Light Filters In

Kaufman, Caroline. Light Filters In. 2018. 211p. ISBN 978-0-06-284469-9. Available as an ebook on Overdrive.

Raw and powerful, Kaufman's poetry strikes at the heart of being a teenage girl, with the angst, rage, love, loneliness, and not knowing oneself. The ideas are expressed with limited words but deliver a punch to the gut in strength of sentiment. Honestly presented, Kaufman does not shy away from the wonders and the pains of growing up and shaping one's identity into something that her earlier self might not recognize. A teenager herself, Kaufman manages to strike the right balance between melodrama and moping on one hand and the sugar-coated version of teenagehood most adults hope their child will experience.

Fans of poetry will appreciate the powerful feelings elicited by this book and will be left with more questions than answer about life and one's sense of identify. 

Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 14

Adachitoka. Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 14. 2016. 200p. ISBN 978-1-63236-255-1. Available in the Graphic Section of the library.

The Ayakashi Yato's father, the crafter, released in the hospital run by Hiyori's father, caused significant damage in Noragami Stray God, Vol. 13, and Hiyori and her family are dealing with consequences and impending lawsuits. The violence has led to lawsuits and the very real possibility that the hospital's reputation may be ruined. Angry that he indirectly caused this pain, Yato determines to stay away until he can make it up to a girl he's grown infatuated with. Much to Yukiné's distress, he promises to return only when he's truly become a god of happiness.

Bishamon is also dealing with the consequences of the crafter's attack on the hospital. She was stabbed by the crafter's weapon, which transferred to one of her shinki. This shinki's given name is now fading as she regains memories of her previous life and her death. Bishamon requests Yato's presence, and he explains that the only way to deal with this is to release the shinki and allow them to enjoy death. Remembering what happened to Ebisu, Bishamon is loath to let a shinki go. As the shinki becomes more dangerous, however, it is clear that she will have to deal with this issue, without revealing to the other shinkis that seeking their true name will put them in peril.

Finally, Kazuma and Yukiné suddenly find themselves in open conflict as each seeks to protect the interest of their god. The two blessed vessels are deadly, and they are ready to fight!

My So-Called Bollywood Life

Sharma, Nissa. My So-Called Bollywood Life. 2018. 407 mins. ISBN 978-0-525-59569-4. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

Coming from an Indian family, Winnie Mehta has spent her whole life believing a prophecy predicted by a revered pandit that declared she would meet her soul mate before she turned eighteen, and his name would start with an R. When she met Raj her freshman year, she instantly fell in love. Both of them are Indians. Both love Bollywood movies. And both are perfect for each other.

Living in Princeton, Winnie is looking forward to attending film school in New York. The co-president of her school's film club along with Raj, Winnie organizes a Film Festival every year, and this credential is what will separate her from the other applicants. When she returns from film camp, however, she discovers that Raj, during their break, hooked up with Jenny. This not only makes the running of the film festival harder, but it breaks the prophecy that links them. To top it off, the new film club advisor refuses to have co-presidents, and she discovers that Dev, another Indian-American, has loved her since their freshman year, but because of Raj had to remain on the sideline. And like Raj, David makes his own movies and loves Bollywood productions.

With so many pieces of the puzzle now scrambled, Winnie's happy ending appears doomed. Can she change the script of her life and move past this prophecy that has shackled her all of her life? Friends, family, and an inspired Bollywood movie star will try to get her back on course to her realize her dreams.

A fun read, My So-Called Bollywood Life provides a glimpse of living as Indian-American in the United States, when social demands clash with a mix of cultures. Winnie makes many references to Bollywood movies, and she relates them to her life. Fans of love stories will appreciate Winnie's efforts at finding true love while aiming for her own dreams.

One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game that Brought a Divided Town Together

Bass, Amy. One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game that Brought a Divided Town Together. 2018. 328p. ISBN 978-1-54911568-4. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

In the 1990s, a vicious civil war tore Somalia apart. Famine, oppression and national mismanagement contributed to the deaths of millions, and to the exile of even more. Refugees poured out of the horn of Africa and spread around the world. Many refugees were resettled in the United States, and a few of them ended up in Lewiston, Maine. A former mill community, the town had been economically devastated in the 1970s. Rents were plentiful and cheap, and the community was at first welcoming.

