Pat’s March Recommendation

David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell

“Malcolm Gladwell has done it again … written another book difficult to put down!This time it’s about underdogs, misfits and the art of battling giants! He challenges us to think about obstacles and disadvantages, about another way to think about what it means to be discriminated against, or how to cope with a disability, or lose a parent. Good stuff.” – Pat

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3 Similar Titles

Drive: The Surprising Truth Behind What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink

The Charge: Activating the 10 Human Drives That Make You Feel Alive by Brendon Burchard

Bounce: Mozart, Federer, Picasso, Beckham, and the Science of Success by Matthew Syed

Ellen’s February Recommendation

The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt

Here is a summary of this book from our online catalog: “Why can’t our political leaders work together as threats loom and problems mount? Why do people so readily assume the worst about the motives of their fellow citizens? In The Righteous Mind, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt explores the origins of our divisions and points the way forward to mutual understanding.”  Ellen says that is a “very thought-provoking book”.

Read about or request this book from the online catalog!

3 Similar Reads (Nonfiction)

The Political Brain: The Rule of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of Our Nation by Drew Westen

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath

Emily’s October Recommendation

Son by Lois Lowry

“Anyone who loved The Giver will enjoy this continuation of Jonas and Gabe’s story.  The book begins shortly before the events of The Giver, but is told from the perspective of Claire, a birthmother (and the mother of Gabe) in the Community.  This first of three sections shows a different side of the original story and more fully develops the character of Jonas’ Nurturer father.  Next, we see Claire struggle to find Gabe, the son who was taken from her without warning.  Finally, we are taken back to Gabe, now a teenager desperate to find the mother he hardly remembers.  The ending, though a bit rushed and almost too easy, is still a satisfying conclusion to the story that began years ago with The Giver.  I would recommend for teens and adults.”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog!

3 Similar Reads (Fiction)

1) Shade’s Children by Garth Nix (Access to library catalog here!)

2) The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi (Access to library catalog here!)

3) Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (Access to library catalog here!)

Sue’s September Recommendation

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg

“I am a reformed procrastinator and adopting positive habits (at home and at work)  has helped me use my time better and feel more organized in both areas of my life.  This is an interesting book about the power of habit and what we can do to change our habits in business, life, and society. The book is divided into three sections, first focusing on the individual, then companies, and finally societies.  I liked the first part of the book the best as it explains how people succeed when they identify patterns that shape their lives–and learn how to change them.”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog!

3 Similar Nonfiction Reads

1) Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori Brafman (Access to library catalog here!)

2) Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson (Access to library catalog here!)

3) Made to Stick by Chip Heath (Access to library catalog here!)

3 Similar Reads (Fiction)

1) The Learners by Chip Kidd (Access to library catalog here!)

2) Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman:Twenty-Four Stories by Haruki Murakami (Access to library catalog here!)

3) Like You’d Understand, Anyway: Stories by Jim Shepard (Access to library catalog here!)

July Patron Recommendations–From Kevin

Pearl Buck in China: Journey to the Good Earth by Hilary Spurling

“A brilliant biography of a very complex woman whose life parallels both the rise of modern China and the fall of overseas Christian missions. Well written, very readable, and filled with much new information.”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog!

 

3 Similar Reads (Nonfiction)

1) Cathering the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie (Access to library catalog here!)

2) Betsy Ross and the Making of America by Marla Miller (Access to library catalog here!)

3) Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff (Access to library catalog here!)

3 Similar Reads (Fiction)

1) The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck (Access to library catalog here!)

2) The Painted Veil by Somerset Maugham (Access to library catalog here!)

3) Pearl of China by Anchee Min (Access to library catalog here!)

Ellen’s May Recommendation

The Journal of Best Practices: A Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man’s Quest to Be A Better Husband by David Finch

“This book is engaging, surprisingly funny, and provides plenty of food for thought about how we relate to one another, whether we are neurotypical (NT) or have Asperger’s Syndrome”.

Read about it or request it from the library catalog!

3 Similar Reads (Nonfiction):

1) Committed: A Love Story by Elizabeth Gilbert (Access to library catalog here)

2) Look Me In The Eye: My Life With Asperger’s by John Elder Robison (Access to library catalog here)

3) Saving Milly: Love, Politics, and Parkinson’s Disease by Morton Kondracke (Access to library catalog here)

3 Similar Reads (Fiction):

1) Daniel Isn’t Talking by Marti Leimbach (Access to library catalog here)

2) A Wild Ride Up the Cupboards by Ann Bauer (Access to library catalog here)

3) The Kitchen Daughter by Jael McHenry (Access to library catalog here)

Blaise’s August Recommendation

The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry by Jon Ronson

“A couple of months ago I was listening to NPR and heard a story about the PCL-R, a checklist devised by Robert Hare to identify psychopathic characteristics.   The NPR story was fascinating and when I read a review of this book a couple of weeks later I immediately added it to my hold list.  In it,  Jon Ronson explores psychopaths as well as the industry that studies them.  He writes with an ease,  fluidity and humor that makes reading his non-fiction enjoyable.”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog.

Victoria’s July Recommendation

The Naked Lady Who Stood on Her Head: A Psychiatrist’s Stories of His Most Bizarre Cases by Gary Small

“This book is great for a summer easy read and is filled with funny short stories!!”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog.

Ellen’s May Recommendation

Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

The focus of this book is on the power of small actions to effect large changes, and of individuals to make positive changes in the culture of a community with small steps, few people, and limited resources.  Although this book is geared towards organizations and “change managers,” I found myself thinking of individuals and groups that could benefit from the “game plan” it describes.

Read about it or request it from the library catalog.

Lisa’s January Recommendation

Being Wrong by Kathryn Schulz

“To err is human. Yet most of us go through life assuming (and sometimes insisting) that we are right about nearly everything,from the origins of the universe to how to load the dishwasher. If being wrong is so natural, why are we all so bad at imagining that our beliefs could be mistaken…At a moment when economic, political,and religious dogmatism increasingly divide us, Schulz explores with uncommon humor and eloquence the seduction of certainty and the crises occasioned by error.” Or, to put it another way, as the first chapter starts…
“It infuriates me to be wrong when I know I am right.” -Moliere

Personally, I found this book extremely well written, illuminating, and best of all liberating.”

Read about it or request it from the library catalog.

You can find this book in the library at CALL # 128 SCH