New Books for April:

FICTION

Daddy's Gone A Hunting by Mary Higgins Clark. Two sisters are threatened by a dark secret from their family's past.






Don't Go by Lisa Scottoline.  An army doctor returns from Afghanistan when his wife dies in what at first appears to be an accident and finds that his life is falling apart.

Unintended Consequences by Stuart Woods. The New York lawyer Stone Barrington discovers a shadowy network beneath the world of European wealth.

The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout. Two brothers, both lawyers, come together in a small Maine town to defend their good for nothing nephew.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. A woman disappears on her fifth anniversary; is her husband a killer?

Six Years by Harlan Coben. Jake Fisher discovers that neither the woman he loved nor their life together were what they seemed.

Starting Now by Debbie Macomber.  A Seattle lawyer loses her job and remakes her life; she finds support at the local knitting store.  A Blossom Street novel.

The Interesting by Meg Wolitzer. Six friends meet in the 1970s at a summer arts camp and pursue success, and one another, over succeeding decades.

Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg. A woman and her three housemates in St Paul embark on a road trip to reconnect with people who have left their lives.

Midnight at Marble Arch by Anne Perry. The Victorian sleuths Charlotte and Thomas Pitt investigate a horrific rape and apparent suicide.

NONFICTION

Gulp by Mary Roach. A science writer's pilgrimage down the digestive tract.







Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou. The developing reconciliation between the poet and her mother, who sent her to live with her grandmother at age 3.

Carrie and Me by Carol Burnett. The comedian recalls her oldest daughter, who died in 2002.

Clean by David Sheff. A review of research on addiction from psychology, neuroscience, and medicine.

TEENS

The Lightning Dreamer by Margarita Engle. Tula is a girl who yearns for words, who falls in love with stories, but in Cuba girls are not allowed an education. No, Tula is expected to marry well - even though she's filled with guilt at the thought of the slaves Mama will buy with money gained by marrying Tula to the highest bidder. Then one day, hidden in a dusty corner of a convent library, Tula discovers the banned books of a rebel poet. The poems speak to the deepest part of her soul, giving her a language with which to write of the injustice around her.

Period.8 by Chris Crutcher. An hour a day. You can hang out. You can eat your lunch. You can talk. Or listen. Or neither. Or both. Nothing is off limits. The only rule is that you keep it real; that you tell the truth. Heller High senior Paul Baum - aka Paulie Bomb - tells the truth. Not the "Wow, that's an ugly sweater" variety of truth, but the other kind.

The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington. Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school. It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. But then things begin happening. Strange otherworldly things.

Shadows by Ilsa J Black. Even before the EMPs brought down the world, Alex was on the run from the demons of her past and the monster living in her head. After the world was gone, she believed Rule could be a sanctuary for her and those she'd come to love. But she was wrong.

CHILDREN

Albert's Bigger than Big Idea by Eleanor May. As the smallest mouse, Albert gets the smallest bag when he collects fruit in the People Kitchen with his sister, Wanda, and Cousin Pete, but he wants to carry more than just a blueberry so he makes a bigger bag. Introduces the concept of comparing sizes.





The Lion Who Had Asthma by Jonathan London. Sean's nebulizer mask and his imagination aid in his recovery following an asthma attack. Includes information on childhood asthma and how to control its symptoms.

In the Garden with Dr Carver by Susan Grigsby. A fictionalized account of how plant scientist George Washington Carver came to an Alabama school and taught the children how to grow plants and reap the rewards of nature's bounty. Includes factual note about George Washington Carver.

Two Shy Pandas by Julia Jarman. Panda and Pandora live next to each other but never speak or play together because they are much too shy.

