Medical Serial Killers

Latta, Sara L. Medical Serial Killers. Part of The Psychology of Serial Killers series. 2016. 144p. ISBN 978-0-7660-7296-1. Available at 364.15 LAT on the library shelves.

There have always been people who kill others for thrill, power, lust, or greed. Individuals who kill three or more people at three or more different times in different locations are labelled serial killers by the FBI. Of all the serial killer types, the medical serial killer is by far the most chilling kind, for doctors and nurses are dedicated to preserving life, not ending it. Medical serial killers act within the confines of hospital, hospice care, and retirement facilities and are able to hide their dastardly deeds behind an environment that is often affected by death.

This book examines the most prolific medical serial killers in the United States and around the world. A profile of each killer is presented, along with how they eventually were caught and what the consequences were on the families of their victims and on themselves. These creepy individuals will make you think twice about going to the hospital.

Other books in the series include Cannibal Serial Killers, Female Serial Killers, Historical Serial Killers, and Modern-day Serial Killers.

Vampire Mountain

Shan, Darren. Vampire Mountain. Book 4 of the Cirque du Freak series. 2002. 199p. ISBN 9780316605427. Available at FIC SHA on the library shelves.

Six years after the death of Murlough in Tunnels of Blood, a Vampaneze who had been sucking dry humans, Darren hasn’t shown much aging. As a vampire he ages very slowly so he still very much looks like a teenager even though Evra, the snake boy and Darren’s best friend, is now in his early twenties and more interested in women than hanging out with someone who still looks like a teen.

When Mr. Crepsley announces that they are setting off to Vampire Mountain so that Darren can be introduced to the Vampire Princes, Darren is not surprised. Vampires gather in the mountain once every twelve years, and Mr. Crepsley does not want to wait another twelve years before he faces his peers and account for what he did to Darren. Mr. Tiny, however, tells Mr. Crepsley that he is to take two of his little men with him, as they are to deliver a message to the Vampire Princes.

Vampires maintain old traditions, and one of them is that they must walk to Vampire Mountain. Thus, a trip to the wilderness that would have taken less than a week stretches out for a month. Along the way Darren encounters wolves and an angry bear he must fight, and they meet an old friend of Mr. Crepsley. They also discover that the vampaneze are lurking around the mountain. Once inside, Darren feels much better, and he finally encounters the pomp and tradition of vampire life. That is, until he appears in front of the Princes. Their decision on Darren’s status will literally mean his life, or his death ...

This story continues in book 5, the Trials of Death.

Speak

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. 1999. 198p. ISBN 978-0-374-37152-4. Available at FIC AND on the library shelves.

Melinda has always been engaged with her friends and family. During the summer before 9th grade, however, she attends a barn party with her friend Rachel, has too much to drink, and is raped by an incoming senior who attends Merryweather High. In pain and in a panic, she called 911 but was not able to speak in the phone due to shock. Her friend Rachel found her and realized that she had called the police. The party broke up and everyone ran away, including Melinda. Now she’s the only one, along with her aggressor, that knows what the real reason for the 911 call was. Her friends all think she simply wanted to ruin everyone else’s fun.

Ostracized by her friends and feeling like damaged goods, Melinda must find a way to survive her freshman year at school. Art is the only subject that offers her a ray of sunshine in an otherwise tedious and depressing day. Even her parents have noticed the change in her, but don’t know how to reach her. Melinda refuses to communicate her problems and her needs, and the only friend she makes, Heather, eventually drifts away as well. As the year progresses, will Melinda rediscover her own voice?

Melinda provides a contrasting response to a very traumatic event than Hermione did in Exit, Pursued by a Bear. Both teens are strong in their own ways, but Melinda interiorizes her assault and does not possess the confidence to actively deal with it and the rumors that swirl around that fateful evening. But in the end she finds her voice and, like Hermione, is able to talk about it. Readers who appreciated Melinda’s strength should also look up Naked, the story of a teenage prostitute who ran away from home and is now trying to reintegrate school two years later.

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress

Sijie, Dai. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. 2002. 184p. ISBN 9780385722209. Available at FIC DAI on the library shelves as well as an audiobook on Overdrive.

