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The Movie, Creation opened in theaters on January 22. Creation, directed by Jon Amiel and starring Jennifer Connelly, Paul Bettany, and Jeremy Northam, is based on Randal Keynes’s Darwin, His Daughter and Human Evolution. Keynes is the great-great-grandson of Charles Darwin. His book is available through our HCPL catalog.

If you are interested in reading more about Charles Darwin, his times, his scientific beliefs and his personal struggles, you might also like these:

Charles and Emma : the Darwins' leap of faith by Deborah Heiligman
"Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, his revolutionary tract on evolution and the fundamental ideas involved, in 1859. 150 years later, the theory of evolution continues to create tension between the scientific and religious communities. This same debate raged within Darwin himself, and played an important part in his marriage: his wife, Emma, was very religious, and her faith challenged Charles as he worked on his theory of evolution. Deborah Heiligman's new biography of Charles Darwin is a thought-provoking account of the man behind evolutionary theory: how his personal life affected his work and vice versa." (catalog notes)

The Reluctant Mr. Darwin : an intimate portrait of Charles Darwin and the making of his theory of evolution by David Quammen
"He did not found a movement or a religion says Montana-based writer of fiction and natural history Quammen, he never assembled a creed of scientific axioms and ascribed his name to them. He was in fact a reclusive biologist who wrote books on some minor and some major topics, made mistakes, and changed his mind. He admits that most of Darwin's writings relate to the unity of all life as reflected in the processes of evolution, but he had nothing to do with Darwinism and its scientific and religious controversies." (catalog notes)

The Darwin Conspiracy by John Darnton
"In this riveting new novel, best-selling author John Darnton transports us to Victorian England and around the world to reveal the secrets of a legendary nineteenth-century figure. Darnton elegantly blends the power of fact and the insights of fiction to explore the many mysteries attached to the life and work of Charles Darwin." (catalog notes)

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
A work of fiction about another scientist seeking to advance her ideas about extinction and the age of the earth before Darwin's theory of evolution.

Labels: biographical fiction, Biography, Charles Darwin, creation, Evolution

Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child (Find this book in our catalog)
Gone Tomorrow has topped the Adrenaline section of the RUSA 2010 Reading List. The Reading List annually recognizes the best books in eight genres. The Adrenaline genre includes suspense, thriller, and adventure.

In Gone Tomorrow "Lone wolf Jack Reacher takes on terrorism and Homeland Security as he stumbles onto the tail end of an Al Qaeda sting. Crossing politics, police departments, and an alphabet soup of federal agencies, Reacher cleans house. The non-stop tension, atmosphere of menace, and Reacher's matter-of-fact narration create an immediate and believable thriller." (Reading List Council)

Books Like Gone Tomorrow: (Click on a title to go to our catalog and reserve your copy)
The John Rain series by Barry Eisler
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
Below Zero by C. J. Box

Adrenaline Short List:
Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell
The Neighbor by Lisa Gardner
Shatter by Michael Robotham
The Tourist by Olen Steinhauer

Labels: adrenaline, gone tomorrow, Jack Reacher, lone wolf, terrorism - fiction, thriller

The Washington, DC, non-profit health organization Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine recently released a report on the five healthiest cookbooks of the decade. About PRCM...



The five best books chosen by this organization of "Doctors and laypersons working together for compassionate and effective medical practice, research, and health promotion," speak to a very specific agenda. The list, however comes at a very opportune moment when so many people are concerned with both healthy and responsible eating. Readers will have had their smouldering interest in this topic fueled by a recent best selling cookbook, The Conscious Cook, which is listed as #3 on the PCRM "best" books list.

Harford County Public Library has all the books on the list for you to check out. Here they are:

The kind diet : a simple guide to feeling great, losing weight, and saving the planet by Alicia Silverstone (Find this book in our catalog) Vegan cookery.

Skinny Bitch in the Kitch: Kick-Ass Recipes for Hungry Girls Who Want to Stop Cooking Crap (and Start Looking Hot!) by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin (Find this book in our catalog) Also vegan cookery.

The Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen (Find this book in our catalog) This is currently getting an awful lot of press and media coverage - you may well have seen this vegan cookery book reviewed on your favorite morning news show. It covers the very current topic of responsible eating.

The Engine 2 diet : the Texas firefighter's 28-day save-your-life plan that lowers cholesterol and burns away the pounds by Rip Esselstyn (Find this book in our catalog) Features a mostly vegetable diet that also includes whole grains legumes and small portions of meat.

Cooking the whole foods way : your complete, everyday guide to healthy, delicious eating with 500 vegan recipes, menus, techniques, meal planning, buying tips, wit, and wisdom by Christina Pirello (Find this book in our catalog).

Labels: Cookbooks, healthy cooking, vegan cookery

Labels: crime fiction, Dilys Winn Award, Mysteries

The Abingdon book group read this novel for the January discussion. In general the book was liked and thought to be an easy read. It tells the story of Casey Marshall, who is the victim of a hit and run accident. She finds herself in hospital in a coma. She cannot move or see, or in any way communicate but she can hear. Over a period of time, as her husband, sister, friends, and doctors & nurses talk in her room, she discovers that all is not as it seems. Her "accident" may have been an attempted murder. Fielding reveals the murderer part way through the book, perhaps too early for some readers, who may lose interest once they know who did it. For those who stick with the story, the tension increases as Casey's life hangs in the balance and she must find a way to let those who love her know what is happening.

