Reviews

Staff Review

New Releases in Fiction - October 2019!

Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Gregg W.
Oct 10, 2019

Hello and welcome to our look at some new releases this month at the Johnson County Library! Every month we look at five fiction titles making their debut that we think you absolutely need to know about. Give one - or more - of these titles a chance to make it in your hold list. We hope you find something new!

Staff Review

Flash Count Diary: Menopause and the Vindication of Natural Life

By Darcey Steinke
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Lisa A.
Oct 9, 2019

“Every ten years or so, I either go back to therapy or I write a book in order to tell myself again, in a new way, my life story. This current version is death heavy, feminism heavy, whale heavy, but also multilayered, even multigenerational. I’m not only fifty-six but also seven, twelve, twenty-seven, thirty-four, and forty-eight. My story is like a choral piece with many different parts.

Teen Review

Scarlet

By Marissa Meyer

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Oct 8, 2019

The second book in the Lunar Chronicles, Scarlet, is a take on the well known tale of Little Red Riding Hood. The main character and namesake is Scarlet, a farm girl living on the outskirts of a small French town. Scarlet’s spunkiness and courageous attitude makes her an almost shockingly dynamic character compared to Cinder from the first book.

Staff Review

The Giver of Stars

By Moyes, Jojo
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Lisa H
Oct 7, 2019

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes is historical fiction at its very best!  Set in 1939 Southern Kentucky, the lives of five strong female characters come together to form and operate the Packhorse Library, where they deliver by horseback, books, magazines and newspapers to those living in remote, rural areas.

Staff Review

Let your Body Interpret your Dreams

By Eugene Gendlin
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Michelle H.
Oct 2, 2019

Let Your Body Interpret Your Dreams isn’t going to help you interpret your dreams quickly, but it will help you interpret them correctly. Eugene Gendlin’s technique is simple. You’ve got to feel something rather than think it. And while Gendlin does recommend a popular technique – working with others to free associate meanings so as to stumble upon one that resonates—he’s clear about the limits of this technique. The intellect is a slow tool, and language can’t reliably access dream meaning.

Staff Review

What We're Reading in September

Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Gregg W.
Oct 2, 2019

If you’ve ever wondered what our staff have been reading, watching, or listening to, our Staff Picks Blog is a great place to catch up. Also, if you're browsing for books in our Bibliocommons catalog, be sure to check out the lists our staff have made – these lists consist of topics and genres linked together by a specific theme, so when you’re done with one book and you want to jump into something similar, we’ve got you covered.

Staff Review

Recursion

By Blake Crouch
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Heather C
Sep 30, 2019

Recursion occurs when a thing is defined in terms of itself or of its type.  --Wikipedia

I first heard about this book on NPR and was intrigued enough to immediately put it on my holds list.  You can find out more about how to make your own holds list here. Let me just say that this book did not disappoint!

Staff Review

A Universe of Stories Writing Contest Winner

By Andy Rowe
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Helen H.
Sep 29, 2019

Johnson County Library is pleased to announce that Andy Rowe has won our writing contest in the Open Category on the theme of A Universe of Stories with "Heinlein and Burroughs".

Andy Rowe has enjoyed a 25-year career as an instructional designer and business trainer. He is also an award-winning business trainer, who has delivered some 900 presentations and seminars to over 50,000 people.

Staff Review

Kill the Farm Boy

By Delilah S. Dawson
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by Hilary S.
Sep 27, 2019

First, I must admit that I picked Kill the Farm Boy solely on its cover. I had no familiarity with either author before, nor had I read any reviews. I thought it looked like a fun and easy read, and that was exactly what I was in the mood for, so I tried it out. It is a lighthearted fantasy, packed in humor. But it's the type and quality of humor that makes this either a "love it" or "hate it" for many readers: poop jokes (lots of them), raunchy sex jokes and innuendo (lots of those, too).