Fiction Matters @ the Palatine Public Library District

Book review: Great House by Nicole Krauss

2011-01-22T10:11:00.000-06:00

Nicole Krauss once again experiments with form and voice in Great House, a 2010 National Book Award Finalist. In interconnected stories, the lives of a solitary novelist, a young poet, an esteemed antiques dealer, and an old man mourning the death of his wife are woven together by the presence of a unique piece of furniture: an enormous writing desk. As the desk passes from hand to hand and household to household, Krauss generates a touching tapestry of character sketches linked by loss, discovery, and the mysteries of memory.

ALA announces youth media awards!

2011-01-10T13:47:00.000-06:00

The American Libraries Association announced the winners of the Newbery, Printz, Caldecott, and other awards this morning at the Midwinter Conference in San Diego. Click here to view the announcement page.

Reading Resolutions?

2011-01-06T14:42:00.000-06:00

New year, new you, what will you resolve to do? One resolution that's always easy to keep: visit your Library, and resolve to READ.

The good folks at the Teen Blog just brought up an inspiring idea for a New Year's Resolution: create your own Reading Challenge! Check it out for a novel way to ring in the new year. Cheers!

Coming Soon to a Theater Near You: Spring Preview

2010-12-23T14:11:00.000-06:00

2011 is just around the corner! What happier way to ring in the new year than to get a jump on your spring reading? The following literature-inspired movies will be coming to the big screen in 2011---be sure to read 'em before you see 'em:

January
THE RITE starring Anthony Hopkins based on the book, The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist by Matt Baglio
BARNEY'S VERSION starring Dustin Hoffman, Paul Giamatti and Minnie Driver, based on the book by Mordecai Richler
THE OTHER WOMAN starring Natalie Portman and Lisa Kudrow, based on Love and Other Impossible Pursuits by Ayelet Waldman

March
JANE EYRE starring Mia Wasikowska and Judi Dench, based on the book by Charlotte Bronte
MIRAL starring Vanessa Redgrave, based on the book by Rula Jebreal

April
WATER FOR ELEPHANTS starring Resse Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson, based on the book by Sara Gruen

...and coming soon to the small screen, look for these made-for-TV movies:

February
ANY HUMAN HEART starring Gillian Anderson and Kim Catrall, based on the book by William Boyd

April
GAME OF THRONES starring Sean Bean and Lena Headey, based on the book by George R.R. Martin

Announcing... the Best Books of 2010!

2010-12-14T13:46:00.000-06:00

One thing I love about December: Best of the year lists. The good folks at Earlyword have made it easy on everyone this year by compiling two handy-dandy mash-up spreadsheets that collect titles recommended by Publishers Weekly, the New York Times Book Review, and Library Journal. There's a spreadsheet for Adult Books and one for Kids/Young Adult Books; both fiction and non-fiction are included. Click here to check it out!

Do you agree with the reviewers? What were your favorite books of 2010?

'Tis the season for giving great books!

2010-12-13T13:48:00.000-06:00

Got a bookworm on your holiday shopping list? In this article, authors Warren Brown, Patricia Cornwell and Jonathan Adler share their suggestions for the best books to give. What are your picks?

Book Review: Ape House by Sara Gruen

2010-12-10T10:30:00.000-06:00

Author Sara Gruen's visit to the Great Ape Trust in Iowa formed the seed of her latest novel, Ape House. In a letter posted on her website, she explains, "You cannot have a twoway conversation with a great ape, or even just look one straight in the eye, close up, without coming away changed."

The main characters of the novel are Isabel Duncan, a researcher at the Great Ape Language Lab, and John Thigpen, a news reporter assigned to write a feature about the apes. Shortly after John's visit, the facility is bombed, Isabel is severely injured, and the apes are kidnapped.

Issues of human justice, animal rights, financial interests, and power mongering keep the novel moving. My heart was in my throat most of the time, hoping for a happy ending for the apes, for Isabel, and for John.

Write on, Sara! You're good at creating animals who show us how to be human.

-Gwenyth

Oprah announces new Book Club picks.

2010-12-06T14:16:00.000-06:00

Media mogul Oprah has announced two new selections for her ever-popular book club: A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations, both by Charles Dickens.

How do you think Dickens would react?

Book Review: Lakeshore Christmas by Susan Wiggs

2010-12-03T10:20:00.000-06:00

A librarian and a former Christmas movie star are brought together by a small-town Christmas pageant and fall in love while scheming to keep the library open.

This is a charming, cozy romance just right for curl-up-with-a-mug-of-hot-tea winter nights. Susan Wiggs' writing is expressive and breathtaking, and Lakeshore Christmas is full of touching insights on love, books, reading, libraries, and community. I particularly appreciated the author's attention to the hardships public libraries face during economic recessions; Wiggs does an excellent job of illuminating a complex--and incredibly timely--issue.

Book Review: My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira

2010-11-24T20:22:00.000-06:00

In My Name Is Mary Sutter, the title character is a midwife who yearns to become a doctor. She sets out for Washington, D.C. to help wounded Civil War soldiers. Working as a nurse, she wins the admiration of two surgeons and of President Lincoln himself.

First-time novelist Robin Oliveira plunges the reader into the passions, successes, and failures of people working to bring healing amid the chaos of the Civil War. She succeeds admirably. This is a book to experience for yourself and to recommend to others.

-Gwenyth

Local author Sara Paretsky wins national award!

2010-11-18T14:04:00.000-06:00

Chicago's own Sara Paretsky has been named the recipient of this year's Grand Master award from the Mystery Writers of America. Paretsky is the author of mystery novels featuring the spirited female private investigator V.I. Warshawski. Congratulations, Sara Paretsky! Click here to find books by this author at the Palatine Public Library District.

Exclusive Q&A with JEAN KWOK.

2010-11-12T10:03:00.000-06:00

Back in August, the Fiction Matters blog was fortunate enough to catch up with JEAN KWOK, author of Girl in Translation. Check out our exclusive interview with this inspiring new author below, and click here to read a review of Girl in Translation.

Fiction Matters (FM): What are you currently reading and/or planning to read?

Jean Kwok (JK): I was lucky enough to get an ARC of Siobhan Fallon's YOU KNOW WHEN THE MEN ARE GONE, an interconnected collection of short stories about living on an American army base (to be published January 2011), and I loved it. She writes about a world that is so different from my own with a tremendous amount of compassion and feeling.

FM: What do you do when you are not reading/writing?
JK: I spend a lot of time running after my two active little boys, ages 4 and 6. They sense whenever I'm on an important call with a journalist, for example, and immediately turn into these velcro monkeys that I constantly have to peel off of my face and hair while trying to give an interview. Right now, I do still have quite a lot of publicity demands because the rights have been sold in thirteen countries, and many little things are required -- like, I just wrote an interview for a major Indian newspaper. I'm doing another interview tomorrow for TIME OUT AMSTERDAM, then an interview for a local Dutch paper the next day, and the day after that, I have the photo shoot for that interview. In the little free time I have left, I go to the gym. I love to dance, so I really enjoy moving to music. This balances my great love for eating cookies and cakes.

FM: One book that you will never be too old to love is...
JK: ANNE OF GREEN GABLES. The funny thing is that I first read this book when I was a young child living in an unheated apartment in Brooklyn and working in a sweatshop after school. I'd moved from Hong Kong not long ago, where everyone I knew had brown eyes and black hair. I was fascinated by Anne and her red hair and freckles. Her world of flowers and green meadows was so foreign to me, a child who spent so many hours in the fabric dust of the Chinatown clothing factory then, and I spent a great deal of time thinking about her life. The most important thing about Anne for me was that despite our apparent differences, she was as dreamy and imaginative as I was, and as much of an outsider. I was often in trouble at home for being lost in my own world much of the time and my parents couldn't believe it when I turned out to have a talent for school.

FM: How do you make a bad day better?
JK: Well, although the reception my novel has received upon publication a few months ago has been a dream come true, I've had a difficult personal life in the past year. My beloved brother Kwan died in an airplane crash. It's terrible that it takes a tragedy to put things into perspective, but whenever things go wrong now, they seem quite unimportant compared to the fact that he's no longer here. My only consolation is that the heroine of my novel was partly based on him, and I feel like a part of him lives on in my book. Otherwise, a big steaming cup of Earl Grey is helpful too.

FM: Go to the nearest window and look outside. What do you see?
JK: The violet-blue hydrangeas in the front garden are still in bloom. When the wind blows, the cascades of flowers sparkle after last night's rain as they catch the morning light. The bike I use to bring the children to school is parked in between the hydrangea bushes, and a bit further, a few ducks are circling in the canal in front of our house. I suppose I am fortunate enough to have a bit of ANNE OF GREEN GABLES in my own life now!

Book Reviews: Hotel On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

2010-10-28T14:46:00.001-05:00

Henry Lee is a Chinese American boy coming of age in Seattle during World War II. While attending an exclusive private school on scholarship, Henry meets and falls in love with a Japanese American girl named Keiko. Can their love withstand the turbulence and prejudices of the times?