Read about this book and others by this author on her website at:
http://www.joyfielding.com/v2/newrelease.htm

or on the Random House website at:
http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780385666695

Labels: coma, joy fielding, still life, thriller

According to Publishers Weekly, Prolific novelist Robert B. Parker died on Tuesday, January 19 of a sudden heart attack. He was 77. Parker, who wrote over 60 books, died at his home in Cambridge, Mass. Parker's next novel, Split Image (Find this book in our catalog) is coming out on February 23, and Penguin currently has no plans to change its initial publication plans for the novel. Another novel, a western called Blue Eyed Devil, is slated for this spring and, according to Parker's editor, Christine Pepe, the house has "a couple" of other books by him in production now.

Robert B. Parker was perhaps best known for his series featuring his rule-bending detective, Spenser. Split Image, his forthcoming book, will be the ninth novel about Paradise, Mass., police chief Jesse Stone. It focuses on Stone's deepening connection with PI Sunny Randall (also the star of her own series). Both Jesse and Sunny are still recovering from failed relationships. According to the PW review (which you may read in full in our catalog), Parker "does a nice job of integrating their separate therapy sessions (in Sunny's case, with Susan Silverman, the significant other of Parker's best-known detective, Spenser) with two criminal investigations. The parents of 18-year-old Cheryl DeMarco ask Sunny for help in getting Cheryl out of a religious cult, while Stone probes the gunshot murder of Petrov Ognowski, a mob soldier whose boss, Reggie Galen, is the next-door neighbor of another gangster." Family ties prove deadly in this mystery novel, which has the added attraction of tying together three of Parkers most popular characters.

Another Jesse Stone novel: Night and Day
Another Sunny Randall novel: Spare Change
A recent Spenser novel: The Professional

Labels: cults, Massachusetts fiction, mob, Mysteries, Private Detectives, Private Investigators Ltd

Mystery readers! Fill up your Winter Reading log quickly by checking out and reading some of these recent and highly recommended titles.

The Mystery Writers of America has chosen its nominees for the 2010 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction, TV and film published or produced in 2009. View the full list here. The awards will be presented to the winners at MWA's 64th gala banquet, April 29 in New York City.

Here are the nominations for novels available in Harford County Public Library. Click on the title to reserve your copy:
BEST NOVEL
The Missing by Tim Gautreaux
The Odds by Kathleen George
The Last Child by John Hart
Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death by Charlie Huston
A Beautiful Place to Die by Malla Nunn
BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano
Starvation Lake by Bryan Gruley
The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf
A Bad Day for Sorry by Sophie Littlefield
Black Water Rising by Attica Locke
In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff

Labels: Edgar Awards 2010, Mysteries

The Lovely Bones, the movie opened in wide release Friday, January 15. Directed by Peter Jackson, it stars Saoirse Ronan, Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon, Michael Imperioli.



It is based on the novel, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (Find this book in our catalog)



This is what it says about the book in our catalog: "Once in a generation a novel comes along that taps a vein of universal human experience, resonating with readers of all ages. THE LOVELY BONES is such a book -- a #1 bestseller celebrated at once for its artistry, for its luminous clarity of emotion, and for its astonishing power to lay claim to the hearts of millions of readers around the world. "My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973." So begins the story of Susie Salmon, who is adjusting to her new home in heaven, a place that is not at all what she expected, even as she is watching life on earth continue without her -- her friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her killer trying to cover his tracks, her grief-stricken family unraveling. Out of unspeakable tragedy and loss, THE LOVELY BONES succeeds, miraculously, in building a tale filled with hope, humor, suspense, even joy."

Check our catalog also for what major book reviewers had to say.

Labels: child murder, family fiction, Lovely Bones, Murder mysteries, supernatural fiction

Happiness is an ambiguous term. How can we truly define what this word means without taking into account all of the various components in our lives? For example, if we are healthy, debt-free, and generally like our jobs, does this mean we have achieved supreme happiness? I don’t know. I would think so, but then again, maybe we are missing the essential core that leads to sheer contentment.

This month’s Jen’s Jewels Gretchen Rubin takes this question to task in her latest release called, but of course…THE HAPPINESS PROJECT. Over a year’s time, she implemented her unique plan to track her own level of happiness by using innovative strategies and simple gauges to determine if she was living what Oprah would call “her best life.” Without a doubt, if you are looking for ways to enrich your life, this book is for you!

As part of this interview, Harper Collins Publishers has donated five copies for you, my lucky readers, to win. So, don’t forget to look for the trivia question at the end. As you continue on your journey towards health and happiness in 2010, I thank you for making Jen’s Jewels a part of your reading adventure.

Jen: The path to publication is oftentimes as fascinating as the project itself. So that my readers may have a better understanding of the woman behind the words, please tell us a little bit about your educational and professional background.

Gretchen: I went to Yale undergrad and then attended Yale Law School, but it was when I was clerking for Sandra Day O’Connor that I realized I wanted to be a writer.

Jen: Being editor–in–chief of the Yale Law Journal whet your appetite for a possible career in publishing. While serving in this position, what was the most challenging task that came across your desk? And, what steps did you take in order to be successful?

Gretchen: The biggest challenge in working for the Yale Law Journal was managing a large group of very independent people, and in order to be successful I worked as hard as I could!

