Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #831
by muffy
The Rachel Incident, * * * YA author Caroline O’Donoghue’s first adult novel and her US debut (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook) is a “brilliantly funny novel about friends, lovers, Ireland in chaos, and a young woman desperately trying to manage all three.” (USA Today)
County Cork, Ireland. University student Rachel Murray counts on her hours at O’Conner Books to pay bills, ever since the financial crash has affected her family’s business. There she meets James Devlin, a Christmas temp - effervescent and insistently heterosexual, and soon, the two become roommates and fast friends. When Rachel develops a crush on her married professor Dr. Fred Byrne, James organizes a reading for him at the bookstore so Rachel could seduce him. To both of their surprises, Dr. Byrne has other (closeted) desires. So begins a series of secrets and compromises that intertwine the fates of James, Rachel, Fred, and Fred's glamorous, well-connected, publisher wife, Deenie, who was once Fred’s student.
“This deliciously complex set of entanglements lays the groundwork for the novel…and brings to mind the gossipy 19th-century novels Dr. Byrne might teach in class. But its true joys lie in the tremendously witty characters and their relationships: The real love story of this novel is not between James and Dr. Byrne, or Rachel and her own paramour, but between Rachel and James, whose codependent glee in each other's company will remind many readers of their own college friendships, especially those between women and queer men. A sensational new entry in the burgeoning millennial-novel genre.” (Kirkus Reviews)
The Rachel Incident will appeal to fans of Sally Rooney and Michelle Gallen.
* * * = 3 starred reviews
Blog Post
Staff Picks: Halloween Celebrations
by lucroe
Halloween is creeping up! This is the perfect time to spotlight some books to help decorate your house or yourself for this spooky time of year. Then curl up with some ghostly Michigan folklore stories...
Best of How to Haunt Your House vols. 1 & 2 by Shawn Mitchell | Request Now
Enjoy these 2 volumes full of spooky ways to get your house or room Halloween ready. From the simple like creating potion bottles or personalized tombstones to the more complex like monster mud and animated props, there is something for every DIY Halloween maven here.
Blog Post
Staff Picks: Local Legends
by nicole
Check out these terrific Teen books based in Michigan or written by local authors:
The Dock Porter, by Dave McVeigh | Request Now
He's got a bike, a basket ... and a whole lotta baggage. It's the summer of 1989. Jack McGuinn is a dockporter, hauling tourists’ luggage piled high in the oversized basket of his bike on Mackinac Island, Michigan, a summer resort where cars are outlawed. He’s got a family cottage on the hill, his dream job, and a loyal crew of hell-raising, tip-hustling buddies. When his bitter rival challenges him to ride a record-setting load, he takes the bet, but soon realizes he’s not just carrying suitcases, he’s carrying the future of the island. With the help of his pals on the dock and the love of a free-spirited Irish cellist, Jack has to dig deep to discover skills he didn't know he had. Genre-smashing, hilariously fresh, yet refreshingly familiar, it's a novel about friends, family, love, luggage, and the summers we never forget. Readers can find the sequel, Somewhere in Crime, in the AADL catalog.
Blog Post
Staff Picks: The Art of Horror
by nicole
Everyone enjoys a scary story this time of year, but some tales are so terrifying you have to see them to believe them. These horror comics are full of over-the-top scares and creepy illustrations that will give anyone the heebie-jeebies.
Something is Killing the Children, Volume 1, by James Tynion | Request Now
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Staff Picks: Spotlight on A2CAF: Small & Indie Press 2023
by richretyi
Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival (A2CAF): Small + Indie Press is Saturday, October 7, from 11am to 5pm at the Downtown Library. It's a one-day venture into small press comics publishing, offering attendees the chance to meet comic artists and learn about the art of creating comics outside of a traditional publisher.
Headlining the 2023 event are three superstars in the field—Jaime Hernandez, Jillian Tamaki, and Rosemary Valero-O'Connell.
Jaime Hernandez
Blog Post
Staff Picks: Hispanic Music To Dance, To Listen, To Sing!
by lucroe
To celebrate Hispanic Heritage month, here is a sampling of music CDs that honor the incredible contribution made by those identifying as Hispanic or Hispanic American. Since there are so many excellent musical styles and musicians it would be impossible to include them all here so the focus is on key musical genres: Salsa, Bachata, Rancheros, Cumbia, Tango, Bossa Nova, & Reggaeton.