These newly arrived residents attracted family members and friends, and soon hundreds and then thousands of refugee moved from all parts of the United States to Lewiston. Tensions soon grew between the new arrivals and those longtime residents, many of whom were one or two generations removed from being immigrants themselves. These tensions spilled in the local schools, creating conflicts between the two groups. When the soccer coach noticed the talent of some of the Somali students, he recruited them on the team, and soon perennial loser Lewiston Blue Devils began winning games throughout the state.

Many in the community resisted these changes, but others embraced the new arrivals. The team learned to play together, and appreciate each other's culture. The coach successfully forged unity among his players, and achieved Lewiston's first soccer state championship in 2015 through grit, determination, and a realization that prejudices only serve to undermine our sense of humanity.

An amazing true story, fans of underdogs will appreciate how a disparate group came together and helped integrate their communities into a vibrant town culture. Other amazing sport stories include Unbroken and The Boys of the Boat. 

The Golem's Eye

Stroud, Jonathan. The Golem's Eye. Book 2 of the Bartimaeus trilogy. 2004. 562p. ISBN 978-0-7868-1860-0. Available at FIC STR on the library shelves.

The unravelling of the conspiracy against the Prime Minister and the role he played in the rescue of the Amulet of Samarkand helped 14-years-old Nathaniel, a rising magician, gain the confidence of the great man himself, and he now finds himself a relatively important person in the government. Entrusted to deal with a Resistance movement that opposes the magicians' control of the British Empire, Nathaniel runs into dead ends. Convinced that Kitty Jones is behind the Resistance's thefts, destruction, and raids, Nathaniel is in a hurry to find her and exact his revenge for the humiliating way she dealt with him two years ago. Stopping the Resistance cannot happen soon enough, especially now that whole buildings are being destroyed by a strange force.

Kitty herself is involved with the Resistance, but the organization's goal remains murkey. What are they truly trying to accomplish with the stealing of magical items? How is that undermining their hold on power? When a powerful patron approaches the Resistance and provides the means for a break into the grave of Gladstone, a former and very powerful Prime Minister now deceased for over a hundred years, Kitty is apprehensive as to the cost. All the sponsor requires is Gladstone's old staff, the rest of the powerful magical items in there are for the Resistance to take.

When Nathaniel discovers that a Golem, an ancient magical artifact mastered by the Prague magicians centuries earlier, is in fact the cause of the destruction, quashing the Resistance becomes a question of life and death, especially his own. With events spiraling out of control, Nathaniel finds himself once again having to call upon the services of Bartimaeus, the very djinni that helped him fight Loveland and his co-conspirators two years earlier.

Bartimaeus is not pleased to find himself summoned again by this arrogant magician boy, but what can he do? The incantation force him to obey. Finding themselves in Prague, they encounter the Mercenary, this enigmatic figure who was central in the Amulet plot. Clearly there are darker forces at play, and Nathaniel, Bartimaeus and Kitty hurl towards a cataclysmic confrontation as they all seek to solve the mystery of the Golem.

The story concludes in Ptolemy's Gate.

The Gross Science of Lice and Other Parasites

Olexa, Keith J. The Gross Science of Lice and Other Parasites. Part of the Way Gross Science series. 2018. 48p. ISBN 978-1-5081-8171-2. Available at 616.57 OLE on the library shelves.

We all have heard of parasites, bugs that live on or within another species and steal food and shelter while providing nothing back to the host in exchange. Parasites are the bane of human existence, but also affect other animals and plants. Highly evolved to benefit at the expense of another, parasites have successfully adapted several techniques to avoid being noticed.

Sometimes they can be very annoying, like lice. At other times, they can literally be deadly, like the fleas that spread the Black Death in the 1300s. Parasites have overthrown civilizations, and led to massive social upheavals in the past. They continue to play a role in human history today with the spread of pandemics.

Learn how to recognize infestations of these critters, how to avoid becoming their next victim, and how to treat yourself if you are unfortunate enough to become infected.

