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Say Goodbye to Downton: A Selection of Books, DVDs, and Digital Music in Honor of the Final Season of Downton Abbey

17 Feb

If like me you are a fan of Downton Abbey, you are probably feeling both excited and a bit sad about the end of the show.  Now is the perfect opportunity to watch some of your past favorite episodes and enjoy Downton Abbey related books and music.  So raise a cup of proper English tea and toast the end of the era of the British Manor House and an iconic TV show.

Available at the Hoboken Public Library

Downton Abbey, Seasons One through Five on DVD and BluRay

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The story of the aristocratic Crawley family and their staff became a phenomenon.  The drama started in 1912 and moves forward through history to its finale in 1925, with explorations into the complex issues of gender, class, and politics that still resonate today.  The stories of Downton Abbey’s characters are suspenseful, often heartwarming, and sometimes heartbreaking.  Check out the DVDs or BluRays to catch up on any episodes you missed before the finale.

The World of Downton Abbey, by Jessica Fellowes

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Fellowes looks at the production of the first two seasons as well as some of the history behind the story.  The book includes production sketches and photographs from the set.   Get a behind the scenes look at your favorite show.  Also available from other BCCLS libraries are several of Jessica Fellowes’s works focusing on Downton Abbey including her recent work, Downton Abbey: A Celebration, which includes an episode guide to the first five seasons and interviews with the cast.

Maggie Smith: A Biography, by Michael Coveney

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Find out about the career and the personal life of one of Downton Abbey’s glamorous and enigmatic stars in this biography.  Besides her role as the Dowager Countess, Violet Crawley, on Downton Abbey, Dame Maggie Smith has also stared in the Harry Potter films as the magical Minerva McGonagall and in the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel films.

Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey: The Lost Legacy of Highclere Castle and Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey, by The Countess of Carnarvon

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The Countess of Carnarvon, who lives at the real life Downton Abbey (Highclere Castle), discusses the true stories of the women who lived there based on scrapbooks and diary entries.  Like Cora Crawley, Lady Almina was also the daughter of a rich industrialist who married an English noble.  Her second work focuses on Lady Catherine, another American, who married Lady Almina’s son.  Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey is also available as a digital audiobook from Hoopla.

While We Were Watching Downton Abbey, by Wendy Wax

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Wax inspired by her own love of the series and the huge fandom that has sprung up around it, wrote this charming novel about a diverse group of residents in Atlanta who get together to watch the series each week.  This sweet story about friendship should appeal to devotees of Downton.

Available to Hoboken and other BCCLS Card Holders from Hoopla

The Manners of Downton Abbey

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This PBS documentary gives a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to get the Edwardian details just right at Downton Abbey.  Historian, Alastair Bruce, brings his expertise as the historical advisor to the show and hosts this look at details affecting everything from how the Edwardians dressed to what they ate.  It includes interviews with some of the cast members.  Also available on DVD from BCCLS libraries.

Music From and Inspired by Downton Abbey

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Hoopla has a variety of music from the soundtrack of Downton Abbey or inspired the show.  This includes Downton Abbey-Original Music from the Television Series; Downton Abbey – The Ultimate Collection (Music From The Original TV Series) performed by the London Chamber Orchestra; Downton Abbey – The Essential Collection; Christmas At Downton Abbey performed by the Budapest City Orchestra, and The Music of Downton (A tribute to Downton Abbey) performed by L’Orchestra Numerique.  Any of these would be perfect for streaming if you are planning a special party to celebrate the finale.  If you are looking for refreshments to serve consider borrowing The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook by Emily Ansara Baines available from BCCLS libraries.

Making Masterpiece: My 25 Years behind the Scenes at Masterpiece and Mystery! on PBS, by Rebecca Eaton

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You can listen to the digital audiobook of Rebecca Eaton’s account of her work as an Emmy Award-winning producer on PBS’s Masterpiece Theatre and Mystery!.  It is also available in print from BCCLS libraries.  Masterpiece Theatre is the longest running weekly prime-time drama series in the US.  Besides drawing from her experience she spoke with writers, directors, and others who helped bring the compelling dramas to life.  Learn about what went on behind the scenes with Downton Abbey, Sherlock, Upstairs, Downstairs and other Masterpieces!

-Written by Aimee Harris, Head of Reference

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HPL Staff: Holiday Traditions

23 Dec

It’s almost Christmas! Similar to last month’s #Gratitude post, I asked my Hoboken Public Library colleagues about their favorite Christmas books, films, and music. Following are their favorites, which are available at the library or through interlibrary loan.