The Best of Celia Cruz | Request Now
Often called the Queen of Salsa, Celia Cruz began her singing career in her home country of Cuba in the 1950s. She is one of the bestselling Latin music artists of the 20th century with multiple awards and honors to her name. Salsa has a distinct beat called the clave. A three-drum section (bongos, congas and timbales) executes the complex, syncopated rhythms. Salsa lyrics tell short stories and usually end with a call-and-response section. Other musicians like Tito Puente incorporated styles from his Puerto Rican culture with salsa and mambo. You can hear the power of Cruz’s voice even at 75 years old here. If you want to dance, these are the rhythms that will make you get up and join in!
Blog Post
Staff Picks: New Tools in AADL's Collection!
by eapearce
You may be familiar with AADL’s extensive tools collection, featuring lots of lawn games, science and home tools, board games, sewing machines, puzzles, instruments and more! We’re always exploring new options for addition to our tools collection and exploring what folks might want to see available in this cool collection! Here are a few of our latest adds to our ever-growing tools inventory!
Monocular 10x25 and Binocular 8x25 | Request Now
These two new additions are great for outdoorspeople! The monocular, a super portable magnifying viewfinder intended for use with one eye, is easy to carry around in a pocket and whip out when you see a bird or distant animal you’d like to peer at in more detail. The binoculars are back by popular demand–we had some in our collection years ago and are excited about this new version! Perfect for carrying around town on hikes, these allow you to experiment with binoculars before having to purchase a set of your own.
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #830, Regency Cozies
by muffy
The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies * * * by Alison Goodman (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook), the YA author’s first adult historical mystery, set in Regency London.
At 42, by all society standards, unmarried twins Lady Augusta Colebrook, "Gus," and Julia are well past their prime - yet with a secured income, a fashionable London address and well connected friends, they are far from docile, and in fact, they strain at all the rules society imposes on well-mannered ladies.
When one of their friends is blackmailed for her indiscretions, they do not hesitate to confront the blackmailer in a secluded park after dark. Soon, other women are seeking their services. On their way to rescue a young woman poisoned and imprisoned by her brute of a husband, Gus accidentally shots the highwayman holding up their carriage, only to discover he is Lord Evan Belford, charged with murder and exiled to the Colonies twenty years ago. Feeling responsible for his injuries, Gus takes him along on their mission. Before long, they become comrade-in-arms, and the chemistry between them is undeniable. .
“Fans of Georgette Heyer's Regency novels will savor this mystery…Well-developed characters, a touch of romance, and cases involving social issues of the period enhance the experience.”(Library Journal)
“Fierce, funny, and often dark, this is an eye-opening portrait of a colorful yet misogynistic period in English history. “ (Publishers Weekly)
A Most Agreeable Murder * * by screenwriter Julia Seales (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook).
Set in Swampshire, England, a respectable town located between London and Bath, this Regency murder mystery introduces 25 year-old Beatrice Steele, the eldest of three daughters born to a marriage-scheming mother and a prankster father. While she allows her family to think she is holding up in her turret room dreaming of romance, she is actually reading about solving crimes like her favorite "gentleman detective," Sir Huxley.
When the family is invited to the annual autumn ball at Stabmort Park, home of the Ashbrooks, to welcome eligible (and wealthy) bachelor Edmund Croaksworth, Mrs. Steele hopes that beautiful Louisa will steal his heart and save the family from ruin as Martin Grub, their disgusting cousin, is to eventually inherit the family’s estate.
“By the end of the evening, secrets will have been revealed, false identities exposed, missing persons found, and murder committed (twice!). The character types are endearingly familiar to anyone who has ever read a Jane Austen novel, and the dialogue crackles with wit, outrage, subtext, and pluck. Beatrice, a true Sherlock Holmes within her restrictive social world, is a delight, and while the characters may be familiar, Seales' over-the-top caricatures succeed in being humorous rather than cliché…The result is a deliciously dark delve into a world that seems genteel on the surface and teems with sex and violence and greed just underneath--not so unlike Austen's but with a morbid, rather than domestic, bent. Irreverent, satirical, and oh so much fun! “ (Kirkus Reviews)
"A delightful cocktail that mixes elements of the Bridgerton series, Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice and Agatha Christie's Miss Marple mysteries . . . The payoff is a wealth of wit, hilarity and suspense." (People)
* * * = 3 starred reviews
* * = 2 starred reviews
Blog Post
Staff Picks: Spotlight on Hispanic Heritage Month
by eapearce
Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated every year from September 15 to October 15! Celebrated in the United States for over 50 years, you can learn more about Hispanic Heritage Month here. One excellent way to participate in this month-long celebration of Hispanic and Latin cultures is by reading books by Latinx authors! AADL has a wide variety in our collection, but below are a few suggestions to get you started. ¡Vive tu cultura!