The Shadow Hero

Yang, Gene Luen and Sonny Liew. The Shadow Hero. 2014. 158p. ISBN 978-1-59643-697-8. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

In 1944, a Chinese American illustrator named Chu Hing was asked to create a superhero for a series titled Blazing Heroes. Wanting to appeal to a White audience, the editors requested that the main character be White. Chu Hing acquiesced, but hid the features of his hero, the Green Turtle, who is never seen from the front and only from the back. Green Turtle defended China, the United States' ally during the Second World War, against the Japanese invaders. Green Turtle had no obvious special powers aside from an uncanny way to avoid bullets, and his adventures only lasted five episodes before the series was cancelled.

All of this is background to explain what The Shadow Hero is. Yang and Liew tell the origin story of the man who became the Green Turtle. Growing up in a city on the West Coast, Hank helps his father run their small grocery store. His mother, who married without much enthusiasm, wishes he would be so much more, and when she is saved from a car jacking by a superhero named the Anchor of Justice, she decides to help her son find his true calling, that of a superhero.

At first Hank plays at being a superhero, but he gets beat up and discovers there is a very dark underside to Chinatown. A criminal organization dominates the neighborhood, and the local police is not interested in solving crimes that only affect Chinese folks. When Hank's father doesn't pay the gang, Hank takes it upon himself to recoup the money that had to be paid. This result in the death of Hank's father. Determining to avenge himself, Hank commits to the role of the Green Turtle, and discovers that his father did in fact have a superpower of sorts. Now with a new outfit and logo, can the Green Turtle restore peace and eliminate the criminal syndicate from Chinatown?

Reminiscent of the superhero comic books from the 1940s and 1950s, The Shadow Hero connects some of the dots behind the Green Turtle's origins, and provides a look at a community that is underrepresented in history and in today's comic world. Fans of graphic novels will appreciate the art work and the tight story.

Strange the Dreamer

Taylor, Laini. Strange the Dreamer. Book 1 of the Strange the Dreamer series. 2017. 536p. ISBN 978-0-316-34168-4. Available at FIC TAY on the library shelves.

Lazlo Strange was an orphan found in an orchard. Adopted by monks, he lived an austere life in the monastery. This life was only enlivened by the stories told by an ancient monk, and by the escapades in the gardens of the monastery. In possession of a vivid imagination and powerful dreams, Lazlo saw himself as a hero of ancient tales, none closer to his heart than that of the mythic lost city of Weep.

Once upon a time, across the vast desert stood a city wealthy beyond belief, where cakes were left on windowsills for anyone to take, where candy was as sweet as honey, and where strangers were not allowed on the pain of death. That city had a wonderful name, but that name was tragically lost when Lazlo was five years old. The city suddenly lost its name, and neither Lazlo nor anyone else could remember what it was.

Charged with delivering a package to a city near the monastery, Lazlo visits the library for the first time, and never lives. Hired first as a helper then as a librarian, he immerses himself in the old books and legends, always trying to pierce together the mystery of Weep. What happened that the city lost its name? Unfortunately for him, the city lays too far, and has too many dangers, to ever explore it so Lazlo contents himself with life in the library.

Then the opportunity of a lifetime presents itself when the legend of Weep becomes real. The Godslayer, the man responsible for killing the gods that ruled Weep, presents himself and his large band of fearsome warriors to the Queen, seeking to assemble a caravan of experts who could solve the riddle of Weep, his city. Lazlo jumps at the chance, although as a librarian his abilities to solve this mystery are slim to none. Accompanied by experts in the field of mining, explosives, flying, magic, and other critical subjects, the group head out to Weep across the vast desert. What they discover defies comprehension.

Above the city flies a large angel with wings spread. Made of a strange metal, the angel blocks the sun and keeps Weep in a perpetual twilight even at noon. There are no cakes on the windowsills, and the population remains in fear of the gods that ruled them for hundreds of years. Now these gods are dead, but the hovering citadel remains a potent sign of their former domination. The Godslayer provides them with a simple task. Move or destroy the citadel.