Jen: In 1995 as a recent law school graduate, you had the amazing opportunity to clerk for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Please describe for us the selection process. And, what was the toughest hurdle you had to clear in order to obtain this position?

Gretchen: The selection process was extensive. You submit transcripts and recommendations, and if you make it through the first cut, you get an interview. The interview was the hardest part — the toughest hurdle to clear — for that position.

Jen: After leaving that position, you served as chief adviser to the Federal Communications Commission. Also, you lectured at both the Yale Law School and the Yale School of Management. How did these experiences positively contribute to your decision to actively pursue a career in publishing?

Gretchen: They showed me that as much fun as I was having in these other jobs in law, I really wanted to be a writer.

Jen: Tacking onto my last question, describe for us your “Ah! Ha!” moment which ultimately changed your life.

Gretchen: Walking around the Capitol grounds during lunch hour while I was clerking, I suddenly realized that I wanted to be a writer. At that time, I was writing a book in my free time, and I realized I could make writing a career instead of treating it as a hobby. The book I was working at that time eventually was published as my book, Power Fame Money Sex: A User’s Guide.

Jen: In terms of your publishing career, you have written bestselling books on Winston Churchill and John F. Kennedy. What were the most fascinating tidbits of information you discovered while researching these two great historical figures?

Gretchen: I couldn’t possibly narrow it down to just a few items! I picked these two figures because they’re overwhelmingly fascinating and surprising. There are hundreds of fascinating tidbits!

Jen: Your latest endeavor is quite appropriate for this time of year of resolutions and new beginnings. Please describe for us the catalyst that propelled you to embark on THE HAPPINESS PROJECT.

Gretchen: I had an epiphany on a rainy afternoon, on a crowded city bus. “The days are long, but the years are short,” I realized. “Time is passing, and I’m not focusing enough on the things that really matter.“ In that moment, I decided to dedicate a year to my happiness project.

Jen: You start off the project by listing your twelve commandments. How did you go about choosing them? And, what relevance do they have to the implementation of the project?

Gretchen: I arrived at them after a lot of research and thinking. They were the guiding principles that pervaded my happiness project beyond the individual resolutions that I tried to follow.

Jen: The project took place over a year. Please describe it for us.

Gretchen: Quite simply, I set a theme for each month, with a set of specific resolutions to carry out.

Jen: I had to chuckle when I read about your frustration with keeping a gratitude journal. My experience mirrored yours. I gave up, too! What are some realistic expectations that one can achieve by pursuing this endeavor?

Gretchen: Boosting gratitude for your ordinary life will make you happier. If a gratitude journal doesn’t work for you, find other ways. Every time I sit down at the computer, I take a moment to appreciate my ordinary life.

Jen: As a reviewer, I was impressed with your willingness to confront criticism when you received a not–so–flattering review and then turned it into a teachable moment to make yourself better. How is a person’s willingness to confront adversity a stepping stone towards reaching happiness?

Gretchen: You’re right. It’s not much fun but it’s important to do. Facing up to the challenges that life offers is an important part of striving toward happiness.

Jen: What was your greatest self-discovery from completing this project?

Gretchen: One of my most important realizations was that I can only build a happy life on the foundation of my own nature. For that reason, my resolution to “Be Gretchen” is the most important one I identified.

Jen: Let’s switch gears and talk about your superb website. Please share with us the resources you have available that enable anyone to start a happiness project.

Gretchen: My website has a guide of sorts to start your own happiness project: http://www.happiness-project.com/happiness_project/start-.html.

I’ve also started a “Happiness Project Toolbox” where you can launch your own Happiness Project: http://www.happinessprojecttoolbox.com/.

Jen: Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to stop by and chat with my readers. I look forward to seeing you on the road to happiness in 2010.

Gretchen: Thanks!

Now that you have read about Gretchen, I hope you are inspired to begin your own happiness project for 2010. I encourage you to stop by your favorite bookstore or local library branch and pick up a copy of THE HAPPINESS PROJECT today!

Better yet, how would you like to win your very own copy? Okay, be one of the first five readers to e-mail me at jensjewels@gmail.com with the correct answer to the following trivia question and it’s yours!

What is the title of Gretchen’s first book?

In February, I will be bringing to you my interview with David Dosa, M.D., author of the extraordinary true-life story MAKING ROUNDS WITH OSCAR. You won’t want to miss it.

Until next time…Jen

Labels: Jen's Jewels

Find Midnight Fugue by Reginald Hill in our catalog.

The other day I had a request for other traditional British police procedurals like the series by Reginald Hill about Yorkshire detectives Dalziel and Pascoe. You may have seen the adaptions of some of these books on TV.

Though this series is a fairly classic police procedural, it can in no way be considered cozy. Hill's series is set in the industrialized north, which is in economic decay, and life is hard. In solving crimes, the police partners play off each other. Dalziel is the inspector, a local, grass-rooots policeman who has been hardened by his background and what he has seen - and by what he has had to do to advance in the force. Some even consider him corrupt: his philosophy is do what it takes. Pascoe is his sergeant, younger, university educated and idealistic. He is the pair's moral compass and brings science to Dalziel's intuition and local knowledge.