Jamie Ford's debut novel jumps back and forth in time, weaving together scenes from Henry's youth with scenes from Henry's golden years. Hotel On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a quietly moving story of hope, understanding, and enduring love.

Book Reviews: Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn

2010-10-23T11:15:00.001-05:00

Romantic fantasy lovers, rejoice: Sharon Shinn has begun a new series.

Troubled Waters introduces a country where people recognize the power of the elements--air, wood, fire, water, and earth--in their lives. Each element confers particular strengths and weaknesses.

One person in the kingdom is the prime representative of each element. These five individuals work together to ensure weather balance, social stability, and political wisdom. Prime responsibilities are inherited. At the beginning of Troubled Waters, there has been a drought for two years because the water prime died without naming her heir.

We meet Zoe Ardelay, the orphaned daughter of a water-element mother and a fire-element father. She arrives in the capital city, finds a place to live and a job, and discovers more than she expected to learn about her family heritage.

I was disappointed when I realized that the author's Fortune and Fate, published in 2008, was probably the last in her Twelve Houses series. I'd enjoyed those books as each was published and had reread them several times, savoring the succession of stories of friendship, politics, cross-country treks, magic, and love.

This new elemental series includes all these in a satisfying new setting. Hooray!

As an additional benefit, these are more than just light romances. They are substantial enough, with well-developed settings, compelling plots, and a variety of strong male and female characters, that my husband enjoys them, too. His comment about Troubled Waters was, "She writes a really good story."

~Gwenyth

Book Review: The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger

2010-10-15T14:09:00.001-05:00

The author of The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry returns with a graphic novel that tells the story of how a young woman from Chicago becomes a librarian on the mysterious Night Bookmobile.

Announging...the 2010 Nobel Prize for Literature!

2010-10-07T11:24:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to Mario Vargas Llosa, winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize for Literature.

Mario Vargas Llosa was born in Peru in 1936 and is being honored for his "cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat."

To find books by Mario Vargas Llosa, click here.

Based on the Book: the Fall Movie Round-Up

2010-10-02T15:07:00.001-05:00

Read 'em before you see 'em! The following films will be coming soon to a theater near you, and are based on fabulous books:

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
Never Let Me Go
Freakonomics
It's Kind of a Funny Story
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part 1
The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Which one are you most excited about?

Banned Books Week is 9/25 through 10/02!

2010-09-24T15:12:00.001-05:00

Banned Books Week is Saturday, September 25 through Saturday, October 2! Celebrate your freedom to read at the Main Library by checking out our display of banned and challenged titles. To learn more about Banned Books Week and related activities in your area, visit the American Library Association's website.

Exclusive Q&A featuring ELOISA JAMES.

2010-09-17T10:51:00.000-05:00

The Fiction Matters blog recently caught up with historical romance author ELOISA JAMES via email for an exclusive Q&A. In addition to being a New York Times best-selling author, Ms. James is a Shakespeare scholar and currently serves as an associate professor and head of the Creative Writing program at Fordham University in New York City. Her latest novel is A Kiss at Midnight. Click here to view a complete list of Ms. James' books.

Fiction Matters (FM): What are you currently reading and/or planning to read?
Eloisa James (EJ): I'm reading an ARC of Nalini Singh's new book. I write a romance column for B&N's Review page that comes out on the first Monday of every month, and the wonderful thing about it is that pretty much all the romances published in the US pour through my mailbox every month. I choose five a month for the column, which means that I get to discover a range of authors that I might not otherwise have known about. Nalini Singh is one of my new favorites. She's a paranormal author from Australia, who has created a fantastic world of changlings, psys, and humans. If you'd like to find out which books I fell in love with lately, here's the URL for my archived reviews.

FM: One book that you will never be too old to love is...
EJ: The Wind in the Willows

FM: You desperately wish you knew how to...
EJ: cure cancer.

FM: How do you make a bad day better?
EJ: Settle down and read a romance with a cup of tea nearby. Or wander into my daughter's bedroom, pry Harry Potter out of her hands, and demand a hug.

FM: Go to the nearest window and look outside. What do you see?
EJ: Broadway! I just moved to New York City. I've wanted to live here my whole life (I grew up on a farm in Minnesota), so our move is absolutely thrilling for me. I love waking up at 5 am, and going into the living room so I can look out at the city when everything is quiet and empty, as if no one lived there at all.

Book Review: Room by Emma Donoghue

2010-09-13T09:00:00.002-05:00

This is a powerful book. A powerful, poignant, unforgettable book.

Room is the story of a college girl who is kidnapped by a man who holds her captive in a locked shed in his back yard for seven years. She finally tries to smuggle her five-year-old son out, hoping he can get help and come back for her.

The story is told by her son Jack. Because of this, the horrific situation is presented as matter-of-fact reality. It's the only reality he knows. He has seen Outside on their TV. All his food and clothes and toys and books have been brought into their Room by Old Nick, his Ma's captor.

Ma has successfully raised him to be trusting, curious, articulate, and cheerful. Needing to take care of him has probably saved her own sanity, and wanting his freedom has galvanized her into desperate action.

This simple story contains many common human stories: constraint, perseverance, yearning, and action. The characters will become a part of you, and through their eyes you will see your own life anew. Your life is bigger than their Room, and your freedom is a grand treasure.

This absorbing novel by Emma Donoghue was recently shortlisted for England's prestigious Man Booker prize, and is also available as an audiobook and in Large Print. Check out the official book trailer here.

--Gwenyth

Review: Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

2010-09-02T10:46:00.000-05:00

The title star of Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman is a twelve-year-old girl who definitely needs saving: her crazy mother has died and her father is mostly absent.

Luckily, her late grandmother's sister, Aunt Tootie, arrives with an invitation to come and live with her in Savannah, Georgia.

CeeCee hesitantly enters a world of resourceful Southern women. The warm embrace of Tootie's friends and neighbors gives her fresh hope for her own future.

Funny, poignant, and encouraging, this novel deserves a place on the shelf with The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd and Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle-Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg.

This is Beth Hoffman's first book. You can get to know her better on her website. I hope she's working on her next novel!

~Gwenyth

Exclusive Q&A: Jennifer Haigh

2010-08-27T11:52:00.001-05:00

We recently caught up with novelist/short story writer JENNIFER HAIGH via email for an exclusive Q&A! Ms. Haigh is a PEN/Hemingway award winner and the author of three masterful literary novels: Mrs. Kimble, Baker Towers, and The Condition. The lovely photo on the left was taken by the very talented Asia Kepka.

Fiction Matters (FM): What are you currently working on?

Jennifer Haigh (JH): I just finished a new novel, THE LOST GOSPEL, which will be published by HarperCollins in May 2011. In the meantime I am trying to finish a collection of stories set in Bakerton, the Pennsylvania mining town where BAKER TOWERS takes place. A number of the characters from BAKER TOWERS – Sandy, Lucy, Joyce – make appearances in these stories. I’ve had a great time writing them. It’s like running into old friends.

FM: What are you currently reading and/or planning to read?
JH: The J.M. Coetzee novel FROM THE HEART OF THE COUNTRY. It’s like a South African version of Faulkner’s AS I LAY DYING, one of my favorite books of all time.

FM: What are your favorite authors?
JH: Coetzee and Faulkner are at the top of my list, which keeps getting longer. Other favorites: William Trevor, Richard Yates, Alice Munro, James Salter, Ian McEwan and Jonathan Franzen.

FM: What do you do when you are not reading/writing?
JH: Cooking and eating could easily take up half my life. I can spend half an hour buying a loaf of bread.

FM: One book that you will never be too old to love is...
JH: CHARLOTTE’S WEB. As a child I wanted to be that spider. Still do.

FM: If you could redo any part of your life, what would you do differently?
JH: There’s no one section I would rewind. Rather, I would go back and do all the things I was too scared to attempt at the time. I don’t regret anything I’ve done, only the things I didn’t do.

FM: You never leave home without...
JH: Anxiety. Every time I travel, I’m convinced I will forget something, and this invariably turns out to be true. Though I usually discover that the forgotten item isn’t nearly as vital to my survival as I thought it was.

FM: The last movie you saw was...
JH: A series of three documentaries by the Swedish filmmaker Stefan Jarl.

FM: The last thing you ate was...
JH: A perfectly ripe peach

FM: Do you have any pets?
JH: I have several houseplants whose days are numbered. I travel a lot, and usually come home to at least one leafy corpse. If I treated an animal this way I’d be in jail.

FM: You desperately wish you knew how to...
JH: “Desperately” is a strong word. I’d love to be able to talk to my father, who died in 2003; but I’m not desperate over it.

FM: Does your life have a soundtrack?
JH: Does anyone’s? I’m jealous.

FM: How do you make a bad day better?
JH: Spending time outdoors, even in bad weather, is like pressing the reset button. Especially in bad weather: a good Nor’easter wipes the brain clean. I love it when weather asserts itself.

