Math is often a difficult concept for some people to grasp. I myself had difficulty understanding how letters could represent numbers. The same is true for the main character in this cute story about Wilson Williams. Wilson is struggling to understand fractions and just can’t understand why they are important or how to apply them in everyday life. His parents have a solution — a math tutor! Wilson is horrified by this prospect — if the kids at school find out, he’ll be humiliated. But soon he finds out that fractions and math aren’t as difficult as he originally thought.

This is a wonderful opportunity for parents to help their children understand that while math can be a challenge, if you continue to work and practice the skills you can successfully comprehend and apply the concept. Many of our young readers have challenges in school, which this book expresses through Wilson, Kipper, and Josh (Wilson’s best friend). Math, spelling, and science are all addressed in this cute and quirky story. Children don’t always have the skills or knowledge of how to express their feelings or fears, and this book provides wonderful examples for them.

Fractions = Trouble! by Claudia Mills also tells a wonderful story of family dynamics. Wilson loves his little brother Kipper, but sometimes he doesn’t like him that much. Kipper is a typical little brother, and the dynamic between the two boys is typical. Sibling relationships are full of complex feelings, and this is a wonderful example of a positive relationship. When Kipper is upset about his missing beanbag animal, Wilson is equally upset for him, and he feels the need to make things better for his brother.

Great for 2nd, 3rd, and possibly 4th grade students. Fractions = Trouble! is a wonderful early chapter book with terrific illustrations and an easily readable font.

Christine Mancini – East Columbia Branch

Dave Alvin is responsible for one of the greatest American story-songs ever written, the sublime King of California — a song which distills all of the promise, delight, challenge, and despair of a lifetime into four minutes. Alvin revisits the same territory here, bringing his gravelly voice and rocky guitar to bear on historic and contemporary stories from both sides of the Mexican border. His California is not a gleaming city of possibility, but is rather a place of struggle and strife, loss and temptation, where difficulties must be constantly negotiated and rare moments of relaxation must be enjoyed as they are found. 

Alvin tells personal stories like few other songwriters can, and orchestrates them like no one else. His latest release is Eleven Eleven, and the range of styles on this CD suit the range of the stories. "Harlan County Line" is an all-out rocker in which the narrator views his broken relationship through the lens of the boundary marker that now separates him from his wife. "No Worries, Mija" is a ballad that sees the narrator reassuring a partner (or perhaps a child) that he’ll be back, despite the fact that they both know he’s going out into the night to do something illegal. This track has the same despairing feel, and the same close identification with a place, as Bruce Springsteen’s Meeting Across the River, bringing the same impending menace to the borderlands as Springsteen brought to Newark, but using a much softer tone. "Johnny Ace is Dead" revisits and reenacts an infamous night in rock and roll history, at a breakneck pace that makes the outcome seem inevitable. Alvin is also unabashedly political. "Gary, Indiana 1959" sees him adopting the persona of a retired steel worker reminiscing about the power of the unions in the late 1950s. The signature track on the CD, though, is Alvin’s duet with his brother Phil in which the siblings pretend to resent one another’s success. As they alternately detail their own accomplishments with mounting frustration, we’re told that "all anyone asks is ‘What’s Up with your Brother?’"

There’s great wit and charm in this collection, and Alvin’s vocals and instrumentation are unique. To listen to captivating songs about interesting, remarkable people, check out Eleven Eleven today!

John Jewitt – Administration Office

Yes, it is chick lit, and yes the cover is a kind of chartreuse green, and yes there’s a hot carpenter in it — but Cleaning Nabokov’s House, Leslie Daniels’ trenchant tale about one woman’s rise from the ashes of a bum marriage, is very funny, very sincere, and surprisingly eloquent.

When she splits from her idiot ex, Barb Barrett does not flee to some Italian villa to find nirvana in a bowl of pasta. She moves instead to rural Onkwedo: home of the Daitch Dairy, and some of the most sensuous ice-cream combos ever.

There she gets a job and finds a ramshackle place to live. But just as she’s about to hunker down to frugal living (and kissing the “sex fairy” goodbye forever), it happens – beginning with the discovery, in an old desk drawer, of a yellowed manuscript. With antique roadshow palpitations, Barb realizes she may have found a trashed but potential novel by the great literary curmudgeon – and long ago owner of her house, Vladimir Nabokov.

Authenticating it however, is one thing. Is it even good? Would the venerable Russian ex-pat really have written a love story — about Babe Ruth? Potty-mouthed literary agent Margie Jenkins is willing to read it: “Send me a copy,” she orders Barb. “I have to take one of my cats to be put down. I need something decent to read.”

Aimee Zuccarini – East Columbia Branch

“If I knew then what I know now…”

This is a compelling question that at some point in your life you might have asked yourself. This is also the central question posed by author Dorothy Bailey to nearly 100 women born in or prior to 1940. In her book, In a Different Light: Reflections and Beauty of Wise Women of Color, she carried out what she called “her assignment” in life. She sought out women of all professional backgrounds and beautifully captured their wisdom and sage advice.