Other books with burnt out policemen who bend the rules:

The Naming of the Dead by Ian Rankin (Try also other Inspector Rebus novels set in Edinburgh)
A Little White Death by John Lawton (Scotland Yard detective Frederick Troy - try also others in the series which chart Troy's rise to be Scotland Yard's chief of the murder squad)
Skeleton Hill by Peter Lovesey (Part of a series featuring policeman Peter Diamond, set in Bath, England)

You might also like these other British procedurals available in HCPL:
The Man With No Face by Peter Turnbull (Glasgow)
The Rottweiler by Ruth Rendell (London)
Gone Tomorrow: a Bill Slider Mystery by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
The Private Patient by P.D. James (Adam Dalgleish, Scotland Yard)

Non-British procedurals:
Still Life by Louise Penny (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Surete du Quebec)
The Friend of Madame Maigret by Georges Simenon
This Night's Foul Work by Fred Vargas
The Girl of His Dreams by Donna Leon
The Pyramid : and four other Kurt Wallander mysteries by Henning Mankell

(Find The Serpents Trail in our catalog)

Just like a record number of HCPL readers this year, I have enrolled in our Winter Reading program. Having read a mystery set in Arkansas (Muletrain in Maggody), I decided to continue to read mysteries around the United States. This time I chose Alaska.


But wait! I had heard that Sue Henry, a very popular mystery author had a long-running series set in Alaska. What readers have particularly enjoyed in her novels is her evocation of the beautiful natural scenery of the state. I should have done my homework more carefully! The title I chose at random from Henry's works happened to be The Serpents Trail, the first in a breakaway series she started about two very popular characters in an earlier book, Maxie McNabb and her mini dachshund, Stretch. Maxie McNabb is an independent retiree and widow who sets off in her Mini Winnebego from her home in Alaska to explore the Lower 48. Her first stop is Grand Junction, Colorado, where she sadly has to spend a while to perform her duties as the executor of her best friend's will. So I ended up reading a mystery set in Colorado, with side trips to Utah!

I was not disappointed, however, in Sue Henry's description of the natural scenery. In almost lyrical language she paints vivid pictures of the startling landscape of colored rock, bluff, and river gorge, even getting down to the bright flash of color of an Indian Paintbrush flourishing half-hidden between two rocks.

Readers who like mysteries set in small towns, will like this book - the real town of Grand Junction is described in considerable detail. Maxie's friend, Sarah was the fourth generation of the family to live in the grand Victorian house on Chipeta Street, just a few tree-shaded blocks from the park. When Maxie arrives at the house expecting to help her ailing friend, she finds the back door open and the living room trashed. Sarah is in the hospital. When Maxie gets to Sarah's bedside she is just in time to hear that Sarah has been very worried about something that is "all wrong," and that she has called Maxie to help, before Sarah loses consciousness. When Sarah dies without revealing more, we learn that her death was not of natural causes. Maxie has to work through Sarah's cunningly hidden clues to the mystery from her past, while dealing with further intruders into the house, angry disinherited family members, and at least one attempt on her own life. The Serpents Trail is the name of a hiking trail in Colorado's Monument Park and also a metaphor for Maxie's quest to find her friend's killer.

I recommend this book to fans books about female friendship, and to fans of the gentle small-town mysteries of Margaret Maron. Maron's books feature Judge Deborah Knott, another middle-aged, strong, engaging female main character, just like Maxie McNabb.

Labels: Colorado fiction, female friendships - fiction, Murder mysteries, women detectives

Val McDermid has won the UK Crime Writers' Association's Cartier Diamond Dagger award for outstanding achievement in the field of crime writing. The Scottish-born author of 27 novels was inducted into the crime-writers' Hall of Fame and elected to an honorary fellowship at St Hilda's College, Oxford.

Click here for more about the Award.



Click here to reserve your HCPL copy of Darker Domain, Val McDermid's 2009 stand-alone mystery thriller featuring Scottish Det. Insp. Karen Pirie, head of the Fife police Cold Case Review Team, in which Karen is requested to investigate two twenty-five-year-old cases involving missing persons, abduction and ransom.

Scottish-born McDermid has not limited herself to settings in Scotland for her novels. The Grave Tattoo (Find this book in our catalog) is a novel reminiscent of "The Rule of Four", "The Dante Club" and "The Historian" set against the scenically and culturally rich backdrop of the English Lake District. Suspense master McDermid spins a psychological thriller in which a present-day murder has its roots in the eighteenth century and the mutiny on the "H.M.S. Bounty". Wordsworth specialist Jane Gresham is searching for the priceless lost manuscript of a Wordsworth poem supposedly inspired by the personal testimony of Fletcher Christian; but everywhere Jane seeks, death follows on her heels.

Police psychologist Tony Hill features in a series of McDermid mysteries set in England in West Yorkshire. Titles include:
The Torment of Others
The Last Temptation
The Wire in the Blood

Readers who enjoy stories of cold case files and the work of police psychologists, and who enjoy psychological suspense, are sure to find something to enjoy in the books of Val McDermid!

Labels: cold case files, Diamond dagger Award, lost manuscripts, missing persons, Mysteries, Police, psychological suspense, Val McDermid

I have just finished reading Muletrain to Maggody by Joan Hess (Find this book in our catalog).

