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Book Review: Into the Water

First line: I was very young when I was cracked open.

Summary: The Drowning Pool as it has been dubbed by the locals is where several women have been found dead. Julia has not been back to her hometown in many years and rarely spoken to her sister. However, when she gets the call that her sister, Nel, has been found in the water she has to travel back to take care of her fifteen-year-old niece, Lena. As the police look into the two most recent deaths of Nel and a young girl named Katie, they begin to discover that they might be connected.

Highlights: I listened to this as an audio book and was happy to find that many of the characters had different readers. When there are, multiple points of view listening can be very difficult. The story was suspenseful enough to keep it interesting. I liked that several different storylines were intertwined with the main plot. The chapters are nice and short which make the story move along quickly. This is a fast read and great for rainy day.

Lowlights: I felt like the ending was a little predictable. I was not 100% sure with who Nel’s killer was but it was not hard to figure out once several more pieces fell into place.

FYI: Perfect for readers of Gone Girl and The Couple Next Door.

Notary services at the library

What is a notary public?

A notary public is an official appointed by the Secretary of State to witness signing and verifying the identity of the signers. We have six notaries on staff here at the library in an effort have one available at all times the library is open.

The task of a notary public is an important one. Many companies want to know that the person who is filling out and signing paperwork is who they claim to be. A notary will then view the signer’s photo ID and match the face and signature to the one presented on the identification.

Before becoming a notary public, I had very little idea what their official tasks were. However, since I was appointed I have learned a lot through interactions with patrons and fellow notaries. It is important to make sure that the documents are completed, the person proves who they are and that they sign in front of the notary public.

There are many different forms that have to be notarized such as conceal and carry, piercing permissions, and wills. Every document is different, which can get confusing. Some documents have detailed instructions and others do not. We often get questions about how to fill in the forms but since we have no legal training, it is not something we can usually answer. We do try to help them find answers if possible.

There are fewer businesses offering notary services in the area, and businesses that offer notary services often charge for the service. Here at the library it’s free of charge. Please call ahead to make sure there is a notary available.

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Book review: Ash and Quill

Cover of Ash and Quill, the third book in The Great Library series by Rachel Caine Ash and Quill (The Great Library #3)
by Rachel Caine

First line: Books burned so easily.

Summary: This series is a fun alternate-reality take on the world, if the Great Library of Alexandria had survived and ended up ruling the world. As a book-lover, it’s interesting to read about a world where ownership of original printed books is against the law. The story line moves along at a great pace in this book, with lots of twists and turns and surprises along the way. Jess, Thomas and his friends find themselves in the Burner city of Philadelphia, as prisoners. Thomas’s skills are quickly drawn upon by Willinger Beck, who runs the city, which has been under siege by the High Garda of the Great Library for about a century. Santi and Wolfe, Khalila and Dario, Glain, Morgan are all there, and each plays a role in the events that take place.

Highlights: I love the pace of the action in this book. I felt like the series had a little bit of a slow start, at least in the adventure/danger/thrilling area. However, by now, things are really ramping up. This is a book that lets me live inside it and see everything that is happening. The characters’ personalities are continuing to be developed and while there are some surprises, I felt that they were all absolutely true to the characters’ personalities that have been developed so far.

Lowlights (or what could have been better): I have seen in some reviews complaints that this series was bumped from an expected trilogy to a 5-book series. Honestly, after reading the first two books, I can’t imagine how the series could have been finished satisfactorily in one more book. This book does end at a total cliffhanger, so now I am just dying for book 4 and don’t want to wait a whole year!

FYI: If you have already read the first two books in this series, nothing in this book will be a shock to you. If you haven’t read the first two, DON’T start here! You must read the first two. There is a gay relationship in the storyline.

Visit the StoryWalk at High Park

Last week was an exciting one for us at the library, with the grand opening of the StoryWalk at High Park. You may be wondering what exactly a StoryWalk is (and it’s OK, because I didn’t know either when it first came up). A StoryWalk is just what it sounds like: A way to read a story while walking a path.

The StoryWalk at High Park starts near the playground near the Zimmerman Family Shelter. The story pages are mounted along the walking path that goes around the pond at the south end of the park. Follow the arrows on the sign to the next page of the story. The stories will be changed five times a year, about every 2-3 months, so your family can come back to the park often to enjoy a new story.

Funding for the StoryWalk came from many community organizations, including the library and the Friends of the Derby Public Library.

You can read more about how the StoryWalk came to be in this story from the Derby Informer.

The first frame of the StoryWalk — This is the first stop on the StoryWalk at High Park. It shows you the title of the book and tells you how the StoryWalk works.

Carri Fry and Linda Slack look at the second stop on the StoryWalk — Youth services coordinator Carri Fry shows Linda Slack the first book to be featured on the StoryWalk at High Park.

