Celebrate National Week with Us!

National Library Week is a great time to visit the library and see what great things we have to offer. The theme of National Library Week 2009, celebrated April 12-18, is "World's Connect @ Your Library!" To me, the meaning of this phrase is simple. There are so many things waiting for you to discover at your library. Any piece of information you need is available to you, and we have great staff members who are here simply to help you find what you are looking for. The information you find is your key to other worlds, whether digitally on the Internet, literally through a travel book, or escaping to another world through a great piece of writing. Treat yourself to a fun outing and take the opportunity to visit us this week. We are sure you will not be disappointed in whatever world you choose to visit with us.

Get Hooked on Crochet!

Crafting is a perennially popular topic; however, crafting for men tends to lean towards the woodworking and building books. I ran across a new title recently that may open new worlds for some men. “The Crochet Dude’s Designs for Guys” by Drew Emborsky has 30 projects men will love. The introduction explains about the different yarns and sizing of stitches. The last section offers line drawings showing how the stitches are done. The projects are pretty cool themselves and range from the fairly simple to the more complex. The simple end has a music sock for an mp3 player, autoshams, golf club covers, and fingerless mittens. The more complex patterns are for sweaters, vests, and even a hoodie. I have crocheted for many years and find it to be relaxing. In the pressure cooker world we live in, perhaps this would be a way to relax and have something to show for that relaxation.
We often add new craft books to our collection, so don’t forget to check the New Non-Fiction for titles new to us. If you are not sure where that is located, just ask any staff member and we will be glad to steer you in the right direction.

Try a "Rom-Zom-Com!"

I know what you're thinking...what in the world is a "rom-com-zom?" It's a romantic zombie comedy, of course! I just read the most entertaining book, and believe me, I was just as skeptical as you when one of my co-workers handed it to me and insisted I read it. I used to be a big fan of zombie movies when I was a kid. I had to watch all of George Romero's zombie movies (Night of the Living Dead, Day of the Dead), usually in the middle of the night with the lights off, huddled under blankets with my friends. I have outgrown that phase (I think?) but I still enjoy reading stories with a supernatural spin to them, usually vampires or fairies. S. G. Browne's Breathers: A Zombie's Lament totally blew away all of my expectations about what a zombie book would be like! The book opened with a bang (think about waking up in your kitchen one day, opening your refrigerator and finding some dead bodies) and gathered steam until its very satisfying conclusion. The premise of the story is that zombies exist (and have for many years) but do not have any rights in society. Andy Warner is a recently deceased, newly minted zombie, who reanimated after a bad car wreck in which his wife also died. Andy's parents have reluctantly agreed to be his caretakers, even though they have a hard time getting used to the smell of Andy's slowly decompsing body parts, and encourage him to stay out of sight while he's living in their wine cellar. After weeks of name-calling and fast-food throwing by Breathers (living humans), Andy decides he's had enough and embarks on a journey to find himself and gain rights for zombies everywhere. The best part of Breathers is the humor--it sneaks up on you and things you wouldn't ordinarily think are funny turn out to be very amusing. There is a bit of "gruesome-ness" in this story, but it's more of the dark humor variety (think Creepshow) rather than gory. Try this book out and let us know what you think about it! And, if this blog has stirred up nostalgia for your old favorite "zombie" movies, check out the library's DVD and VHS collections - we have plenty of your favorites to choose from. :)

Little Brother

If you were struck by the similarity of this title to the phrase "Big Brother" from George Orwell's classic book, 1984, you would be correct! Little Brother is a book written by Cory Doctorow, who was heavily influenced by George Orwell's work. Little Brother is classified as a Juvenile book, and is set in San Francisco, in the highly-technologically-oriented, not-too-distant-future! The hero of the story is Marcus, a brilliant, seventeen-year-old who has figured out how to "outsmart" many of his school's surveillance systems (i.e., the "gait-recognition" system that supposedly can track your movements through the school by the way you normally walk), as well as systems installed througout San Francisco. Marcus is just having a normal day when he convinces his friends to slip out of their respective schools to play a round of the Alternate Reality Game, "Harajuku Fun Madness," a problem-solver game that is played on the Internet and around the streets and buildings in San Francisco. Marcus and three other friends meet up to figure out the clues when suddenly there is a tremendous explosion and Marcus and his friends are caught in the afternmath of a major terrorist attack. They are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security, detained for several days, and released to find the city has become a police state. Marcus makes the decision to fight back the only way he knows how- by taking down the Department of Homeland Security. Little Brother is an intense, action-packed book that speeds along and leaves you gasping. The story is filled with information about technology and gadgets, and is a perfect book for teens and adults who admire "gizmos." Cory Doctorow is the former European Director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation who hopes that readers will "use technology to change the world." The book contains two great Afterwords (one was written by the guy who hacked the XBox) and a fabulous Bibliography for further reading. This book was truly a great and thought-provoking read!