This is the 2004 entry in the colorful, humorous, larger-than-life, irreverent, and marginally politically correct series about feisty Police Chief Arly Hanks in the sleepy Arkansas town of Maggody. I have always liked Chief Hanks and her attempts to stay sane in a town of misfits, some of whom are benign, some of whom are vicious and many of whom are inbred. In this story she has to battle cannily with the local county sheriff in order to get his help with a suspicious death that occurred among a group of Civil War reenactors, who have descended on the town to make a documentary movie about a lost muletrain of Confederate Gold. A bizarre cast of characters take over the isolated town and add their own tortured motives to the already confusing mix of red herrings Arly has to pursue in identifying the killer. The locals add to Arly's problems - everyone seems to think he or she is entitled to the Confederate gold, could they just find its hiding place in the local system of caves. Everyone is hiding something. Two senior citizens just disappear on Cotter's Ridge, and the local home-ec teacher goes missing too.

I have liked all the books in this series. Despite at first seeming to be a case of the Dukes of Hazard meets Murder She Wrote, this story, like the others, is a carefully crafted and satisfying classic closed-community mystery. All the diverse plot lines neatly come together in the end. The clues are there for the alert reader to see. This caricature of Arkansas country life may seem very broadly drawn, yet Joan Hess cunningly skewers greed, infidelity, and hypocrisy in her characters. Their vanity and self-absorption lead to outcomes ranging from burlesque to tragedy. Evil stalks the quiet community and another, this time harmless, soul falls victim to violence before all is sorted out. Arly does always manage to sort things out, and things get back to what passes for normality; but under the comedy there lingers a sense of seriousness and sadness.

Labels: Arkansas fiction, Arly Hanks, cozy mysteries, humorous fiction, Joan Hess, Maggody

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (Find this book in our catalog)
This new novel by Tracy Chevalier is bound to be as memorable as her other novels of women caught up in pivotal historical events. The story is of a young impoverished girl, Mary Anning, in mid-19th century England. It is based on a true story of how Mary, a gifted amateur scientist and fossil-hunter found prehistoric fossils on a beach in England. Her discoveries, coming as they did before Darwin, challenged the authority of the church and brough opprobrium on her, as did her impertinance in challenging the scientific world, the exclusive preserve of men. She continued to bid for scientific legitimacy, despite the damage to her reputation and her hopes for love, helped by a more upper class friend, Elizabeth Philpot. This is the story of their friendship. Tracy Chevalier creates a unique setting, as she did in The Girl with a Pearl Earring. She, "captures the atmosphere of a chilly, blustery coast and an oppressive social hierarchy in real Dickensian fashion" (LJ review in our catalog). "Remarkable Creatures is a stunning novel of how one woman's gift transcends class and social prejudice to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century. Above all, is it a revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of female friendship" (catalog summary).

If you like stories of adventure, travel, and scientific discovery, and also stories of remarkable women, you may also like this true story:
The Sisters of Sinai : how two lady adventurers discovered the hidden Gospels by Janet Soskice.

Labels: fossils, Mary Anning, Tracy Chevalier, women scientists

Labels: Biography, celebrity biographies, Elvis Presley

The New Year is a time when I and millions of others take stock and often make a resolution to do a personal make-over of some kind or another. Often we take the advice of some role model we admire; but rarely does anyone do as Robyn Okrant did and spend one year following every piece of Oprah Winfrey's advice on how to 'live your best life.' She devoted 2008 to adhering to all of Oprah's suggestions and guidance delivered via her television show, her website and her magazine. Living Oprah (Find this book in our catalog) is a month-by-month account of that year.

Labels: biographies, Memoirs, new year's resolutions, nonfiction

If you are interested in a mix of archaeology, history, religion, lost artifacts, puzzles and deception, this is a great book to read. Levin tells his story in depth and detail and although his characters' escapades may sometimes stretch belief, his descriptions of historical events keep the book grounded. Jonathan Marcus, a former doctoral classics student and current lawyer, is in Rome to examine some ancient stone fragments. He discovers a hidden message in them, reunites with a former colleague and preservationist, Dr. Emili Travia, and before he knows what is happening is off on a quest for an ancient artifact that will take him & Emili from Rome to Jerusalem and back again. They are not the only ones looking for this object, however, the mysterious Salah ad-Din and his men will stop at nothing to get to the artifact. Full of action and mounting tension, the search gets more dangerous as Jonathan & Emili uncover more of the mystery surrounding the object and put their lives at greater risk.

Alan Dershowitz of Harvard Law School said - "What a glorious journey from the tumultuous world of today's Middle East to the Imperial world of Roman antiquity and then back. With a flair for detail, drama, and elegant prose, Daniel Levin keeps us transfixed by his page-turning tale of deception, politics, history and life."

The author's website is
www.daniellevin.com or www.thelastember.com

Labels: antiquity, archaeology, artifacts, Danile Levin, Jerusalem, last ember, Rome

Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System--And Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin has won the Best Business Book of the Year award, sponsored by 800-CEO-READ. (Find this book in our catalog)

This is what it says about the book in our catalog: "A real-life thriller about the most tumultuous period in America's financial history by an acclaimed New York TimesReporter Andrew Ross Sorkin delivers the first true behind-the-scenes, moment-by-moment account of how the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression developed into a global tsunami. From inside the corner office at Lehman Brothers to secret meetings in South Korea, and the corridors of Washington, Too Big to Fail is the definitive story of the most powerful men and women in finance and politics grappling with success and failure, ego and greed, and, ultimately, the fate of the world's economy. "We've got to get some foam down on the runway!" a sleepless Timothy Geithner, the then-president of the Federal Reserve of New York, would tell Henry M. Paulson, the Treasury secretary, about the catastrophic crash the world's financial system would experience. Through unprecedented access to the players involved, Too Big to Fail re-creates all the drama and turmoil, revealing never-disclosed details and elucidating how decisions made on Wall Street over the past decade sowed the seeds of the debacle. This true story is not just a look at banks that were "too big to fail," it is a real-life thriller with a cast of bold-faced names who themselves thought they were too big to fail."