The Chik-Fil-A cow — The Chick-Fil-A cow stopped in at the StoryWalk grand opening to help the kids celebrate this fun, new way to read while getting some exercise.

Debbie Williams of the Derby Health Collaborative and Carri Fry of the Library talk about the collaboration the two organizations engaged in for the StoryWalk.

Mayor Randy White gets some help from Derby-area kids to cut the ribbon to officially open the StoryWalk.

And the ribbon is cut, so StoryWalk is officially open! Now, let’s go take a walk and read a story!

Early August new releases

It’s nearly time for the kids to be back in school and summer is coming to a close. Those long, lazy days by the pool (did you actually get any of those?) are soon to be a memory, but there are plenty of good books coming out the first two Tuesdays in August, that I wish I could have endless days by the pool to read!

Here are eight (eight!) picks that we think will be satisfying reads for the end of summer. Our next new releases blog post will cover new releases for Aug. 15, 22 and 29. Click on the title of the book to go to the library catalog, where you can see if it’s available and place it on hold.

Aug. 1: The Address by Fiona Barton
From the author of The Dollhouse comes a compelling story, set around New York City’s most famous residence: The Dakota. It’s 1884 and Sara Smythe, who is working her way to head housekeeper at a posh London hotel, has a chance encounter with Theodore Camden, one of the architects of a grand new apartment building in New York. In 1985, Bailey Camden, once an interior designer and huge party girl, finds herself fresh out of rehab, homeless and needing a new start. One hundred years apart, Sara and Bailey face similar struggles, and Bailey’s discovery in the basement of the Dakota could change everything she thought she knew.

Aug. 1: The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor
If you are familiar with the story of two young women who convinced the world through their photographs in 1917 that faeries existed, this novel reimagines their story. But 100 years later, Olivia discovers that her life intertwines with the lives of Frances and Elsie. Olivia finds an old manuscript in her grandfather’s bookshop, but when she also discovers an old photograph, past and present begin to blur and Olivia’s understanding of what is real and what is imagined begins to blur.

Aug. 1: Mrs. Fletcher by Tom Perrotta
Eve Fletcher is 46, divorced and her only child is moving away to attend college, leaving Eve trying to figure out what comes next in her life. One night her phone lights up with an intriguing text from an anonymous number: “U R my MILF!” Over the next several months, she becomes obsessed by the message and a website called MILFateria.com, about the sexual exploits of middle-aged women like herself. Meanwhile, her son is struggling with his own issues at college, where his hard-partying lifestyle isn’t quite as welcomed as he’d hoped.

Aug. 1: The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley
A former East India Company smuggler is stuck at home after an accident leaves him with a broken leg. Then he begins seeing things that shouldn’t be happening and his brother says he must be mad. When presented an opportunity to go to the jungles of South America in search of quinine, he knows he shouldn’t. After all, everyone who has ever gone to Peru on a similar expedition has ended up dead. Despite barely being able to walk, he sets off against his better judgment.

Aug. 8: Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert
Suzette attends boarding school in New England, but when she goes home to L.A., she doesn’t want to go back. Her brother needs her support when he is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. And besides, L.A. is where her family and friends are. She’s settling into her life again, but finds herself confronted with the knowledge that she is falling for the same girl her brother is in love with. As her brother’s illness threatens to overwhelm him, she has to find a way to help her brother and confront her own mistakes.

Aug. 8: The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter
A new thriller from a No. 1 bestselling author. Sisters Samantha and Charlotte Quinn had their lives torn apart 28 years ago, when a brutal attack on their family home left their mother dead and their father devastated. Charlie has followed in her father’s footsteps and become an attorney, when her small town is plunged into terror once again. Charlie find herself besieged by memories that she’s tried to keep buried.

Aug. 8: Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker
Sisters are a theme in this thriller, where two sisters go missing and one comes back. Forensic psychologist Abby Winter looks deeper into the dysfunctional family, and from what she sees, something just doesn’t add up.

Aug. 8: Paper Girls Vol. 3 by Brian K. Vaughan
This is the collection of issues 11 through 15 in the popular graphic novel series. From Goodreads: “The multiple Eisner and Harvey Award-winning series from BRIAN K. VAUGHAN and CLIFF CHIANG continues, as newspaper deliverers Erin, Mac and Tiffany finally reunite with their long-lost friend KJ in an unexpected new era, where the girls must uncover the secret origins of time travel… or risk never returning home to 1988.”

Book Review: Final Girls

Final Girls by Riley Sager

First line: “The forest had claws and teeth.”

Summary: Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout’s knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media’s attempts, they never meet.

Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past.

That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy’s doorstep. Blowing through Quincy’s life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa’s death come to light, Quincy’s life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam’s truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished.

