Tag: Andy Weir

Checked In: A Davenport Public Library Podcast December 2024 Wrap

- Brittany Leave a comment

All three Davenport Public Library locations are closed today and tomorrow in observance of Christmas, but that doesn’t mean that we’re not here for you! In addition to using our online digital resources while we’re closed, you can listen to Checked In: A Davenport Public Library Podcast online. In this blog post, I will give you helpful links to area resources, Library resources, and links to the books discussed in our December episode!

Celebrate Humbug Day on December 21st

Humbug Day is a day to vent stress before Christmas by channeling your inner Ebenezer Scrooge. The hosts compiled a list of some of their favorite curmudgeons!

Beth’s Favorites:
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Brittany’s Favorites:
The Long Game by Elena Armas
Bruce Series by Ryan T. Higgins
Crankenstein Series by Samantha Berger and Dan Santat
Goodnight Already by Jory John

Stephanie’s Favorites:
Assistant to the Villain & Apprentice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Family Search

The Library is a FamilySearch Affiliate Library, which means The Library has access to more genealogy resources to help make more family discoveries. There are only a few hundred affiliate libraries in the country. This designation means our community has greater and more convenient access to the wealth of genealogical resources through FamilySearch. This popular web service has over 6 billion searchable names and 2 billion images of historical genealogical records, plus the helpful assistance of knowledgeable employees.

Festivus: An Airing of Grievances – 2024 Reads Edition

In honor of Festivus on December 23rd, Beth, Brittany, and Stephanie aired their grievances book style for a second year! Below are titles that frustrated them the most! Feel free to hate read with them in the coming year! Or, simply love them! We won’t judge!

Beth’s Grievances:
The Black Belt Librarian by Warren Graham
Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield
So Much for That by Lionel Shriver

Brittany’s Grievances: 
One Hundred Moments of Us by Jon Rance
The Alienist by Caleb Carr
Searching for Sylvie Lee by Jean Kwok
The Other Mrs. by Mary Kubica

Stephanie’s Grievances:
The Aurora Teagarden Series by Charlaine Harris

Ancestry Library Edition

Ancestry Library has over 1.2 billion records in over 3,000 databases. Ancestry Library is a must-have resource for anyone doing genealogical research. Ancestry Library is an in-house only resource, so you do need to be in one of our buildings to access the databases and records. Another thing to keep in mind is that Ancestry Library does not let you build your own family tree and save it. If you find a record that is important to you, you can email it to yourself.

The Gift of a Reading Recommendation!

To celebrate the holidays, your Checked In hosts exchanged the gift of a reading recommendation. We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well while working together here at The Library, so we’re going to make personalized recommendations to each other! The titles are below!

 Beth’s Recommendations:
To Stephanie: Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies by Tara Schuster
To Brittany: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

Brittany’s Recommendations:
To Beth: The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg
To Stephanie: The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont

Stephanie’s Recommendations:
To Brittany: The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood
To Beth: The Less People Know About Us by Axton Beth-Hamilton

Looking for Your Next Read?

Library patrons can get reading recommendations from library staff any time of the year! There are options for everyone to help discover your next great read!

 

Wintry Romances

Beth and Stephanie welcomed our amazing editor, Claire onto the pod to talk about favorite wintry romances! Below are the titles discussed in the segment.

Stephanie’s List:
In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren
How My Neighbor Stole Christmas by Meghan Quinn
Icebreaker by Hannah Grace
A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
A Winter in New York by Josie Silver
Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey
The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox
A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Beth’s List:
Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews

Brittany’s List:
Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliot

Claire’s List:
Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun
A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
A Jingle Bell Mingle by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
A December to Remember by Jenny Bayliss
Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake
Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison

What Our Hosts Read In November

Beth’s Reads:
Every Exquisite Thing by Matthew Quick
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Stephanie’s Reads:
All the Little Liars by Charlaine Harris, narrated by Therese Plummer
Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree
Under the Oak Tree: The Comic adapted by namu, illustrated by P., and original story by Suji Kim
The Summer of Broken Rules by K.L. Walther
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, narrated by Allison Hirato
Cover Story by Susan Rigetti, narrated by Carlotta Brentan
Sleep Like a Baby by Charlaine Harris, narrated by Therese Plummer
The Last to Pie by Misha Popp
The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer
Hometown Betrayal: A Tragic Story of Secrecy and Sexual Abuse in Mormon Country by Emily Benedek
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, narrated by Emilia Fox

Brittany’s Reads:
The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
Bet on It by Jodie Slaughter, narrated by Angel Pean
Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliot

If you would like to listen to our episode, it can be found wherever you get your podcasts. If you prefer listening on the web, it can be found here!

