Warm up with a 'hot read' this winter
Does winter have you hibernating? If so, according to local librarians, all you need is a cozy chair and a "hot read" to beat those winter blues.
Recently, we asked several for their winter reading recommendations.
"What are people reading? There are lots of new novels out," said Kelly Sheahan at the Ella Johnson Memorial Library in Hampshire. "(James) Patterson has 'Cross Country,' and Patricia Cornwell just came out with 'Scarpetta.' And of course, 'The Shack' by William P. Young is very popular. We have two or three copies, and they're always checked out."
"One trend in January is to look at the 'Best Of' lists, from last year," said librarian Marlene Schiltz at the St. Charles Public Library. This year, that includes "The Gate House" by Nelson DeMille, and Oprah's latest book pick, "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski.
But a good read doesn't have to be a new release. "Felidae," a dark thriller by Turkish author Akif Pirinczi, is a favorite of Stacey Cisneros at the Batavia Public Library.
"It deals with cats and murder," she says, two of her favorite topics. This month, she's also reading "A Perfect Red: Empire, Espionage, and the Quest for the Color of Desire," by Amy Butler Greenfield, a book club choice about the historic search for a vibrant red-colored dye.
"It's something we just take for granted," she said, "but it's fascinating and kind of dramatic."
Vampires are hot, hot, hot!
Topping the list for teens and young adults is "Twilight," and its companion sequels in Stephenie Meyer's best-selling "girl-meets-vampire" series. The fantasy-romance saga has something for everyone: forbidden love, mystery, danger and suspense, and even a prom date! Based, according to their author, on themes from Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, and Shakespeare, the books' popularity has libraries hustling to keep copies in stock.
"Everyone's reading that, teens and even adults," says Rosie Lucas, head of public services for the Huntley Area Public Library. "We always have a long waiting list."
"A lot of (its popularity) can also be traced to word-of-mouth," said Lisel Ulaszek, teen services coordinator at Elgin's Gail Borden Library. "It has sort of become the 'Harry Potter' of 2008, popular with (all ages), even though it was written for teenagers."
Other "read-alike" books - "Vampire Academy" by Richelle Mead, "Vampire Kisses" by Ellen Schreiber, and "Morganville Vampires" by Rachel Caine - are also in high demand.
Movie tie-ins make books popular
Movies can heighten interest in the books they portray. Based John Grogan's best-seller, "Marley and Me" was a recent box office hit, and Amanda Forman's "Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire" came to life as Keira Knightley.
"The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini has found new fans since last year's Oscar-nominated film, and Alice Siebold's "The Lovely Bones," another book club staple, will soon be in theaters directed by Peter Jackson.
One Book, One Community
Recently, some libraries have cooperated with local governments on "One Book, One Community" projects. In November, Huntley's monthlong celebration of "Pay It Forward" by Catherine Ryan included book discussions, film screenings, and local visits by the author herself.
To celebrate the Lincoln Bicentennial, McHenry County has asked local libraries to feature "Lincoln: A Photobiography" by Russell Freedman, said Diane McNulty at the Cary Area Public Library, which recently reopened after a monthlong renovation.
In Kane County, Cisneros said, "One Book, One Batavia" highlights "The Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara, a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about the Battle of Gettysburg.
Book clubs = fun, friendship
Most libraries offer winter reading programs and book suggestions for patrons who read on their own. But often, when you really enjoy a book, you want to share it with others. Interest in book clubs has grown, says Betty Madros, who tries to pick an eclectic mix of titles for her Dundee Library Book Club. February's pick,"Gardens of Water" by Alan Drew, is a Turkish tale of culture clashes, "with an earthquake thrown in for good measure," she says. In March, they'll read "Thank You For Smoking" by Christopher Buckley, a former tobacco lobbyist whose exposé of cigarettes, greed, and scandal became an Oscar-nominated film.