Dive Into Jesmyn Ward's World

I picked up Where the Line Bleeds by Jesmyn Ward because I was intrigued by the setting. The story is set in the small town of Bois Sauvage, which is located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I enjoy reading books about places I know, so a story set in a rural Gulf Coast community really appealed to me! The story traces the lives of twin African-American boys, Christophe and Joshua as they graduate from high school and try to make a living in their town. Intertwined with their lives are the lives of many family members, many of whom reside on the same road where Joshua and Christophe live with their grandma, Ma-mee. The twins live with their grandmother and receive infrequent visits from both their mom (who lives in Atlanta) and their dad (who appears every now and then in Bois Sauvage). The novel is a great story about living, and making the right choices, and the consequences of your actions. Jesmyn Ward is a wonderful story-teller- her prose is lyrical and her descriptions of events such as Joshua and Christophe's Fourth of July picnic have so much detail (even down to the food) that it just makes you want to weep. The relationship between the twins is intense and it is amazing that the twins feel as deeply as they do about themselves and each other. Although Where the Line Bleeds is classified as an adult novel, it would also appeal to older teen readers. There is some drug use described in the book, as well as some profanity. This book has also been classified as a "recommended read" by the Essence Book Club. Check out other recommended reads at http://www.essence.com/.

Drama at the Dairy Queen

I am blessed to live in a town where there is a Dairy Queen. Well, really, it's a mixed blessing because it is all too easy to jump in my car and drive to the Dairy Queen to satisfy my urge for a caramel sundae or a blizzard pretty much whenever I want to! If you are not one of those folks who have ever visited a Dairy Queen, I recommend you visit one whenever you can. There is just something about their creamy vanilla ice cream that is so wonderful. My mother told me not too long ago that her dad actually managed a Dairy Queen at one point in his life, so perhaps my affinity for their ice cream is not too far-fetched? The title of my latest find, Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore really intrigued me when I first saw it. It immediately made me think of the times I have spent at Dairy Queen with my friends, eating tasty treats and talking about our lives--but I am not sure I could say that I have ever had an epiphany while sitting there! This is something that I do not share with Catherine Grace Cline, the heroine of this delightful story. Set in 1970's in the town of Ringgold, Georgia, Catherine Grace is the oldest daughter of Ringgold's third-generation Baptist preacher, who dreams of someday leaving her boring small town for a life in "the big city." Every Saturday afternoon she and her sister, Martha Ann, sit on the picnic bench at the Dairy Queen, eating Dilly Bars and plotting her escape to Atlanta when she turns eighteen. Catherine Grace dreams of a wonderful job in retail, as she and Martha Ann live their lives and long for their mom, who drowned when Catherine Grace was six. Catherine lives her dream until unexpected events occur that force her to return to Ringgold. This book truly charmed me! Catherine Grace is a smart girl trying to live a normal life as a "preacher's daughter" and her depth and knowlege of life is wonderful. The characters in this book are well developed and resemble folks in any small Southern town. If you like this book, try also reading Fannie Flagg's Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle-Stop Cafe.

HOPEWELL CEMETERY

While recently researching the Vicksburg Post microfilm I came upon articles about volunteers cleaning and restoring Hopewell Cemetery. The newspaper articles state that this is the oldest cemetery in Warren County and that the land was given by William Lewis in 1804-1805.
The cemetery served the Hopewell Methodist Church, located in Warrenton and the first county seat of Warren County. The cemetery contains burials of the earliest settlers in Warren County.
The oldest stone in Hopewell belongs to Susan Schweppe, having a death date of August 9, 1822.