¡Hola, Papi!, by John Paul Brammer | Request Now
Brammer is the author of the wildly popular queer advice column on Substack by the same name as his new book. He grew up in rural Oklahoma, where he struggled as a biracial and closeted gay person. Brammer always dreamed of writing, and started his career in journalism writing for various outlets, then transitioned to Condé Nast while also focusing on his advice column. He also works for Netflix on a small team promoting and curating LGBTQ+ materials. !Hola, Papi! is a combination of his memoir, his advice column and is simply the story of a man taking stock of his place in the world, as we all do from time to time. As Brammer says, his book is “for everyone–gay, straight, and everything in between.” His unique story is well worth the read!
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #829, Secrets of the Golden Age of Hollywood
by muffy
Did you Hear About Kitty Karr? by Crystal Smith Paul (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook).
When the three St. Johns sisters, Elise, Giovanni, and Noele find themselves heirs to Kitty Karr Tate’s immense fortune, they were as surprised as the rest of Hollywood. The St. Johns, a prominent Bel Air family is Kitty’s neighbor as well as a mentor to Elise who is up for an Academy Award for Best Actress. Apart from planning Kitty’s memorial services, navigating the contentious dynamics between her sisters and their mother, Elise is tasked with sorting out Kitty’s affairs, and among her journals, what Elise discovers will rock her world and might explain why a successful white actress would bestow her immense inheritance on three Black girls.
The narrative winds back to Kitty's hardships in 1930s North Carolina; and mid-century Hollywood glamor; the harshness of the studio system, with all of its attendant misogyny and racism.
“What is less obvious, by design, are the steps many people took to create new lives for themselves once they reached LA from less hospitable places. Against an origin story of sexual violence and systemic roadblocks, Kitty and her California cohort survive a series of excruciating trials in order to live their dreams. The results of their choices, made in order to succeed and survive in the Hollywood machine, echo for generations throughout Paul's meandering yet page-turning narrative…With a plot worthy of a miniseries, an extensive cast, and a historical sweep, Paul succeeds in entertaining as well as enlightening.” (Kirkus Reviews)
“Readers of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Piper Huguley will be enthralled.” (Booklist)
Do Tell (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook) by debut novelist Lindsay Lynch, is “(g)amorous, tawdry, and human. A rich portrait of the lives of early Hollywood's beautiful puppets and those holding their strings." ~ Emma Straub
1940s, Los Angeles. Edie O'Dare‘s contract with FWM Studios is about to end and with renewal unlikely, she needs to find a new gig. While her career in pictures has been undistinguished at best, she is a fixture at all the parties and premiers and has long supplemented her income by passing on salacious dirt to the reigning gossip columnist. When a small kindness to 16-year-old rising starlet Sophie Melrose at a party gives her an exclusive to Sophie’s claim of being sexually assaulted by one of the biggest names in the industry, Freddy Clarke. The subsequent tabloid coverage lands Edie her own column at The Los Angeles Times (christened as "Do Tell”), Freddy being charged, and eventually strains her relationships with everyone she once considers a friend.
“Although the plot lags when Lynch describes clothing, hairstyles, and makeup in too much detail, she doesn't lose sight of a salient theme: Edie's success depends on others' vulnerability. Lynch's characters--clad in designer gowns, inhabiting sumptuous mansions, and drinking champagne at lavish parties--are replaceable cogs in a powerful industry. An intimate look at Hollywood's dark secrets.” (Kirkus Reviews)
BONUS FEATURE
The Brightest Star by Gail Tsukiyama (also in downloadable eBook and audiobook). This historical novel is based on the life of Anna May Wong - the first and only Asian American woman to gain stardom in the early days of Hollywood. Born Wong Liu Tsong, to Chinese immigrants who own a laundry, she was taunted and bullied growing up, finding joy only at the local nickelodeons. At 16, she left home to pursue her Hollywood dream. “She longed to play characters who weren't concubines, prostitutes, or evil dragon ladies. As one of the first Chinese American actresses, she often struggled to get movie roles for two reasons: Hollywood protocols and anti-miscegenation laws prevented her from starring as a love interest to a white man, and Asian roles often went to white actors in yellowface. She was determined to take the roles she could get and never give up on acting.” (Library Journal)
“For greater freedom, Anna travels to Europe, where she befriends Marlene Dietrich and Josephine Baker. With its rich supporting cast, the novel emphasizes the friendships and family relationships that help Anna thrive, while her many disappointments (like losing a leading role in The Good Earth to a German actress in "yellowface") catch at the heart.” (Booklist)