Tag: Corning

Suggested Reading Five: September 9, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Agrippa by Robert Harris

A dying Roman recalls his lifelong friendship with the man who became Emperor Augustus. A few short years before the Common Era, Agrippa writes his memoir. In his waning days at age 50, the old Roman general remembers his eventful life, which has been so tightly tied to his friend Octavius’. He began life as Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, a plebeian, a nobody who was taunted as a “mother-killer” because his mother died in childbirth. Octavius, on the other hand, is a great-nephew of Julius Caesar, whom they both admire. As they enter manhood, they fight bravely in Rome’s savage wars, both civil and foreign. Agrippa promises Caesar that he will always protect Octavius, who can be sickly, and he lives up to that commitment. That loyalty becomes his destiny. And when Caesar puts him in command of an army, he knows that is what he was born to do. Put briefly, Agrippa develops into the Roman Republic’s most renowned general and oversees great feats of engineering such as the aqueducts, while Octavius eventually becomes Emperor Augustus. The former ascends by merit, the latter by blood. This is no ordinary friendship, nor is it an equal one. When the emperor wants to adopt one of Agrippa’s sons, for example, Agrippa has no choice but to agree. When he is asked to divorce his wife and marry someone else, what’s a good soldier to do? “You are part of my family,” Augustus tells him. “I want you by my side for eternity. Besides, I shall need you to guard my back in the Underworld.” Agrippa comments: “He punched my arm. A joke.” Much is impossible to know after two millennia, and author Harris weaves a strong story that honors history and imagines vivid details. There are great naval battles, disastrous storms at sea, and the threat posed by Antony and Cleopatra. Women are often interchangeable–who can produce a son? And through it all, Rome descends into dictatorship. A compelling mix of history and imagination.–Kirkus Review

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A Past Without Pictures by Jonathan Ames

When Maria Cole, an LAPD detective, learns that her long-estranged father has been murdered, she heads off to Alabama to sort out his estate. She doesn’t exactly expect to be welcomed by the insular rural community with open arms, but she’s equally unprepared for the unconcealed hatred and distrust she’s met with. Soon she discovers why: her father’s death was not what the local cops are saying it was, and there are people who are determined to keep the real circumstances of his murder a closely guarded secret. The new book by the author of Wake Up, Sir! (2004) and You Were Never Really Here (2013)–two very different but equally splendid novels–is perfect for fans of S. A. Cosby and other writers of Southern noir: it has beautifully drawn characters, a real-feeling setting, pitch-perfect dialogue, and a story that keeps the reader in a constant state of apprehension.– Booklist Review

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Taipei Story by R. F. Kuang

A Yale freshman travels to Taipei for an immersive Chinese language course in hopes of connecting with her roots in this pensive outing from bestseller Kuang (Yellowface). Lily, the narrator, was born in China and raised in the U.S., where she steadily lost her ability to speak Mandarin amid her determination to assimilate. Though her grandparents still live on the mainland in Guangzhou, where she was born, the narrator chose to study in Taiwan for the summer because the “place had nothing to do with me,” leaving her free to make mistakes. Some of her missteps are unexpected, as when JC, a classmate and internet-famous polyglot, invites her to skip class and visit a hot spring with him. After an awkward sexual encounter, which she’s prepared to brush off as a “funny story between friends,” JC tells others in the program, embellishing the details, and the rumor damages Lily’s relationships with her classmates and teachers. Making matters worse, she learns her grandfather has just passed away, and that she’s lost the chance to talk with both grandparents in their native tongue. Lily’s earnestness is heartfelt and poignant, especially as she reels from grief. The result is a touching story of fading heritage.– Publishers Weekly

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Those Who Are Gone by Laurie R. King

King’s solid sequel to Back to the Garden follows San Francisco detective Raquel Laing as she investigates a cold case that links back to her childhood. After being placed on leave, Laing has returned to the SFPD’s cold case unit as a consultant. She resumes investigating the execution-style murder of Gilbert Gallegos, a small-time drug dealer, with special intensity after learning that the fatal bullet matches one removed from her leg when she was shot while she was on the force. The motive for Gallegos’s murder seems obvious—he’d stolen a kilo of cocaine, likely from a narcotics trafficker, before his death. Laing’s digging, however, leads her to suspect that Gallegos’s death was connected to a decades-long string of killings in Northern California, including a 1980s hit on Dolores Ortega, a journalist probing the Sinaloa cartel. That murder has personal resonance for Laing: Ortega was the birth mother of her adopted sister, Dee, who lives with Laing and has since become a PI. As the investigation unfolds, the siblings unearth dark family secrets. King has the mechanics of a police procedural down pat, and she heightens suspense with chapters from the perspective of an unnamed killer. This goes down smooth.– Publishers Weekly Review

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Training for Your Old Lady Body: A Guide to Building Muscle and Mobility at Any Age by Elizabeth Davies

Training for a bikini body? No, thank you. We’re training for dense bones, a healthy heart, good balance, and to maintain physical independence in our senior years. To carry our groceries up a flight of stairs. To play with our children and our grandchildren after them. We’re training for our old lady bodies.

Whether you are starting from scratch or a seasoned pro in the gym, these pages contain everything you need to know to strength train safely and effectively. This essential guide offers practical instruction and powerful motivation to build strength for life, including:

Sections highlighting pelvic floor health, mobility, and bone density

A training jargon dictionary

Modifications for bodyweight exercises

Tips on sleep health and protein intake

Creating a routine that fits within busy schedules

And much more.

Filled with expert guidance and 50 illustrations showcasing various exercises, this empowering companion will provide you with the tools and confidence to establish a healthy, consistent fitness practice, enabling you to feel your best and strongest at any age.

