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Quickest Kid in Clarksville

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The Quickest Kid in Clarksville by Pat Zietlow Miller, illustrated by Frank Morrison
Format: Book
Who it’s For: Kids

Alta loves to run. She’s fast too, the fastest kid in all of Clarksville and everyone knows it, even with holes in her soles and dirty laces. But today Alta has something else on her mind. Tomorrow she will get to see her hometown hero in person – none other than the famous runner Wilma Rudolph, three time Olympic gold medalist who’ll be appearing in the big parade in town! Wilma grew up here, like Alta . Her family had little money, like Alta’s. But she overcame illness and impossible odds to make it as an Olympic athlete, just like Alta’s dream. Until Charmaine, with her attitude, her uptown shoes and speed to match moves into the neighborhood. Will Alta still be the quickest kid in Clarksville, just like Wilma? This is a great story of girlhood dreams, inspiration and unexpected friendship.

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Claymates

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Claymates by Dev Petty, Illustrated by Lauren Eldridge
Format:  Book
Who it’s for:  Children

This fun children’s book is recommended for younger children.  It is also available as a VOX book, which means that a headphone can be plugged in to it so the child can listen as it is read to them or listen with others without headphones.

Two balls of clay, with eyes, are transformed by the artist into a gray wolf and a brown owl.  The sculptor spends a lot of time creating them to be just perfect and then she leaves the room.  It isn’t long until the two creatures become friends and then they start goofing off.  They stretch and pull at themselves to become many other different critters.  They look totally weird, with lots of sculptor’s tools sticking out of them.  Suddenly they hear the artist returning.  Oh, no!  What will they do?  They try to fix themselves but they just can’t.  Find out what happens next to these two  crazy claymates.  Find it in our catalog.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

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Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Format: Book (also available in: Ebook, Audiobook, eAudiobook)
Who it’s for:  Teens, Adults

Eleanor is almost 30. She works in an office. Everything is completely fine.

Eleanor lives alone. She is considered to be strange. She has no family. She has no friends. She drinks two liters of vodka every weekend. OK, everything may not be completely fine.

How do you respond when asked: ‘How are you?’ Do you automatically say ‘Fine’? This story lets you give some thought to what might be going on behind the word ‘fine’ and explore social isolation.

Eleanor has a very quirky interpretation of the world around her and this first person narrative lets you see the world through her eyes.  Dry British humor and the other characters in the story make this a fun and interesting read.  Eleanor’s background is a bit murky and you get to discover her past along with her.

I read this for my book club and it led to a really great discussion.  There are plans to make it into a movie.

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Peaceful Piggy Meditation

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Peaceful Piggy Meditation by Kerry Lee MacLean
Format: Book
Who’s it for: Children

“Sometimes the world can be such a busy, noisy place.  Sometimes it feels like you always have to hurry, hurry, hurry… and you feel like you can’t slow down- even when you’re sitting down!”- From Peaceful Piggy Meditation

Life can get hectic.  In addition to all of our work, house and family duties there is a very real, very persistent pressure from society to be constantly plugged in.  The urge to be constantly informed of any and all things is a powerful one, but if we’re not careful it can leave us feeling lost and confused in a constantly shifting world.  At the end of the day, instead of getting some vital sleep, many of us use this time to catch up on the events of the day, watch a “must-see” TV show, or any number of things that we’ve been told we must do to be a part of society.

It can be easy to think this is strictly an adult problem, but the young people in our lives are affected by this pressure as well.  The world seems to spin faster and faster every day, and the more we try to keep up with it the more our heads will spin at the end of the day.  The best way to slow it down and be fully present, and this is true for kiddos and adults, is to get off the ride altogether.  To put some space between ourselves and these thoughts.  To find a spot of stillness within ourselves and nurture it until it grows.

Peaceful Piggy Meditation, by Kerry Lee MacLean, describes the basics of meditation to children through a short story involving some piggies that wish to become calmer, kinder beings.  At its core, the practice involves stopping to listen to what is happening inside of you, physically and mentally.  It is so simple that anyone can do it, and the benefits of stopping and slowing down are good for everyone’s mental health, regardless of age.

I meditate with my 2-year-old daughter about once every other day, and it has been amazing to have those moments to slow down and actually be with her, instead of having my mind on something else.  At her age, it’s less about being still and more about knowing that it’s a quiet time to be together, but it is something that I would recommend to all families that may at times feel overwhelmed.  Find it in our catalog. 

Ink

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Ink by Alice Broadway
Format: Book, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Teens, Adults

Imagine a world where your life story is tattooed on your skin. Leora lives in such a world. In Saintstone, where she lives, all the citizens mark their bodies with their accomplishments. They are marked even at young age. Your name, your occupation, your family tree, your medical history, any great achievement you’ve earned, any crimes you’ve committed, all in ink for the world to see. No one in Saintstone has secrets. Or so Leora thinks. When her father dies, his skin is flayed and turned into a book, as is tradition. His book will be “read” at a “weighing of the soul” ceremony, where it will be determined whether he has lived a life worth remembering, and his book will be returned to his family, to be kept on a shelf with the rest of their ancestors, or he will be forgotten, and his book will be burned. Leora is confident her father was a good man, but there’s a terrible rumor going around that his book has been edited, and that he, and whoever altered his life story, committed a horrible crime, possibly colluding with the “blanks”—people outside of Saintstone who do not tattoo their bodies, who’s life stories are hidden from view. Ink by Alice Broadway, and its sequels Spark and Scar, are original and intriguing stories about family, friendship, rebellion, and redemption. Find Ink in our catalog.

Under Currents by Nora Roberts

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Zane Bigelow grew up in a beautiful, perfectly kept house in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Strangers and even Zane’s own aunt across the lake see his parents as a successful surgeon and his stylish wife, making appearances at their children’s ballet recitals and baseball games. Only Zane and his sister  know the truth, until one brutal night finally reveals cracks in their facade, and Zane escapes for college without a thought of looking back…

Years later, Zane returns to his hometown determined to reconnect with the place and people that mean so much to him, despite the painful memories. As he resumes life in the colorful town, he meets a gifted landscape artist named Darby, who is on the run from ghosts of her own.

Zane and Darby’s relationship becomes more serious, and as they both become more involved in the community.   Threats from the past come back to haunt them and their newfound happiness. Together they will have to teach each other what it means to face the past, and stand up for the ones they love.

This story is full of powerful, magnetic characters who have overcome terrible situations. Suspense and romance are expertly combined in this riveting story, where Roberts obviously blends the past into the present as abuse survivors discover the healing power of love.

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