Exciting New Additions in DVD's

With the phenomenal success of Downton Abbey, interest in other Masterpiece Theatre productions has grown as well. The Library has recently added many popular titles to our DVD collection:

• The Forsyte Saga (based on the book by John Galworthy) was wildly popular when it first aired in 1967, and is enjoying a resurgence in popularity today.
• For Dickens lovers, we have Great Expectations, Bleak House, Oliver Twist, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood.
• Jane Austen: Northanger Abbey, Emma, and Pride and Prejudice.
• The Brontes: Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights
• We recently added the complete BBC set of Shakespeare's Plays, which have been popular as well.
• Other British series include the hilarious and quirky Doc Martin, seasons 1-5. (If you haven't experienced Doc Martin, you're in for a treat!)
• We have purchased many of the current Oscar-nominated and Oscar-winning movies, including Argo, Les Miserables, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Lincoln, The Hobbit, and Life of Pi.

Thanks to a generous donation from our Friends of the Library group, we have been able to add these and other DVD titles.

Our children's DVD's are very poplar as well. Most of our selection has been donated by generous patrons. We accept donations at any time of DVD's in good condition. DVD's may be checked out on an adult card for two days, with a limit of two.

We also show Movies at the Library, and these programs have highlighted this year's Oscar winners as well as long-time favorites. Check our website or the Tracings column in the Natchez Democrat for future showings.

Come in and check out our great selection of DVD's!

Be Careful Before You "Like" Something on Facebook

If you're on facebook, you've seen tons of these posts. "Like" if you hate cancer - or if you hate bullying. If I get X number of likes, my dad will quit taking drugs. Name a city without an R in it. Find a word in this puzzle. Cute pictures of animals asking you to "like" them. Posts that say something magical will happen when you click on the picture. Pictures of famous people with quotes they never said. Guess what? Most are scams.

You may have worked hard to get rid of junk mail, put yourself on the "do not call" list, and are careful not to open suspicious links in your email. But if you responded to any of these posts, you may have been victimized by a scam called Like Farming. Remember how you laughed at people who responded to the email from the Nigerian promising millions? Well, you may have just done something very similar.

Here's how it works. Someone creates a facebook page called something like Support Our Troups. Then they post heroic pictures, telling you to "like" if you support our troups and ignore if you don't. How do you ignore that without feeling guilty? When you like or share it, it goes to all your friends - who then like it and it goes to all their friends. Suddenly this page has hundred of thousands of likes - and their associated facebook identities. There are experts who tell marketers how to do this - here's an example of one.

Some of these may be legitimate. Some may be from someone who doesn't have a life and gets thrill from having a bunch of likes. Some may take you to unwanted websites. But more and more are in it just for the money. How do they make money?

It might just be a clever marketing scheme for a legitimate company. CafeMom is a website for mothers (started by 2 men, which makes me immediately suspicious) that is quite profitable. They put up a facebook post that said "Like" if you love your kids and got 1.3 million likes. Very valuable to their advertiser supported site!

But it may also just be spammers who build up their collection of facebook identities and sell them. They usually work together in loose networks who post each others photos, so they can quickly gain tens of thousands of names and facebook addresses. Then they sell them to a facebook advertiser.

This is perfectly legal and very profitable. Aside from feeling creepy, you might think it's harmless. Terri, the mother of Katie, the child used in this scam, certainly didn't think so. 3.5 million people liked this photo, and their identities were sold for big bucks.

"This is my sister Mallory. She has Down syndrome and doesn't think she's beautiful. Please like this photo so I can show her later that she truly is beautiful." 


What can you do to prevent your identity from being sold? It's not easy. When I went on facebook this morning, I spotted 15 spammers from those who are friends with the Library on facebook - before I quit counting. The most important thing is to Think Before Clicking. Ask yourself: Do I really have to like or share this? Remember, you are not only exposing yourself, but your friends as well. You should be able to notice the most obvious ones. However, these scammers are becoming more and more clever.  Look at the page that originated the post - not your friend who shared or like it. If it's not one you recognize, don't click. If you have friends who keep sending these, send them a link to this post and suggest that they be more careful. If they ignore your advice, you may want to unfriend them.

National Library Week is April 14-20

Please help us celebrate! Did you know? ...

Our country is made up of individual communities, each with its own needs that can be as unique as the communities themselves. In the middle on all of these challenges, often in the very heart of our community, is a solution, a trusted institution that makes it its business to understand our needs: the library.

