Library News
What's the Story? - Nov. 3 to July 27
Posted on July 23, 2021
“What’s the Story?”
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Selection for July 27
The Final Girl Support Group
by Grady Hendrix
A fast-paced, thrilling horror novel. Lynnette Tarkington is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre 22 years ago, and it has defined every day of her life since. For more than a decade she’s been meeting with five other actual final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, putting their lives back together, piece by piece. That is until one of the women misses a meeting and Lynnette’s worst fears are realized.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
My Sister the Serial Killer
by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Realizing that her beautiful, beloved younger sister has murdered yet another boyfriend, an embittered Nigerian woman works to direct suspicion away from the family, until a handsome doctor she fancies asks for her sister’s number.
Night of the Mannequins
by Stephen Graham Jones
A contemporary horror story where a teen prank goes very wrong and all hell breaks loose: is there a supernatural cause, a psychopath on the loose, or both?
Solstice
by Lorence Alison
Offered an all-expenses-paid trip to the exclusive Solstice Festival, Adri throws caution, her prestigious summer internship, and her parents’ goodwill to the wind. When the horde of affluent, entitled teen party-goers arrive at the island paradise, there’s barely any food, nowhere to stay, not nearly enough porta-potties – and the first dead body washes up on the beach.
Camp Murderface
by Josh Berk and Saundra Mitchell
The year: 1983. Camp Sweetwater is finally reopening, three decades after it mysteriously shut down. Campers Corryn Quinn and Tez Jones have each had more than enough of their regular lives – they’re so ready to take their summer at Sweetwater by storm. But before they can so much as toast one marshmallow, strange happenings start happening. Can they survive the summer?
The Murders that Made Us
How Vigilantes, Hoodlums, Mob Bosses, Serial Killers, and Cult Leaders Built the San Francisco Bay Area
by Bob Calhoun
The 170-year history of the San Francisco Bay Area told through its crimes and how they intertwine with the city’s art, music, and politics. From the city’s earliest days, where vigilantes hung perps from buildings and newspaper publishers shot it out on Market Street, to the kidnapping of Patty Hearst and the Zodiac Killer, crime has made the people of San Francisco who they are.
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark
One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State killer
by Michelle McNamara
For more than 10 years, a mysterious and violent predator committed 50 sexual assaults in Northern California before moving south, where he perpetrated 10 sadistic murders. Then he disappeared, eluding capture by multiple police forces and some of the best detectives in the area. Three decades later, Michelle McNamara was determined to find the violent psychopath she called “the Golden State Killer.”
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered
The Definitive How-To Guide
by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
From the voices behind the number one hit podcast My Favorite Murder! Sharing never-before-heard stories ranging from their struggles with depression, eating disorders, and addiction, the authors recount their biggest mistakes and deepest fears, reflecting on the formative life events that shaped them into two of the most followed voices in the nation.
Selection for July 20
Shirley Jackson
A Rather Haunted Life
by Ruth Franklin
The tumultuous life of the author behind such classics as The Haunting of Hill House and The Lottery. Placing Jackson within an American Gothic tradition of Hawthorne and Poe, Franklin demonstrates how her unique contribution to this genre came from her focus on "domestic horror" drawn from an era hostile to women.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle
by Shirley Jackson
Deeply unsettling, this novel about a perverse, isolated, and possibly murderous family follows their dramatic struggle with the arrival of an unexpected visitor who interrupts their unusual way of life.
The Letters of Shirley Jackson
As well as being a bestselling author, Shirley Jackson spent much of her adult life as a mother of four in Vermont, and the landscape here is often the everyday. But in recounting these events, she turns them into remarkable stories: entertaining, revealing, and wise. At the same time, many of these letters provide fresh insight into the genesis and progress of Jackson’s writing over nearly three decades.
Renowned horror writer Shirley Jackson is on the precipice of writing her masterpiece when the arrival of newlyweds upends her meticulous routine and heightens tensions in her already tempestuous relationship with her philandering husband.
(DVD)
We Have Always Lived in the Castle
This 2018 film is an adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s novel.
(DVD)
Shirley
by Susan Merrell
Moving into the home of famed writer Shirley Jackson and her college professor husband during the summer of 1964, a graduate student and his pregnant wife forge an uneasy friendship with their hosts that is complicated by Jackson's mercurial nature and her turbulent marriage.
9 Magic Wishes
by Shirley Jackson, illustrated by Miles Hyman
A little girl is granted nine wishes by a mysterious magician, and her choices capture a childlike imagination. When she has gone through eight of her wishes, she is hard pressed to make a ninth wish, so instead she leaves it for some other lucky person to find. First published in 1963 with different pictures, this edition is illustrated in full-color by Jackson's grandson.
Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
The Authorized Graphic Adaptation
adapted by Miles Hyman
In a graphic-novel adaptation of the classic spine-tingler, the grandson of the story's original author depicts the eerie town and their shocking ritual in detailed four-color panels that breathe new life into the iconic tale.
Los Abismos
por Pilar Quintana
Con el telón de fondo del estrecho universo femenino formado por mujeres acomodadas a su vida, que no pueden romper con una educación de otro tiempo, Pilar Quintana ha construido una novela intimista, con una voz narradora deslumbrante en su ingenuidad que, desde la memoria del hogar, conduce al lector por las obsesiones que pueblan la niñez de la que la protagonista se está despidiendo. Disponible en libro impreso y libro electrónico.
Selection for July 13
The Book of Difficult Fruit
arguments for the tart, tender and unruly
by Kate Lebo
Inspired by 26 fruits, essayist, poet, and pie lady Kate Lebo expertly blends the culinary, medical, and personal in a book of lyrical essays, accompanied by recipes.
(Print book, large type book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Follow chef Marcus Samuelsson as he immerses himself in diverse immigrant communities and cuisines in cities across the U.S.
(DVD)
The plant messiah
adventures in search of the
world's rarest species
by Carlos Magdalena
A scientist offers an impassioned memoir of saving extraordinary plants on the brink of extinction, describing his search for exotic plants in remote locations and his laboratory efforts to encourage vulnerable plants to thrive.
Cocinología
la ciencia de cocinar
por Stuart Farrimond
Profundiza en la extraña ciencia de la cocina, en este libro. Encuentra los conceptos fundamentales de la cocina revelados junto con prácticos consejos y técnicas paso a paso, que harán de tu cocina un auténtico laboratorio.
Pie school
lessons in fruit, flour and butter
by Kate Lebo
Kate Lebo shares her recipes for 50 perfect pies. Included are apple (of course), five ways with rhubarb, lemon chiffon, several blueberry pie variations, galettes, and more.
There's No Ham in Hamburgers
Facts and Folklore About
Our Favorite Foods
by Kim Zachman
Why is there no ham in hamburgers? How did we make ice cream before we could make ice? From the origins of pizza to the invention of chicken fingers, this book has all the ingredients for an entertaining read about the origins of some of America’s most popular foods.
A Woman’s Place
The Inventors, Rumrunners, Lawbreakers, Scientists
& Single Moms Who Changed
the World with Food
by Deepi Ahluwalia
Discover the hidden figures of food, the women who changed the way we eat. From Julia Child, to the inventor of the dishwasher, to the suffragette who published cookbooks to finance their fight for justice, these trailblazers used the power of food to break barriers and change the world. Includes 10 recipes.
The Recipe Box
by Viola Shipman
When her efforts to pursue a professional culinary life away from her family’s northern Michigan orchard end in disappointment, Sam spends a summer working for the family pie shop. She begins to learn about and understand the women in her life, her family’s history and her passion for food as she prepares beloved ancestral recipes.
The School of Essential Ingredients
by Erica Bauermeister
Eight students gather in Lillian’s Restaurant every Monday night for cooking class. It soon becomes clear, however, that each one seeks a recipe for something beyond the kitchen as Chef Lillian, a woman whose connection with food is both soulful and exacting, helps them to create dishes whose flavor and techniques expand beyond the restaurant and into the secret corners of her students’ lives.
Selection for July 6
How the Word is Passed
a reckoning with the history of slavery across America
by Clint Smith
An unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks – those that are honest about the past and those that are not – that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation’s collective history, and ourselves.
(Print book, large type book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
On Juneteenth
by Annette Gordon-Reed
The essential, sweeping story of Juneteenth’s integral importance to American history.
Four Hundred Souls
edited by Ibram X. Kendi
and Keisha N. Blain
A “choral history” of African Americans covering 400 years of history in the voices of 80 writers, edited by the bestselling, National Book Award-winning historian Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain.
Master documentary filmmaker Raoul Peck envisions the book James Baldwin never finished. The result is a radical journey into black history that connects the past of the Civil Rights movement to the present of #BlackLivesMatter.
Hale County this morning,
this evening
Composed of intimate and unencumbered moments of people in a community, this film allows the viewer an emotive impression of the historic South - trumpeting the beauty of life and consequences of the social construction of race, while simultaneously a testament to dreaming.
(DVD)
A Sitting in St. James
by Rita Williams-Garcia
1860, Louisiana. After serving as mistress of Le Petit Cottage for more than six decades, Madame Sylvie Guilbert has decided, in spite of her family’s objections, to sit for a portrait. While Madame plots her last hurrah, stories that span generations, of routine horrors, secrets buried, and the tangled bonds of descendants and enslaved, come to light to reveal a true portrait of the Guilberts.
Buried Lives
The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon
by Carla Killough McClafferty
When he was 11 years old, George Washington inherited 10 human beings. The life of the first president has been well chronicled, but the lives of the people of color he owned – the people who sustained his plantation and were buried in unmarked graves there – have not.
En español para adultos
El precio del racismo
la hostilidad racial y la fractura del “sueño americano,”
por Eduardo Porter
En El precio del racismo Porter, periodista veterano del New York Times, muestra cómo la animadversión racial ha paralizado gran parte de las instituciones clave de una sociedad sana, incluyendo los sindicatos, la educación pública y la red de seguridad social, y cómo las profundas consecuencias se hacen cada día más graves. Disponible en libro impreso y libro electrónico
Selection for June 29
The Bohemians
by Jasmin Darznik
In 1918, a young and bright-eyed Dorothea Lange arrives in San Francisco, where a disaster kick-starts a new life.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Dorothea Lange
A Life Beyond Limits
by Linda Gordon
A riveting portrait of one of America's most renowned photographers.
An American Exodus
A Record of Human Erosion
by Dorothea Lange & Paul Taylor
First published in 1939, this book documents the rural poverty of the Depression-era exodus that brought more than 300,000 migrants to California in search of farm work, a westward mass migration driven by economic deprivation.
Dorothea Lange
The Photographer Who Found the Faces of the Depression
by Carole Boston Weatherford
Before she raised her lens to take her most iconic photo, Dorothea Lange took photos of the downtrodden. In this picture book biography, Weatherford captures the spirit of the influential photographer.
Women in Art
by Rachel Ignotofsky
Charmingly Illustrated profiles of 50 pioneering female artists, from the 11th Century to today.
The Japanese Lover
by Isabel Allende
A multigenerational epic that follows the impossible romance between a World War II escapee from the Nazis and a Japanese gardener’s son, whose story is discovered decades later by a care worker who would come to terms with her past.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
The Valley of Amazement
by Amy Tan
Violet Minturn, a half-Chinese/half-American courtesan who deals in seduction and illusion in Shanghai, struggles to find her place in the world, while her mother, Lucia, tries to make sense of the choices she has made and the men who have shaped her.
Profiles American photographer Dorothea Lange, who came to the attention of the world with her photographs documenting the Great Depression, and achieved lasting fame in the postwar years.
(DVD)
Selection for June 22
Charmian Kittredge London
Trailblazer, Author, Adventurer
by Iris Jamahl Dunkle
The biography of Charmian Kittredge London, who challenged traditional and societally prescribed gender roles and norms.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
The Paris Wife
by Paula McLain
Meeting through mutual friends in Chicago, Hadley is intrigued by brash “beautiful boy” Ernest Hemingway, and after a brief courtship and small wedding, they take off for Paris. Hadley makes a convincing transformation from an overprotected child to a brave young woman who puts up with impoverished living conditions and shattering loneliness to prop up her husband’s career.
Z
A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald
by Therese Fowler
A tale inspired by the marriage of F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald follows their union in defiance of her father’s opposition and her scandalous transformation into a Jazz Age celebrity in the literary party scenes of New York, Paris, and the French Riviera.
Hourglass
Time, Memory, Marriage
by Dani Shapiro
A piercing, life-affirming memoir about marriage and memory, about the frailty and elasticity of our most essential bonds, and about the accretion, over time, of both sorrow and love. Hourglass is an inquiry into how marriage is transformed by time.
Red Comet
The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath
by Heather L. Clark
An engrossing new biography of Sylvia Plath focuses on her remarkable literary and intellectual growth and achievement, restoring the vivid creative woman behind the longtime Plath myths perpetuated by a pathology-based approach to her life and art.
Devils, Lusts and Strange Desires
The Life of Patricia Highsmith
by Richard Bradford
In this new biography, Bradford considers Highsmith’s bestsellers in the context of her troubled personal life; her alcoholism, licentious sex life, racism, anti-Semitism, misogyny and abundant self-loathing. Made famous by the great success of her psychological thrillers, The Talented Mr Ripley and Strangers on a Train, Highsmith is lauded as one of the most influential and celebrated modern writers.
Headstrong Hallie!
The Story of Hallie Morse Daggett, the First Female “Fire Guard”
by Aimée Bissonette
illustrated by David Hohn
This picture book biography tells the story of Hallie Morse Daggett, the first woman fire guard hired by the US Forest Service, whose hard work and dedication led the way for other women to join the Forest Service.
What Every Girl Should Know
Margaret Sanger’s Journey: A Novel
by Jennifer Ann Mann
In this fictionalized biography, a teenage Maggie Higgins struggles to balance her responsibilities to her family, society’s expectations for women, and her desire to pursue her education and plan for the future.
Selection for June 15
The Book of Eels
by Patrik Svensson
A meditation on the world’s most elusive fish – the eel – and a reflection on the human condition.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
A Most Remarkable Creature
The Hidden Life and Epic Journey of the World’s Smartest Birds of Prey
by Jonathan Meiburg
An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet a rare and mysterious bird of prey – the caracara – that puzzled Darwin, fascinates modern day falconers, and carries secrets of our planet’s deep past in its family history.
