No Sweat: How the Simple Science of Motivation Can Bring You a Lifetime of Fitness

Tue, 08/11/2015 - 6:16pm by eapearce

Even as a lifelong runner, I go through phases where it is incredibly difficult for me to get myself out the door and working out. I’m always interested to learn more about fitness and exercise and seek a little extra motivation. But, when I found out that the next book my book club is reading is No Sweat: How the Simple Science of Motivation Can Bring You a Lifetime of Fitness, I was a little disappointed. It seems like there are so many diet and exercise books out there that either say the same thing over and over, don’t acknowledge how difficult it can be to stay fit and healthy, or both. I expected No Sweat to be the same... and I am so happy to say that I was wrong!

University of Michigan professor and researcher Michelle Segar offers an extremely well-researched, step-by-step program for applying science to achieve fitness and overall well-being. The simple four steps that she outlines in her book are geared towards people who struggle to break the cycle of failed attempts at regular exercise, but are applicable to people of all fitness levels. Even if, like me, you really enjoy exercising most of the time, the tips in No Sweat are beneficial for the weeks when you’re dragging your feet. Segar readily admits that she has always hated running, and uses her own story, along with the inspiring and practical ones of many others, to teach readers how easy—and even fun—getting fit can be; it doesn’t have to involve activities that you hate! No Sweat is a great, easy-to-read, straightforward book that can really help everyone achieve an active lifestyle. Get on the hold list today!

The Alternative Press: Then & Now

Wednesday November 18, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

Create Your Own Illustrated Book with Ruth McNally Barshaw

Wednesday April 6, 2016: 6:30pm to 8:00pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room
Grade 4 - Adult

Comic-Drawing with Ruth McNally Barshaw

Thursday February 18, 2016: 2:00pm to 3:00pm
Pittsfield Branch: Program Room
Grades K-5

Fabulous Fiction Firsts #533

Thu, 06/04/2015 - 6:25pm by muffy

The Silver Swan by Elena Delbanco is an intimate, passionate, triumphant story of love and betrayal, centered around a Stradivarius cello and the cast of characters who lust after it.

Mariana Feldmann, only child of world-renowned cellist Alexander Feldmann, emerges as a rising star herself at nineteen and is seen as the inheritor of her father's genius. It comes to reason that Mariana expects that the Silver Swan, Feldmann's a one-of-a-kind Stradivarius will one day be hers. Upon Alexander's death, Mariana is devastated to learn that Claude Roselle, one of his students and a rising European talent about to make his New York debut, will inherit the Silver Swan. As Mariana try to understand her father's decision by getting to know Claude, their relationship quickly evolves into a passionate, if contentious, affair.

Elena Delbanco, recently retired from the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy has long been engaged in the world of classical music. Her father was the renowned cellist Bernard Greenhouse (of the Beaux Arts Trio), who owned the Countess of Stainlein ex-Paganini Stradivarius violoncello of 1707. The imagined fate of that instrument inspired this debut novel.

The author will be reading and signing at Nicola's Books on June 9th, at 7 pm.

Michigan Notable Book Author and U-M Professor Sally Howell Discusses Her Book “Old Islam in Detroit: Rediscovering the Muslim American Past”

Monday October 5, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

Researching Your Home's History

Saturday June 13, 2015: 2:00pm to 3:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

Freddie Fernortner Series by Jonathan Rand

Wed, 01/28/2015 - 10:23am by manz

Local author Jonathan Rand of the popular American Chillers and Michigan Chillers series for children, has a series for younger readers called Freddie Fernortner: Fearless First Grader. The twelve book series can now be found at AADL!

The Freddie books feature a mix of spooky and silly aimed at early chapter book readers. Take a look if you’re looking for a new chapter book series by a very likeable Michigan author.

Fabulous Fiction Firsts #508

Sun, 01/18/2015 - 1:03am by muffy

January brings a number of terrific debut novels. The one I am most excited to share is Unbecoming by Rebecca Scherm (MFA, Helen Zell Writers Program at the University of Michigan). Follow her on Facebook, and plan to attend her signing @ Literati, 7pm on January 27.

She calls herself Julie now, from California. For the past 2 years, Grace restores bric-a-brac, repairs antiques and jewelry in a Paris chop shop, and lives alone in a shabby room. Regularly, she checks the Garland (TN) newspaper online for news of a case involving robbery of The Wynne House, a local heritage estate and museum, and the two young men caught for the crime, a heist that Grace meticulously engineered. Now, Grace's past and carefully constructed lies are about to catch up with her half way around the world, as the two men are being paroled.

In a series of flashbacks, from small-town USA to the Manhattan art scene, and the backstreets of Europe, we follow the "unbecoming-of-age" of a young woman with a special gift for restoration and for reinventing herself with equal deftness.

"Mesmerizing, nail-biting, atmospheric, and sensual... Unbecoming is an intricately plotted and psychologically nuanced heist novel that turns on suspense and slippery identity."

"Scherm mixes a character study with a caper novel full of double-crosses, lies, and betrayals... She is at her best when describing precious objects: a Dutch master's still life, a James Mont cigar box with hidden compartment, an ornate centerpiece with fanciful fruit and figurines, and silver spoons ignored by their owners but appreciated by the professional hired to evaluate them."

Readers looking for an elegantly well-played cat-and-mouse game should delight in Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief (1954); The Thomas Crown Affair (1968, and the 1999 remake); and White Collar, the just concluded (sadly) tv series.

Fans of Gillian Flynn who appreciate "(a) bleak tone, deeply flawed protagonist, and dysfunctional relationships" wouldn't want to miss this one. And let's not forget Patricia Highsmith's Ripley novels as read-alikes.

Laura Ingalls Wilder and Her Place in the World

Monday March 23, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room
Adults And Teens Grades 6 And Up