Highlights: Once you’re hooked you can’t put it down. It had lots of twists and turns and you’ll never guess how it ends.

Lowlights: It really took me longer to get into then I thought it would.

FYI: Lots of graphic violence.

Teen Film Crew Premieres Short Film Finding Sporky

*This post was written by the videographer/unit publicist of Specific Ocean Studios, the Summer 2017 Teen Moviecraft production crew*

Videographer/Unit Publicist Stephanie Bradshaw

My name is Stephanie Bradshaw, and I am the videographer and unit publicist for this summer’s Teen Moviecraft Program. Our team joined together this summer to create a film production crew dubbed Specific Ocean Studios, and together we have worked for seven weeks to create our short film, Finding Sporky. Finding Sporky was written by Carolynn Bradshaw and John Goodner and directed by Leah Khanu and Natalie Knowles. Our film is about a boy named John who throws a party when his little brother Jimmy swallows a spork, and his parents have to take him to the hospital. During the party things go horribly wrong when Steve the Spoon attacks with his army of household items like the Gangster Knives! This film has been a lot of fun to make, and it’s been great getting to see everyone work in their different jobs including set designer, special FX, costume and makeup designer and more.

In between filming behind-the-scenes clips and taking pictures, I had the chance to talk to the co-directors about our film.

What is your expectation for the film?

Directors: Even though we know there may be some bumps in the road, we hope that everything goes smoothly and that our film turns out to be great. We hope that it turns out to be something that we can all be proud of.

I also interviewed the screenwriters of our film, Carolynn Bradshaw and John Goodner.

Joel Hileman, Carolynn Bradshaw, and Sophia Edmonson filming a scene

How did you come up with the story?

Writers: At first we just had a logline (a one-sentence summary of the story), and that gave us a feel of what we were doing. We knew we had this character, John, and he would be attacked by the spoon. Then we collaborated with the team to add other household items attacking people at a party. Once that idea was fleshed out, we had Natalie and Leah bring all of these ideas together into a single vision.

Did you enjoy writing this film?

It was fun! We got together at the writer’s table with the directors, and we wrote this amazing script. We ended up laughing so much that we could barely get anything down at first. It was an experience that we’ll never forget!

How did you come up with the characters?

Grant Bliss, Gia Alicea, Kristen Bradshaw, and Kyle Duggan at the “doctor’s office!”

It just happened. I (Carolynn Bradshaw) always love coming up with characters that have personalities as crazy and different as you can imagine. These kinds of characters really fit in with our hilarious storyline.

With this film being half animated, it took a bit more time and patience to do the stop motion and puppetry. With only two hours a week for seven weeks, we at Specific Ocean Studios definitely had a lot to do, but it was so worth it to finally have our film come together. I can’t wait for you to see Finding Sporky at our Red Carpet Premiere this Friday, July 28 at 6:30PM. All community members are welcome to come watch our film, snack on some popcorn, and talk with us about our project. I hope to see you there!

Specific Ocean Studios Logo designed by our awesome graphic artists Chloe Brown, Kaia Briggs, and Kaleb Trujillo!

Book Review: One for Sorrow

One for Sorrow by Mary Downing Hahn

First Line: Although I didn’t realize it, my troubles began when we moved to Portman Street, and I became a student in the Pearce Academy for Girls, the finest school in the town of Mount Pleasant, according to Father.

Summary: Annie is a young girl in 1918. World War I is still raging in Europe and the Spanish flu is spreading across the United States. When Annie starts at a new school she meets a strange girl, Elsie, who instantly claims her as her friend. Annie discovers that Elsie is not liked by the other girls in the class. She is picked on and teased by others, which make Annie a target now too. But when Annie befriends the other girls in the school and drops Elsie things get worse. The flu finally hits Mount Pleasant. Annie’s new friends decide to pretend to be mourners and attend funerals in order to receive free treats. When they attend one funeral they are shocked to see that it is Elsie’s. She had succumbed to the flu after the girls had teased her and taken away her flu mask. All the girls feel terrible about what happened but when Annie receives a concussion from a sled ride she starts to see Elsie’s ghost. And she is not happy.

Highlights: This is spooky. I read Mary Downing Hahn’s books when I was younger and remember them being scary. Even now as an adult I was a little creeped out by the character of Elsie. It was also a history lesson. I have read and seen many shows that depict the time of Spanish flu but this makes it more real and scary too. To think how many people died and how quickly it happened can be a little terrifying.

Lowlights: I got really annoyed with Elsie. The repetition of her obsession with Annie kept dragging on. This I am sure is what the author intended since she is the villain of the story.

FYI: May be too scary for younger readers.