Review: Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

2010-08-20T10:13:00.000-05:00

Girl in Translation is Jean Kwok's engrossing foray into fiction. This novel follows the emigration of a brilliant young girl and her mother from Hong Kong to America, shedding light on the realities of sweatshop labor, life below the poverty line, and first love. Simple but moving prose depicts Kimberly Chang's journey from precocious 11-year-old to insightful, goal-oriented college freshman to successful, reflective doctor. Kimberly's story is at once wholly unique and thought-provokingly universal. This will appeal to young adult readers ready to move into adult literature, as well as fans of Lisa See, Amy Tan, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

The audio, expertly narrated by the talented Grayce Wey, is also recommended by Random House as a good readalike for fans of The Help (which I most definitely am).

Review: The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

2010-08-13T10:00:00.001-05:00

In The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, 9-year-old Rose discovers she has an unusual gift: she can taste the emotions of whoever prepares her food. Aimee Bender's poetic prose gently probes the bittersweet implications of Rose's gift as she matures from a precocious youngster to a savvy college-aged young adult. This is a darker shade of magical realism than found in "Like Water for Chocolate" and "Garden Spells," but I found it to be just as moving. Author Aimee Bender narrates the audio version and does an excellent job bringing the text to life.

Warning: this book made me want to bake a cake!

Who's Afraid of Friday the 13th?

2010-08-10T10:19:00.000-05:00

Not you, we're sure! The only "Friday the 13th" in the year 2010 is approaching! Challenge your fear by checking out special displays at the Main Library, the Freeman Road Branch, and the Rand Road Branch this week. Adults, teens, and kids will find a fascinating selection of fiction, nonfiction, and audio items featuring the number "thirteen" in their titles. We dare you to take home thirteen of our "13" books and CDs!

In the mood for a good drama/thriller/mystery?

2010-08-03T12:26:00.007-05:00

In Await Your Reply, Dan Chaon (author of You Remind Me of Me) manages to fold together three narratives in a dramatic thriller that is difficult to put down:

We first meet Ryan Schuyler, a college dropout about to lose his hand.

Then there’s Miles Cheshire. He’s searching for his possibly schizophrenic twin brother, Hayden, who has purposefully been missing for the last ten years.

And finally, Lucy Lattimore. Eighteen and orphaned, she celebrates her high school graduation by running away with her enigmatic history teacher to an abandoned hotel in Nebraska (of all places).

Though at first these characters appear unrelated, slight clues start to suggest otherwise, making the reader wonder how, if at all, the stories can connect.

Await Your Reply was selected as one of the 10 best books of 2009 by Publishers Weekly and as a New York Times notable book.

>>Michelle

Review: Pearl of China by Anchee Min

2010-07-30T11:16:00.001-05:00

In her new novel Pearl of China, Anchee Min weaves novelist Pearl Buck's life story together with that of Willow Yee, an imaginary Chinese girl, who becomes Pearl's friend and goes on to live through the next decades of tumult in her changing country.

Pearl Buck was the daughter of American missionaries. She was raised among the Chinese people of her father's church. She and Willow enjoyed all the adventures they got themselves into.

Pearl came to the U.S. for college and then returned to China and married an American agricultural economist. Willow entered into a difficult marriage, and Pearl's own marriage was also challenging. Pearl began writing novels; Willow became a journalist. Pearl moved to America and for political reasons was never able to return to visit her beloved childhood home.

In Pearl Buck's novels such as The Good Earth, she was able to show Americans the dignity and grace and trials of the lives of everyday Chinese people. The Good Earth won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 and the author went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Pearl of China enriches Pearl Buck's own story with cross-cultural understanding. The author draws the reader into the human drama of the lives of Pearl and Willow.

Anchee Min's first book was her own biography, Red Azalea. She next wrote the story of an American woman, Katherine, who goes to China to teach English, and novels about strong women in Chinese history: Becoming Madame Mao, Wild Ginger¸ Empress Orchid, and The Last Empress.

After you read Pearl of China, you might enjoy a new biography about her, Pearl Buck in China: A Journey to The Good Earth by Hilary Spurling. The story and photos will enhance your experience of the places and events in Anchee Min’s novel.

~ Gwenyth

Readalikes: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

2010-07-23T10:03:00.000-05:00

Are you one of the millions of readers who have recently enjoyed The Help by Kathryn Stockett? Heard the buzz about this book but haven't been able to lay hands on it yet? Whether you're looking for a great readalike or something to whet your reading appetite, this list---compiled by Terry Ratoff of the Skokie Public Library---is sure to come in handy!

Last Minute Summer Vacation

2010-07-10T13:53:00.037-05:00

Palatine Public Library Resort & Spa
Grab a book and enjoy!

Summer is nearly over and before you know it the warm rays will be replaced by cool gusts of wind. The kids will be heading back to school, you'll be pulling out the Winter clothes, and your gardening tools will be tucked away for the next 8 months.

During all the excitement of never-ending work, graduations, summer school and sports practices, did you even have a chance to get away? The Palatine Public Library District would like to invite you to take a trip (all expenses paid) to one of our fabulous destinations. Stay a day, stay a week, or however long you would like...feel free to lose yourself within the pages of these great titles.

Gardenias for Breakfast by Robin Jones Gunn
While taking her daughter Hannah on a trip across the United States to Louisiana to obtain the blessing of her great-grandmother, Abby has unexpected encounters with other members of her family, including her estranged mother.

Burning the Map by Laura Caldwell
Everything is in place: graduation, job, boyfriend, but then the main character decides to take one last vacation abroad with old friends. This trip changes her life.

Love in Idleness: a Novel by Amanda Craig
Casa Luna in Tuscany becomes the scene for a family vacation that forces each traveler to discover significant differences in himself or herself, in a modern-day story of love and lies based on Shakespeares's "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

The Brushstroke Legacy by Lauraine Snelling
Although things aren't running smoothly in her life, Ragni Clauson agrees to fix up her great-grandmother's cabin out in the Badlands, but as she and her rebellious teenage niece, Erika, begin to uncover the art and the life of Nilda, Ragni discovers how much she has in common with this woman from the past century.

Singing with the Top Down by Debrah Williamson
In 1950s America, two young children and their flamboyant, irrepressible aunt Nora embark on a fun-filled, adventurous, and poignant odyssey that takes them to California in a Buick Skylark convertible.

August: a Novel by Gerard Woodward
Ever since Aldous Jones careened over the handlebars of his bicycle in 1955 and landed next to farmer Evan's field, it has become a tradition for him to take his family camping in Wales, believing that a certain symbiosis exists between their lives in their North London home and the Welsh village that they only ever see in August.

Happiness Key by Emilie Richards
When her husband was sent to prison, pampered Tracy Deloche was left with twenty-five acres of Florida Gulf Coast sand, five tumbledown beach houses and no idea how to start over.

Barefoot: a Novel by Elin Hilderbrand
Visiting Nantucket with their children during a summer vacation, three women befriend a local youth and share their struggles with such challenges as infidelity, the loss of a job under scandalous circumstances, and health problems.

The Summer of You by Kate Noble
Lady Jane Cummings is certain that her summer is ruined when she is forced to reside at isolated Merrymere Lake with her reckless brother and ailing father. Her fast-paced London society is replaced with a small town grapevine. But one bit of gossip catches Jane's attention- rumors that the lake's brooding new resident is also an elusive highwayman.

Interested in other new Summer titles? Click HERE for additional vacation destinations.

*All summaries courtesy of NoveList Plus.

Review: The Postmistress by Sarah Blake

2010-07-10T10:27:00.002-05:00

In a small town on Cape Cod, postmaster Iris James does the unthinkable: she intentionally does not deliver a particular letter. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, a young female reporter's chance encounter with an American doctor results in a life-changing journey. The lives of these two women are brought together through an unlikely chain of events in 1940. The result? The Postmistress by Sarah Blake is a sweep-you-away story of love, war, secrets, and timeless questions. Also available in audio and Large Print.

Try it if you liked: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

Book Blurb Search!

2010-07-02T11:27:00.000-05:00

Ever wonder what books your favorite author has loved enough to endorse? Library Thing is a unique social networking website that allows users to share reading suggestions and write reviews. In addition to these features, Library Thing's Common Knowledge page includes a searchable collection of over 20,000 book blurbs. Plug your favorite author into the "search" box in the right-hand corner of the page, select "blurbers," and Library Thing will compile a list of titles that the author has given good press. This is a great way to discover new authors and titles you may have missed.

(P.S. Can't get enough of best-selling author James Patterson? It may be worth noting that he has blurbed about Going to See the Elephant by Rodes Fishburne, Look Again by Lisa Scottoline, and Alfred Kropp: The Thirteenth Skull by Richard Yancey :)

Review: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand

2010-06-24T16:35:00.000-05:00

Debut author Helen Simonson gives us a heartwarming, wryly funny romance in Major Pettigrew's Last Stand (also available in large print and audio).

A retired British army officer, widowed several years before, finds himself shaken and disoriented when he learns of his younger brother's sudden death. A kind neighbor offers to drive him to the funeral and turns out to be unexpectedly good company.

The neighbor, who is the Pakistani widow of the local shopkeeper, loves literature as much as Major Pettigrew does. Their growing friendship becomes a cautious courtship across cultural boundaries as they choose their future together.

