Do you find it difficult to get to the library during the daytime hours?  Don’t worry- come visit us during one of our 5pm-7pm slots! On Monday evenings you’ll find me there, and on Wednesdays you can visit with Wendy Holkesvig or one of our wonderful volunteers.  We have all kinds of book suggestions, and we’re ready to help you with any questions you may have.

 

Books to Feature:  The Sixth Day, by Catherine Coulter, and Korea Reborn.  Thank Hyundai Motor America for the donation of the latter book.  

Our featured books this week are  The Sixth Day, by Catherine Coulter, and Korea Reborn: A Grateful Nation Honors War Veterans for more than 60 Years of Growth, a publication by Remember My Service Productions.

In The Sixth Day,  special agents Nicholas Drummond and Michaela Caine take on a ruthless mastermind when the deaths of several major political figures are revealed to be brilliant assassinations.  Roman Ardelean, a wealthy and enigmatic cybersecurity genius, quickly becomes a prominent suspect in their investigation. His fixation on curing his twin brother of a deadly blood disorder- coupled with his eerie connection to the infamous historical leader Vlad the Impaler- make him a force to be reckoned with…

Korea Reborn is a retrospective look at the Korean War and the years of prosperity that followed.  The photos and text tell the story from the perspective of both U.S. Veterans who served in the conflict, and the Koreans who prospered from the freedom left in their wake.  Beginning with the events that led up to the war, through the ensuing battlefields across the Korean Peninsula, and ultimately the transformation from a war-torn country into a vibrant, prosperous nation, this book encapsulates why freedom is worth fighting for.  

Korea Reborn is a donation from Hyundai Motor America to libraries across the country.  Special thanks to them for this lovely tribute!

This week’s online resource is Explora Educator.  Designed for teachers, this interfaces searches: ERIC, Teacher Reference Center, and the Professional Development Collection.  Includes articles with information and ideas on teaching in all subjects. You can access this resource through the school or through our library here at the city center.  

 

We’ve put up a number of new shelves at the Northwood City Center Library!  With more on the way, these shelves will provide much more room for books, allowing for a greater variety in reading.  We are currently in the process of taking the books which have up until now been sorted by genre, and rearranging them alphabetically altogether.  We hope this arrangement makes it easier for you to find the book you’re looking for!

 

On Tuesday mornings at 10:30 we now offer a storytime for toddlers and young children, provided they are accompanied by a parent or guardian.  We will read a few fun and easily understood story books that will inspire a love of both stories and reading for kids at an early age. You’re welcome to join us on Tuesdays at 10:30 am!  

 

We would like to thank Charlene Voight for the donation of Fredrik Backman’s 2016 novel, My Grandmother Wants Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, the story of a little girl and her grandmother.  

In this book, seven-year-0ld Elsa has always shared a special bond with her grandmother, who understands her as few other people can.  However, when her grandmother passes away, leaving a series of letters apologizing to everyone she’s ever wronged, Elsa sets out on a journey that will lead her to places and people that will teach her the truth about fairy tales, kingdoms, and a grandmother like no other. “Firmly in league with Roald Dahl and Neil Gaiman… A touching, sometimes funny, often wise portrait of grief.”  – Kirkus Reviews

 

And now let me draw your attention to  Acedemic Search Premier, a database of articles on various acedemic subjects, geared for upper high school and college age students.  This resource can be accessed through our public library, or through your school. If you’re interested in using Acedemic Search Premier, come visit us at the Northwood City Center Library!

We at the Northwood City Center Library would like to invite you and your children to come to our weekly Kid’s Reading Hour as we continue reading through our current book, Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang!  Missed the beginning of the book?  No problem! We’ll catch you up to the story when you come.  Enjoy snacks and visiting with us as we enjoy this wonderful story and others like it.  And parents- feel free to browse through your own favorite books while we’re at it! There’s fun reading to be had for everyone during our Saturday Kid’s Reading Hour.  And if you can’t make it Saturdays, then drop by on one of our other open days! Business hours are 10am-1pm Monday-Wednesday, 10am-1-pm on Saturday, and 5pm-7pm on Monday and Wednesday nights.

 

These last few weeks, we’ve had book donations from Kathy Sleeper and Gail Ducioame, some of which have already been featured in Library Corner.  These exciting new titles include Deep Freeze and Twisted Prey, by John Sandford, Enigma and The Sixth Day by Catherine Coulter, Look For Me by Lisa Garnder, Come Sundown by Nora Roberts, and Accidental Heroes and The Right Time by Danielle Steele.

We would like to thank Gail and Kathy very much for their contribution to our library!  We always appreciate it.

 

For our Featured Fiction of the week we have  Come Sundown, by Nora Roberts.