The Shark Club
by Ann Kidd Taylor
Nearly two decades after surviving a shark attack in the Gulf of Mexico, a world-traveling marine biologist and respected “shark whisperer” harbors private insecurities that compel her to return to her Florida coast home to explore old and new relationships.
Eels
by Rachel Poliquin
I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking eels are just long, slippery fishy-things that are boringly ordinary. Well, you’re right! And you’re wrong! Eels only seem ordinary because they are so unknowably extraordinary, they have bamboozled scientists for thousands of years.
Into the Deep
Science, Technology, and the Quest to Protect the Ocean
by Christy Peterson
What lies in the deep? And who is at the forefront of these exciting discoveries? The scientists and research included in this book shed light on the most pressing issues currently facing oceanographers and point us in the right direction to solving these challenges.
The Hungry Tide
by Amitav Ghosh
Off the eastern coast of India lies an extraordinary cluster of islands known as the Sundarbans. In this exotic land, marine biologist Piya, fisherman Fokir and translator Kanai meet. As they travel deep into the remote archipelago, they experience a territory at risk not only from natural disaster, but also from human foolishness and volatile politics.
World of Wonders
In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and other Astonishments
by Aimee Nezhukumatathil
A collection of essays, with lush illustrations, about the natural world and the way its inhabitants can teach, support, and inspire us.
Owls of the Eastern Ice
A Quest to Find and Save the World’s Largest Owl
by Jonathan C. Slaght
n American scientist chronicles his travels through remote Russian landscapes to study the elusive and endangered Blakiston’s fish owl.
Selection for June 8
You Look Tired
An Excruciatingly Honest Guide to New Parenthood
by Jenny True
In the tradition of Ali Wong and Amy Schumer comes this whip-smart, spit-out-your-coffee funny guide for new parents – from popular blogger and columnist Jenny True.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Dad is Fat
by Jim Gaffigan
Stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who’s best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald’s, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children.
Dear Girls
Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets & Advice for Living Your Best Life
by Ali Wong
Ali Wong’s heartfelt and hilarious letters to her daughters (the two she put to work while they were still in utero) cover everything they need to know in life, like the unpleasant details of dating, how to be a working mom in a male-dominated profession, and how she trapped their dad.
Confessions of a Domestic Failure
by Bunmi Laditan
After leaving her career to become a stay-at-home-mom, Ashley Keller tries to improve her parenting skills by joining a boot camp called “Motherhood Better” run by her idol, the head of a Pinterest-perfect mommy blog empire, to hilariously awkward results.
(Print book, large type book, Book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Mamá imperfecta
cómo ser exitosa mientras tus hijos te educan
by Maggie Hegyi
No existe un libro mágico con todas las respuestas sobre la maternidad. Éste es un compendio de amor incondicional, de viajes en el tiempo, experiencias y consejos. Todas somos mamás imperfectas llenas de cariño perfecto. Aquí podrás encontrar lo que necesitas para ser una mujer exitosa mientras tus hijos crecen y, de paso, sacarle todo el provecho a la etapa más hermosa de la vida.
Educar con serenidad
soluciones creativas para padres desesperados
by Patricia Ramírez
Los padres y las madres nos tomamos la educación muy en serio, pero debemos dejar de copiar antiguos modelos para empezar a innovar, ser creativos y pensar que existe otra forma de educar sin recurrir a los gritos y a la figura de autoridad. Y, sobre todo, son desesperarnos. Educar non Serenidad ofrece soluciones crativas, divertidas y al alcance de todos para disfrutar educando.
Class Mom
by Laurie Gelman
Frowned upon by conservative fellow PTA members for her past as a single parent, Jen reluctantly agrees to become class mom during her youngest child’s kindergarten year, a role that is challenged by parent drama, hypersensitive allergies, and a former flame.
Don't Wait Up
Confessions of a Stay-At-Work Mom
by iz Astrof
In this blunt and side-splittingly funny book of essays, Liz Astrof embraces the realities of motherhood (and womanhood) that no one ever talks about: like needing to hide from your kids in your closet, your car, or a yoga class on the other side of town, letting them eat candy for dinner because you just can’t deal, to the sheer terror of failing them or at the very least losing them in a mall. And sometimes, many times, wondering if the whole parenting thing wasn’t for you.
Selection for June 1
The Age of Innocence
by Edith Wharton
Newland Archer begins to question the values of high society in Victorian New York when he finds himself torn between two very different women – his proper young fiancée and her exotic cousin.
(Print book, large type book, Book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Belgravia
by Julian Fellowes
A wealth of historical detail creates a vivid 19th Century upper class world, along with its strict code of conventional conduct, in both The Age of Innocence and Belgravia. Both feature wealthy characters caught in awkward social positions and monetary issues that jeopardize their prospects.
(Print book, large type book, Book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Rules of Civility
by Amor Towles
Both Rules of Civility and The Age of Innocence present stories in which chance encounters between characters force decisions that will heavily influence their futures.
(Print book, large type book, Book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
A methodically constructed period piece detailing the constraints on women, political marriages, and secret but tragic love in 18th Century French upper class society.
(DVD)
Edith Wharton
by Hermione Lee
Delving into heretofore untapped sources, the author brilliantly interweaves Edith Wharton’s life with the evolution of her writing, the full scope of which shows her to be far more daring than her stereotype as lapidarian chronicler of the Gilded Age.
Sargent’s Women
Four Lives Behind the Canvas
by Donna M. Lucey
Based on original letters and diaries, Donna M. Lucey illuminates four extraordinary women painted by the iconic high-society portraitist John Singer Sargent.
Inventing Victoria
by Tonya Bolden
Essie, a young black woman in 1880s Savannah, is offered the opportunity to leave her shameful past and be transformed into an educated, high society woman in Washington, D.C.
The Girl in the Torch
by Robert Sharenow
After her father is killed in a pogrom, 12-year-old Sarah and her mother immigrate to America, but when her mother dies before they get through Ellis Island, and the authorities want to send her back to the old country, Sarah hides in the torch of the Statue of Liberty.
Conoce a Dulce María Loynaz
por Sergio Andricaín
Como Wharton, Dulce María Loynaz provenio de una familia de clase alta y persiguió sus metas intelectuales a pesar de las barreras que enfrentaban las mujeres en ese epoca. Se convirtió en una de las poetas más amabas de Cuba y leída por todo el mundo.
Selection for May 25
In the Event of Contact
by Ethel Rohan
A collection of short stories depicting characters profoundly affected by physical connection, or its lack.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Everyone Dies Famous in a Small Town
by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock
Each story in Hitchcock’s collection connects the lives of young people from small towns in Alaska and across the American West.
Look Both Ways
A Tale Told in Ten Blocks
by Jason Reynolds
A collection of 10 short stories that all take place in the same day about kids walking home from school.
Braving the Wilderness
by Brene Brown
Brown redefines what it means to truly belong in an age of increased polarization.
Tell me more
Stories About the 12 Hardest things I’m Learning to Say
by Kelly Corrigan
A funny, wise and insightful exploration of seven sentences adult life requires. Each chapter draws from the author’s sometimes ridiculous, sometimes profound struggles with parenting and marriage, career and friendship, illness, aging and mortality.
La Piel Insomne
por Mauricio Montiel Figueiras
Estos cuentos despliegan la prosa que caracteriza la apuesta del escritor: una sinuosa realidad plagada de laberintos, presencias amenazantes o sensuales que amenazan con cambiar el mundo, tramas que nos llevan a descubrir la oscuridad que habita en cada cosa y ser que habita el universo. Cuentos cortos en español, de México.
Palomillas de la noche y otros relatos
por Helena María Viramontes
Los prejuicios y el estatus social y económico de los chicanos a menudo forman el telón de fondo de estas historias inquietantes, pero el tema central son los valores sociales y culturales que dan forma a la vida de las mujeres y contra los cuales luchan con diversos grados de éxito.
The land of big numbers
by Te-Ping Chen
Brought to life through this highly recommended audiobook, a story collection from an extraordinary new talent that vividly gives voice to the men and women of modern China and its diaspora.
Selection for May 18
Miracle Country
by Kendra Atleework
One family’s spirit and losses in a harsh landscape that has been shaped and exploited over hundreds of years.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Late Migrations
A Natural History of Love and Loss
by Margaret Renkl
Growing up in Alabama, Renkl was a devoted reader, an explorer of riverbeds and red-dirt roads, and a fiercely loved daughter. Here, in brief essays, she traces a tender and honest portrait of her complicated parents and the bittersweet moments that accompany a child’s transition to caregiver.
Nature Noir
A Park Ranger’s Patrol in the Sierra
by Jordan Fisher Smith
An intensely original story – part Edward Abbey, part James Ellroy – of the author’s 14 years as a park ranger on 48 miles of Sierra Nevada river canyons.
Mountain Dog
by Margarita Engle
When his mother is sent to jail in Los Angeles, 11-year-old Tony goes to live with his forest ranger great-uncle in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where Tony experiences unconditional love for the first time through his friendship with a rescue dog.
The Distance Between Us
(Young Readers Edition)
by Reyna Grande
Award-winning author Reyna Grande shares her personal experience of crossing borders and cultures in this middle grade adaptation of her memoir, The Distance Between.
Deep Creek
finding hope in the high country
by Pam Houston
“How do we become who we are in the world? We ask the world to teach us,” Pam Houston writes. On her 120-acre homestead high in the Colorado Rockies, this beloved writer learns what it means to care for a piece of land and the creatures on it.
Mamá
por Jorge Fernández Díaz
En los límites de la crónica periodística, el relato confesional y la biografía íntima, Mamá narra las aventuras, pequeñas alegrías y sinsabores de una mujer común de clase media que bien podría ser la madre o la abuela de cualquier lector, y que plantea el gran dilema actual y de todos los tiempos: irse o quedarse.
¿De dónde eres?
por Yamile Saied Méndez
Cuando se le pregunta a una chica de dónde es, de dónde es realmente, ninguna de sus respuestas parece ser la correcta. Sin estar segura de cómo responder, se dirige a su abuelo amoroso en busca de ayuda. Él no le da la respuesta que ella espera. Le da una aún mejor.
La casa de los ángeles rotos
por Luis Alberto Urrea
Esta es la historia de Angelote y Angelín, de lo que implica ser mexicano en Estados Unidos, haber vivido dos vidas y cruzado una frontera, y sobre cómo la muerte hace emerger las partes de tu vida que habías olvidado, haya sido o no por elección propia.
Selection for May 11
Second Place
by Rachel Cusk
A woman invites a famous artist to use her guesthouse in the remote coastal landscape where she lives with her family. But as a long, dry summer sets in, his provocative presence disrupts the calm of her secluded household.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Self Portrait with Boy
by Rachel Lion
A compulsively readable and electrifying debut about an ambitious young female artist who accidentally photographs a boy falling to his death—an image that could jumpstart her career, but would also devastate her most intimate friendship.
Leave the World Behind
by Rumaan Alam
Amanda and Clay head to a remote corner of Long Island for a vacation with their teenager children in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. The houseowners arrive in the middle of the night saying a blackout has swept the city. With no TV, internet or cell phone service, is the vacation home a safe place for their families? And are they safe from one other?
(Print book, large print Book, Book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Open Water
by Caleb Nelson
A stunning first novel about two young Black artists in London falling in and out of love.
Private Lessons
by Cynthia Salaysay
Seventeen-year-old Claire Alalay likes herself best when she plays her father's old piano. Claire auditions for Paul Avon, a prominent piano teacher, who agrees to take Claire as a pupil. Soon Claire loses herself in Paul's world and his way of digging into a composition's emotional core. She practices constantly, foregoing a social life, but no matter how hard she works, it seems impossible to gain Paul's approval, let alone his affection.
mass production of prints of big-eyed kids, and used his marketing savvy to sell them cheaply. Unfortunately, he claimed to be the artist. That role was played by Margaret, his shy wife.
(DVD)
Someone Else's Shoes
by Ellen Wittlinger
Twelve-year-old Izzy is upset by her father's new marriage and a new baby on the way. She is expected to look out for her ten-year-old cousin, Oliver, who has moved in with her family; and now Ben, the rebellious sixteen-year-old son of Izzy's mother's boyfriend, is also living with them. But when Oliver's father disappears, the three children put aside their differences and set out on a road trip to find him.
The Pixels of Paul Cezanne
And Reflections on other Artists
by Wim Wenders
Observations and reflections on the fellow artists who have influenced, shaped, and inspired the author. How are they doing it? He finds the answer by writing about them, trying to understand their individual perspective, and, in the process revealing his own art of perception.
Fierce Poise
Helen Frankenthaler
and 1950s New York
by Alexander Nemerov
A dazzling biography of one of the twentieth century's most respected painters, Helen Frankenthaler, as she came of age as both an artist and a woman in the vibrant art world of 1950s New York.
Selection for May 4
Right Back Where We Started From
by Joy Lanzendorfer
A sweeping, multigenerational work of fiction that explores the lust for ambition that entered into the American consciousness during the Gold Rush and how it affected our nation’s ideas of success, failure, and the pursuit of happiness.
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Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
The Far River
by Barbara Wood
For as long as anyone could remember, the Schallers and the Newmans had been enemies. When the skeletal remains of a victim of foul play are discovered at the Schaller estate, a decades-old feud between the rival winemaking families is reignited and dark secrets begin to see the light of day.
Frontier Grit
The Unlikely True Stories of Daring Pioneer Women
by Marianne Monson
The stories of 12 women who “heard the call” to settle the west and who came from all points of the globe to begin their journey. Many were crusaders for social justice and women’s rights. All endured hardships, overcame obstacles, broke barriers, and changed the world.
Muñecas chinas
por Lisa See
Es 1938 en San Francisco: se prepara una feria mundial en Treasure Island, una guerra se está gestando en el extranjero, y la ciudad está llena de posibilidades. Grace, Helen, y Ruby, tres mujeres jóvenes de muy diferentes orígenes, se conocen por casualidad en el exclusivo club nocturno Ciudad Prohibida.
Daughter of Moloka’i
by Alan Brennert
Rachel Kalama was quarantined for most of her life at the isolated leprosy settlement and forced to give up her daughter, who is adopted by a Japanese couple and raised on a farm in California. After World War II, the daughter receives a letter from Rachel. As the two meet and come to love one another, she discovers a past she knew nothing about.
Esperanza Rising
by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farmworkers on the eve of the Great Depression.