In addition, winners and runners up have been chosen in 11 categories and can be seen here...
The winners will receive their awards at a celebration in New York City January 25.

Labels: bank failure, Best Business Books, financial crisis, nonfiction, Too Big to Fail

Brooklyn by Colm Toibin (Find this book in our catalog) won the Costa Novel of the Year award over a shortlist that included Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall. Brooklyn was one of five category winners that will compete for the overall Costa Book Award which will be announced January 26. The Costa Book Awards are a series of literary awards given to books by authors based in the United Kingdom and Ireland. They were known as the Whitbread Awards until 2005.

Labels: Brooklyn, Ireland, Irish fiction, love stories, psychological fiction

Winter Without Books? Nevermore

Face a Winter Without Books? Nevermore! The Winter Reading Program for adults and teens at Harford County Public Library (HCPL) starts on January 4th and runs through March 6.



Start your winter reading off with a novel about Edgar Allan Poe, father of the mystery story and himself a man of mystery! See the recommended booklist, "On Raven's Wing," on our New releases and Booklists webpage

Labels: 2010 Winter Reading, Edgar Allan Poe

Past Life, a new FOX-TV series inspired by M.J. Rose's novel The Reincarnationist (Find this book in our catalog), will have its network premiere Thursday, February 11.

More information about the show is available on the FOX website.

This is what our catalog says about the book: "A bomb in Rome, a flash of bluish-white light, and photojournalist Josh Ryder's world exploded. From that instant nothing would ever be the same. As Josh recovers, his mind is increasingly invaded with thoughts that have the emotion, the intensity, the intimacy of memories. But they are not his memories. They are ancient - and violent. A battery of medical and psychological tests can't explain Josh's baffling symptoms. And the memories have an urgency he can't ignore, pulling him to save a woman named Sabina, and the treasures she is protecting. But who is Sabina? Desperate for answers, Josh turns to the world-renowned Phoenix Foundation, a research facility that scientifically documents cases of past life experiences. His findings there lead him to an archaeological dig and to Professor Gabriella Chase, who has discovered an ancient tomb: a tomb with a powerful secret that threatens to merge the past with the present. Here, the dead call out to the living, and murders of the past become murders of the present."

Labels: ancien tombs, ancient secrets, archaeology, occult fiction, past life memories, photo-journalists

Lou Berney

I’ve always been interested in traveling especially to exotic places. Strange customs and unfamiliar food seem to pique my curiosity. Have I ever been to any, you ask? If New Jersey qualifies as one, then yes! All kidding aside, as part of my list of New Year’s resolutions, I plan on venturing outside the USA with my husband and kids in tow. Who knows where we might wind up? I can guarantee it most certainly will be an adventure!

This month’s Jen’s Jewels author, Lou Berney, has been bitten by the same travel bug. In his debut novel Gutshot Straight, he takes the reader on an outrageous ride to the jungles of Panama in a hilarious crime caper that is sure to catch your eye. From the Armenian mob to a Vegas strip-club, this wild adventure has it all. Even the catchy title draws you in!

As part of this interview, William Morrow Publishers has generously donated five copies for you, my lucky readers, to win. So, don’t forget to look for the trivia question. And as always, thanks for making Jen’s Jewels a part of your reading adventure.

Jen: Your road to publication is quite the story in itself. From screenplays to the academia, your career has encompassed many areas of the publishing business. So that my readers have a better understanding of the man behind the words, please share with us the highlights of your educational and professional accomplishments.

Lou: My background, in college, was mostly journalism. But even though I loved reporting — getting out and observing, asking questions — I wasn’t crazy about having to stick to just the facts when it came to writing. So I decided to get my MFA. In grad school, I had great teachers and great fellow students, and I was lucky enough to have one of my first short stories picked up by the New Yorker, which led to a collection of stories. I also started teaching in grad school. At first it was just a way to make some money, but I discovered I really loved being in the classroom. So when I got my degree, I took a job as an assistant professor at a college in California. It was a great job — getting paid to read books and talk about them all day with smart people. I kept writing, but I started drifting away from short stories and toward movies. I wrote a script about an ice-cold female bank robber who has to go hide out in a small, friendly town. I managed to sell that screenplay to Focus Features, and even though they didn’t end up making the movie, it opened up a lot of Hollywood doors. So ever since then I’ve been writing movie and TV projects for everyone from Jerry Bruckheimer to Warner Brothers to various independent producers. But I always really missed writing fiction, which is my first and deepest love, so when the WGA went on strike in the winter of 2007-2008, there was a silver lining for me — it gave me a chance to write Gutshot Straight.

Jen: Being a writer for television pilots as well as screenplays enables you to spread your creative wings on different fronts. Describe for us the process in terms of the collaboration aspect of writing for a specific type of audience compared to simply writing your own novel. Which is more challenging and why?