Aboard the citadel, five children survived the massacre engineered by the Godslayer, and remained hidden for fifteen years. These children have grown up, and as Godspawns, they possess strange powers, none stranger than Sarai, who at night releases moths from her mouth. These moths descend on Weep, and watch the sleeping population. They can also deliver nightmares, and for years Sarai has haunted the dreams of the local inhabitants, seeking to punish them for their destruction of her parents. Over this time, however, she also gained a sense of humanity's desires and frailties, while humans remain caricatures for her siblings.

When Lazlo and his companions arrive in Weep with the Godslayer, Sarai immediately sees the risks that they pose of being able to access the flying citadel. Lazlo is not like the other humans, however, and Sarai finds herself attracted to this strange man who has even stranger dreams, and who can even see her in his dream, when no one else can. Can the two of them manage to close the gap between their people before it's too late?

Beautifully written, this fantastic tale will be appreciated by all readers for its humanity and its amazing world building.


 

20th Century Art, 1910-1920: The Birth of Abstract Art

Gaff, Jackie. 20th Century Art, 1910-20: The Birth of Abstract Art. 2000. 32p. ISBN 978-0-8368-2849-6. Available at 709.04 GAF on the library shelves.

In the 1900s, artists such as the Impressionists and Pablo Picasso had blazed a path away from realism towards more expressive art. This trend continues in the 1910s as artists push the limit of what art is. Cubists moved away from paint as a medium and adopted other media, including using real objects. At the same time, others were experiencing with colors and modernity by showcasing new inventions such as airplanes and new constructions like the Eiffel Tower. Abstract art continued to expand, and drifted even more away from representing reality, instead composing purely visual images with no basis in the real world. Other pre-First World War art movements included Futurism and Vorticism, both of which were concerned with modern life, lines, and angles.

The First World War changed art. Artists went to the front, fought, and died. Many were commissioned to illustrate what they saw, but had to contend with censors. The result were bleak creations that featured muted colors, as no one was in a mood to celebrate. The war and its horrors gave birth to Dadaism, a movement which was anti-everything, and which drove absurdity, like the war itself, to its extreme. The end of the war led to a resumption of abstract art, but artists entered the metaphysical and the dream world. Women artists also emerged at this time and gained a foothold in the world of art. The decade ended with the appearance of Constructivism, where art was married to function so it could provide well as aesthetically pleasing utility.

American Panda

Chao, Gloria. American Panda. 2018. 311p. 456 mins. ISBN 978-1-48149910-1. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

Mei is torn between her very traditional Taiwanese heritage, strictly enforced by her parents, and her decidedly American tastes in culture and activities. Driven by her parents and by the guilt to perform they instilled in her, Mei graduated early from high school, and, at seventeen, is now a freshman at MIT. Her parents really want her to become a doctor, but Mei hates germs and bodily functions, and instead loves dance. She would rather use her mastery of math to open and run her own dance studio, but she doesn't want to disappoint her parents.

Mei's Chinese heritage assumes she will be the obedient daughter who fulfill her parents' wishes. She needs to be a doctor, because it is a respectable and essential career that has great earning potential. She is to marry a man of Taiwanese heritage her mother will have selected, and she is to have a son, to continue the family line. Her brother Xing broke with tradition when he introduced her parents to his girlfriend, a woman who, due to a childhood sickness, would have difficulty conceiving a baby. As a result they disowned him and barred Mei from even contacting him.

Now at MIT, Mei is navigating the minefield that is roommates, parental expectations, classes, and cute boys like Darren, a Japanese American, not even counting her own wishes and desires. Darren looms large, but he's a no-no in her parents' eyes, with the Japanese responsible for China's suffering during the Second World War. As the first semester progresses, Mei sinks further into a web of lies she has told to keep the two parts of her life separate, but she soon realizes that she can neither be fully Chinese nor fully American, but rather a hybrid with the best and worst characteristics. Can Mei discover a way to reconcile these two parts of her life without antagonizing her family further while at the same time not denying who she really is?