Librarians listen and respond to meet community needs. Libraries provide the space for diverse groups to come together for a common purpose, to tackle local issues. Librarians work with elected officials, small business owners, students, seniors and the public at large to discover what their communities needs are and to meet them.

The library helps foster all types of communities. We see this in our library firsthand, in ways big and small. New moms connect at storytime, genealogists conduct their ancestor searches, teens meet up to collaborate on projects and to hang out together after school, student can research topics then use the computers to write papers, visitors can keep in touch with home via wi-fi, the list goes on!

Service to the community has always been the focus of the library. While this aspect has never changed, libraries have grown and evolved in how they provide for the needs of every member of their community. Programs are just one way the library recognizes the changing needs. In addition to children's programming and teen programming, we offer monthly programming for adults. We are adding technology programming, as well.

This week, schools, campuses, and communities across the country celebrate National Library Week.  It is a time to remember that needs of our community matter to one of our most important institutions: our library.

Come visit your library today and find out for yourself what we have to offer!

Happy Holidays!

Spring is here! Or so the calendar says…I think Mother Nature is sleeping in late here in the Natchez area, but nonetheless, this is a time to celebrate life, fertility, abundance, and all things new. Trees are budding, flowers are breaking through the soil, and baby animals are taking their first breaths on this beautiful planet. This is a time of year to rejoice, as we awaken from the Winter.

Have you ever wondered why people choose to read books about holidays around the holiday?? I have. I think that it is just silly! It shouldn't matter if you read a Christmas themed book around the Fourth of July or a Easter book around Thanksgiving. All that matters is that you READ!!

So, to mix things up a little here are a few children's books that I picked out to enjoy around Easter along with your other book selections: Books about books, and books about the library!!

That Book Woman by Heather Henson. A moving tale that honors a special part of American history--the Pack Horse Librarians, who helped untold numbers of children see the stories amid the chicken scratch, and thus made them into lifelong readers.



I Know A Librarian Who Chewed on a Word by Laurie Lazzaro Knowlton. All librarians love books but have you ever met one who just ate them up...literally? Miss Devine does. In this adaption of "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly," one Dewey Decimal Diva has gone on a most unusual eating binge.

READING Makes You Feel Good by Todd Parr. Reading makes you feel good because...you can imagine you are a scary dinosaur or you can make someone feel better when they are sick and you can do it anywhere! Read this book and feel good!

The Return of the Library Dragon by Carmen Agra Deedy. Miss Lotta Scales, a dragon also known as Miss Lotty the Librarian, wants to retire from taking care of the school's library but will not willingly stand by and see her beloved books replaced by computers.

I hope everyone enjoys the Easter holiday! And remember, no matter what type of book you read this weekend, the most important thing is that you read it!

New Books for March

FICTION

Calculated in Death by J D Robb. Lt Eve Dallas must crunch the numbers as she investigates the death of a successful accountant; by Nora Roberts, writing pseudonymously.

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult. A New Hampshire baker finds herself in the midst of two Holocaust stories: her grandmother's story of survival, and the confessions of an elderly German man, an SS officer.

Alex Cross, Run by James Patterson. While Alex Cross pursues a Washington serial killer (or killers?), someone is after him.

A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy. This final book by Binchy, who died in 2012, is about guests at an inn by the sea on Ireland's west coast.

Red Velvet Cupcake Murder by Joanne Fluke. Hannah Swensen becomes a suspect when her romantic rival turns up dead; recipes included.

Guilt by Jonathan Kellerman. The Los Angeles psychologist detective Alex Delaware and the detective Milo Sturgis pursue the story of a beautiful nurse.

Touch and Go by Lisa Gardner. An investigator probing the disappearance of a seemingly perfect Boston family must dig beneath the surface.

Bad Blood by Dana Stabenow. Kate Shugak, an Aleut private investigator, must sort out murders motivated by revenge between two Alaska towns.

Private Berlin by James Patterson & Mark Sullivan. A superstar agent at the German headquarters of an investigation firm disappears.

NONFICTION

Coolidge by Amity Shlaes. This biography reclaims the 30th president as a conservative hero.

