We were tagged by @prettyasapic for this getting to know you meme. The other post was getting very long, so we're putting our answers on their own to save your dash. (Also, we're a whole team of reader's advisors, so we have a variety of answers for each question!)
Here we go! If you particularly like someone's answers, we've included everyone's individual rec tag in the tags - you should be able to just click it and see what they've recc'd in the past.
Oh, and if anyone else wants to do this, consider yourself tagged :)
📖 Currently reading:
Anne: The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter
Jae: Dot Slash Magic by Liz Shipton
Susan: A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming
Robin: Ash by Malinda Lo
Julie: Fela: Music is the Weapon by Jibola Fagbamiye and Conor McCreery
Kate: In Perfect Light by Benjamin Alire Sáenz and The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet by John Green (We had to ILL In Perfect Light - don't be afraid to use your library's purchase request service!)
Ashley: The Housemaid series by Freida McFadden. On book 3: The Housemaid is Watching
📺 Last series you watched:
Anne: Percy Jackson & the Olympians
Jae: Percy Jackson & the Olympians
Susan: All Creatures Great and Small (coincidentally, just what prettyasapic was watching!)
Robin: Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (I'm still in season 1 - don't tell me anything!)
Julie: The last series I finished was Stranger Things. Currently watching Landman with Billy Bob Thornton
Kate: Columbo
Ashley: Bridezillas, The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, and The Real Housewives of Potomac
🎞️ Last film:
Anne: Ready Player One
Jae: Polar Express
Susan: Downton Abby the Grand Finale
Robin: Wake Up Dead Man
Julie: Hereditary (the 2018 horror movie starring Tony Collette)
Kate: The Muppet Christmas Carol
Ashley: Wicked: For Good
🎶 Last song:
Anne: "Solar Power" by Lorde (yearning for warm weather)
Jae: "God Games" from Epic: the Musical
Robin: "What Is This Feeling" (from Wicked, Broadway cast)
Julie: "Watermelon Sugar" by Harry Styles
Kate: "Parachute" by Hayley Williams
Ashley: LoFi Hip Hop playlists on YouTube
🍬🍟 Sweet or salty?
Anne: Salty
Jae: BOTH
Susan: Sweet AND salty!
Robin: Love a combo, me, but if I have to choose - sweet
Julie: CHOCOLATE!
Kate: Salty
Ashley: Sweet!
☕ Coffee or tea?
Anne: Coffee x 3000
Jae: Tea, but really picky about it
Susan: Tea
Robin: Tea
Julie: Both, but not at the same time.
Kate: Coffee
Ashley: Tea!
🌟 Currently working on...
Anne: Crocheting a scarf for a friend
Jae: Crocheting a blanket!
Susan: watercolor painting
Robin: Putting together a new system to run the digital display screens in each of our branches, which SOUNDS like it should be simple but...
Julie: ME! I'm training for a 20 mile hike in the spring
Kate: Shrink art keychains for an upcoming teen program
Ashley: In light of the new year, I am currently decluttering my house one room at a time! It has been a cleansing experience!
Here's what's in assistant librarian Ashley's recently-read pile! The links for each title will take you to our catalog where you can learn more about them (and place a hold if you're one of our cardholders!)
If I Ruled the World by Amy DuBois Barnett
Follow Nikki Rose as she faces challenge after challenge as a journalist in the late 1990's in New York. She is a daring and brave character that proves any challenge can be overcome.
The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert
This juvenile fiction title carries a ghostly ambiance as a story within the story unfolds. Main characters Alberta and Eddie uncover the past while overcoming their present.
On Sundays She Picked Flowers by Yah Yah Scholfield
This Southern Gothic title confused, intrigued, and entertained me all at the same time. Jude escapes an abusive past and carries on a very interesting life within a haunted house within the forest.
Bad Seeds by Mary Monroe
Mary Monroe always finds the perfect balance of humor, reality, and fiction. Louise is a very kind and giving person. She is well-to-do, and she attracts the friendship of Della. Throughout the book, it is evident they should be classified more as frenemies as drama unfolds within their story!
Book Rec: Audre & Bash Are Just Friends by Tia Williams
Rec by: Ashley
Tia Williams has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Her stories tend to have a sultry depth that is unmatched. I was a bit apprehensive as this new title is targeted toward young adults, but I was not disappointed.
Audre & Bash Are Just Friends tells the love story of two teens, Audre and Bash. Each of them is dealing with heavy personal issues, but those issues are what brings them together.
Bash agrees to be Audre's “fun consultant” as she takes life much too seriously. Through this new arrangement, they both realize they mean much more to each other. The events that unfold are gut wrenching and realistic.
I found myself reminiscing about being 17 again throughout the book! I'm glad I gave Audre & Bash a try, it was a sweet story of young innocent love!
I have been stepping out of my usual genres and reading a tad bit more YA! Here are three good ones that I read recently:
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Xiomara is busy trying to be everything for everybody, but at 15, that's pretty miserable. She is balancing friends, religion, family life, and a crush, but all she really wants to be is a teenage girl who happens to be an amazing poet!
This book is set in Harlem, New York which adds so much flavor to the writing. This book is the recipient of several prestigious awards such as the Printz and the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature.