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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

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Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

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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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Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

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Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Suggested Listening & Viewing: September 4, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here is our weekly Suggested Listening and Viewing post; featuring one album or musical collection for your listening pleasure; one movie or TV show/season for your viewing pleasure and one recommendation for background viewing – perfect for having on while having dinner, reading or just hanging out at home. Enjoy! 

This week, in keeping with it being the long Labor Day Weekend in the U.S., here are some listening and viewing suggestions that compliment Labor Day.

And for anyone interested in the history of Labor Day in the United States; which has its origins in the rise of labor movements in the U.S. in the late nineteenth century; here is a link to a short New York Public Library history of the holiday:

https://wayback.archive-it.org/18689/20220313113753/https://www.nypl.org/blog/2012/09/03/first-labor-day

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First off the music, this week the album

Talking Union (1955) by the Almanac Singers with Song Swappers

Staring with the song:

We Shall Not Be Moved  

 

About The Album: The Almanac Singers were a folk group that originally played together between 1940 and 1943; and included musicians Lee Hayes, Millard Campbell, Bess Hawes, Woody Guthrie, Arthur Stern, Pete Seeger and Sis Cunningham. The group played songs that focused on the lives of working class people and the importance of labor unions. This album was released in 1955.

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Moving on to our Suggested Viewing title of the week; this week our recommendation is:

Matewan (1987) 

 

About The Movie: Written and directed by John Sayles, this wrenching historical drama recounts the true story of a West Virginia coal town where the local miners’ struggle to form a union rose to the pitch of all-out war in 1920. When Matewan’s miners go on strike, organizer Joe Kenehan (Chris Cooper, in his film debut) arrives to help them, uniting workers white and black, Appalachia-born and immigrant, while urging patience in the face of the coal company’s violent provocations. With a crackerjack ensemble cast—including James Earl Jones, David Strathairn, Mary McDonnell, and Will Oldham—and Oscar-nominated cinematography by Haskell Wexler, Matewan taps into a rich vein of Americana with painstaking attention to local texture, issuing an impassioned cry for justice that still resounds today. – Criterion Collection Review

About Formats: Matewan is not currently available to stream through the usual steaming services; it is available on DVD and may be checked out at the library in the DVD format.

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Bonus Labor Day Weekend Streaming Suggestions

Since it is a long weekend – and you might have some extra time on your hands – here are two more suggested views that compliment Labor Day.

Norma Rae (1979) 

 

About The Movie: Norma Rae (1979) is a drama based on the true story of a textile worker in a small Southern town who becomes involved in a campaign to unionize her factory.

Norma Rae (Sally Field, in an Oscar winning performance) works long hours in a harsh textile mill where workers face low wages, poor working conditions, and constant pressure from management. When Reuben Warshowsky (Ron Leibman), a union organizer from New York, arrives to organize the employees, Norma initially remains skeptical.

As she learns more about the workers’ situation, Norma becomes increasingly committed to the union effort. Her activism puts her job—and eventually her personal relationships—at risk.

The film’s most famous moment occurs when Norma is fired for her union activities. She climbs onto a table on the factory floor and writes “UNION” on a piece of cardboard. She holds it up while the machinery around her gradually goes silent as the workers stop working in solidarity with her.

The union ultimately succeeds in organizing the plant.

About Formats: Norma Rae is not currently available to stream through the usual steaming services; it is available on DVD and may be checked out from the library.

The Grapes of Wrath (1940) 

 

About The Movie: The Grapes of Wrath (1940): If you enjoy powerful stories about ordinary people facing extraordinary hardship, The Grapes of Wrath is well worth watching. John Ford’s acclaimed adaptation of John Steinbeck’s novel follows the Joad family as they leave their Oklahoma farm during the Dust Bowl and travel to California in search of work. Along the way, they encounter poverty, exploitation, and the harsh realities faced by migrant workers. Henry Fonda gives a memorable performance as Tom Joad, a man who gradually comes to understand that standing together may be the only way working people can fight for a better life. Both moving and beautifully filmed, the movie remains a powerful portrait of family, dignity, perseverance, and solidarity.

About Formats: The Grapes of Wrath is available to stream through the usual streaming services; i.e. Amazon, Apple, Google Play etc. It may also be checked out and streamed through Hoopla (one of the library’s digital resources)

Additionally, the movie is available on Blu-ray and standard DVD; and may also be checked out at the library in the DVD format.

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Background Viewing

(Perfect to have on while having dinner, reading etc.)

Peaceful Autumn Lakeside Cabin

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Have a great weekend!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Information on the four library catalogs (content available 24/7!)

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/ 

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go! 

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

And The Digital Catalog/Libby features titles that may be checked out via the one-copy-one-user lending model, just like print books.  

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

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron checkout limit is 10 items per month. 

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders. 

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players. 

Titles in the Hoopla Catalog are available to be checked out on-demand by all library card holders, with the caveat of being able to check out a maximum of ten titles per month, per card.  

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en 

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.  

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders! 

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV). 

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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. 

Have questions about any of the catalogs?

Give us a call!

You can reach us at 607-936-3713 or visit our website at https://ssclibrary.org/

Suggested Reading Five: August 26, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Barn Gothic: Three Generations and the Death of the Family Dairy Farm by Ryan Dennis

When Ryan Dennis’s father was crushed by heavy machinery on their New York dairy farm, both men accepted the accident as a risk of agricultural life. But it was harder to comprehend being crushed by low milk prices, big banks, and the policies that destroyed America’s family farms.

Even though Ryan grew up watching his father and grandfather struggle to survive, he always thought he would follow in their footsteps and take over the family farm. But as he milked cows and fed calves, the world outside the barn was changing. Between 2003 and 2020, 40,000 dairy farms went out of business in the United States.

