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So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed

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So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed
Format: Book, eBook, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Adults

We’ve all fallen victim to it. That satisfying feeling when someone is wrong on the internet. You instigate or participate in a “pile on,” posting your criticism on your choice of platform. And you totally forget: There’s a person on the other end. A human being, like you, who makes mistakes, like you.

Jon Ronson investigates this phenomenon in his book So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed. He speaks to people whose reputations have been ruined by public shaming. People who innocently tweeted a joke, or had a secret uncovered, or posted a photo meant for just their friends to see, that spiraled completely out of control, turning their lives upside down. Even if they sincerely apologize, even if they genuinely change their minds/ways, they become known for that one mistake, and not for the multi-faceted individual they are.

Of course public shaming is not a new concept, but it’s gotten significantly easier, and potentially more dangerous, in our current era of social media and the 24-hour news cycle. Anyone can be held accountable for satire they published years ago. Anyone can have a quote taken out of context that disrupts their career and endangers their livelihood. Anyone can devote their life to doing good works and be “cancelled” in the blink of an eye. The court of public opinion never seems to close, or overturn their rulings.

We generally extol virtues like “love your neighbor” and even “love your enemy” but when we engage in public shaming we ignore and even betray these ideals. Why are so quick to hold a grudge, and so slow to hold a conversation with people we presume to disagree with? If you take the opportunity to get to know that person, you are likely to find common ground. If you allow that person to learn from their transgressions and move on, instead of constantly reminding them of what they did wrong, they may grow and find redemption.

In this book, Ronson charges us to examine our impulse to “call out” people, and to think about the harm it causes by inhibiting civility and advancing cruelty. Find it in our catalog

Roll With It

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Roll With It by Jamie Sumner
Format: Book, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Kids

Ellie has big dreams—she doesn’t just want to be a good baker for a twelve-year-old, she wants to be a great baker, period. Sure, she’s got her challenges—like the aide who has to follow her around the whole school day—but with good news from her doctor, things are looking up.

Then Ellie and her mom have to move so they can help take care of her grandpa, whose dementia is getting worse. Now she’s the new kid at a tiny school, and the only one who uses a wheelchair. Ellie thinks she just might reach her breaking point—until the oddball neighbor kids become, unexpectedly, her friends. Find it in the catalog.

Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic

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Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic by Michael McCreary
Format: eBook
Who it’s for: Adults, Teens

Michael McCreary was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at age 5, shortly before being bitten by the performance bug. He landed his first stand-up gig at age 14 and now, at age 22, performs across the US and Canada, using humor to dispel myths about autism. Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic will appeal to readers with ASD, as well as those looking for a better understanding of ASD.

Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic is OverDrive’s latest Big Library Read, running March 23 – April 13. Big Library Read connects readers around the world with the same book at the same time without any waitlists or holds. Borrow Funny, You Don’t Look Autistic and join the online book discussion!

Plus – use #BigLibraryRead on social media from March 23 – April 13 for a chance to win a Samsung Galaxy tablet from OverDrive! | Official Rules

 

The Cool Bean

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Book: The Cool Bean by John Jory
Format: Book
Who’s It For: Children of All Ages

Who hasn’t wanted to be a cool bean? To be like the “in” crowd? To have that certain “je ne sais quoi”?

In this picture book, our main character, a nameless bean, tries to be a cool bean. He tries to wear the right shades, to adopt their swagger and hairstyles. Yet, none are a fit for him. Although he used to hang out with the cool beans, now he feels like a has-bean. He snorts, he stumbles, he feels awkward and unpopular.

Yet one day, some cool beans show him some unexpected kindness. And our bean begins to wonder, “Does true ‘coolness’ actually come from the outward trimmings like sunglasses?”  Perhaps those things don’t amount to a hill of beans.

Our everyday bean tries being kind to others.  He does nice things in his own way.  He likes it.  He explores hanging out with the cool beans and being alone and content with himself.  And he discovers his very own definition of being a cool bean.

This was a gentle and humorous look at accepting oneself and exploring one’s place in the world.  And if you loved other books illustrated by Pete Oswald like The Good Egg and The Bad Seed, then this one is a must-see!

Find it in our catalog.

Get a Life, Chloe Brown

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Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
Format: Book
Who it’s for:  Adults

Chloe Brown lives with chronic pain, an invisible disease that people don’t understand.  After almost getting hit by a car, she decides she needs to cross some things off her bucket list and live her best life.  She starts by moving out of her parents’ house and into an apartment.  She soon finds that she can cross a few other things off her list by getting to know her new neighbor and handyman, Red.

Red is tattooed, drives a motorcycle and is too handsome for his own good.  Chloe enjoys spying on him while he paints in his apartment.  This crosses off “do something bad” from her bucket list.  Soon Chloe and Red become friends and he begins helping her rebel a little.  She learns that there is a lot more to this bad boy than she imagined.  And, he learns to understand what it is like to be in pain constantly.

This was a cute romance that was surprisingly meaningful.  Chloe and Red are both living with their own issues and find a way to overcome them and in the process find romance.  If you enjoy reading authors Helen Hoang, Katherine Center and Christina Lauren, you will like this author too!

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Dark and Deepest Red

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Dark and Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore
Publication Date: January 14, 2020
Book
Who It’s For: Teens, Adults

This is a beautiful and haunting story told in a dual timeline, linking people across five centuries. The story will hearken the tale of The Red Shoes, by Hans Christian Andersen, but it is so much more.

In 1518 France, Lavinia is swept into the chaos of a dancing plague, but her role is not that of victim, but as suspect. Her strange family and strange ways must mean only one thing: she is a witch. Five centuries later, Emil is linked to the past by blood, and Rosella by a beautiful pair of red shoes. Separated by 500 years, what must Lavinia and Emil do to save the people they love?

In this dark fairy tale, the author blends history, family, love, betrayal, women’s and girls’ roles in society, and the treatment of marginalized peoples in the past and present into a magical story.

Find it in the catalog