How to Disappear: Notes on Invisibility in a Time of Transparency

by Akiko Busch

In our networked and image-saturated lives, the idea of disappearing has never been more alluring. Today, we are encouraged to reveal, share, and promote ourselves. The pressure to be public comes not just from our peers, but from companies that want to profit from patterns in our behavior.

How to Disappear is an exhilarating accomplishment, overturning the modern assumption that fame and visibility equate to success and happiness. Busch presents a field guide to invisibility, reacquainting us with the merits of remaining inconspicuous, and finding genuine alternatives to a life of perpetual exposure. She inspires us to develop a deeper appreciation for personal privacy in a vast and intrusive world.

Mike

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Look Alive Twenty-Five

by Janet Evanovich

I have listened to every one of Janet Evanovich’s creations. She never fails to entertain, and her novel Look Alive Twenty-Five is no exception.

Her books are read by Lorelei King; she has fabulous voices for the different characters. Listening in the car makes a boring drive so much more fun. Give it a listen, you won’t be disappointed.


Beckie H.

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Spirited Away

Chihiro’s family is moving to a new house, but when they stop on the way to explore an abandoned village, her parents undergo a mysterious transformation and Chihiro is whisked into a world of fantastic spirits ruled over by the sorceress, Yubaba. Put to work in a magical bathhouse for spirits and demons, Chihiro must use all her wits to survive in this strange new place, find a way to free her parents and return to the normal world.

Overflowing with imaginative creatures and thrilling storytelling, Spirited Away became a worldwide smash hit, and is one of the most critically-acclaimed films of all time.

Mike

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Mary Shelley

Starring: Elle Fanning

We all know the story of Frankenstein, even if we haven’t seen the movie or read Mary Shelley’s book, we all have at least an understanding. But have you ever considered the origins of the book? It was written by a young woman in 1818! First of all, there were few women authors during that time and even fewer woman authors that were only 21 years old!

This movie will open your eyes to the lifestyles in London during the 1800s. To me, it seems a lot like the 1960s in America and Europe. Mary’s life was not easy then, but it was also on the wild side. This move was very well done and Elle Fanning does a great job as Mary Shelley. The move inspired me to do some research on Mary Shelley and to finally read Frankenstein; or The Modern Prometheus.

Beckie H.

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44 Charles Street

The plumbing was prone to leaks, the furniture rescued from garage sales. Now Francesca, newly separated from her lawyer boyfriend Todd, is desperate. The owner of a struggling art gallery, and suddenly the sole mortgage payer on her Greenwich Village townhouse, Francesca does the math and then the unimaginable. She puts out an advertisement for boarders.

First comes Eileen, a New York City schoolteacher. Then there’s Chris, a young father struggling with a troubled ex-wife and the challenge of parenting a seven-year-old son who visits every other weekend. The final tenant is Marya, a celebrated cookbook author hoping to start a new chapter in her life after the death of her husband. As Francesca’s art gallery begins to find its footing and Todd moves on to another woman, she discovers that her accidental tenants have become the most important people in her life. 

~Crystal

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The Best of Us

by Robyn Carr

Followers of this blog will know that I am a huge Robyn Carr fan. I devour every book she writes.

Her latest book “The Best of Us” is just as engrossing as all her other books. In this book the main character, Dr. Leigh Culver falls in love with a wonderful guy and they run into a predicament. She hopes her aunt (who is more like her mother) will help her with this issue but she declines. Carr continues to incorporate characters from her previous books into her new books and the books always have a great ending.

Beckie H.

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God Bless The Broken Road

from the director of "God's Not Dead" - Rated PG

A young woman, Amber,  loses her husband in Afghanistan and struggles to meet her financial obligations and raise their daughter.  While Amber’s faith falters, the daughter’s  faith stays strong.

Amber won’t accept help or advice from her church, her mother-in-law or anyone else. Things finally get to a critical point and she reaches out to the only one who can help her.

Dixie

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Eighth Grave After Dark

by Darynda Jones

With twelve hellhounds after her, pregnant Charley Davidson takes refuge at the only place she thinks they can’t get to her: the grounds of an abandoned convent. But after months of being cooped up there, Charley is ready to pop. Both metaphorically and literally since she is now roughly the size of a beached whale.

Charley’s been forbidden to step foot off the sacred grounds. While the angry hellhounds can’t traverse the consecrated soil, they can lurk just beyond its borders. They have the entire team on edge, especially Reyes. And if Charley didn’t know better, she would swear Reyes is getting sick.

~Crystal

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What Was That All About? : 20 Years Of Strips And Stories

by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

I’m a big fan of ZITS (the comic strip not the skin condition) and I’ve never read a ZITS book I didn’t like. 

This is the newest in a long line of ZITS collections. Jeremy is one of the most loveable teenagers ever. 

The antics of he and his friends and family never fail to crack me up.

Dixie

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The Apartment

by Danielle Steel

They come together by chance in the heart of New York City, four young women at turning points in their lives. Their shared life in the apartment turns them into a family of beloved friends.

But as unexpected opportunities and challenges alter the course of each of their lives, they face the bittersweet reality that in time, they will inevitably move away from the place where their dreams began.

~Crystal

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Egypt's Sister

by Angela Hunt

I love historical fiction by Angela Hunt.  This one involves the real historical characters of Cleopatra, Caesar, and Mark Anthony.

Told from the perspective of Chava, a Jewish girl who is best friends with the girl who will one day become Cleopatra. Their friendship is strong and Chava believes God has ordained this friendship to last a lifetime. She finds out however, that once her friend becomes royalty, things change in ways she would never have imagined.

Dixie

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The Martian

By Andy Weir

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive. 

But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next.

~Crystal

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The Witches: Salem 1692

By Stacy Schiff

In 1692, at the edge of the New England wilderness, an entire village went insane.

Everyone knows the story: The pre-teen daughters of the local minister are mysteriously overcome by convulsions, their uncontrollable screaming sending the superstitious community into fear and confusion. Lacking other explanations, Satanic influence is suspected, and accusations of witchcraft soon fly. The town is pitted against itself, and by the time the hysteria fades, 19 men and women are hanged.

But what actually happened? The Witches: Salem, 1692 steps back from more than three centuries of hyperbole and supposition, giving us our most complete account yet.

Mike

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William Wegman: Being Human

by William Wegman

Fall in love with these funny, striking, and surreal pups.

~Crystal

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Craft-A-Day

by Sarah Goldschadt

These are very simple crafts that would be great for younger kids.

Each week of the year has a theme ie: fox, whale, bunny, clouds. These are affordable, scissors and glue crafts.

Basics like gift tags, ornaments, finger puppets and garlands.

Dixie

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