Late July new releases

July is more than half over, and school starts in about a month. How is summer flying by so fast? Could it be that the time I spend reading makes the days go by faster? If so, I don’t want to have to stop reading to get summer to slow down. I love finding new books to read and being one of the first patrons at the library to read a new book. And there are some great ones coming out the last two weeks of this month!

Here are a few of our picks:

Cover of the book The Breakdown by B.A. Paris — “The Breakdown” is a chilling new thriller by B.A. Paris.

July 18: The Breakdown by B.A. Paris
Cass took the shortcut home, the one she promised her husband she wouldn’t. She saw a woman sitting in a car, the woman who was murdered. Now, she’s having a hard time. She’s forgetting everything: whether she took her medication, where she left the car, why she ordered a baby pram when she doesn’t even have a baby. The one thing she can’t forget? The woman who was murdered. A murder she might have been able to prevent.

July 18: The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell
Modern day New York: Magic is pretty much extinct. Pretty much, but not completely. There are a few, the Mageus, who have an affinity for magic, but must keep who they are a secret. And if any of them cross into Manhattan, they will never leave. It’s sealed by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that locks them on the island. But the Order, which created the Brink, didn’t count on Esta, a talented thief who steals magical artifacts from the Order. Esta can steal from the past, but can she steal the item she needs from 1902 before it is destroyed by the Magician?

Cover of The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond — “The Marriage Pact” by Michelle Richmond explores what happens when a young, newlywed couple join a secret group committed to making marriages last, at a significant price.

July 25: The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond
Alice is a rock-and-roller turned successful lawyer. Jake is a therapist for kids and teens and is breaking into marriage counseling. They are getting married, and Alice ends up inviting one of her clients, a famous musician, to their wedding. Finnegan invites them to join a group that promotes healthy marriages, and Jake and Alice can’t see why it wouldn’t work, as they are both wholly committed to making their marriage successful. However, The Pact has some rules and the consequences for breaking any of the rules can be pretty severe.

July 25: The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
Isa spent the most significant years of her life at a boarding school near the marshes at Salten. Now she has received a simple three-word text message: I need you. Isa drops everything and, with her baby daughter, heads to Salten. Something terrible has been found on the beach, which will force Isa and her three best friends, whom she hasn’t seen in years, to confront their past.

Cover of Gather the Daughters by Jennie Melamed — Goodreads describes this debut novel as “‘Never Let Me Go’ meets ‘The Giver’.”

July 25: Gather the Daughters by Jennie Melamed
An isolated island, settled by ten men and their families just before the country was left uninhabitable by incineration. Only chosen male descendants of the original 10 colonists, known as Wanderers, are t allowed to cross to the still-smoldering wasteland. The daughters are wives-in-training. Only in the summer do the children run free, and one summer Caitlin Jacob witnesses something so terrifying and against everything she’s been taught, that she has to share it with the other children. 17-year-old Janey Solomon, who is slowly starving herself to prevent entering puberty, takes on the task of learning the truth, and encourages an uprising of the girls on the island.

Click on any of the titles above to see the book in our catalog.

Book review: A Talent for Murder

A Talent for Murder by Andrew Wilson

This book actually gets 4.5 stars from me. Click on the title above the cover to get to the book in our catalog.

First Lines: Wherever I turned my head, I thought I saw her: a woman people described as striking, beautiful even. That would never have been my choice of words.

Summary: One of Agatha Christie’s most famous mysteries has never been solved: her mysterious disappearance for 11 days in December 1926. She left her home on a Friday evening and one of the largest missing person hunts in history was launched. This novel imagines what might have happened during those days. It begins as she leaves her literary agent and is preparing to board a train in London. She feels a hand at her back that pushes her as an oncoming train is arriving, and pulls her back just before she falls in front of the train. Her rescuer, however, is no hero. Rather, he insists that she is going to commit a murder.

Highlights: I have loved Agatha Christie’s books since I first read What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw when I was in seventh grade. This book is gutsy in taking on telling a story of what may have happened to Dame Agatha during those days she was missing. The story is cleanly told, from varying points of view. Don’t gloss over the “Editor’s Note” before the first chapter, and then go back and read it again after you’ve finished the book. It will be that much more enlightening. This book has a truly vile villain, other interesting characters, and a plot line that completely works for me.

Lowlights: I had just a little difficulty getting into the first dozen pages or so. Honestly, that could have been me rather than the writing. I fully expected a Chrsitie-esque unraveling at the end of the book of how the whole story went down, but that doesn’t happen. However, that didn’t hurt the story at all for me. And there’s a little information that isn’t completely cleared up at the end, so if you like every little thing all tied up in a neat little bow, you won’t get that here.

Just a little more: This is a great imagining of what could have happened during Agatha Christie’s disappearance. I recommend it for anyone who loves a good mystery, and especially for fans of Dame Agatha. I received an advance e-copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.