Barn Gothic is an elegy for family farmers and an intimate portrait of three generations laboring to be fathers and sons while their livelihood falls apart. Beautifully told with a farmer’s restraint and a poet’s grace, it is a story of personal loss amid corporate corruption and of finding a way forward when everything you know disappears.

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Dey: A Novel by Edwidge Danticat

“Is home the place where we are born? Or is it the place where we die?” These questions haunt Magnolia, a successful Haitian American real estate agent in Miami. When she hears gunfire while at a shopping mall, she takes shelter in a nearby restaurant, cowering with fellow shoppers and diners. Once she’s safely home, Magnolia keeps this traumatic event from everyone. But given her life back, she begins to see everything clearly: her extraordinary bond with her daughter, Zoë; her nearly broken relationship with Zoë’s father; the challenges of her mentally troubled mother, whose unraveling patterns Magnolia worries she’s spiraling toward herself; and her father’s affair with a woman who has borne him a child. While struggling through the labyrinth of her past, Magnolia must also come to terms with the losses sustained that life-altering day, and nearly every day by her parents and sibling in Haiti.

Can love or family protect us from harm? Does optimism or fear win out in one’s heart? Which side will prevail for Magnolia? Pulled between these questions, each of which involves a high-stakes choice—Miami or Haiti, single or married, mortal or ghost, before or after—Magnolia is a narrator who is “yon pati koukouy, part firefly”: flitting and shimmering between different worlds.

Taking as its title a Haitian Kreyòl word for mourning, Dèy is a profoundly warm and moving novel about the importance not only of sharing grief but also of inseverable family ties. Brave and striking, Dèy is one of Danticat’s most powerful and deeply affecting works yet, told with her signature “unfaltering voice and evocative beauty” (The Boston Globe).

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The Night Hunter by Natalie Moss

Dani and Grace grew up on a game preserve in South Africa, where their mother dedicated her life to her anti-poaching foundation. After a childhood accident leaves Grace permanently disfigured, Dani flees with their father to London. She and Grace become increasingly distant, especially after their mother remarries. When their mother dies, the girls reluctantly agree to honor her by undertaking a safari with friends–a trip that will take them through their mother’s preserve to their old home. But from the moment the safari begins, things go wrong. The group’s vehicle is destroyed, meaning they must trek on foot through the unforgiving African terrain; there are threats from both humans and animals; and murder and violence abound. In this gripping and turbulent saga, the suspense, uncertainty, and danger increase to a heart-palpitating intensity until the end, which brings reconciliation when the two sisters discover their mother’s darkest secrets. Gory, gruesome, terrifying, and action-packed, this book is not for the fainthearted, but those interested in South Africa, wild animals, illegal poaching, and family trauma will relish Moss’ adventure story. – Booklist Review

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There’s Only One Sin In Hollywood: A Novel by Rasheed Newson

Newson’s second captivating novel, following My Government Means to Kill Me (2022), is about a closeted Black fixer’s quest to reveal the truth behind the untimely demise of a queer movie star. As the story unfolds, the author explores Hollywood and queer Los Angeles in the 1950s and 1960s. Aaron Touissant fell in love with movies as a boy and eventually landed a job as a handler for Skyline Studios’ Black talent. His biggest assignment is rising star Xavier C. Barlow, the studio’s answer to Sidney Poitier and a man willing to take risks for his beliefs. The tension rises as Xavier is cast in a biopic close to Aaron’s heart, and he decides to take over the project. Newson weaves an engrossing story of sex, race, power, and ambition, showcasing a who’s who of Black Hollywood and dropping readers into the midst of pre-Stonewall raids on gay bars and erotic encounters in bathrooms and city parks. Ultimately, this is a tale of how far the powerful will go to protect themselves and whose stories end up on the cutting-room floor. – Booklist Review

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Under an Afghan Sky by Melissa Fung

In October 2008, Mellissa Fung, a long-time reporter for CBC’s The National, was leaving a refugee camp outside of Kabul. Suddenly, she was grabbed by armed men claiming to be Taliban, stabbed, stuffed into the back of a car and driven off into the desert. When the group finally reached a village in the middle of nowhere, her kidnappers pushed her towards a hole in the ground. For twenty-eight days, Mellissa Fung lived in that hole, which was barely big enough to stand up or lie down in, nursing her injuries, praying, writing in her notebook and, as a veteran journalist, interrogating her own captors. Under an Afghan Sky is the gripping tale of Fung’s days in captivity, and a powerful book about survival and the indomitable spirit of one woman in the most perilous of circumstances.

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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

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Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

–

Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

–

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.

–

Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

–

Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Suggested Listening & Viewing: August 21, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here is our streamlined weekly Suggested Listening and Viewing post; featuring one album or musical collection for your listening pleasure; one movie or TV show/season for your viewing pleasure and one recommendation for background viewing – perfect for having on while having dinner, reading or just hanging out at home. Enjoy! 

First off the music, this week the album:

Saxophone Colossus (1957) by Sonny Rollins 

 

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Moving on to our suggested viewing title of the week; this week our recommendation is: The Lion in Winter (1968):

And here is the trailer:

Available Formats: The Lion in Winter may be streamed through the usual streaming services and through the library’s streaming video service/app – Kanopy. It also available from the library on DVD.  

About The Movie: The movie set in England during the Christmas season of 1183, tells the story of a scheming family consisting of of King Henry II of England (Peter O’Toole), his wife Queen Eleanor (Katherine Hepburn in an Oscar winning role) and their three rebellious sons Prince Richard (Anthony Hopkins), Prince Geoffrey (Nigel Terry) and Prince John (John Castle).  