I read this book out loud to my husband on a long road trip and we both loved it. Everyone I've recommended it to has liked it, too.

~Gwenyth

Writers in the Family, Part 2

2010-06-17T11:51:00.002-05:00

In May, Fiction Matters highlighted mother-child writing pairs. This month, in honor of Father's Day, we'd like to put the spotlight on father-child writing pairs.

Looks like Scott Laming of Abebooks.com already beat us to the punch though. Laming's great article summarizes ten fabulous father and son writing teams. Our personal favorites are the Waugh family (try Evelyn Waugh's sophisticated examination of post-WWII society, Brideshead Revisited), and Stephen King (remember Carrie?) and his talented son Joe Hill (check out Heart Shaped Box for a midsummer creepfest).

To Laming's list, we'd also like to add award-winning crime author James Lee Burke and his just as talented daughter, Alafair Burke. The novels written by the elder Burke are stirring, lyrical mysteries set primarily in Louisiana and Texas (for a taste of Burke's style, dip into A Stained White Radiance). In 2003, Alafair launched her own career with Judgement Calls, the first of a series of legal thrillers featuring D.A. Samantha Kincaid.

Michael Shaara and son Jeff Shaara are renowned for their richly detailed historical dramas. Jeff wrote a prequel (Gods and Generals) and a sequel (The Last Full Measure) to his father's Pulitzer-Prize winning Civil War novel The Killer Angels.

On the YA side of things, Walter Dean Myers and son Christopher Myers make up an unstoppable author-illustrator team. Walter Dean Myers is best known as the author of realistic fiction that voices the struggles of African-Americans. In books like Monster, Walter Dean's words are complemented by Christopher's artwork. The result? A moving, make-you-think novel that snagged both the Michael Printz Award AND a Coretta Scott King Honor Award in 2000.

Can anyone think of any other father-child writers that deserve a mention?

Susan Elizabeth Phillips: Exclusive Q&A!

2010-06-11T14:07:00.001-05:00

We recently caught up with romance novelist Susan Elizabeth Phillips (that's her in the photo at left!) via email for an exclusive Q&A session! Ms. Phillips is the author of the Chicago Stars series, which begins with It Had to Be You.

Fiction Matters (FM): What are you currently working on?
Susan Elizabeth Phillips (SEP): I just finished CALL ME IRRESISTIBLE, on the shelves January 19, 2010. This is the long awaited story of Ted Beaudine.

FM: What are you currently reading and/or planning to read?
SEP: A new book by Jill Marie Landis.

FM: What are your favorite genres? Your favorite authors?
SEP: I love happy ending books of all sorts.

FM: What do you do when you are not reading/writing?
SEP: Garden, plan another hiking trip, eat something sweet, cook, throw in a load of laundry, unload the dishwasher... (I could go on, but it's starting to get depressing).

FM: One book that you will never be too old to love is...
SEP: Eloise by Kay Thompson

FM: If you could redo any part of your life, what would you do differently?
SEP: Just about every part of high school.

FM: You never leave home without...
SEP: Deodorant. And I hope the rest of you feel the same.

FM: The last movie you saw was...
SEP: Can't remember. I always say I'm going to watch a movie, but I hardly ever get around to it.

FM: The last thing you ate was...
SEP: A bowl of organic cornflakes, and how boring is that?

FM: Do you have any pets?
SEP: Does the spider currently crawling across my office floor count?

FM: You desperately wish you knew how to...
SEP: Sing! (Actually, I do know how, but the result is painful to hear.)

FM: Does your life have a soundtrack?
SEP: Jeeze, I hope not. The noise would be a little distracting.

FM: How do you make a bad day better?

SEP: Hug a grandchild. If one isn't available, I'll grab a neighbor kid.

FM: Go to the nearest window and look outside. What do you see?

SEP: My beautiful backyard is right in front of my office window. {See photo below!}

FM: Participating in this interview has conveniently enabled you to avoid...

SEP: Eating a second bowl of organic cornflakes.

From Dead to Worse...the book with a BITE!

2010-06-07T17:43:00.014-05:00

I stumbled upon Dead Until Dark, the 1st novel in the Southern Vampire Series by Charlaine Harris, some years ago and began reading it on Christmas Eve. I hate to admit that despite the book not being very scary at all (think Twilight scary) I had one of the most horrible nightmares of my life. I put down the book and didn’t tackle anything by Harris for nearly another year. Deciding that, as an adult, I should be mature about the whole situation that Harris and I had and give her another shot, I did. I was instantly and irreversibly drawn into Bon Temps (which sounds more like “Bon Tomp”, thanks to True Blood on HBO), Louisiana.

What I absolutely love about the Southern Vampire World is that it’s really unlike anything I’ve ever read before. Mixing authentic Southern charm with just the right amount of fantasy and mystery, Harris created an unforgettable world of danger and pleasure. Harris also took the concept of Vampires going public to the world, better known as “The Great Revelation” or “Coming out of the Coffin” and created an entire governmental structure to it. Each state is run by a Queen or King and is then divided into areas, which are run by Sheriffs. This 'underworld' of the supernatural community becomes the everyday world of Sookie Stackhouse and her companions. Harris even incorporated Katrina into her series, which undoubtedly changed some of her original storyline. Her books contain heaping spoonfuls of romance for the romantics, suspense for the thrill seekers, rated R content (sex, violence, language) for the mature adults, and great characters for people like me who can't get through a book without falling in love with someone. You'll find some of Harris' writing to be repetitive, like Sookie explaining her daily morning routine (every morning), but Sookie is such a realistic character that you won't mind following her during some of the most boring tasks.

So, now that Harris has been established as an author to be trifled with (as she’s a frequent New York Times Bestseller flyer) let me explain From Dead to Worse. The novel starts out in the aftermath of an attack at a vampire wedding, which left much of Sookie Stackhouse’s world turned upside down. Her current boyfriend is missing, many of the Louisiana vampires are injured, and something very sinister is afoot. A mysterious stranger appears with earth-shattering news that her past isn't what she thought it was and her future certainly will never be the same. Did I mention that Sookie is also a telepath? Gifted, or cursed rather, with reading the thoughts of everyone in town (and them thinking she’s a nut for it), Sookie does her best to try and figure out why mysterious characters (of the supernatural kind) are suddenly appearing around her at every corner…many of them dead. From Dead to Worse is exciting, mysterious, warm and gripping.

~~Sean

THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU

2010-06-02T16:06:00.003-05:00

Jonathan Tropper, author of Plan B and Everything Changes introduces the highly dysfunctional Foxman family in his latest book, This Is Where I Leave You. The novel opens with a phone call:

“‘Dad's dead.’ Wendy says offhandedly, like it's happened before, like it happens every day. It can be grating, this act of hers, to be utterly unfazed at all times, even in the face of tragedy. ‘He died two hours ago.’

‘How's Mom doing?’

‘She's Mom, you know? She wanted to know how much to tip the coroner.’”

Judd Foxman, the recipient of this callous (albeit entertaining) call and the protagonist of the story, now not only has to deal with his father’s death, but also the recent failure of his marriage. His wife of nine years cheated on Judd with his radio-personality boss (think Mancow), and Judd caught them in the act on his wife’s birthday. And to top it all off, his father had one final, dying wish: for his family to sit shiva for seven days. Judd’s family can barely stand being in the same room for an hour, let alone for an entire week.

I liked this book. At times I loved it. The story stayed interesting, what with all the relationship blowouts and family problems. Tropper has an amazing talent for writing, and I found myself laughing aloud at the horrible/hilarious situations. At the same time however, many of the characters were so outlandish, it was hard to really get attached to anyone. Other than that, This Is Where I Leave You was an enjoyable and quick read. I might suggest it to someone who enjoys Dave Eggers' biting wit or David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day.

The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz

2010-05-28T14:41:00.000-05:00

The delightfully quirky main character of The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz is Isabel “Izzy” Spellman. Izzy may be a shameless snoop, but nosiness is in her job description…and her genes. Her parents run Spellman Investigations, a private detective agency based in San Francisco, and Izzy has been on the payroll since the age of 12. Only David, Izzy’s perfectionist older brother, has managed to break free of the family business long enough to pursue a (mostly) respectable living as a lawyer. Rounding out the employee roster and the family tree are Uncle Ray (a former health addict with a fondness for liquor, ladies, and gambling) and kid sister Rae (a 14-year-old sugarholic with a talent for blackmail). It wouldn’t be so bad, really, if Spellman Investigations was a family business that knew how to separate the dinner table from the boardroom; unfortunately, the Spellman clan routinely use their “professional expertise” to dig up dirt on Izzy’s boyfriends. At 28, Izzy is fed up with having her privacy and her love life invaded by the well-meaning, background-checking, busybodies in her family. While gathering surveillance data (a:k.a. spying) on a tennis-playing client, a 37-year-old dentist with a mean backhand catches Izzy’s eye. Izzy finds herself longing for a normal relationship—and a normal life—but “normal” doesn’t exactly run in the family. Is she ready to quit Spellman Investigations and commit to a whole new career—AND a new guy? Before Spellman Investigations will officially accept her resignation, Izzy faces one final assignment: a missing persons case that has stumped the pros for almost fifteen years. Izzy is about to complete her last task when Rae suddenly vanishes, drawing the whole family into a new investigation that hits close to home. Hilarity ensues as Lutz deftly resolves the dual disappearances in a tidy conclusion, blending chick lit and comedy for a sassy, classy cold-case mystery.

