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Upcoming Fall books

The Fall season brings so many good things ... cooler weather, freshly picked apples ... and the anticipation of a big book publishing season.  The Sunday's Philadelphia Inquirer (9/7/08) included a wonderful list of upcoming book titles that will be published this fall.   We'll be getting all of these titles once they are published, so if you see one on this list that intrigues you, don't forget that you can put a "hold" on that title now - you don't need to wait until publication date.  If you already have a Free Library card and a PIN, just go to www.freelibrary.org and click on "My Account." 

These two authors are part of the Parkway Central's Fall author series and will be here to talk about their new books: 

Marilynne Robinson's Home

Annette Gordon-Reed's The Hemingses of Monticello:  an American Family

 

 

 

 

Tags: New books

One of Many New Fall Titles
One of Many New Fall Titles
Posted by Anne L. @ 2:36 PM View Comments»
African American National Biography

An exciting addition to our reference collection is making its way onto shelves around the city: the multi-volume African American National Biography, published by Oxford University Press and edited by Henry Louis Gates and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham.  This is the largest research project in African American Studies to be completed or published in over 20 years, according to a Library Journal Article (1/15/2008 "Behind the Book—First of Its Kind: African American National Biography"). The project was a massive undertaking that brings together the work of over 1000 scholars who researched and wrote over biographical 4000 entries.
 
The scope of this reference work spans 500 years of African American life, including entries about historical figures, according to Dr. Gates, "who already have a place in the historical record, even if only just a few words." These thousands of lives span eight volumes that include previously uncollected information, especially about women and the roles they played on the local level in defying segregation laws and registering new voters. The immensity of this project means that we can read about the lives of hundreds of historical figures whom previous publishers had to leave out because there was not enough information about them or because there was not space to include them.
 
Some of the entries feature photographs of the subject, and all of them include citations for further reading and research. Take a look through the African American National Biography, where you can read about African Americans from Aaron (a former slave from Virginia who became an antislavery lecturer who toured New England) to Paul Burgess Zuber (a lawyer who represented cases that established legal precedents against segregation) and crucially, the thousands of lives in between.
 
The AANB is on the reference shelves at Parkway Central, Blackwell Regional, Northeast Regional, Holmesburg, Kingsessing, Logan, and Wynnefield.

(post written by Joel N, at Blackwell Regional Library)

Tags: African American, new books

African American National Biography
African American National Biography
Posted by Anne L. @ 10:02 AM View Comments»
Harlem Book Fair News!

When I attended the Harlem Book Fair recently, I spoke with local Philly author, Karen E. Quinones Miller, who has started her own publishing company.  The Free Library of Philadelphia has ordered these new titles (click on the link to reserve):

The Guide to Becoming the Sensuous Black Woman (And Drive Your Man Wild In and Out of Bed!)
We own her other books already. To find or place a reserve on any Karen E. Quinones Miller novel, click on the hyperlink for each title:
I also attended a panel discussion on the topic of "Gay & Lesbian Writers: Breaking Surface."  The moderator, Troy Johnson (Founder - AALBC.com) and panelists, Terrance Dean (Hiding in Hip Hop: On the Down Low in the Entertainment Industry--From Music to Hollywood) and Linda Villarosa (Passing for Black), discussed: “Are publishers out of step with consumer demand?” Gay and Lesbian fiction continue to sell in record numbers, yet Zane's current title, Purple Panties, has been refused for bookstore signings, an online magazine has declined support, and a major online book club service has "passed" on offering it to their members. Is it because it is a collection of lesbian erotica?
Stay tuned for an announcement of an Author Event with Terrance Dean.
(All books mentioned are currently owned by the Free Library or are on order)

Tags: African American, new books, Street Lit

Passin' by Karen E. Quinones Miller
Passin' by Karen E. Quinones Miller
Passing for Black by Linda Villarosa
Passing for Black by Linda Villarosa
Hiding in Hip Hop by Terrance Dean
Hiding in Hip Hop by Terrance Dean
Posted by RB-Collection Development Librarian @ 11:43 AM View Comments»
Breaking Dawn

The biggest question to hit the literary world since "Does Harry die?!" is "Will Edward and Bella have a happy ending?!"  And thankfully, we don’t have to wait much longer to find out.  As I type, it’s about 11 hours and 49 minutes until Breaking Dawn hits the shelves.  But who’s counting, right?  Stephanie Meyer Mania has hit and if you haven’t noticed, it’s likely you are living under a rock or purposefully avoiding all media outlets.  As an avid fan, I’ve watched nearly every trailer on YouTube for the Twilight movie, but avoided reading any spoilers for Breaking Dawn because I don't want to ruin it for myself. 

If you don’t know what I’m talking about or who Edward and Bella are, you have some catching up to do.  Here’s the three run-on sentence summary of the first three books of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga: 

Bella moves to Forks, Washington to live with her father and transfers to the local high school where she meets Edward, who is the hottest thing since toasted bread and who, interestingly enough, is a vampire of the non-human eating variety, living with his family nearby and of course Edward and Bella fall madly in love, much to the chagrin of her best friend (and werewolf) Jacob, who is also in love with Bella and is by (werewolf) nature, a sworn enemy of vampires.  Bella, clumsy, but endearing heroine that she is, gets herself into all kinds of trouble with not-so-friendly vampires, which Edward saves her from repeatedly.  Bella wants nothing more than to be with Edward forever through becoming a vampire herself, but Edward, and Jacob think this is a bad idea, which is where we are now, eagerly awaiting Breaking Dawn. 

                I have to admit, I tried to use my Librarian Connections to get a copy of Breaking Dawn before it hit the shelves.  But this book is locked up tighter than Fort Knox.  So I’m waiting like the rest of you to find out the fate of Bella, Edward, Jacob and everyone else I’ve come to know in Forks.

 The only real question I anticipate having after I turn the last page of the book’s 768 pages is, What am I going to do now that it’s all done??               

What do you think is going to happen?  Who do you think Bella should end up with?  Share your thoughts!

 

Want to catch up or reread her other books?  Find Stephenie Meyer at the Free Library! 

And if you haven’t done it already, place your hold now; copies are expected to hit library shelves Monday or Tuesday due to a shipping snafu.  (Sorry!!) 

 

Tags: new books

Breaking Dawn
Breaking Dawn
Posted by Liz A. @ 12:11 PM View Comments»
New Books with a Philadelphia Connection

Who doesn’t enjoy reading books that feature our locale or that were written by local authors?  Carlin Romano’s article in Tuesday’s Philadelphia Inquirer highlights 30 new books featuring a Philadelphia connection that have just been published or will be later this year.  The Free Library either owns these books, or we have ordered them, in which case you can reserve a copy (click on “Place a Hold” in our online catalog). 

See “NEW BOOKS WITH A PHILADELPHIA CONNECTION" (as listed in 6/24/08 Philadelphia Inquirer article by Carlin Romano)” for his picks.
 
 

Tags: new books

Posted by Anne L. @ 9:53 AM View Comments»