September's Books

Sonia Manzano, “Maria” from Sesame Street, had a hard life growing up. Her father a violent drunk, her mother the victim of his abuse, a chronically ill younger brother—this was her family. Manzano tells of her bleak childhood with forthright honesty, and takes you along on her journey to the High School for Performing Arts and Carnegie Mellon University. She wins a roll in “Godspell,” and catches the eye of Sesame Street’s executive producer. The book ends as she is hired for the television show, where she would go on to win Emmys for writing and acting. I hope there is another book in the works—I’d love to read about her experiences with the cast and guest stars of Sesame Street.

 


Bryant and May and the Bleeding Heart by Christopher Fowler
On the Ropes by Tom Schreck
As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from The Princess Pride by Cary Elwes
The World of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes
The Chronicles of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes
Nobody's Child by Libby Fischer Hellmann
Swift Justice by Laura DiSilverio
Play Dead by Leslie O'Kane
Protecting Patron Privacy by Matthew Beckstrom
Fallen by Karin Slaughter
The Chocolate Puppy Puzzle by JoAnna Carl
Becoming Maria:a memoir by Sonia Manzano
Faithless by Karin Slaughter

The Books of August

 

The ne’er do well Timson clan has produced at least one law abiding citizen, Tiffany, who is married to the respectable Dr. Khan. When the doctor is arrested on vague terrorism charges, it’s Rumpole to his defense. But while Rumpole prepares his case, his wife Hilda—She Who Must Be Obeyed—is stepping out to the cinema with her husband’s nemesis, Mad Bull Bullingham. A delight for fans of British humor. 


You Bet Your Life by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Rumpole and the Reign of Terror by John Mortimer
The Wright Brothers by David McCullough
The Good Sister by Wendy Corsi Staub

July's Books

 

When Jessica Fletcher arrives in Indiana to teach a creative writing course at Schoolman College, she finds herself in a tornado shelter, waiting out the area’s first tornado in sixty years. After the storm is over, the body of Professor Newmark is discovered buried in a pile of debris. The local police and college officials believe he was a victim of the storm, but Jessica believes it was murder. For fans who can’t get enough of the Cabot Cove sleuth. 

Fleece Navidad by Maggie Sefton
Little Pretty Things by Lori Rader-Day
License to Dill by Mary Ellen Hughes
Majoring in Murder by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain

June's Books

Yoga, dogs, and murder mix in Tracy Weber's Killer Retreat. Yoga instructor Kate Davidson accepts an invitation to teach at Elysian Sprints, a resort on Orcas Island, for the week of the owners', Emmy and Josh, wedding. Monica, the bride's stepmother, is an unpleasant,  strident woman who insults everyone she encounters. When Monica's undisciplined Jack Russell terrier, Bandit, runs amok, Kate threatens to strangle her unless she can control her dog. Monica is discovered dead in the hot tub, and Kate is the number one suspect. Second book in the Downward Dog series.


Murder Across the Ocean by Charlene Wexler
The Maze by Catherine Coulter
Murder a la Christie by Marilyn Levinson
Ant Farm by James Jackson
The Monogram Murders by Sophie Hannah
Peak Season for Murder by Gail Lukasik
Wickedpedia by Chris Van Etten
Killer Retreat by Tracy Weber
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
On the Road Where the Bells Toll by M. J. Williams
Willful Child by Steven Erickson

May's Books

Elizabeth Keckly was born into slavery and bought her freedom and that of her son for $1200. A talented seamstress, she opened a shop in St. Louis, and soon counted among her customers the important and influential women of society. When Abraham Lincoln was elected to the presidency, Mary Todd Lincoln engaged Mrs. Keckly to sew new gowns for her important Washington functions.

When the President was assassinated, it was Lizzy Keckly who was constantly by Mary Lincoln’s side. And when the President’s widow left Washington with creditors on her heels, it was the dressmaker who helped her try to settle her debts.

A fascinating look at a former slave and the privileged southern woman and their relationship.