Try it if you liked:

Cabot, Meg. Size 12 Is Not Fat (Heather Wells mysteries, book 1). A twenty-something former teen idol investigates a string of mysterious “elevator surfing” deaths at a Manhattan college.

Crusie, Jennifer. Fast Women. Nell’s new job as a secretary at a P.I. firm leads to office romance, office scams, dog-nappings, and a twenty-year-old-who-dunnit.

Evanovich, Janet. One for the Money (Stephanie Plum, book 1). Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum’s first adventure finds her face-to-face with Joe Morelli, a crooked cop...and former flame.

Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby

2010-05-21T11:22:00.001-05:00

Juliet, Naked is the latest offering by British author Nick Hornby and recently earned the distinction of being named a "Best Book of 2009" by Booklist magazine.

Tucker Crowe, a reclusive cult musician, releases his first album after a twenty year hiatus--a career move that ultimately wrecks havoc in the personal relationship between Duncan (a diehard self-proclaimed "Crowologist") and Duncan's long-time girlfriend, Annie. A compulsively readable narrative, well-drawn characters, subtle humor, and no-nonsense insight make this a great book; the audio edition utilizes multiple narrators to bring the story to life, making it a great listen as well.

Try it if you liked Hornby's previous best-seller High Fidelity (or the movie based on it), or Love Is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield.

Announcing...Suburban Mosaic 2010-2011

2010-05-14T15:26:00.000-05:00

Now in its seventh year, the Suburban Mosaic program focuses on fostering cultural understanding through literature. This year's theme is "Making a Difference." Look for the following books on the Suburban Mosaic display in the Main Library:

Adult Title
The Help
by Kathryn Stockett
It's 1962 in Jackson, Mississippi, where maternal Aibileen and her outspoken best friend Minny work as maids for wealthy white families not unlike the one Eugenia ("Skeeter") grew up in. But together, this trio of "ordinary" women bring change to their community, undertaking a risky project to illuminate the experiences of Jackson'sAfrican-American maids and the indignities of segregation. Also excellent on audio!

High School Title
The Carbon Diaries, 2015
by Saci Lloyd
In 2015, global warming has done so much damage that the UK enacts severe carbon rationing. Now 16-year-old Laura must make decisions about daily life that she never imagined. Travel, cell phone use, and the toaster are now rationed. Laura’s world is crumbling and disaster is becoming normal. Laura describes the first year of rationing through diary entries and emails to her cousin in the United States.

Middle School Title
Back Home
by Julia Keller
The story follows an ordinary family forced to deal with an extraordinary loss and shows what battle-scarred families face when their wounded loved ones return home.

Grades 4-5 Title
Notes from the Dog
by Gary Paulsen
Finn is a loner and plans on spending his summer reading and not talking to a lot of people. His life changes when Johanna moves in next door. She is battling cancer and loves gardening. Johanna makes a difference in the lives of Finn, their families, and neighbors. Everyone pulls together to support Johanna and discovers something about themselves in the process.

Grades K-3 Title
Listen to the Wind

by Greg Mortenson
A remarkable story about Greg Mortenson’s first building project in Pakistan is told through simple text and colorful collages. A scrapbook follows the story, displaying photographs of the events, the village's inhabitants, and key players who helped ensure the success of the project.

Preschool-K Title
How to Heal a Broken Wing

by Bob Graham
This cartoon-like picture book will delight our youngest readers. Only tiny Will notices a bird, which broke its wing flying into a skyscraper, lying on the sidewalk. Will and his mom nurse the injured bird then set it free. Making a difference, indeed.

Writers in the Family!

2010-05-08T10:12:00.000-05:00

In preparation for Mother's Day, Fiction Matters shines the spotlight on mother-child writing teams.

P.C. and Kristin Cast co-author the sizzling House of Night series starring vampyre Zoe Redbird. Zoe's adventures begin with Marked.

Bestsellers seem to be in the genes of the Rice family. Anne Rice is known for gothic paranormal fiction, such as Interview with a Vampire. Her son, Christopher Rice, is also a bestselling author. His latest, The Moonlit Earth, hit shelves this past April.

Traci and P.J. Lambrecht write suspense under the pseudonym P.J. Tracy. In 2003, their novel Monkeewrench earned the coveted Anthony Award for mystery fiction.

Another famous mystery-writing team are the Higgins Clarks: that is, Mary Higgins Clark and daughter Carol Higgins Clark. While both women author their own individual series, they occasionally come together to pen Christmas mysteries such as Santa Cruise.

On the fantasy side of things, we have Jane Yolen and son Adam Stemple. They are the authors of the middle-grade novel Troll Bridge: a Rock 'n Roll Fairy Tale.

Literary fiction and women's fiction are not without their mother-child author stars. Poet and novelist Erica Jong made waves with Fear of Flying in 1973. Her daughter, Molly Jong-Fast, was just 21 when she launched her own writing career with Normal Girl.

Carolyn See is best known as the author of contemporary novels set in California, such as There Will Never Be Another You. Lisa See, Carolyn's daughter, explores the plight of Chinese-Americans and Chinese women in books like Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

Most recently, Sue Monk Kidd (of Secret Life of Bees fame) teamed up with daughter Ann Kidd Taylor to pen Traveling With Pomegranates: a Mother-Daughter Story.

Phew!

Now then: that's a good list...but surely incomplete. Who did we miss?!

(And don't forget to visit the Fiction Matters blog in June when we look at father-child writing teams!)

Who's in Your Book Family?

2010-04-27T14:56:00.000-05:00

Some of my favorite book characters seem as close as my real family and friends. They function as mentors, examples, and inspirations to me.

Cordelia Vorkosigan is a brilliant, serene aristocrat who married into her rank and lives it with inspired strength and kindness. She is in Lois McMaster Bujold's series that begins with Shards of Honor.

Lucilla Eliot in Elizabeth Goudge's The Heart of the Family, Pilgrim's Inn, and The Bird in the Tree is the beloved matriarch of an English family in the 1940's. She keeps her family together with determination, creativity, and faith.

Jean Auel set her Earth's Children series 30,000 years ago in Europe. The main character, Ayla, endures her difficult childhood and emerges as a creative, loving healer. Ayla's journey begins in The Clan of the Cave Bear.

Other favorite characters include Precious Ramotswe (from The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith), Lori Shepherd (from The Aunt Dimity Mysteries by Nancy Atherton, beginning with Aunt Dimity's Death), Marty Davis (from the Love Comes Softly series by Janette Oke), and Harriet Vane (from the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries of Dorothy Sayers).

I often re-read the books that these women live in. I know their stories as well as I know the history of my own family.

When a challenging situation comes up, I'm just as likely to think what one of them would do in that situation as I am to think what my family or friends would do.

Who are your favorite book characters? Spend some time in their company soon!

The Secret Life of Abraham Lincoln?

2010-04-23T14:23:00.008-05:00

Boy, did we get it wrong! The life of Abraham Lincoln was much more interesting and horrific than we knew...

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith follows the unearthed secret diary of our Nation's 16th President. Following the same pattern of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, his earlier remake of Jane Austen's classic, we find that Lincoln is actually a skilled vampire slayer with a vendetta against the undead for the murders of his mother and grandfather.

With the aid of good vampire, Henry Sturges, Lincoln makes a stand against the evil vampires that are flooding to our country from Europe, thanks to the promise of dinner through our slave trade. Lincoln reveals that our Civil War was actually a battle against the Southern Vampires and their intention of enslaving the North for feeding.

Grahame-Smith introduces a fresh, clever twist on Lincoln's life and the history of our country. For any history or fantasy lover, you're sure to be pleased. Check out your copy today...

~~Sean

Patron Picks!

2010-04-22T11:29:00.005-05:00

We have a new display under the stairs on the first floor called "Patron Picks". This is where YOU decide to share the books you love with your community.

If you have any ideas for books you'd like to have displayed here, please email me and I'll get them right up!

caustin@palatinelibrary.org

Verse Novels for National Poetry Month

2010-04-08T15:54:00.000-05:00

April is National Poetry Month! Need a little inspiration? Verse novels combine the pageturning plots of fiction with the rollicking rhythms of poetry. Here are a few to try:

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

Billie Jo describes the trials and triumphs of life in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl during the Great Depression.

Sharp Teeth by Toby Barlow

Gambling werewolves contend for control of Los Angeles in a verse novel that expertly and unexpectedly combines horror, noir, and romance.

Sold by Patricia McCormick

Hauntingly beautiful free-verse poems narrate a thirteen-year-old girl’s journey from an impoverished hut in rural Nepal to a brothel in urban India.

