The Pattern In The Carpet; A Personal History With Jigsaws

By Margaret Drabble
"The Pattern in the Carpet, which the author insists is not a memoir, combines the appeal of one’s childish occupations—and the personal memories that surround them—with an adult’s curiosity about their origins. Having recently renounced writing fiction, Drabble here draws instead on many disparate facets of her life. She does it sometimes briskly, sometimes enigmatically, always inventively.
Jigsaw puzzles, one “way of getting quietly through life until death,” are Drabble’s first love, and a perfect allegory for the baffling parts of life that never quite seem to fit together until their time comes. Surprisingly, they were invented as early as the 1700s. Jigsaws went through several historical changes, from “dissected maps” at the start to super-sophisticated Jackson Pollocks in the 1960s. Those are just a few tidbits of the history Drabble recounts here, but the personal touch is never far behind. Auntie Phyl, her trusty jigsaw puzzle partner, and other family members (including her estranged sister and fellow novelist A.S. Byatt) make appearances, adding a human element.
Despite the author’s disclaimers, this quirky book shares many qualities with the memoir. Without the memories of the people in her life who used them, a hopscotch history of the incredible world of human time-killers that existed before TV and the Internet might have been arid and lifeless. But read it fast; many of these games and occupations may be gone before you next look up from the page. " (Book Page Reviews)
Check Our Catalog

The Humbling

By Philip Roth

"The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Pastoral offers the story of Simon Axler--an actor in his sixties who has lost his wife, his audience and confidence in his talent--whose risky and aberrant desire points toward a dark and shocking end." (Baker & Taylor)

Check Our Catalog

How To Start A Home-Based Jewelry Making Business

By Maire Loughran
"Counsels aspiring businesswomen on how to transform a promising jewelry-making hobby into a profitable sideline or full-time career, sharing advice on a wide range of topics from developing a sales style and cultivating professional relationships to pricing pieces and setting up a Web site. " (Publisher Description)
Check Our Catalog

How To Reduce Your Carbon Footprint; 365 Simple Ways To Save Energy, Resources and Money

By Joanna Yarrow
"How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint is the world citizen's guide to pushing back the advance of global warming. This colorful handbook offers 500 practical, easily achievable ideas that conserve energy, prevent pollution, and save money. Did you know that unplugging appliances and cell phone chargers when not in use can reduce electricity bills by 10 percent? Or that recycling just one glass bottle saves enough power to run a computer for 30 minutes? Whether the subject is jet travel, dishwashing, or any of the 50 topics in the book, surprising statistics and innovative graphics will inspire action and demonstrate that simple habits can lead to big results." (Hatchette Book Group)
Check Our Catalog

Homesteading; A Backyard Guide To Growing Your Own Food, Canning, Keeping Chickens, Generating Energy And More

By Abigail Gehring
"Whether you live in the city, the suburbs, or even the wilderness, there is plenty you can do to improve your life from a green perspective. Got sunlight? Start container gardening. With a few plants, fresh tomatoes, which then become canned tomato sauce, are a real option. Reduce electricity use by eating dinner by candlelight (using homemade candles, of course). Learn to use rainwater to augment water supplies. Make your own soap and hand lotion. Consider keeping chickens for the eggs. From what to eat to supporting sustainable restaurants to avoiding dry cleaning, this book offers information on anything a homesteader needs--and more." (Norton Pub)
Check Our Catalog

Do-It-Yourself-Guide To Preventing Costly Home Repairs; Over 1900 Simple Maintenance Tips..

By Reader's Digest

"Provides advice and tips on maintaining the exterior and interior of a house with inexpensive everyday objects, including pipecleaners, nail polish, and basic tools, preventing costly repairs and damages in the future." (Publisher Description) Check Our Catalog

Best American Mystery Stories

By Jefferey Deaver
"Like previous anthologies in this "best of" series, the impressive 13th volume favors crime stories over whodunits. As series editor Otto Penzler notes in his foreword, "it has become increasingly difficult to find... a new murder method, or an original way to hide a vital clue" (though some may wonder why Deaver passed over Hal White's impossible crime puzzler, "Murder at the Fall Festival," listed in the appendix of "Other Distinguished Mystery Stories of 2008"). Readers interested in psychology will be more than satisfied by such tales as Joyce Carol Oates's "Dear Husband," a heartrending first-person account of a mother who slaughtered her children, and Tom Bissell's "My Interview with the Avenger," about a vigilante superhero. As always, part of the pleasure derives from exposure to writers who have yet to gain the acclaim they deserve, such as Randy Rohn ("The Man Who Fell in Love with the Stump of a Tree") and Jonathan Tel ("Bola de la Fortuna"). "
Check Our Catalog

Burying Don Imus; Anatomy Of A Scapegoat

By Michael Awkward
"Awkward posits that as a nation we overreact to comments such as Imus’s-as objectionable as they may be-while failing to understand the historic oppression of African Americans and how it has affected all Americans, black and white alike. What is it about hate speech humor that attracts listeners? Awkward examines the appeal of “Imus in the Morning” and widens his focus to look at other race-related controversies, such as the Duke Lacrosse team accusation and subsequent media coverage. Who delivers a message is of paramount importance to public reaction; for example, whites making jokes about blacks and blacks making jokes about themselves are two very different things. The author has done his research; witness his ten pages of footnotes and extensive bibliography. This is an impressive look at the history of shock radio, especially Don Imus’s contribution “to popular culture and political debate,” and racial politics. " (ForeWard Magazine Review)
Check Our Catalog

Beyond The Homestretch; What I've Learned From Saving Racehorses

By Lynn Reardon

"The director of a racehorse-adoption ranch, which has saved more than 600 horses from the slaughterhouse, offers an inside look at the world of horseracing--complete with colorful horses, jockeys, trainers and gallop girls--that depicts the insight horses and other animals can offer when people re-evaluate their relationship with them.....In this riveting account, Reardon encounters dozens of unruly racehorses, all with special needs, unusual histories, and distinct personalities. As she fumbles to help them find new careers, they return the favor by becoming her most memorable mentors in horsemanship and life philosophy." (Publisher Description)
Check Our Catalog

The Anti-Communist Manifestos; Four Books That Shaped The Cold War

By John V. Fleming
"Hell hath no fury like a communist converted and, more so, one who knows how to wield a typewriter. In this lively, bookish tale, medievalist, retired Princeton professor and, importantly for this story, amateur bookbinder Fleming examines the curious careers of four fellow travelers whose conversions away from the cause occasioned once-important books. As the author notes at the outset, their anti-communism means, in the broadest sense, opposition not to socialism but to Stalinism, brought on by personal betrayals and intrigues on one hand and the appalling spectacle of show trials, purges and the Nazi-Soviet concordaton the other. Each of these writers had a checkered career. ...Each wrote books that helped turn the tide away from viewing the Soviet Union as an erstwhile ally and toward considering it a voracious, empire-hungry bear with an appetite for American babies. ...A readable, illuminating discussion of the role of books and ideas, and their sometimes strange originators, in the making of political crusades." (Kirkus Reviews)
Check Our Catalog