We love hearing from our listeners, please feel free to comment on this blog post, on our socials, or email us at checked.in@davenportlibrary.com.

Artemis by Andy Weir

- Brenda Leave a comment

Artemis is the second Sci-Fi novel written by Andy Weir. I loved Weir’s first book, The Martian, and also the movie based on it, even though I am not typically a Sci-Fi reader. I thought it was smart and funny, with just the right amount of suspense. That is just how I like my books. Therefore, I was eager to read Artemis. I checked out the audiobook version, read by Rosario Dawson (she’s great!).

The main thing Artemis had in common with The Martian is that the characters are living somewhere other than Earth. Beyond that, they are very different. Artemis is still smartly written, but I didn’t find it quite as funny. Artemis is grittier.

In The Martian, an astronaut named Mark struggles to survive alone on the red planet after a mishap leaves him accidentally abandoned by his research team. I know, it doesn’t sound funny at all. But Mark is a character with a very good sense of humor, despite his dire situation. I rooted for him the entire time. By contrast, Artemis is a futuristic moon colony populated by many humans (some live there, others are just visiting). Artemis’ protagonist, Jasmine, is a young, jaded crook. She starts out as a petty smuggler, but things escalate, intensely and quickly.  Maybe other readers would feel differently, but I kept hoping that she would get busted for her antics. Still, every misstep she takes is entertaining.

A self-described “space nerd,” Weir describes the scientific principles of living in outer space in a way that is pretty easy for a novice to grasp. I’m no expert, but it sure seems like he knows what he’s writing about. I recently read the Moon Base Alpha series by Stuart Gibbs with my 10 year old son, and many things are echoed in those books. For example, EVA (Extravehicular Activity) suits are described almost exactly the same in both books, by the two different authors.

I have since started reading Kurt Vonnegut’s The Sirens of Titan. It is rather amusing to see how Sci-Fi writing has changed over the years. Who knows? This may compel me to read more Sci-Fi / Fantasy as time goes on .

The Martian

- Rachel Leave a comment

The-Martian-2015-movie-posterThe Martian

Just looking at the title, one would assume that this movie is just about space, presumably Mars.  But you would be wrong.  The Martian is a story of survival that just happens to take place on Mars.

Mark Watney, portrayed by Matt Damon, is accidentally left behind on Mars after his crew mates erroneously presumed that he was dead.  Watney must figure out how he is going to survive with some meager supplies.  Surviving in the wilderness on Earth can be quite challenging in itself.  One must find food and clean water as well as have shelter from predators and the elements.  Imagine having all of these problems plus needing to have a supply of oxygen and protect one self from the hostile environment on Mars.

“If the oxygenator breaks down, I’ll suffocate. If the water reclaimer breaks down, I’ll die of thirst. If the Hab beaches, I’ll just kind of implode. If none of those things happen. I’ll eventually run out of food and starve to death. So yeah.” – Mark Watney

And yet, Mark Watney manages to find a way to stay alive.  And he does so with a sense of humor.  Even in  a tense situation, while you are sitting on the edge of your seat, Watney will figure out a way to make you laugh as he himself laughs at danger.  He makes contact with NASA and finds out that it will take a very long time for them to rescue him.  The question becomes, will Mark Watney be able to stay alive long enough so that he can be rescued?

Nominated for Best Picture and for Best Actor, Matt Damon.  The Martian won the Golden Globe Award for Best Picture, Comedy or Musical and for Best Actor, Matt Damon, in a Comedy of Musical.  Do not let the Golden Globe Awards fool you.  Even though The Martian has funny moments, it is not a comedy.

martian bookThe Martian is based on the book of the same name by Andy Weir which is also available at the Davenport Public Library.