The big question under discussion in the family is which son will succeed the aging Henry as king. King Henry favors Prince John, Queen Eleanor favors Prince Richard and neither parent favors Prince Geoffrey, much to his displeasure. Joining the family for the drama as they argue and plot; are the young French Princess Alais (Jane Merrow), who is King Henry’s mistress and betrothed to Prince Richard; and Alais’s half brother King Phillip of France (Timothy Dalton).

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Background Viewing Stream

Summer Beach Sunset Campfire Escape 

 

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Have a great weekend!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Information on the four library catalogs (content available 24/7!)

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/ 

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go! 

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

And The Digital Catalog/Libby features titles that may be checked out via the one-copy-one-user lending model, just like print books.  

– 

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

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron checkout limit is 10 items per month. 

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders. 

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players. 

Titles in the Hoopla Catalog are available to be checked out on-demand by all library card holders, with the caveat of being able to check out a maximum of ten titles per month, per card.  

– 

Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en 

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.  

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders! 

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV). 

– 

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. 

Have questions about any of the catalogs?

Give us a call!

You can reach us at 607-936-3713 or visit our website at https://ssclibrary.org/

Book Sale Starts Saturday!

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, just a quick FYI post – the fall book sale, hosted by the Friends of the Southeast Steuben County Library starts this Saturday, August 22 and is being held at the Union Hall in Corning; which if you’re not familiar with the location – is within walking distance of the library – if you head out the library’s Civic Center Plaza door and walk kitty corner to your right – you’ll run right into the Union Hall!

Here is the listing of the dates and times of the sale:

Kudos to the Friends for all their hard work in setting up and hosting the sale and in creating this terrific map of where items are located!!

You’ll find great books and other items at the sale – mysteries, romances, local interest books, biographies, audiobooks, DVDs, puzzles and more!

Have a great day and see you at the book sale!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

P.S. Accepted payment methods for the book sale: If you’re like me you probably make electronic payments, debit or card cards etc., while you’re out and about and don’t use cash – and I think a lot of us do that today – so be aware that the book sale does not accept digital payments – they’ll take cash or a check – just FYI so you can be prepared and take your check book with you!

Suggested Reading Five: August 19, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Freight: A Novel by Ryan Lowell  

DEBUT Lowell’s debut features a dynamic cast of characters who are all struggling to lead their best lives despite flaws and deeply held secrets that keep each of them perpetually on the brink of disaster. Curtis, an overnight dispatcher for Maine-based trucking company Hart Logistics, is teetering toward alcohol addiction and trapped in a deteriorating marriage. He views his job as beneath him, even though he is one mistake away from being fired. Theo, one of his drivers, is trying to start a family, but things are complicated in no small part by his affair with Sarah, a local woman desperate for attention and currently accompanying Theo on a long-haul run to Quebec. Another driver, Phil, is seeking refuge on the road after his wife left him, even if it means violating safety protocols by pushing well beyond his legal driving limit. And Billy Trask is looking to use them all, whatever the cost, to pull off the heist of a lifetime.  

VERDICT A fast-paced caper steeped in grim humor with characters who aren’t just carrying baggage; they’re hauling full-scale emotional freight. Will appeal to fans of Carl Hiaasen, Lou Berney, and Joe Ide.–Library Journal Review  

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God’s Country by William Kent Krueger (Cork O’Connor Series, No. 22) 

Cork O’Connor, preparing for a family trip into the Boundary Waters, is troubled by ominous visions about his future. Ignoring the warnings, he uncovers signs of violence while searching for his missing friend, Cordell Bishop. Soon, he is forced to negotiate with dangerous criminals, the Kennedy brothers, who are seeking their late father’s hidden stash. 

Facing escalating danger and difficult choices, Cork grapples with his darkest instincts as he helps others escape and eventually takes justice into his own hands. God’s Country is an action-packed thrill ride that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. 

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Our Marriage Is Murder by Carol Goodman  

In Goodman’s (Writers and Liars) latest, husband-and-wife writing team Fred and Thea Morgan-Lane are attending a mystery-writers’ conference at an Italian castle that was the setting for the couple’s first book, Death Takes the Castle. Their series “Death Takes a Holiday” is up for an award at the conference, but after 20 books and 20 years of marriage, things are falling apart personally and professionally for Fred and Thea. Before the award winner can be announced, the conference coordinator dies, having drunk a cocktail meant for Thea. Thea, who earlier told Fred she wants to end the series and their marriage, wonders if she is worth more to him dead than alive. Despite the tragedy, the conference continues and so does the scheduled treasure hunt. As attendees scour the castle grounds for clues, more deaths occur. It soon becomes clear that the killer is drawing on Death Takes the Castle. With their relationship on shaky ground, Fred and Thea must work together to stop someone from using their book as a guide to murder.  

VERDICT Goodman’s entertaining plot is a great combination of adventure and suspense. Recommended for fans of Frances and Richard Lockridge’s classic “Mr. and Mrs. North” mysteries.–Library Journal Review 

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A Moment in the Sun: Black Manhattan Before the Civil War by Shane White 

A Moment in the Sun dispels the pernicious narrative that in New York City, slavery was followed by a hundred years of poverty and destitution. 

Dispelling the persistent narrative that abject poverty followed the end of slavery in New York City, acclaimed historian Shane White finally sets the historical record straight. A Moment in the Sun, a revisionist and immersive retelling of antebellum Manhattan, depicts a long-forgotten, nineteenth-century era when ordinary Black men and women, now free, “stood a brief moment in the sun” (W. E. B. Du Bois), ushering in a roughly half-century period when New York City bulged and thrummed with Black creativity and achievement nearly a hundred years before the storied Harlem Renaissance. 