In the 1960s, China underwent a convulsing period of its history called the Cultural Revolution. Chairman Mao unleashed legions of fanatics determined to uproot bourgeois and counter-revolutionaries throughout the country. Those who had the misfortune to be educated or better off than the average were forcibly made to present excuses and to apologize. They were also oftentime sent away for re-education into Communist ideas.

The narrator of this story, along with his best friend Luo, are children of professional families. Luo’s father is a famous dentist and even worked on Mao’s teeth. The narrator’s mother is a famous doctor. Having been declared enemies of the people, they are sent to a mountain to work as peasants in the local fields, where their re-education will instill in them pride in their Communist heritage. Arriving on site, they discover that the peasants are backwards and uncultured. The narrator almost loses his violin, his only possession, but Luo manages to convince the village headman that it is used to play music to glorify Mao.

The two of them settle into a hard working routine, until their talents as storytellers are discovered. Suddenly, they are dispensed from work to attend movies in the closest town, two days’ travel away, and then return to the village to retell the story to everyone. One of the most highly sought person in this region is the seamster, who comes around and creates clothes for the residents. His daughter, also a seamstress, is said to be beautiful. Luo and the narrator eventually meet her and they fall desperately in love.

During one of their trip to town they meet with Four Eyes, who is also on the mountain to be re-educated. His mother is a famous poet, and Four Eyes has made the cardinal sin of taking books with him. Though he has tried to keep them hidden, the boys discover them and eventually badger Four Eyes into lending them a thin book by Balzac. Luo and the narrator decide that they will read this book to the Little Seamstress.

By consuming these foreign and illegal novels in China, they are doing more than corrupting their ideas. They are opening their souls and their sight to other worlds beyond their desperate circumstances. And once out, it is hard to tame desire back into its cage. As the three of them grow ever closer, hard choices will have to be made, and not everyone can live happily.

Air Gear, Vol. 2

Oh! Great. Air Gear, Vol. 2. 2006. 224p. ISBN 9780345492791. Available in the Graphic Novels section of the library.

In Air Gear, Vol 1 Itsuki Minami found his true calling in Air Treck skates. equipped with new Air Treck skates, Itsuki feels on top of the world. Needing to repair his skates, Ikki follows Mikan takes him to the mall where he meets Simca, the most beautiful girl he has ever seen. He begins stalking the mall, hoping to catch another glimpse of her. When he sees her being chased by members of the Rez Boa Dogs gang, he doesn’t hesitate and he intervenes, defeating the gang members. Unfortunately for Ikki, this earns him the irk of the gang leader, Inuyama.

Ringo and the rest of the girls in the Sleeping Forest watch as Ikki begins to fight to protect the Red Boa Dog tag Simca had previously stolen from Inuyama. Suddenly, the confrontation becomes very real. Either Ikki will triumph and earn a special reward from Simca, or he will die in the attempt.

The story continues in Air Gear, Vol. 3.

The Last Star

Yancey, Rick. The Last Star. Book 3 of the 5th Wave trilogy. 2016. 338p. ISBN 9780399162435. Available at FIC YAN on the library shelves.

The Last Star picks up where The Infinite Sea left off. Captured by Vosch, Ringer was enhanced with the 12th system. She escapes from the base and runs in the wilderness for a while, until she realizes Vosch has another plan for her. Cassie, Zombie, Dumbo, Sam, Megan and Evan are holed up in the local silencer’s house after they dispatched her. The house is filled with supplies, but when Ringer left to save Teacup the deal was if she wasn’t able to return they would escape to the caves.

As Vosch moves his forces of 4th Wave humans throughout the countryside, the small group of humans reluctantly led by Cassie try to stay one step ahead. Vosch is after Evan, for his training obviously malfunctioned and he fell in love with Cassie. Ringer is the key to this plan. She will head to the caves where they were supposed to rendez-vous. Accompanied by another silencer, they will work together to kill the resident silencer, an old priest, then set an ambush for Evan.

