Top 50 Reasons to Care About Polar Bears

Hirsch, Rebecca E. Top 50 Reasons to Care About Polar Bears. Part of the Top 50 Reasons to Care series. 2010. 104p. ISBN 978-0-7660-3458-7. Available at 599.786 on the library shelves.

Polar bears are iconic animals. Ideally suited to live in the arctic, polar bears have struck the popular imagination, but they are at risk due to global warming and the melting of the sea ice in the Arctic. Evolved from brown bears, fossils from polar bears have found, indicating that the split happened at least 120,000 years ago. Polar bears have transparent fur that looks white due to the way it reflects the light. This allows them to camouflage on the snow as they hunt their prey. The largest land carnivore on Earth, polar bears are excellent swimmers. Though they don't hibernate, they do spend months without eating when food is scarce in the summer due to the absence of ice.

Female polar bears have a litter of two cubs every three years on average, and the youths stay with their mother for about two years before striking out on their own. They build a den and spend up to eight months nursing their young after birth. During this time, female bears do not eat, which means they must pack on the food before delivering their cubs.

Polar bears are entrenched in the Inuit culture, and are also popular in cultures that surround the Arctic. They are threatened not only by climate change, but also by human encroachment on their territories. Due to the lack of food in the spring and summer, many bears migrate to human settlements to scrounge through garbage. Toxins that accumulate in fish and other animals also ultimately end up in polar bears and can be passed to cubs through nursing. Ultimately, humans can prevent polar bear extinction, but it will take significant conservation efforts to do so.

Black Butler, Vol. 28

Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol. 28. 2018. 176p. ISBN 9784757557956. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Following the revelation in Black Butler, Vol. 27 that Ciel Phanthomhive had indeed survived his sacrifice and that the current Earl was in fact his younger twin brother, Sebastian, the devil of a butler, wonders how Ciel could have made it through that harrowing experience. The Undertaker makes an appearance, and discloses that he was the one behind Ciel's miraculous recovery. The Blue Star of Sirius, the plot from the Music Hall, the undead uprising on the ship liner Campania, and the missing at the private school, all of these events were connected to Ciel, who with the Undertaker's help was pulling the strings behind the scene.

Just then, two Grim Reapers join the chaotic scene, and attempt to arrest the Undertaker, a former Grim Reaper himself. The situation is further upended when Scotland Yard moves in. With the evidence against him, Phanthomhive the younger is arrested, along with his butler, and are taken away by paddy wagon. Sebastian engineers an escape, and Phantomhive is reunited with his trusted servants. Meanwhile, the real Ciel Phanthomhive claims the manor as his own, and begins to plan his return to normal life.

Now on the run, can Phanthomhive regain his title, with the help of his butler?

Dune

Herbert, Frank. Dune. Book 1 of the Dune series. 1990. 535p. ISBN 978-0-329-05537-0. Available at FIC HER on the library shelves.

Duke Leto Atreides represents an ascending House in the Imperium, and his strong military is perceived as a menace by the Emperor. Hatching a plan to get rid of this troublesome House, Duke Atreides is given command of the planet Arrakis, once controlled by House Harkonnen. Arrakis is important because this is where spice is harvested. Spice enables space navigators to travel the stars, and he who controls the spice trade sits on a colossal fortune. Following the transition of power, Harkonnen troops, assisted by imperial elite units, will attack Arrakis, eliminate Atreides, and allow the Emperor to avoid the appearance of choosing sides.

Sensing a trap, Duke Leto nonetheless accepts the command, as he hopes to strike an alliance with the Fremen, the fanatical inhabitants of Arrakis. He moves to Arrakis with his concubine, Jessica, and their son, Paul. Accompanied with military experts, they take control of the planet and foil several Harkonnen assassination attempts. Undermined from within, Duke Leto succumbs during a surprise attack, and the Atreides are defeated at the hands of Baron Harkonnen. Paul and Jessica escape into the desert, and soon join forces with the Fremen. 

Acclaimed as the savior, Paul soon takes control of the Fremen, and leads them into an assault on the Harkonnens and the imperial troops. 

One of the best science fiction adventures, Dune is part political treatise, part philosophy, part religious allegory, and a whole lot of adventure. Fans of gritty space stories will appreciate Paul's drive to survive and defeat his enemies while understanding his struggle to accept his destiny as savior.

Leadership Case Studies in Education

Northouse, Peter G. and Marie Lee. Leadership Case Studies in Education. 3rd Ed. 2022. 152p. ISBN 9781071816820. 