Culling a narrative from thousands of fragmentary sources gathered over three decades of research, White conjures the distant world of these Black New Yorkers, from the streets where dandies flaunted their signature style to a rollicking dance cellar on a Friday night in the Five Points neighborhood. “In a city still rife with racism and violence,” White writes, “ordinary African New Yorkers―among them oystermen, petty entrepreneurs, fortune-tellers, and ‘confidence men’―brought into being a free urban Black culture.” Along the way, White introduces us to a notable parade of characters who helped transform Gotham into a booming urban metropolis, among them Thomas Downing, the “Oyster King of New York”; Mary Thompson, who ran a cookshop out of her cellar; and Cato Alexander, whose tavern provided cocktails and carriage races to a diverse clientele. 

As these people, languages, and cultures mixed in the so-called amalgamated city, racial tensions heightened and often exploded, but this friction helped facilitate a cultural melding that was extensive. To a startling degree, White reveals the myriad ways this first attempt at integration in New York City actually worked. 

A triumph of historical reclamation, A Moment in the Sun paints a pointillist portrait of this time in New York history, one that presents an entirely different story that was waiting to emerge from the archive. And in bringing to vivid life these Black New Yorkers and their eponymous moment in the sun, this shimmering history preserves their memory and, in the words of Caleb Gayle, “takes us into the experiment in freedom whose possibilities could have and should have lasted generations.” 

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Plant Lady by Minyoung Kang 

This addictive South Korean import is part horror story, part noir mystery, and part women’s revenge tale. In the quiet neighborhood of Dosan-gu, Yoohee opens the Plant Shop, where she has a loving relationship with each plant. The shop becomes a popular attraction both in the city and on the web. After architect Hoyoung consults with Yoohee on a new project, the two fall in love. When Hoyoung mindlessly pulls leaves off her beloved plants, Yoohee gets rid of him, literally. Yoohee soon discovers that the young women who wander into her store are being mentally and physically abused by the men in their lives. She resolves to help these women take their revenge. Yoohee’s ingenious methods make the men disappear. When police Inspector Dokyung investigates a number of cases of missing men, the only connection seems to be the Plant Shop, but he doesn’t see how the mousy Yoohee fits in. When her childhood abuser comes into her shop, Yoohee must deal with him while playing a game of cat-and-mouse with the detective and the reader. This atmospheric, twisty, and darkly humorous novel has a strong message about men’s abuse of women. Readers of relationship fiction will be cheering for Yoohee and her plants. – Starred Library Journal Review  

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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

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Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

–

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.

–

Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

–

Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Suggested Listening & Viewing: August 14, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here is the our second newly streamlined weekly Suggested Listening and Viewing post; featuring one album or musical collection for your listening pleasure; one movie or TV show/season for your viewing pleasure and one recommendation for background viewing – perfect for having on while having dinner, reading or just hanging out at home. Enjoy! 

First off the music, this week the album:

In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning (1955) by Frank Sinatra 

 

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Moving on to our suggested viewing title of the week; this week our recommendation is the movie:

The Kid (1921).

Here is the trailer:

About Formats: You can request a DVD of the film via StarCat https://starcat.stls.org or stream it through the library’s streaming video service Kanopy either online at https://www.kanopy.com or by downloading the Kanopy app from your app store.

About The Movie: Written and directed by Charlie Chaplin and starring Charlie Chaplin (1889 – 1977) and a cute kid – then child actor Jackie Coogan (1914 – 1984); who later appeared in the memorable role of Uncle Fester in the 1960s Addams Family TV series. The Kid was Chaplin’s first full-length movie and told the tale of an unwed mother leaving her infant son, with a note, in an expensive car, only for thieves to steal the car and the child to wind up being recused  by Chaplin’s character.

About Charlie Chaplin: Charlie Chaplin was born on April 16, 1889, in London, England, the son of actor parents Charles Chaplin & Hannah Hill. Charlie had a rough childhood; his father died when he and his older half-brother Sydney were young boys; and their mother’s mental health challenges saw her committed to an asylum leaving the brothers to face the world on their own. 

As a youth Chaplin worked as a Vaudeville performer and in 1910 traveled to New York, to tour as a member of the Fred Karno Company. In 1913, he was hired by the Keystone Film Company for $150 a week.; and it quickly became apparent that Chaplin was a natural in the newly emerging field of (silent) filmmaking. Between 1915 and 1917 Chaplin worked for several film companies making humorous short films and introducing his signature character The Tramp, a lovable a young man with a mustache in a suit and bowler hat who frequently finds himself in humorous situations.  

In 1917, Chaplin decided to become an independent filmmaker in order to gain greater creative control over his work. After producing several more short films, he released The Kid (1921), widely regarded as his first feature-length film and one of his masterpieces. He followed it with a remarkable series of films that are also considered classics of the silent era, including A Woman of Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), The Circus (1928), City Lights (1931), and Modern Times (1936). In 1940, he released his first “talkie” or talking film, The Great Dictator. During this period, Chaplin became one of the most celebrated and influential actors and filmmakers in the world.  

Chaplin was one of the brightest and most influential stars of the silent film era; but by the early 1940s films, that era had passed as movie making technology had advanced to offering films with recorded sound; and that combined with Chaplin being involved in two sensational public controversies, a false paternity suit with a subsequent acrimonious trial; and his fourth marriage to an 18-year-old actress, Oona O’Neill; daughter of the famous playwright Eugne O’Neill – saw Chaplin’s popularity as filmmaker sharply decline in the 1940s.  

In 1952 Chaplin was traveling from the U.S. to Europe and learned that he was going to be denied reentry to the U.S. upon his return. So, Chaplin, O’Neill and their growing family; which eventually included eight children, moved to Switzerland and Chaplin continued making films until shortly before he died in 1977. 