Bodine Longbow’s peaceful life of running her family’s Montana ranch resort is disrupted when her high school crush-turned-new-manager Callen Skinner is accused of being a murderer.  To complicate matters further, Bodine’s long-lost aunt Alice makes an unexpected return, traumatized and bearing horrifying tales of being held prisoner for twenty years by a violent man.  

As Bodine, Cal, and her family care for the fragile woman, they begin to wonder whether her story, Cal’s predicament, and the recent rash of murders are connected.  Tensions mount, and danger creeps ever closer, until they know only one thing for certain: no one is safe…

According to Publishers Weekly, “What makes this novel most engaging is Roberts’ ability to suffuse her story with rich details of one family’s life, as well as sizzling doses of romance and mystery.”

For this title and others like it, come visit us and find your next favorite read!

 

And finally, for anyone who needs access to information on the latest developments in science and mathematics, consider using General Science Collection: a Gale resource made available to public libraries and schools.  Includes full-text articles and pre-reviews journals!

If you’re interested in General Science Collection, drop by the Northwood City Center Library and we’ll help you get started.  

 

If you ever have the need for a good encyclopedia, check out the Gale Virtual Reference Library!  This online resources is a collection of twenty-five encyclopedias covering different subjects, including medicine, social science, literature, nations and worlds, and more!  

You can access the Gale Virtual Reference Library by using one of the guest computers at the Northwood City Center Library, or bring your own device and settle in for some study!

 

Our featured book this week is John Sandford’s Deep Freeze, a Virgil Flowers novel.  

Class reunions are a time for memories, both good and bad, and as Virgil Flowers is about to find out, deadly.  Returning to Trippton Minnesota, this time to solve the murder of a woman frozen in a block of ice, Virgil must dig into twenty-five years’ worth of trauma, feuds, and secrets in order to get to the bottom of this perplexing case.  And the more bad-blood he unearths, the more he risks the spilling of his own blood…

Publishers Weekly calls it “An outstanding novel”, while Booklist’s’ starred review says of it, “You can’t make this stuff up, but, thankfully, Sandford can.  Imaginative, funny, and thoroughly engaging.”

Kid’s Reading Hour had an excellent turn-out this week!  With a total of eight children, we started reading Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, which promises to be an enchanting, memorable story.  Thanks to all of you who attended! We hope to see you again soon!

Some of you know and make use of our online catalogue, finding what books and other materials we have available.  But did you know that you can also search hundreds of other libraries’ catalogues using the WorldCat?

WorldCat, or FirstSearch, is an online database that catalogues the contents of libraries world-wide.  Sometimes, when you’re looking for a lesser-known book or other resource, it can be difficult to obtain:  but WorldCat can make it easier to locate it in the myriad of libraries available to us.  

To access this resource, go to www.library.nd.gov/onlineresources.html , find the link to WorldCat, and get started on your search!

 

Our Featured Fiction of the Week is Look For Me, by Lisa Gardner.

A perfect autumn day in Boston is shattered when four family members are viciously gunned down in the comfort of their own home.  Their sixteen-year-old daughter, Roxanna Baez, is still missing. Witnesses say that she took the family’s two dogs for a walk shortly before the attack.  Is her absence a lucky coincidence? Or does it hint at something more sinister?

Detective D.D. Warren is on the case- along with survivor-turned-avenger Flora Dane.  As the case unfolds, they are faced with baffling evidence and difficult questions. But whether Roxanna Baez is the perfect daughter, or the perfect suspect, they know for certain that she is silently pleading,   look for me…

“Gardner has tackled a tough subject with some complicated protagonists… Fans will find the result as satisfying as ever.”  – Florida Times-Union

 

Hey, middle-schoolers!  I’d like to introduce you to a fast and convenient way to get information on core subjects for research purposes.  Research in Context provides authoritative content on government, literature, social issues, geography, and more! Research in Context can provide you with a summary of your topic that makes it easier to comprehend as you delve into it further, whether it’s for a report, or just a general understanding as you study the topic in school.  

If you want to make use of Research in Context, come to the Northwood City Center Library and study, or access it through the Northwood Public School Library.  

 

Our featured book of the week is Enigma, by Catherine Coulter.

In this exhilarating, twisted tale, expectant mother Kara Moody’s dream becomes a nightmare when her newborn son disappears from the hospital.  FBI agents Savich and Sherlock think they’re investigating an abduction, until evidence suggests a fantastical conspiracy that could potentially  make immortality possible.