Leaders face dilemma every day, and though everyone agrees that leadership is essential, not everyone agrees on the definition of what leadership is. As a result, many theories of leadership have been developed over the years to attempt to answer the most important questions: what is leadership, and how do organizations help leaders emerge? In this short book, fifteen leadership theories are summarized, along with case studies for both the K-12 and college environments.

From the trait approach to adaptive leadership, this short book explores the diverse leadership theories that have been created over the years, looking at how people have described leadership and what characteristics they identified as important for leaders to possess. Anyone in a leadership position or aspiring to lead an organization will appreciate the advice contained in this book, even if ultimately one's leadership style will never be determined by theories but rather by facts on the ground.

Diary of a Middle School Zombie: No Zombie Left Behind

Zombie, Zack. Diary of a Middle School Zombie: No Zombie Left Behind. Book 1 of the Diary of a Middle School Zombie series. 2019. 215p. ISBN 9781949216035. Available at FIC ZOM on the library shelves.

Zombie doesn't remember his life before returning as a Zombie, but for the last four years he's lived in a camp for displaced zombies. When Kenya, his social worker, mentions that she is welcoming him to live with her family in HumanTown, Zombie is thrilled. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out, plenty. First, Kenya might have overlooked telling her husband Kyle and daughter Cassie that Zombie was joining them. Then, she didn't have a bedroom ready for him. Then Zombie had to learn how to navigate proper human etiquette (showering, brushing teeth), while contending with a girl's sleepover and making friends with weird kid Franklin. Through it all, Zombie retains a gross sense of humor and keeps on documenting everything that happens to him in the diary Kenya gave him.

Fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid will appreciate Zombie's tale, told in a very similar fashion, if slightly grosser. The images help move the story forward, and combine with what appears to be hand-written text to create a fast-moving story.

Stone Fruit

 Lai, Lee. Stone Fruit. 2021. 236p. ISBN 9781683964261. 

Ray and her sister Amanda always fought as children, and their relationship as adults is not much better. Ray did agree to help out with Nessie, Amanda's daughter, when Amanda went through a painful divorce, and now Auntie Ray takes Nessie on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Ray is in a couple with Bron, another woman whom Amanda doesn't like much, but Nessie adores Bron, who comes up with the best games and songs outside. At six, Nessie doesn't care about relationships and just wants to have fun.

Tensions simmer between Ray and Bron on one hand, and Ray and Amanda on the other. Bron needs space, and can't be emotionally there for Ray as she figures out what is happening in her life. She returns to her parents, a couple who is deeply religious, and to her little sister, who turned 16 and understands more than Bron could express. Left alone, Ray wallows in despair, but then decide to patch up her relationship with her sister, while Nessie demands to know what has happened to Bron.

Working to figure out who they are and how they should relate to one another, the triangle between Ray, Bron and Amanda is difficult at time to observe, but as each character grow, they discover that their lives may not be as different as they thought they were.

Top 50 Reasons to Care About Giant Pandas

Firestone, Mary. Top 50 Reasons to Care About Giant Pandas. Part of the Animals in Peril series. 2010. 104p. ISBN 9780766034518. Available at 599.789 FIR on the library shelves.

Pandas are some of the cutest animals out there, but they are endangered. Their wild habitat has been steadily shrinking, and a combination of environmental factors and encroaching human activities threaten their survival. This book presents 50 different information about pandas, including their biology and their behavior, their habitat, the threats that they face, conservation efforts to save them, and the role that pandas play in Chinese culture and beyond. 

Top 50 Reasons to Care About Tigers

Firestone, Mary. Top 50 Reasons to Care About Tigers. Part of the Animals in Peril series. 2010. 104p. ISBN 978-0-7660-3452-5. Available at 599.756 on the library shelves. 

The tiger is the largest cat in the world, and it is endangered. Only a few tigers remain in the wild, and these are located mostly in Russia's far east, northeastern India, and part of Indonesia. There are now more tigers in captivity than in the wild. Wearing beautiful stripes that provide them with camouflage, tigers are amazing and efficient hunters. Solitary creatures, they roam and jealously protect their territory, and they will attack humans when facing aggression or starvation. 

This short book features fifty interesting pieces of information that fans of tigers will love! Each page is illustrated and includes pertinent information divided in chapters dealing with such topics as tiger behavior, habitat and hunting, and tiger biology.

Other titles in the series include Top 50 Reasons to Care about Giant Pandas and Top 50 Reasons to Care about Polar Bears. 