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Background Viewing

(Perfect to have on while having dinner, reading etc.)

Cozy London Cafe 

 

Have a great weekend!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Have a great weekend!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Information on the four library catalogs (content available 24/7!)

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/ 

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go! 

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

And The Digital Catalog/Libby features titles that may be checked out via the one-copy-one-user lending model, just like print books.  

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

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron checkout limit is 10 items per month. 

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders. 

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players. 

Titles in the Hoopla Catalog are available to be checked out on-demand by all library card holders, with the caveat of being able to check out a maximum of ten titles per month, per card.  

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en 

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.  

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders! 

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV). 

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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. 

Have questions about any of the catalogs?

Give us a call!

You can reach us at 607-936-3713 or visit our website at https://ssclibrary.org/

Suggested Reading Five: August 12, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Dominion by Jean Kwok  

Rubi Morningtail has no memories from before the Annihilation that destroyed her home and forced her to migrate to the Silver Tyger Dominion. Making her way with her ribbon-dancing and a little singing magic, Rubi and her guardian Edith are barely getting by. When a raging battle tyger appears on her doorstep and Rubi wounds her, the metal mage Blake Axefire has Rubi thrown into the Bonding, where tygers bond with their riders and slaughter everyone else. Surprisingly, Rubi survives and is bonded with the tyger she once hurt. Now Rubi prepares with Blake’s elite group to join other Dominion warriors to reseal the Anchors that keep the demon realm closed. Escaping demons and rebel uprisings are the least of Rubi’s problems, because she must discover the truth about her past and her power, and figure out if the attraction she has for Blake is worth changing her future. 

 VERDICT Kwok (The Leftover Woman) launches a romantasy trilogy with an intricately crafted magic system and a romance that will keep readers clamoring for the next in the series. – Library Journal Review 

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Hot Girls Murder Club: A Novel by Ashley Winstead 

Ten years ago, when her younger sister Georgia was brutally murdered, and the Los Angeles police were unable to bring her killer to justice, Sage Scout realized if she wanted justice she would need to deliver it herself. Since then, Sage has become a famous singer/songwriter while simultaneously collecting a circle of friends, all equally talented and driven women, around her. The group soon earns the sobriquet “Hot Girl Murder Club” when, one after another, powerful individuals who have up until now evaded justice suddenly get their karmic comeuppance. However, what begins as a joke quickly becomes very real when LA Police Detective Grey Holloway charges Sage with murder. From this ingenious premise, Winstead (The Future Saints) fashions a wickedly clever novel that not only delivers all the jaw-dropping twists readers crave but also offers up a thoughtful exploration of the costs that can come from taking justice into one’s own hands.  

VERDICT Written with a razor-sharp sense of humor and graced with a memorable cast of relatably messy characters, this sleekly plotted novel of suspense is simply superb. – Library Journal Review  

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A Summer of Stars by Liana Cincotti 

Fake relationship terms and conditions: do not fall in love. After a messy breakup, it feels like the entire world hates tennis superstar Luna Aldridge. With her reputation ruined and her career at risk, the only way to repair it is a PR stunt: fake-dating Hollywood’s golden boy, Kieran Alexander. There’s just one problem … Luna can’t stand him. For Kieran, the feeling is mutual. He’s about to lead a big-screen love story, but his dating history is jeopardizing the film’s success. His team believes the world needs to see him wildly in love. And who better than Luna, the person he loathes most? 

Soon, Luna and Kieran spend the summer posing for cameras, sharing red carpets and flying around the world for the tennis circuit. But the more they pretend, the more they question if they can keep their hearts, and their careers, together. Especially with everyone watching … 

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We Will See You Bleed: A Novel by Ron Currie 

This prequel to The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne (2025) answers a lot of questions readers may have had about how the fictional character, Babs, a stalwart town supporter and grandmother, came to run a drug empire in the Little Canada neighborhood of Waterville, Maine (the neighborhood and town are real). Currie takes us back to 1984, when Babs was a struggling but strong young woman. Times are hard. A strike at the paper mill, the lifeblood of the small town, has been going on for more than a year (the strike is loosely based on the strike around this time in nearby Jay, Maine). Drug dealers and strikebreakers swoop in. The women, led by Babs, are the strong organizers against these forces. Currie often over-describes, and his use of second person singular for Babs’ thoughts and actions (for example, “And so you sat swatting bugs in the heat”) is a confusing and strained literary device. Nevertheless, this novel is a good character study and historical crime story for the patient reader. – Booklist Review  

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The Wild Beneath: A Novel by Kelly Anderson 

Annie MacLeod always knew she was different, growing up on a sailboat in the Pacific Northwest, navigating by stars and swimming with sea creatures alongside her parents and best friend Evan. But when a tsunami shatters her world, Annie is stranded on land and forced to confront how eccentric she is. In the wreckage, she rescues a wordless man named Walker, who emits a hum only she can hear. 

Their connection is instant, electric. Walker’s touch gives Annie visions of the ocean’s hidden world, a life she’s never known but feels inexplicably drawn to. Yet even as she is pulled toward him, Evan—the steadfast love who has always been there—remains on dry land, offering the stability she may have to leave behind. Annie is torn between Evan’s grounding presence and Walker’s magnetic secrets. But then, Walker vanishes, along with the answers she needs about who she really is. 

Six years later, Annie has left the sea and buried the past—until Walker’s otherworldly sound returns, pulling her back toward the ocean and the life she abandoned. The truth under the water is more ancient than she ever could have known, and Annie must confront a choice that will test her heart and determine her future. 

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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

–

Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

–

Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

–

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.