Mr. Gordon Cotton published a book in 1999 titled, Hopewell Cemetery and the old town of Warrenton: a history of the first county seat of Warren County, Mississippi, and Hopewell Methodist Church, which was the first church established in the county.
This book gives the history of the church, cemetery and the early settlers buried there. I found the accounts given very interesting such as; one of the biggest cases for an early lawyer, friends going the extra mile to have Jim Pace freed from the Warrenton Jail and the Last Will of Alex McNeill, listing by name, the slaves sold and the buyers with the prices paid. There’s also a listing of Yellow Fever Fatalities of 1853 for the Warrenton Population.

Special thanks to Jeff at the Old Court House Museum and Mr. Gordon Cotton for donating this book to our library.

Sit Down with "The Associate"

The Associate is John Grisham's latest legal thriller. The book is set in New York City and stars newly-graduated Yale Law Journal editor and Yale Law School Graduate Kyle McAvoy. All his life, Kyle has dreamed of becoming a lawyer "for the people" and loathing his friends and acquaintances who joined high-powered law firms after graduation, to work like a dog, make a huge pile of money and hopefully become a partner in a couple of years. Kyle dreams of becoming a small-town lawyer like his dad, John McAvoy, who's payment was often given in vegetables and free lawn mowings. Encouraged by Yale to pursue his dream, Kyle is looking forward to a salary of $32,000 per year helping immigrant's receive justice, when he is approached by a sinister man who drags up an incident from Kyle's past involving him and his fraternity brothers at a late-night party in his apartment. Fearing blackmail from his past actions, Kyle abandons his dream to become an Associate at Scully & Pershing, the biggest law firm in New York City, and break many laws in order to pass information on to the sinister men who haunt his every step. The story exposes the brutal world of the "law firm associate" and exactly what it takes to make it to the top. The book is a great expose' of the deals and corruption that occur in law firms and the unscrupulous practices of some lawyers.

Bollywood Blockbusters

I recently watched "Slumdog Millionaire" and though it was not a Bollywood film, the wonderful dance sequence at the end reminded of why I like Bollywood films. In a nutshell, they are FUN to watch! Although our library does not currently own "Slumdog Millionaire," we have other movies filmed in India that are sure to please your taste for a piece of Bollywood. This weekend I checked out the DVD Marigold and watched it for the second time. It is a really nice film, filled with singing, dancing, comedy, romance and a beautiful setting (did I mention that the costumes in the film are wonderful, too?) The basic story is that Marigold Lexton (played by Ali Larter - "Nikki, etc." for all of you Heroes television fans) is a B-list actress who is stranded and broke in Goa, India after the financing is pulled on the low-budget, last-chance film she was scheduled to make. Trying to pay for a plane ticket home, she catches the eye of the Indian Director of a "Bollywood" film and finagles her way into a role. Thus commences a madcap adventure as Marigold tries to perform in a musical, and is irresistibly pulled into a romance with a famed choreographer. This film is PG-13, but I think it is suitable for family viewing. You might also be interested in checking out A Passage to India, another great DVD (it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards) which delves into the culture of India.

A "Fool" for Merriment

Christopher Moore has to be one of the funniest authors I have ever read. I stumbled across his books one day in our library, and after reading the first one I was hooked! Each book he writes is full of unique characters who end up in the most bizarre situations, and whose narratives are delivered with a droll wit and plenty of hilarity. Moore's latest is Fool, and it is a satiric romp through the world of Shakespeare and King Lear. The book is a twisted and funny tale of the deranged king and his conniving daughters, with the addedd benefit of Moore's unique twists. The hero of the story is Pocket, King Lear's "small-statured" jester and his side-kick apprentice Drool (his nickname aptly describes him), who decide to make events turn out right when King Lear stubbornly takes away his youngest daughter Cordelia's inheritance and banishes her from the kingdom. Pocket and Drool travel across the kingdom, consult with three witches (has anyone read MacBeth?), cast magic spells and encounter a ghost (there's always a bloody ghost) while orchestrating enough wars and murders to make the readers' head swim. It took me a couple of chapters to get used to the English slang but don't worry--Moore has included plenty of footnotes with definitions of each slang word. Christopher Moore is the author of ten other novels and I think any one you pick up will be a joy to read. Christopher Moore invites readers to e-mail him at BSFiends@aol.com and check out his website located at http://www.chrismoore.com/.