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Between Before & After
by Maureen McQuerry
Fourteen-year-old Molly worries about school, friends, and her parents’ failed marriage, but mostly about her mother Elaine’s growing depression. As Molly digs into her mother’s past, she finds a secret hidden in her mother’s dresser that may be the key to unlocking a family mystery dating to 1918 New York – a secret that could save or destroy their future.
Dancing in the Dark
A Cultural History of the Great Depression
by Morris Dickstein
Shows how our worst economic crisis in the 1930s eroded American individualism and punctured the American dream, but produced some of the greatest writing, photography, and mass entertainment ever seen in this country.
La búsqueda de un sueño
una autobiografía
por Reyna Grande
Como Right Back Where We Started From, esta es una historia de la determinación de una mujer de seguir sus sueños, en una California que promete oportunidades y presenta obstáculos en igual medida.
Selection for April 27
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty
by Patrick Radden Keefe
A portrait of three generations of the Sackler family, who built their fortune on the sale of Valium and later sponsored the creation and marketing of one of the most commonly prescribed and addictive painkillers of the opioid crisis.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Long Bright River
by Liz Moore
A suspense novel that also looks at the anatomy of a Philadelphia family rocked by the opioid crisis and the relationship between two sisters – one, suffering from addiction, who has suddenly gone missing amid a series of mysterious murders; the other a police officer who patrols the neighborhood from which she disappeared.
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Dopesick
Dealers, doctors, and the drug company that addicted America
by Beth Macy
Chronicles America’s more than 20-year struggle with opioid addiction, from the introduction of OxyContin in 1996, through the spread of addiction in distressed communities in Central Appalachia, to the current national crisis
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Cherry
by Nico Walker
Rashly marrying his college girlfriend to keep their relationship active during his tour of duty, a college dropout turned soldier is overwhelmed by the realities of war, PTSD and opioid addiction before forging a desperate plan.
El traidor
el diario secreto del hijo del Mayo
por Anabel Hernández
La autora se adentra en el Cártel de Sinaloa a través del relato de Vicentillo, quien exhibe de manera descarnada cómo funciona el sistema interno que da vida a la organización criminal, la violencia, las mil formas de traficar droga y la complicidad entre políticos, empresarios y fuerzas del orden. Pero sobre todo devela el perfil de quien durante el último medio siglo ha sido el rey del narcotráfico. Quien nunca ha pisado la cárcel y quien desde su trono ha visto caer a amigos, enemigos, socios, competidores, familiares, empleados del gobierno y hasta sus propios hijos, sin que eso haga mella en su poder, el padre de Vicentillo: Ismael el Mayo Zambada.
Big Pharma and the Opioid Epidemic
From Vicodin to Heroin
by Eric Braun
Learn how the nation is trying to deal with the opioid crisis and discover practical tips on how to help someone suffering from an addiction.
Dig
by A.S. King
Only a generation removed from simple Pennsylvania potato farmers, Gottfried and Marla Hemmings managed to trade digging spuds for developing subdivisions and now sit atop a seven-figure bank account, wealth they've declined to pass on to their adult children or their teenage grandchildren. Now the five teenagers are lost in a tangled maze of family secrets. One of the teens sells pot; one has cancer; all are estranged from the family. As they come together for Easter dinner, will they be able to find their ways back to each other?
Bottle of Lies
The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom
by Katherine Eban
Drawing on exclusive accounts from whistleblowers and regulators, as well as thousands of pages of confidential FDA documents, Eban reveals an industry where fraud is rampant, companies routinely falsify data, and executives circumvent almost every principle of safe manufacturing to minimize cost and maximize profit, confident in their ability to fool inspectors. Meanwhile, patients unwittingly consume medicine with unpredictable and dangerous effects.
La nueva guerra
del Chapo al fentanilo
por Jorge Fernández Menéndez
La guerra contra el narco, la alternancia en los gobiernos de México y Estados Unidos, la captura y extradición de capos, la atomización de cárteles, el surgimiento de nuevos líderes, las fluctuaciones del mercado nacional e internacional y la evolución en el tráfico y consumo de estupefacientes han creado un nuevo México, que atraviesa la mayor crisis de violencia en 80 años.
Laberinto
por Eduardo Antonio Parra
Esta novela es un brillante artificio literario, un laberinto de ecos y, a la vez, el implacable testimonio de la desolación que la voracidad del narcotráfico ha sembrado en el norte de nuestro país.
Selection for April 20
Who is Maud Dixon?
by Alexandra Andrews
A stylish psychological thriller about how far into the darkness you're willing to go to claim the life you always wanted.
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Released in 1975, this film explores the temptations and perils of a reporter assuming the identity of a dead man. Set in Africa, it also touches on issues of post-colonial poverty and military conflicts.
(DVD)
The Death of Mrs. Westaway
by Ruth Ware
On a day that begins like any other, Hal receives a mysterious letter bequeathing her a substantial inheritance. She realizes very quickly that the letter was sent to the wrong person – but also that the cold-reading skills she's honed as a tarot card reader might help her claim the money. Soon, Hal finds herself at the funeral of the deceased, but there is something very, very wrong about this strange situation and the inheritance at the center of it.
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
My Salinger Year
by Joanna Smith Rakoff
A coming-of-age memoir about an aspiring writer's entry-level job at a fading literary agency where her boss’ main responsibility was the non-business of J.D. Salinger.
Vanity Fair Profiles
of Women by Women
by Radhika Jones with David Friend
An imminently enjoyable collection of profiles from the 1980s to the present such as Whoopi Goldberg, Tina Fey, Cher, Tina Turner, Emily Post and Frida Kahlo. A perfect book for dipping into when something longer and more involved would be too much.
I Killed Zoe Spanos
by Kit Frick
Working as a nanny in the Hamptons before starting college, Anna learns of her weird connection to a missing girl. After she confesses to manslaughter, a podcast producer isn't satisfied. Can her podcast uncover the truth?
When Life Gives You Mangos
by Kereen Getten
Twelve-year-old Clara lives on an island that visitors call exotic. But the only thing out of the ordinary for Clara is that something happened to her memory that made her forget everything that happened last summer after a hurricane hit. But this summer is going to be different. A new girl in the village is about to make big waves on the island – and give Clara a summer she won't forget.
The Talented Mr. Ripley
by Patricia Highsmith
Unusual circumstances transform Tom Ripley from a petty con man into a suave, amoral criminal, who will stop at nothing – even murder – to achieve his goals.
Selection for April 13
Driven Out
The Forgotten War against Chinese Americans
by Jean Pfaelzer
Presents the shocking and violent history of ethnic cleansing against Chinese Americans from the Gold Rush era to the turn of the century.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
The White Devil's Daughters
The Fight Against Slavery in San Francisco's Chinatown
by Julia Flynn Siler
Starting in the mid-19th century, Chinese immigrants arrived in California to participate in the Gold Rush and work on the Transcontinental Railroad. The vast majority were men. A lucrative human trafficking operation developed that smuggled Chinese women and girls to the United States, forcing them to work in brothels or as domestic servants. This is the story of the Occidental Mission Home, established in San Francisco in 1874, that worked to free these women.
How much of these hills is gold
by C Pam Zhang
Two orphaned Chinese immigrant siblings flee the threats of their gold rush mining town across an unforgiving landscape where their survival is tested by family secrets, sibling rivalry and disparate goals.
Paper Son
Lee’s Journey to America
by Helen Foster James and Virginia Shin-Mui Loh; illustrated by Wilson Ong
Twelve-year-old Lee, an orphan, reluctantly leaves his grandparents in China for the long sea voyage to San Francisco, where he and other immigrants undergo examinations at Angel Island Immigration Station.
The Fortunes
by Peter Ho Davies
Four interlinked stories examine the Chinese-American experience from the 19th century to the present. Like The Welsh Girl, author Peter Ho Davies’ debut novel, The Fortunes sensitively explores issues of identity and belonging.
The Poker Bride
The First Chinese in the Wild West
by Christopher Corbett
Polly, a young Chinese concubine, accompanied her owner to a mining camp in the highlands of Idaho. After he lost her in a poker game, Polly found her way with her new owner to an isolated ranch on the banks of the Salmon River. As the Gold Rush receded, it took with it the Chinese miners, but left behind Polly, who would make headlines when she emerged from the Idaho hills nearly half a century later to visit a modern city and tell her story.
Paper Daughters of Chinatown
by Heather Moore
Donaldina Cameron arrived at the Occidental Mission Home for Girls in 1895 intending to teach sewing skills to young Chinese women immigrants. She discovers that the job is much more complicated than perfect stitches and even hems. A fictionalized account of the early years of Cameron's work.
The Chinese in America
A narrative history
by Iris Chang
Chang takes a fresh look at what it means to be an American and draws a complex portrait of the many accomplishments of the Chinese in their adopted country, from building the transcontinental railroad to major scientific and technological advances. A saga of human tenacity and a testament to the determination of a people to forge an identity in a strange land.
The Dragon's Child
A Story of Angel Island
by Laurence Yep
Ten-year-old Gim Lew leaves his village in China to accompany his father to America, but before they go he must prepare for a grueling test that he must pass – without stuttering – at California's Angel Island. Includes facts about immigration from China and the experiences of the author’s family.
Last Night at the Telegraph Club
by Malinda Lo
Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can't remember exactly when the question took root, but the answer was in full bloom the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club. America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown. With deportation looming over her father – despite his hard-won citizenship – Lily and Kath risk everything to let their love see the light of day.
Selection for April 6
Wild Women and the Blues
by Denny S. Bryce
A historical fiction novel that weaves the stories of a grieving film student in 2015 and an ambitious chorus girl in 1925 in a tale of history, love, and secrets that only family can define.
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Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments
Intimate Histories of Riotous Black Girls, Troublesome Women, and Queer Radicals
by Saidiya V. Hartman
Reconstructs the lives of unknown black female urban rebels from the early 20th Century, everyday women whose existences are hinted at by court records, social workers’ notes, and photographs.
A Black Women's History of the United States
by Daina Berry Ramey
A compact introduction to the history of black women in America, rooted in everyday heroism and how black women have significantly shaped our nation.
Struttin' With Some Barbecue
Lil Hardin Armstrong Becomes the First Lady of Jazz
by Patricia Hruby Powell
This is the true story of Lil Hardin Armstrong: pianist, composer, and bandleader in the early days of jazz.
Jazz Owls
A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots
by Margarita Engle
In early 1940s Los Angeles, Mexican-Americans Marisela and Lorena work in canneries all day, then jitterbug with sailors all night with their zoot suit-wearing younger brother, Ray, as escort until the night racial violence leads to murder.
The Wicked City
by Beatriz Williams
Moving into the building that once hid a speakeasy, Ella Hawthorne uncovers the Jazz Age story of a scandalous love triangle involving redheaded flapper Gin Kelly, a rugged Prohibition agent, and a wealthy debonair Princetonian.
The Given Day
by Dennis Lehane
An unflinching family epic that captures the political unrest of a nation at the end of World War I, caught between a well-patterned past and an unpredictable future.
1919
by Eve L. Ewing
In 1919, award-winning poet Eve L. Ewing explores the story of this event--which lasted eight days and resulted in 38 deaths and almost 500 injuries – through poems recounting the stories of everyday people trying to survive and thrive in the city.
Selection for March 23
Vera
by Carol Edgarian
A grand adventure set in 1906 San Francisco—a city leveled by quake and fire—featuring an indomitable heroine coming of age in the aftermath of catastrophe and her quest for love and reinvention.
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Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Outrun the Moon
by Stacey Lee
Fifteen-year-old Mercy Wong is determined to break from poverty in Chinatown, and she gains admittance to a prestigious finishing school through a mix of cunning and bribery. When the earthquake strikes on April 18, Mercy and her classmates are forced to a survivor encampment, but her quick-witted leadership rallies them to help in the tragedy's aftermath.
The Nature of Fragile Things
by Susan Meissner
Moving to early 20th Century San Francisco to escape New York tenement life, an Irish mail-order bride uncovers transformative secrets involving a silent child and two other women before her precarious existence is upended by the great earthquake of 1906.
A Crack in the Edge of the World
America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906
by Simon Winchester
An exploration of not only what happened in Northern California in 1906, but what we have learned since about the geological underpinnings that caused the earthquake in the first place.
How Much of these Hills is Gold
by Pam Zhang
Two orphaned Chinese immigrant siblings flee the threats of their gold rush mining town across an unforgiving landscape where their survival is tested by family secrets, sibling rivalry and disparate goals.
San Francisco is Burning
The Untold Story of the 1906 Earthquake and Fires
by Dennis Smith
Told through the stories of the people who lived through it, Smith reveals many unknown details from the city's great vulnerability to fire due to its corrupt building practices, to the widespread racism the quake unleashed and the atrocities committed by national guard members.
Hija de la Fortuna
por Isabel Allende
Una trama de una saga familiar, ambientada en la mitad del siglo XIX, y que viaja entre Chile y California a causa de la fiebre del oro. Sus personajes viajan entre la narración de Allende, para posarse poco a poco en la retina del lector.
El terremoto de San Francisco, 1906
by por Lauren Tarshis
A Leo le gusta ser repartidor de periódicos en San Francisco. Es un lugar en el que todo parece posible. Sin embargo, una mañana de primavera, esto cambia de repente. El mundo de Leo se estremece, literalmente, y el chico se halla solo en medio de la ciudad mientras esta se quema. ¿Podrá Leo sobrevivir este devastador desastre?
Lily and the Great Quake
by Veeda Bybee
Lily is the oldest of three children in her Chinese American family living in San Francisco when the 1906 earthquake hits. Her family survives the quake, but as the city starts to burn Lily and her younger brother are separated from the others and must get to the safety of Oakland and hope that the rest of their family and friends are there waiting for them.
Selection for March 16
Anne Brigman: The Photographer of Enchantment
by Kathleen Pyne
Pyne traces the groundbreaking photographer’s life from Hawaii to the Sierra and elsewhere in California, revealing how her photographs emerged from her experience of local place and cultural politics.
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Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
The Age of Light
by Whitney Scharer
Inspired by the life of the Vogue model-turned-renowned photographer, Lee Miller relocates to 1929 Paris, where she becomes the muse and colleague of the mercurial Surrealist, Man Ray.
Through a lens darkly
black photographers and the emergence of a people
A cornucopia of Americana that reveals deeply disturbing truths about the history of race relations while expressing joyous, life-affirming sentiments about the ability of artists and amateurs alike to assert their identity through the photographic lens
(DVD)
Photographic:
The Life of Graciela Iturbide
by Isabel Quintero, illustrated by Zeke Peña
A symbolic, poetic, and deeply personal graphic biography of an iconic photographer. Iturbide's journey will excite readers of all ages as well as budding photographers.
