Your source for information on the latest and greatest in reading arts and entertainment!

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Shutter Island


The movie, Shutter Island, is based on the novel by Dennis Lehane. The Merrick Library has two copies available for reserve. Here is a short NYT review.

“Shutter Island” takes place off the coast of Massachusetts in 1954.
I’m sorry, that should be OFF THE COAST OF MASSACHUSETTS! IN 1954!
since every detail and incident in the movie, however minor, is
subjected to frantic, almost demented (and not always unenjoyable)
amplification. The wail of strangled cellos accompanies shots of the
titular island, a sinister, rain-lashed outcropping that is home to a
mental hospital for the CRIMINALLY INSANE! The color scheme is lurid,
and the camera movements telegraph anxiety. Nothing is at it seems.
Something TERRIBLE is afoot. Sadly, that something turns out to be the
movie itself. — A. O. Scott, The New York Times

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Merrick Library Book Discussion. "When all is Said and Done" By Robert Hill


We had an excellent discussion about this novel. A few participants were very passionate about the writing while the majority was not impressed. This was a simple story with a simple concept. The story took place in the 1950's when women stayed home with their children and her husband worked. This novel tells the tale of a family who has the exact opposite experience.
Most people disliked the author's writing style which consisted of extremely long run on sentences and minimal dialog. They found the writing to be very elementary. It was hard to make a connection with the characters and follow who was speaking at times.
Never the less, we had a very enjoyable discussion and I would welcome enyone to come and share their opinions for our next book discussion.

"When the White House was Ours" By: Porter Shreve.
March 24, 2010 @ 2:00 pm.

New Merrick Marvels


We have added some additional titles to our popular Merrick Marvel collection.


Noah's Compass By: Anne Tyler

The First Rule By: Robert Crais

Kisser By Strart Woods

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

New Non-fiction Audiobook Arrivals!


Using the science-based approach of The Perfect 10 Diet, Dr. Michael Aziz has already personally treated more than a thousand patients with astounding results. In their first three weeks on his plan, patients lost an average of 10-14 pounds without feeling hungry and showed remarkable improvement in the markers for heart disease, blood pressure, diabetes, and better overall health.





A financial reporter offers his philosophy and practice for living frugally, which to him means spending one's money on quality rather than quantity, buying the best one can afford but the least one needs, in a book that also tackles such subjects as the two best ways to save for college, renting vs. owning, wise debt vs. foolish debt and more.





True to form, outspoken political media personality Glenn Beck presents the follow-up to his immensely popular Arguing With Idiots.











The host of "The Late, Late Show" traces his journey from working-class Glasgow to the comedic limelight of Hollywood, revealing his personal story of becoming an American citizen.











Reveals the surprising power of the ordinary checklist now being used in medicine, aviation, the armed services, homeland security, investment banking, skyscraper construction, and businesses of all kinds.







Steiner, an engineer by training sees how a simple but constant rise in oil and related prices will re-structure our lifestyle, from telecommuting to migrating to milder areas and staying closer to our jobs.







Offers techniques and strategies for increasing income while cutting work time in half, and includes advice for leading a more fulfilling life.

Monday, February 22, 2010

New York Times Literary Treat of the Week....


Harris, Robert. Conspirata: A Novel of Ancient Rome.

Ancient Rome's greatest orator is under threat of death! Midway through his year as Consul to the Roman Senate Cicero is the target of a rebellion against the Republic.
Allies are questionable, spies are either clumsy or wind up dead, and wife Terentia veers between emotional extremes. Such is the backdrop to Cicero's continuing story begun in "Imperium" and narrated by his secretary Tiro. Unlike many historical writers Harris does not venture into great detail about ways of living in those past times. His emphasis is on telling a story that reminds one at times of TV's best crime dramas and at others that very little has changed in the world of politics.

