Nancy Middaugh
At the Library
Picture books, yes. Young adult titles, yes. Books on CD, yes. The Hamburg Public Library tries to have some new options available each month for all its patrons.
This month that delightful pigeon created by Mo Willems leads the parade of picture books. “Will the Pigeon Graduate?” addresses the question on the mind of many seniors about themselves this time of year. Mo even dedicates his book to all the grads, past, present, and future.
David is back. The mischievous little boy created by David Shannon seems to always be in trouble. “That’s Not Funny, David!” confirms the fact that what David finds funny may not be amusing to grown-ups at all. The author suggests the line between funny and not funny is constantly shifting and depends on where you are, who you are with, what you are doing and most importantly what kind of mood your mom or teacher is in at the time.
From the young adult reader standpoint, your next read could be “Not Like Other Girls” by Meredith Adamo. In her debut novel, the author examines the realities of being a teenage girl. In the words of Goodreads, “A girl risks everything to find her former best friend in this powerful debut mystery about trauma, girlhood, and what we deserve.”
“The Last Place on Earth” by Carol Snow is young adult mystery. Daisy and Henry are best friends, and they know all each other’s secrets. Or, so Daisy thinks, until she wakes up one morning to find that Henry and his family have disappeared without a trace.
In a totally different genre, the library offers “Deathnote—Black Edition” Vols. 1 and 2, a Japanese manga series. Written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, the books are printed in original Japanese format reading from right to left beginning at the back of the book. In the publisher’s words, “Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects–and he’s bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and now Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. Will Light’s noble goal succeed, or will the Death Note turn him into the very thing he fights against?”
Audio books give a different perspective to books. The library has a variety of books on CDs that can be borrowed to listen to at home or in your car on a long drive. A recent addition is “Badlands,” a thriller by C. J. Box. Set in North Dakota, a young woman detective has been assigned to the new deputy sheriff in a small town rich with oil, money, drugs and dirty criminals. A twelve-year-old on a bike becomes the “invisible” key in a gang war.
Yes, it’s time to visit the library and see what’s new.
