that he’d hoped would enable him to rise from poverty. Wúràọlá is a doctor from a wealthy and politically connected family. She’s overworked in an underfunded hospital, and courted by well-bred Kúnlé, whose mood shifts and possessiveness unnerve her. Ẹniọlá takes an apprenticeship with a tailor, but after he is beaten at school for the unpaid fees, his mother insists Ẹniọlá and his little sister accompany her to beg for money. Things spiral out of control when Ẹniọlá’s parents decide to pay his sister’s tuition with the proceeds but not his. He takes his revenge by joining a gang working for the vengeful politician Fẹ̀sọ̀jaiyé. Wúràọlá, meanwhile, becomes engaged to Kúnlé despite her misgivings, and though her parents are ecstatic, he slaps her at a party. Kúnlé’s father is running against Fẹ̀sọ̀jaiyé, and the story’s violent denouement is as devastating as it is inevitable. Pitch-perfect details provide a sense of the characters’ lives—the red dust caked on Ẹniọlá’s white socks from long walks to school, the soft headscarf worn by Wúràọlá’s mother that “barely whispered”—and as the characters are pushed to the brink, Adébáyọ̀ delivers a searing indictment of the country’s corruption and gender inequalities. This packs a powerful punch. – Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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Welcome To Beach Town by Susan Wiggs

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Beloved New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs returns with a compulsively readable tale of an idyllic California beach town forced to reckon with scandal when a high school valedictorian’s speech reveals secrets that shake the town to its core.
“Readers will savor sunny skies and perfect surf in this stunning new novel, but one thing is for sure: In this Beach Town, there is always more happening than meets the eye. Don’t miss this expansive beauty of a summer book!” —Kristy Woodson Harvey, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Summer of Songbirds

Every town has its secrets…

In idyllic Alara Cove, a California beach town known for its sunny charm and chill surfer vibe, it’s graduation day at the elite Thornton Academy. At Thornton, the students are the worldly and overindulged children who live in gated enclaves with spectacular views. But the class valedictorian is Nikki Graziola, a surfer’s daughter who is there on scholarship. To the shock of everyone in the audience, Nikki veers off script while giving her commencement address and reveals a secret that breaks open the whole community.

As her truth explodes into the light, Alara Cove will face a reckoning.
Nikki Graziola’s accusation shakes the foundation of Alara Cove, pitting her against the wealthy family whose money runs the town. Her new notoriety sends Nikki into exile for years, where she finds fame—but not fortune—overseas as a competition surfer…until a personal tragedy compels her to return to Alara Cove.

As Nikki struggles to rebuild her future, she finds that the people of the town have not forgotten her. But time has changed Alara Cove, and old friendships, rivalries, and an unexpected romance draw her back into the life of the beach town she’s never quite forgotten, and where joy and redemption may be possible after all.

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You Are Here: A Novel by Karin Lin-Greenberg

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla Instant Checkout Audiobook)

Lin-Greenberg’s masterful and understated debut novel is an engrossing, character-driven story that will delight fans of Liane Moriarty and Celeste Ng. The story unfolds in a mall that is on the brink of closing. Readers meet a hairdresser with unfulfilled dreams, her precocious yet shy son, a kind and driven teenage girl working in the food court, a bookstore manager in a slump, and a seemingly grumpy elderly woman. These divergent characters don’t appear to share any connections, but their lives are intertwined in unexpected ways that are slowly revealed as the story progresses. As the mall quite literally decays around them, they must grapple with what the future holds while also dealing with the effects of a tragic event in their community. At its heart, this is a story about our ties to and interactions with others and how our communities impact our actions, influence our aspirations, and shape our identities. Lin-Greenberg beautifully translates the lives of an ordinary group of people into an extraordinary, even triumphant novel. You Are Here is sure to be a book club favorite. – Booklist Review

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You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight

(Available Formats: Print Book)

At Camp Mirror Lake, terror is the name of the game . . . but can you survive the night?
This heart-pounding slasher by New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron is perfect for fans of Fear Street.

Charity has the summer job of her dreams, playing the “final girl” at Camp Mirror Lake. Guests pay to be scared in this full-contact terror game, as Charity and her summer crew recreate scenes from a classic slasher film, The Curse of Camp Mirror Lake. The more realistic the fear, the better for business.

But the last weekend of the season, Charity’s co-workers begin disappearing. And when one ends up dead, Charity’s role as the final girl suddenly becomes all too real. If Charity and her girlfriend Bezi hope to survive the night, they’ll need figure out what this killer is after. As they unravel the bloody history of the real Mirror Lake, Charity discovers that there may be more to the story than she ever suspected . . .

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Have a great day!

Linda Reimer

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*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.

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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.

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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.

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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).

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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.

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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.

Hi everyone, here is the weekly list of New York Times Bestsellers.

Each title is followed by a listing of which formats it is available in for check out within the three catalogs: StarCat (Print, Large Print & CD Audiobook), The Digital Catalog (eBook & Downloadable Audiobook) and the Hoopla Catalog (Hoopla instant checkout eBook & Hoopla Audiobook).

For more information on the three catalogs skip to the section below the bestselling titles*

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New York Times Bestseller blog posts are published on Sundays.And the next New York Times blog post will be published Sunday, June 25 2023.

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FICTION

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CLIVE CUSSLER: FIRE STRIKE by Mike Maden

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print & eBook)

The 17th book in the Oregon Files series. Juan Cabrillo’s crew takes on a force of bio-hacked soldiers.

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THE COVENANT OF WATER by Abraham Verghese

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla instant check out Audiobook)

Three generations of a family living on South India’s Malabar Coast suffer the loss of a family member by drowning.

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CROSS DOWN by James Patterson and Brendan DuBois

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook & eBook)

John Sampson seeks justice after Alex Cross gets injured.

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DEMON COPPERHEAD by Barbara Kingsolver

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audibook, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook, Hoopla instant check out eBook & Audiobook)

Winner of a 2023 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. A reimagining of Charles Dickens’s “David Copperfield” set in the mountains of southern Appalachia.

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THE FIVE-STAR WEEKEND by Elin Hilderbrand

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

After a tragedy, a popular food blogger brings friends from distinct times in her life to spend a weekend in Nantucket.

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FOURTH WING by Rebecca Yarros

(Available Formats: Print Book, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla instant check out eBook)

Violet Sorrengail is urged by the commanding general, who also is her mother, to become a candidate for the elite dragon riders.

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HAPPY PLACE by Emily Henry

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A former couple pretend to be together for the sake of their friends during their annual getaway in Maine.

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HELLO BEAUTIFUL by Ann Napolitano

(Available Formats:Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

In a homage to Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women,” a young man’s dark past resurfaces as he gets to the know the family of his college sweetheart.

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ICEBREAKER by Hannah Grace

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

Anastasia might need the help of the captain of a college hockey team to get on the Olympic figure skating team.

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IDENTITY by Nora Roberts

(Available Formats: Print Book & CD Audiobook)

After her roommate is killed by a con artist, a former Army brat builds a new life at her mother’s home in Vermont.

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IT ENDS WITH US by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A battered wife raised in a violent home attempts to halt the cycle of abuse.

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IT STARTS WITH US by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

In the sequel to “It Ends With Us,” Lily deals with her jealous ex-husband as she reconnects with her first boyfriend.