Your Own, Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill

This vivid novel-in-poems chronicles the brief and brilliant life of poet Sylvia Plath, from her precocious childhood to an adulthood addled with depression and ambition to her tragic suicide at the age of 30. Drawing inspiration from both primary and secondary sources, Hemphill narrates Plath’s rise and demise through the eyes of her mother, brother, lovers, husband and friends.

It's Beginning to Hurt Review

2010-04-05T12:28:00.006-05:00

James Lasdun’s newest short story collection, It’s Beginning to Hurt, offers an impressive array of captivating anecdotes. Most of these stories feature British or American protagonists living in New York or London, who, while rambling about middle age, find themselves in a bit of trouble.

Some grapple with disease, others with infidelity. In one story, a man falls into a heaping pool of garbage-filled mud and in another a fanatical (and egotistical) environmentalist receives his comeuppance.

However, these categorizations and plot descriptions only scratch the surface of Lasdun’s latest book. Each work tumbles out of the page in a burst of energy, every sentence holds importance and each character has a uniquely fresh perspective.

What I find most compelling in James Lasdun’s stories, however, is his ability to understand and relay emotion and the human condition so effortlessly. By the end of each story, I felt attached to the characters. I understood them in some way or related to them regardless of how different their lives might have been from my own. I highly recommend this book. Lasdun is a masterful writer and I enjoyed every story.

“An Anxious Man,” the first story in the collection, won Britain’s coveted Short Story Prize. Lasdun’s collection also received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews and was named one of Library Journal’s Best Books of 2009.

Asterios Polyp

2010-03-29T13:30:00.015-05:00

I have a confession to make. Last week I read my first full length graphic novel. And it was fantastic.

For anyone who thinks graphic novels are synonymous with comic books, think again. Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli chronicles the life of the title character in a story narrated by his still-born twin brother.

At the beginning of the book, Asterios appears to have been mildly defeated by life. Though once a famous professor of architecture, whose award-winning designs have never once been built, he is now unemployed and lives entirely alone (except for the spectral company of his deceased brother). His apartment burns to the ground, and Asterios buys a bus ticket, effectively escaping his current state.

By bouncing from the past to the present, the narrator gradually clues the reader in on Asterios’ younger years. This method beautifully shows how Asterios’ perspective on life has developed and changed from his time as a pompous, boisterous professor who saw the world only in black and white to the quieter, wiser older man he becomes.

I really enjoyed this book. Also, as a graphic novel, the way the story unfolds had a powerful effect on how I read and understood the story. Mazzucchelli uses different colors for the characters during varying times in Asterios’ life, different characters have distinctive speech bubbles that correspond with their personalities, and the author offers poignant description in pictures as well as words.

It was a good, thought-provoking read, definitely philosophical and academic at times but not excessively so. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys graphic novels already or who might want to hop onto the increasingly popular GN bandwagon.

We're Loving Frank! How 'Bout You?

2010-02-01T11:43:00.000-06:00

Take a powerful, ambitious man and an unconventional mother of two. Add a clandestine romance and a suburb-shaking scandal, and top it all off with a shocking conclusion and you’ve got Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. This novel is our selection for Palatine Public Library District’s eighth annual One Book, One District program.

Loving Frank is a historical novel that explores the scandalous love aff air of architect Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Cheney, an independent, educated and married woman, who gave up her family to be with Wright. Author Nancy Horan artistically blends fact and fiction, illuminating Cheney’s influence on the successful architect. With romance, history, feminism and architecture, this is a novel that truly has “something for everyone,” and a novel that everyone will be talking about. Be part of the conversation by checking out a copy of the book, participating in a discussion, or attending a presentation that will bring the story to life. Click here to learn more about the One Book, One District program and view a complete list of this year's upcoming discussions and presentations.

Curious about the facts that inspired Horan's fictional tale? Marlene, our One Book, One District program coordinator, has dug up some great supplementary articles to help you put the novel in context! Learn more about the Mystery of the Murders at Taliesin and don't miss the original report that appeared in The Weekly Home News on August 20, 1914.

Review of The Bride's Farewell

2010-01-21T20:25:00.008-06:00

In Meg Rosoff's latest book, The Bride's Farewell, readers are transported to rural England in the 1850s. The book begins with a gallop, literally, and the pace never slows from page one. Pell Ridley is a runaway bride, and on the morning of her wedding, she takes her trusty horse, Jack, and rides away from a future of toil and child-rearing and into a future of uncertainty and adventure. Except that Bean, her mute younger brother, stubbornly insists on joining her. And so the unlikely trio of heroes face the open road together.

Pell is a fiercely independent heroine, and sometimes a bit too hard-headed, which gets her into trouble. But, she does have one talent: she knows horses, meaning she can discern their nature and temperament with just a glance. Trained from a young age by the local blacksmith to raise horses, Pell thinks her experience will help her find work at the Salisbury horse fair. With that vague destination in mind, they set off, having never been far beyond the limits of their small, impoverished village.

While reading the story, I couldn't help but be reminded of the limited freedom women had back then (and continue to have, in some cases). For instance, townsfolk make all kinds of presumptions about the moral character of an unaccompanied young woman traveler with a small child. Pell is also paid much less whenever she finds work because she is female. She also has little or no education, since her father only provided formal schooling for his sons. Growing up, Pell saw her mother waste away under the burden of raising nine children without support from her drunken husband, and says to herself, "Not now, not ever." Even though she knows she could love Birdie (her fiance and childhood sweetheart), she knows the lack of freedom would kill her spirit in the end.

Although the book is short, it has an epic, sweeping feel, like one of Robin McKinley's novels. (It's almost The Hero and the Crown--fiesty, unconventional heroine with a white horse, minus the dragon-slaying, of course). The sights and sounds of the bustling Salisbury fair give you glimpses into a bygone era, and the author describes the milieu of gypsies, traders, and horses with such description that you wonder if she had been there herself. When Bean becomes separated from Pell and she faces all kinds of hardships, you can't help but feel lost with despair along with Pell. But, you also keep hoping, right along with her. This is a great read for young adult and adult escapists, dreamers, and adventurists.

I'll end with one of my favorite passages from the book that best defines Pell's character:

For those poor souls who can only think of the terrible fear and danger of a runaway horse, think of this: a speed like water flowing over stone, a skimming sensation that hovers and dips while the world spins around and the wind drags your skin taut across your bones. You can close your eyes and lose yourself in the rhythm, because nothing you do or shout or wish for will happen until the running makes up its mind to stop. So you hold steady, balancing yourself in the wake, and unhook your mind from the everyday while you wait at the silent center of it all and hope that the feeling won't stop till you're good and ready for life to be ordinary once more.

The problem being that she never was.

--Megan

Photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/25143217@N05/ / CC BY 2.0

Pink Paranormal Activity @ your Library

2010-01-07T16:42:00.025-06:00

There seems to be something strange going on at the Library today. The weather? Books? Reading? No, this is something that can't be chalked up to mere coincidence: an odd majority of us showed up wearing pink today! This is a full-blown, but rare case of unplanned pink contagion. It must be noted that another pink-clad librarian is missing from the photo because she had to officiate a Scrabble program (like that's an excuse!). Strange forces are definitely at work, and the investigative team behind Fiction Matters will get to the bottom of this sartorial mystery.

In the meantime, enjoy reading these criminally bright pink books. Click on the cover to find out more information about each title.

To read a local teen's review of How to Say Goodbye in Robot, click here (Even my Mom enjoyed this book, and she's a certifiable adult!).

Are YOU secretly a part of the pink mob?! Send us a pink mugshot of yourself reading your favorite pink book, and you might appear on this blog. Simply email your photo to mower@palatinelibrary.org before February 1.

Just when she thought the coast was clear, another pink librarian was spotted, reading the teen blog. (It all began on the teen blog, and now it's spread to this blog! Like we said, it's a super strain of pinkness.)

Until further notice, anyone wearing pink will be regarded with a high level of suspicion.

The Book Thief

2010-01-04T15:37:00.006-06:00

I cannot recommend The Book Thief, by Australian author Markus Zusak, enough. Death narrates this powerful story about a girl named Liesl Meminger growing up poor in Germany in the years before and during WWII. Death’s account begins the first time he sees Liesl, trundling along on a train with her dying brother and soon-to-be estranged mother. At her brother’s funeral, Liesl steals her first book, The Gravedigger’s Handbook, and is shortly thereafter whisked away to reside with foster parents on Himmel Street. She forms a quick, deep bond with her accordion-playing foster father who uses the stolen gravedigger guide to teach Liesl to read every night when she wakes up screaming from a recurring nightmare.

The story builds around book thievery and the complex characters that circle Liesl’s life, including a blonde best friend who idolizes Jesse Owens, her strict but well-meaning foster mother, a fugitive Jewish boxer, and the eternally grieving mayor’s wife who lets Liesl read all the books she wants. Liesl continues to grow up and read even as the war escalates and the relative stability of her life in Germany begins to crumble. And through this tumultuous climate, she realizes not only the beauty but also the intense power of words.

Zusak himself also clearly has great control over words, as evidenced by his strong prose and creative descriptions. The Book Thief is a powerful, touching read. Though marketed in the U.S. as a book for young adults, Markus Zusak’s story and its subject will appeal to teens and adults alike.