The Boys of the Boat

Brown, Daniel James. The Boys in the Boat: The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics. 2015. 336 mins. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

The 1936 Olympics were hosted in Berlin by Nazi Germany. Meant to showcase Aryan superiority, the Germans fully expected their athletes to win gold at most events. The marquee events for the rowing competitions is the 9 person boat, with a coxswain and eight rowers. The Germans were very good at rowing, and so were many other European countries. The United States sent a crew from the University of Washington to participate, and despite all odds both at home and in Germany, they won their race and returned to the United States with gold medals.

This is a story of grit and determination when facing what seem unsurmountable obstacles. The author focuses on the life of Joe Rantz, a man from Washington who was one of the crewmen on the winning Olympic team. Joe's mother died young when Joe was only three. She loved music and this is what Joe remembered her most for. After his mother's death Joe was sent to live with relatives in Pennsylvania, and he crossed the country all by himself on trains. His father sent for him two years later, and he returned to find his father once again married. Life was hard on the frontier, with Joe's father always away at logging camps or working odd jobs.

At ten Joe was forced to leave home by his stepmother. For a time Joe worked in town and continued school, but by the time he was 15 he was living alone in his father's old house, while the family had relocated to Seattle. The Great Depression crashed many people's economic aspirations. Joe entered the University of Washington, and joined the rowing crew. Years of hard physical labor and exertions had prepared him well, however, and his freshman year his crew and their boat, referred to as a shell, defeated elite teams from California and Ivy League universities.

Joe and his teammates repeated this feat every year, and made it to the Olympics. Joe's team was undefeated their entire college career. Throughout his time on the crew team Joe found love, and also a sense of belonging. This is not only the story of winning gold, this is the story of perseverance and finding oneself.

Fans of Unbroken and other historical biographies will appreciate the dedication and effort it took on the part of the crewmen to overcome the barriers that stood in their way, and how out of the crucible of exertion came a sense of belonging and of home.

Black Butler, Vol. 19

Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol. 19. 2015. 151p. ISBN 978-0-316-25940-8 . Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

In Black Butler, Vol. 18, Ciel Phantomhive and Sebastian were sent to Germany on the behest of Queen Victoria to investigate the death of people who fell victim to a rumored witch curse combined with the presence of a werewolf. Upon exploring the forest they and the Phantomhive household servants became the unwilling guests of Sullivan, a witch child and liege lord of Wolfs-Schlutch, a small village populated by women who were persecuted for being witches in their former homes.

Now in the forest, Sebastian entertains Sullivan by preparing wonderful meals and by sharing news of the world outside the forest. When the opportunity presents itself, Sebastian and Ciel leave the safety of the castle and head in the forest. They soon fall victim to the miasmic curse, which robs Ciel of his vision and disfigures both him and his devil servant. Sebastian is forced to seek Sullivan and reveal they went into the forest.

Using her witchcraft, Sullivan saves Ciel, but he is blinded, and in the process experiences a reliving of when he was a child and about to be sacrificed, before his binding with Sebastian. Refusing to have any adult, including Sebastian, help him, Ciel remains bed-ridden.

Meanwhile, Sebastian pursues his investigation of the mysterious forest...

The story continues in Black Butler, Vol. 20.

Flame in the Mist

Ahdieh, Renée. Flame in the Mist. Book 1 of the Flame in the Mist series. 2017. 392p. ISBN 978-0-399-17163-5. Available at FIC AHD on the library shelves.

Mariko is on her way to the imperial capital to marry the eldest son of the Emperor. She resent this trip and her upcoming nuptials to a man she has never met. She resents her father for forcing her into this arranged marriage that will benefit him. But most of all, she resents having been born a girl and be bound by customs and traditions, instead of having been born a boy like her twin brother Kenshin. She wishes she had every opportunity available, including becoming a samurai and enjoy the way of bushido, the code of honor that joins every warrior. She has extensively studied the art of alchemy, and prides herself in noticing everything around her.

Near the edge of a forest reputed to be haunted, her heavily guarded convoy is ambushed by brigands of the Black Clan, and all of her guards are slaughtered. When it is clear that the bandits are not here to steal but rather to kill her, Mariko manages to escape in the forest, but becomes hopelessly lost. Found by a ruffian intend on either trading her back to the Black Clan or claiming her as his consort, Mariko kills a man for the first time, steals his clothes, and heads deeper in the forest.

