New This Week
May 17, 2010
Column: At the Library
From: Cranbrook Public Library
By Mike Selby
In 1987, Scott Turow thrilled readers with his debut novel PRESUMED INNOCENT. It told the story of Rusty Sabich, a prosecuting attorney who is on trial for the murder of his mistress. 23 years later, Sabich"who is now a judge"finds himself on trial again, this time for the murder of his wife. Simply titled INNOCENT, Turow continues to display his expert skill at legal maneuvering and ruthless counterplots.
Younger children should enjoy I LOVE WHEN YOU READ, a new DVD which helps children (and parents) understand the joy and enthusiasm of reading.
Preschool Story Time this Wednesday at 11:00 am, 1:15 pm, & 6:30 pm, and Toddler Story this Friday at 10:30 am will be all about Teddy Bears!
Up for Adoption! 100\'s of magazine subscriptions. Help the Friends of the Library maintain the magazine selection. Purchase a magazine subscription from our list and receive an income tax deductible receipt. Please phone Loopy Pratt at 250-426-4771 for more information.
Just a note that BOOK BITES will be having their final meeting of the year on Thursday, May 20, at 4 pm. The CHATTERZ book club will also be having their final meeting on Thursday, May 13, at 4pm. Even if you only came out to only one meeting this year, you are more than welcome to attend. As always, snacks will be provided.
ADULT NEWLY AQUIRED SHELF:
Back to Life after a Heart Crisis " Marc Wallack (616.12)
The Kind Diet " Alicia Silverstone (641.5636)
The Great Reset " Richard Florida (330.973)
Yalta: The Price of Peace " S. M. Plokhy (940.5314)
Our Man in Tehran " Robert Wright (955.0542)
Tea with Hezbollah " Ted Dekker (956.054)
The Good Karma Divorce " Michele Lowrance (306.89)
Fairy Parties " Colleen Mullaney (793.21)
Crazy Busy Beautiful " Carmindy (646.72)
Cuba Handbook " Sarah Cameron (917.291)
Lonely Planet: Montreal and Quebec City (917.14)
Fodor’s Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada (917.15)
Fodor’s Disneyland and Southern California with Kids (917.9496)
Frommer’s Brazil (918.1)
The Unofficial Guide to Cruises " Kay Showker (910.45)
The Wild Side Guide to Vancouver Island’s Pacific Rim " Jacqueline Windh (917.112)
Book Crush " Nancy Pearl (028.55)
Do More Great Work " Michael Bungay Stanier (650.1)
The Complete Trail Food Cookbook " Jennifer Mackenzie (641.578)
Lonely: Learning to Live with Solitude " Emily White (155.92)
Planet Barbecue " Steven Raichlen (641.5784)
Brida " Paula Coelho (fic)
Somewhere to Belong " Judith Miller (fic)
Dancing for Degas " Kathryn Wagner (fic)
The Maquinna Line " Norma Macmillan (fic)
The Hypnotist " M. J. Rose (fic)
All That You Are " Stef Ann Holm (fic)
The Map of True Places " Brunonia Barry (fic)
The Silent Sea " Clive Cussler (fic)
Innocent " Scott Turow (fic)
Blood Brothers " Josephine Cox (fic)
The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever " Julia Quinn (fic)
Hannah’s List " Debbie Macomber (fic)
The Bone Thief " Jefferson Bass (mys)
Dead in the Family " Charlaine Harris (mys)
The Shadows in the Street " Susan Hill (mys)
The Killing Edge " Heather Graham (mys)
Nowhere to Run " C. J. Box (mys)
Reckless " Andrew Gross (mys)
Laughed ‘Til He Died " Carolyn Hart (mys)
A Question of Belief " Donna Leon (mys)
The Highly Effective Detective Plays the Fool " Richard Yancey (mys)
A Taint in the Blood " S. M. Stirling (sci fic)
Blue-Eyed Devil " Robert B. Parker (wes)
Fault Line " Barry Eisler (pb)
Hot Rocks " Nora Roberts (pb)
Quofum " Alan Dean Foster (pb)
Star Trek The Next Generation: Complete Seasons 2,3,4,5, & 6 (DVD)
Yellowstone: Battle for Life (DVD)
Heartland: Complete Season 1 (DVD)
The Final Inch (DVD)
