Memphis Reads

Tea Obreht was awarded the Orange Prize for Fiction on June 8 for her debut novel, The Tiger's Wife. Obreht is youngest recipient of this prize, awarded to the best of women's writing from around the world.

If the chill from an intense thriller is what you need on a hot summer day, take a look at the 2011 nominees for the Thriller Awards. What's better than browsing a traditional list of nominees? Galleycat.com has compiled a new "Mixtape" of web links to excerpts from the finalists' novels. Click here to browse the samples.


Science fiction and fantasy publication, Locus Magazine, has released the 2011 winners of the Locus Award. Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis won the Locus for Best Science Fiction Novel. Visit LocusOnline for the full list of winners.

Flavorwire.com recently posted a great list of 10 Diverse Sci-Fi Authors You Should Know.

All library locations will be closed Monday, July 4th. Browse the library catalog to find any authors or titles mentioned above.

Labels: Awards, News and Notes

Nonfiction/History

Philip reviews FORGED: WRITING IN THE NAME OF GOD: WHY THE BIBLE'S AUTHORS ARE NOT WHO WE THINK THEY ARE, by Bart D. Ehrman (HarperOne, 2011)

In Forged, noted New Testament scholar Bart D. Ehrman presents some seemingly convincing and compelling arguments that explain why some of the books of the New Testament are falsely attributed to authors who did not write them. Ehrman rejects the claim by some scholars that an author writing in the name of another author was a common and accepted practice in ancient times. On the contrary, he says that this was a practice condemned in antiquity and that an author making a false authorial claim was thought to be deceitful and his work was considered a “lie.” Ehrman thinks it is important that people know that many of the books in the New Testament were, in his words, “forged.”

Many conservative and fundamentalist Christians would undoubtedly take issue with Ehrman’s views and contentions. In this book, Ehrman also discusses gospels, letters and other writings that were rejected by the early Church and did not become a part of the canon of the New Testament. Many readers may not know that many of these writings still exist. While rejecting his main arguments, even conservative and fundamentalist Christians could find Ehrman’s discussions of these non-canonical writings fascinating. This is a thought-provoking, controversial book, to say the least, but one lucidly written and very interesting to read.

Philip Williams, Cordova Branch

Labels: Nonfiction, Reviews by Philip Williams

Fiction/Historical

Nancy reviews WATER FOR ELEPHANTS by Sara Gruen (Algonquin Books, 2006)

Everything about Water for Elephants, except the ending, is so on point that even readers not of the Great Depression should find this story believable. A plausible tale wouldn’t be enough in itself, however, to inspire readers. Excellent historical fiction must also use its factual base to entertain and provoke thought, which Sara Gruen nails in her bestselling novel.

Without giving up too much of the plot, the book is about ninety-something-year-old Jacob Jankowski who waits 70 years to reveal his experiences with Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. He’d barely reached manhood when his parents’ simultaneous deaths produced the instant poverty that led him to hop a train for circus life after dropping out of vet school in his senior year.

All that follows forms a mesmerizing adventure that’s hard to put down. Eye strain was all that prevented my reading it from cover to cover in one sitting. For starters, the characters are unforgettable. They include Marlena, the star equestrian act and Jacob’s future wife; Marlena’s first husband, the handsome and charismatic circus boss who is unspeakably cruel at times; Rosie the elephant whose lemonade transgressions made me laugh out loud; a menagerie of other exotic animals; and a sad array of human freaks.

Jacob’s account of that desperate time in his life (spanning nearly seven years) is engrossing for the sights the reader easily visualizes and the sounds and smells of the big top that couldn’t seem more real. It’s also a commentary on the impact of circuses on Depression-era rubes, slang for gullible patrons. The circus vocabulary in general is an education for wordsmiths, the origin of “roustabout” being the most enlightening for me.

Overall the story is so wonderful that naysaying the final chapter feels almost mean-spirited. For liability reasons alone, nothing about the closing could happen in real life. While mildly disappointing, all is forgiven. This fascinating book has me understanding more about my deceased grandparents and my surviving mother, born in 1929, whose lives were forever changed by the Depression. My altered perception of them is one of the gifts of this story.

Nancy Campbell, LINC Department

Labels: Historical Fiction, Reviews by Nancy Campbell

Get Caught Listening Month takes place during the month of June. Publishers, narrators, and authors are promoting the value and enjoyment of audiobooks. We asked our library staff to share their favorite audiobook listening experiences. Click the format links next to each title for item availability. Titles are arranged in alphabetical order.



Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (Unabridged cassette, Abridged cassette)

Innman, the principal character of Cold Mountain, is a wounded Confederate soldier returning home. While the Civil War is a subject matter for which I would ordinarily turn to non-fiction, this extremely well-wrought fictional work was a complete pleasure to read. Indeed, so much so, I subsequently purchased the audio version (read by the author) so to give equal gratification to my ears as I listened to Charles Frazier's exceptional prose as I drove across country.
--Robert Bain, Randolph Branch Library



The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer (Audio CD, Downloadable audio)

A wonderful listen with a cast of readers that brings the letters and their authors to life. The main character, Juliet, begins corresponding with members of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society following WWII all thanks to a used paperback book by Charles Lamb. We, along with Juliet, learn about the German occupation of Guernsey and life during WWII.
--Beth, Highland & Randolph Branches



The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (Audio CD)

Percy (who we come to learn is the son of Poseidon and a mortal woman) goes on a quest along with the help of another half-blood, Annabeth, and his best friend (who is half goat-half human), Grover. The quest involves retrieving one of Zeus’s lightning bolts and Hade’s helmet. Jesse Bernstein, the reader, who has appeared in Dawson’s Creek and hosts a talk show called The Underground, wonderfully brings to life the various characters. He has a gift for creating distinctive voices to portray a wide range of characters varying in age, gender and even species. Perfect for the action-oriented listener, The Lightning Thief is a plot driven story that helps the listener learn and remember the names and roles of various Greek Gods.
--Henrietta Alvarez, Cordova Branch Library



The Millennium Series-The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, etc., by Stieg Larsson (Audio CD, Downloadable audio)

I think I would have been tempted to either read ahead or speed through parts of this book, but listening to it really kept me on track. The pacing was excellent, and although the reader didn’t “do voices”, the individual characters were distinct and easy to tell apart. As an added bonus, the reader also had a much easier time pronouncing the Scandinavian names than I would have had reading them. --Mary Seratt, Children’s Department



The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall-Smith (Audio CD)

Precious Ramotswe is a clever, “traditionally built” (plus-sized) woman who has established the first detective agency in Botswana. She solves all types of mysteries and she dishes out life lessons. I read the first two or three books but I soon discovered that Lisette Lecat does a wonderful job narrating the audio recordings. Lecat voices for each character, regardless of gender, which is amusing because of her refined, elegant tone. I listen to the audiobooks while working around the house--they keep me relaxed and focused. Listening to the No. 1 Ladies series has been better than reading the books, because many words found in the novels are in complex languages found in and around Botswana.
--Darletha Matthews, South Branch

Do you know of other great audiobooks we missed? Leave us a comment.

Labels: News, Quick Picks, Staff Recommendations

Fiction/Mainstream

Kay reviews SO MUCH FOR THAT by Lionel Shriver (Harper, 2010)

Note: This book was a 2010 National Book Award Finalist

Reading this book is not a walk in the park! While exploring the dark side of American medicine and the side effects of fighting grave illnesses, this talented author gives his readers some answers about how to live and perhaps even how to die. When his wife is diagnosed with a virulent form of cancer, Shep Knacker has to put off his dream of retreat to a tropical island. In spite of its themes of illness and death, the reader will not be able to stop reading!

Kay Due, Public Services

Labels: Mainstream Fiction, Reviews by Kay Due

Father's Day is Sunday, June 19th. Many fathers and father figures will be honored on this special day. If you are interested in books with memorable fathers take a look at the staff suggestions we've listed below. *Titles are in alphabetical order*


An American Dream, by Clarence Adams

Clarence Adams was a Memphis native who became a prisoner of war during the Korean War. Unwilling to return to the racism awaiting him in America, Adams chose to remain in China, where he earned a college degree and started a family. Despite being considered a traitor, Adams' decision to stay in China shed light on the racism many African American veterans faced on their return to the United States. Della Adams is his daughter and co-editor of this amazing memoir.



