Adult

Derailed by Neta Jackson

This is an awesome book written by husband and wife, Dave and Neta Jackson. The main character is Harry Bentley, a retired Chicago police detective who takes a security job with Amtrak. His assignment is to portray a blind man with a guide dog who is really a K-9 dog and succeeds at making his collars regarding drug trafficking. Also Harry has other trials like his mother's death and rebuilding a relationship with his son, Rodney, who had recently been released from jail.

O's best advice ever! : make over your life with Oprah and friends : including Dr. Oz, Bob Greene, Suze Orman, Dr. Phil, Martha Beck, and more

This is a glossy compilation of the best advice and wisdom from Oprah Winfrey's magazine, O, the Oprah Magazine and from twenty-five years of The Oprah Winfrey Show. Oprah shares her personal advice, selections of interviews with famous people from The Oprah Winfrey Show, and information from contributors to her magazine and show on the topics of: health, fitness, money, happiness, and relationships. The book is conducive to being read in short segments of time or to being used to refer to topics of interest; as the articles in it are a few pages in length. Fans of Oprah Winfrey and those looking for quick, not in-depth advice on a number of topics will enjoy this book

Adulting by Kelly Williams Brown

As the author of the popular blog Adulting, Kelly Williams Brown has been spreading good common sense advice for a few years now. In her first book (I say first, because I hope there will be more to come) Brown writes accessibly with friendly ease. It's as though your cool older sister is telling you how she messed up after college and how you can avoid making the same mistakes. Topics include domestic, professional, and social advice. Brown's penchant for quoting gangster rap and fey illustrations keep Adulting from being preachy.

Feynman written by Jim Ottaviani ; art by Leland Myrick ; coloring by Hilary Sycamore.

The obvious question before reading this book is "Why do a comic book about a theoretical physicist?" The obvious answer after reading it is, "Why not?" Aside from being one of the top thinkers in science in the 20th Century, Richard Feynman was such a goofball that he was practically a cartoon character in real life. In the graphic novel, I kept waiting for his imaginary pet tiger to show up. The biography is mostly, but not completely, linear as it skips through Feynman's life. What's great about the comic book format is that it lets more character and personality slip through than you'd necessarily get from dry text. Feynman, through visual cues, expression, and the unique pacing of the "sequential art" format, successfully paints a more vivid portrait of the man, complete with all his human foibles and weaknesses, than I've come across before. One interesting choice in the book was to narrate it in 1st person, in effect treating it as an auto-biography. Given that there's so much of Feynman's own writing about his life to draw from, I think the authors were able to get away with that without fictionalizing their subject.

Children

Pie by Sarah Weeks

My 9 year old recommended this book to me. We enjoyed talking about Alice, Lardo and the mystery of the pie crust recipe. Alice's beloved Aunt Polly makes Pie that is world famous. In fact, the whole town of Ipswitch has been touched in some way by the love that Polly puts into her pies. When Polly passes away, the whole town, especially Alice's Mother cannot believe that Aunt Polly chose to leave her famous Pie Crust recipe to Lardo the cat. And Lardo, is left to Alice. The adults in Ipswich go a little crazy trying to find the pie crust recipe. And Alice, along with her friend Charlie have their own Pie mystery to solve. Real pie recipes are at the beginning of each chapter. We decided to make the Raspberry and Peanut Butter pie. It tastes way better than I thought it would. This sweet book helped make some great memories for my daughter & me.

Prisoner 88 by Leah Pileggi.

Jake Evans was just trying to protect his dad, but when manslaughter is involved, the courts in Idaho, 1885 don't mess around. Even if you're a kid and just trying to take care of your only family! This is the story of Jake and his the time her served at the Idaho State Penitentiary. This historical fiction is set during the time when the frontier was barely settled and the courts were not prepared to deal with a young kid like Jake. He had to serve hard time with full-grown men, hardened criminals. As dreadful as this prospect might sound, Jake manages to see the silver lining. He gets a cell all to himself, three meals a day, a job to do, and he even learns to read (albeit reluctantly). What seems to be the worst possible situation turns out to be a great opportunity to learn, grow, and move on.This story would make a great introduction to historical fiction and a great read-aloud for elementary school students. This is based on true events and a real boy named Jake Evans, which makes it so much more interesting. As an adult, I couldn't resist pulling this title off the shelf to see if there was an explanation about why this kid was convicted of manslaughter, why he did it, and how things worked out for him in the end. I imagine kids would find it even more fascinating than I did. The story moves pretty quickly, it's sure to keep the attention of reluctant readers. Despite his criminal past, Jake is an incredibly sympathetic character. He was just a kid who landed in the wrong place at the wrong time and reacted before he could think of the consequences. It's a story that will give readers something to think about for sure.

Teens

Okay for now by Gary D. Schmidt

Doug Swieteck copes with his family's poverty, his dad's abuse, a new school, learning to draw, a mean librarian and a meaner PE "teacher," his brother coming home from Vietnam, and the cops figuring he is a thug. Doug also experiences his first kiss, a fantastic librarian, the artistry of John James Audubon, some fabulous teachers, a wonderful part-time job, and more--"I'm not lying"--truly great things. Love it!

 

Iron Thorn by Caitlin Kittredge

This novel was simply amazing. The author has invented an alternate reality where logic and reason dictate social norms, and those who believe otherwise, the heretics, are hunted down and punished by cowled, over-lording proctors. In the midst of this closed environment Aoife shines in her determination and stubborn refusal to be anything other than herself. Her personality is deftly drawn by Kittredge, and readers will find themselves cheering for her as she risks everything to find her brother. Personally, I can't wait for the second book in this new, exciting series, and I highly recommend it to fans of steampunk, fantasy and adventure.