Archive | Fiction RSS feed for this section

HPL Staff Gives Thanks

25 Nov

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and I asked my colleagues at the Hoboken Public Library what books or TV shows or digital media they were thankful to find this year. Following are their favorites, which are available at the library or through interlibrary loan.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

-Kerry Weinstein, Reference Librarian

 

graduates-in-wonderland

Photo by Shannon Campbell

Shannon Campbell, Children’s Librarian
After 19 years of education, with an astronomical amount of papers, projects, and presentations, I finally graduated this year in May. I spent the entire summer knowing that in the upcoming fall, I had no professor or class to report to, no looming deadline hanging over my head for a paper or project. It felt freeing, and absolutely scary. I didn’t have the next step all laid out like I had for the previous 19 years. I looked to everyone and everything for advice and comfort, and found it in the book Graduates in Wonderland: True Dispatches from Down the Rabbit Hole, by Jessica Pan and Rachel Kapelke-Dale. The story is constructed through a series of emails the girls send to each other the years following graduation. They talk about their successes, failures, fears, goals, dreams, people and places they have fallen in love with, and people and places they fell out of love with. It very much expressed the mindset I was in at the time. The cherry on top of the cake was my friends and I had sent the book to each other with notes in the margins reflecting our feelings on any of the topics as we read through it. It was very much like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, but book-club style! Not only did I have the authors to look to for comfort, but I also had my friends through their words. That particular copy had been to NYC, Shanghai, California, and of course, Hoboken. To sum up what I am thankful for this Thanksgiving: my supportive friends, my education, and the authors of this book that perfectly express the scary (and amazing) journey of entering into adulthood.
life-on-mars
Carolyn Hartwick, Account Clerk
I am grateful for a June 24 Staff Picks – British Edition post by Clay Waters.  One of his recommendations was for the British television series Life on Mars starring the delightful John Simm.  At the time I was a bit lost with no Sherlock, Doctor Who, or Walking Dead to catch up on so I binge-watched the 16 episodes in early July and then hummed David Bowie tunes to myself for the rest of the summer.  It was a great show, delivered quickly though BCCLS interlibrary loan, and something I am glad didn’t pass me by thanks to the Hoboken Library Staff Picks blog!
wolfpack
Heidi Schwab, Emerging Technology Librarian and Program Coordinator
What I took away from the award-winning documentary The Wolfpack is that even though the brothers, their mother and sister were living in a very bad situation, there is such a sweetness and kindness to them. It is amazing how they protected their mother and were sympathetic to their mentally-ill father who kept them locked up.  After growing up basically prisoners they retained their innocence and positive look at the world. This is a perfect Thanksgiving movie because we learn that even people who grow up in terrible circumstances can grow up to be positive and relatively happy in a way.
code-name-verity
Kim Iacucci, Young Adult Librarian

This year I am thankful that I read Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. I read and enjoy a lot of books every year but there are very few that live up to the phrase “page turner.” This book is so surprising that the minute I finished I wanted to start over from the beginning to see how the pieces fit together. It’s not an easy read. There’s war, torture and loss. But also friendship, love and hope. Highly recommended.

 

logo-ignite

 

Aimee Harris, Head of Reference

I’m thankful that we will be offering some great new services next month to our patrons: JobNow and HelpNow from Brainfuse.  Help Now provides students with online homework help from qualified tutors between 2 PM and 11 PM.  There are also always available video tutorials and practice tests for exams like the GED and SAT.  There is assistance for adults with skill building and who may need help with essays, business letters, or other writing.  JobNow provides assistance for job seekers with their resumes, interview coaching and more.  Check them out starting in December!

 

 

enchanted-april

Rosary Van Ingen, Adult Circulation Services Department Head

My pick for the #gratitude post is The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim. This novel, set in post-WWI Europe, celebrates love, friendship and family. This book never fails to remind me of the beauty and power of friendship.

 

 

night-gardener

Sharlene Edwards, Senior Children’s Librarian

I am so happy to have recently picked up The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier. When it was published last year, I put it on my mental to-read list and continued on my adult fiction kick.  My to-read list is predictably long and unrealistic, and I would have most certainly forgotten about Auxier’s juvenile fantasy novel if I hadn’t spied HPL’s Young Adult Librarian hurriedly reading the last ten pages before starting her work day.  I brought it with me on my train ride home that night, and, by the end of page one, I knew I was going to fall completely in love with Auxier’s creepy Victorian tale about two young orphans who find themselves desperate for food and shelter at the door of an infamously strange house in the woods. Quickly the children learn that there are sinister forces at work in their new residence. The occupants, an unhappy family who is burdened by a mysterious illness, are under the dark thrall of a wishing tree. After finding myself in a bit of a reading slump, Auxier’s beautifully written novel reminded me of the power of artful storytelling.