Lou: They’re both challenging, but in different ways. When you write screenplays, a lot of the time you’re working closely with producers every step of the way, from pitch to outline to draft to polish. I’ve been lucky enough to work mostly with great, smart producers, so that can be really nice — to have a great, smart person always there to give you feedback, encouragement, ideas. It makes writing a lot less lonely, and a lot of times two heads really can be better than one. On the other hand, sometimes this kind of collaboration can be stressful — you don’t want to let down the team, and you can start just trying to give your producers what you think they want, rather than trying to blow them away with something they didn’t realize they wanted until they saw it. Writing a novel can be brutal since if it’s going badly you’ve got know one to blame but yourself. But you have the freedom to make big mistakes that might turn into really great discoveries.

Jen: As a scholar, you have taught in three very different areas of the country…west coast, northeast, and the prairie land. How did each geographical area influence and/or affect your teaching style? Did you find a marked difference among your student body in terms of their approach to learning?

Lou: That’s a great question. And it’s hard to answer, because I’ve found such a diversity of students at each college where I’ve taught. At the University of Oklahoma, for example, here on the prairie, I’ve had students who have come from rural, small-town farming backgrounds, but I’ve also had students as sophisticated, worldly, and well-traveled as any student I’ve ever had on the coasts. As a teacher, I just try to read each individual class like a quarterback reads a defense and adapt my approach to what I think will be most effective.

Jen: Your short stories have appeared in many notable publications, The New Yorker, Ploughshares, and New England Review, to name a few. As for the nuts and bolts of the writing process, what is the most exhilarating part of writing in this particular genre?

Lou: I love how a short story builds to one precise moment — one sentence, one image, one word that brings everything together and just goes off like a bomb. It can be brutally hard finding that precise moment, and getting it right, but when you do, it’s a terrific feeling.

Jen: As for your previous work, please tell us about your connection, if you will, with the Baltimore Orioles. As many of my readers know, I live in the Baltimore area!

Lou: This is kind of funny. I have no connection whatsoever with the Baltimore Orioles. There are actually two writers named Lou/Louis Berney. What are the odds of that, right? My full name is Louis, but I’ve always gone by Lou. When the New Yorker bought my first story, the editor there suggested I use “Louis” in the byline because it sounded more substantial and writerly. I agreed because, well, it seemed like a good idea to listen to a New Yorker editor. After my story collection came out, I discovered there was another writer named Louis Berney who covered the Orioles. I think we exchanged a couple of notes. He published a couple of non-fiction books about baseball under the name “Louis,” so I was happy to go back to “Lou,” which I’m a lot more comfortable with anyway. The irony is that since I was named after Lou Gehrig, I’ve always been a fan of the New York Yankees, divisional rivals of the Orioles. But I do love the city of Baltimore, and I love the baseball stadium there.

Jen: Your latest endeavor, Gutshot Straight, is a hilarious crime caper set in Panama. It’s a superbly written novel with just the right balance of romance and intrigue. I couldn’t put it down. Bravo! First of all, how did you arrive at the premise?

Lou: Thanks! I really appreciate that. As for the premise, I somehow got it into my head that I wanted to take the story of Snow White and update it to a contemporary, criminal setting. But I wanted to put the focus on one of the fairy tale’s minor characters, the Huntsman who is ordered by the Evil Queen to take Snow White out in the woods and kill her, and instead he lets her go. He always seemed like an interesting, sympathetic, potentially complex guy to me, just trying to do his job and getting hit with his huge moral dilemma. I always wondered what happened to him when the Evil Queen found out that he’s disobeyed her orders. If it’s in the Disney movie, I don’t remember it.

Jen: Secondly, the title is a quite catchy…Gusthot Straight. I have to admit, you’ve got me stumped on this one! What does it mean? And, how does it relate to the matter at hand?

Lou: “Gutshot Straight” is a long-odds poker hand where you have to draw a single card rank (e.g., a nine) to make a straight. Basically, hoping you land a gutshot straight is a pretty reckless gamble — the poker equivalent of a wing and a prayer. My novel isn’t really about poker, per se, but it IS about bluffing, lying, playing the odds, and &mdsah; when it comes in particular to my two main characters — an awful lot of reckless gambling.

Jen: Let’s talk about the characters. Charles “Shake” Bouchon has quite the checkered past. Upon his release from prison, he enlists in one last “deal” before finally becoming clean. What is the driving force behind his affinity to a life of crime?

Lou: At one point in my novel, Shake is described as a guy who is too nice for the life he’s led, but not nice enough for any other, and I think that sums him up pretty well. I’m not sure he really has an affinity for a life of crime. But he’s never really been a guy who’s taken charge of his own life — at least not until the events of the novel — so when the current of his life happened to carry him out onto the other side of the law, he never really tried to swim back in.

Jen: Not only is he a wheeler and a dealer, but also he has a compassionate side. When assigned the task of guarding the boss’s captive, Gina, he does the unthinkable. He sets her free. In Shake’s eyes, is Gina a femme fatale or is she just perhaps a way in which to make amends for his past transgressions? Is he tempting fate or simply choosing to take the higher ground?