Killing Kennedy by Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard. The host of The O'Reilly Factor recounts the events surrounding the assassination of  John F Kennedy.

Killing Lincoln by Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard. The host of The O'Reilly Factor recounts the events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

Remembering Whitney by Cissy Houston with Lisa Dickey. The gospel singer discusses her daughter Whitney's life.

TEENS

Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson & Maxine Paestro. Tandy Angel is, along with her brothers, a suspect in their parents' murder but having grown up under Malcolm and Maud Angel's perfectionist demands, Tandy decides she must clear the family name no matter what.

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare. When seventeen year old orphaned shapechanger Tessa Gray is kidnapped by the villainous Mortmain in his final bid for power, the London Institute rallies to save her, but is beset by betrayal at every turn.

The White Bicycle by Beverley Brenna. Taylor Jane Simon, an eighteen year old girl with Asperger's Syndrome, travels to France, as she struggles to become independent of her controlling mother and meets a new mentor.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sanez. Fifteen year old Ari Mendoza is an angry loner with a brother in prison, but when he meets Dante and they become friends, Ari starts to ask questions about himself, his parents, and his family that he has never asked before.

In Darkness by Nick Lake. In the aftermath of the Haitian earthquake, fifteen year old Shorty, a poor gang member from the slums of Site Soleil, is trapped in the rubble of a ruined hospital, and as he grows weaker, he has visions and memories of his life of violence, his lost twin sister, and of Toussaint L'Ouverture, who liberated Haiti from French rule in 1804.

CHILDREN

Creepy Carrots! by Aaron Reynolds. The carrots that grow in Crackenhopper Field are the fattest and crispiest around, and Jasper Rabbit cannot resist pulling some to eat each time he passes by, until he begins hearing creepy carrots wherever he goes.

Emeraldalicious by Victoria Kann. When Pinkalicious and Peter decide to visit their favorite park, they find that it's no longer their favorite place--the park is now filled with stinky trash!  So, Pinkalicious decides to make an extraspecial wand out of a stick and some flowers.

Skippyjon Jones Cirque de Ole' by Judy Schachner. Skippyjon Jones, the Siamese cat that thinks he is a Chihuahua dog, wants to perform his high wire act in the circus.

Pete the Cat: Pete's Big Lunch by James Dean. Pete the cat shares his big lunch with his friends.

Pete the Cat: Play Ball! by James Dean. Pete the cat is ready to play baseball!  Pete's team, the Rocks, is playing the Rolls.  But when the game doesn't go Pete's way, what will Pete do?

What Does a Reference Librarian Do?

In addition to being the Teen Services Librarian, I am also the Reference Librarian. You might be wondering just exactly what does a Reference Librarian do. Basically, I answer questions. They come from patrons, either in person, by phone, or through email.

It's always been satisfying helping high school and college students find materials needed to write their research and term papers, using books or through our huge database, MAGNOLIA.

I also answer simple questions, such as finding phone numbers and addresses, facts about states, how to spell or define an obscure word, etc. However, I do receive more challenging questions or requests for research from all over the country - especially from genealogists.

Since moving here from Ohio almost ten years ago, I have decided every person in the United States must have some kind of connection to Natchez. My cup runneth over with requests for obituaries, birth records, any mention of "my great-great grandfather who once owned a store downtown back in 1898." As I rattle my brain looking for informaion or go nearly blind reading old microfilm, I keep telling myself that this is job security.

Just when I want to throw my hands in the air from frustration, I get a gem of a question from one of my local patrons that puts a smile on my face. It reminds me that my job is different every day, and I'm always learning something new, whether I want to or not.

Here are a few questions that came across my desk or were asked of other librarians across the country.

• Do you have the book,  How to Kill a Mockingbird?
• Can you help me find a book I checked out several weeks ago? I can't remember the title but the book was blue with gold letters!
• Can you send me a list of all the local criminal lawyers in town? (Letter sent from inmate at local jail.)
• I need a photograph of Jesus. No, not a painting or picture, but a photograph!
• Don't you have any Shakspeare in real English?
• I'm trying to find the words to a song, if I hum the tune can you figure it out?

Never a dull moment. I love my job!