Tome Trivia

I had a reference question recently about the first book printed in the United States, which wasn't too hard to track down: The Whole Booke of Faithfully Translated Psalmes in English Metre, more commonly know as the Bay Psalms Book. It was printed in 1640 and, as the title suggests, is an English translation of scripture. Read more about it, and see a couple of photos, at the Library of Congress American Treasures webpage.


So, now you can throw out this tidbit of information at your next party and impress (?) your friends.

Recommended read: The Watch That Ends The Night

The Watch That Ends The Night: Voices From the Titanic by Allan Wolf
TEEN WOLF
Find it in the catalog!

In The Watch That Ends The Night poet Allan Wolf narrates the tragic maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic through poems in verse. The poems are told from the points of view of the passengers and crew on the ship, from millionaire John Jacob Astor to third class refugee Jamila Nicola-Yarred, from Captain E.J. Smith to assistant telegraphic operator Harold Bride, from shipbuilder Thomas Andrews to postman Oscar Woody. Other voices include nine-year-old Frankie Goldsmith, who hopes to find dragons on the journey, the ship rat ("follow the food"), and even the iceberg:

I am the ice; I am of water made.
That's why it's now of water that I speak:
Watch how the water licks Titanic's hull.
Hear how the water makes her rivets creak.
See how, before her trip even begins,
the water is obsessed with getting in. (p. 43)

This creative approach to writing about the Titanic really intrigued me and made this book a real page-turner. The reader follows the days leading up to the sailing, time at sea, the sinking, and the survivors' time on the Carpathia, the ship that rescued them. Wolf intersperses Titanic's journey with poems from the point of view of undertaker John Snow, as he works to retrieve the bodies from the sea.

This book is well-researched, and I learned new facts about the passengers and particulars about the ship, including morse code. Wolf provides character notes at the back of the book discussing liberties he took with certain people, in addition to translated morse code messages and a helpful bibliography.

I recommend this book to readers who enjoy historical fiction and those interested in the Titanic. The Watch That Ends the Night is an engrossing read that connects the reader to the passengers and crew of the Titanic in a way that other books do not.

Book spine poetry

April is National Poetry Month, and since we are currently in the middle of National Library Week (today is National Library Workers Day), I thought about writing some poems with library books. You read that right-- I was inspired to break out some book spine poetry.

To create book spine poetry all you have to do is wander up and down the rows of shelves and pick out eye-catching titles. Then lay the books out on a table, and you're ready to stack them on top of each other to assemble your poems. Here are the poems I created from books I grabbed from the adult and teen collections:

Cute Author Alert: Jens Lapidus

Jens Lapidus is a Swedish criminal defense lawyer turned author (with a penchant for extra wide ties).  His debut novel, Snabba Cash (Easy Money, for you non-Swedes), was just recently translated into English.  Snabba Cash is the first part of the Stockholm Noir series, which has already spawned two sequels in Sweden.  I haven't had the chance to check out the book yet (beyond the author photo), but his writing has been compared to James Ellroy and Dennis Lehane.  Sounds promising!

Check out Snabba Cash in the catalog!

Side rant:  I'm sure I'm the only person bothered by this.  But the o-slash (Ø) that is in "money" on the cover is not actually a letter used in Swedish.  The o-slash is a Danish, Norwegian thing.  Swedes would use an o-umlaut (Ö), thank you very much.  But whatever, I'm sure the graphic designer just thought it was cute.

New York Public Library's "Mad Men" Reading List

If you are a dedicated fan of AMC's Mad Men (and I'm just going to assume that you are), you know that the characters frequently reference books and films specific to the show's 1960s milieu. One of the more notable examples would be Don Draper's  moving voice-over recitation of a poem by Frank O'Hara in the second season. But even the more casual glimpses of what books the characters are interested in can be revealing. Don's daughter, Sally, reads age-appropriate Nancy Drew mysteries. Bert Cooper, not surprisingly, extols the virtues of Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand's 1100-page love letter to the free market. The ladies of the secretarial pool whisper about Lady Chatterley's Lover, the genuinely racy D.H. Lawrence novel that was the subject of an influential obscenity trial in 1959. These are just a few of the many literary works that have been spotted on Mad Men. And, for that reason, we can thank the fine librarians at the New York Public Library for compiling a fairly extensive list of the books cited throughout the show's run. Needless to say, you can search our catalog for any of the titles that interest you.

