New Cozy Mysteries

Cozy mysteries are an ever popular bunch. Is it the titular puns? Is it that they are a "fun read" that still works your mind? In any case, a multitude of cozy mysteries are published each month, and our library system continues to collect books from many different cozy mystery series. Check these out!

For more information on cozy mysteries or to feed your addiction, take a look at this website!

Darned If You Do (A Needlecraft Mystery #18) by Monica Ferris. Betsy and the Crewel World Monday Bunch set out to solve the mystery of a man murdered in his hospital bed.

A Fatal Chapter (Booktown Mystery #9) by Lorna Barrett. When the president of the local historical society dies of suspicious causes, Tricia becomes determined to get to the bottom of why someone would want to kill him.

Peaches and Scream (Georgia Peach Mystery #1) by Susan Furlong. In the first Georgia Peach Mystery, Nola Harper must uncover why a businessman was murdered on her family's struggling peach farm.

Poolside Reads

Summer is the time to look for great poolside reads! Check out some of these books to keep you entertained in the heat!

Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch. When a medical procedure goes horribly wrong and famous actor Ralph Meier winds up dead, Dr. Marc Schlosser needs to come up with some answers. It all started the previous summer, when the two men and their families vacationed together at Meier's extravagant Mediterranean home. The ideal vacation soon turned tragic, and the circumstances surrounding Ralph's later death begin to reveal the truth of what really happened that summer.

Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan. Polly Waterford comes to Cornwall to nurse a broken heart. Throwing herself into her favorite hobby with a passion, she's soon running a successful bakery. As Polly develops her baking skills, she realizes that sometimes bread really is life...and Polly is about to reclaim hers. Oh, and let's not forget the handsome local beekeeper.

Beach Town by Mary Kay Andrews. Greer Hennessy is a movie location scout who was blamed for a mishap on set. Now to redeem herself, she's tasked with finding the perfect beach town for a major blockbuster. Her search brings her to the perfect beachfront Florida town. However, her efforts are obstructed by Eben Thinadeaux, the town's mayor and an avid environmentalist who refuses to let an industry take advantage of his home.

Stop by the library to check out other awesome summer books!

Escape the Ordinary: Superhero Books!

Our adult summer reading program, Escape the Ordinary, is underway. While you can read any type of book you would like to complete the program, here are some on-theme recommendations!

Vicious by V. E. Schwab.  Ten years ago, Victor and Eli were college roommates researching EOs – those with ExtraOrdinary powers, and attempting to create such powers for themselves. Now Victor has just broken out of prison, and the two men will stop at nothing to eliminate each other. But which one of them is the hero, and which is the villain?

After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn.  Celia West is the only daughter of Commerce City’s most famous superheroes. With no powers herself, she has been a kidnapping target of every wannabe supervillain in town since she was a teenager. She has tried to build a quiet life for herself outside with limited contact with her parents, but when their arch nemesis, the Destructor, is put on trial, Celia is forced back into the world of superheroes and villains.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by MichaelChabon.  If you want to keep with the theme this summer, but would rather read historical fiction than fantasy or science fiction, this Pulitzer-winner from 2001 is for you! No one in this novel actually has superpowers – instead it is the story of Jewish cousins who create the comic book hero the Escapist during World War II.  This exquisitely written book is by turns both laugh-out-loud funny and heartbreakingly sad.

Do you have a favorite superhero novel?

Memorial Day Reads

Did you know Memorial Day was started by the former Confederate States after the Civil War? It was a day set aside to decorate the graves of soldiers who had died serving their country. Each state picked their own day to honor the dead, but now it has become a federal holiday, always on the last Monday of May. We at the Bartow Library have compiled a list of books that tell soldiers' stories (under Military Reads), and you might want to check one out for the long weekend. Here are a few selections.

Redeployment by Phil Klay. This recent publication got a lot of buzz last year, and was up for numerous awards. It tells a few different stories of soldiers returning home from the horrors of war, and how they cope with the trials they experienced and how those episodes affect them now. Many are already calling it a classic in the war stories genre.