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LADY TAN’S CIRCLE OF WOMEN by Lisa See

(Available Formats:Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

Tan Yunxian learns the pillars of Chinese medicine from her grandmother but is sent into an arranged marriage and pressured by her mother-in-law.

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LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A scientist and single mother living in California in the 1960s becomes a star on a TV cooking show.

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LOVE, THEORETICALLY by Ali Hazelwood

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A theoretical physicist finds her theories on love are tested by an experimental physicist.

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MEET ME AT THE LAKE by Carley Fortune

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A decade after a one-day adventure, Will appears again in Fern’s life at her mother’s lakeside resort.

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REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES by Shelby Van Pelt

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook, Hoopla instant checkout eBook & Audiobook)

A widow working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium is aided in solving a mystery by a giant Pacific octopus living there.

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THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO by Taylor Jenkins Reid

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A movie icon recounts stories of her loves and career to a struggling magazine writer.

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SIMPLY LIES by David Baldacci

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A former detective becomes the prime suspect in a murder case involving a man with mob ties who was in witness protection.

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TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW by Gabrielle Zevin

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

Two friends find their partnership challenged in the world of video game design.

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VERITY by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

Lowen Ashleigh is hired by the husband of an injured writer to complete her popular series and uncovers a horrifying truth.

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YELLOWFACE by R.F. Kuang

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

June Hayward, a struggling writer, must conceal the fact that she stole Athena Liu’s just-finished masterpiece after Liu’s sudden death.

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NON-FICTION:

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1964 by Paul McCartney

(Available Formats: 

A collection of photographs taken with a 35-millimeter camera during the rise of the Beatles from the end of 1963 through early 1964.

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BETTER LIVING THROUGH BIRDING by Christian Cooper

(Available Formats: eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Central Park birder, who became known through a viral video, explains how a life spent observing birds prepared him to be a gay, Black man in America today.

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THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE by Bessel van der Kolk

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

How trauma affects the body and mind, and innovative treatments for recovery.

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THE BOOK OF CHARLIE by David Von Drehle

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

The Washington Post columnist shares stories and wisdom he learned from a neighbor who was more than a century old.

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CRYING IN H MART by Michelle Zauner

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The daughter of a Korean mother and Jewish-American father, and leader of the indie rock project Japanese Breakfast, describes creating her own identity after losing her mother to cancer.

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DADDY DIARIES by Andy Cohen

(Available Formats: Print Book. eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The host and executive producer of “Watch What Happens Live” juggles fatherhood and his career

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I’M GLAD MY MOM DIED by Jennette McCurdy

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The actress and filmmaker describes her eating disorders and difficult relationship with her mother.

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IN-BETWEEN by Hadley Vlahos

(Available Formats:Not yet available in any catalog)

A hospice nurse shares some of her most impactful experiences and questions some of society’s beliefs around end-of-life care.

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KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON by David Grann

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The story of a murder spree in 1920s Oklahoma that targeted Osage Indians, whose lands contained oil.

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THE LIGHT WE CARRY by Michelle Obama

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The former first lady shares personal stories and the tools she uses to deal with difficult situations.

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LOOK FOR ME THERE by Luke Russert

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook, Hoopla instant checkout eBook & Audiobook)

The Emmy Award–winning journalist details how he grieved for his late father and sought to make his own way.

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MY FRIEND ANNE FRANK by Hannah Pick-Goslar with Dina Kraft

(Available Formats: Print Book)

A memoir by the Holocaust survivor who was first referred to as Lies Goosens in Anne Frank’s diary.

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OUTLIVE by Peter Attia with Bill Gifford

(Available Formats: Print Book & Downloadable Audiobook)

A look at recent scientific research on aging and longevity.

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PAGEBOY by Elliot Page

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Oscar-nominated star details discovering himself as a trans person and navigating abuse in Hollywood.

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THE PUPPETEERS by Jason Chaffetz

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

The Fox News contributor and former congressman argues that liberals remain in power no matter who gets elected.

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SOLITO by Javier Zamora

(Available Formats:Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The poet describes his journey over two months from El Salvador to the United States to reconnect with his parents who left years earlier.

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SPARE  by Prince Harry

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Duke of Sussex details his struggles with the royal family, loss of his mother, service in the British Army and marriage to Meghan Markle.

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TALKING TO STRANGERS by Malcolm Gladwell

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print & CD Audiobook)

Famous examples of miscommunication serve as the backdrop to explain potential conflicts and misunderstandings.

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THE WAGER by David Grann

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobooks)

The survivors of a shipwrecked British vessel on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain have different accounts of events.

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WHAT AN OWL KNOWS by Jennifer Ackerman

(Available Format: 

The author of “The Genius of Birds” explores new scientific discoveries about the brains and behavior of owls.

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSL

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*Information on the Three Catalogs*

Digital Catalog: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog has two companion apps, Libby & OverDrive. Libby is the app for newer devices and the OverDrive app should be used for older devices and Amazon tablets.

All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.

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Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/

The Hoopla Catalog features instant check outs of eBooks, downloadable audiobook, comic books, albums and streaming videos. Patron check out limit is 4 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.

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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.

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Also of Note: If a New York Times Bestseller isn’t yet available in any of the three catalogs; you can contact the library and request to be notified when it becomes available.

Southeast Steuben County Library Tel: 607-936-3713

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Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

This blog post includes all the new titles that have been ordered by the library this month.

Some of these titles have arrived and can be requested through StarCat; other titles are not yet ready to circulate (and thus are not yet found in StarCat).

So, if you see a book you’d love to read, but don’t find it listed in StarCat, send me an email and let me know which title you’d like to read; and I will place it on hold for you, when it is ready to circulate.

My email address is: reimerl@stls.org

And here is the list the list of New Books Coming Your Way for this month!

New Books is a monthly post, published on the fourth Saturday of the month.
The next New Books Coming Your Was post will be out on Saturday, July 22, 2023.

Have a great month,

Linda Reimer, SSCL

Hi everyone, welcome to our Suggested Listening posting for this week!

Suggested Listening postings are published on Fridays; and our next Suggested Listening posting will be out on Friday, June 30, 2023.

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And here are the 10 recommended songs of the week!

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Baby Please Don’t Go by Lightin’ Hopkins (Genre: Folk/Blues)

From The Album: Lectric Lightnin’ Blues (2013)

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Dark Was the Night, Cold Was The Ground by Blind Willie Johnson (Genre: Blues)

From The Album: The Complete Blind Willie Johnson (1993)

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Last Thing on My Mind by Tom Paxton (Genre: Folk)

From The Album: Ramblin’ Boy (1964)

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My Bucket Got A Hole In It by Hank Williams (Genre: Country)

From The Album: 40 Greatest Hits (1978)

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Strange Things Happen Everyday by Tracy Nelson (Genre: Blues)

From The Album: Life Don’t Miss Nobody (2023)

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Sugar Foot Stomp by Fletcher Henderson & His Orchestra (Genre: Jazz)

From The Album: The Fletcher Henderson Story (1994)

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Sweet Home Chicago by Robert Johnson (Genre: Blues)

From The Album: The Centennial Collection (2011)

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That Ain’t Right by Nat King Cole (Genre: Vocal, Jazz)

From The Album: Greatest Hits From The 1940’s by Various Artists

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Two Trains Running by John Hammond Jr. (Genre: Blues)

From The Album: John Hammond (1964)

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Washington Blues & I’m Going Away by Elizabeth Cotton (Genre: Folk)

From The Album: Shake Sugaree (2004)

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Hoopla Recommend Album of the Week

Written In Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos (2023) by Various Artists

This is an 89 song collection that you can listen to for free through Hoopla!

