Our February issue of Beyond The Best Seller List has a special theme! We decided to focus on the state of Connecticut, and we make recommendations for fiction set in Connecticut as well as nonfiction titles about our state.
Putting the list together was an interesting process, and I learned a little history as I went through the process. Probably my favorite book on the list is The Merritt Parkway by Bruce Radde. It tells the story of the road from conception in the 20's to completion in the 40's , with an interesting analysis of the history of the region and the place of the automobile in American culture.
We honor the people of our state by recommending biographies of famous residents Mark Twain and Charles Ives, and honor unsung heroes with Connecticut Speaks for Itself, a compilation of personal testimonies of hardworking people and immigrants tales. Local architecture is celebrated in the book The Harvard Five in New Canaan. Stewart O'Nan's The Circus Fire tells the sad story of a fire in Hartford in 1944 that killed 169 and injured many more.
On the Advice, How-to and Miscellaneous list I recommend Pat and Lester Brook's Food Lover's Guide to Connecticut. These two local authors have put together a great book of where to eat and shop locally.
On the Fiction side of the list there is a lot of good fiction, some new and some old. Mysteries by Rosemary Harris (Pushing Up Daisies) and Laurien Berensen (Dog Eat Dog) are recent books that are set in Fairfield County. Rick Moody's The Ice Storm is set right here in New Canaan. Mary-Ann Tirone Smith's novel Masters of Illusion is a fictional take on the aforementioned circus fire in Hartford.
As with all issues of Beyond the Best Seller, the kids aren't left out: take home N is for Nutmeg for your younger kids. Older (grade 4-6) would enjoy The Forbidden Schoolhouse of Prudence Crandall. What a story: Crandall stirred up a controversy when she opened a school for young African American girls in the 1800's in Canterbury CT.
We hope that our patrons will enjoy these Nutmeg State recommendations. If these pique your interest we have plenty more books about and set in our state. Just ask a Librarian!
Putting the list together was an interesting process, and I learned a little history as I went through the process. Probably my favorite book on the list is The Merritt Parkway by Bruce Radde. It tells the story of the road from conception in the 20's to completion in the 40's , with an interesting analysis of the history of the region and the place of the automobile in American culture.
We honor the people of our state by recommending biographies of famous residents Mark Twain and Charles Ives, and honor unsung heroes with Connecticut Speaks for Itself, a compilation of personal testimonies of hardworking people and immigrants tales. Local architecture is celebrated in the book The Harvard Five in New Canaan. Stewart O'Nan's The Circus Fire tells the sad story of a fire in Hartford in 1944 that killed 169 and injured many more.
On the Advice, How-to and Miscellaneous list I recommend Pat and Lester Brook's Food Lover's Guide to Connecticut. These two local authors have put together a great book of where to eat and shop locally.
On the Fiction side of the list there is a lot of good fiction, some new and some old. Mysteries by Rosemary Harris (Pushing Up Daisies) and Laurien Berensen (Dog Eat Dog) are recent books that are set in Fairfield County. Rick Moody's The Ice Storm is set right here in New Canaan. Mary-Ann Tirone Smith's novel Masters of Illusion is a fictional take on the aforementioned circus fire in Hartford.
As with all issues of Beyond the Best Seller, the kids aren't left out: take home N is for Nutmeg for your younger kids. Older (grade 4-6) would enjoy The Forbidden Schoolhouse of Prudence Crandall. What a story: Crandall stirred up a controversy when she opened a school for young African American girls in the 1800's in Canterbury CT.
We hope that our patrons will enjoy these Nutmeg State recommendations. If these pique your interest we have plenty more books about and set in our state. Just ask a Librarian!
posted by Ellen @ 6:21 AM
2 Comments:
At 3:40 PM ,
Toddy said...
Hi Ellen: Phebe said I can leave my feedback on some 'Beyond the Bestsellers List' here. I loved 'The English Major' by Jim Harrison, despite the implausibility that an English major would write without commas and occasionally misuse her/she. It was raucous, ribald and fun, and so refreshing to have the narrator be someone with some experience of life. Conversely, I hated 'College Girl' (I forget the author); it was depressing, discouraging, and frightening to me as a mother of college students. I didn't finish it.
At 7:28 AM ,
Ellen said...
Thank you for your comments. I am glad that you liked "The English Major" . The comma-free prose style is actually a hallmark of Jim Harrison's writing style.
"College Girl" is a bit of a depressing look at university life.
The March issue of BTBS is out, and I hope that you find interesting suggestions on it.
Ellen
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