Martha Williams, Director of Programs and Education, recommends Woman Without Shame by Sandra Cisneros. In her new collection of poems—her first published in 28 years—Sandra Cisneros breathes fearless words into everyday life. The poems in this book are ripe with self-discovery and self-appreciation, but also desire and aging and death. Acknowledging where she may find shame as she ages, Cisneros instead finds joy and humor and a deep understanding of how she wants to move in … [Read more...] about Book Review: Woman Without Shame
Library Blog
Mining Days of Old
By Kent Friel, Regional History Summer Intern As autumn arrives in the Wood River Valley, the trees begin to take on shades of gold, while the valley’s silver, or what remains of it, will be hidden from view far below ground. One could note more than a hint of irony in this arrangement, for although golden aspens draw sightseers today, it was precious silver ore that brought year-round settlement to the Wood River Valley over a century ago. During the 1880s, between 20 and 30 mines … [Read more...] about Mining Days of Old
Book Review: “Tess of the Road”
Sara Zagorski, Gold Mine Thrift Store Retail Manager, recommends Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman. Do you like intense character development, rebellion against the system, humanoid, sentient reptilian creatures and mystical adventures? Well, have I got the book for you. Tess is a twin sister in an affluent family who’s resigned herself to the official title of black sheep. After spending her youth seeking out all the things women of her rank have no business being … [Read more...] about Book Review: “Tess of the Road”
Book Review: The Library Book
Andrea Nelson, Library Assistant, recommends The Library Book by Susan Orlean. Ahh, Los Angeles in the eighties! Such a study in contrasts. At once glittering, decaying, innovative, desperate, brilliant and dark. Shining stars, black holes, and all manner of people. In the twentieth century, dreamers from every corner of the planet flocked to L.A. By the mid-eighties, the City of Angels was both a cultural mecca and its own stylized cliché, but at its heart stood one true thing, steadfast … [Read more...] about Book Review: The Library Book
Book Review: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
Karen Little, Library Assistant and English Language Learning Instructor, recommends The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy (available in English and Spanish). “What do you want to be when you grow up?” asked the mole? “Kind,” said the boy. This is just one of many musings from a curious cadre of friends who are on a journey questioning life and what the future holds in the graphic novel, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. The contemplative boy is one of four … [Read more...] about Book Review: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
Moral Panic and the Banning of Books
by Cathy Butterfield, Collections Manager The recognition that knowledge is a form of power has shaped libraries around the world and through the ages. Our earliest forms of written symbol and history are passed down to us through myriad forms of libraries throughout the ages, from the cave art of Lascaux, to Babylonian clay tablets from the 3rd century B.C., to the website "Archive of Our Own." Without the archival passion to preserve, those records would have returned to … [Read more...] about Moral Panic and the Banning of Books
