PATRON PICKS--Recommend a favorite book or DVD!

We'd love to hear about your favorite books and DVDs!  You can use the comment box below, or stop by the library and fill out one of our Patron Picks forms. 


Please include the name of the book or DVD, author (for books), why you liked it, and your first name.

PATRON PICKS (DVD)--In the Bedroom

Jacquelene's DVD pick:  In the Bedroom (2001)



Jacquelene says:  Excellent story, acting.  Speaks to the issues of what is a fitting sentence for certain crimes in our justice system today.

PATRON PICKS (DVD)-- The Indian Runner

Jacquelene's DVD pick:  The Indian Runner (1991)



Jacquelene says:  Excellent story line.  Good brother vs. bad brother and how each of their lives reflects the choices they make.

PATRON PICKS (DVD)-- Into the Wild

Jacquelene's DVD pick:  Into the Wild (2007)

Jacquelene says:
Exploratory film relating the story of a young man from a life of comfort and his quest to determine what life without money and status has to offer, and what he finds out in his travels.

Excellent DVD for those 12 and older but has a sad ending.  Outstanding photography and interesting characters throughout the story.

PATRON PICKS-- The Moonlit Cage

Sue's pick:  The Moonlit Cage, by Linda Holeman


Synopsis:
Daryâ’s simple life in mid-nineteenth-century Afghanistan is torn apart when a hateful curse by a jealous tribeswoman leaves her an outcast in her small Muslim village. She looks to her arranged marriage to the son of a nomadic tribal chief with hope that it will deliver her from this oppression; instead, Daryâ finds herself regularly beaten by her wrathful husband, and more isolated than she can bear. Seeing no choice other than to flee from her torment, Daryâ barely escapes through the foothills of the Hindu Kush.

Destitute and alone, Daryâ meets David Ingram, an enigmatic Englishman traveling in Afghanistan. Although he is a complete stranger, she joins him on his journey to Bombay—and embarks on the adventure of a lifetime. Ranging from the arid Afghan plains to the lush tropical villas of India, across mighty seas to Victorian London’s fetid streets, The Moonlit Cage is an intense and sensuous story of love, loss, and redemption.

Sue says:  I highly recommend it!

PATRON PICKS--James D. Doss' Mysteries

Mercedes' pick:  James D. Doss' Mysteries

Synopsis of A Dead Man's Tale:

At seven feet tall, Colorado rancher and Ute tribal investigator Charlie Moon is a larger-than-life figure—and a force to be reckoned with, on and off the reservation…

Hard times have come to Colorado, and Moon’s ranch is feeling the pinch. Not so for Samuel Reed. He seems to have a special intuition when it comes to picking stocks, and claims to be able to remember the future, which gives him quite a leg up on Wall Street. So Reed is quite confident when he makes a wager with Moon’s best friend, Granite Creek Chief of Police Scott Parris, that Parris can’t keep him alive.

Even when Reed doesn’t offer any details beyond the date and time of his impending demise, Moon has a sixth sense that everything will turn out just fine…until not one, but two men end up left for dead. Now it’s up to Moon—along with the help of his Aunt Daisy, an aged Ute shaman who can communicate with the spirit world—to solve the case. Or die trying…

Mercedes says:  The main character is very likeable and the plots are interesting.  Reminds me of Tony Hillerman's western mysteries. 

PATRON PICKS: Troublemaker

Tati's pick:  Troublemaker, by Andrew Clements

Synopsis:
There’s a folder in Principal Kelling’s office that’s as thick as a phonebook and it’s growing daily. It’s filled with the incident reports of every time Clayton Hensley broke the rules. There’s the minor stuff like running in the hallways and not being where he was suppose to be when he was supposed to be there. But then there are also reports that show Clay’s own brand of troublemaking, like the most recent addition: the art teacher has said that the class should spend the period drawing anything they want and Clay decides to be extra “creative” and draw a spot-on portrait of Principal Kellings…as a donkey.
It’s a pretty funny joke, but really, Clay is coming to realize that the biggest joke of all may be on him. When his big brother, Mitchell, gets in some serious trouble, Clay decides to change his own mischief making ways…but he can’t seem to shake his reputation as a troublemaker.
From the master of the school story comes a book about the fine line between good-humored mischief and dangerous behavior and how everyday choices can close or open doors.

