Lisa recommends "Everybody Says Meow"

A clowder of cats gather on the farm in that time when everybody says Meow. Other animals try to join in and add their noises. While the cats aren’t thrilled at first, they become accepting of the other voices until the last one clears the farmyard. This one is fun for the kids to hear, but adults will be laughing as they read it too. Recommended for ages 2-6 and their families.

Meghan recommends "The Pretty One"

 

 

“From the disability rights advocate and creator of the #DisabledAndCute viral campaign, a thoughtful, inspiring, and charming collection of essays exploring what it means to be black and disabled in a mostly able-bodied white America.”

This July marks the 32^nd anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act. That makes the ADA just one year old than Keah Brown - pop culture journalist, disability rights activist, and author of The Pretty One: On life, pop culture, disability, and other reasons to fall in love with me. In The Pretty One Brown discusses her relationships with her twin sister, her disability (cerebral palsy) and herself – honestly revealing that it took her a long time to see herself as cute, and to accept her disability as a full part of herself. Because the book is an essay collection, readers can easily dip in and out rather than read it cover to cover. I particularly recommend the title essay, “The Pretty One” and “You Can’t Cure Me, I Promise, It’s Fine.”

The ADA works to ensure all people with disabilities (like the real people and characters in this list of books and films) have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else.

Catherine recommends "I am I am I am: Seventeen Brushes With Death"

 

I picked this up because I was intrigued by the subtitle of this book: “Seventeen Brushes With Death” – who has that many close calls, I wondered? By the end of the first essay, I was hooked. The writing in this memoir is simply breathtaking, and as I read O’Farrell describe each near-death episode in her life, I found myself needing to pause and absorb the impact of the scenes she described. The essays are at times harrowing, but ultimately this is a memoir about embracing life fully, even when (or perhaps, because) it seems most precarious and frightening. I absolutely loved this book and look forward to reading more by Maggie O’Farrell in the future.

 

Adult.

 

 

Jamie recommends "Blood Sugar"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet Ruby, your friendly, neighborhood murdered. She admits it. But she did not kill her husband, Of that she is adamant. So then why are the police questioning her for his murder, yet they haven't a clue about the others? This is was an interesting read. The psychology of why Ruby murders and how was intriguing. Generally in thriller, the murderer is a hated character. In this book, Ruby really wasn't I found the writing compelling and I couldn't put it down. It is set in Florida so even though it is a thriller, it also makes for a great beach read.

Natalie Recommends Pride Month Reads

This month, I decided to read a handful of books that evolve around LGBTQ+ themes.  Whether the characters or authors are members of the LGBTQ+ community, I picked up a few that I would love to recommend.  

From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper, Miss Memory Lane by Colton Haynes, and Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Green, are all targeted towards Adult audiences in our adult fiction and non fiction sections.  They are about LGBTQ+ characters, take place in a world with prominent LGBTQ+ characters, and/or are written by LGBTQ+ authors.

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman is a young adult graphic novel series telling the tail of two high-school students, Nick and Charlie, who start off as good friends, but as time goes on, find that the feelings they have for each other are more than just friendly.  It's a relatable coming of age about two students who face day to day challenges of high-school life while being LGBTQ+.  This has also inspired a Netflix adaptation that did come out earlier this year. 

A Quick and Easy Guide to Asexuality, A Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identity, and A Quick and Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns are all apart of the same Quick and Easy Guide to series and can be found in our graphic novel and teen graphic novel section and can be enjoyed by both teen and adult age groups.  

The Rise of Kyoshi and The Shadow of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee are books that I have previously read and recommended.  They can be found in our teen area.  It can also be enjoyed by an adult audience that either like fantasy and/or are familiar with the Avatar the Last Airbender series.

Kara recommends "Skip to My Moo: A Rollicking Barnyard Story"

 

This fun sing-along picture book retelling of “Skip to My Lou” will have your preschooler giggling at, and dancing along with, the farm animals! 

Singing is a great way to help children hear the smaller sounds in words because it often connects each syllable of a word to a note.  It also introduces rhyming and builds vocabulary. 

This book would probably be most enjoyed by young children.