Meanwhile, Liam Hennessy, a notorious Irish thief and one of the FBI’s most wanted, goes into hiding deep in the Appalachian Mountains.  The agents sent to find him soon discover something they never expected to find. With time running out, and the odds of Kara ever seeing her son grow slimmer by the day, this case will push the dedicated agents beyond anything they have done before…

“…Twists and turns galore in both investigations ensure there’s never a dull moment.” – Publisher’s Weekly

The Northwood City Center Library will be hosting a read-aloud storytime for young children on Tuesdays at 10:30!   Parents or guardians, bring your little ones here to enjoy a selection of 3 to 4 fun, easy-read story books. We’d love to inspire them with the joy of reading early on, and sharing these stories is a great way to do it

 

The Saturday Kid’s Reading Hour will be starting again on the 26th of May, this time with Ian Fleming’s  beloved classic, Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang.   Kids ages 9-12 are invited to come and listen and visit as we read aloud this book, chapter-by-chapter each Saturday.  

In Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang, an eccentric inventor and his family purchase a hopelessly dilapidated old car- but as they scrape away at the rust and mold, restoring it bit-by-bit, the car begins to exhibit some strange, mysterious, and perhaps even magical qualities.  Though this family is definitely no ordinary family, they had no idea what a wild ride they were in for when they found…. Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang!

 

Our featured book of the week is Twisted Prey, the latest novel in John Sandford’s Prey series.

As a federal marshal, Lucas Davenport must confront his old nemesis, Taryn Grant, who has now found a seat on the US Senate Intelligence Committee.  Her power and wealth has shielded her from the consequences of the three murders he’s certain she’s responsible for- but this time Lucas is determined to put an end to their unfinished business, one way or another.  

Publishers Weekly has called it “Thoroughly entertaining… a deadly cat and mouse game that will keep the reader turning the pages up to the exciting climax.”

 

(Sources Used:  Amazon, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, Twisted Prey

Sources Quoted:  Twisted Prey, Publishers Weekly)

If you’re researching anything of a medical nature, you may benefit from the databases hosted by the State Library!  Alt Health Watch, Consumer Health Complete, and Health Source are all resources for researchers and students alike.  Alt Health Watch includes articles and studies on alternative and holistic approaches to health care.   Consumer Health Complete has basic medical information and diagrams for students and the general public, and Health Source provides full-text articles and abstracts for the academic medical community.  Visit the North Dakota State Library’s online resources page if you are interested.

 

Our featured book of the week is Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee.  

In the early 1900s, Sunja, the prized daughter of a poor yet proud family, is betrayed by her wealthy lover.  However, she finds unexpected help when a young minister offers to marry her and bring her to Japan and start a new life.  

With these events, the sweeping saga of an exceptional family begins, stretching through the generations as Sunja and her family members endure harsh trials, and great joy, pursuing their passions and rising to meet whatever challenges their new home presents.

A finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction, Pachinko is  described by Booklist as “An exquisite, haunting epic… ‘moments of shimmering beauty and some glory too’…”.  For this book and others like it, come visit our collection and find the right book for you!

If you’d like a fun, interactive resource for your kids, try Kid InfoBits!  This site has educational articles on topics ranging from science and history,  to pop culture and sports. With full-color photos and an easy-to-understand writing style, it is an ideal resource for your child to use when researching a school paper or report.  

To access Kid InfoBits, go to www.gale.com/c/kids-infobits and sign up, or come visit us and use at the library.  

Stephanie Danler’s national best seller, Sweetbitter, has been adapted as a TV series on Starz media.  The 2016 novel details the hectic coming-of-age story of Tess, a young waitress in a Manhattan restaurant.  In the midst of the varied dynamics of the restaurant as well as the city, Tess encounters the drastic ups and downs of life in her own unique way.  

So if you’re someone who likes to read the book before watching the show, or if you’ve been inspired to read by the lastest episodes, come check out Sweetbitter at the Northwood City Center Library!

Researchers, if you need access to full-text magazine articles for your project, check out MasterFILE, a resource made available through the state library.  This database covers magazines on general-interest topics, and can be found through the State Library’s Online Resources page at http://www.library.nd.gov/onlineresources.html .  

 

On May 1st, the library hours will be changing to the following schedule:

 

And now, for our features book of the week, I bring you Flight of the Sparrow, by Amy Belding Brown.

In this fictional re-imagining of a true story, early American colonist Mary Rowlandson is captured by Indians.  Her home destroyed and her children lost to her, she becomes a pawn in the treacherous struggle between English settlers and the indigenous people.  Amidst the trials of cold, hunger, and exhaustion, she witness both shocking brutality… and unexpected kindness. To her own surprise, she is drawn to her captors’ straightforward way of life–  and is forced to wonder wonder whether, if given the chance, she could ever fit back into her old life. Praised by the Historical Novel Society as “…amazingly written and deeply researched…”, this book promises to be a treat for any fan of the early American period.