And from the album the song:

If You’re Ready by Homer Banks

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Have a great weekend,

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Online Catalog Links:

StarCat

The catalog of physical materials, i.e. print books, DVDs, audiobooks on CD, etc.

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The Digital Catalog, web version of Libby

The catalog of e-books, downloadable audiobooks and a handful of streaming videos.

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The Libby App

Libby is the companion app to the Digital Catalog and may be found in the Apple & Google app.

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Hoopla

A catalog of instant check out items, including eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, comic books, TV shows and movies for patrons of the Southeast Steuben County Library.

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Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

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*

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Weekly Suggested Reading postings are usually published on Wednesdays; but occasionally on Thursdays, as is the case today (many things to do, and a shorter than usual work week – oh, my!)

And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, June 28, 2023.

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1964: Eyes of the Storm by Paul McCartney

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Taken with a 35mm camera by Paul McCartney, these largely unseen photographs capture the explosive period, from the end of 1963 through early 1964, in which The Beatles became an international sensation and changed the course of music history. Featuring 275 images from the six cities―Liverpool, London, Paris, New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami―of these legendary months, 1964: Eyes of the Storm also includes:

• A personal foreword in which McCartney recalls the pandemonium of British concert halls, followed by the hysteria that greeted the band on its first American visit

• Candid recollections preceding each city portfolio that form an autobiographical account of the period McCartney remembers as the “Eyes of the Storm,” plus a coda with subsequent events in 1964

• “Beatleland,” an essay by Harvard historian and New Yorker essayist Jill Lepore, describing how The Beatles became the first truly global mass culture phenomenon

Handsomely designed, 1964: Eyes of the Storm creates an intensely dramatic record of The Beatles’ first transatlantic trip, documenting the radical shift in youth culture that crystallized in 1964.

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Diamond City by Marianna Boncek

(Available Formats: Print Book)

In 1955, small-town police chief Art Moran is thrown into a world of danger and mystery when he is tasked with solving a gruesome murder in an isolated mountain cult. Despite feeling out of his depth, he becomes the only person the cult members trust. But things take a turn for the worse when, in a single night, Art loses everything he holds dear, including his love, his son, and even his sanity.

Forty years later, the ghosts of the past come back to haunt him as he is called upon to solve the murder once again. As he delves deeper into the mystery, he finds himself questioning everything he thought he knew about redemption, forgiveness, and love. Set in the backdrop of a small town in upstate New York, Diamond City also explores the complexities of small-town life, including its subtle racism and pettiness. But through it all, Art learns that it’s never too late to embrace the life he has been given and let go of his impossible dreams. Will he survive the challenges that come his way and find the redemption he so desperately seeks?

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Dine in Palestine: An Authentic Taste of Palestine in 60 Recipes from My Family to Your Table by Heifa Odeh

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Bring the Bold Flavors of Palestine into Your Kitchen

Re-create traditional, flavorful Palestinian meals at home with this comprehensive collection of Middle Eastern recipes. From familiar favorites like Dawali (Stuffed Grape Leaves with Beef), Shawarma and Baklawa, to more complex meals like Musakhan, Palestine’s national dish, Heifa Odeh has carefully adapted her family recipes with streamlined techniques, making it easier than ever to enjoy a taste of Palestine.
Explore the full range of this rich cuisine from boldly flavored breakfasts like Ka’ek El Quds (Jerusalem Sesame Bread) and satisfying mains like Pomegranate Molasses & Harissa Salmon, to sweet treats like traditional Palestinian Knafeh, Fig & Honey Pistachio Cake and beyond. Whether you have been making Arab cuisine for ages or you are looking to expand your repertoire, this cookbook has something for everyone.

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The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

(Available Formats: Coming June 27 in Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The daughter of formerly enslaved parents, Mary McLeod Bethune refuses to back down as white supremacists attempt to thwart her work. She marches on as an activist and an educator, and as her reputation grows she becomes a celebrity, revered by titans of business and recognized by U.S. Presidents. Eleanor Roosevelt herself is awestruck and eager to make her acquaintance. Initially drawn together because of their shared belief in women’s rights and the power of education, Mary and Eleanor become fast friends confiding their secrets, hopes and dreams—and holding each other’s hands through tragedy and triumph.

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected president, the two women begin to collaborate more closely, particularly as Eleanor moves toward her own agenda separate from FDR, a consequence of the devastating discovery of her husband’s secret love affair. Eleanor becomes a controversial First Lady for her outspokenness, particularly on civil rights. And when she receives threats because of her strong ties to Mary, it only fuels the women’s desire to fight together for justice and equality.
This is the story of two different, yet equally formidable, passionate, and committed women, and the way in which their singular friendship helped form the foundation for the modern civil rights movement.

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Lessons Learned and Cherished: The Teacher Who Changed My Life by Deborah Roberts

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Hoopla instant checkout eBook)

Everyone can name a teacher who had an impact on their life. Educators not only open our minds to new ideas, but they also help us recognize our potential and our passions. However, rarely do they get credit for the life-changing work they do, and often teachers have no idea how their work can influence a student all the way into adulthood.

In Lessons Learned and Cherished: The Teacher Who Changed My Life, award-winning ABC News journalist Deborah Roberts curates a collection of essays and musings from celebrity friends and colleagues alike that share how teachers changed them, imparted life lessons, and helped them get to where they are today.

The author has made a donation to DonorsChoose (DonorsChoose.org), a non-profit that encourages people to empower public school teachers by funding their classroom resources

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Mary Crow: A Novel by Kathleen Grissom

(Available Formats: Print Book)

In 1872, sixteen-year-old Goes First, a Crow Native woman, marries Abe Farwell, a white fur trader. He gives her the name Mary, and they set off on the long trip to his trading post in Saskatchewan, Canada. Along the way, she finds a fast friend in a Métis named Jeannie; makes a lifelong enemy in a wolfer named Stiller; and despite learning a dark secret of Farwell’s past, falls in love with her husband.

The winter trading season passes peacefully. Then, on the eve of their return to Montana, a group of drunken whiskey traders slaughters forty Nakota—despite Farwell’s efforts to stop them. Mary, hiding from the hail of bullets, sees the murderers, including Stiller, take five Nakota women back to their fort. She begs Farwell to save them, and when he refuses, Mary takes two guns, creeps into the fort, and saves the women from certain death. Thus, she sets off a whirlwind of colliding cultures that brings out the worst and best in the cast of unforgettable characters and pushes the love between Farwell and Crow Mary to the breaking point.

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Mickey Chambers Shakes It Up by Charish Reid

(Available Formats: Print Book & Hoopla instant checkout Audiobook)

Total opposites. Totally irresistible.

Mickey Chambers is an expert at analyzing modern literature. But when it comes to figuring out her own story, she’s feeling a little lost. At thirty-three, she’s an adjunct instructor with a meager summer class schedule and too many medical bills, courtesy of her chronic illness. Picking up a bartending gig seems perfect. Sure, Mickey’s never done this before, but the gorgeous, grumpy bar owner, Diego Acosta, might be the perfect man to teach the teacher…if he wasn’t so stressed.