Group f.64:
Edward Weston, Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, and the Community of Artists who Revolutionized American photography
by Mary Street Alinder
Revolutionary in their day, a group of San Francisco Bay Area photographers formed Group f.64, considered one of the first modern art movements equally defined by women. Local author, Mary Street Adlinder, and former assistant to Ansel Adams, Alinder knew most of the artists featured. Featuring 50 photographs by and of its members: Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, Dorothea Lange, Willard Van Dyke and Edward Weston.
Jamel Shabazz street photographer
In the infancy of hip-hop, Brooklyn-born photographer Jamel Shabazz documented the pioneers of music and style who would launch an enduring worldwide phenomenon. Director Charlie Ahearn pays tribute to both Shabazz and those who defined hip-hop before it had definition.
(DVD)
Mary Coin
by Marisa Silver
An extraordinary tale from a brief moment in history, and reminds us that although a great photograph can capture the essence of a moment, it only scratches the surface of a life.
Graciela Iturbide's Mexico: Photographs
by Graciela Iturbide
Graciela Iturbide is a photographer known for her black-and-white images of local people in her native country of Mexico. She most often depicts women, believing them to embody independence and sexuality. In 1979 she notably published Juchitán de las Mujeres, a book of photographs which inspired her lifelong support of feminist causes.
La Fiesta y la Rebelión
por Antonio Turok
Antonio Turok nació en 1955 en la Ciudad de México. A los diecisiete años llegó a Chiapas, donde vivió veinticinco años y comenzó su carrera fotográfica. Fue corresponsal en Nicaragua, El Salvador y Guatemala en la década de 1980. Fue el primer fotógrafo en dar cuenta del levantamiento zapatista, y más tarde, en Oaxaca, fotografió el movimiento de la APPO. Estuvo en Nueva York el 11 de septiembre de 2001 y ha tomado imágenes de los mexicanos en Estados Unidos y de la crisis industrial del Medio Oeste.
Meet Cindy Sherman:
Artist, Photographer, Chameleon
by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
Infusing the narrative with Sherman's photographs, as well as children's first impressions of the photographs, this is a biography that goes beyond birth, middle age, and later life. It's a look at how we look at art.
Selection for March 9
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
The story of Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, who, from her place in the store, watches carefully the behavior of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass on the street outside. She remains hopeful that a customer will soon choose her.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Exhalation
by Ted Chiang
In these nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant stories, Chiang tackles some of humanity's oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine.
Our Robots, Ourselves:
Robotics and the Myths of Autonomy
by David Mindell
Mindell offers a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the cutting edge of robotics today, debunking commonly held myths and exploring the rapidly changing relationships between humans and machines.
Machines Like Me
by Ian McEwan
Presents the story of two lovers in an alternative 1980s London who construct a perfect synthetic human before finding themselves in a morally complex love triangle.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
La ciudad que nos unió
por N.K. Jemison
Jemisin, la tres veces ganadora del Premio Hugo a la mejor novela y superventas del New York Times, nos trae La ciudad que nos unió, una historia revolucionaria de cultura, magia y mitos en la Nueva York actual.
The Innovators:
How a Group of Inventors, Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution
by Walter Isaacson
What were the talents that allowed certain inventors and entrepreneurs to turn their visionary ideas into disruptive realities? In his masterly saga, Isaacson begins with Ada Lovelace, Lord Byron’s daughter, who pioneered computer programming in the 1840s. He explores the fascinating personalities who created our current digital revolution, such as Alan Turing, John von Neumann, Robert Noyce, Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs, Tim Berners-Lee, and Larry Page.
The Kingdom
by Jess Rothenberg
The Kingdom is an immersive fantasy theme park where guests soar on virtual dragons, castles loom like giants, and bioengineered species roam free. Ana is one of seven Fantasists, beautiful “princesses” engineered to make dreams come true. When she meets park employee Owen, Ana begins to experience emotions beyond her programming including, for the first time ... love. When Ana is accused of murdering Owen, it ignites the trial of the century, uncovering a tale of love, lies, and cruelty – and what it truly means to be human.
SAM:
One Robot, a Dozen Engineers, and the Race to Revolutionize the Way We Build
by Jonathan Waldman
A true story of innovation, centered on a scrappy team of engineers and their quest to achieve a surprisingly difficult technological feat: building a robot that can lay bricks. SAM unfolds as an engineering drama, full of trials and setbacks, heated showdowns between meticulous scientists and brash bricklayers, and hard-earned milestone achievements.
Friendroid
by M. M. Vaughan
Told through journal entries, 12-year-old Danny and his best friend Slick recount how their friendship begins and when they discover Slick’s true identity and ultimate fate.
Selection for March 3
Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad
An Emmy Award-winning writer and activist describes the harrowing years she spent in early adulthood fighting leukemia and how she learned to live again while forging connections with other survivors of profound illness and suffering.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
American Road Trip
by Patrick Flores-Scott
A road trip novel that explores the bonds of family, growing up, living through trauma and recovery.
Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved
by Kate Bowler
A divinity professor at Duke University found her life turned upside down in her mid-30s with a diagnosis of stage 4 colon cancer. Here, she chronicles her journey from what seemed a death sentence to surviving as a result of the effects of a clinical trial and a stalwart community of friends and family.
From Scratch
by Tembi Locke
A memoir of grief, love, food and home, narrated by the author in lyrical English and Italian.
No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality
by Michael J. Fox
In his fourth book, Fox expresses gratitude for the past and looks to the future with a firm grasp on how to be “both a realist and an optimist.” A moving account of resilience, hope, fear and mortality, and how these things resonate in our lives.
Halfway Normal
by Barbara Dee
Twelve-year-old cancer survivor Norah struggles to fit in at middle school after two years of treatment, but she finds her voice with the help of new friend Griffin, who shares her love of mythology.
Finding Balance
by Kati Gardner
Teenage cancer survivors Mari and Jase have flirted for years at Camp Chemo, but when she transfers to his high school their different approaches to their history cause trouble.
All the Water in the World
by Karen Raney
Sixteen-year-old Maddy, who has cancer, grapples with her first romantic relationship, searches for the father she has never met, and tests the limits of her relationship with her mother, all while facing an uncertain future.
We Own the Sky
by Luke Allnutt
When a devastating illness takes his beloved family from him, a man who once believed himself incredibly lucky takes solace in photographing the skyscrapers and cliff tops his son and he once visited before embarking on a powerful journey through forgiveness back to life.
Selection for February 23
Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn
In 1995 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, on a rare family vacation, 7-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into the Pacific Ocean. When a shiver of sharks appears in the water, everyone fears for the worst. But instead, Noa is gingerly delivered to his mother in the jaws of a shark, marking his story as the stuff of legends.
Do you enjoy this genre?
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Maya’s Notebook
by Isabel Allende
To escape a life of drugs, crime and prostitution, 19-year-old Maya Vidal flees California to a remote island off the west coast of Chile.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
Ricky is a kid in foster care who lands at a new home, only for tragedy to strike, causing him to head out on his own. But the friends he makes along the way have him discovering what family, identity and home really mean for the first time. A tender and often hilarious story with unforgettable characters.
Little Fires Everywhere
by Celeste Ng
In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is planned. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules. Enter Mia Warren – an enigmatic artist and single mother – who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
Dominicana
by Angie Cruz
Coral Pena narrates Cruz’ story of Ana’s fraught marriage, migration to the US and her struggles to support and honor her family back home in the Dominican Republic. The story is equal parts coming of age, an exploration of migration and identity, and a meditation on family ties.
The Path Made Clear: Discovering Your Life’s Direction and Purpose
by Oprah Winfrey
Everyone has a purpose. According to Oprah Winfrey, “Your real job in life is to figure out as soon as possible what that is, who you are meant to be, and begin to honor your calling in the best way possible.” That journey starts right here.
All of Us With Wings
by Michelle Ruiz Keil
Seventeen-year-old Xochi’s life changed when she became governess to precocious 12-year-old Pallas, but the duo unintentionally summons a pair of ancient creatures determined to right the wrongs of Xochi’s adolescence.
For the Time Being
by Annie Dillard
A compassionate, informative, and enthralling personal narrative that surveys the meaning and significance of life, from Pulitzer-winner Dillard.
Gabi, Fragmentos de una adolescente
Por Isabel Quintero. Gabi Hernández está en su último año de la preparatoria. Para entretenerse, escribe todo lo que le pasa en su diario: las solicitudes a las universidades, el embarazo de Cindy, cuando Sebastián salió del clóset, los chicos guapos de su clase, la adicción de su padre a la metanfetamina, y toda la comida que se le antoja. Pero lo mejor de todo lo que escribe es la poesía que la ayuda a ser quien es.
The Lightning Queen
by Laua Resau
On the Hill of Dust, in the remote mountains of Mexico, an 11-year-old Mixtec boy called Teo lives with his family and the animals that he has healed, but one day a Romany caravan rolls into town with a young girl who calls herself Esma, the Gypsy Queen of Lightning – it is the beginning of a life-long friendship that will change both their lives.
Selection for February 16
Citizen Reporters by Stephanie Gorton
A fascinating history of the rise and fall of influential Gilded Age magazine McClure’s and the two unlikely outsiders at its helm – and a timely, full-throated defense of investigative journalism in America.
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The Race for Paris
by Meg Waite Clayton
Determined to be the first photographer to capture images of Paris’ liberation from the Nazis, Liv defies orders and teams up with a fellow woman reporter and a British photojournalist to race to Paris ahead of Allied forces.
The Jungle
by Upton Sinclair
As Stephanie Gorton reveals in Citizen Reporters, McClure’s magazine was instrumental in paving the way for reporters to battle corruption and drive change in society. Read another example of groundbreaking investigative journalism with this title in which the horrifying conditions of the Chicago stockyards are revealed through this narrative of a young immigrant’s struggles in America.
We Say #Never Again: Reporting by the Parkland Student Journalists
edited by MSD teachers Melissa Falkowski and Eric Garner
This collection of essays looks at the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and the fight for gun control – as told by the student reporters for the school’s newspaper and TV station.
Creem: America’s only rock 'n' roll magazine
Capturing the messy upheaval of the ‘70s just as rock was re-inventing itself, the documentary explores the publication’s humble beginnings, follows its upward trajectory from underground paper to national powerhouse, then bears witness to its imminent demise following the tragic and untimely deaths of its visionary publisher, Barry Kramer, and its most famous alum and genius clown prince, Lester Bangs, a year later.
(DVD)
In Extremis: The Life and Death of the War Correspondent Marie
by Lindsey Hilsum
American journalist Marie Colvin’s experiences at the front lines of war zones in this inspiring, vivid biography.
Are You Somebody: The Accidental Memoir of a Dublin Woman
by Nuala O’Faolain
O’Faolain, a journalist for the Irish Times, was asked to collect her columns for publication, but the introduction she sat down to write eventually expanded into this beautifully cadenced and moving memoir.
Ida M. Tarbell: The Woman Who Challenged Big Business – and Won!
by Emily Arnold McCully
Tarbell investigated and published works about the Standard Oil Trust for McClure’s Magazine that informed the world of shady business dealings and skyrocketed her into the public eye.
La Ira de México: Siete voces contra la impunidad.
por Lydia Cacho, Sergio González Rodríguez, Anabel Hernández, Diego Enrique Osorno, Emiliano Ruiz Parra, Marcela Turati, Juan Villoro
Siete destacados periodistas mexicanos comparten relatos de víctimas de la violencia, corrupción, y violaciones de derechos humanos en México hoy en día. México continua ser uno de los países más peligrosos de ser periodista, y esas voces son feroces e importantes.
Selection for February 9
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos
Meet 1920s flapper Lorelei Lee, aka Mabel Minnow from Little Rock, Arkansas. She has it all: a millionaire “benefactor,” a lavish lifestyle, and dazzling good looks. The problem is she may be falling in love with a man who is temporarily married—and permanently poor.
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Flappers: Six Women of a Dangerous Generation
by Judith Mackrell
A biography of six women who declared their independence during the Jazz Age. British heiresses Diana Cooper and Nancy Cunard, Russian artist Tamara de Lempicka, African-American entertainer Josephine Baker, actress Tallulah Bankhead and aspiring writer Zelda Fitzgerald were daring women who defied expectations about what a woman's life should be.
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
A thoroughly entertaining Australian TV series about an unflappable woman detective solving crimes and righting wrongs in the backrooms of jazz clubs and speakeasies in 1920s Melbourne.
(DVD)
Jazz Moon
by Joe Okonkwo
Ben is a Harlem Renaissance poet swept up in the scene and winds up in Paris. This powerful debut novel explores tensions of race and class against the backdrop of the profoundly important cultural scene of the Harlem Renaissance and Jazz Age Paris.
The Wicked City
by Beatriz Williams
Moving into the building that once hid a speakeasy, Ella Hawthorne uncovers the Jazz Age story of a scandalous love triangle involving redheaded flapper Gin Kelly, a rugged Prohibition agent, and a wealthy debonair Princetonian.
Sex and Vanity
by Kevin Kwan
A more modern perspective on diamonds being a girl’s best friend. When George, the man with whom she had brief fling several years earlier, unexpectedly appears in East Hampton, newly engaged Lucie Churchill is drawn to him again and spins a web of deceit in an attempt to block him from her life – and her heart.
(Print book, book on CD, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook)
Flapper: The Notorious Life and Scandalous Times of the First Thoroughly Modern Woman
by Joshue Zeitz
An entertaining, well-researched and charmingly illustrated dissection of the 1920s flapper, who flouted conventions and epitomized the naughtiness of the Jazz Age as she “bobbed her hair, smoked cigarettes, drank gin, sported short skirts, and passed her evenings in steamy jazz clubs.”
Gods of Jade and Shadow
by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The audiobook version of this novel, which NPR called a “best book of the year,” sparkles and crackles with the glitter of Jazz Age Mexico City and the power of Mayan gods. Yetta Gotteson narrates this book with careful skill, building out the characters’ force and energy as the story unfolds.
Speak Easy, Speak Love
by McKelle George
After she gets kicked out of boarding school, Beatrice goes to her uncle’s estate on Long Island. It’s a rundown old mansion, where Beatrice’s cousin, Hero, runs a struggling speakeasy out of the basement. As Beatrice and Hero throw all their efforts into planning a massive party to save the speakeasy, they are caught up in a romantic battle of wits that their friends might be quietly orchestrating in the background.
