Lost Books on Display

The beginning of the month rolled around and BHPL's book display was due for a change. One of my colleagues said to me, "Why don't you do a display of all the lost books?" The book display shelves were sitting empty, so I thought that she meant all of the library books patrons end up paying for because they can't find them at home. Ha ha.

Then it turned out that she meant Lost as in the TV show about the survivors of a plane crash who live on a mysterious tropical island. Oops. If you watch Lost, you can quit reading here because you already obviously know that the episodes' titles refer to books, that their plots reference books (Lord of the Flies or Watership Down, anyone?). Or that there's a book club and a lot of reading done on the beach.

You can see a list of the books and their connections to the show here. It's a pretty decent list of books, with a lot of classics that you probably read in school, with a dash of bestsellers like Stephen King, Michael Crichton and Tim LaHaye. The L.A. Times talked with the show's writers about the books that have influenced them the most.

Next month's display: books seen on Mad Men. Just kidding. (Unless someone I work with is a fan, in which case it's a distinct possibility).

The Comedians by Graham Greene

The library's Tuesday night book group will discuss Graham Greene's The Comedians, tomorrow night from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm.

Mr. Brown, Mr. Smith and Mr. Jones meet on a ship to Haiti in the 1960's during the brutal regime of Papa Doc Duvalier, each an actor ("comedian") destined to play a small part in the politics of the island. Mr. Brown, the detached observer, an Englishman who owns a hotel on the island narrates. Mr. Smith and his wife have come to start a vegetarian center on the impoverished island, a plan whose irony escapes the idealistic Americans. Mr. Jones, another Englishman, is a con artist, but we're not sure what his con is until the end.

The writing is elegant; the tone is ironic, arch, darkly amusing in a standoffish, regrettful way; the themes are apparently the usual ones from 'Greeneland' - dealing with virtue and committment to a cause and how to lead a life with meaning. Read the reviews linked below for more details about the plot, themes and characters.

I was initially intimidated by the dense style of the book, because it was hard to adjust to reading a "classic" after indulging in page-turner best sellers and light mysteries. But the book picks up speed, drew me in and had me avidly turning pages by the second half.

Recommended for readers interested in trying a Greene novel without pain, interested in the historical background of Haiti, or trying to balance their light reading with a classic.



Related links:

NYT review

Amazon reviews

The Guardian

BBC Haiti history timeline

Graham Greene bibliography on Fantastic Fiction

JerseyClicks databases include Literary Reference Center

Does Oscar Have a Library Card?

A lot has been written about the Academy Awards, including at least two unofficial histories (one of which bills itself as the "complete" unofficial history . . at least, it was the year it was published). Even Joan Rivers is represented in the Oscar literary canon (with Murder at the Academy Awards). While the books may be so-so, the films are a delight. There were too many films to include in this picture, so only some of the foreign film nominees/winners that are available at BHPL are shown.

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

This Friday the morning book group will discuss David Ebershoff's novel, The 19th Wife, which alternates between two narrators. Ann Eliza Young was one of the fifty-something wives of the Mormon leader Brigham Young, and after her divorce in 1875, she went on a national lecture tour to denounce polygamy. Ebershoff based his fictional memoir partly on Ann Eliza's own memoir, Wife No. 19, which you can read here.

The other narrator of The 19th Wife is Jordan Scott, who grew up in the present day in a polygamist cult which closely resembles the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints*. When Jordan was a teenager, he was excommunicated from his church and left alongside a highway to fend for himself. When Jordan's mother is wrongly jailed for shooting her husband to death, Jordan decides to return to Mesadale to investigate.

*If you are interested in the true stories of women who escaped from FLDS, try Stolen Innocence by Elissa Wall or Escape by Carolyn Jessop, both available at BHPL. (Anne reminded me that I've overlooked Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer, which is about Mormon fundamentalism.)

This is the third historical novel the book group has read with a 19th century feminist protagonist (purely by chance, I think). I wish we could invite Mamah Borthwick (from Loving Frank), Isabella Beecher Hooker and Victoria Woodhull (from Harriet and Isabella) as well as Ann Eliza Young to our meeting. Maybe when Google gets that time travel thing worked out?

Discussion questions for The 19th Wife are available here. The author also has a several of his interviews posted on the book's website, but the best one's on the Random House site.

Become a NJ Library Champion

The New Jersey State Library has a new initiative to encourage people to support libraries in these tough economic times. It won't cost you a dime to join the ranks of hockey star, Zach Parise and author Janet Evanovich, well-know NJ Library Champions. Click here to sign up for email alerts and news about the state of libraries in our state. Here is the explanation from the NJ State Library website:

'Library Champions are people who love their libraries and want to be in the know about issues that may affect them. Library Champions' email addresses will be entered into a distribution list. When important library issues arise, we will email Library Champions. The Champions can then take appropriate action such as phone calls, emails to legislators or simply talking up the library to their neighbors. Any information you provide on this form will only be used to send you occasional emails about library issues. We will not sell your personal information or use it for any other purposes.'

Read the Sports Illustrated article about NJ Devil #9 Parise and how he ended up shilling for libraries instead of more profitable sportswear makers. Librarians think it's cool Zach's on our side. Thanks and happy reading!

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