Diego is worried he’s running his late wife’s bar into the ground. Add the pressures of returning to college part-time at forty-two, and it’s no wonder he’s making rash decisions. Like hiring the sunny, sexy woman who looks more at home in a library than slinging beers to rowdy barflies, and who turns out to be teaching his online writing course, a complication neither was expecting…

It’s not long before Mickey starts reenergizing The Saloon with cocktails, karaoke and an optimism even Diego can’t ignore. They need to fight their feelings if they want to keep things professional, but all it takes is one sip, one kiss, to shake both their worlds forever…

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Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print & eBook)

Reality and the supernatural collide when an expert puzzle maker is thrust into an ancient mystery—one with explosive consequences for the fate of humanity—in this suspenseful thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Angelology
“In short: The Puzzle Master = (The Da Vinci Code + The Silent Patient + sprinkle of Stephen King) x gorgeous writing.”—Angie Kim, author of Miracle Creek

All the world is a puzzle, and Mike Brink—a celebrated and ingenious puzzle constructor—understands its patterns like no one else. Once a promising Midwestern football star, Brink was transformed by a traumatic brain injury that caused a rare medical condition: acquired savant syndrome. The injury left him with a mental superpower—he can solve puzzles in ways ordinary people can’t. But it also left him deeply isolated, unable to fully connect with other people.

Everything changes after Brink meets Jess Price, a woman serving thirty years in prison for murder who hasn’t spoken a word since her arrest five years before. When Price draws a perplexing puzzle, her psychiatrist believes it will explain her crime and calls Brink to solve it. What begins as a desire to crack an alluring cipher quickly morphs into an obsession with Price herself. She soon reveals that there is something more urgent, and more dangerous, behind her silence, thrusting Brink into a hunt for the truth.
The quest takes Brink through a series of interlocking enigmas, but the heart of the mystery is the God Puzzle, a cryptic ancient prayer circle created by the thirteenth-century Jewish mystic Abraham Abulafia. As Brink navigates a maze of clues, and his emotional entanglement with Price becomes more intense, he realizes that there are powerful forces at work that he cannot escape.

Ranging from an upstate New York women’s prison to nineteenth-century Prague to the secret rooms of the Pierpont Morgan Library, The Puzzle Master is a tantalizing, addictive thriller in which humankind, technology, and the future of the universe itself are at stake.

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The Science of Reading: Information, Media, and Mind in Modern America by Adrian Johns

(Available Formats: Print Book)

For the first time, the story of how and why we have plumbed the mysteries of reading, and why it matters today.

Reading is perhaps the essential practice of modern civilization. For centuries, it has been seen as key to both personal fulfillment and social progress, and millions today depend on it to participate fully in our society. Yet, at its heart, reading is a surprisingly elusive practice. This book tells for the first time the story of how American scientists and others have sought to understand reading, and, by understanding it, to improve how people do it.

Starting around 1900, researchers—convinced of the urgent need to comprehend a practice central to industrial democracy—began to devise instruments and experiments to investigate what happened to people when they read. They traced how a good reader’s eyes moved across a page of printed characters, and they asked how their mind apprehended meanings as they did so. In schools across the country, millions of Americans learned to read through the application of this science of reading. At the same time, workers fanned out across the land to extend the science of reading into the social realm, mapping the very geography of information for the first time. Their pioneering efforts revealed that the nation’s most pressing problems were rooted in drastic informational inequities, between North and South, city and country, and white and Black—and they suggested ways to tackle those problems.

Today, much of how we experience our information society reflects the influence of these enterprises. This book explains both how the science of reading shaped our age and why, with so-called reading wars still plaguing schools across the nation, it remains bitterly contested.

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These Are the Plunderers: How Private Equity Runs—and Wrecks—America by Gretchen Morgenson and Joshua Rosner

(Available Formats: eBook)

Pulitzer Prize–winning and New York Times bestselling financial journalist Gretchen Morgenson and financial policy analyst Joshua Rosner investigate the insidious world of private equity, revealing how it leeches profits from everyday Americans, tanks the companies it acquires, and puts our entire economic system at risk.

Much has been written about the widening gulf between rich and poor, the pernicious effects our deepening income inequality has on the US’s well-being, and how our style of capitalism has failed to provide a living wage for so many Americans. But nothing has fully detailed the crucial role a small cohort of elite financiers has played in this dispiriting outcome over the past thirty years. Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author Gretchen Morgenson, with coauthor Joshua Rosner, unmask the small group of celebrated Wall Street financiers, and their government enablers, who use excessive debt and dubious practices to undermine our nation’s economy for their own enrichment: private equity.

These are the Plunderers lucidly and maddeningly traces the thirty-year history of corporate takeovers in America and private equity’s increasing dominance. Morgenson and Rosner investigate some of the biggest names in private equity, exposing how they buy companies, load them with debt, and then bleed them of assets and profits. All while prosecutors and regulators stand idle.

Morgenson and Rosner show how companies absorbed by private equity have worse outcomes for everyone but the financiers: employees are more likely to lose their jobs or their benefits; companies are more likely to go bankrupt; patients are more likely to have higher healthcare costs; residents of nursing homes are more likely to die; towns struggle when private equity buys the main businesses, crippling the local economy; and school teachers, firefighters, medical technicians, and other public workers are more likely to have lower returns on their pensions because of the fees private equity extracts from their investments. In other words: we are all worse off because of private equity.

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Have a great day!

Linda Reimer

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*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.

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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.

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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.

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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).

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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.

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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.

Hi everyone, here is the weekly list of New York Times Bestsellers.

Each title is followed by a listing of which formats it is available in for check out within the three catalogs: StarCat (Print, Large Print & CD Audiobook), The Digital Catalog (eBook & Downloadable Audiobook) and the Hoopla Catalog (Hoopla instant checkout eBook & Hoopla Audiobook).

For more information on the three catalogs skip to the section below the bestselling titles*

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New York Times Bestseller blog posts are published on Sundays.And the next New York Times blog post will be published Sunday, June 25 2023.

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FICTION

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ALL THE SINNERS BLEED by S.A. Cosby

(Available Formats:Print Book & Downloadable Audiobook)

Titus Crown, a former F.B.I. agent who becomes Charon County’s first Black sheriff, tracks a serial killer and contends with a far-right group.

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CLIVE CUSSLER: FIRE STRIKE by Mike Maden

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print & eBook)

The 17th book in the Oregon Files series. Juan Cabrillo’s crew takes on a force of bio-hacked soldiers.

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THE COVENANT OF WATER by Abraham Verghese

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla instant check out Audiobook)

Three generations of a family living on South India’s Malabar Coast suffer the loss of a family member by drowning.

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DEMON COPPERHEAD by Barbara Kingsolver

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audibook, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook, Hoopla instant check out eBook & Audiobook)

Winner of a 2023 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. A reimagining of Charles Dickens’s “David Copperfield” set in the mountains of southern Appalachia.

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FOURTH WING by Rebecca Yarros

(Available Formats: Print Book, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla instant check out eBook)

Violet Sorrengail is urged by the commanding general, who also is her mother, to become a candidate for the elite dragon riders.

