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Surprise by Mies Van Hout

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Surprise

By Mies Van Hout

Format: Book

Who’s it for: Kids

Another international children’s treasure, Surprise was originally published in New Zealand in Dutch by Mies Van Hout. The complex and emotional world of planning, parenting and raising children are depicted by colorful bird representations. Surprise (following Happy and Friends) provides another wonderous chalklike, kaleidoscope printed canvas by Van Hout. Children and adults alike will enjoy following the journey of yearning to letting go.

Find Surprise in the catalog here.

The Voting Booth

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The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

It’s Election Day! Marva and Duke, seniors at different high schools, are voting for the first time. Marva has thoroughly researched and planned for this day, just like she does with everything in life. She is ready to vote! Duke registered a couple years ago when he was 16.

It turns out that Duke isn’t registered where he thought, his car breaks down, and Marva shows up to save the day. The two have never met, but Marva believes every vote counts, so she is going to get Duke to his polling place. The story follows the two through this one election day and the craziness that ensues. Everything that can go wrong does, all while they run all over town trying to get Duke’s vote in.

As they spend the day together, they get to each other, and they start to understand themselves and their relationships better. Marva is having a tough time with her boyfriend who she thought was a perfect match for her; and Duke is having a tough time with his parents since his older brother died.

The chapters alternate between Marva and Duke, and the story moves at a surprising pace. I enjoyed the quick wit and momentum of Duke and Marva’s relationship. The author touches on a number of issues relevant to the lives of young people of color, and the impact young people can make by voting and participating in the elections process.

If you can, register to vote, go vote; and then check out The Voting Booth!

From Twinkle, With Love

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Recommended Book
From Twinkle, With Love by  Sandhya Menon
Publication Date: May 22, 2018
Format: Book or ebook
Who it’s for: Teens

“In this delightful romantic comedy from the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi, told through the letters Twinkle writes to her favorite female filmmakers, From Twinkle, with Love navigates big truths about friendship, family, and the unexpected places love can find you.

Aspiring filmmaker and wallflower Twinkle Mehra has stories she wants to tell and universes she wants to explore, if only the world would listen. So when fellow film geek Sahil Roy approaches her to direct a movie for the upcoming Summer Festival, Twinkle is all over it. The chance to publicly showcase her voice as a director? Dream come true. The fact that it gets her closer to her longtime crush, Neil Roy-a.k.a. Sahil’s twin brother? Dream come true x 2.

When mystery man N begins emailing her, Twinkle is sure it’s Neil, finally ready to begin their happily-ever-after. The only slightly inconvenient problem is that, in the course of movie-making, she’s fallen madly in love with the irresistibly adorkable Sahil.

Twinkle soon realizes that resistance is futile: The romance she’s got is not the one she’s scripted. But will it be enough?” – Publisher’s blurb

This took a bit for me to get into. It was soooooooo High School. The crush, the BFF drama, the awkwardness, the ‘Woe is me’ angst, etc. So very HS, so stereotypical; it made me cringe, laugh, and smh. I would have stopped reading it by like chapter two, if not for Books for the Beast (a YA reader’s advisory conference in Maryland) and the fact her first book got so much praise. I powered through.

It was very amusing with a couple of lil life lessons to boot. If this was a Disney Channel movie, I could have made it through without cringing so much or smh at the mistakes they made. I still would have lol at the awkward moments. Despite all those things it was a great read.

The Indian culture that was in the book was completely natural and did not feel forced. It was just a part of Twinkle’s life, her story. The gay friends felt forced, like an afterthought. I liked the text messages and emails. They made it feel epistolary. The supposed diary entries where Twinkle is writing to directors never really felt like letters. They did not really feel like a diary entries, either. Only at the beginning of the diary entry and when she closed the “letter” did it ever feel like she was writing a letter to somebody.  It felt more like just a first POV novel.

I was considering reading her debut novel but when I was talking about From Twinkle, With Love with a coworker, she said this plot sounds almost identical to When Dimple Met Rishi. Now if they made movies from her novels on Disney Channel, I would watch them all and enjoy. If I was in middle/high school and liked romance novels, I would read all her novels as well. Def geared for upper middle school and High School girls.