Best Books of 2009!

2009-12-15T11:03:00.004-06:00

Mid-December madness is upon us, and the forecast is calling for flurries--that is, a flurry of "Best of 2009" listmaking! Not sure where to start? Here's a handy list of lists to help you get a handle on the books, authors, and awards that have shaped the literary atmosphere in 2009:

BEST OF 2009 LISTS
Amazon.com
Amazon's "Best of 2009" store

Barnes and Noble
Barnes and Noble, "Best Books of 2009"

Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, "Best Books of 2009"

Borders
Borders, "Best of 2009"

Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune's "Favorite Books of 2009"

Overbooked
Overbooked's Starred Review Lists

NOTABLE AWARDS
2009 National Book Award
Colum McCann took top honors in the fiction category this year for Let the Great World Spin. Rounding out the list of finalists were:

Bonnie Jo Campbell, American Salvage
Daniyal Mueenuddin, In Other Rooms, Other Wonders
Jayne Anne Phillips, Lark and Termite
Marcel Theroux, Far North

2009 Nobel Prize in Literature
This year's prize was awarded to German author Herta Muller. Her novels include The Land of Green Plums, The Appointment, The Passport, and Traveling on One Leg.

2009 Man Booker Prizes
Alice Munro received the 2009 Man Booker International Prize for achievement in fiction. Munro's latest publication is Too Much Happiness, a collection of short stories.

The 2009 Man Booker Prize for Fiction went to Hilary Mantel's novel Wolf Hall. Rounding out the shortlist were:

A.S. Byatt, The Children's Book
J.M. Coetzee, Summertime
Adam Foulds, The Quickening Maze
Simon Mawer, The Glass Room
Sarah Waters, The Little Stranger

2009 Pulitzer Prize
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout was honored with the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in the Fiction category. Also nominated were:

Louise Erdrich, The Plague of Doves
Christine Schutt, All Souls

Wowie zowie, that is quite a lot of books! Got a favorite or know of a good title that all of these experts seem to have overlooked? Let us know! Share your thoughts by posting a comment!

Gift Ideas: Traveling With Pomegranates

2009-12-03T15:45:00.004-06:00

Sue Monk Kidd is best known as the author of The Secret Life of Bees. Her new book, Traveling With Pomegranates, isn't a novel, but I found it to be as engaging as any fiction narrative.

Traveling With Pomegranates is a dual memoir that weaves together the experiences of a mother (Sue Monk Kidd) and her college-aged daughter (Ann Kidd Taylor). In alternating chapters, Sue and Ann describe how a series of trans-Atlantic trips and change-of-life events (namely: menopause, college graduation, marriage, and depression) deepen their relationship with one another. Along the way, Sue discloses the circumstances that led to the creation of her breakthrough novel, and Ann gathers the courage to chase down a dream. Their experiences will speak to a variety of readers. Would-be writers will be inspired by the development of Ann's authorial convictions; fans of The Secret Life of Bees will be spellbound by the details of Sue's writing process; and all mothers and daughters will appreciate the special bond that these authors share.

I'm a big fan of giving books as gifts, so I'm always looking for stories that I can share with the folks dearest to my heart. I gave my mom a copy of Traveling With Pomegranates for her birthday this past September. Being able to share this book with my mother made her birthday a happy occasion for both of us.

Looking for something to share with the book-loving mom or grown-up daughter in your life? Traveling With Pomegranates is a great choice; and if you're feeling fancy, it'd be a wonderful starting point for a themed gift basket:

Find a pretty basket;
round up a copy of Traveling With Pomegranates; a copy of Kidd's best-selling novel and a DVD of the film;
bring the stories to life by tucking in a journal, a jar of honey, and a fresh pomegranate;
tie a festive bow around the handle;
and prepare to grow closer to someone you love!

Olive Kitteridge

2009-11-16T13:54:00.001-06:00

It seems like autumn is an extra-busy time of year for us booklovers. One year is winding down; another is posed to begin. The chill winds strip the leaves from the trees, and we prepare to reflect. We find ourselves striking a balance between catching up (on the stories and award winners that made waves throughout the year) and getting ahead (discovering the books that will shape the coming year). For me, this means that I've FINALLY had a chance to pick up Olive Kitteridge, winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction--and I'm really glad that I did.

Olive Kitteridge is uniquely structured, and that's one of the things that I like about it. The novel consists of thirteen interlocking stories set in a small Maine town. The stories are bound together by the common setting and the presence of a common character: a spit-n-vinegar, no-nonsense, retired schoolteacher named Olive Kitteridge. This "novel in stories" is a richly nuanced exploration of the way things grow and change as time drums on. Probing insights and "aha!" moments are keenly balanced with touches of humor, making this novel a great pick for bookclubs.

Small confession: I didn't actually read this book; technically, I listened to it. The audiobook is narrated by Sandra Burr, and she does an excellent job bringing the text to life. I'm in the habit of cueing up audiobooks while I tackle a seemingly endless list of Really Boring Grown-Up Things (like dusting). But this was one of those magical audiobooks that enchanted me in such a way that I often found myself abandoning Really Boring Grown-Up Things in order to give Burr's narration my full attention. (Likewise, while I am proud to have finally caught up on a little reading, I seem to be a bit behind on the dusting...) (Ah-choo!)

Elizabeth Strout published two novels prior to penning Olive Kitteridge. I haven't read (or listened to...) Abide With Me or Amy and Isabelle, but I just might have to make that a Reading Resolution for 2010.

Love and Faith on the Prairie

2009-10-12T16:18:00.001-05:00

Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series is heartwarming, memorable, and inspiring.

I was introduced to it in the early 1980's in southern Ohio, where I was working in a small town library. A teen girl, who was high-spirited enough that I was in the habit of cringing when she walked in the door of the library after school, came up to me with a paperback book and said, "You have to read this. It's just wonderful." She had tears in her eyes.

I read the book. It was by the wife of a Canadian pastor. And it was wonderful. I ordered a copy of the book for the library and followed the series as it was published, buying myself a copy of each new title.

This is the story of a pioneer family formed when Clark Davis, a widower with a farm and a baby girl, asks Marty Claridge to marry him. Marty and her husband Clem had just arrived in Clark's small town, hoping to stake a claim to a farm, when Clem was killed in an accident. He has just been buried.

Marty has no resources to go back home. Clark needs somebody to mother his daughter, and offers Marty a place to live and work to do. She accepts.

From this traumatic beginning grows a great love and a big family. Clark shares his faith with Marty. They raise foster children along with their own. They see their town grow and their grandchildren grow up.

The eight books of the series take us through to the marriage of Clark and Marty's youngest daughter. A later series, Prairie Legacy, tells in four books the story of the next generation of the family.

This is a series that I've enjoyed over and over. Some books become comfortable and comforting friends, and these have become that to me. I wish I could meet the characters in person over a cup of tea.

The author of these books has her own website. Make yourself a cup of tea, bring it to your computer, and get to know her online.

Then, if you haven't read Love Comes Softly, come to the library and check it out. I hope you enjoy it enough to read the whole series.

On Your Mark, Get Set, Go! - 2009 Chicago Marathon

2009-10-05T16:40:00.032-05:00

Enjoy running? Then not only would you appreciate watching the mix of world-class and Average Joe runners gut it out during the Chicago Marathon this weekend, but go ahead and pick up the tell-all book Chicago Marathon by Raymond Britt. It was released on September 21st, and will be available shortly to check out at our library, and it sounds fantastic! Here is a quick synopsis, courtesy of Amazon.com:

On Saturday, September 23, 1905, fifteen determined runners bolted at the sound of the starter's gun to begin an amazing journey of distance and endurance: the first Chicago Marathon. Huge crowds witnessed a thrilling race that had it all: action, disaster, suspense, a fallen favorite, and a cliff-hanger ending. It was epic, defining a new chapter in Chicago's athletic history. More than a century later, each year Chicago welcomes nearly 40,000 inspiring runners-from the world's best to complete novices-who will start, discover, battle, and ultimately finish something they once thought impossible, even ridiculous: the Chicago Marathon, all 26 miles, 385 yards. This book takes the reader into the marathon experience, including the sights, sounds, emotions, challenges, and achievements.

Chicago certainly stands out among other marathons. For one thing, it is one of the largest road races in the world, and one in which the terrain barely changes- we are flat as flat can be! Also, it is one of the five World Marathon Majors, along with Boston, Berlin, London and New York.

Besides our easy breathing climate, what else attracts runners to participate? Is our quaint Midwestern charm? That they may grab a slice of deep dish pizza on the way to the finish line? Find out by reading runner essays and diaries. These intensely personal accounts are shared by the runners themselves and reveal why they have decided to take on such an extreme physical challenge.

All this reading may have you geared up to sign for the 2010 Chicago Marathon. In that case, the library has tons more books on running a marathon. Some of these are The Marathon Runner’s Handbook, by Bruce Fordyce, Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger, A Race Like No Other by Liz Robbins, and Strides by Benjamin Cheever. So bring a book, and come out and cheer the runners of the 2009 Chicago Marathon, starting at 7:30 am in Grant Park on Sunday, October 11th. Who knows- you may be reading a book about it in the future!