At Elburn's Town and Country Public Library, the Noon Book Discussion Group enjoys many genres, says librarian Cathy Korthals. They just finished "All Quiet on the Western Front" by Eric Maria Remarque, and next month they'll read "The Big Sleep" by Raymond Chandler. Quite a change, she says, but "a book club exposes you to books you might not have found on your own."
At the Hampshire library's Women's Book Club, the theme is family relationships and daily life, Sheahan said. Their latest selections, "Hope's Boy" by Andrew Bridge and "Angry Housewives Eating Bonbons" by Lorna Landvik, run the gamut of family relationships and good humor.
Dundee Township's Village Green Book Club meets at the senior retirement center, and is open to residents only. This month, they'll read "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen, a prizewinning novel of circus life in the Great Depression. Huntley-Sun City residents also have their own fiction and nonfiction book clubs, which meet monthly at the Meadowview Lodge.
Younger people also join book groups for social networking and conversation, Schiltz said. At the St. Charles library, readers in their 20s and 30s enjoy the "TnT Books 'n' Bites" club, which offers book talks, movies, and food. The group even has its own MySpace page.
Elgin's Gail Borden Public Library hosts several book clubs for contemporary fiction, mystery readers, a Great Books discussion group, and a Spanish Readers Club.
"We even have an Online Book Club," said marketing director Denise Raleigh. "Patrons can download our reading list, read the book, then chat about it online, anytime at http://groups.google.com/group/gailborden). Another service, "Need a Good Read," will customize a book list for each reader, based on an online questionnaire.
For those who can't stop long enough to chat, "we just received a most interesting book club proposal from the park district," Raleigh said. "It's a walking book club, where people would walk and have a book discussion at the same time. It's something we plan to consider."
Recommended reading
Suggested titles from Fox Valley and Tri-Cities book clubs and libraries
Adult fiction
"Beneath A Marble Sky," John Shors
"Gardens of Water," Alan Drew
"Harriett and Isabella," Patricia O'Brien
"In America," Susan Sontag
"Last Night at the Lobster," Stewart O'Nan
"Loving Frank," Nancy Horan
"Lulu Meets God and Doubts Him," Danielle Ganek
"Nineteen Minutes," Jodi Picoult
"On Angry Housewives Eating BonBons," Lorna Landvik
"People of the Book," Geraldine Brooks
"The Shack," William P. Young
"Water For Elephants," Sara Gruen
"The Story of Edward Sawtelle," David Wroblewski
"The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," Junot Díaz
"The Pillars of the Earth," Ken Follett
"The Hour I First Believed," Wally Lamb
Adult mystery/suspense
"Cross Country," James Patterson
"Extreme Measures," Vince Flynn
"Felidae," Akif Pirincci
"Scarpetta," Patricia Cornwell
"The Gate House," Nelson DeMille
"Winter Study" (Anna Pigeon Mysteries) Nevada Barr
Adult nonfiction
"A Perfect Red," Amy Butler Greenfield
"Dewey, the Small Town Library Cat," Vicki Myron
"Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert
"Hope's Boy," Andrew Bridge
"Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution," T. L. Friedman "Once Upon A Town," Bob Greene
"The Last Lecture," Randy Pausch
"The Omnivore's Dilemma," Michael Pollan
"Three Cups of Tea," Greg Mortenson
"Tupperware, Unsealed," Bob Kealing
"The Greatest Generation," Tom Brokaw
Books and their movies
"Marley and Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog," John Grogan
"The Kite Runner," Khaled Hosseini
"Thank You For Smoking," Christopher Buckley
"Bedknobs and Broomsticks," Mary Norton
"Twilight," Stephenie Meyer
"The Other Boleyn Girl," Philippa Gregory
"The Soloist," Steven Lopez (film to be released in April)
Espanol/Spanish language
"La Llorona," Marcela Serrano
"El Juego del Ángel," Carlos Ruiz Zajon
"Los fantasmas del espejo," Carlos C. Sanchez
"El Alquimista," Paulo Coelho
"El Amor en los Tiempos de Colera" y "Cien Anos de Soledad," Gabriel Garcia Marquez