MSCR blog 11.15

Kerry Weinstein, Reference Librarian

This year I am thankful to have founded, with Rosary, the Mile Square City Readers book club. We have a wonderful, opinionated group that brings fresh perspectives and interesting insights to the books we read. I have tried to start a few book clubs in the past that didn’t last too long, and I’m excited to have this great club to talk books with once a month.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Four Movies to Watch to Get Your Cinderella Fix

21 Oct

Ed. note: Did you see Elbie’s post about books to read based on the Cinderella story?

Cinderella… Cinderella!!!

Just thinking of it brings me back to girlhood when the land of make believe was more attainable. Fairy godmothers, nasty stepsisters, and the dazzling smile of the handsome prince was breathtaking at the time. As a 90s girl with an unapologetic love for fairytales, Cinderella was one of my favorites besides Belle from Beauty and the Beast (we’ll get to that another time). As some may know, Disney had just came out when a live action version of Cinderella on DVD which I of course pre-ordered online. (Did you?) I knew as soon as the credits were rolling on my TV screen, I had to watch another Cinderella movie. Being born in 90s gave me the opportunity to grow up watching different versions of Cinderella on screen played by actors like Brandy and Drew Barrymore. I am grateful for it because it gave me reassurance that one does not have to look a certain way to be a princess, especially Cinderella. It is literally not about how one looks but by how one reacts to a tough situation. Are you kind or cruel in heat of the moment? Do you have the urge to emotionally stab someone in the heart just to feel like you won? I have some Cinderella movie suggestions that transcend different times and eras but the message of prevailing over your enemies is ingrained into the very fabric of the movies. (Plus, there are all family friendly to watch.) Here are four that would make you swoon for a happily ever after.

Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1997)

r-h-cinderella

Image via Amazon

Who wouldn’t want to hear the late Whitney Houston be the best fairy godmother by singing every note with soulful perfection? (It was, also, co-produced by her.) Yes, Brandy Norwood is not the typical blonde hair and blue eyed version but is just as elegant and beautiful. (She recently the starred in Chicago on Broadway.) The Prince is played by Paolo Montalbán, a Rutgers University and St. Peters Prep alumni. Other than being a handsome face, he is a beautiful singer. Bernadette Peters plays the wicked stepmother and looks beautiful while doing it. Whoopi Goldberg plays the queen and overzealous stepmother. These are just some of the stars that are part of this star studded musical version of Cinderella.

Ever After (1998)

ever-after

Ever After is set in the 16th century France. Danielle (Drew Barrymore) is Cinderella. She grows up a rebellious tomboy. Her father loved her the way she was and educated her through books of philosophy and fairy tales. He never held her back from being the person she was. Being a merchant he had to go away many at times. One day, he brought back a regal woman (Anjelica Huston) as his wife, and her two daughters. Danielle thought nothing of it until they showed their real colors toward her and says nothing to not disappoint her father. When he dies of a heart attack, she is reduced to a servant girl in her own house. When she goes into town in disguise, the prince looks her away and doesn’t look back. It is a love story not to miss.

A Cinderella Story (2004)

a-cinderella-story

Hilary Duff plays the modern Cinderella, Sam Montgomery. She is a jeans and t-shirt wearing underdog in the valley, California. She was orphaned after an earthquake. Austin Ames (Chad Michael Murray) the supposed prince talks to an online mystery girl that happens to be Sam. They both don’t know each other until school dance. Sam hides in a mask so she keeps her secret from the prince. When the clock stuck 12, she dashes for the exit leaving her phone, not a shoe. Watch to see if the romance blooms or goes as fast as a sent text message.

Cinderella (2015)

disney-cinderella

The words “Have Courage and be kind” are a new motto from this very recent live action adaption of Cinderella. This phase is adapted into Ella’s (Downton Abbey’s Lily James) life when mother makes her promise to “Have Courage and be Kind” before she dies. Thereafter, she grew up with her widowed father unchanged in spirit. Her father did change by the sadness that took him after his wife’s death. Years later, He married again hoping to gain happiness once more. This did not happen because it was a marriage of convenience not love. The stepmother and stepsisters are struck with jealousy as soon as they see Ella. They withheld their nastiness as much they could until the death of Ella’s father. It was then that they decided to treat her cruelly and call her Cinderella “reducing her to a creature of ash.” Ella’s resilience is the main attribute of the story. I personally think that if the prince wasn’t in the movie, I wouldn’t care because Ella’s display of strength showcased the whole movie.

-Written by Elbie Love, Young Adult Library Assistant

Tags: , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →