Ebooks are also available at the library.

Have a desktop computer, laptop, Nook, Sony Reader, Kobo, iPad, iPhone or Kindle Fire?  The Blio eReader supports Windows, Android and IOS devices.

http://wcvpl.axis360.baker-taylor.com/Admin/ReaderList - this link will take you to the axis360 APPzone where you can find step-by-step directions on how to set up your specific device so that you can start enjoying the convenience of checking out a eBook today.

From the Written Word to the Television Screen

Last summer, CBS decided to run a thirteen episode television series based upon Stephen King's book, Under the Dome. In both the book and the t.v. series, the small town of Chester's Mill, Maine finds itself trapped under an invisible dome. Iraq veteran Dale Barbara and several other townspeople find themselves at odds with the ambitious and murderous Big Jim Rennie and his son. There seems to be a secret lurking around every corner and under every rock. The television show is about the characters and how they react to being trapped under this mysterious dome and how they interact with one another. Everyone must learn to survive, scrounge supplies, and keep everything from falling apart.

The key cast members--Dale "Barbie" Barbara, Julia Shumway, and others--try to figure out what the dome is, who built it, and why was Chester's Mill chosen to be covered? The first season and the book can be found here at the library. The second season of the television series just aired on CBS.

This summer, ABC aired the television series Resurrection. This story is based on the book The Returned by Jason Mott. Both the DVD of the first season of Resurrection and The Returned can be checked out at the library. A mysterious young boy wakes up in a rice patty in China. It turns out that the boy is from Arcadia, Missouri and he died over thirty years ago. He is reunited with his parents who are--understandably--bewildered, scared, and overjoyed. The little boy is just the first, soon, others return. As they do, the people of Arcadia are thrown into chaos. Is this really the miracle that some think, or is there a more sinister purpose to the return of dead loved ones? A local doctor teams with an ICE agent and they try to discover what is going on and why, but they run into trouble when word gets out that the dead have come back.The first season of this series only has eight episodes and the ending leaves you wanting more.

While I have not read the two books mentioned here, they have definitely gone onto my "Must Read" list. When the producers, writers, directors, and actors do a superb job of staying close to the source material and do some spectacular storytelling, you can appreciate the synthesis of literature and film-making.

A view of the Delta and the dogs that live there.

An interesting book we've added to our collection recently is Delta Dogs - a series of photographs by Maude Schuyler Clay, which includes an introduction by Brad Watson and an essay by Beth Ann Fennelly.

But the stars are the combination of the dogs and their surroundings. All the photographs are in sepia tones, showing dogs of nearly every size and shape in fields, by the side of the road, playing in the water and various other doggie activities.  Each of the photographs has a small notation about where the image came from, some very general like 'Field Dogs, Mississippi Delta' and some very specific as 'Dog under the Burrus House, near Benoit'.

The photographer was born in Greenwood, Mississippi and her works are part of the collections of several museums including the Museum of Modern Art.

British Mysteries on DVD

I have recently finished two new British Mystery series on DVD. The first one is Death in Paradise (Season 1) and it stars Ben Miller (Primeval, Johnny English) as the pent-up and proper Detective Inspector Richard Poole. DI Poole has been sent from Scotland Yard to the Caribbean Island of Saint Marie to solve the murder of a fellow police officer. he encounters an island full of colorful characters and a police station manned by an equally raucous crew. Paired with DI Poole is Detective Sergeant Camille Bordey (Sara Martins). Where Poole is up-tight and a little OCD; Camille is laid back and free-spirited. Needless to say, these two but horns at almost every turn, but Camille and her mother, Catherine, take every opportunity to try to get the DI to relax. Adding to Poole's headaches are Officer Dwayne Myers (Danny John-Jules) and Fidel Best (Gary Carr). Dwayne just wants to revel in the island that he loves so much. Fidel is a about to be a new father and while quite competent, he is a little on the green side when it comes to police work, but he is more than willing to learn. This eight episode season is full of character driven stories without all the blood and gore of grittier police shows and it is peppered with enough humor to keep it light and watchable.

The second set of British mysteries I've watched recently is called Scott & Bailey (Season 1). It stars Lesley Sharp (The Full Monty, Cranford) as Detective Constable Janet Scott and Suranne Jones (Coronation Street) as Detective Constable Rachel Bailey. This show is more serious and drama driven than the other series discussed here. DC Scott is the sensible, family-oriented detective. She is kind, intelligent and a by-the-book copper. DC Bailey is a single woman with a penchant for the wrong men. She, too, is intelligent and good at her job, but she is more likely to bend the rules than her partner. These two ladies are best friends as well as partners. They may not always see eye-to-eye, but when things get hairy they have each other's backs. This series doesn't have a lot of gore either, even though the cases are more gritty and urban than Death in Paradise. This is definitely a buddy-cop show and well worth watching.