1984: The Graphic Novel

Orwell, George, adapted and illustrated by Fido Nesti. 1984: The Graphic Novel. 2020. 224p. 978-0-358-35992-0.

Winston has grown in Oceania, one of the three super states that succeeded the myriad of countries and that are now in perpetual war against each other. The Party, guided by Big Brother, dominates all thoughts, actions, and beliefs. The Thought Police is everywhere, listening in to all conversations, spying on everyone all the time. A worker in the Ministry of Truth, where he modifies historical records to ensure they match the current predictions of the Party. The Party must always be right. But Winston harbors doubts, and he knows that the Party is not correct. He's even seen evidence of this. So Winston has to live with doublethink, the ability to think one thing and its contrary simultaneously. 

When he meets Julia, Winston instantly dislikes her. She has too much Party fervor, she's too much of a zealot. Soon, however, Winston discovers that Julia is nothing of the kind. Like her, she's hiding her true feelings and her thoughts as best she can to passively resist the Party. When they are given the opportunity to rebel, both of them take it knowing full well that it can only end in death. However, the two lovers must do something to fight off the totalitarian power of Big Brother!

A great graphic novel adaptation of 1984, this book manages to convey the despair and darkness of the world in which Winston and Julia live, and eerily demonstrates how relatively easy it would be to slip into a totalitarian system without knowing it. Readers who are interested can read a review of the book here.

Out of Hiding: A Holocaust Survivor's Journey to America

Gruener, Ruth. Out of Hiding: A Holocaust Survivor's Journey to America. 2020. 194p. ISBN 978-1-338-62745-9. Available at FIC GRU on the library shelves.

Luncia was an only child born in Poland to a Jewish family, and when the Nazis invaded the country, she and her family found themselves the target of violent antisemitic attacks. Soon forced into a ghetto, Luncia escaped and was housed by a family friend of her father, before being reunited with her family. With her mother and father hiding from the Germans, they managed to avoid capture and emerged in 1945 with a defeated Germany.

With the world around them in rubble, and with people still hostile to Jews, Luncia and her family soon became part of the largest movement of displaced persons in history. After applying for American visas and being granted access, the family left on a ship in 1948 and crossed the Atlantic, where they were reunited with her father's siblings, who had left Poland before the war. 

Settling in New York, Luncia, who changed her name to Ruth, was also reunited in New York with Jack Gruener, a fellow Polish Jew who had also survived the war and whom she had met in Europe. Jack had come to the United States only to go to Korea to fight in the Korean War, and when he returned the two of them were soon married. They never forgot the Holocaust, however, and even today Ruth continues to talk with people who believe it didn't happen.

Though the first part of the book is focused on surviving the Holocaust, the rest of the book powerfully describes the impacts the Holocaust had on Ruth's life and that of her family. Pictures at the end of the book help provide context to some of the situations described.

A Place for Birds

Stewart, Melissa. A Place for Birds. 2009. 30p. ISBN 9781561454747. Available at 598 STE on the library bookshelves.

Birds play an important role in our ecology and in our environment. They eat insects. They propagate seeds. They are themselves a source of food for other animals. In this brief but gorgeously illustrated book, the author presents information about bird and what humans can do to ensure that they can continue to not only survive but thrive on our planet.

Champion

Lu, Marie. Champion. Book 3 of the Legend series. 2013. 369p. ISBN 9780399256776. Available at FIC LU on the library shelves.

Having thrown their support to the new Elector in Prodigy, June and Day are separated once again as the disease that is progressively killing Day is making any lasting relationship impossible in his mind, and he does not explain himself to June. When the Colonies attack the Republic with the help of the African Republic, the Republic finds itself isolated and vulnerable. The introduction of a mutating plague first engineered by the Republic to attack the Colonies, and instead deployed back to harm the Republic is ravaging the population. Facing these dual threats, the Elector is forced to ask Day to let his scientists examine his brother once again, something Day vehemently refused before.

As the Colonies' military power overwhelms first Denver, and then Los Angeles, the Republic finds itself in a race against time, for Antarctica, the world's prominent power, will come to the Republic's aid only of a cure to the virus is developed. During the attack on Denver, Captain Jamesons and Thomas both escape from their death sentences, and June and Day become the hunted.

With the Republic ready to collapse, can Day once again summon the people to aid the Republic in stopping its enemies before it is too late? Can Day and June secure a happy future together, or does their history doom any chance at love they might have had?