The Road by Cormac McCarthy

He is only known as "father" but he is one of the most heroic male characters I've ever encountered in a work of fiction. The father is determined to provide for and protect his son in a world where most of the animal, plant, and human population is dead. The father shows by example that there is still virtue in a world where starving people commit unspeakable acts to survive. Despite the bleak setting, this story shows the power and beauty of the bond between a father and son.
--Darletha Matthews, South Branch



Girls of Summer, by Barbara Bretton

If you have ever lived in a small town, seen movies, or read books about small town life, you will really enjoy this book! It has something for everyone. It will make you laugh and cry. This book deals with the different dynamics of restoring, reviving, and renewing old or new relationships and friendships. Hall Talbot is a thrice-divorced father trying to raise his four daughters. The main female character, Ellen Markowitz, is a single woman longing for a family of her own and a sense of belonging. She's grappling with the complex relationship that she has with the father who raised her, the birth father who didn't, her two sisters, and the growing feelings that she has for the thrice-divorced father.
--Twan Jones, South Branch



A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry

Arguably, Black America's best known literary family is the Younger family of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. While undoubtedly the family's moral center is Mama, the family's future is to be determined and handed down through the family's two fathers: recently deceased "Big Walter" Lee, who has left the family a life insurance policy inheritance and his son Walter Lee (now designated as the family patriarch) who is father to Travis who represents the the 6th generation of Youngers.
--Robert Bain, Randolph Branch



To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Atticus Finch was a lawyer in the Southern Alabama town of Maycomb during the Great Depression. The small town was prominently white, and unfortunately, racist. When scandal between a well-to-do white girl and a poor, uneducated black man rocks the small town, Atticus teaches his children, Scout and Jem, as well the entire town, compassion and understanding for those who are different when defending Arthur (Boo) Radley.
--Andrea King, Poplar-White Station Branch

Can you think of any great dads from books you've read? Share them with Memphis Reads by leaving a comment.

Labels: Quick Picks, Staff Recommendations

Fiction/Horror

Nancy reviews LIGHTNING by Dean Koontz (Putnam, 1988)

From the earliest pages, Dean Koontz’s riveting use of time travel had me glued to this unusual tale of horror. The aptly-titled Lightning avoids the usual suspects upon whom the genre so often relies. No evil clowns or chainsaw murderers here, just seemingly ordinary folk who could pass for the neighbors next door. That’s how believable they are.

But ordinary, they most certainly are not.

This is the story of Laura Shane’s lifelong dance with destiny. From the time traveler’s first appearance, when he saves her life at birth amidst thunderous bolts of lightning, the reader wants to know why he’s chosen her to rescue. After close calls with would-be murderers in later childhood, Shane figures out that Mystery Man is her guardian angel. Figuring the rest takes a while.

The fun of the figuring is in the maze of adventures that Shane must negotiate before knowing that her survival determines the fate of the free world. Koontz’s suspenseful, sci-fi brand of horror is a maze that mystery lovers would also enjoy navigating.

Nancy Campbell, LINC Department

Labels: Fiction, Horror, Reviews by Nancy Campbell

Forbes.com blog contributor, Avril David, lists her choices of the 10 Most Powerful Women Authors. According to David, "these women hold readers captivated with stories of fantastical worlds, suspense and drama, insights into the complexities of minority experiences and cultures, and fresh takes on societal issues and expectations…"

Click here to view the list.

Labels: News and Notes

Join us for June's What's Your Flavor session:

Labels: Library Events and Programs

Fiction/African American

Betty reviews WE AIN'T THE BRONTES by Rosalyn McMillan (Urban Books, 2011)

Charity and Lynzee are sibling writers with a love-hate relationship between them. Charity lives in Memphis and is struggling to get her book published. The other sister, Lynzee, is wealthy and lives in New York. Charity feels that her wealthy sister, Lynzee, is trying to destroy her career. Is she being blacklisted by her sister? A dark secret is about to surface regarding a child that was given away a birth. Will this destroy the siblings’ relationship forever?

This is a good book, easy to read, with an interesting plot, and a lot of drama. Since the author lives in Memphis, there are a lot of familiar places that she mentions throughout the book.

Betty Faulkner, Gaston Park Library

Labels: African-American Fiction, Reviews by Betty Faulkner

Mystery author, Lilian Jackson Braun, passed away Saturday June 4, 2011. She was best known for her bestselling "The Cat Who..." series. Braun was 97 years old.

Click here to read the article.

Thanks go to Beth for the information.

Labels: Author Obits

Adult Summer Reading 2011 takes place between May 31st and ends July 29th. Ages 18 and older are eligible to win prizes throughout the summer. Look for Novel Destinations posters (shown above) for drawing dates and prizes at your nearest library.


Participation is simple. After reading or listening to any book, magazine, or newspaper, fill out an orange entry form (like the one above) at any library branch or online (new this year).

Click to visit the Adult Summer Reading webpage.

Labels: Library Events and Programs