Tati says:  A daring story about a boy who's brother goes to jail.  He is usually a troublemaker.

PATRON PICKS--Seabiscuit: An American Legend

Clare's pick:  Seabiscuit:  An American Legend, by Laura Hillenbrand

Synopsis:
He was a cultural icon. A world-class athlete. A champion who triumphed over terrible handicaps to become a legend of the racetrack. No other racehorse has rivaled Seabiscuit's fame or his sway over the nation's imagination. Now Laura Hillenbrand unfolds the spellbinding story of this marvelous animal, the world he lived in, and the men who staked their lives and fortunes on his dazzling career. A riveting tale of grit, grace, luck, and an underdog's stubborn determination, Seabiscuit is an American classic.

Clare says:  It has a detailed, engaging storyline that is fantastically written.  A stand-out, stand-alone novel.

PATRON PICKS--Stolen Children

Charlotte's pick:  Stolen Children, by Peg Kehret

Synopsis:

Amy learned a lot in her babysitting course, but not what to do if two thugs show up, intent on kidnapping. Armed with misinformation and a weapon, the men take Amy and little Kendra to a remote cabin in the woods. There they make videos of the girls and mail them to Kendra’s wealthy parents in an effort to get ransom money. After several of her escape attempts fail, Amy is forced to make one last, desperate move. Award winner Peg Kehret crafts a suspenseful thriller with a spunky heroine who uses her wits to save herself and the toddler.

Charlotte says:  It was very suspenseful and creepy.

PATRON PICKS--The Affair

Bruce's pick:  The Affair, by Lee Child

Synopsis:

Everything starts somewhere. . . .

For elite military cop Jack Reacher, that somewhere was Carter Crossing, Mississippi, way back in 1997. A lonely railroad track. A crime scene. A coverup.

A young woman is dead, and solid evidence points to a soldier at a nearby military base. But that soldier has powerful friends in Washington.

Reacher is ordered undercover—to find out everything he can, to control the local police, and then to vanish. Reacher is a good soldier. But when he gets to Carter Crossing, he finds layers no one saw coming, and the investigation spins out of control.

Local sheriff Elizabeth Deveraux has a thirst for justice—and an appetite for secrets. Uncertain they can trust one another, Reacher and Deveraux reluctantly join forces. Reacher works to uncover the truth, while others try to bury it forever. The conspiracy threatens to shatter his faith in his mission, and turn him into a man to be feared.

A novel of unrelenting suspense that could only come from the pen of #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child, The Affair is the start of the Reacher saga, a thriller that takes Reacher—and his readers—right to the edge . . . and beyond.

Bruce says:  For readers of Lee Child's Jack Reacher character, this is the book that tells how Jack begins his many adventures.  Typical Child excitement.

PATRON PICKS--Rufus M.

Tati's Pick:  Rufus M., by Eleanor Estes

Synopsis:

You've never met anyone quite like Rufus Moffat. He gets things done, but he gets them done his way.

When he wants to check out library books, Rufus teaches himself to write...even though he doesn't yet know how to read. When food is scarce, he plants some special "Rufus beans" that actually grow...despite his digging them up every day to check on them. And Rufus has friends that other people don't even know exist! He discovers the only invisible piano player in town, has his own personal flying horse for a day, and tours town with the Cardboard Boy, his dearest friend-and enemy.  Rufus isn't just the youngest Moffat, he's also the cleverest, the funniest, and the most unforgettable.

Eleanor Estes's beloved Moffats stories are being published in new editions as Odyssey/Harcourt Young Classics. The original interior illustrations have been retained, but handsome new cover art by Tricia Tusa gives the books a fresh, timeless appeal for today's readers.

Tati says:  A captivating story about a young boy who is always determined to get what he wants.

New Romance Paperbacks at DPL



Love romance?  Then, stop by the library and check out our new romance paperbacks!

CIVIL WAR PROGRAMS @ DPL

Join us this Fall for a variety of programs commemorating the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War.  The programs are funded by a grant from the Coginchaug Valley Education Foundation and the Durham Library PALS.

Saturday, November 19th, 2:00pm:  "Lincoln for the Ages."  Phillip Chetwynd in the role of Abraham Lincoln on the 148th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address.  For families, ages 8 and up.

Be sure to take a look at the Civil War drum on display at the library!