–

Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

–

Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Suggested Reading Five: August 5, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Carry Me To My Grave by Christopher Golden

It’s 1956, and Malcolm, a Korean War veteran, youngest child of narcissistic Maggie, is in a race against time to get the body of his recently deceased mother from Elkhart, IN, to an island in Maine and buried safely in the ground before the sun rises in two days. It seems that the local lore about Maggie being a witch was not too far off base, as there are very real monsters who have been awakened by her death and will do whatever it takes to stop Malcolm and his family. Moving from trains to fire trucks to a VW Bus, readers are on this terrifying, desperate ride, following the point of view as it alternates between characters, good and evil, supernatural and human, allowing them to develop fully. The motivations of the ancient evil are intriguing; when balanced with the family members and their own complicated histories, the story blossoms from an average chase novel into a moving portrait of undying love.

VERDICT Intense, violent, nuanced, heartbreaking, and fun to read, Golden’s (The Night Birds) latest gives readers everything they could want in a thrilling horror story; for fans of Tananarive Due’s The Good House and Nat Cassidy’s When the Wolf Comes Home. — Library Journal

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Extracurricular by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Professor Nick Navarro is less than enthused when he discovers that the recently retired mega pop-star Ramona Wilder (the idol of his young niece) will be a student in one of his psychology classes at UCLA. Handling a celebrity’s ego while managing his own turmoil about his recent divorce is not how Nick wanted to start the new school year. Nick vows to treat Ramona like any other student but soon discovers that he can’t. He learns that there’s far more to Ramona than the persona she shared on stage and in the media, and he is absolutely flustered and enchanted by her wit and flirting. Ramona lived under a microscope as a child actor and star and has only recently been able to cut her overbearing stage mother and toxic ex-partners out of her life. She enjoys her interactions with Nick, but how can she trust that the feelings are real? Having both been hurt in the past, Ramona and Nick must navigate their histories before they can find a path forward together.

VERDICT Solomon’s (What Happens in Amsterdam) latest will suit readers looking for academia-set romances such as Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis. – Library Journal

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The Masala Chai Mystery Club by MJ Soni

A retired New England librarian takes on a case the local police have been too quick to close. Forced into early retirement by a board looking to replace her with someone younger and cheaper, Neeti Shah is bored. She misses both her late husband, Ravi, and the stimulating contact with the book-loving public she got from her job. She’s pleased to be able to provide a stable home for her niece, Myra, whose parents abandoned her when she made it clear she had no intention of marrying Shane, the shiftless father of her own son, Ved, now 5 years old. So the death of her neighbor, Rohit Solanki, in what the police insist was a slip-and-fall, provides her the perfect opportunity to put her research skills to work proving them wrong. Author Soni provides Neeti with a colorful, multinational cast of collaborators and coconspirators in her quest. This series kickoff has some problems with pacing: It takes a painfully long time to reveal the backstory of Neeti’s prior relationship with Rohit, as Soni drops the same hints over and over again. And the characters are often jarringly cartoonish, especially when they’re being mean or stupid. Sometimes there’s more than one way to handle a dilemma. A bit more nuance and a more careful approach to the solution would have made this debut a worthy addition to the cozyverse. – Kirkus Review

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Mr. and Mrs. Dixon Hide a Body: A Novel by Jennifer Holdich

Daisy is a complicated woman. She was bullied in school as an outcast who was raised by a poor single mother who dressed her in homemade clothes. For the past 20 years, however, Daisy has been married to James Dixon, a billionaire. She is now Lady Langley, overseeing a crumbling manor in the English countryside of Upper Iffley. Holdich’s (Julie Tudor Is Not a Psychopath) novel details James and Daisy’s plots to destroy each other as their relationship sours. After leaving a fundraiser, Daisy and James are involved in a pedestrian accident where Daisy injures a beloved TV personality whom James then strangles to death. James points to Daisy during the subsequent police investigation. Then Daisy uncovers James’s Ponzi investment schemes. The novel includes a humorous social media Greek chorus of neighbors who comment and speculate when two bodies are found in the river near Langley Hall after a torrential rainstorm. A key secondary character is Lady Langley’s housekeeper, Mrs. Billings, a kleptomaniac who pockets the tchotchkes left out for her to steal. VERDICT Holdich’s out-of-the-ordinary, cozy-adjacent novel is recommended for readers who enjoy marriage revenge stories with eccentric characters.–Library Journal Review

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The Oxford Detective Society by Faith Martin

Oxford biographer Lyssa Moore is delighted to be commissioned to write about Amelia ‘Monty’ Montrose, the 1960s music icon who died mysteriously at her birthday party in 1966. But as Lyssa delves into Monty’s past, she discovers the wild child portrayed by the press was hiding far more than anyone knew.

And someone is taking a very keen interest in Lyssa’s research. Her flat has been broken into, her phone is acting strangely, and she has a feeling she is being followed. Is Lyssa getting too close to a dangerous truth―was there more to Monty’s death than a tragic accident?

With the help of her cat Bibbie and her Oxford friends, who form the Oxford Detective Society, Lyssa must uncover what really happened sixty years ago. Because in Oxfordshire’s country houses and picture-perfect gardens, the past refuses to stay buried…

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

–

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

–

Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

–

Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

–

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.

–

Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

–

Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.

Suggested Reading Five: July 29, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Blood River Witch by T. J. Martinson

On Kentucky’s Blood River, a Sheriff’s Deputy investigates the death of her ex-fiance, whose brutal occultist murder strongly resembles a similar murder decades ago, for readers of Tana French, Gillian Flynn, Megan Abbott, and fans of True Detective
Deputy Sheriff Alicia Moore is thrust into the center of a chilling murder investigation when she discovers a victim identifiable only by his hauntingly familiar tattoo—her name inked onto the knuckles of her ex-fiancé, Jake.

