The Davenport Public Library will be closed on Monday, January 20th in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr Day. All locations will reopen their regularly scheduled hours on Tuesday – Main Street and Eastern from 9am to 5:30pm and Fairmount noon to 8pm.
Have a safe and happy holiday!
Are you smart enough to dodge a telemarketer yet clueless as to how to chop a clove of garlic? Are you clever enough to forward an e-mail but don’t know the difference between broiling and baking? Ingenious enough to operate a blow-dryer but not sure how to use your blender? If you are basically competent, then Jessica Seinfeld’s The Can’t Cook Book is for you.
If you find cooking scary or stressful or just boring, Jessica has a calm, confidence building approach to cooking, even for those who’ve never followed a recipe or used an oven. Jessica shows you how to prepare deliciously simple food – from Caesar salad, rice pilaf, and roasted asparagus to lemon salmon, roast chicken, and flourless fudge cake. At the beginning of each dish, she explains up front what the challenge will be, and then shows you exactly how to overcome any hurdles in easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions.
Designed to put the nervous cook at ease, “The Can’t Cook Book” is perfect for anyone who wants to gain confidence in the kitchen – and, who knows, maybe even master a meal or two. (description from publisher)
What do you do if you want to really understand a country, to understand its people and feel its heartbeat? You can follow the rest of the tourists, or you can take the advice of Watergate reporter Bob Woodward’s source, ‘Deep Throat’, and ‘follow the money.’
Starting out in Lebanon, Kansas – the geographical center of America – journalist Steve Boggan did just that in Follow the Money by setting free a ten-dollar-bill and accompanying it on an epic journey for thirty days and thirty nights through six states, across 3,000 miles armed only with a sense of humor and a small, and increasingly grubby, set of clothes. As he cuts crops with farmers in Kansas, pursues a repo-woman from Colorado, gets wasted with a blues band in Arkansas and hangs out at a quarterback’s mansion in St Louis, Boggan enters the lives of ordinary people as they receive – and pass on – the bill. What emerges is a chaotic, affectionate and funny portrait of the real modern-day America. (description from publisher)
In 1984 photographer and University of Iowa art professor Peter Feldstein set out to photograph all 676 residents in his town of Oxford, Iowa. Over the course of the summer he succeeded in photographing 670 individuals “as they were”: in street clothes, some lugging shopping bags or carrying pets or children. Peter returned in 2005 to re-photograph as many of the original residents as he could, this time bringing along University of Iowa journalism professor Stephen Bloom to interview residents. The Oxford Project compiles the photos and interviews to provide a case study of small town life in America.
The biographies are concisely written and give you a glimpse into the lives of the residents: their personal triumphs and tragedies, their accomplishments and regrets. This book highlights the differences 20 years brings but also the striking similarities in dress, posture, and overall demeanor that people tend to maintain throughout their lives. Like any good book, The Oxford Project encourages the reader to reflect on their own life. In 20 years, what will you look back with satisfaction or regret the chances you didn’t take?
I’m an adventurous eater, but I’m an easily intimidated cook. I grew up making things out of boxes, so I tend to go with what is simple or familiar now that I cook mostly from scratch. I figured out how to make a basic red chicken curry, and that has become my go-to (only) Thai recipe for years, despite Thai being one of my favorite cuisines. That is, until I found Katie Chin’s Everyday Thai Cooking.
Everyday Thai Cooking is smart and accessible, and features easy-to-follow recipes, appetizing photographs, and informative tips and alternatives. Most of the recipes clock in around 30 minutes or less, and the substitutions are especially helpful. From Thai staples like Pad Thai and Spring Rolls to new favorites like Crispy Mango Chicken, the book has recipes for inexperienced and experienced cooks alike.
You Don’t Know Me, But You Don’t Like Me: Phish, Insane Clown Posse, and My Misadventures with Two of Music’s Most Maligned Tribes is an odd mixture of memoir and pop culture journalism that works despite itself. Phish followers and Juggalos seemingly have little in common, but Nathan Rabin’s two-year journey following Phish and the Insane Clown Posse (ICP) helped him explain why both groups are typically scorned or ignored in mainstream culture and how that cultural disinterest has helped strengthen the bond between the groups and their respective fans.
The former head writer at The Onion’s AV Club and the author of three previous books, Rabin is a talented writer with a really strong grasp of pop culture (he coined the phrase “manic pixie dream girl”) and this is especially evident in his chapters about ICP and the Gathering of the Juggalos. His connection with ICP and their fans develops from professional to personal, and his analysis of the socioeconomic and social factors that lead people to ICP is fascinating. Rabin really made me examine my own snap judgments and cultural snobbery, and it was refreshing to hear a media critic talk about how much he enjoys something. There are times when the book goes off the rails a bit (these tend to involve lists of the songs Phish played and their respective greatness), but the overall thesis and writing are strong enough to help carry through the moments of weakness. Recommended for fans of Chuck Klosterman, Marc Maron, and Dave Eggers.
In Rutu Modan’s The Property, Mica and her grandmother, Regina are traveling from Israel to Warsaw, Poland. Just before World War II Regina had married and moved to Israel. Years later, as the only surviving member of her family, she was contacted and inform that she was entitled to reclaim her family’s property. For twenty years she left the property unclaimed, but following the death of her son and Mica’s father, Reuben, she decided to make the trip.