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HAPPY PLACE by Emily Henry

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A former couple pretend to be together for the sake of their friends during their annual getaway in Maine.

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HELLO BEAUTIFUL by Ann Napolitano

(Available Formats:Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

In a homage to Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women,” a young man’s dark past resurfaces as he gets to the know the family of his college sweetheart.

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THE HILL WE CLIMB by Amanda Gorman

(Available Formats: Print Book & Downloadable Audiobook)

The poem read on President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day, by the youngest poet to write and perform an inaugural poem.

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ICEBREAKER by Hannah Grace

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

Anastasia might need the help of the captain of a college hockey team to get on the Olympic figure skating team.

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IDENTITY by Nora Roberts

(Available Formats: Print Book & CD Audiobook)

After her roommate is killed by a con artist, a former Army brat builds a new life at her mother’s home in Vermont.

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IT ENDS WITH US by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A battered wife raised in a violent home attempts to halt the cycle of abuse.

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IT STARTS WITH US by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

In the sequel to “It Ends With Us,” Lily deals with her jealous ex-husband as she reconnects with her first boyfriend.

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LADY TAN’S CIRCLE OF WOMEN by Lisa See

(Available Formats:Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

Tan Yunxian learns the pillars of Chinese medicine from her grandmother but is sent into an arranged marriage and pressured by her mother-in-law.

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LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A scientist and single mother living in California in the 1960s becomes a star on a TV cooking show.

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NEAR MISS by Stuart Woods and Brett Battles

(Available Formats:Print Book, Large Print & CD Audiobook)

The 64th book in the Stone Barrington series. Stone encounters some familiar enemies.

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PARIS DAUGHTER by Kristin Harmel

(Available Formats: Print Book)

When a woman becomes a target of the German occupation in Paris, she leaves her young daughter with her friend.

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THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO by Taylor Jenkins Reid

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A movie icon recounts stories of her loves and career to a struggling magazine writer.

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SIMPLY LIES by David Baldacci

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

A former detective becomes the prime suspect in a murder case involving a man with mob ties who was in witness protection.

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TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW by Gabrielle Zevin

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

Two friends find their partnership challenged in the world of video game design.

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VERITY by Colleen Hoover

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

Lowen Ashleigh is hired by the husband of an injured writer to complete her popular series and uncovers a horrifying truth.

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NON-FICTION:

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THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE by Bessel van der Kolk

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

How trauma affects the body and mind, and innovative treatments for recovery.

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THE BOOK OF CHARLIE by David Von Drehle

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

The Washington Post columnist shares stories and wisdom he learned from a neighbor who was more than a century old.

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BRAIDING SWEETGRASS by Robin Wall Kimmerer

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook, Hoopla instant check out eBook & Audiobook)

A botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation espouses having an understanding and appreciation of plants and animals.

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BURN IT DOWN by Maureen Ryan

(Available Formats: Not yes available in any catalog)

The contributing editor at Vanity Fair examines the patterns of abuse and exploitation in Hollywood.

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CRYING IN H MART by Michelle Zauner

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The daughter of a Korean mother and Jewish-American father, and leader of the indie rock project Japanese Breakfast, describes creating her own identity after losing her mother to cancer.

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DADDY DIARIES by Andy Cohen

(Available Formats: Print Book. eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The host and executive producer of “Watch What Happens Live” juggles fatherhood and his career

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GREENLIGHTS by Matthew McConaughey

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobooks, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Academy Award-winning actor shares snippets from the diaries he kept over 35 years.

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HAPPY-GO-LUCKY by David Sedaris

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & CD Audiobook)

The humorist portrays personal and public upheavals of his life in its seventh decade and the world in the time of a pandemic.

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I’M GLAD MY MOM DIED by Jennette McCurdy

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The actress and filmmaker describes her eating disorders and difficult relationship with her mother.

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KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON by David Grann

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The story of a murder spree in 1920s Oklahoma that targeted Osage Indians, whose lands contained oil.

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KING: A LIFE by Jonathan Eig

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

A biography of the civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., which includes new archival material and reflections from some who worked, lived and fought with him.

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THE LIGHT WE CARRY by Michelle Obama

(Available Formats: Print Book, Large Print, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The former first lady shares personal stories and the tools she uses to deal with difficult situations.

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MY FRIEND ANNE FRANK by Hannah Pick-Goslar with Dina Kraft

(Available Formats: Print Book)

A memoir by the Holocaust survivor who was first referred to as Lies Goosens in Anne Frank’s diary.

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OUTLIVE by Peter Attia with Bill Gifford

(Available Formats: Print Book & Downloadable Audiobook)

A look at recent scientific research on aging and longevity.

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PAGEBOY by Elliot Page

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Oscar-nominated star details discovering himself as a trans person and navigating abuse in Hollywood.

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PUPPETEERS by Jason Chaffetz

(Available Formats: Not yet available in any catalog)

The Fox News contributor and former congressman argues that liberals remain in power no matter who gets elected.

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SOLITO by Javier Zamora

(Available Formats:Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The poet describes his journey over two months from El Salvador to the United States to reconnect with his parents who left years earlier.

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SPARE  by Prince Harry

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The Duke of Sussex details his struggles with the royal family, loss of his mother, service in the British Army and marriage to Meghan Markle.

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THE WAGER by David Grann

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobooks)

The survivors of a shipwrecked British vessel on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain have different accounts of events.

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WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU? by Bruce D. Perry and Oprah Winfrey

(Available Formats: Print Book, CD Audiobook, eBook, Downloadable Audiobook & Hoopla Instant Checkout Audiobook)

An approach to dealing with trauma that shifts an essential question used to investigate it.

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSL

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*Information on the Three Catalogs*

Digital Catalog: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog has two companion apps, Libby & OverDrive. Libby is the app for newer devices and the OverDrive app should be used for older devices and Amazon tablets.

All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.

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Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/

The Hoopla Catalog features instant check outs of eBooks, downloadable audiobook, comic books, albums and streaming videos. Patron check out limit is 4 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.

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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.

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Also of Note: If a New York Times Bestseller isn’t yet available in any of the three catalogs; you can contact the library and request to be notified when it becomes available.

Southeast Steuben County Library Tel: 607-936-3713

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Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Hi everyone, welcome to our Suggested Listening posting for this week!

Suggested Listening postings are published on Fridays; and our next Suggested Listening posting will be out on Friday, June 23, 2023.

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And here are the 10 recommended songs of the week!

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Just this week I have realized that this year, in fact this past March 22 to be exact, marks the 60th anniversary of the release of The Beatles very first album – Please Please Me (1963)

In belated honor of this anniversary, here are some cool Merseybeat/British Invasion songs from the era, for your weekend listening pleasure.