The Good Thieves
by Katherine Rundell
In 1920s New York City, a young girl with a deformed foot recruits her new friends, a female pickpocket and two circus performers, to help recover an emerald from her grandfather’s mansion in upstate New York after he loses his home to an unscrupulous tycoon.
Selection for February 2
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders
George Saunders guides the reader through seven classic Russian short stories he's been teaching for 20 years as a professor in the prestigious Syracuse University graduate MFA creative writing program. Paired with stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, these essays are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it's more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.
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Mud and Stars: Travels in Russia with Pushkin, Tolstoy, and other Geniuses of the Golden Age
by Sara Wheeler
Russian literature fans will appreciate these nonfiction works on what makes for great writing. A Swim in a Pond analyzes short stories by the greats; Mud and Stars travels around Russia exploring the environment that produced Tolstoy, Gogol, and Turgenev.
A Night in the Cemetery: and Other Stories of Crime and Suspense
by Anton Chekhov
Take a deeper dive into Chekhov and Russian literature with this short story collection. Though billed as featuring crime and suspense, the volume has a broad range, including morality tales and stories of both dark and puckish humor.
Stalin's Scribe: Literature, Ambition, and Survival: The Life of Mikhail Sholokhov
by Brian Boeck
Sholokhov was an obscure 21-year-old short story writer when he wrote his classic novel, And Quiet Flows the Don. The first two volumes were bestsellers, but in 1930, his editor regarded further installments as insufficiently pro-revolutionary. Sholokhov refused to make changes but agreed to visit Maxim Gorky, the nation's literary idol, to discuss the matter. To his amazement, the meeting included Stalin. Grilled on the controversy, Sholokhov satisfied Stalin, who considered himself a patron of the arts. He not only approved publication, but gave the author his personal secretary's phone number. Like naïve patriots throughout history, Sholokhov considered his ruler blameless but betrayed by evil underlings, and he remained a protégé, producing fawning speeches and writing that he struggled to repress after Stalin's death.
Aetherial Worlds: Stories
by by Tatyana Tolstaya
Praised by Nobel laureate Joseph Brodsky (1940–96) as “the most original, tactile, luminous voice in Russian prose,” Tolstaya, two decades on, is all that and more in this edgy, brash, slyly surreal, and mordantly funny short story collection, which begins with the sudden awakening of a woman’s literary imagination, an inherited gift.
A Gentleman in Moscow
by Amor Towles
This books guides the reader through Russian history and culture via the keenly observant eyes of a fallen member of the Russian aristocracy. The situations become more absurd and the characters more sympathetic as the story unfolds. Also in Spanish: Un caballero en Moscú.
(Print book, large type book, Spanish book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Travels in Siberia
by Ian Frazier
Frazier himself narrates his account of his travels around Siberia, discovering the people, foods and history of the vast landscape. Humorous, informative and meditative at times, Frazier is a humble, self-deprecating guide to this land. An excellent road trip audiobook.
Diario de un joven médico
by Mikhail Bulgukov
Estas nueve narraciones muestran el nacimiento de la mente de un novelista, y son la materia prima que alimentó el surrealismo de la ficción posterior de Bulgákov.
Foreshadow: Stories to Celebrate the Magic of Reading and Writing YA
edited by Emily X. R. Pan and Nova Ren Suma
Presents an anthology of 13 short stories by contemporary young adult authors, ranging from fantasy to the experience of Mexican-Americans living in border cities. Each story is followed by an author's note, commentary by one of the editors on such topics as voice, imagery, and mood, and some, with story prompts.
Bookjoy, Wordjoy
by Pat Mora, illustrated by Raul Colon
An inspiring collection of the author's own glorious poems celebrating a love of words and all the ways we use and interact with them: reading, speaking, writing, singing, and storytelling.
Selection for January 26
When her favorite true-crime podcast host goes missing, an adrift young woman plunges headfirst into the wild backcountry of Northern California and her own dangerous obsession.
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Returning to her hometown after a long absence to investigate the murders of two girls, reporter Camille Preaker is reunited with her neurotic mother and enigmatic half-sister as she works to uncover the truth about the killings.
(Print book, large type book, Spanish book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD, DVD)
Lawyer Yolanda Vance becomes embroiled in espionage, activism, romance, and—you got it—a mysterious death that needs to be solved. De Leon’s spy thriller focuses on Vance’s rationale for wanting a comfortable life versus coming to terms with her own moral compass when working undercover for the FBI.
Struggling with memories over the loss of her own baby while investigating the discovery of an anonymous infant in the woods, journalist Molly Anderson traces a string of unreported assaults spanning 20 years.
I'll be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer
For more than 10 years, a mysterious and violent predator committed 50 sexual assaults in Northern California before moving south, where he perpetrated ten sadistic murders. Then he disappeared. Three decades later, true crime journalist Michelle McNamara was determined to find the violent psychopath.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
Cooper expertly crafts a twisted web of murder, mystery, and misogyny as she researches Harvard student, Jane Britton, whose violent death 50 years earlier continued to fuel the school's rumor mill.
In her small town, 17-year-old Delia “Dee” Skinner is known as the girl who wasn't taken. Ten years ago, she witnessed the abduction of her best friend, Sibby. At night, Dee deals with her guilt by becoming someone else: the Seeker, the voice behind the popular true crime podcast Radio Silent, which features missing persons cases and works with online sleuths to solve them.
The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel
Mars Patel’s friend Aurora has disappeared! His teachers are clueless. His mom is stressed out about her jobs. But Mars refuses to give up – after all, his own dad disappeared when Mars was a toddler. The clues seem to point toward eccentric tech genius (and Mars's hero) Oliver Pruitt, whose popular podcast now seems to be commenting on their quest.
Selection for January 19
The power of Adrienne Rich by Hilary Holladay
The first comprehensive biography of Adrienne Rich, feminist and queer icon and internationally revered National Book Award-winning poet.
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A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun
by Angela Jackson
A look back at the cultural and political force of Pulitzer Prize–winning poet Gwendolyn Brooks, in celebration of her 100th birthday.
Red Comet: the short life and blazing art of Sylvia Plath
by Heather Clark
Focuses on Sylvia Plath's remarkable literary and intellectual achievements, while restoring the woman behind the long-held myths about her life and art.
Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am
An artful and intimate meditation on the life and works of the acclaimed novelist.
(DVD)
Memorial Drive
by Natasha Trethewey
Trethewey's narration makes the audiobook version exceptionally powerful. With penetrating insight and a searing voice, the author explores the tragic course of her mother's life and the way her own life has been shaped by a legacy of fierce love and resilience.
These Fevered Days: Ten Pivotal Moments in the Making of Emily Dickinson
by Martha Ackmann
Ackmann posits that decisive episodes in Dickinson's life contributed to her evolution as a strikingly singular voice in American poetry.
With a Star in My Hand: Ruben Dario, Poetry Hero
by Margarita Engle
A novel in verse about the life and work of Rubén Darío, a Nicaraguan poet who started life as an abandoned child and grew to become the father of a new literary movement.
A Poet's Revolution: The Life of Denise Levertov
by Donna Hollenberg
Asserting that the most important “facts” about a poet are her major poems, Hollenberg skillfully interweaves details concerning Levertov's life and works.
Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks
by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) is known for her poems about “real life.” She wrote about love, loneliness, family, and poverty – showing readers how just about anything could become a beautiful poem. This picture book biography explores the intersections of race, gender, and the ubiquitous poverty of the Great Depression.
Imagina
por Juan Felipe Herrera
Cuando Juan Felipe Herrera era niño, recogió flores, ayudó a su mamá a alimentar a los pollitos, durmió bajo el cielo centelleante y aprendió a decirles adiós a sus amiguitos cada vez que su familia seguía el camino campesino. Al crecer, Juan Felipe Herrera se convirtió en poeta. Su hermoso poema, "Imagina" y las sugerentes ilustraciones de Lauren Castillo le hablarán a cada lector y soñador que está buscando su lugar en la vida. ¿Quién podrías llegar a ser? Imagina...
Selection for January 12
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
A laugh-out-loud account of an outrageously rugged hike.
(Print book, large type book, eBook, eAudiobook, book on CD)
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Dogtripping
by David Rosenfelt
A hilarious chronicle of moving 25 rescue dogs across the country in an RV and then starting a dog rescue foundation.
Horizon
by Barry Lopez
Distinguished natural history writer and explorer Lopez builds a winning memoir around books, voyages, and biological and anthropological observations.
Wild
by Cheryl Strayed
Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail after her mother's death and her own subsequent divorce, the author takes readers with her on the trail, and the transformation she experiences on its course is significant.
(Print book, DVD, Spanish book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness
by Qing Li
The world's foremost expert in forest medicine shows how forest bathing can reduce your stress levels, strengthen your immune system, boost your mood, and even help you lose weight and live longer.
La Cocina del Bosque
por Erin Gleeson
Gleeson, desde su casa en Sebastopol, produce el blog "The Forest Feast" donde comparte recetas, fotos y más de su vida en una cabaña en el bosque. Sumérgete en el bosque con este libro delicioso.
The Secrets we Bury
by Stacie Ramey
Rather than be placed in a special school for psychologically-challenged students, Dylan, six months from turning 18, sets out on the Appalachian Trail, where he makes surprising connections with other hikers.
Prodigal Summer
by Barbara Kingsolver
Looking for fiction about the Appalachian Trail? Enjoy this vividly detailed Appalachian setting, in which wildlife biologist Deanna is caught off guard by an intrusive young hunter, while bookish city wife Lusa finds herself facing a difficult identity choice, and elderly neighbors find attraction at the height of a long-standing feud.
The Hike
by Drew Magary
Try this if you like Bryson's hilarious and engaging writing about nature, and also enjoy science fiction.
The Trail
by Meika Hashimoto
Toby and his friend Lucas made a list of things to do the summer before they entered middle school, but now Lucas is gone, and Toby sets out to fulfill the promise he made to his friend, to finish the list by hiking the Appalachian Trail from Velvet Rocks to Mt. Katahdin.
Selection for January 5
American Catch by Paul Greenberg
Paul Greenberg takes the same skills that won him acclaim in Four Fish to uncover the tragic unraveling of the nation's seafood supply, telling the surprising story of why.
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The Book of Eels: Our Enduring Fascination with the Most Mysterious Creature in the Natural World
by Patrik Svensson
Svensson, a Swedish journalist, melds the personal and scientific in this captivating look at the European eel. His book is a highly readable place to begin learning.
The Marauders
by Tom Cooper
After the BP oil spill devastates the Gulf Coast, the oddballs and lowlifes who live in the sleepy, working-class bayou town of Jeannette will do anything to reverse their fortunes.
Filmmaker and novice farmer John Chester chronicles the eight-year quest he and Molly Chester went on when they traded city living for 200 acres of barren farmland in the foothills of Ventura County and a dream to harvest in harmony with nature.
(DVD)
The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food
by Dan Barber
Moving beyond the organic farming and farm-to-table movements, Barber argues for the importance of the whole farm; an integrated, biodynamic system that sustains the richness and diversity of land and sea.
Goodnight, Texas
by William J. Cobb
In Goodnight, Texas, people struggle to survive job loss, severe over-fishing, and a looming hurricane. A lyrical, romantic, comic, and redemptive story.
Tales from the Inner City
by Shaun Tan
A collection of illustrated short stories, each one about the relationship of humans and the animals, both wild and domestic, that share the urban environment of the inner city.
The Great Shark Rescue: Saving the Whale Sharks
by Sandra Markle
Presents the story of whale sharks, the largest fish on the planet. Can volunteers and scientists help save the world's biggest fish before it's too late?
Selection for December 29
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel tells the powerfully moving story of remarkable occurrences in the life and spirit of an ex-slave.
(Print book, large print book, Spanish book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
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God Help the Child
by Toni Morrison
Morrison herself narrates the audiobook version of her searing, powerful novel of family trauma, childhood, and redemption.
Grace
by Natashia Deon
The dual stories of a mother, a runaway plantation slave and the child she never knew are woven through the historic events of the mid-19th Century.
Long Way Down
by Jason Reynolds
As 15-year-old Will sets out to avenge his brother Shawn's fatal shooting, seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know.
(Print book, large print book, graphic novel, Spanish book, Playaway, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
She Came to Slay: The Life and Times of Harriet Tubman
by Erica Armstrong Dunbar
A fresh take on this American icon blending traditional biography, illustrations, photos, and engaging sidebars that illuminate the life of Tubman as never before.
La esclava de Juana Inés
por Ignacio Casa
La esclava de sor Juana Inés de la Cruz fue también, a su modo, una discípula, la primera escucha de versos, sonetos y redondillas. Una mujer mulata cuyas aventuras y peripecias nos exaltan y nos llevan a descubrir los contrastes de la Nueva España del siglo XVII.
Sing, Unburied, Sing
by Jesmyn Ward
Living with his grandparents and sister on a Gulf Coast farm, Jojo navigates the challenges of his mother's addictions and his grandmother's cancer before the release of his father from prison prompts a road trip of danger and hope.
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Narrative of Sojourner Truth
by Gilbert Olive
The autobiography of the pioneer for racial and sexual equality discusses her years as a slave in upstate New York and describes the spiritual revelations that turned her into an abolitionist.
Zora & Me: The Cursed Ground
by T. R. Simon
A fictionalized account of Zora Neale Hurston's childhood with her best friend Carrie, as they learn about life, death, and the differences between truth, lies, and pretending.
Selection for December 22
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
A luminous portrait of a marriage, a shattering evocation of a family ravaged by grief and loss, and a hypnotic recreation of the story that inspired one of the greatest masterpieces of all time.
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Black Tudors: the untold story
by Miranda Kaufmann
From long forgotten records, Kaufmann has unearthed the remarkable stories of Africans who lived free in Tudor England.
Twain and Stanley Enter Paradise
by Oscar Hijuelos
Another historical fiction title that examines real literary figures, this title chronicles the sojourn of journalist-explorer Henry Stanley; his wife, the painter Dorothy Tennant; and Mark Twain, Stanley's longtime friend, as they head for Cuba in search of Stanley's father.
Shakespeare's Wife
by Germaine Greer
Challenges popular beliefs about the estranged nature of Shakespeare's marriage to Ann Hathaway, placing their relationship in a social and historical context that poses alternative theories about her rural upbringing and role in the bard's professional life.