Ben Parrish wants to find Ringer so he and Dumbo leave Sam, Cassie, Evan and Megan behind. They head to the caves, but another encounter with a silencer costs Dumbo his life. Ben and Ringer are reunited and they return to their home with the other silencer, only to once again live through a face off. Evan is captured by Vosch, but Cassie and her crew manage to escape

As Vosch’s pieces move on the chessboard and as the 5th Wave of bombings that will devastate the planet is in a mere day, Cassie, Ringer, and Ben all need to rescue Evan from Vosch’s clutches, but for different reasons. And sometimes, the hardest part of a relationship is letting go. The climatic ending to this trilogy will be sure to leave the reader breathless.

Black Cat, Vol. 13

Yakubi, Kentaro. Black Cat, Vol. 13. 2008. 192p. ISBN 9781421516042. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Train and Sven are goated on by Eve to pursue Creed and the Apostles of the Stars. Train then tells them both the story of how he and Saya met and lived a torrid love affair until Creed killed her. That relationship had already led Train to neglect his duties with Chronos, and Saya’s death causes a break between him and the Numbers.

In order to be successful, however, Sven tells Train that he will need time to train with his vision eye. He recruits Rinslet  to assist him. Meanwhile, Train and Eve report to the closet Sweeper club to gather information. There Train is challenged by River for the privilege of hunting and bringing down Creed. A man who only fights with his fists, River is fast enough to catch and deflect a bullet. Can Train survive this new challenger?

The story continues in Black Cat, Vol. 14.

Careers in the US Air Force

Rice, Earle Jr. and Wilson Camelo. Careers in the US Air Force. Part of the Careers in the US Armed Forces series. 2016. 128p. ISBN 978-0-7660-6941-1. Available at 358.4 RIC on the library shelves.

The youngest of the United States Armed Forces’ branches, the Air Force has a storied history from its humble beginnings as an afterthought of the army before the beginning of the First World War to today’s global organization capable to deliver soldiers, supplies, and weapons anywhere in the world. The Air Force possesses some of the most advanced vehicles and deadliest weapons of the armed forces, and the men and women who serve in this particular branch of the military are highly trained specialists who fulfill the various missions of the Air Force. The Air Force is not only fighter jets, however. It also flies helicopters, bombers, tankers, rescue planes, and manages some of the space assets.

This book provides a detailed introduction to the history of the Air Force. It also discusses its various roles in the era of global terrorism, from providing logistical support to conducting aerial operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The various Air Force commands are reviewed, and life as a member of the Air Force is explored from the benefits of living on base to training and educational opportunities. A number of career possibilities are described and include both the enlisted and officer path. Anyone interested in joining the Air Force will appreciate the range of material available in this book.

Titles in this series include:

• Careers in the US Army
• Careers in the US Navy
• Careers in the US Marine Corps
• Careers in the US Coast Guard

Highly Illogical Behavior

Whaley, John Corey. Highly Illogical Behavior. 2016. 256p. ISBN 0525428186. Available as an eBook on Overdrive.

Solomon has not left in house in three years. Suffering from severe panic attacks, he had a meltdown in middle school, and the only way to relieve the stress was to lay down in the fountain. That was Solomon’s last day outside. Now sixteen, Solomon lives at home, attends virtual school, and is fascinated by board games and Star Trek: The Next Generation reruns on television. His parents worked with him but they have pretty given up on him ever leaving the house. With his grandmother as the only visitor, Solomon leads a quiet life. And as far as he is concerned, that’s the life he wants to lead.

Lisa wants to get in the second best psychology program in the country, in a university on the East Coast. She plans on submitting an original essay that explains her personal connection with mental illness, but what could she write about? Winning this contest would provide her with a full scholarship and her ticket out of Upland, California. She comes upon a clever solution she she discovers that Solomon has not left his house in three years. She will become his friend, help him get better and hopefully get him outside his home. This will make incredible writing and compelling reading.

Lisa thus contacts Solomon, and he reluctantly accepts to meet with her. Soon, Clark, Lisa’s boyfriend, joins them and the three of them grow inseparable. But as Clark and Solomon, who came out to Lisa, become closer, Lisa begins to feel like a third wheel. Solomon appears willing to take more risks, and is even looking forward to the swimming pool his grandmother is building in the backyard. At the same time, however, Lisa’s life seems to spin out of control and she fears she’s losing her boyfriend to Solomon. With lies underpinning the basis of their relationship, can Solomon, Clark, and Lisa live a happily ever after?