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain. Published a few years ago, this satire focuses on the surviving members of Bravo Squad and become celebrated heroes going on a victory media tour to drum up support for the war in Iraq, meeting the Dallas Cowboys during one stop. We follow Billy Lynn as he struggles to cope with the loss of his fellow soldiers and the fame the rest of them got. Is being released as a film featuring Vin Diesel next year.

From Here to Eternity by James Jones. The title is probably more well-known as the name of an Academy Award-winning film starring Frank Sinatra, but the book came first! This book follows the lives of a few soldiers stationed in Hawaii leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor as they navigate their careers and love lives, and is a heralded exploration of military life. Regarded as one of the best books of the 20th century.


Thank a soldier this weekend!

Read Harder Challenge: Microhistory

Are you committed to reading harder this year? We're getting closer to the halfway point (how crazy is that?), so there's still time to join in and try out some different genres to change up your reading. In an effort to help you find some good new reads, today we're giving you some microhistory suggestions!

What is a microhistory? They're like a really in-depth look at one event, or community, or family and how to relates to history as a whole. You'll find that authors and researchers have published on some crazy specific topics, and you've probably already read one or two without calling it a microhistory! Here's some of our current favorites:

The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore. Consider this a preview of our Adult Summer Reading Club starting May 22nd. I did not grow up reading comic books, but I did watch the Wonder Woman TV show on reruns. This is a FABULOUS and FUN look at the creators of Wonder Woman, how she developed, public reaction to the character, and LOADS of other historical influences that contributed to the character of Wonder Woman. Great read not only for comic book fans, but also those interested in the history feminism, psychology, cinema, and politics. A little something for everyone!

Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson. Larson is a well-respected historian and writer, and his latest is one of his best. One of the most famous maritime disasters of the 20th century is recounted here is great detail, and gives you a rich background in early 20th century warfare, submarines, class structure, immigration stories, and how this event related to other disasters of the time. It's a chilling read that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The trivia alone about how some passengers had missed the Titanic but ended up on the Lusitania will be rewarding enough!

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty. Are you into medical procedurals? Do you like Abby Sciuto from NCIS? Are you not that squeamish? You should try this book! Part memoir, part guidebook, Doughty goes into great detail of how she became a mortician, and includes loads of stories on caring for the dead. The book has made quite a sensation since it got published, and the author recently signed on for more books, and the book has been optioned for a TV show. Get on the bandwagon now!


Stop by the Reference Desk and let us know what you're reading! We'd love to hear about it!

The Great Gatsby Readalikes

This Thursday, April 30th at 6pm, we'll be hosting a book and film discussion on The Great Gatsby, the classic 1920s novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Read (or reread!) the book, watch one of the many adaptations (or all the available ones, if you can manage), and sit in on the discussion. But what should you read after Gatsby? I've got a few suggestions.

Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Really, read anything by F. Scott, but this was the novel he published a few years after Gatsby. Based on the Fitzgeralds' experiences as ex-pats in France, this follows a rich and flashy couple in the Riviera and details the wife's history of mental health with a husband who started out as her doctor. Quite autobiographical, as many of F. Scott's books were.

West of Sunset by Stewart O'Nan. This recent fiction release chronicles life for F. Scott Fitzgerald after fame had mostly passed him by, and he found himself in Hollywood, desperately trying to make money and regain name-recognition for himself with a daughter nearly grown and a wife in a mental institution.

Gatsby's Girl by Caroline Preston. A fictionalized account of the woman who rejected F. Scott in their youth, and became the basis for some of his female characters, most famously Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby. It looks at what she might have thought and experienced as a former flame rises to literary stardom with a book featuring a part of their shared love story.

Spring Cleaning!

Interested in getting rid of stuff and getting organized? Need a little guidance with where to start and how to do it? The library has some books that might help you!

It's All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff by Peter Walsh. From TLC's Clean Sweep, an expert organizer tells you what's what.

Secrets of an Organized Mom by Barbara Reich. Mom knows best. And when Mama's happy, everybody's happy, right?

Christopher Lowell's Seven Layers of Organization: Unclutter Your Home, Unclutter Your Life by Christopher Lowell. A well-regarded interior decorator lays out his expertise for a beautifully organized home.

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen. A classic for those in business, the tips given also translate to other areas of life.

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo. The new best-selling classic that has folks everywhere unloading their clutter!