Read a High School Rom-Com starring a cute Indian Girl!

 

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told: An Oral History

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The Greatest Love Story Ever Told: An Oral History by Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman
Format: Audiobook, Book
Who it’s for: Adults

You may know Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman from their roles on Will and Grace and Parks and Recreation, but did you know they’ve been married for 18 years? In The Greatest Love Story Ever Told, the pair covers any and every subject, from books to puzzles to fashion to dating to Hollywood. They talk about their very different childhoods and the paths that led them to acting and to each other. These are two funny people, so there are lots of laugh out loud moments and improvisations. 

This is a book to be listened to. The print version just can’t replicate the quirky, quick conversation between this celebrity couple. There are impromptu jokes and asides and the two finish each other’s sentences frequently. The print book does contain a selection of photos of the two which you can’t see with the audio version, but Mullally and Offerman do an excellent job of describing these photos to their listeners.

If you’ve enjoyed Nick Offerman’s other books, or other memoirs from Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, or Mindy Kaling, you might enjoy The Greatest Love Story Ever Told. Just make sure to get the audio version!

Find it in the catalog.

Queenie

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Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams
Format: Book, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Adults

Queenie is the debut novel of Candice Carty-Williams, and it tells the story of 25-year-old Queenie Jenkins, a Jamaican British woman living in London. When we meet Queenie, she is moving out of the apartment that she shares with her boyfriend Tom. The two have agreed to go on a “break” and revisit their relationship in three months. This “break” serves as a catalyst for a series of self-destructive decisions that ultimately leave Queenie plagued by panic attacks and unable to live independently.

Carty-Williams uses Queenie as an opportunity to discuss mental health and as an ode to friendship and strong women, and she does this within the confines of a character that is struggling to find her place as a Black female in a world that does not respect Black bodies. At times, Queenie’s story seems mundane. But, there is a turning point, when the reader starts to observe that many of Queenie’s problems stem from childhood trauma. Thru Queenie, Carty-Williams highlights the PTSD that many underprivileged children experience and the way that PTSD is often mistaken for “bad” behavior.

With a supporting cast of characters that add humor and ease the weight of the novel, Queenie is worth the read. And, Carty-Williams has established herself as an author to watch. That being said, prospective readers should be advised that the novel contains some mature content, and it is recommended for adults only. Find it in the catalog.

Killjoys

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Recommended TV Series
Series Title: Killjoys
by SyFy & Universal Studios
Format: TV Series on DVD
Who it’s for: [Teens, Adults,]

“From the producers of Orphan Black and the creator of Lost Girl comes Killjoys. This sci-fi adventure follows a fun-loving, hard living trio of interplanetary bounty hunters (a.k.a. Killjoys) sworn to remain impartial as they chase deadly warrants around the Quad, a system of planets on the brink of revolution. A motley crew that always has each other’s back, until a dark secret threatens to tear apart their trio for good. Follow their adventures and discover their secrets with all 10 episodes back-to-back and uninterrupted.”  – via SyFy and Universal Studios

I picked this up because a former coworker recommended it.  I was looking for a new Sci-fi series that was like Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, or Eureka.  The DVD cover was quite attractive and intrigued me. Plus it was produced by the SyFy channel. The show has many similar traits to Firefly, Star Wars, and other science fiction entertainment.  I really like space operas with action, adventure, mystery, a lil romance, and fun.  This show has all of those elements yet somehow they put their own unique spin on it.  It will feel familiar to regular fans of Sci-fi but not exactly, the same plot twists, friendships, villains, rebellions, romance, robots, etc. A good thing (or bad depending) is that the show was not produced in the USA. This means it is short; there are only 10 episodes per season.  You don’t have to carve out 2 months of your life to binge all four seasons. Since every episode ends with at least one cliffhanger, I would suggest you checkout all 4 seasons on DVD at one time.

(Killjoys television series is inspired by the comic series written by Gerard Way, The true lives of Killjoys. The collected issues 1-6 are available in print format in Calvert County and digital format on hoopla .)

I would recommend this to people who like a bit of magical mystery with their typical episodic adventure space show.

Click to Request Season 1-4 on DVD!