I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives

Alifirenka, Caitlin and Martin Ganda. I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives. 2015. 392p. ISBN 978-0-316-24131-1. Available as an audiobook and as an eBook on Overdrive.

Caitlin is from Pennsylvania and leads a typical teenage girl’s life. Her parents own a house, they have two cars, and Caitlin’s favorite activities are collecting earrings and shopping. At the beginning of her seventh grade year, her English teacher gives every student the opportunity to a country for a pen pal. Caitlin selects Zimbabwe because it is exotic and different than everyone else, who select countries in Europe. She writes a first letter, and sends it in the mail.

In Zimbabwe, Martin Ganda is the smartest student in his grade. With fifty students to a classroom, Martin gets to sit upfront. The school only has a few textbooks that are kept by the teachers, but Martin nevertheless excels. When Caitlin’s letter arrives, Martin is assigned to write her back.

What began as a passing interest for both of them grows and blossoms into an enduring friendship. When Caitlin discovers that Martin’s family is starving due to unemployment and poor economic conditions, she enlists her family to help. Over the course of several years both families grew closer, with the goal of bringing Martin to the United States to study medicine at a university. A true tale of friendship and dedication, Caitlin and Martin’s story will inspire the reader to make a positive difference in the world.

Nubian Kingdoms

Russann, Edna. Nubian Kingdoms. 1998. 64p. ISBN 0-531-20283-6. Available on the library shelves at 939 RUS.

As the Egyptian state first unified and began its southern expansion in the 3000s BCE, it encountered the Nubians. Located south of the first cataract, the Nubians controlled access to the southern reaches of the continent and traded resources such as gold, ivory, and elephants. The Egyptians coveted these resources and launched many incursions into the southern interior.

The fortunes of Nubia, as the region was called, were intricately tied to those of Egypt. As Egyptian power rose, Nubia’s fell, but as the Egyptian state ebbed, the various Nubian kingdoms expanded into Egypt. This relationship would continue for nearly 2,400 hundred years, until the Roman conquest of Egypt allowed the Nubian kingdom of Meroë to thrive. Eventually the country converted to Christianity, before converting again 500 years later to Islam.

A powerful kingdom in its own right, Nubia eventually became part of Egypt and of Sudan. Readers interested in the past will appreciate the exotic nature of Nubia and its unfamiliar history.

Into the Wild

Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. 2007. 207p. ISBN 978-0-307-38717-2. Available on the library shelves at 917.98 KRA and as an audiobook on Overdrive.

Christopher Johnson McCandless marched to his own tune. After graduating from college, McCandless disappeared from his family’s life and began an odyssey across the continental Western United States, Mexico, Canada, and Alaska. Seeking to discover the true world, McCandless whittled down his possessions to almost nothing, and for two years he traveled on his own schedule, making friends along the way. His dream, however, was to go to Alaska, enter the bush, and survive only on his skills.

Throwing away the literal map as well as the figurative one, he entered the Alaskan wilderness in April of 1992, hoping to experience a wilderness explored by no other and a true natural experience alone in the woods. Carrying a rifle, ammunition, and a large bag of rice, McCandless plans on spending months in the wild before heading out. What was to be a summer of reflection and contemplation in the wild turns into a tragic story of survival and deadly mistakes.

While some saw McCandless as a hero for leading his life off the beaten path, and others saw a villain who ultimately wasted his life away to reach an impossible ideal, most readers will empathize with McCandless’ purpose but shake their heads at his hubris. Readers who enjoy survivalist stories like Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet and Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm will appreciate what drove McCandless forward and guided him to that fateful bus in the Alaskan wilderness.

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies. 1997. 425p. ISBN 0739467352. Available at 303.4 DIA on the library shelves.

How is it that after 10,000 years of human development, Europeans spread across the globe and conquered societies as disparate as the Incas and Aztecs, the Native Americans, Southeast Asians, Indians, Pacific Islanders, and Africans, instead of the reverse? In this extremely well-researched book, Diamond makes the argument that geography, climate, and the unequal spread of large mammals throughout the world directly influenced how societies evolved and interacted with each other, leading directly to today’s world map.

