Inherent vice

by Thomas Pynchon So Doc Sportello, inveterate doper and sometime private eye, is sitting around hazy L.A. at the end of the Sixties when he gets a visit from former flame Shasta. Seems she's been seeing developer-turned-visionary Mickey Wolfmann, whose wife and boyfriend are cooking up a scheme to kidnap Wolfmann and want to cut her in. Meanwhile, black ex-con Tariq wants Doc's help in hooking up with Glen Charlock, a White Aryan he did business with behind bars, and he's pretty bummed that Channel Vista Estates, Wolfmann's latest development, has wiped out his neighborhood. Doc heads for Channel Vista, where he might have encountered Charlock had he not blacked out (it's those drugs?). Instead, Charlock winds up dead; Doc has another run-in with friendly nemesis Lt. Det. Bigfoot Bjornsen; and Wolfmann disappears. So, for that matter, does Shasta. And it gets even more complicated as Doc is off on one very weird acid trip of an investigation. VERDICT With whip-smart, psychedelic-bright language, Pynchon manages to convey the Sixties—except the Sixties were never really like this. This is Pynchon's world, and it's brilliant. The resolution is as crisp as Doc is laid-back. Highly recommended.—Library Journal. (Check Catalog)

Hudson River Valley farms : the people and the pride behind the produce

by Joanne Michaels. Meet your local farmer! Published for the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's September 1609 journey up the river that today bears his name, this fascinating portrait celebrates the local farms--and farmers--in one of the country's most scenic and storied regions, once known as the Breadbasket of America. "Hudson River Valley Farms" brings to life the renaissance of food producers who have re-created the region as a source of artisanal cheeses, grass-fed beef, and first-rate organic fruits and vegetables. Stunning photography and short, evocative essays take readers on a rare, behind-the-scenes journey to forty-four farms from Westchester County to the Capital District of Albany, and feature the colorful maverick entrepreneurs behind the striking scenery. The book also includes a directory of nearly 100 local farmers' markets, directions to the featured farms, and an introduction by the region's popular U.S. Congressman, Maurice Hinchey. (Check Catalog)

Julie and Julia : my year of cooking dangerously

by Julie Powell. Nearing thirty and trapped in a dead-end secretarial job, Julie Powell resolved to reclaim her life by cooking, in a single year, every one of the 524 recipes in Julia Child's 1961 classic, Mastering the art of French cooking. Her unexpected reward, a new life lived with gusto (Check Catalog)

Jericho's fall

by Stephen L. Carter. When Beck, now a single mom with a responsible career, hears that old flame Jericho Ainsley is dying, she drops her child with grandma and flies to the bedside. Suddenly, her life is on the line. Her ex-lover is also ex-CIA, ex-Department of Defense, and an ex-investment wizard. He has desperate secrets to protect even in the face of death itself. His family and associates warn Beck that Jericho has lost his marbles, but he drafts her into the front line to guard his intel. In a remote mountain hideaway, the characters battle for mastery of Jericho's assets—psychological, emotional, and tangible. Evoking notes of Helen MacInnes even as he updates for the PDA era, Carter confidently inhabits a female sensibility to portray ground zero at this grisly deathbed. VERDICT In his fourth fictional excursion (after Palace Council), Carter has acquired the Midas touch of good thrillers—plot, pace, and explosive ending. While this represents a switch for Carter from legal thrillers to espionage fiction, fans of his other novels may enjoy. An entertaining summer read. --Library Journal (Check Catalog)

When someone you love needs nursing home, assisted living, or in-home care : the complete guide

by Robert F. Bornstein. Newly revised and updated, this acclaimed, complete guide delivers what people need to know to help an aging loved onea must for all caregivers! Written by two distinguished psychologists for spouses, siblings, and adult children, this frank and highly useful guide is meticulously organized to provide answers, dispel myths, anticipate needs, and provide strategies for dealing with every aspect of in-home and facility care. (Check catalog)

Return to Sullivans Island

by Dorothea Benton Frank. Frank (Sullivan's Island) creates a world in which aspiring writer Beth Hayes, whose chirpy internal monologues and quiet uncertainties make her easily endearing, is as much a character as the house she lives in. After graduating from college in Boston, Beth returns to the South to spend a year house-sitting her family's home, Island Gamble, while her mother, Susan, visits Paris. Frank's portrayal of a large and complicated family is humorous and precise: there's Susan, adoring and kind; Aunt Maggie, a stickler for manners; twin aunts Sophie and Allison, who run an exercise-and-vitamin empire; and uncles Timmy and Henry, the latter of whom has ties to Beth's trust fund. Frank's lovable characters occasionally stymie her pace; there's almost no room left for Beth's friends or her love affairs with sleazy Max Mitchell and cherubic Woody Morrison, though these become important later on. Frank is frequently funny, and she weaves in a dark undercurrent that incites some surprising late-book developments. Tight storytelling, winsomely oddball characters and touches of Southern magic make this a winner. --Publishers weekly (Check Catalog)

The library : an illustrated history

by Stuart A.P. Murray. In this remarkable book, Stuart A. P. Murray traces the elaborate history of the library from its very beginnings in the ancient libraries of Babylon and Alexandria to some of the greatest comtemporary institutions-the Royal Society of London, the Newberry Library, the Smithsonian and many others. Illustrated with 80 color photos, the book leads readers through the fascinating progress of the institution we know today as the library. A rich textual and visual resource, The Library will delight patrons, readers, and library staff alike. (Check Catalog)

Sacred hearts : a novel

by Sarah Dunant. The best-selling author of The Birth of Venus (2003) and In the Company of the Courtesan (2006) re-creates the rarified world of the sixteenth-century convent in her latest historical novel. Those expecting serenity and contemplation are in for an eye-opening surprise as the Benedictine convent of Santa Caterina, in Ferrara, Italy, is anything but a peaceful refuge. Sixteen-year-old Serafina, a talented songstress with a broken heart, literally enters the cloister kicking and screaming, the victim of her nobleman father's callous intent to quash an unsuitable romance. Despite the fact that Serafina strikes up a strong friendship with Suora Zuanna, the gifted mistress of the dispensary, Serafina has one goal in mind: to escape the confines of a life imposed on her by her time, her circumstances, and her station. As Serafina's determination to take control of her own life takes root, her discontent has a domino effect on the other nuns. Although many novelists have successfully tackled the intricacies of court politics, intrigue, and romance, Dunant applies the same type of formula to the Renaissance convent with remarkable success. The author continues to chart the course of strong Renaissance women struggling against all odds to define their own destinies. --Booklist (Check catalog)

1969 : Woodstock, the moon, and Manson : the turbulent end of the '60s

In a single five-week period in the summer of 1969, three American astronauts landed on the moon; more than a hundred thousand hippies grooved at Woodstock; Charles Manson's "family" terrorized Los Angeles; and the scion of America's most celebrated modern political dynasty, Senator Edward Kennedy, found himself embroiled in a scandal in Chappaquiddick, Mass. Here is the full story of this remarkable year--in first-hand accounts by those who were there: from the Beatles' last rooftop jam in London to the trial of the "Chicago 7" to the shocking revelations of U.S. military brutality in My Lai, South Vietnam--and all points in between. (Check Catalog)