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All of Me by Ian and the Zodiacs

From The Album: From The Album: Just Listen To Ian and the Zodiacs (1965/2011) (Note: This album is out of print)

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Bad To Me by Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas

From The Album: Little Children (1964)

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Ferry Cross The Mersey by Gerry and the Pacemakers

From The Album: Best of Gerry and the Pacemakers (1965)

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The House of the Rising Sun by The Animals

From The Album: The Animals (1964/2013)

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Last Night by The Merseybeats

From The Album: Let’s Stomp! Merseybeat & Beyond 1962-1969 by Various Artists

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Look Through Any Window by The Hollies

From The Album: The Hollies Greatest Hits (1973)

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Love Me Do by The Beatles

From The Album: Please Please Me (1963)

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Not Fade Away by The Rolling Stones

From The Album: The Rolling Stones (England’s Newest Hitmakers)

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Over And Over by The Dave Clark Five

From The Album: The History of the Dave Clark Five (1993)

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A Summer Song by Peter & Gordon

From The Album: Yesterday’s Gone (1964)

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A Well Respected Man by The Kinks

From The Album: Kinda Kinks (1965)

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Hoopla Recommend Album of the Week

The Best Of Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders 20th Century Masters The Millennium Collection by Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders

And from the album the song:

The Game of Love by Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders

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Have a great weekend,

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Online Catalog Links:

StarCat

The catalog of physical materials, i.e. print books, DVDs, audiobooks on CD, etc.

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The Digital Catalog, web version of Libby

The catalog of e-books, downloadable audiobooks and a handful of streaming videos.

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The Libby App

Libby is the companion app to the Digital Catalog and may be found in the Apple & Google app.

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Hoopla

A catalog of instant check out items, including eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, comic books, TV shows and movies for patrons of the Southeast Steuben County Library.

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Tech Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

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*

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Weekly Suggested Reading postings are now published on Wednesdays.

And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, June 21, 2023.

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Against The Currant by Olivia Matthews

(Available Formats: Print Book & Hoopla Instant Checkout Audiobook)

In Olivia Matthews’s Against the Currant, the first Spice Isle Bakery Mystery, investigating a murder was never supposed to be on the menu…

Little Caribbean, Brooklyn, New York: Lyndsay Murray is opening Spice Isle Bakery with her family, and it’s everything she’s ever wanted. The West Indian bakery is her way to give back to the community she loves, stay connected to her Grenadian roots, and work side-by-side with her family. The only thing getting a rise out of Lyndsay is Claudio Fabrizi, a disgruntled fellow bakery owner who does not want any competition.
On opening day, he comes into the bakery threatening to shut them down.

Fed up, Lyndsay takes him to task in front of what seems to be the whole neighborhood. So when Claudio turns up dead a day later—murdered—Lyndsay is unfortunately the prime suspect. To get the scent of suspicion off her and her bakery, Lyndsay has to prove she’s innocent—under the watchful eyes of her overprotective brother, anxious parents, and meddlesome extended family—what could go wrong?

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Bear with Me Now by Katie Shepard

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

Shepard’s wonderful debut romance features characters who are so beautifully depicted, they become real. Teagan, who lives an elite life of wealth and privilege and runs a foundation to bring art to children, would seem to have little in common with navy veteran Darcy, whose learning challenges have kept her from the successes she has worked toward in college and as a forest ranger. They meet when Teagan takes a walk in the woods and runs into a bear while he and his sister are at a rehab-spa in Montana. Teagan is recovering from a stint in a psych ward following a panic attack so severe he thought he was dying and now nearly becomes a bear snack. He is rescued by Darcy, who was hired as the wilderness therapy instructor but has been doing all the maintenance for the new-agey resort. Darcy focuses on helping Teagan, however off-track she is about his issues, and insists on accompanying him to New York when his foundation is threatened. Shepard seamlessly incorporates Teagan’s mental-health struggles and Darcy’s learning differences as they help each other fight their personal demons. This exquisite combination of issues, humor, and hot sex make Shepard a writer to watch. – Booklist Review

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Best Men by Sidney Karger

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Who does Chasten Benchley think he is?

Max Moody has been Paige Greendale’s BFF for more than 30 years, and if anyone is going to be at her side during her upcoming wedding to Chasten’s brother, Austin, it is going to be Max. Setting aside their awkward (to say the least) one-time hookup, if Chasten thinks he can become Paige’s go-to guy for all things nuptial by showing Max up with his superior fashion sense and amazing bachelorette-party planning skills, well, he can just think again. Max is Paige’s man of honor, and Chasten is Austin’s best man. It shouldn’t be a competition between them. But if it is, then it is one Max is definitely going to win. With a spoton gift for writing dryly witty banter and a deliciously acerbic sense of humor in the Nora Ephron mode, Karger, an award-winning screenwriter and television contributor (including Saturday Night Live), makes his fiction debut. A fun and flirty rom-com that is the perfect addition to beach bags and suitcases. – Booklist Review

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Don’t Tell Anybody the Secrets I Told You: A Memoir by Lucinda Williams

(Available Formats: Print Book)

In a conversational style, Grammy Award winner Williams takes readers through the ups and downs of her family life and musical career. She weaves a narrative that feels relatable and extraordinary. Having inherited her musical talent from her mother and her way with words from her father, Williams considers how her childhood and family shaped her music and life. When the author was a child (she was born in 1953 in Louisiana), her mother was diagnosed with manic depression with paranoid schizophrenic tendencies, which left Williams and her two siblings in the care of their poet father, a professor at the University of Arkansas who read a poem at Bill Clinton’s second presidential inauguration. The author ponders her long journey toward achieving her dream in her forties, decades after being stuck in the hard-to-sell category between country and rock. Williams tells her story candidly, sharing the inspiration for her songs along with the trials and tribulations that made her the artist she is today. The book includes a chronology of the many places where the author lived from childhood through the 2020s.

VERDICT Honest and raw, this book serves a slice of an inspiring life that reminds readers to keep trying. Williams’s story will likely appeal to readers interested in music, poetry, literature, or mental health. – Library Journal Review

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Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Torzs

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

Long-kept family secrets and tested loyalties complicate the lives of the characters of this exceptional debut novel from an award-winning short-story author. Esther and Joanna are estranged sisters driven apart by secrets surrounding the magical books their late father collected and that Joanna now safeguards in their magically hidden family home in Vermont.

Nicholas, the heir to a magical library patronized by the rich and powerful, is the only known scribe in the world, with the ability to write new spells using ink created from his blood. When Esther and Nicholas discover that they are the intended victims of a deadly plot originating at the library, Nicholas and his brooding bodyguard, Collins, must team up with Esther and Joanna and unearth secrets long held by their families to prevent a malevolent spell from claiming their lives. But can they truly trust one another?