Returning to Warsaw, Regina is overwhelmed with the guilt and shame of a long hidden family secrets. Modan beautifully illustrates how our perceptions of ourselves and our world are shaped by cultural and personal histories, and The Property successfully (and subtly) exposes the generational divide in a family and in a city. With charming illustrations reminiscent of Hergé’s Tintin and a witty sense of humor, The Property is a graphic novel sure to win over some skeptics of the genre. I would recommend to fans of Maus by Art Spiegelman, Unterzakhn by Leela Corman, or Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi.
JANUARY 7
Fast & Furious 6 – Vin Deisel, Paul Walker
Following their successful Rio heist, Dom and his crew of professional criminals have retired around the world. But their inability to return home and living forever on the lam has left their lives incomplete. Hobbs asks Dom and Brian to help him take down an organization of lethally skilled mercenary drivers. In return, their crew will receive full pardons and be allowed to return home. Rated PG-13
Despicable Me 2 – Steve Carrell, Kristen Wiig
Gru is recruited by the Anti-Villain League to help deal with a powerful new super criminal. An all-new comedy adventure featuring the return of former super-villain Gru, his adorable girls, the unpredictably hilarious Minions, and a host of new and outrageously funny characters. Rated PG
Runner, Runner – Ben Affleck, Justin Timberlake
A Princeton graduate student, Richie, believes he has been tricked online by a fellow gambler. He travels to Costa Rica to meet Ivan Block, an online gambling tycoon. When the FBI tries to pressure Richie to help bring down Block, Richie faces his biggest gamble ever. Rated R
Thanks for Sharing – Mark Ruffalo, Tim Robbins
An unconventional romantic comedy that follows the topsy-turvy lives and loves of three obsessive characters: an overachieving environmental consultant, a stubborn small-business owner and a wisecracking ER doctor. They meet in a support group, and set into motion a life-changing journey filled with laughter and surprises. Rated R
JANUARY 14
Lee Daniel’s The Butler – Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey
Inspired by a true story about Cecil Gaines, a devoted husband, father, and White House butler who served eight Presidential administrations during the turbulent politics and civil rights battles of twentieth century America. Rated PG-13
Short Term 12 – Brie Larson, Frantz Turner
Grace is a twenty-something supervisor at a foster-care facility for at-risk teenagers. Passionate and tough, Grace is a formidable caretaker, and in love with her long-term boyfriend and co-worker, Mason. But Grace’s own difficult past – and the surprising future that suddenly presents itself – throws her into unforeseen confusion, made sharper with the arrival of a new intake at the facility, a gifted but troubled teenage girl with whom Grace has a charged connection. Rated R
Fruitvale Station – Michael B. Jordan, Melonie Diaz
The true story of Oscar, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who wakes up on the morning of December 31, 2008 and feels something in the air. Not sure what it is, he takes it as a sign to get a head start on his resolutions: Being a better son to his mother, being a better partner to his girlfriend, and being a better father to T, their beautiful four-year-old daughter. He starts out well, but as the day goes on, he realizes that change is not going to come easy. Rated R
Enough Said – James Gandolfini, Julia Louis- Dreyfus
Divorced mom Eva may be falling for Albert, a sweet, funny, like-minded divorce. But as their relationship blossoms, Eva befriends Marianne, who’s always complaining about her ex-husband. When Eva realizes that Albert is the target of Marianne’s rants, she begins to question her own perceptions about first impressions and second chances. Rated PG-13
JANUARY 21
Captain Phillips – Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi
Based on the true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, which was the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years. Rated PG-13
Blue Jasmine – Cate Blanchett, Alec Baldwin
After everything in her life falls to pieces, including her marriage to wealthy businessman Hal, elegant New York socialite Jasmine moves into her sister Ginger’s humble apartment in San Francisco to try to pull herself back together again. Rated PG-13.
JANUARY 28
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 – Bill Hader, Anna Faris
Inventor Flint Lockwood thought he saved the world when he destroyed his machine that turned water into food causing cheeseburger rain and spaghetti tornadoes. But Flint soon learns that his invention survived and is now creating food-animals. Flint and his friends embark on a dangerously delicious mission to battle hungry tacodiles, shrimpanzees, hippotatomuses, cheespiders and other foodimals to save the world again! Rated PG
Last Vegas – Robert DeNiro, Morgan Freeman
Four best friends in their late-60s decide to escape retirement and throw a Las Vegas bachelor party for the only one of them who has remained single. Rated PG-13
The Davenport Public Library will be closed on Tuesday December 31 and Wednesday January 1 in observance of the New Years holiday. All locations will reopen their regular scheduled time on Thursday January 2 – Main and Eastern Avenue at 9am and Fairmount Street at noon.
Have a safe and happy holiday!
More favorite books from our bloggers!
Lynn votes for The View from Penthouse B by Elinor Lipman. “I love Lipman’s writing style, her characters and the world they inhabit. This time it’s a penthouse in Manhattan, where Gwen and her sister Margot live in genteel poverty. In order to make ends meet, the tenants begin to multiply and become involved in each other’s lives and romances”.
Amanda chooses a non-fiction title. “I have an obsession with cookbooks and graphic novels, and Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley combines the two in an entertaining and informative way. While the novelty of a graphic cookbook is what appealed to me at first, it was Knisley’s hilarious voice and effective story telling that won me over. I’m crossing my fingers that another book is on it’s way”.
Ann goes with a classic re-imagined. “Longbourn by Jo Baker was my favorite this year. It’s a sly, witty and compassionate interpretation of Austin’s Pride and Prejudice, seen through the eyes of the servants. Usually faceless and unnamed, here they inhabit real lives with complications and joys and heartbreak just as interesting (if not more so) than the homeowners they serve”.
There you have it – an eclectic collection of best books. What about you – what was your favorite book in 2013?
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