Years earlier, Alicia’s father, the then-Sheriff, had arrested a teenage occultist for a nearly identical murder, believed to be driven by the suspect’s worship of demonic entities. Now, with Jake’s murder mirroring that past crime, doubts arise about whether the true culprit was ever caught. The mystery deepens with the arrival of Lucas Masterson, a Criminology PhD student studying the confluence between religious trauma and occult crime, who is eager to lend his expertise to the investigation. As Lucas delves into the case, his profound knowledge of the town’s grim history and his outsider perspective strain the local social fabric, while Alicia grapples with her suspicion towards his unsettling familiarity with the crimes. Caught between her strained relationship with her father, the community’s watchful eyes on a female deputy, and her own harrowing ties to the case, Alicia must navigate a maze of potential occultists, convicts, corrupt officials, and clergy to prevent a gruesome history from repeating itself once again.
For what lies at the heart of Blood River—is it an ancient malicious force seeking to harm the townfolk, or is there a deeper prejudice in a town that continues to punish women in a way that it does not punish the men?

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If Books Could Kill by Kate Eberle 

DEBUT Roxie loves romance novels, but when her wish to live out a storyline from her favorite romance author is magically granted, it’s not quite what she’d hoped for. Turns out, the new book is a crime thriller, and Roxie is stuck as the protagonist in a dangerous genre she doesn’t know much about. In an effort to escape a serial killer, she accidentally kidnaps a nerdy but hot professor, Grant, in the strangest meet-cute ever. With his knowledge of the thriller genre and her expertise in self-defense, they team up to solve an international murder plot that takes them from Boston to London. In order to end the spell and get back to her real life, she must figure out the mystery. As Roxie and Grant live through several literary devices, they find true love together, but Roxie is reluctant to give her heart to Grant since he’s a character in the novel and will disappear once the story is over. VERDICT Full of adventure, a touch of the supernatural, plenty of kooky, adorable characters, and hilarious hijinks, Eberle’s highly original and fun debut is for fans of heartfelt, original rom-coms with strong bookish themes. — Library Journal Review 

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Obstinate Daughters: The Rebels, Writers, and Renegade Women Who Ignited the American Revolution by Denise Kiernan 

In honor of the 2026 United States Semiquincentennial, aka the 250th birthday of the Declaration of Independence, deep-dive American history chronicler Kiernan (We Gather Together, 2020) considers an array of contributions made by various Revolutionary War-era women. Kiernan’s approach is impressively inclusive. She tends toward less celebrated individuals whose accomplishments often occurred behind the scenes (Sarah Bradlee Fulton’s cosmetics helped disguise Boston Tea Party participants) or were left out of male-centric standard narratives (Chief Nanye’hi helped broker Cherokee peace treaties). Subjects represent diverse segments of society (patriots and loyalists, New Englanders and Southerners, enslaved individuals, aristocrats, housewives, poets, spies). Chapters alternate between detailed historic accounts, effortlessly incorporating primary source material, and accounts of the author’s recent research-inspired visits to three landmarks: Mount Vernon, a former South Carolina plantation, and a casino on Indigenous lands. A few luminaries make cameo appearances (Abigail Adams, Marie Antoinette) but the emphasis is on everyday women who are resurrected through diaries and letters, shipping lists, headstones, and bills of sale. This is an engaging, enlightening, and quite satisfying read. – Booklist Review 

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Sisters of the Midnight Sun by Rebecca Wright Stevens 

On August 3, 1993, the bodies of two sisters, Wanda and Bernice Ipalook, were discovered in Utqiagvik, an oil-rich area on Alaska’s North Slope. Both women had been strangled, and one had been raped. Amos Lane, a drifter with a prior record, was charged with the crimes, and Stevens was the public defender assigned to defend him. She secured immunity for him if he testified for the prosecution against the person ultimately charged with the crime, Bernice’s fiance , John Adams. Ultimately, Adams was found not guilty of the murders, and Lane was found guilty of perjury. To this day, the crime remains unsolved. Stevens’s novelistic writing style focuses less on the trial itself than on her experiences as an outsider in the community and on the lives of the Iupiat people in Arctic Alaska. Stevens spent 36 years working as a defense lawyer, and readers will appreciate everything she did to protect her client, though they may wish for more insight into the Ipalook murders. VERDICT Although this true crime book boasts an expansive view of the surrounding I upiat community, readers may leave this book with further questions about the grisly, complex case at its center. – Library Journal Review 

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The Talking Bone by Renee Denfeld  

Ruby Spencer, known as “the Exonerator,” has devoted her life to finding missing women and freeing the people wrongly convicted for their disappearances. Her work leads her to Georgia, where Mitchell Brown, a 32-year-old man on death row, has just two weeks left before his execution. A decade earlier, Mitchell celebrated landing a new job, drank too much, and wandered into a gas station. He later awoke in his truck to find the attendant missing and the station splashed with blood. The evidence was lost, the body was never found, and Mitchell’s memory of that night never returned. As Ruby investigates, she travels to Mitchell’s Oregon hometown. There she uncovers a chilling parallel: Mitchell’s mother vanished when he was a child, just as Ruby’s mother disappeared years before. Chapters weave between past and present, revealing the story of Ruby’s mother as the clock ticks toward Mitchell’s execution. Forced to confront her own trauma and unresolved grief, Ruby pushes deeper into a case where justice feels out of reach.  

VERDICT Drawing on her experience as a licensed death-row investigator, Denfeld (Sleeping Giants) crafts a taut, emotional thriller. Readers of her earlier novels will appreciate this intricately layered tale of suspense. –Library Journal Review  

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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

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Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks 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 on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

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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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Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

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Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.