OOPS! Edit

Since this is indeed a fiction blog, I want to thank one of our readers for bringing to our attention that this is indeed a NON-fiction book! Although it sounds like a great read, here are some books from the Palatine Library Adult Fiction and Youth Fiction sections that may strike your fancy!

Once a Runner: A Novel by John L. Parker Jr., While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky, Running Shoes by Frederick Lipp, and Fast Company by Rich Wallace.

Book Review: The Handmaid's Tale

2009-09-30T11:43:00.007-05:00

As a fan of dystopian literature in the vein of Orwell and Huxley, I picked up The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood a couple years ago. If you haven't read this engrossing and chilling tale, consider celebrating Banned Books Week with this title. Written with an elegant lyricism, this book has been challenged in some communities for profanity and depictions of sex, according to the Banned Books: 2007 Resource Guide by Robert P. Doyle. One challenger even included "hopelessness" on the list of objections. Yes, this book deals head-on with political oppression, religious extremism, environmental degradation, and individual resistance. But, it's through grappling with these kinds of issues that we can begin to understand many of the conflicts in the world around us today.
So, let me introduce you to Offred. Offred used to have a real name and lived a relatively normal life in suburban America. That was before the United States was overtaken by religious extremists that renamed the country The Republic of Gilead. Now she is a Handmaid and must work for her assigned family. She is not allowed to leave their house unless accompanied by the Commander and his wife. There seems to be no escape. This is The Handmaid's Tale in her own words.
For other titles in dystopian literature, try: Anthem by Ayn Rand, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, 1984 by George Orwell, The Children of Men by PD James, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Jennifer Government or Company by Max Barry, The Giver by Lois Lowry, The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, or V for Vendetta graphic novel by Alan Moore.
Have I left any out? Feel free to add any additional malcontents to the list in the comments section below!

Banned Books Week: Celebrate the Freedom to Read!

2009-09-25T10:43:00.001-05:00

This week at the Library we are celebrating your right to read with a special book display. Our Banned Books Week display highlights books that have been challenged or banned for various reasons in various communities. A catalog provided by the American Library Association has explanations of why each book was perceived as dangerous. Click here to download a PDF version of the catalog of Books Challenged & Banned in 2008-2009.

The American Library Association has this to say on the difference between a challenge and a banning: "A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained."

Banned Books Week has been observed during the last week of September since 1982. It reminds us that while not every book is intended for every reader, each of us has the right to decide for ourselves what to read, listen to, or view.

And speaking of challenges, the Library's remodeling project makes it a bit challenging to find the display--it's on the lighted shelves just beyond the entrance to the Audio-Visual Department, right next to the blocked off area where our new staircase is being constructed.

Banned Books Week 2009 is from September 26-October 3. Please join us in celebrating our right to access books without censorship. Stop by the display and choose a book to check out today!

Don't miss Windy City Comicon and the Palatine Oktoberfest!

2009-09-18T11:37:00.001-05:00

Attention comic book fans and undercover superheroes of the Northwest Suburbs! The second annual Windy City Comicon will take place Saturday, September 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Programs include a Windy City Sketch Jam, an after-hours party, and presentations by J. Torres, Gene Ha, Jeffrey Brown, and other highly acclaimed artists and writers.

Looking for something that hits a little closer to home? The Rotary Club of Palatine will usher in the autumn season with a weekend Oktoberfest. The festivities kick off at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, September 18 and the music, food, and fun continues through Sunday, September 20. Family Day is Saturday, September 19 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Kids, adults, and seniors will be treated to an afternoon of storytelling, tai chi, and puppetry. You'll even have a chance to preview an exciting new program that will be coming to the Palatine Public Library District this winter via a special presentation conducted by one of our very own librarians!

Oprah Update!

2009-09-18T10:41:00.000-05:00

This just in: Oprah has selected the short story collection Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan for her book club.

Coming Soon: a new Oprah Book Club selection!

2009-09-11T12:19:00.001-05:00

Media mogul Oprah Winfrey kicks off her 24th season on Monday, September 14th, and she'll be capping off the first week with a special treat for bookworms! As she announced via Twitter,

"Hey all you BookClubbers. Tune in Friday, September 18th to find out what my new book club pick is--never made a selection like 'this'."

Check out Oprah's previous book club selections here. Think you know what the new book might be? Share your hunches with us by posting a comment in this blog!

The Local Beat: Granta's 'Chicago' Issue

2009-09-04T10:52:00.001-05:00

The premiere British literary magazine Granta recently announced that it will devote its entire Fall 2009 issue to the Chicago bookscape! Editor John Freeman discusses the highlights of the upcoming issue in this video:

To celebrate the launch of the new issue, a week-long series of literary festivities will sweep through the Windy City's streets from Monday, September 14 through Sunday, September 20.

Can't make any of these events...but still want to show some booklove for the City of Big Shoulders? Drop by the Main Library during the month of September and check out the Chicago Fiction display in the Popular Materials Department! And while the authors and titles are still fresh in your mind, take a minute to tell us which writers have most aptly captured the true spirit of Chicago. Post a comment in this blog to share your favorites.

The weekend is coming! Got plans?

2009-08-27T09:00:00.001-05:00

Fall is right around the corner, but you can still squeeze in a little late-summer fun this weekend! The 10th annual Palatine Street Fest kicks off on Friday, August 28 and continues through Sunday, August 30. Join us for games, races, food, music and more at the "biggest block party around." Our Bookmobile will be at the festival on Sunday from 11:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., so don't forget to stop in and say hi!

A new (and yet old) Star Wars novel!

2009-08-22T10:40:00.004-05:00

It's going to be hard to write this review with no spoliers, but I'll do my best.

*Takes deep breath and plunges in*

Everything old is new again in Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor. In an attempt to get back to the one-shot adventure stories of the Star Wars of yore, author Matthew Stover takes us back to events that occur sometime between Kathy Tyer's The Truce at Bakura and Dave Wolverton's The Courtship of Princess Leia. After the destruction of the second Death Star, a fledgling New Republic has been established. But the Empire still exists in several remnants throughout the galaxy--the most dangerous being led by a mysterious Dark-side user known only as Lord Shadowspawn. In an effort to smack down the Imperial remnant when they least expect it, Luke Skywalker leads a surprise naval assault against Shadowspawn's base on the planet Mindor.

Of course, the assault is not at all a surprise to the bad guys, and Han, Leia, Lando, Wedge and even some Mandalorians (LOVE those guys!) are required to fly in and rescue Luke and Artoo, who narrates parts of the novel and has a wonderful voice.

Out of five stars, I would give this novel a solid three. It does work well as a one-shot adventure story, but it lacks the intrigue of Bakura and the emotional punch of Kristine Kathryn Rusch's The New Rebellion, another excellent standalone novel. A word of warning to fans of other Star Wars novels, particularly those of Timothy Zahn--this novel breaks canon in a way that I found seriously annoying. Stover's explanation of who the actual bad guy is (was?) is all fine and good, but there is NO POSSIBLE WAY that Luke could have understood this, as the concept isn't introduced to him for another, oh, seven years or so. Grrrrr. In my book, breaking canon gets you an automatic one-star deduction no matter what.

If you are a Goodreads member and would like to see my less professional and more spoiler-filled review of this book, you can check it out here.

What the Windy City Reads...

2009-08-21T13:17:00.003-05:00

Wondering what your neighbors are adding to their bookshelves? According to the New York Times, Sherrilyn Kenyon's Bad Moon Rising is the hot title of the week. On a local level, Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville reports that the best-selling books in the Chicagoland area are:

HARDCOVER FICTION
1) South of Broad by Pat Conroy
2) That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo
3) The Help by Kathryn Stockett
4) The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
5) Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

PAPERBACK FICTION
1) The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
2) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
3) Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
4) The Time Traveler's Wife by Aufrey Niffenegger
5) Mudbound by Hillary Jordan

Click here to view all current bestsellers at Anderson's Bookshop.
Click here to visit the NYT Bestseller Homepage.

In theaters: The Time Traveler's Wife

2009-08-14T14:41:00.008-05:00

NOW PLAYING IN A THEATER NEAR YOU!

In The Time Traveler's Wife, Henry (a librarian) and Clare (an artist) struggle to keep their marriage together as they contend with the consequences of a genetic disorder that renders Henry an unwilling timetraveler. A film based on this best-selling novel by local author Audrey Niffenegger opens in theaters today!

Check out the trailer.
Click here to view local showtimes.
And don't miss the book!

Welcome!

2009-08-10T15:37:00.007-05:00

This blog was created by the friendly staff of the Reader Advisory department at the Palatine Public Library District. We believe that fiction matters, and we look forward to sharing matters of fiction (reviews, news, and lots of etcetera!) with you.

As Barry Lopez (author of Resistance and other novels) once explained, "Everything is held together with stories. That is all that is holding us together, stories and compassion."

Thanks for visiting our blog!

May the stories that hold us together always end

"happily ever after."