If you're just in the mood to immerse yourself in the Tudor world, and also want to get into the Christmas spirit, this BBC/PBS special might just be the thing. Lucy Worsley recreates how Christmas was celebrated during the age of Henry VIII.
(DVD)
The Hidden Lives of Tudor Women: A Social History
by Elizabeth Norton
A well-researched description of the lives of women in 16th-century Britain.
A Cloud of Outrageous Blue
by Vesper Stamper
After her parents' deaths, Edyth is sent to live in a priory, where she begins to make a new life--a life that will be threatened by the approach of the Great Plague.
Alice I Have Been
by Melanie Benjamin
Now in her twilight years, Alice Liddell looks back on a remarkable life. From a pampered childhood in Oxford to difficult years as a widowed mother, Alice examines how she became who she is – and how she became immortalized as Alice in Wonderland.
The Mersault Investigation
by Kamel Daoud
A love story and a political manifesto. He was the brother of "the Arab" killed by the infamous Meursault, the antihero of Camus’ classic novel. Seventy years after that event, Harun, who has lived since childhood in the shadow of his sibling’s memory, refuses to let him remain anonymous.
Midsummer’s Mayhem
by Rajani LaRocca
A contemporary retelling of A Midsummer Night’s Dream follows an 11-year-old Indian-American girl's effort to prepare a winning entry for a local baking contest, a competition that is challenged when her father mysteriously loses his sense of taste.
Selection for December 15
The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
The Dolans live by their wits, jumping freight trains and lining up for day work at crooked job agencies. The Cold Millions is a stunning portrait of class division and familial bonds. In this masterful historical take on the enduring saga of America's economic divide, Jess Walter delivers nothing less than another "literary miracle"
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The Orchardist
by Amanda Coplin
Although The Cold Millions is more dramatic and The Orchardist is more haunting, young siblings follow different paths in both of these literary novels set in the Pacific Northwest during the turn of the century.
Music of the Mill
by Luis Rodriguez
In a story of three generations of an American family who built their lives around a decaying, late-twentieth-century steel industry, 30-year-old Azucena Salcido struggles with the cancer death of her father, the racial polarization of their community, and the corrupt power struggles among her neighbors, their employers, and their unions.
Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to Lead
by Cecile Richards
In her autobiographical book on leadership, Richards, the quintessential cheerleader for activists of all ages, champions those who publicly take a stand for what they believe.
An Impossible Distance to Fall
by Miriam McNamara
1930. Birdie William's life has crashed along with the stock market. Her father's bank has failed, and he's disappeared along with his Jenny biplane. When she sees a leaflet for a barnstorming circus with a picture of Dad's plane on it, she goes to Coney Island in search of answers.
Sabrina & Corina
by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
Kali Fajardo-Anstine's magnetic story collection breathes life into her Latina characters of indigenous ancestry and the land they inhabit in the American West.
Deep River
by Karl Marlantes
In the early 1900s, as the oppression of Russia's imperial rule takes its toll on Finland, the three Koski siblings – Ilmari, Matti, and the politicized young Aino ¬– are forced to flee to the United States. The brothers face the excitement and danger of pioneering the frontier wilderness while Aino devotes herself to organizing the industry's first unions.
How Much of These Hills is Gold
by Pam Zhang
Newly orphaned children of immigrants, Lucy and Sam are suddenly alone in a land that refutes their existence.
Las Aventuras de la China Iron
por Gabriela Cabezón Cámara
Este es un juego desenfrenado que lleva al lector desde la turbulenta cultura fronteriza de las pampas hasta los territorios indígenas. Traza las aventuras de la señora China Iron, la esposa abandonada de Martín Fierro, en sus viajes por la pampa en un carromato cubierto con su nueva amiga, que pronto se convertirá en su amante, una escocesa llamada Liz.
Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen
by Anne Nesbet
It's 1914, and 12-year old Darleen Darling has the most exciting job in the world – she gets to dangle from cliffs and stop moving trains and soar through the sky in runaway balloons! Yes, that's right: Darleen is a hero and a star – in the make-believe world of the movies ... but Darleen's fictional adventures collide with reality when a fake kidnapping intended as a publicity stunt becomes all too real.
Selection for December 8
Wine Girl by Victoria James
the obstacles, humiliations, and triumphs of America's youngest sommelier
An affecting memoir from the country's youngest sommelier, tracing her path through the glamorous but famously toxic restaurant world.
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Yes, Chef
by Marcus Samuelsson
The Top Chef: Masters winner and proprietor of Harlem's Red Rooster traces his Ethiopian birth, upbringing by an adoptive family in Sweden, and rise to a famous New York chef, sharing personal insights into his challenges as a black man in a deeply prejudiced industry.
Eat a Peach
by David Chang
The chef behind Momofuku and star of Netflix’s Ugly Delicious traces his upbringing in a deeply religious Korean-American family, his search for identity, struggles with manic depression and unlikely rise as one of his generation’s most influential chefs.
Hunger: A Memoir of (my) Body
by Roxane Gay
A heart-rending debut memoir from the outspoken feminist and essayist. The author exposes the personal demons haunting her life—namely weight and trauma—which she deems "the ugliest, weakest, barest parts of me."
The Gourmands' Way
Six Americans in Paris and the Birth of a New Gastronomy
by Justin Spring
Six American writers introduced French cuisine to American restaurants and home kitchens and were responsible for the nation’s postwar love affair with French food and wine.
Twelve-year-old Abe is an aspiring chef who wants his cooking to bring people together, but his half-Israeli, half-Palestinian family has never had a meal that didn't end in a fight. Ditching his traditional summer camp, Abe begins working with Chico, an adventurous street chef who encourages him to think outside his old cuisines. However, when Abe's deceit is uncovered, he must grapple with his family and his passions and whether even the most lovingly cooked family dinner can heal old wounds.
(DVD)
Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking
A memoir of food and longing
by Anya Von Bremzen
Born in a surreal Moscow communal apartment where 18 families shared one kitchen, the author grew up singing odes to Lenin, black-marketeering Juicy Fruit gum at school, and longing for a taste of the mythical West.
Alimentamos una Isla
by Jose Andres
Basándose en la perspectiva de Andrés, así como en reuniones, mensajes y conversaciones que tuvo durante su estadía en Puerto Rico, Alimentamos una isla describe de manera conmovedora cómo una red de cocinas comunitarias logró realizar un verdadero cambio, y cuenta una extraordinaria historia de esperanza ante los desastres, tanto los naturales y como aquellos causados por el ser humano.
Yasmin la chef
by Saadia Faruqi
La familia de Yasmin está organizando una gran fiesta, pero a Yasmin le preocupa que la comida tradicional que cocina su familia sea demasiado picante. Su familia sugiere que Yasmin invente su propio plato.
Brave Chef Brianna
by Sam Sykes
Brianna Jakobsson has big cooking dreams, and when her ailing father, a world-renowned chef, poses a challenge to his only daughter and 15 sons, she seizes the opportunity. She's going to have the best restaurant around and earn the family empire.
Selection for December 1
The Best American Short Stories 2020
A striking and nuanced collection, bringing to life awkward college students, disgraced public figures, raunchy grandparents, and mystical godmothers. To read these stories is to experience the transporting joys of discovery and affirmation, and to realize that story writing in America continues to flourish.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
A people's future of the United States
Speculative Fiction from 25 Extraordinary Writers
by Victor LaValle and John Joseph Adams
25 speculative stories imagining the future of America, with the collection featuring tales of both dystopias and utopias.
Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen
A collection of stories, written over a 20-year period, examines the Vietnamese experience in America as well as questions of home, family, and identity.
Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks
Opt for the audiobook version, narrated by the author/actor himself.
(Print book, large print book, book on CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Flash!: Writing the Very Short Story by John Dufresne
Flash fiction is like the Twitter of the literary world. Dufresne offers an insightful guide to writing this increasingly popular form of fiction.
A Phoenix First Must Burn
Sixteen Stories of Black Girl Magic, Resistance, and Hope
Edited by Patrice Caldwell
From folktales retold to futuristic societies, this collection of stories centers on Black women and gender nonconforming individuals dealing with love and betrayal, strength and resistance.
A House is a Body Stories by Shruti Anna Swamy
Dreams collide with reality, modernity collides with antiquity, myth with true identity; women grapple with desire, with ego, with motherhood and mortality.
The Moths and other stories/Las Palomillas de la Noche by Helena Maria Viramontes
Beautifully translated Spanish-English bilingual version. Prejudice and the social and economic status of Chicanos form the backdrop for these haunting stories.
Stories from Suffragette City
Stories of a Fine and Proper Nuisance
by M. J. Rose and Fiona Davis
An anthology set during the Fifth Avenue women’s suffrage march of October 1915 includes depictions of leading rights advocates, from Ava Vanderbilt to Ida B. Welles.
Flying Lessons and Other Stories by Ellen Oh
From family fiascos to first crushes, this anthology, written by award-winning children's authors, celebrates the uniqueness and universality in all of us.
Super Puzzletastic Mysteries
Short Stories for Young Sleuths from Mystery Writers of America
Edited by Chris Grabenstein
A group of interactive short stories that invite the reader to solve the mystery themselves.
Selection for November 24
Brontë's Mistress by Finola Austin
Yorkshire, 1843: Lydia Robinson - mistress of Thorp Green Hall - has lost her precious young daughter and her mother within the same year. She returns to her bleak home, grief-stricken and unmoored. With her teenage daughters rebelling, her testy mother-in-law scrutinizing her every move, and her marriage grown cold, Lydia is restless and yearning for something more. All of that changes with the arrival of her son's tutor, Branwell Brontë, brother of her daughters' governess, Miss Anne Brontë and those other writerly sisters, Charlotte and Emily.
(Book)
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Charlotte Brontë: A Fiery Heart by Claire Harman
An expert portrait of Charlotte’s life and writings, life at Haworth Parsonage and its eccentric inhabitants.
Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar
A historical novel examining the lives of Vanessa Bell, her sister Virginia Woolf, and the controversial and popular circle of intellectuals known as the Bloomsbury Group.
Glass Town by Isabel Greenberg
The entrancing story of the Brontë siblings' childhood imaginary world in graphic novel format.
Square Haunting: Five Writers in London Between the Wars by Francesca Wade
A gripping account of the lives of five women who lived at various times in the same square in London’s Bloomsbury district between 1916 and 1940.
Empress Orchid by Anchee Min
A fictional portrait of the last empress of China follows Orchid, a beautiful teenager from an aristocratic family, who is chosen to become a low-ranking concubine of the emperor and rises to a position of power in the Chinese court.
The Daring Ladies of Lowell by Kate Alcott
Moving to the mill city of Lowell in 1832 to escape farm life, young Alice is disillusioned by the local factory's harsh working conditions and struggles to advocate on their behalf while recklessly falling in love with the mill owner's son, a situation that is complicated by a murder and sensational trial.
Proust's Duchess by Caroline Weber
A brilliant look at the glittering world of turn-of-the-century Paris through the first in-depth study of the three women Proust used to create his supreme fictional character, the Duchesse de Guermantes.
Retrato en Sepia por Isabel Allende
Una saga familiar situada a finales del siglo XIX en Chile, narrada por una joven mujer. La novela explora los temas del amor y su traición, privilegio, y secretos de familia.
The Glass Town Game by Catherynne M. Valente
Inside a small Yorkshire parsonage, Charlotte, Branwell, Emily, and Anne Brontë have invented a game called Glass Town, where their toy soldiers fight Napoleon and no one dies. This make-believe land helps the four escape from a harsh reality.
Selection for November 17
Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh
Includes humorous stories from Allie Brosh's childhood, the adventures of her very bad animals, merciless dissection of her own character flaws, incisive essays on grief, loneliness, and powerlessness as well as reflections on the absurdity of modern life.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Adulthood is a Myth by Sarah Andersen
Confronts head-on the horrors, anxiety, and awkwardness of modern adult life.
Killing and Dying by Adrian Tomine
Collects six graphic stories that create a portrait of contemporary life, exploring the pride and disappointment of family, the anxiety and hopefulness of being alive, and the weight of love and its absence.
Furiously Happy: a Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson
The popular blogger presents a humorous and candid memoir about her lifelong battle with severe depression and anxiety, discussing how embracing both the flawed and the beautiful parts of life have enabled her to find joy in outrageous ways.
Why Grizzly Bears Should Wear Underpants by Matthew Inman
A collection of comics, facts, and instructional guides from the online cartoonist and #1 New York Times Best-Selling Author known as The Oatmeal.
Failure is an Option: An Attempted Memoir by Jon H. Benjamin
The lead voice behind Archer and Bob's Burgers helps us all feel a little better about our own failures by sharing his own in a hilarious memoir-ish chronicle of failure.
You Can Only Yell at Me for One Thing at a Time: Rules for Couples by Patricia Marx
An illustrated collection of love and relationship advice from New Yorker writer Patricia Marx, with illustrations from New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chast.
The Odd 1s Out by James Rallison
Telling his own stories of growing up as the “odd one out,” the YouTube star, presenting his fan-favorite comics as well as some never-before-seen material, shares the life lessons he has learned on the road to adulthood.
The Bride Was a Boy by Chii
A diary comic with an upbeat, adorable flair that tells the charming tale of Chii, a woman assigned male at birth.
Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol
Her friends live in fancy houses and their parents can afford to send them to the best summer camps, but Vera’s single mother can’t afford that sort of luxury. There's only one summer camp in her price range—Russian summer camp. Nothing could prepare her for all the "cool girl" drama, endless Russian history lessons, and outhouses straight out of nightmares!
Selection for November 10
The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim
Margot Lee’s mother, Mina, isn’t returning her calls. It’s a mystery to 26-year-old Margot, until she visits her childhood apartment in Koreatown, LA, and finds that her mother has suspiciously died. The discovery sends Margot digging through the past, unraveling the tenuous invisible strings that held together her single mother’s life as a Korean War orphan and an undocumented immigrant, only to realize how little she truly knew about her mother.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
Little Gods by Meng Jin
Explores the complex web of grief, memory, time, physics, history and selfhood in the immigrant experience, and the complicated bond between daughters and mothers.
The Seasons of My Mother by Marcia Gay Harden
An uplifting memoir that traces the story of Harden’s childhood and career using the imagery of flowers to represent the unique bond she shares with her mother, who now suffers from Alzheimer's disease.
Los Falcón by Melissa Rivero
Una impresionante novela debut sobre la lucha de una joven madre peruana indocumentada que está dispuesta a darlo todo por su familia y su nueva vida en Nueva York.
Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
A wrenching family drama about a Pakistani father and son making a home in the US in the aftermath of 9/11.
Almost American Girl by Robin Ha
A Korean teen struggles in a hostile blended home and a new school where she does not speak English before forging unexpected connections in a local comic drawing class.
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Two families from different social classes are joined together by an unexpected pregnancy and the child that it produces.
A young Indian immigrant in America balancing the ties to where he came from and where he's living now.
(DVD)
A Cape Verdean woman travels to Lisbon to reunite with her husband, after two decades of separation, only to arrive mere days after his funeral.
(DVD)
I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day
Twelve-year-old Edie finds letters and photographs in her attic that change everything she thought she knew about her Native American mother's adoption.
Selection for November 3
Fathoms by Rebecca Griggs
When Griggs encountered a humpback whale stranded on her local beachfront in Australia, she began to wonder how the lives of whales reflect the condition of our oceans. Here she blends natural history, philosophy, and science to learn about whales so rare they have never been named; whale songs that sweep across hemispheres in annual waves of popularity, and whales that have modified the chemical composition of our planet's atmosphere. She takes readers to Japan to board the ships that hunt whales, and delves into the deepest seas to discover how plastic pollution pervades our earth's undersea environment.
Do you enjoy this genre?
Similar reads and films are listed below, always free with a Sonoma County Library card.
The Whale
by Philip Hoare
A lively travelogue through the history, literature, and lore of the king of the sea.
(Print book, eAudio)
Into the Deep
by Christy Peterson
Scientists are realizing that to address issues plaguing the ocean, we need to better understand this incredible feature of our planet.
(Print book, eBook)
Spying on Whales
by Nick Pyenson
A leading scientist dives into the secret lives of whales.
(Print book, eBook, eAudiobook)
Voices in the Ocean
by Susan Casey
A two-year global adventure to explore the nature of dolphins.
(Print book, eBook, eAudiobook)
The Soul of an Octopus
by Sy Montgomery
The author’s extraordinary experience bonding with three octopuses housed in the New England Aquarium.
(Print book, Audio CD, eBook, eAudiobook)
Mama's Last Hug
by F.B.M. Waal
The eminent primatologist takes readers deep into the world of animals to show us that humans are not the unique creatures we think we are.
(Print book, large print book, eBook)
Our Wild Calling
by Richard Louv
The renowned nature writer explores how we can find better ways to coexist with animals in the future.
(Print book, large print book, eBook)
Bowhead Whale
by Joanasie Karpik
In this book, kids will learn how bowheads raise their babies, where they live and other interesting information, like how they can eat when they don't have any teeth!
(Children's book)
Whale of the Wild
by Roseanne Parry
Vega and her brother Deneb are separated from their pod when a devastating earthquake and tsunami render the seascape unrecognizable.
(Children's book)
A filmmaker investigates his encounter with a 30-ton humpback whale that breached and almost landed on him while he was kayaking.
(DVD)
Library launches educational citizenship collection
Posted on July 05, 2021
Are you or is someone in your life interested in American citizenship? Sonoma County Library’s “New American Collection” launched in all 12 branches on September 17, 2019, Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. This collection is for those interested in citizenship, civics, and naturalization, primarily the immigrant population of Sonoma County.
The New American Collection empowers community members by providing easily browsable, multilingual, multimedia materials in support of acquiring citizenship and learning English.
“The County of Sonoma continues our commitment to be a safe and inclusive community,” said Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Chair David Rabbitt. “We applaud the library’s efforts to put together the New American Collection aimed at informing all of our residents about civics and paths to citizenship.”
By including these resources in one collection, the library provides anyone interested with relevant information to help them gain and secure civil rights and participate more fully in their communities. Nationwide, slightly more than half of immigrants are non-citizens. Native-born citizens may also benefit from the collection by learning about their rights and privileges as citizens, especially those with friends, family, or coworkers who are non-citizens.
The New American Collection includes materials in English, Spanish, and other world languages. Materials include books, CDs, DVDs, and more. Resources circulate and/or are freely given away. Example titles include: “U.S. Immigration Made Easy,” “How to Get a Green Card,” and “Fiancé & Marriage Visas.” Find these titles at your local branch!
To learn more about the New American Collection, visit your local library branch. The New American Collection is free and available to all. Materials can be checked out with a Sonoma County Library card, which is available to all county residents, regardless of immigration status. For more information on how to sign up for a library card, visit any Sonoma County Library branch in person or go to sonomalibrary.org.
Library Wins PRExcellence Award from the California Library Association
Posted on June 08, 2021
The PRExcellence Awards are given annually by the California Library Association to honor the highest quality efforts of California libraries in promoting and communicating their message to their customers. Each year, libraries are recognized in four Award entry categories: Print, Electronic, Event or Campaign, and Wildcard, as well as a Best in Show award.
On May 13, 2021, CLA announced that Sonoma County Library won the 'Best in Show' PRExcellence Award for Sonoma Responds: A Community Memory Archive. This project collects stories about how #SonomaCounty has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Learn more about Sonoma Responds: sonomalibrary.org/sonoma-responds-community-archive
History & Genealogy Library’s Zayda Delgado Selected as Mellon Cultural Heritage Fellow
Posted on June 04, 2021
Zayda Delgado, Special Collections Librarian and Archivist at the Sonoma County History and Genealogy Library, will be one of 15 fellows to join the Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship for Diversity, Inclusion & Cultural Heritage from the Rare Book School (RBS) at the University of Virginia. Delgado will participate in a three-year program which includes orientation, Rare Book School coursework, community symposia, and other activities relating to multicultural collections and trainings. The fellowship program seeks to enhance understandings of multicultural collections among professionals, local community members, and the broader public.
The program kicked off virtually in April 2021, and Delgado looks forward to traveling to Virginia for Rare Book School in 2022 and 2023 as a fellow.
“I’m thrilled to be part of this cohort. Archives and special collections play a vital role in building a more representative historical record,” Delgado said. “This opportunity will deepen my ability to design programing and services that explore the histories and legacies of our multicultural communities.”
In her work at the Sonoma County History and Genealogy Library, Delgado preserves and amplifies the histories of our communities, including Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities. She applies community engaged approaches to relationship building, collection development, and programming. Among her notable projects are Sonoma Responds: A Community Memory Archive and Santa Rosa Zine Fest. Delgado holds a Masters in Library and Information Science with a concentration in archival studies and public librarianship from San Jose State University and a Bachelor of Arts in History from California State University, Fullerton.
Danielle Culpepper, RBS Director of Budget & Finance and one of the authors of the initiative, said in a press release that fellows will participate in virtual workshops, conferences, and Rare Book School courses this year.
“We look forward to gathering together with the fellows in person next year but are very excited to have the opportunity to bring all of the participants together virtually to engage in the important work of the fellowship in the current moment,” Culpepper said.
The 15 fellows were chosen from a competitive field of applicants by a selection committee of leading cultural heritage professionals. The selected fellows work closely with a broad spectrum of multicultural collections and communities. The fellowship aims to develop skills for documenting and interpreting visual and textual materials in special collections and archives; raise awareness within professional communities about the significance of inclusive, multicultural collections; build connections with diverse communities and publics; and advance careers by establishing new pathways and skills for professional growth.
¡Celebra el Orgullo LGBTQ+ con la biblioteca!
Posted on June 03, 2021
Únase a celebrar el Mes de Orgullo LGBTQ+ este junio, que nos ofrece tiempo a promover la autoafirmación, dignidad, igualdad y mayor notoriedad de la comunidad LGBTQ+.
El primer Mes de Orgullo LGBTQ+ tomó lugar en la Ciudad de Nueva York el 28 de junio, 1970 y fue coordinado en parte por Brenda Howard, una activista bisexual. Este evento conmemoró el aniversario de los disturbios de Stonewall, uno de los eventos más importantes que fomentó al movimiento de liberación gay y aumentó las luchas por los derechos LGBTQ+ en los Estados Unidos.
Con el aumento de legislación en contra de personas transgénero por todo el país este año, es aún más importante que bibliotecas se esfuercen a demostrarle a la comunidad LGBTQ+ que nuestro espacio es uno donde siempre será bienvenida y celebrada, no solo durante el Mes de Orgullo LGBTQ+ sino cada día.
Eventos virtuales
Club virtual de Orgullo LGBTQ+ para jóvenes (de 13 a 18 años)
Cada martes a 4pm
*Este evento será en inglés con personal bilingüe disponible
Regístrese para este programa semanal con los siguientes enlaces:
- 1 de junio (past)
- 8 de junio
- 15 de junio
- 22 de junio Con invitados especiales de Promotores para Adolescentes (SAY)
- 29 de junio
Club de justicia social para jóvenes (de 13 a 18 años)
Cada jueves a 4pm
*Este evento será en inglés. El tema de junio son los derechos transgénero.
Regístrese para este programa semanal con los siguientes enlaces:
Martes, 22 de junio a 5:30pm
Cronología de la historia LGBTQI+ en el condado de Sonoma
*Este evento será en inglés
Regístrese aquí para obtener el enlace de Zoom!
¿Nuestra historia se informará a nuestro futuro? Las personas LGBTQI+ siempre han vivido en el condado de Sonoma y han tenido un papel importante en la cultura y política queer de la región, del estado y hasta de la nación. Exploraremos cómo personas LGBTQI+ locales se crearon comunidad y fomentaron cambio cultural y político durante los años 1947 a 2000. Únase a esta charla animada sobre comunidad y otros temas importantes a la vida LGBTQI+ en el Norte de la Bahía.
Se presentarán Tina Dungan y Shad Reinstein, dos historiadores LGBTQI+ que crearon juntos la cronología de la historia LGBTQI+ en el condado de Sonoma.
Charla sobre el documental: El Canto del Colibrí: Padres Latinos inmigrantes y sus miembros de familias LGBTQ
Jueves, 24 de junio a 6:00pm
*Esta película está en español e interpretación en español estará disponible para la charla.
¡Regístrese aquí para obtener su enlace de Zoom!
¡Vea la película antes a través de Kanopy con su tarjeta de biblioteca y luego únase a la charla en Zoom!
"El Canto del Colibrí" es una historia de padres latinos que se enfrentan a problemas de inmigración, fe, matrimonio igualitario, cultura machista y el proceso de salida de sus hijos LGBTQ. Respondiendo a las solicitudes del público de "Tres Gotas de Agua" en todo el mundo, los realizadores emprenden este viaje invitando a los hombres latinos a hablar con franqueza sobre temas delicados y profundamente personales. Esta película abordará cuestiones políticas sobre las familias LGBTQ, la opresión social, la responsabilidad compartida y la aceptación de las personas LGBTQ como miembros de familias latinas.
Programas especiales celebran el Orgullo, el amor, la inclusión y la aceptación de nosotros mismos y de los demás.
- 16 a 22 de junio - Telecuentos: Sirenas
Llame al 707-755-2050 para escuchar esta historia favorita en español sobre Julian, quien sueña con ser una sirena.
- 19 de junio - Hora de Cuentos Bilingüe: Sé Quien Eres
Historias, canciones y juegos en español e inglés sobre amarte a ti mismo y a los demás. Apareciendo en el canal de YouTube de SonomaLibrary.
Kits de arte de verano para llevar y hacer
¡Disponible en las 14 sucursales de la biblioteca! Los kits están disponibles por orden de llegada. Mientras duren las reservas. ¡Llame a la biblioteca para solicitar el servicio desde la acera y un kit de Take & Make! Para mayores de 5 años, con supervisión de un adulto.
Entre otros kits, estos kits serán de tema arcoíris:
- 7 de junio: Diarios de Vacaciones de Verano con Lápiz Arcoíris
- 21 de junio: Bandera de corazón de arcoíris
Búsqueda de Tesoro de Lectura de Verano
¡Regístrese para la búsqueda de tesoro virtual comunitaria de la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma (del 1 de junio al 14 de agosto) y encontrará varias actividades de Orgullo LGBTQ+ en el camino!
Juliet respira profundo
El Orgullo LGBTQI+ no para cuando acaba el junio. ¡Únase a la charla de la autora Gabby Rivera quién escribió Juliet respira profundo el 10 de julio a las 2:00pm!
Libros, colecciones y recursos
Listas de lectura recomendada por el personal de la biblioteca:
Lista de Lectura para los Adultos
Lista de Lectura para los Jóvenes
Lista de Lectura para los Niños
Haga clic aquí para bajar la lista como un archivo PDF.
Cuando amamos cantamos = When we love someone we sing to them
por Ernesto Javier Martínez
(él)
J SP E MARTINEZ
Colaboradores de la Comunidad
¡Visite los sitios web de nuestros colaboradores de la comunidad para más eventos y recursos para junio en adelante!
- LGBTQ Connection:
- Positive Images:
- Promotores Sociales para Adolescentes (SAY)
- LGBTQI History of Sonoma County:
- Pride LGBTQIA del Condado de Sonoma
- TransLife:
Celebrate Pride with the Library!
Posted on June 01, 2021
Join us in celebrating Pride Month this June, which serves as a time to promote the self-affirmation, dignity, equality, and increased visibility of the LGBTQ+ community.
The first Pride Month was held in New York City on June 28th, 1970 and was coordinated in part by Brenda Howard, a bisexual activist. This event celebrated the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, one of the most important events that lead to the gay liberation movement and increased fights for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States. Other important events that led up to this moment included the Cooper Do-nuts Riot of 1959, the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot of 1966, and many other oft-forgotten attempts by the LGBTQ+ community to fight for their basic human rights.
With the increase of anti-trans legislation across the country this year, it is more important than ever that libraries make the effort to show the LGBTQ+ community that our space is one where they will always be welcomed and celebrated, not just during Pride Month but every day.
Virtual Events
Social Justice Club for Teens (ages 13-18)
Every Thursday at 4pm
The theme for June is Transgender Rights. To register for this weekly club, follow the links below:
Tuesday, June 22 at 5:30pm
Sonoma County LGBTQI+ History Timeline
Register here to receive your Zoom link!
How can our history inform our future? LGBTQI+ people have always lived in Sonoma County and have had a significant role in queer culture and politics regionally, statewide and even nationally. Explore the community building, cultural and social change forged by local LGBTQI+ people during the years 1947 – 2000, and join us for a lively discussion about community and other topics important to North Bay LGBTQI+ life.
Presented by Tina Dungan and Shad Reinstein, LGBTQI+ Historians who together created the Sonoma County LGBTQI+ Timeline.