All four must set aside old hurts and decide where their loyalties lie before it is too late. This suspenseful dark fantasy, full of family drama, is perfect for readers of Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House (2019), Holly Black’s Book of Night (2022), and Peng Shepherd’s The Cartographers (2022). – Booklist

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Murder on Mustang Beach by Alicia Bessette

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Murder disrupts a bookseller’s love life while complicating her deepening reconnection to her childhood home on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. After waiting nearly a year for Toby Dodge to complete his self-imposed experiment in abstinence, Calista “Callie” Padget is eager for what she calls “the most epic first date ever” with the handsome martial arts teacher she’s been patiently wooing for the past 11 months. She can’t believe it when on the morning of that date, she and Toby find a body gazing lifelessly at the ceiling of his dojo, Cattail Family Martial Arts. More than their relationship is at stake, since families rush to pull out of the dojo’s programs once they learn that Seth Goodnow, the bridegroom in a Cattail Island destination wedding, met his end there shortly after saying his vows. So Callie summons the detective skills she discovered in Smile Beach Murder (2022) to prove that Seth’s death had nothing to do with Toby’s business. When she interviews members of the wedding party, including Seth’s brand-new widow, she learns that she isn’t the only one captivated by the magic of Cattail Island. Despite their grief, none of them are willing to leave the gentle pace of the island and its wild natural beauty. Just as Callie struggles with learning that, thanks to the boom in tourism, her meager salary at MotherVine Bookshop won’t begin to cover her rent at the tiny Hyde Road cottage where she grew up, the wedding guests confide their difficulty reconciling their horror at Seth’s murder with their growing attachment to Cattail. All good things must end, and with grief for some, as Callie’s sleuthing skills once again crack a case that baffles the police. A worthy successor to Bessette’s Outer Banks debut. – Kirkus Review

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Nonna Maria and the Case of the Missing Bride: A Novel by Lorenzo Carcaterra

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Nonna Maria, the distinctive protagonist of this gentle standalone from bestseller Carcaterra (the Tank Rizzo series), seldom travels from her home on the Italian island of Ischia, though she has a vast network of friends who come to her “with issues that should be brought to the attention of the local carabinieri and not a widow with a bad right leg.” She, in turn, depends on her buddies, including a Camorra crime boss and a priest, to help her resolve any problems that can’t be cleared up by common sense alone. One such is the plight of a reluctant bride-to-be, who has impetuously agreed to marry a handsome stranger and is now afraid to break things off for fear of what he might do to her family. Meanwhile, Nonna Maria uses her encyclopedic knowledge of the island and its inhabitants to help a carabinieri captain investigate the death of an 85-year-old tour boat captain. All the nice people involved are rewarded with happy endings. Italophiles wishing for a brief vacation in charming and clever company will revel in this love letter to Ischia. – Publishers Weekly Review

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Once More With Feeling by Elissa Sussman

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Kathleen Rosenberg once sold out arenas as pop star Katee Rose, until her very public breakup with her fiancé, boybander Ryan. Years later, her best friend, Harriet, has written a musical, Riveted!, about Rosie the Riveter, and she wants Kathleen to star. She also wants Ryan’s former bandmate Calvin Tyler Kirby to direct. But Kathleen hasn’t spoken to Calvin since she and Ryan broke up–in fact, he’s the reason they split. But her past with Calvin goes deeper, back to their teenage years at theater camp in Rhode Island. Kathleen and Calvin agree to work together, and it’s tense at first, but things slowly begin to thaw as the show comes together, going into previews at their old theater in Rhode Island. Harriet sees that the chemistry is still there, but Kathleen promises nothing will happen, until it does, making everything even messier. Sussman’s latest (after Funny You Should Ask, 2022) explores romance in the public eye while offering satisfyingly specific details about the process of mounting a Broadway show. Theater nerds, pop culture fanatics, and hopeless romantics will dig this one. – Booklist Review

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The Only One Left by Riley Sager

(Available Formats: Print Book, eBook & Downloadable Audiobook)

The author of Home before Dark (2020) and Survive the Night (2021) goes full-on Gothic in this tale of an in-home nurse who’s hired to take care of a wheelchair-bound woman. But this is no typical patient: the woman is Lenora Hope, who, according to public opinion, slaughtered her family six decades ago. Her new caregiver, Kit McDeere, also believes her client is guilty until Lenora begins to reveal secrets she’s kept nearly all her life. After a slight misstep with last year’s The House across the Lake, in which the supernatural elements didn’t quite work, Sager is back on form here. The writing is compelling, the story captivating, and the characters nicely rendered. The novel is set in the early 1980s, but it has a timeless feel: it could have taken place a century ago, or it could be happening today. Claustrophobic and haunting, this is Sager at the top of his game. – Booklist Review

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Vacation Wars by Meghan Quinn

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Tessa is thrilled to be spending the weeks before her twin sister’s wedding on the Greek island of Santorini. Then her sister decides it’s time for Tessa to find some love herself: they made a deal back in high school, after all! Trying to avoid her sister’s matchmaking attempts, Tessa finds an ally in her childhood crush, Myles, who works at the resort and is dealing with some family conflict of his own. Together they navigate their way through their families’ antics– and begin to realize that past feelings may have a future.

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Have a great day!

Linda Reimer

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*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.

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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.

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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.

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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).

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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.

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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.

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, June 14, 2023.

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Georgia O’Keeffe: To See Takes Time by Samantha Friedman

(Available Formats: Print Book)

A revelatory new volume on the American modernist’s lesser-known works on paper, reuniting many serial works for the first time

Recalling a charcoal she made in 1916, Georgia O’Keeffe later wrote, “I have made this drawing several times―never remembering that I had made it before―and not knowing where the idea came from.” These drawings, and the majority of O’Keeffe’s works in charcoal, watercolor, pastel and graphite, belong to series in which she develops and transforms motifs that lie between observation and abstraction. In the formative years of 1915 to 1918, she made as many works on paper as she would in the next 40 years, producing sequences in watercolor of abstract lines, organic landscapes and nudes, along with charcoal drawings she would group according to the designation “specials.” While her practice turned increasingly toward canvas in subsequent decades, important series on paper reappeared―including charcoal flowers of the 1930s, portraits of the 1940s and aerial views of the 1950s.

Published in conjunction with an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, this richly illustrated volume highlights the drawings of an artist better known as a painter, and reunites individual sheets with their contextual series to illuminate O’Keeffe’s persistently sequential practice.

Born in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986) first received critical attention when her breakthrough charcoal drawings were exhibited in New York in 1916. Two years later, she moved to the city to work full time on her art. Beginning in 1929, O’Keeffe spent summers in New Mexico, where she would relocate in 1949. The most famous female artist of her age, she thought of herself not as “the best woman painter” but as “one of the best painters.”

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Lie Maker by Linwood Barclay

(Available Format: Print Book)

Barclay (Look Both Ways) nails this riveting standalone thriller about a washed-up writer’s search for his long-lost parent. In a wrenching prologue, nine-year-old Jack Givins is separated from his father, who enters witness protection with blunt parting words: “Your dad’s not a good person. Your dad killed people, son.” In the present, Givins is a broke novelist hungry for whatever writing work he can get. After an offer to edit advertorial magazines falls through, he gets an even more lucrative opportunity when he’s approached by the U.S. Marshals Service to create fictional backstories for individuals in the federal Witness Security Program. The position gives Givins the idea to seek out his father’s whereabouts after decades of silence between the two. His efforts coincide with some high-profile disappearances, and he soon discovers the authorities have lost track of his father, sending Givins blindly on his trail. Barclay expertly knits the strands together and constructs a fully realized everyman in Givins. Crafty plotting and rich characters make this a winner. Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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Much Ado About Nada by Uzma Jalaluddin