Also by Robert Harris at Merrick Library:

Archangel
Enigma
Fatherland
The Ghost
A Higher Form of Killing
Pompeii

Friday, February 19, 2010

New From Overdrive...


If you have a Sony Reader or a Nook, the latest bestsellers are available from Overdrive as e-books. Recent New York Tiems fiction titles include:

The Swan Thieves
Kisser
Roses
The First Rule
The Last Song


If you Prefer non-fiction you may want to download:

Game Change
Committed
Have a Little Faith
Stones into Schools

Thursday, February 18, 2010

New Non-Fiction DVDs

7 Days: Vietnam
A colorful land that still contains ancient tribes and exotic landscapes. A fascinating paradise located on the exotic edge of South East Asia! Tour includes: The Chua Mot Cot Pagoda in Hanoi; Ad Nang's Cham Museum; and the Jade Pagoda in Saigon.

Cruising Western Long Island - Covers major ports, charts, navigation and safety tips.






Exploring French Wine Regions -
Explore the wine regions of France with digital filmmakers Sid and Mary Lee Nolan. They take you on a journey from the vibrant French capital to the many regions known worldwide for their wines: the Loire, Burgundy, Bordeaux, the Rhone, and Alsace.



Wine Road Trips Napa, California -
Featuring Napa Valley's star chefs with their incredible cooking and unique styles. Tra Vigne Restaurant cooks up traditional Italian dishes such as Pizza Margharita and a grilled steak. Another Star Chef brings to the table Asian infused creations, using the fresh ingredients to create his Poke of Tuna, Cayucos Abalone, and Heritage Pork with Prune Sauce. The wines provided by Hall Winery and Benessere Vineyards were also impressive.





Wednesday, February 17, 2010

New York Times Literary Treat of the Week!




Librarian Bob has reviewd this highlighted novel from the New York Times.

Gottlieb, Lori. Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough.

Have women in an age of feminist empowerment locked themselves out of lasting relationships? Do men who failed to live up to a checklist of impossible standards for a mate have another opportunity? Gottlieb believes both answers are "YES!" and first shows how her "Ideal" cheated her out of rewarding unions. She then recounts the experiences of other women whose frustrations were born out of a heightened self-image that see themselves in Gottlieb's words as "too good for an ordinary relationship." Interviews with clergy, psycholologists, professional matchmakers and speed dating operators round out this candid view of romance that gladly is not without hope.

Sad News


Best-selling British author Dick Francis is dead at 89.

He passed away at his Caribbean home in Grand Cayman from "old age", according to a statement released through his publicist.

The Merrick Library has several of Francis's titles.
"Even Money" is his lates novel and "Crossfire" will be publised in August of 2010.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

New Audiobook Arrivals!

On her 81st birthday, Alice Liddell Hargreaves reflects on her eventful life. Known around the world as Alice, the ten-year-old girl who tumbled down a rabbit hole and landed in Wonderland, Ms. Hargreaves plots to prevent her grown sons, all of whom have enlisted, from going to war by introducing them to the most magical place she has ever journeyed.




Meredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But when their beloved father fails ill, Meredith and Nina find themselves together again, standing alongside their cold, disapproving mother, Anya, who even now offers no comfort to her daughters.





Nicola Kraus and Emma McLaughlin unfold the sequel to The Nanny Diaries, chronicling Nan's return to New York nearly ten years after the original novel.











While World War II rages on in Europe, 24-year-old Cletus Frade has been hired to spring Wilhelm Frogger, a German officer, from a Mississippi prisoner-of-war camp. Having learned that Frogger has masterminded a plot to assassinate Hitler, Frade plans on bringing the war to a swift end. However, a rogue group of fascists, led by Argentinean Colonel Juan Peron, plans on thwarting the coup and snuffing out both Frade and Frogger.





Dale Carnegie offers an abundance of little tips and tricks that can help make every day seem fresh and joyful. Here, listeners will learn to improve their own lives by being kind to others, avoiding negative conflicts, and making even the smallest tasks into stimulating challenges.