Howard County Library System invites you to attend this special Meet the Author event. We are pleased to welcome Dorothy Bailey, not only to celebrate African American History Month, but also to honor these amazing women. Many of the ladies featured in the book have ties to the state of Maryland. Customers may also have the opportunity to meet some of the “wisdom carriers.”
  
We sincerely hope you will join us for this event at 1 pm on Saturday, February 4 at East Columbia Branch’s 50+ Center. The life lessons from Dorothy Bailey and these wise women will stay with you long after the end of our event.

Refreshments will be provided and books will be available for purchase and signing. The event is sponsored by Friends of Howard County Library.

Register for this Meet the Author event online or by calling 410.313.7700.

Megan Maguigan – Administration Office

The world is not, and will never be, short on screen productions of Jane Austen’s Emma. HCLS owns at least four versions, but the one I want to introduce is the most recent. Produced by the BBC in 2009, it is their second version — I don’t know if this underscores the popularity of Austen’s novel enough.

Confession: Emma doesn’t have nearly as many car chases, zombies, and explosions as I typically prefer. The body count is like…two. You might be wondering why I would even give this movie a fighting chance. My wife, of course! Ah, yes. Let me tell you a secret: wives love Emma. Well, probably not all wives. Most of them. Or, many of them. Well, at least mine does, and so perhaps yours does too. And that means that when she puts the latest version on hold and emails you to remember to pick it up before you leave, you can bet your bonnet that your weekend just got planned for you.

Now for the part of the review when I describe in vivid detail being held hostage in the family room, deprived of food and water, until every single minute (240) of the four-part miniseries had fearfully passed over my corneas. The part where I describe the numerous near-death experiences, self-inflicted wounds, and prayers for an inexplicable power-outage. The part where I tell you that I liked it.

The cast is phenomenal, featuring Romola Garai as Emma and Michael Gambon as her ultraprotective father — they also acted together in the movie Amazing Grace — and Jonny Lee Miller as the enigmatic Mr. Knightley. I would say this is the sappiest romantic comedy I’ve ever seen — and if you absolutely must suffer through a romantic comedy, it had better be excruciating, am I right? Make it worth it. Well, Emma is definitely worth it. Whether it was Austen, the BBC, the acting, the music, or something else, it worked. My wife especially loved the costumes. Every awkward moment of social ineptitude and immature matchmaking was pulled off without a hitch. Well, actually there are multiple "hitches."

The same addictive gotta-see-the-next-episode magic that utterly consumed me throughout Lark Rise to Candleford also has a strong presence with Emma. The date night is strong with this one.

Dan Curry – Savage Branch

Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza, the bearer of the Godstone. Sounds heroic and romantic, right? Elisa, as she prefers to be known, is a refreshing sort of character. As The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson begins, she is endearingly out of sorts … with her sister, her father, her ladies, herself, and her situation in life. She compensates for her unhappiness with an overabundance of food, which has led (in a very direct way) to an overabundance of Elisa.

The book opens with Elisa’s unexpected wedding day. The king of the neighboring country has agreed to marry Elisa to seal a treaty between the nations in light of an impending war. Allejandro seems a good sort, being more interested in being Elisa’s friend than consummating the marriage. However, they do leave almost immediately for his capital, where he asks her to keep the marriage a secret.

Elisa doesn’t know much about her role as the bearer of the Godstone, other than her god chose to invest her with this mysterious gem in her navel during her naming ceremony and so she has a special service to perform. As she makes contacts and friends in her new home, Elisa discovers more about the Godstone and why she’s been kept in ignorance. As she begins to puzzle out answers and find her way through court politics, Elisa is literally kidnapped from her bed. She is force-marched across the desert and becomes part of a traveling tribe of warriors fighting against the Invierno, before all-out war commences. The rebels, mostly children and young folks, see Elisa as their only hope of success against an overwhelming, sorcerous enemy.

Grand (and terrible) adventures ensue! This first book* in a series continually surprises, from the unexpectedly vulnerable heroine to the not-entirely happy-ever-after. Eiisa ranges far as she makes her way home — and not just geographically — as she discovers her own talents and abilities. She decides she was given the Godstone not because she was destined to great things, but because she needed a little extra help along the way. My kind of girl!

*finalist for the William C. Morris Honor

Kristen Blount – Administration Office

As part of our Well & Wise partnership with Howard County General Hospital, Howard County Library System invites you to attend The Health Care You Deserve.

Please join us for this encore workshop at 7 pm on Wednesday, February 1 at East Columbia Branch. We are pleased to welcome back Dr. Bob Sheff, M.D., author of The Medical Mentor.

This event is not to be missed. It is especially important if you have ever had questions about the health care system and the level of care you should be receiving. It is also a rare opportunity to receive firsthand information from a medical insider who combines his professional experience with his experience as a patient.

HCLS customers relished Dr. Sheff’s first workshop and were throughly impressed with the quality of information presented. One customer remarked, “I’ve heard so much sense talked in such a short time. Thank you so much!”

Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Register for this Well & Wise workshop online or by calling 410.313.7700.

