books

books

Bog Child and Breast Cancer Awareness

Bog Child and Breast Cancer Awareness

Sometimes you come across a book that grabs you and holds you from the first page until the last. Bog Child by Siobhan Dowd, winner of the Carnegie Medal in Literature in 2009, is one of these books.  One of the many wonderful books available in the IU East Campus Library’s Young Adult collection, this beautifully written novel captures two times in one place. It is set in Northern Ireland in 1981, during the violence and upheaval known as “The Troubles.” Fergus McCann is struggling to finish his exams and plan for his future, but finds himself continually distracted by the chaos around him. His older brother joins a prison Hunger Strike and Fergus struggles to understand his own place … Continued
Graphic Novels

Graphic Novels

One type of literature I’ve always been fascinated with is comic art.  In fact, I even considered becoming a comic book artist before I decided to become a librarian.  IU East has a modest collection of graphic novels – some famous, like Persepolis and Barefoot Gen.  Some aren’t, and I’d like to tell you a bit about a few of them. We3 by Grant Morrison (PN6727.M677 2005), describes a trio of animals – a dog, a cat, and a rabbit – that have been converted by the army into efficient living weapons for combat situations too dangerous for humans.  But a visit by a bureaucrat unnerved by their rudimentary language and sentience orders them destroyed.  A scientist, unwilling to see … Continued
Summer Read

Summer Read

Some years ago the library had a book in the Leisure section about Vikings, written by Don Coldsmith.  I had just finished a summer class “Heroes, Monsters and Crusaders” taught by Dr. Eleanor Turk.  One of the topics we talked about was Beowulf, who was a Viking.  This caught my interest and I wanted to read more about Vikings.  As it turned out Dr. Coldsmith’s book, “Runestone,” was so well written that I wanted to read more of his works.  He didn’t write anymore Viking stories but had written about 12 other books about the Indians of the Great Plains set between 1540-1700.  And IU Kokomo owned the books.  So I started borrowing them through interlibrary loan.  I showed the … Continued
Summer Reading

Summer Reading

Recently, I’ve been re-reading some of my favorite author, Ira Levin’s, novels.  I just completed “A Kiss Before Dying” and found it every bit as satisfying a thriller as the first read-through.  Which got me thinking about what to read this summer. Summer is often a time of book lists and beach reading that we don’t have time for the rest of the year.  A good time to catch up on the things friends have recommended, things that sound good, or things we think we ought to read.  And a library is an excellent source for these books. A lot of times these are flash-in-the-pan books of no substance, which we forget about immediately.  But they don’t have to be.  … Continued
Hot time for reading – even Fahrenheit 451*

Hot time for reading – even Fahrenheit 451*

It’s 89 degrees Fahrenheit today and Spring has suddenly become Summer, despite the calendar indicating otherwise. Even though it seems this season isn’t as leisurely as in bygone years, I hope all of you will make time to read for pleasure in the next few weeks. I’m tempted to catch up on my professional reading, especially the e-newsletters that flood my Inbox in a never-ending deluge of timely information (that obviously becomes less urgent as time goes by). But just as I am determined to complete more steps each week as an enthusiastic member of the new IU East Walking Club, I am resolved to read one book for pleasure each week. I’m starting this week with The Frozen Rabbi … Continued