Dana Vaughn, the LAPD's toughest cop, and her partner, former Hollywood actor Nate Weiss, are called to investigate a serial rapist. Meanwhile, fellow officers Flotsam and Jetsam are tracking a pair of suspicious bikers. However, when their cases cross paths and reveal something much more sinister, the foursome embarks on a career-changing case.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Fantastic Fiction.com



This site contains information on over 300,000 books. Throughout the site, just click on a book to see its cover picture, description and publication details.

Overbooked.org




Overbooked originals include annotated lists of nonfiction, fiction and mystery books which received starred reviews, themed booklists, featured titles lists and hot lists of US fiction releases and notable books.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Wintry Literature For A Snowy Day






Were you lucky enough to have a snow day yesterday?

National Republic Radio has decided to turn to writers who have described snow in especially evocative ways over the years — in the hands of a good storyteller, snow can be magical, or monstrous.

Enjoy this selection of Snow filled titles.

Friday, February 5, 2010

Library Journal's Best Titles of 2009







Patterson, Evanovich, Myron and Gladwell all wrote the most borrowed titles of 2009 in United States libraries. The Data is based on circulation figures from a representative sample of libraries across the United States.


Click Here for Complete List.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Books to Movies Update


Shutter Island
This Movie is based on Dennis Lehane's 2003 novel, Shutter Island.

PLOT: Shutter Island, off Massachusetts's coast, is an army facility
turned hospital for the criminally insane. When a beautiful-and
certifiably crazy-patient escapes, U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels
and his partner, Chuck Aule, are called in to investigate. Embroiled in uncertainties and mystery, the two soon learn there's much more at stake than simply finding one missing woman.

The Movie is due to release on February 19, 2010.

Amy Bloom


Bloom, Amy. Where the God of Love Hangs Out.



Drinking, grieving, sex and divorce dominate the two sections that make up this new collection of interrelated stories by the acclaimed author of "Away."
First there is the affair of two married university professors who deal with health problems and indifferent spouses. The death of one causes his lover to drink far too much.
Then there is the relationship between an African-American lawyer and his white stepmother for whom a night of passion shortly after her husband's death affects the rest of their lives. Later to be twice divorced, the lawyer reunites at Thanksgiving with his stepmother and family twenty years later. Bloom uses her psychotherapist insight seasoned with humor and attention to odd details to show the inner and outer struggles of people dealing with emotional and physical issues.

Also by Amy Bloom at Merrick Library:

A Blind Man Can See How Much I Love You
Come To Me
Love Invents Us

Monday, February 1, 2010

New Fiction Titles


















"A Matter of Class" Mary Balough

"Alice I Have Been" Melanie Benjamin

"Mr. Shivers" Robert Bennett

"The Burning Land" Bernard Cornwell

"The Unnamed" Joshua Ferris

"The Queen's Governess" Karen Harper

"The Wolf at the Door" Jack Higgins

"Among Thieves" David Hosp

"The Brightest Star in the Sky" Marian Keyes

New York Times Literary Treat of the Week.


Carlin, George and Hendra, Tony. "Last Words".

Librarian, Bob, has something to say about George Carlin.

After his 2008 death Carlin was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for Humor. This memoir consisting of autobiographical material left behind and taped interviews in later years with fellow satirist Hendra chronicles the journey to that honor. Carlin's development from buttondown observational comic to casually dressed monologist captured on best-selling 70's comedy albums to the star of 14 painstakingly prepared HBO concert specials is examined in detail. So is the drug use that accompanied his breakthroughs in expression culminating in Carlin entering a rehabilitation facility for cocaine dependency in 2004. George Carlin's gift throughout the phases of his career was being able to consistently speak direct to his audience.


Also by George Carlin at Merrick Library:

Brain Droppings
Napalm and Silly Putty
When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?