Dear readers, have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

-Kerry Weinstein, Reference Librarian

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Image via Amazon

Aimee Harris, Head of Reference

My favorite holiday tradition as a child was when each year after stuffing ourselves with Thanksgiving turkey my mom would pull out our personal collection of Christmas books from storage so that bedtime was full of stories of reindeer, snow men, and elves. Our December library visits also found us lugging home books with a holiday theme. Now I love getting to read Christmas stories to my own son. My favorite as a kid that I enjoy getting to share with him is Santa Mouse by Michael Brown and illustrated by Elfrieda DeWitt, which features an adorable mouse who decides to give Santa a present of his own. It is available from several BCCLS libraries. Of course there are plenty of other books my son likes as well; several of his current favorites are How Do Dinosaurs Say Merry Christmas? by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Mark Teague, Merry Christmas, Splat by Rob Scotton, and A Pirate’s Twelve Days of Christmas by Philip Yates and illustrations by Sebastia Serra. I also delight in reading my own holiday themed books; some of my favorite choices for adults are Rhys Bowen’s The Twelve Clues of Christmas, Donna Andrews’s The Nightingale Before Christmas, and Miracle, and Other Christmas Stories by Connie Willis.

 

 

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Sharlene Edwards, Senior Children’s Librarian

I love old-timey black and white films. I enjoy the thoughtful dialogue and the simplicity of old school visual effects. My top five B&W movies in order: Miracle on 34th Street, 12 Angry Men, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Bad Seed (have you seen this movie?!), and It’s a Wonderful Life, which also happens to be my favorite movie of ALL-TIME. I even have a dog named Zuzu!

I’ve watched IAWL at least once a year (usually twice a year) for the past 15 years. My mom and I have a tradition on Thanksgiving which involves getting comfy on the couch, flipping on the film, and crying tears upon tears of joy. For those not familiar with the film, the story revolves around George Bailey, a kind and passionate soul who puts others’ needs before his own, often to his own detriment. George finds himself in serious trouble after his scatterbrained uncle’s actions result in a warrant for George’s arrest. Convincing himself that he is more valuable to his family dead than alive due to a life insurance policy, George resolve to throw himself off the local bridge. An angel named Clarence intervenes and, after failing to convince George that his life is valuable, he decides to show George by unveiling an alternate reality in which George has never been born. As the two explore this new reality, it becomes increasingly apparent just how many lives George has influenced in positive ways…and how much worse off everyone would be if George had never existed.

This movie is a heartwarming annual reminder that “each man’s life touches so many other lives” and “no man is a failure who has friends.” Gosh, I’m practically tearing up as I write this!

Shannon Campbell, Children’s Librarian

Every Christmas Eve night, after all the family festivities have occurred, my family and I cuddle up in our living room and watch It’s a Wonderful Life. Despite watching it every year, I’ve always fallen asleep during the second half of the film (to ensure that Santa will come, of course). Sadly, I have never actually seen the second half. But I usually do wake up just in time for the famous quote: “Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.”

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Carolyn Hartwick, Account Clerk

Aside from the smell of gingerbread, for me Christmas is all about the music. I would have these songs playing the entire month of December if it did not irritate the rest of my family.  My playlist: Nat King Cole’s Christmas for Kids From One to Ninety-Two, Bing Crosby’s Christmas, Diana Krall’s Christmas Songs, The Complete Christmas Recordings of Andy Williams, Light of the Stable by Emmylou Harris, A Charlie Brown Christmas, and Martin Sexton’s Camp Holiday.  An additional gift is that all this holiday music is available through BCCLS!

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Kim Iacucci, Young Adult Librarian
I love Christmas movies! Every year I have to watch certain movies and TV specials before it truly feels like the holiday season to me. I always start on Thanksgiving night with the original Miracle on 34th Street and end on Christmas day with repeated viewings of A Christmas Story. It’s a tradition that’s been going on since I was a kid.

Many of my favorites are movies that are already popular, such as National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation or Elf, so I’ll recommend one that doesn’t seem as well-known… Santa Claus: The Movie (1985) starring David Huddleston, Dudley Moore and John Lithgow. When I was little I thought that this was the true story of Kris Kringle since it starts out with his origin story, explaining how a simple toymaker became the world-famous gift giver. Today, this movie still has magic and nostalgia and makes me excited for the holiday. If you need to get into the spirit of the season, I’d suggest adding this film to your preparations. The movie can be borrowed from the library.

 

 

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Kerry Weinstein, Reference Librarian

Every Christmas I like to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol, based on Charles Dickens’ classic story A Christmas Carol. The movie features original music, the lyrics of which I still remember since first hearing them when I was 10. “Scrooge”, which introduces Ebenezer Scrooge (played by Michael Caine), includes the line “no cheeses for us meeces [sic]” sung by the Muppet mice that never fails to crack me up. Here is a clip of that song from YouTube.

My family is also Jewish, so we celebrate Hanukkah. Without a doubt more music, film, and movies are dedicated to Christmas, but we like to listen to Adam Sandler’s four iterations of “The Chanukah Song”. The original and Part 2 can be streamed on Hoopla Digital, and Part 3 is on the soundtrack for Eight Crazy Nights. Part 4 can be heard on YouTube, which we replayed over and over again during Thanksgiving, laughing and giving thanks for Adam Sandler being a mensch and filling the Hanukkah music void.

 

 

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