Notified of the attack on the convoy, her brother Kenshin, the Dragon of Ki and one of the best samurai of the Empire, cannot believe that his twin sister is dead. He begins tracking her down, and when he finds the site of the ambush he discovers enough clues to reveal that his sister has escaped.

Now dressed as a boy, Mariko devises a plan of action. She will infiltrate the Black Clan, and take down those who were responsible for the killings of her convoy. Finally locating the Clan on the outskirts of the forest, she is taken prisoner and brought to their camp. Still able to hide her gender, Mariko is dubbed Lord Lackbeard, and is forced to do many of the menial tasks of the camp. She quickly realizes, however, that the Clan's leader, and the man ultimately responsible for her capture, is intent on training her and letting her join. Finally valued for her ideas and her abilities more than just for her gender, Mariko now finds herself thorn between seeking revenge, and pursuing a growing sense of finally belonging somewhere.

But with her brother hot on her trails, and with the Wolf, second in command of the Clan keeping a close eye on her, Mariko will need all of her wits to survive this subterfuge and the deadly game she became involved in the day the convoy left her father's palace.

Live Fearless: A Call to Power, Passion and Purpose

Robertson, Sadie. Live Fearless: A Call to Power, Passion and Purpose. 2018. 196p. ISBN 978-1-40030939-9. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

Hailing from the Duck Dynasty family, Sadie Robertson has suffered many challenges in her life, but has determined never to give in to loneliness and fear. Plagued with doubts throughout her youth, Sadie rediscovered God and learned to place her trust in a higher power who could guide her and inspire her to make the most of her life.

Filled with inspirational details about how she triumphed over the fears that held her back and dominated her life, Sadie proposes solutions that will work for some people, and guidance on how others can find what passionates and motivates them to achieve the greater good. Whether one believes or not, Sadie's story is both purposeful and uplifting.

Extraordinary Means

Schneider, Robyn. Extraordinary Means. 2015. 324p. ISBN 978-0-06-221716-5. Available at FIC SCH on the library shelves.

Lane's comfortably completely laid out life plan has just collapsed on itself. A senior in high school, Lane was looking forward to taking the SATs, seeking and receiving early admission to Stanford, then move on to graduate school before getting married and having an amazing career. He is smart, driven, but didn't take into account that tuberculosis could stop him in his tracks. Now sick, his family has sent him to Latham House, a sanatorium where teens who have contracted the incurable strain of tuberculosis are being treated while scientists continue their research into discovering a cure.

Since incurable tuberculosis is, by definition, incurable, most teens sent to Latham House don't expect they will ever leave this place. As a school, the academic demands are minimal. As a hospital, everyone is focused on wellness and ensuring that patients don't overexercise their brains or their muscles, thus triggering a coughing fit. Lane expects to come to Latham House, continue his studies, and recuperate quickly enough to be sent home so he can apply to college.

On his first day there, he is stood up by his guide, and he has to go to the dining hall by himself. When Lane discovers that his guide in fact died in the night, it hits him that for many people Latham is the last place they will live. In the dining hall he recognizes a girl he was attracted to during a summer camp experience three years ago when they were both thirteen. The Sadie he knew was an awkward and shy girl. Not this Sadie. She is outspoken and wears her passion on her sleeves. Lane immediately finds himself even more attracted to her. Sadie, however, remember summer camp and the fact that Lane stood her up at the camp dance.

Finally able to resolve this misunderstanding, Lane joins Sadie's group of misfits and troublemakers, and soon learns that living life doesn't need to mean the journey is already all planned. All of the teens at Latham House have learned the hard way that you need to live in the moment.

As Lane and Sadie fall in love, he realizes that sickness could take it all away. Lane, Sadie and their friends dare to break rules. Some rules, however, are meant to protect them from themselves and from becoming sicker. When one of their own dies, they are forced to re-evaluate their lives.

Told from Lane and Sadie's perspective in alternating chapters, Extraordinary Means continues the exploration of teens finding themselves afflicted with incurable diseases. Fans of Quarantine: A Love Story will appreciate the realistic portrayal and the feelings shared by two teens in love.