The 'Mad Men' Reading List - New York Public Library

Recipe Tester: The PDT Cocktail Book

The PDT Cocktail Book (2011) by Jim Meehan and Chris Call
Call No.: 641.874 MEE
Find it in the catalog! 

Named after the super popular NYC cocktail lounge PDT at which nationally renowned mixologist, Jim Meehan, is the head bartender, the PDT Cocktail Book is a must read for bartenders and cocktail geeks.  It has all kinds of information on how to set up a bar, bar etiquette, bartending techniques, a lengthy bibliography (lest you run out of cocktail books to read), and lots and lots of recipes.  Even cooler, Jim Meehan includes liquor recommendations and exact recipes for drinks served at PDT, so if you can recreate them at home, if you are so inclined. That is--if you have the skills and a sizable liquor budget. Meehan also provides the background for each drink in the book, so you know who was responsible for creating a drink, as well as when and where a drink was created.  

To test out the cocktails in the book, I tried making to unusual PDT cocktails that involved some liquor infusing- Benton's Old Fashion and the Cinema Highball.  Below are the results of my experiments: 

The Book(s) I Read

I've been on string of good books.  Below of my favorite reads of late: 

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (2011)
Find it in the catalog!
This is a cute book about three semi-dysfunctional sisters who return home to a small Ohio college town care for their mother who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Their father was a Shakespearean scholar, so each of the girls have a Bard-inspired name.  They are all also running from something.  The eldest Rose (Rosalind) is happily engaged, but is concerned as her fiance isn't as tied to staying in Ohio as she is and he seems to have his heart set on working for Oxford University.  She has long been the family caretaker and is worried the rest of them will be unable to survive on their own.  Bean (Bianca) is the middle child who leaves New York City in debt, after being fired for skimming off the payroll at her law firm.  The youngest, Cordy (Cordelia) is the overgrown baby of the family who had been living a hippy nomadic existence (partly funded by her parents) until she discovered she is pregnant.  The Weird Sisters is definitely a light, fun read with a fair amount of literary allusions, so it's a guilt-free pleasure! 

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (2012)
 Find it in the catalog!
This book is about two teenagers with cancer who fall in love.  Hazel Lancaster is a 16-year-old girl who has been diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer, but her life has been lengthened indefinitely by a "miracle drug" that she started taking when she was 13.  At a cancer support group meeting she runs in the gorgeous Augustus Waters, a 17-year-old boy whose in remission but lost his leg to cancer.  The two quickly hit it off and bond over a book called "An Imperial Affliction" by a reclusive author named Peter Van Houten.

I was worried that I wouldn't really enjoy this book.  The premise sounds like it could easily be maudlin and Nicholas Sparks-y.  Thankfully, John Green managed to strike the right balance.  This book is definitely my favorite thing he's ever written.  It's funny, romantic and just a little bit heartbreaking. Highly recommend!

Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner (2011)
Find it in the catalog!
This is a story of two childhood friends, Vaclav and Lena (collectively Vaclena).  Both are Russian immigrants who live in Brighton Beach in Brooklyn.  Vaclav is an only child who lives with his loving parents and dreams of being the next Harry Houdini.  His lovely assistant Lena isn't so lucky.  She's an orphan who lives with her aunt and is largely neglected.  Vaclav's mom, Rasia, takes Lena under her wings, but she can't save her from her home life.  Eventually Rasia witnesses something horrifying and Lena is taken away.  Later on, Vaclav and Lena meet up again as teenagers. 

Though the subject matter is often dark, this is a delightful book.  I really like the character of Rasia and her point-of-view.  She is a tough, hardworking mother but she is also so loving and tolerant.  I listened to audiobook, which is wonderfully acted. It's hard to imagine reading this in print as the thick Russian accents were half of the fun!