An Uncommon Memoir

Because memoirs are very personal accounts of an author's life, they often seem to be about everyday experiences and families. This is not the case with Cartwheels in a Sari by Jayanti Tamm. Tamm's parents were members of a cult led by Sri Chinmoy, and Tamm herself was declared to be the guru's "Chosen One." Her account of growing up with this sort of spiritual responsibility and struggling to find something to believe in is moving and incredibly interesting. Although the themes she touches on are universal, the details of her childhood are fascinatingly different to the average reader.

New Jodi Picoult

Hey all you Jodi Picoult fans! She has a new book coming out in March, House Rules. Jacob Hunt is a teenager with Asperger's syndrome. In any social situation he is helplessly lost but he excels at forensic science and is frequently found at crime scenes. None of these things help him when he himself is accused of murder.

House Rules has an intriguing mix of medicine, forensics and courtroom drama - all the things for which Jodi Picoult has become well known.

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- LeAnne

Requests

Did you know that you can request books from the library? Whether it's brand-spanking new or something that you've been wanting to read for ages, chance are good we can get it for you. Our MeL interlibrary loans allow us to get books from libraries--large and small--across the state. If an item is too new, or if it seems like it would be good for our collection, we can buy it and make sure you're the first in line to get it. Patrons have recently requested The Merry Wives of Maggody by Joan Hess and I, Alex Cross by James Patterson, both of which have been added to the collection.

North Korea is Not Like North America

If you are like most of us, you don't like to go to the grocery store and you grumble a bit at the electric bill when it comes. Nothing To Envy by Barbara Demick will change that, for a while at least. It's a book about everyday life in North Korea from about the ending of World War II till now, and it will make you appreciate anew the lovely choices of food and certainly will make you grateful for flipping on a light switch or anything else electrical. After this one I hereby resolve to enjoy all the sights and smells of the grocery store and know that the line is not nearly as long as it seemed to be last week.

Reviewed by Joyce

Joyce looks at Anne Boleyn

If you would like to get away for a little while into the past, take a look at The Lady in the Tower by Alison Weir. Going back to the 1500's for awhile makes you appreciate the 2000's and the lack of an egotistical king with sharp instruments at his disposal. It's an interesting read.

For Mothers of Daughters

I end up reading a lot of books that deal with gender differences when raising children (which is odd, since I have no children of my own). You'd Be So Pretty If . . . : Teaching Our Daughters to Love Their Bodies--Even When We Don't Love Our Own is a very interesting book about body image, dieting, and the cruel little things that women say about themselves when they think nobody is listening. The author, Dara Chadwick, makes the point that even if you are trying to raise your daughter to have high self esteem and to avoid eating disorders and self-loathing, you may be sabotaging your efforts by constantly criticizing your own body. It's weird how little we think about the criticism we level at ourselves, and this book is an eye opener!