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Jalaluddin’s delightful latest (after Hana Khan Carries On) puts a rom-com spin on Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Nada Syed works hard to launch the “Ask Apa” app, designed to offer sisterly advice to Toronto’s Muslim community, but a dishonest business partner undermines her efforts, forcing her to return to an engineering job she hates. As she approaches her 30th birthday, Nada is grappling both with this professional disappointment and with mounting parental pressure to find a spouse. To lift her spirits, Nada’s best friend, Haleema, takes her to Deen&Dunya, an annual Muslim convention (“like Comic-Con, except with hijabs”), for the weekend. There, Nada will finally meet Haleema’s fiancé, Zayn, and grudgingly participate in a speed-dating event. Upon arriving, however, Nada’s shocked to learn that Zayn’s brother is Baz Haq, whom she’s known since grade school and with whom she had an intense on-and-off relationship in college. As Nada navigates the convention, she and Baz try to conceal their romantic history from their loved ones while grappling with their unresolved emotions and simmering sexual tension. Jalaluddin makes their rekindling romance positively swoonworthy, and interfering family members and rich cultural detail add to this romance’s power. Austenite or not, readers will be swept away. Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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Sam Thayer’s Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: of Eastern and Central North America by Sam Thayer

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Eastern North America is one of the richest foraging landscapes in the world, with a wild abundance of fruits, berries, nuts, roots, tubers, shoots, flowers, seeds, and leafy greens. This guide is the key to unlocking the nutritional and culinary secrets of the natural bounty around us. As the most comprehensive regional guide ever written, it contains detailed descriptions, range maps, and sharp color photos of 700 edible species as well as some of our most troublesome toxic plants. Sam Thayer’s Field Guide pioneers a novel identification system using everyday language accessible to beginning and advanced foragers alike, designed to stand alone or work with phone-based identification apps to confirm positive ID before a plant is eaten. Readers will also learn about the plant’s habitat, conservation, edible parts, seasons of harvest, and methods of preparation. Destined to become the new standard in foraging field guides.

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Sing Her Down: A Novel by Ivy Pochoda

(Available Formats: Print Book)

This devastating thriller from Pochoda (These Women) examines the brutal politics inside an Arizona women’s penitentiary and the bleak mid-Covid landscape outside it. The first section focuses on three inmates: Kace, who is haunted by voices of the dead; Florida, a wealthy young white woman who was an accessory to murder, driving the getaway car while high; and Dios, Florida’s former cellmate, who’s determined to make Florida admit she’s no better than anyone else in their situation. Due to the strain of the pandemic, Florida and Dios are released from their sentences early and flee parole on a bus to Los Angeles. On the way, the pair makes one bad decision after another, garnering the attention of Lobos, a detective who wrestles with her own guilt and rage after surviving domestic violence; their explosive interplay takes up the back half of the action. In muscular prose, Pochoda plumbs the psychological depths of her fascinating characters and extracts high drama from their shifting allegiances. This searing, accomplished page-turner deserves a wide audience. Starred Publishers Weekly Review

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The Strange by Nathan Ballingrud

(Available Formats: Print Book)

Ballingrud, author of the short story collection Wounds (2019) and winner of two Shirley Jackson awards, sets his debut novel on Mars in 1931, where a fledgling human colony struggles to survive on the stark Martian terrain after losing touch with Earth a year prior. Fourteen-year-old Anabelle Crisp’s mother returned to Earth to care for her dying mother just before communication was lost, leaving Anabelle and her father, Sam, with just a recorded cylinder of her voice to cling to while they continue to run their family diner. Anabelle’s world is turned upside down when thieves attack the diner, taking with them the precious cylinder among other loot. Things go from bad to worse when another incident at the diner leaves a man dead and Anabelle’s father in prison. Anabelle sets off on her own, with only the family’s robot helper, Watson, to find the thieves, recover the cylinder, and take her revenge. Rife with literary references, from True Grit (1968) to the works of Arthur Conan Doyle and Ray Bradbury, Ballingrud’s tale offers a visceral portrait of the haunting Martian landscape and of the unflinching pioneers who populate it in a gorgeously textured sf western full of action, danger, and heartbreak.  – Booklist Review

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The Survivor by Iris Johansen

(Available Formats: Print Book & Large Print)

Eve Duncan and Riley Smith must solve their most exciting puzzle since A Face to Die For when asked to uncover the mysterious secret hidden on a remote island.

When archeologist Riley Smith comes to ask Eve Duncan for help, Eve has to say no. Traveling halfway around the world on a dangerous quest is not her expertise as a forensic sculptor. But Eve is intrigued by the prospect of an isolated island that holds a secret locked in time.

Traveling to Southeast Asia, Riley is aware of the threat from treasure hunters who are already searching and have no qualms about killing to get what they want. When she successfully evades them and finds the perfectly preserved body of a female warrior, it is just what she needs to entice Eve to help unlock the mystery.

As these two strong women seek answers about this extraordinary past life, Riley makes a living, breathing discovery that will change history. If she can escape the island and survive long enough to share it with the world.

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That Summer Feeling by Bridget Morrissey

(Available Formats: Print Book & eBook)

Garland Moore is running late for her honeymoon when she meets a man named Mason at the airport and has a vision of them together in the future. Cut to a few years (and an unexpected divorce) later, when she runs into Mason again at a summer camp for adults that she’s attending with her sister. Then she also runs into Mason’s sister Stevie–literally. Garland is left trying to figure out what the signs all mean, and if she cares what the universe is trying to tell her anymore. While she attempts to navigate her love life, Garland also takes part in a number of traditional summer-camp activities and builds friendships with a strong cast of supporting characters. VERDICT If readers don’t mind the instalove timeframe or singular first-person narrative, they’ll find a lot to like in the latest from Morrissey (A Thousand Miles). It tells a story of emotional healing and an adult’s discovery of her bisexuality; there are also strong sibling connections and a fun camp setting. – Library Journal Review

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The Twilight Man: Rod Serling and the Birth of Television by Koren Shadmi

(Available Formats: Print Book & Hoopla instant checkout eBook)

A biographical tale that follows Hollywood revolutionary Rod Serling’s rise to fame in the Golden Age of Television, and his descent into his own personal Twilight Zone.

We recognize him as our sharply dressed, cigarette-smoking tour guide of The Twilight Zone, but the entertainment business once regarded him as the “Angry Young Man” of Television. Before he became the revered master of science fiction, Rod Serling was a just a writer who had to fight to make his voice heard. He vehemently challenged the networks and viewership alike to expand their minds and standards—rejecting notions of censorship, racism and war. But it wasn’t until he began to write about real world enemies in the guise of aliens and monsters that people lent their ears. In doing so, he pushed the television industry to the edge of glory, and himself to the edge of sanity. Rod operated in a dimension beyond that of contemporary society, making him both a revolutionary and an outsider.

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Unnatural Ends by Christopher Huang

(Available Formats: Print Book)

The three adult Linwood children lived in Sir Lawrence Linwood’s shadow, and their father always challenged them. More challenges await them when they return home to Linwood Hall in 1921 for his funeral. They learn Linwood was bludgeoned to death beyond recognition. Each of them had been promised the estate. Instead, the will reads they are to split the estate, unless one of them can find Linwood’s killer, to the satisfaction of the police. The child who can identify the killer will inherit everything. Detective Inspector Clarence Mowbray is not happy that the Linwoods are poking into his investigation. But Alan, Roger, and Caroline, with the help of Roger’s girlfriend Iris, are the only ones who can piece together the truth about their pasts and their father. It’s a puzzle that’s been in the works for a quarter of a century. VERDICT Like Huang’s A Gentleman’s Murder, his latest mystery is a puzzle worthy of Golden Age detective fiction. Fans of historical mysteries and 1920s novels will welcome this twisted, complex story. – Starred Library Journal Review

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Have a great week!

Linda Reimer

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*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.