Film Discussion: El Canto del Colibri: Latino Immigrant Men and Their LGBTQ Family Members
Thursday, June 24 at 6:00pm -
Register here to receive your Zoom link!
View the film ahead on Kanopy with your library card and then join the discussion via Zoom! Spanish interpretation will be available.
"El Canto del Colibri," is a story of Latino fathers dealing with issues of immigration, faith, marriage equality, machismo, culture, and the process of their LGBTQ children coming out. Responding to requests from "Tres Gotas de Agua" audiences around the world, the filmmakers are taking this journey by inviting Latino men to speak frankly about delicate and deeply personal topics. This film will address political issues about LGBTQ families, social oppression, shared responsibility and acceptance of LGBTQ people as members of Latino families.
Special storytimes celebrate Pride, love, inclusion, and acceptance of ourselves and of others.
- June 16 through June 22 - Dial-a-Story/Telecuento: Sirenas
Call 707-755-2050 to hear this favorite Spanish story about Julian, who dreams of being a mermaid. - June 19th - Bilingual Storytime: Be Who You Are
Stories, songs, and games in Spanish and English about loving yourself and others. Appearing on the SonomaLibrary YouTube channel.
Summer Take & Make Craft Kits
Available at all 14 library branch locations! Kits are available on a first come, first served basis. While supplies last. For ages 5 & up w/ adult supervision. Call the library to request Curbside Service and a Take & Make Kit!
Look for these special rainbow themed crafts:
- June 7: Summer Journals & Rainbow Pencils
- June 21: Rainbow Heart Sign
Summer Reading Scavenger Hunt
Register for the Sonoma County Library's family friendly virtual community scavenger hunt (June 1- August 14) and look for several Pride themed activities along the way!
Juliet Takes a Breath!
Pride doesn’t stop when June ends! Join us July 10 at 2:00pm for an author event with Gabby Rivera, author of Juliet Takes a Breath!
Books, Collections, and Resources
Staff created book recommendation lists:
Adult Book List
Click here to download the list as a PDF
Teen Book List
Click here to download the list as a PDF
Children's Book List
Picture Books
Click here to download the list as a PDF
School Age Books
Click here to download the list as a PDF
Community Partners
Visit the websites of our fantastic community partners for more events and resources for June and beyond!
- LGBTQ Connection:
- Positive Images:
- SAY:
- LGBTQI History of Sonoma County:
- Lesbian Archives of Sonoma County:
- Sonoma County LGBTQIA Pride:
- Click here for more information about Sonoma County Pride events
- TransLife:
Calling All Musicians, Storytellers, Poets & More!
Posted on May 17, 2021
Sonoma County Library is having its first ever
Virtual OPEN Mic!
Are you a musician, storyteller, poet, or have a special talent? Have you learned a new skill during the last year? All of Sonoma County is invited to participate. Film your performance and submit it for a chance to win! The community will vote for their favorites and the top three vote-getters will win gift cards of $50, $30, and $20 in value.
Accepting submissions now through June 15th, 2021, please visit: https://filmfreeway.com/SCLVirtualOpenMic
Official Rules:
- Each performer must be a resident of Sonoma County.
- All entries must be self-produced, and may be either a group project or individual work.
- Performances may be on any topic, but must be G or PG rated in language and subject matter or they will be disqualified.
- Credits should be included in your submission.
- Performances may be no more than 5 minutes in length.
- Use of sound or video clips from other films, television shows, music videos, etc. within your submitted work is not permitted unless those clips are in the public domain or you have received written permission from the copyright holder. This includes the use of trademarked products or characters.
- All new footage should be made while following Sonoma County’s social distancing guidelines.
Legal Disclaimers:
By entering your performance into the Sonoma County Library Virtual Open Mic, the applicant agrees to all rules and regulations as defined in the official rules.
The applicant also grants a non-exclusive license, throughout the world and in perpetuity, to the Library to:
- Show their performance to a non-paying public at a future Sonoma County Library Virtual Open Mic, other partner programs and promotional events.
- Display the performance, in part or in its entirety, on the Sonoma County Library website, video streaming websites, and/or Sonoma County Library website and Facebook page.
¡Llamando a todos los músicos, narradores, poetas y más!
¡La Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma tiene su primer NOCHE DE MICRO ABIERTO!
¿Eres músico, narrador, poeta, o tiene un talento especial? ¿Has aprendido una nueva habilidad durante el último año? Todo el Condado de Sonoma está invitado a participar. Graba tu actuación y envíala para tener la oportunidad de ganar. Estreno del episodio en junio de 22 en Facebook y Youtube. La comunidad votará por sus favoritos y los tres mejores votantes ganarán tarjetas de regalo de $50, $30 y $20 en valor.
Presentaciones aceptadas hasta el 15 de junio. Por favor visite: https://filmfreeway.com/SCLVirtualOpenMic
Reglas oficiales:
- Cada artista debe ser residente del condado de Sonoma.
- Todo las entradas deben ser autoproducdas y pueden ser un proyecto de grupo o un trabajo individual.
- Las actuaciones pueden ser sobre cualquier tema, pero deben ser G o PG clasificados en el idioma y la materia o serán descalificados.
- Los créditos deben incluirse en su envío.
- Las actuaciones no pueden tardar más de 5 minutos.
- No se permite el uso de clips de sonido o vídeo de otras películas, programas de televisión, vídeos musicales, etc. dentro del trabajo enviado, a menos que dichos clips sean de dominio público o que haya recibido permiso por escrito del titular del copyright. Esto incluye el uso de productos o caracteres registrados.
- Todas las nuevas grabaciones deben realizarse siguiendo las directrices de distanciamiento social del Condado de Sonoma.
Descargos de responsabilidad legales:
Por participar en su actuación en el NOCHE DE MICRO ABIERTO de la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma, el solicitante acepta todas las reglas y regulaciones según lo definido en las reglas oficiales.
El solicitante también concede una licencia no exclusiva, en todo el mundo y a perpetuidad, a la Biblioteca para:
- Muestre su actuación a un público no remunerado en un futuro NOCHE DE MICRO ABIERTO de la biblioteca del condado de Sonoma, otros programas asociados y eventos promocionales. ómo su desempeño a un público no pagado en un futuro Micrófono Abierto Virtual de la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma, otros programas asociados y eventos promocionales.
- Muestre el rendimiento, en parte o en su totalidad, en el sitio web de la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma, sitios web de streaming de vídeo y/o sitio web y página de Facebook de la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma.
Celebrating Asian Americans in Sonoma County
Posted on April 23, 2021
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. To celebrate the AAPI community during the month of May and beyond, we’ve put together free virtual programming and activities; as well as a resource guide that recognizes AAPI achievements and contributions and addresses anti-Asian hate. We hope that the following programming and resources will celebrate the contributions of Asian Americans, provide historical context, and offer an avenue for reporting crimes and opening discussions about racism.
A Celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage
Patrons can visit the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco with free passes through Discover & Go. 10 passes per month, free admission for 2 adults and all children under 12.
This month’s Documentary Film Discussion event on May 27 will focus on the film "Aoki, an Asian American Black Panther" (event is full).
Library Materials
- Celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander Creators
- Asian Teens in YA: Books for Young Adults
- Celebrate Asian & Pacific Heritage: Picture Books
- Celebrate Asian & Pacific Heritage: Juvenile Fiction
- Learn About Asian & Pacific Heritage: Nonfiction Books for Kids
- Asian Stories and Experiences: Hoopla eBooks
- Asian Stories and Experiences: Hoopla eAudiobooks
Resource Guide
A report on the history of discrimination against Chinese Americans in Sonoma County.
An article discusses the origins of the term “Asian American” and how it came about from the struggles of the Black Power Movement, anti-war movement, and American Indian Movements.
Within Asian American Studies and Gender Studies, there has been discussion around the hyper-sexualization of Asian women as an example of racialized gender.
California community resources collected by the Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus.
If you encounter a hate incident you can report it here.
A collection of anti-Asian violence resources.
A free online picture book about anti-Asian racism and COVID-19. It was written with Asian American children in mind, but can be read by children and parents of any background.
Information from the Asian Mental Health Collective.
An Asian American K-12 resource: Confronting Xenophobia and Supporting Asian and Asian/Pacific American Communities during COVID-19.
You may also choose to use the hashtag #StopAsianHate when sharing resources on your personal social media.
The Sonoma County Library opposes the recent acts of violence against people of Asian descent and the ongoing discrimination and hate crimes that are a result of a legacy of systemic racism. The library is on record opposing bigotry and intolerance, and supporting equity diversity and inclusion. See our statement on racism and social equity here.
Celebrating Día / Celebrando Día
Posted on April 05, 2021
El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day), commonly known as Día, is a celebration every day of children, families, and reading that culminates yearly on April 30. The celebration emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
The common goals of Día are to:
- Celebrate children and connect them to the world of learning through books, stories, and libraries.
- Nurture cognitive and literacy development in ways that honor and embrace a child’s home language and culture.
- Introduce families to community resources that provide opportunities for learning through multiple literacies.
- Recognize and respect culture, heritage and language as powerful tools for strengthening families and communities.
Sonoma County Library celebrates Día this year with two fun activities:
Mi Libro/My Book. This fun literacy project invites caregivers and children to use drawings, collage and/or photos to create a book that is all about the child’s interests. Pick up the Día craft activity kit at your local branch starting Monday, April 12.
Celebrate Día Virtual Event. Join your bilingual librarians on Friday, April 30th at 10:30 AM for a virtual story time with books, songs, and a show and tell, where participating children can share their Mi Libro/My Book creations!
All scheduled El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day) events.
These activities are made possible by a grant from the Early Learning with Families (ELF) project, an initiative of the California State Library. The ELF project is supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
Celebrando el Día:
El día de los niños / El día de los libros, comúnmente conocido como Día, es una celebración diaria de niños, familias y lectura que culmina anualmente el 30 de abril. La celebración enfatiza la importancia de la alfabetización para los niños de todos los orígenes lingüísticos y culturales.
Los objetivos comunes de Día son:
The common goals of Día are to:
- Celebrar a los niños y conéctelos con el mundo del aprendizaje a través de libros, cuentos y bibliotecas.
- Fomentar el desarrollo cognitivo y de la alfabetización de manera que se respete y adopte el idioma y la cultura del hogar del niño.
- Presentar a las familias los recursos comunitarios que brindan oportunidades de aprendizaje a través de múltiples alfabetizaciones.
- Reconocer y respetar la cultura, el patrimonio y el idioma como instrumentos poderosos para fortalecer a las familias y las comunidades.
La Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma está celebrando Día este año con dos actividades divertidos:
Mi Libro/My Book. Este proyecto de alfabetización invita a los niños y sus cuidadores a utilizar dibujos, collage y/o fotografías para crear un libro que trata sobre los intereses del niño. Recoja el paquete de actividades Día en su sucursal local a partir del lunes 12 de abril.
Celebre el evento virtual Día. ¡Únase a sus bibliotecarias bilingües el viernes, 30 de abril a las 10:30 AM para una hora de cuentos con libros, canciones, donde los niños participantes podrán compartir sus creaciones de Mi Libro / My Book!
Todos los eventos programados El día de los niños / El día de los libros.
Estas actividades son posibles gracias a una subvención del proyecto Early Learning with Families (ELF), una iniciativa del California State Library. El proyecto ELF es apoyado total o parcialmente por el U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services bajo las disposiciones del Library Services and Technology Act, administrada en California por el Bibliotecario Estatal.
The Botanical Bus: Bilingual Mobile Herb Clinic
Posted on March 06, 2021
Talleres de bienestar virtuales
Cada primer sábado del mes de marzo a noviembre 2021
10:00 am – 11:30 am
La Biblioteca se complace en colaborar con The Botanical Bus: Bilingual Mobile Herb Clinic para ofrecer talleres de bienestar virtuales que alientan a los miembros de la comunidad a aprender sobre el conocimiento indígena de la medicina herbal. Promotoras de Salud, presentaran cada tema e intercambiaran conocimientos sobre remedios, recetas y medicinas para potenciar la salud integral dentro de la comunidad. Impulsados por el éxito comprobado del modelo comunitario de autocuración, los talleres mensuales gratuitos cultivan el liderazgo y potencian la salud integral de la gente, para la gente.
The Botanical Bus: Bilingual Mobile Herb Clinic. Ver toda la serie.
Sábado, 3/6
Hablando de diabetes con Juliana Jimenez
Aprende como puedes manejar tu diabetes para alcanzar un estilo de vida más saludable y satisfactoria.
Sábado, 4/3
Practicas de meditación para manejar el estrés con Maria Rivera
Aprende prácticas de autocuidado que nos ayudarán a reducir el estrés en un mundo confuso y caótico.
Sábado, 5/1
El jardin de hierbas en primavera con Norma Rico
Tips importantes para sembrar, trasplantar, cosechar y usar las hierbas y plantas medicinales para disfrutarlas en tu cocina.
Sábado, 6/5
Respira: explora tus emociones durante tiempos difíciles con Maria Rivera
Aprenda a desarrollar estrategias para manejar nuestras emociones.
Sábado, 7/3
Diabetes, alimentación y remedios naturales con Juliana Jimenez
Conozca la importancia de la alimentación y los remedios naturales para controlar la diabetes y así lograr un mejor estilo de vida.
Sábado, 8/7
Hierbas que ayudan a manejar la ansiedad con Lu Lu Perez
Únete a nosotros para aprender sobre estas plantas medicinales y sus propiedades naturales para aliviar el estrés.
Sábado, 9/4
Menopausia: una guía hormonal y natural con Samantha Pérez
Conozca las plantas medicinales que ayudan a regular las hormonas y controlar los síntomas de la menopausia.
Sábado, 10/2
Sanidad y energía ovárica de la mujer con Samantha Pérez
Aprende a respetar tus ciclos y a vivir con ellos de manera consciente para conectar tu energía y sanación.
Sábado, 11/06
Fortalecer el sistema inmune: remedios y plantas medicinales con Angeles Quiñones
Encuentra las diferentes maneras de fortalecer tu sistema inmune y prepara los mejores remedios. ¡Vamos hacer jarabe de sauco y cidra de fuego juntos!
* Todos los eventos son en español con intérprete de inglés.
* Es necesario registrarse por teléfono o en línea, revise los eventos que se enumeran a continuación.
* Para obtener más información sobre The Botanical Bus, visite su sitio web: https://thebotanicalbus.org/