Chill Before Serving by Cynthia Lawrence
Death of a Dapper Snowman by Angela Pepper
Don't Dare a Dame by M. Ruth Myers
Bear in the Back Seat II by Kim DeLozier
The Good Spy: the Life and Death of Robert Ames by Kai Bird
Phantom Angel by David Handler
Mrs. Lincoln and Mrs. Keckly: the Remarkable Story of the Friendship Between a First Lady and a Former Slave by Jennifer Fleischner

April's Books

In Skink: No Surrender, Carl Hiaasen's latest book, fourteen year old Richard is the only one who sees through his cousin Malley’s ruse. She told her parents she was leaving for boarding school but she left the airport and got into a car with a strange man she met on the internet. She begged Richard not to tell, but when he met a strange old man on the beach—one with bird beaks in his beard, a missing eye, and picture perfect teeth—he spills the story. He’s worried about Malley, although she claims she’s having an adventure.

The seemingly crazy old man, who turns out to be ex-governor Clint Tyree, is assumed to be dead. He tells he’ll help Richard track down his cousin, and with some behind the scenes help from a retired Florida Highway Patrol trooper, they locate Malley. As usual in Hiassen’s books, there are colorful characters, wild animals, and nature at odds with man. This is Hiassen’s first young adult book, but all fans of Hiassen will want to read Skink’s latest adventure.

 

Skink: no surrender by Carl Hiaasen
Death of a Liar by M.C. Beaton
Catification: Designing a Happy and Stylish Home for your Cat by Jackson Galaxy
Lady Parts by Andrea Martin
Rancher Rescue by Barb Han
The Rome Affair by Addison Fox
Scene of the Crime: Baton Rouge by Carla Cassidy
When No One is Watching by Natalie Charles
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
Dead Wake: the Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson
Alive at 5 by Linda Bond
Dead on Arrival by Lori Avocato

March's Books

Author James Bowen was a street musician, a former heroin addict living hand-to-mouth, when he found an injured cat in the hallway of his apartment building. He took the cat, a ginger tom he named Bob, to the vet, and nursed him back to health. In A Street Cat Named Bob,  James and Bob traveled to central London to busk near the tube station entrance, where Bob delighted the commuters and the tourists. With the help of Bob, James was able to reconcile with his mother in New Zealand and withdraw from methadone treatment. Cat lovers will delight in this true story of a man and his cat.

 


Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen
We're Just Like You, Only Prettier by Celia Rivenbark
Basil Instinct by Shelley Costa
A Catered St. Patrick's Day by Isis Crawford
A Street Cat Named Bob: How One Man and His Cat Found Hope on the Streets by James Bowen
Fat Cat at Large by Janet Cantrell
Life Sentences by Laura Lipperman
The Shimmering Blond Sister by David Handler
The Snow White Christmas Cookie by David Handler
The Coal Black Asphalt Tomb by David Handler
Murder She Wrote: Domestic Malice by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Murder She Wrote: Murder at the Powderhorn Ranch by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Murder She Wrote: Coffee Tea or Murder by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Wolverine Bros. Freight & Storage by Steve Ulfelder
The Main Corpse by Diane Mott Davidson
Murder She Wrote: Trouble at High Tide by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
While My Pretty One Sleeps by Mary Higgins Clark

February's Books

In Mister Bud wears the Cone, Mister Bud, the dog, is chewing at a hot spot so he must wear a cone to help it heal. Zorro, the naughty pug, resents the attention Mister Bud gets, and tries to get him into trouble. A funny story, and the expressions of the dogs are priceless.

 


Optical Delusions in Deadwood by Ann Charles
The School Board Murders by Leslie O'Kane
Brass in Pocket by Stephen Puleston
The Catcher was a Spy: the Mysterious Life of Moe Berg by Nicholas Dawidoff
Caught by Harlan Coben
The Fairacre Festival by Miss Read
Burial at Sea by Charles Finch
Confessions of a Turtle Wife by Anita Salzberg
The Big Both Ways by John Straley
The Boy who Never Grew Up by David Handler
Mister Bud Wears the Cone by Carter Goodrich
The Man who Loved Women to Death by David Handler
Bubba and the Dead Woman by C.L. Bevill