My Fairy God Somebody by Charlene Allen
Clae is on a journey to New York to explore journalism. But she is secretly also on a mission to find out more about her family that she suspects lives in New York. Her mother has kept many parts of her father's family a secret from her, and now she is ready to know more about them to ultimately learn more about herself.
Twenty-Four Seconds from Now... by Jason Reynolds
Main character Neon and his girlfriend have been together for two years now. Neon tells a story of his many feelings and thoughts as he navigates hormones, ailing family members, and his beloved family pet. Neon unpacks so many internal thoughts, many of which come across in a humorous way. This is a very honest and candid tale of the curiosity that comes along with love and connection.
Read -> Reading -> To-Read: Black History Month Graphic Novel Round Up
Check out these awesome graphic novels reader's advisor Ashley has been picking up for Black History Month!
Read: Kindred by Octavia Butler, adapted by Damian Duffy
This graphic novel was adapted from the book Kindred by Octavia Butler. This story more recently has also been made into a TV series for Hulu. In this twisted tale, Dana is living in the 1970s when she begins having dizzy spells shake her to the core. These dizzy spells lead to her waking up in the 1800s helping a boy who she refers to as “Rufe.” While Dana is not sure what brings these spells on at first, she has an even harder time time trying to figure out how to make it stop.
Ms. Davis: A Graphic Biography by Sybille Titeux de la Croix, art by Amazing Ameziane
The story of Angela Davis is filled with resistance and unwillingness to accept unfair treatment and judgment. She is infamous for being a part of the FBI's Most Wanted List in 1971 due to an incident that occurred where she was accused as the main conspirator.
Reading her story as a graphic novel does not take away the seriousness of her story. I appreciate that the book provides explanations of key events; that is helpful if you are only hearing about some of the events for the first time, as I was. This book was a random find but it sent me down a research hole that made me want to learn more, and that is what any good book does.
Reading: Miles Davis and the Search for the Sound by Dave Chisholm
Miles Davis was an extremely talented musician. He thought outside of the box when it came to his music, so it is fitting that this graphic novel tells his story in an eclectic way.
The story begins as Miles has just gotten a piece of life-altering news in 1982. From there, he reminisces and begins telling his origin story. The artwork and illustrations of this graphic novel are beautiful. The colors truly jump off the page and speak to you, as clear as the words do. The funky art and the insight of Miles' fascinating yet tumultuous life make this book a true learning experience that explores the cool world of jazz and many of its legends.
To-Read: Toussaint Louverture: The Story of the Only Successful Slave Revolt in History by C.L.R. James, adapted by Nic Watts and Sakina Karimjee
This graphic novel details the Haitian Revolution led by Toussaint Louverture. This graphic novel is based on the play by C.L.R. James, produced in 1936. If you love history, and revolutions, this graphic novel my pique your interest.
Nonfiction Book Rec: The AfterGrief: Finding Your Way Along the Long Arc of Loss by Hope Edelman
This book is a great companion for anyone in the trenches of grief.
Unfortunately, within this past year, I had two major losses nearly six months apart: my grandmother and then my father.
Dealing with these losses has been exceptionally hard. Being the library lover I am, I thought to look up books that touch on grief when I came across Hope Edelman's book.
I must say I was thoroughly comforted reading the honest words of someone else who felt the way I felt. Grief can sometimes be a not so pretty process. Hope approaches the topic with education but also humanity, sympathy and empathy. She states facts such as:
“...an estimated 10 to 15 percent of bereaved individuals will experience what is known as complicated grief, a state in which mourners' pain becomes so intense and so persistent that they can't resume daily functioning...”
While grief can vary from person to person, I think this book can be a great stepping stone to healing as it provides a safe space but also gives tips to help you along the way.
Check out The AfterGrief (available on Libby and in print)
Minna Dubin really lets it rip in this jarring review of motherhood. She says many of the things most moms experience, but are afraid to say out loud. Her hold nothing back approach made me fall instantly in love with her book.
While at points I laughed out loud, other points I couldn't stop nodding my head in agreement.
Dubin mixes her own personal accounts with facts and statistics to back up her claims and shows she is not just writing on emotion, but has thoroughly researched what she is sharing.
Mom Rage is an un-sugarcoated look at motherhood and the many many emotions that come into play mentally, with children but also family, and especially spouses. Bravo to Minna Dubin for her transparency and having the courage to share her deepest thoughts and saying what so many are thinking on a daily basis.
This novel had so many secrets. Even the meaning of the black cake is something that takes a bit of time to unfold throughout the book.
Eleanor Bennett is on her deathbed when she decides it's time to clear up the lies and secrets she has kept from her children all of their lives. She records her life story and leaves it with a lawyer who is instructed to play it for her children before they can receive their inheritance.
The story jumps from present day to the past, which helps add to the unfolding of the mystery. While this seems pretty cut and dry, Eleanor's children quickly realize the woman who they called their mother has lived a very different life from what they believed.
While this book seemed slow at moments, and takes a while to get going, it definitely packs a punch at the bomb-dropping moments.
If you love books that take you through lots of twists and turns while adding character anecdotes, then this is the perfect book for you.