Lou: That’s another great question. Hmmm. I think Shake’s big motivation is that he’s basically a good guy and he can’t bear to think about what’s going to happen to Gina if he turns her over to the bad guys (it doesn’t hurt that he also has kind of crush on her, but I think he’d have let her go even if she’d been homely and smelly). But I also do think Shake sees this as an opportunity, for once in his life, to take control of his own destiny and not just drift along. His timing for this revelation isn’t great, as he himself would be the first to admit, since it involves angering some very dangerous people, but I’m certain that Dr. Phil would see Shake defying his boss and letting Gina go as a healthy, empowering psychological development.

Jen: Gina, Gina, Gina. Where to start?! Sexy, conniving, and the ultimate temptress! Gina has it all going on and then some. Yet, if truth be told underneath all that fanfare is just a wounded soul trying to find its way. Why then is she willing to take a chance by joining forces with Shake against their adversaries, Alexandra Ilandryan and Dick Moby? Who is the smarter player in this game of deception and how so?

Lou: I’m really glad you see her this way. I never, ever wanted Gina to be a typical, one-dimensional femme fatale. In a lot of ways, she’s just like Shake — trying to figure out if she can become a different person than the one she’s been for so long. I think that’s why she joins up with Shake. Yes, she can use him to get what she wants, and yes, she has a little crush on him, and yes, he’s fun to banter and match wits with, but most importantly, I think, Gina really responds to Shake’s essential decency — something she’s never had much of in her life. As for the smartest player in this novel, Shake would be the first to admit that Gina is a lot smarter and creatively deceptive than he is. But he’s got age, experience, and the humility that comes with both on his side, so he can hold his own with her. (And he probably learned a lot by dating Alexandra, who is even smarter than Gina.)

Jen: The comic relief in this story centers on some zany and unforgettable characters. For instance, poor Ted Boxman! Having come to Panama to find some love, he wound up finding more than trouble. How is he able to overcome such misfortune while managing to keep his head on straight?

Lou: Ted started out as just a minor character. He wasn’t even going to get his own POV, but once I got in his head I couldn’t get out. It’s just hinted at in the published draft, but Ted, before he comes to Panama, has been through a really emotionally devastating experience back home. So that always informed the character for me. Even when he was in zany situations, and even though he is mostly a pushover, Ted was always a character who I knew had a real streak of resiliency and toughness deep down (even though this streak often surfaces at exactly the wrong time). I was always rooting for Ted.

Jen: Next, there is Jasper, Dick Moby’s right-hand man. For him, things go from bad to worse as he tries to redeem himself in the eyes of his boss. Surprisingly, he and Shake have much in common. What enables these two men to see eye-to-eye?

Lou: Jasper, unlike Shake, is not a nice guy. But he’s also not evil, like some of the other characters in the novel – there’s a flicker of genuine decency there. I think Jasper, like Shake, is a guy who’s come to a crossroads in his life, and he knows he needs to act now or lose forever whatever chance he has of becoming a better man.

Jen: Let’s switch gears now and talk about your promotional plans. First of all, please take us on a brief tour of your website.

Lou: I read a quote somewhere that said author websites should be about what you have to offer, not what you have to sell, so I’ve tried to make sure my site offers some fun stuff. There’s a video book trailer that was produced by a buddy of mine who is an award-winning close-up magician. They’re not flashy, but some of the moves he makes are just incredible. There’s an excerpt from the novel, plus an entire short story of mine, “Stupid Girl,” that shows where my fascination with Snow White began. You can get free, signed Gutshot Straight novelty playing cards, and if you enter the first contest you’ll get your own crime persona and description on what I’m calling the Wall of Noir. There’s a lot of other stuff too, and pretty soon I’ll be adding deleted scenes from the novel, more contests, more free stuff, and more stories. As for other marketing, I’m going to do book signing events in 15 or 16 cities. That’s one of my favorite parts of having a book out — getting to meet and talk to readers and booksellers all across the country.

Jen: A question I just have to ask, what is the story behind your author photos? You have to admit they are not your run-of-the-mill headshots!

Lou: They’re not? Why, that’s just my typical Tuesday afternoon. Well, not really, I guess. My wife actually had the idea for those photos. We both hate author photos that take themselves too seriously — you know, dramatic lighting, bookcase in the background, the writer with chin on hand, gazing off into the distance, deep in profound thought. We wanted an author photo that not only would get your attention, but also communicate the humor and spirit of this novel. For the record, neither of the women in the photos is an exotic dancer.

Jen: What’s next on horizon for you? Any new books in the works?

Lou: I’ve got a lot of ideas for a sequel to Gutshot Straight (you didn’t think Shake and Gina were going to settle down and live boringly ever after, did you?), and I’m also working on a literary suspense novel that’s got humor but is also darker and deeper, more Kate Atkinson than Elmore Leonard.

Jen: Thank you so much for kicking off the New Year with my readers. Gutshot Straight is a sure winner! I wish you the best of luck in 2010!

Lou: It’s been my pleasure! Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me, and for all the nice things you’ve said about my novel!


I hope you have enjoyed my interview with Lou. I encourage you to stop by your local bookstore or favorite library branch and pick up a copy today! Better yet, how would you like to win one instead?

Okay, be one of the first five readers to e-mail me at jensjewels@gmail.com with the correct answer to the following trivia question and you’ll win. Good luck!

In Gutshot Straight, what is Shake’s real name?

Later this month, I will be bringing to you my interview with Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project. You won’t want to miss it!

Until next time…Jen

Labels: Jen's Jewels