The continents of Europe and Asia are connected and share a similar climate. As a result, large mammals such as the cow and horse were able to travel far and wide. Plants likewise could be found from southern France all the way to China. In Africa and the Americas, by contrast, the continents’ north/south orientation prevented plants and animals that thrived in temperate climates to propagate to the other temperate zone across the equatorial line. Until the advent of ships that could provide transportation, these animals and plants were effectively blocked from reaching other fertile zones. Finally, Australia’s isolation and separation from the other land masses allowed native flora and fauna to grow and spread, but the arrival of man killed off the larger mammals while the unpredictability of the climate and the poor quality of the soil prevented the evolution of agriculture.

Thus, even though all humans around 11,000 BCE are Stone Age hunters and gatherers, those living in fertile areas populated by large animals were able to harness the power of agriculture and the muscles of domesticated beasts to increase the yield of food, allowing for the emergence of specialization, of bureaucrats and of states. The germs transmitted from animals to humans, the discovery and availability of guns, and the smelting of steel sealed the fate of those societies who did not develop these elements.

A powerful story about us, Guns, Germs and Steel will appeal to readers of history and to everyone who is interesting in finding out why today’s world exist as is.

Special Ops: Weapons and Gear

Kassnoff, David. Special Ops: Weapons and Gear. Part of the Inside Special Forces series. 2015. 64p. ISBN 978-1-14777775677. Available at 356.16 KAS on the library shelves.

The Special Forces are the elite military units of the United States armed forces. And elite soldiers fight with the best weapons and gear. This book presents some of the equipment used by Navy Seals, Green Berets and Delta Force. The history and types of missions undertaken by Special Forces are explored, and the evolution of weapons and equipment is documented through photos and sidebars. From top of the line technology to MREs, uniforms, helmets and armor as well as rifles, pistols and grenade launchers, fans of the military will appreciate this tour of horizon of the best gear available in the world.

Books in this series include:

• Black Ops and Other Special Missions of the U.S. Air Force Combat Control Team
• Special Ops: Air Commandos
• Black Ops and Other Special Missions of the U.S. Navy SEALs
• Special Ops: Military Intelligence
• Special Ops: Tactical Training
• Special Ops: Weapons and Gear

Exit, Pursued by a Bear

Johnson, E. K. Exit, Pursued by a Bear. 2016. 387 mins, 248p. ISBN 978-1-10199458-0. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

Palermo Heights is a small Canadian high school where cheerleading is the most competitive and highly rated sport. Forget football, basketball and hockey. Cheerleading is the sport every serious athlete participates in. For three years Hermione (her parents were big Harry Potter fans) has worked hard. The only freshman with her friend Polly to join the varsity squad, she has climbed the cheerleading pyramid to become captain her senior year. Even Leo, her boyfriend, is a member of the squad.

Every summer, during the last two weeks of August, cheerleading teams from many Ontario high schools meet at a camp where they train to get ready for the new season. The Palermo squad is looked up to, but when the time comes to share a dedication at the beginning of camp Hermione aims to end once and for all a curse that has plagued the team since the death of a student seven years ago: Every year, one of the cheerleaders has become pregnant and has had to drop out of the squad. This is the year that the curse ends.

However, when someone slips a drug in Hermione’s drink and then rapes her, she becomes that girl from the curse. Pregnant, Hermione has some hard decisions to make. How does she regain control when she can’t remember anything that happened that night? How does she deal with Leo’s jealousy and the rumors that spread around school? Can she avoid becoming this year’s cautionary tale cheerleaders will talk about at future camps? And will a run to the provincial cheer championship trigger her into a total meltdown when she has to return to the site of the attack? Readers will appreciate the hard choices Hermione makes to deal with this situation and end her senior year on a hopeful but inconclusive note.

Readers who enjoyed this book will appreciate Speak, where Melinda finds herself in a similar situation but deals with it in a completely different way.

Book art

One of the Earth Day activities we held last year in the library was the creation of book art out of the old books we were discarding. We selected ideas from the Internet and Pinterest. During our trip to Plymouth State University's Lamson Library, I came across these amazing book art projects done in a creative art class. I took the pictures and plan on using them as possible models for students this coming Earth Day.