Happy Birthday Andrew Carnegie!

Today marks the 175th anniversary of the birth of Andrew Carnegie. There are 10 Carnegie Libraries in NH.

"One of the most tangible examples of Andrew Carnegie's philanthropy is the founding of 2,509 libraries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries throughout the English speaking world, including the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Of these libraries, 1,679 of them were built here in the United States. Carnegie spent over $55 million of his wealth on libraries alone and he is often referred to as the "Patron Saint of Libraries."
It is said that Carnegie had two main reasons for donating money to the founding of libraries. First, he believed that libraries added to the meritocratic nature of America. Anyone with the desire to learn could educate themselves and be successful in America like he had been. Second, Carnegie believed that immigrants like himself needed to acquire cultural knowledge of America which a library would enable immigrants to do." (from the Carnegie Corporation web site)

Book of the Week #47

Lie After Lie: The True Story of a Master of Deception, Betrayal, and Murder by Lara Bricker (NY: Berkley Books, 2010)

This just released book by New Hampshire author Lara Bricker is the fascinating story of the unravelling of the mysterious death of Julie Keown.

"Julie Keown had a great job, financial security, and a perfect husband who was attending Harvard Business School. But after Julie suddenly died, and doctors discovered she's been poisoned with the main ingredient in antifreeze, her parents began to suspect that her husband, James, was not so perfect. This blow-by-blow account shows how investigators and state police unraveled James Keown's chilling web of deceit." (Publisher's materials)

On Monday, November 29, 2010 Lara will be at River Run Bookstore at 7pm along with Jon Bailey, the lead investigator in the case.

Book of the Week #46

From the Box Marked Some Are Missing: New & Selected Poems by Charles W. Pratt (Brookline, NH: Hobblebush Books, 2010)

This volume, by Charles Pratt a longtime resident of Brentwood, New Hampshire, is the inaugural volume in the Granite State Poetry Series.

"This rich collection of new, selected, and previously uncollected poems delights the intellect as well as the senses. Pratt is a sneaky formalist catching the reader up in his narrative and then brightening the page with the most unobtrusive, often slyly slant, rhymes that tickle the ear with their gratifying rightness. This book deserves a wide readership." -- Maxine Kumin (from the back of the book)

Charles Pratt will be reading from his work, along with Becky Sakellariou (her book, Earth Listening, is the second title in this series) at Toadstool Bookshop, Peterborough on Saturday 11/20/2010 at beginning at 2pm. They will also be at Water Street Bookstore on Tuesday, 11/23/2010 at 7pm.

Book of the Week #45

Extreme New England Weather by Josh Judge (SciArt Media, 2010)

WMUR meteorologist Josh Judge was recently interviewed on WRKO Radio about his new book Extreme Weather.

"New England Weather contains 212 pages (24 in stunning full-color!) and over 350 images from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. Told in images and stories from both celebrities and ordinary people, this book hits with impact, imparts knowledge and delights with humor. For his second book, Josh’s distinctive voice is joined by featured contributions by his colleagues from Storm Watch 9, a flurry of other meteorologists and weather scientists and others from every state in New England. It also includes Josh's Judge-ment for The Top Ten Weather Myths and how to keep your family safe in eXtreme New England Weather! Also, a previously unreleased interview with the late Don Kent, interviewed by NH author Eric Pinder." (from publisher's blurb)

Reading & signing events for this book will be held at several local bookstores this month:

• Saturday, 11/13/2010, 2pm at Barnes & Noble, Portsmouth
• Sunday, 11/14/2010, 2pm at the Toadstool Bookshop, Milford
• Saturday, 11/20/2010, 2pm at Borders, Concord
• Sunday, 11/21/2010, 2pm at Barnes & Noble, Nashua

Lots of Upcoming Book Events

Thursday, November 11, 2010

• Scott Bulger will be hosted by Gibson's at Red River Theaters at 7pm talking about Khronikos
• Eric Jay Dolin will talk about Fur Fortune & Empire at an event co-hosted by River Run Bookstore and the Portsmouth Athenaeum beginning at the bookstore at 7pm
• Brock Clarke will be reading from his new novel Exley at 7pm at Water Street Bookstore

Friday, November 12, 2010

• Mary Lou Gediman will be reading from Journeywoman at Barnes & Noble, Nashua beginning at 7pm
• MainStreet BookEnds of Warner will host John Walters signing Roads Less Traveled at 7pm

Saturday, November 13, 2020

• At 11am Toadstool Bookshop, Peterborough will host Lynn Levine talking about her new kid's book on tracking, Snow Secrets
• Tom & Ellen Zappala will be at Barnes & Noble, Nashua talking about their book T206 Collection at 2pm
• Fritz Weatherbee will be at Borders, Concord at 2pm discussing As Seen on TV
• David Elliott will be reading from In the Wild at Toadstool Bookshop, Milford at 2pm
• Mary Lou Gediman will be reading from Journeywoman at Barnes & Noble, Manchester beginning at 4pm
• Jane Smith Berhardt will read from We Are Here at Toadstool Bookshop, Milford at 7pm

Monday, November 15, 2010

• Michael Ferber will be at River Run Books to discuss Romanticism: A Very Short Introduction at 7pm

Book of the Week #44

Palazzo Inverso by D. B. Johnson (Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010).

This book was part of the Rapid Reviews: 30 Books in 30 Minutes program at the New Hampshire Library Association meeting this week. I had seen this book before -- it is very cool -- and was happy to be reminded of it just as I was looking for the 200th book-of-the-week to write about.

Author D. B. Johnson is a Granite State resident and the illustrator of Bear's Picture by Daniel Pinkwater, a past Ladybug Picture Book Award nominee.

"With the enigmatic work of M.C. Escher as his inspiration, Johnson puts brush to paper to imagine a startling world that changes on every page. A grand Palazzo is under construction, and young Mauk, restricted to sharpening the Master's pencils, has mischievously shifted the building drawings. As a result, carpenters now stand on their heads, painters hang from the ceiling, and fountains spray down instead of up. With everything in disarray, Mauk races through the now-distorted Palazzo with the Master in close pursuit. Viewers can track his adventure through the running text at page bottom, which, with the help of an arrow, directs them, at the final page, to turn the book around. The story then continues with, of course, an appropriate shift in perspective, and readers soon find themselves back at the beginning-or are they at the end? Children will delight in discovering Mauk in a variety of places and poses and will be intrigued with the inverted architectural details that Johnson supplies. With the help of brown-and-white multishaded drawings, the illustrator provides a never-ending loop of clever optical trickery." (School Library Journal review)