Megan Maguigan – Administration Office

Born from the mind of Joe Cornish, Attack the Block does what many of my favorite stories do, taking something we know well and messing with it in a deep and fundamental way. Here, the topic at hand is alien invasion. The wrinkle is that instead of attacking New York, Washington DC, Area 51, or the whole world, the aliens arrive in one small housing estate in South London. Just as Hot Fuzz takes the high-octane cop movie and sets it, completely inappropriately, in a quiet English town, Attack the Block moves a story that we’re used to seeing to an unfamiliar location, and changes it in the process.

Moses (John Boyega) is the leader of a gang of teen thugs who first encounter the aliens. After an alien falls on a car and interrupts their night of crime, the group has something new to occupy them, and quickly learn that their first response was not the best. Sam (Jodie Whittaker) is a woman they recently mugged, who is now thrown together with them to resist the invasion. Brewis (Luke Treadaway) is in the wrong place at the wrong time, and Ron (Nick Frost) is a token adult presence and the resident with the most secure room on the block. This group can’t go to the authorities and so they must use their own resources to deal with the invasion. Cue improvised weapons, scooters on walkways, hiding in apartments, and comic relief from ten-year-old wannabe gangsters Probs (Sammy Williams) and Mayhem (Michael Ajao). In the aftermath of last summer’s London riots, it is a little harder to celebrate these characters as the saviors of the planet, especially given the movie’s gritty opening that establishes their criminality. The improbable premise of the movie, though, gives these characters room to grow and the narrative room to succeed.

The aliens, shaggily furred and four-legged with a menacing special-effects surprise and a secret ability that reveals itself two-thirds of the way through the movie, are the best movie aliens since Alien and a highlight of the film. Like the most memorable movie monsters, they’re scary because they’re undefined, and when they surprise the characters to set up the movie’s finale, they surprise the audience too. Watch also for the behind-the-scenes footage that gives real insight into the making of the movie and the casting of the characters. Enjoy Attack the Block!

John Jewitt – Administration Office

Gabe is starting 6th grade and is excited to share the day’s events with his Uncle Vernon. However, when he gets home he discovers Uncle Vernon on the floor not moving — and his fan has been knocked over too. Gabe soon understands that uncle Vernon has died.

This poor boy has been moved from foster home to foster home, and now that he finally has a family with Uncle Vernon, this has to happen! Gabe and Uncle Vernon had to learn to live with each other, which was not always easy. Gabe rarely shared his feelings, and Uncle Vernon was a gruff retired solider from the Vietnam War who lost part of his leg. But soon they both came to love each other. Now Gabe is scared to tell anyone about Uncle Vernon because he doesn’t want to return to foster care.

Gabe decides not to say anything. The next day when he comes home, Uncle Vernon’s body is gone. There is a note in the mailbox and a dog in the house to keep him company. Life goes along okay for a few weeks — until everyone finds out that his pen pal, Smitty, took Uncle Vernon’s body to the mortuary. Smitty is a friend of Uncle Vernon’s from the war, and was trying to prevent Gabe from going back to foster care.

What will happen to Gabe now that everyone knows? What will happen to Smitty? Read and see! The Mailbox by Audrey Shafer a wonderful story about a non-traditional family and the love that these two family members share. It allows a glimpse into the life of a retired Veteran and an opportunity to for us to see that there really are good people, who care about others, in the world.

Christine Mancini – East Columbia Branch

In this ambitious review of a very specific cultural moment, Sam Wasson puts us on the corner of 5th Avenue and 57th street at 5 am on Sunday October 2, 1960. Holly Golightly steps out of a taxi and onto the screen in Blake Edwards’ Breakfast at Tiffany’s, eating a danish and dreaming of the life she hopes she’ll have someday. Wasson presents a detailed and provocative look at many aspects of the movie. How did it get made? How (and why) was the story adapted from Truman Capote’s novel? How did Henry Mancini compose Moon River? What brought the cast together, and what did each performer bring to their role? There are many threads that came together to make this movie a classic, and Wasson gives them all their due. His focus, though, is on Audrey Hepburn and her character.

The book is subtitled Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and the Dawn of the Modern Woman. Wasson argues convincingly that Holly was a new kind of character, one that could only exist as played by Hepburn. Audrey Hepburn’s resume and reputation meant that Holly Golightly could not match the existing archetypes of women in movies and that the audience would have to meet this character on her own terms. Wasson goes into detail about where the movie watered down the novel and why, as well as sharing the writers’ strategy of going overboard on inconsequential plot points (looking for the censor’s attention) in the hope that relevant, important details of Golightly’s character would remain untouched. In telling us what was left out and what was changed, Wasson is also able to be clear about what remained, and so re-frame what we think of as a classic into a major work of sedition. Holly appears to be a dreamer and a "kook," but despite the protestations of the Paramount public relations department, the kernel of her character remains.

There are, I’m sure, many specific moments that we could identify as contributing to the break between the 1950s and the 1960s, and to the cultural shift that occurred in those years. Wasson persuades the reader that one such moment took place in October 1960 when an actress stepped out of a taxi and looked into the window of a store. For an insider’s appreciative look at the making and cultural consequences of a classic, take a look at Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. by Sam Wasson.

John Jewitt – Administration Office