The Genius of Charles Darwin (DVD)
Paradise Lost: The Life & Times of John Milton (DVD)
Fractals: Hunting the Hidden Dimension (DVD)
The Lone Ranger T.V. Series (DVD)
YOUNG ADULT & CHILDREN’S NEWLY ACQUIRED ITEMS:
Seekers: The Last Wilderness " Erin Hunter (ya fic)
Max Cassidy " Paul Adam (ya fic)
Every Little Thing in the World " Nina De Gramont (ya fic)
Diary of a Teenage Girl " Melody Carlson (ya fic)
Tangelwreck " Jeanette Winterson (ya fic)
Stargazer " Claudia Gray (ya fic)
Anything But Normal (ya fic)
The Switch " Anthony Horowitz (ya fic)
The Secret of Indigo Moon " G.P. Taylor (ya fic)
It’s A Snap: George Eastman’s First Photograph " Monica Kulling (j 770.92)
Mac King’s Campfire Magic " Mac King (j 793.8)
The Clone Codes " Patricia C. McKissack (j fic)
Franklin’s Homemade Cookies (j DVD)
I Love When You Read (j DVD)
Madeline the Star (j DVD)
MIKE’S BOOKNOTES:
After rereading Jane Austen’s PRIDE & PREJUDICE, Jason Rekulak"the publisher and creative director of Quirk Books"put down the book and thought “that was a great book, but it could have used some ultraviolent zombie mayhem.” Thus began a new literary craze known as the “mashup”: the process of taking pre-existing classic and mashing it with devices common to low-grade horror films.
Of course it didn’t really happen this way. It was around 2007 when Rekulak became intrigued with the splurge of copyright violations available on the Internet. From people remixing their favourite songs to splicing movie trailers, the infringement upon the intellectual property of others was astounding. Rekulak wondered if there was a way to legally do something similar. It was then he thought of classis works of literature. Since any book written before 1923 has no copyright protection, it becomes part of the public domain. After writing down a list of available classics, he wrote a second list of enhancement ideas, such as pirates, ninjas, aliens, etc. Rekulak then contacted one of his best writers--Seth Grahame-Smith"and contracted him to write PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES.
Grahame-Smith was fascinated with the idea. \"The people in Austen\'s books are kind of like zombies,\" he told Time Magazine, referring to their isolation from society. He was also intrigued by Austen’s mention of the militia camped just outside of town. “They are there for the young Bennet girls to flirt with, but apart from that, what are they doing there? It’s never really explained. It’s not much of a stretch to imagine they are there to fight the unmentionable menace.”
Meant to be a one note project, PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES surprisingly a massive financial and critical success, giving birth to a new subgenre of books. Quirk Books followed it with SENSE & SENSIBILITY & SEA MONSTERS, which pits the Dashwood sisters against man-eating jellyfish.
And there appears to be no end in sight. Current titles available are: THE ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN & ZOMBIE JIM; QUEEN VICTORIA DEMON HUNTER; THE UNDEAD WORLD OF OZ; JANE SLAYRE: MANFIELD PARK & MUMMIES; ABRAHAM LINCOLN VAMPIRE KILLER; ANDROID KAREINA; and even LITTLE WOMEN & WEREWOLVES.
Is nothing sacred? Is this the end of Western Literature? One thing is certain: millions of people are being exposed to works they might never even have thought of reading. Only history will tell whether these mashups are a fad or a new staple of reading. Lynn Messina, author of the forthcoming LITTLE VAMPIRE WOMEN, can’t predict which way mashups will go. ““I thought it was going to eventually tap out with JESUS CHRIST VAMPIRE HUNTER, but I Googled it and it was already a movie!”
