Have you been wondering what all your favorite library staff read, watched, and listened to over the summer? Well, let us tell you!
"The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb was my favorite read of the summer. I listened to part of the audiobook as well and the narrator is very good. We have the audiobook on cloudLibrary. I also liked Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. I've been recommending it the the residents at Independence Village of East Lansing. And Hot Dog by Doug Salati was one of my favorite summer picture books!" -Amber
"I really liked reading True Biz by Sara Nović! I’m also most of the way through Maus by Art Spiegelman and I think it lives up to its buzz. My favorite movie I’ve seen this summer is I’m Thinking of Ending Things. (Based on a book by the same name)" -Conner
"I've been reading the Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn." -Liv
The Girl With The Make-Believe Husband: A Bridgerton Prequel
"I finally picked up a Silvia Moreno-Garcia book, Velvet Was the Night, and I really enjoyed this Mexico City political noir experience. How The Word Is Passed was a thoughtful work about how we learn (and don't learn) about slavery in the United States. Buddhish is one of the best, most refreshing, perspective-changing books I've read about Buddhism in a long time." -Angelo
"I recently started reading regularly again for the first time in a long while, and I think I’ve chosen some pretty good books to get back into the daily habit with. Over the summer, I read Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, which was overall very cute and fun, and as someone with a background in political communications, the fictional accounts of their international hijinks (and resulting PR disasters) sure were wild to read. After that one, I read Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki, which was also really excellent; it was a “stay up until 5am reading because there’s only 150 pages left, that’s really not that much” kinda book. I loved the mixture of science fiction and fantasy, I loved the twist on the classic “deal with the devil”, and I was truly on the edge of my seat for the shocking surprise ending. After that, I started working my way through the Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage; I read this all the way through as a kid, and revisiting it now as an adult has still been a lot of fun. I remember all the characters fondly, but have forgotten the details of the stories nearly entirely, so it’s almost like reading it for the first time." -Gabby
"Summertime means more reading time for me. Some of my favorites took me to places I have never been and added different perspectives on the world - and for me, that’s what reading is all about. Families are complicated, and the family in Olga Dies Dreaming is defined by the politically radical mother who abandoned her and her brother. Set in the Puerto Rican community of New York city, I also learned a lot about the the “unincorporated territory” of Puerto Rico, which is neither a state nor an independent country, and the pain this causes. The Sentence is another great Louise Erdrich story with a compelling group of unusual characters. It is also a homage to the healing power of a book. Set in a bookstore in Minneapolis during the significant year of 2019-20, it also includes a long list of titles and authors for future reading. I initially picked up What The Fireflies Knew by Kai Harris because my sister told me it takes place in Lansing. Harris captured perfectly what it's like to be young and having to face life's harsh realities - a confusing time, full of emotional extremes, especially when a parent or caregiver is not emotionally capable of helping them through it. The story is told with honesty and compassion. One bonus of working at a library is all the interesting books I happen across. I found Earth Keeper by M. Scott Momaday on the new book shelves and was intrigued by the title. Inside are stories and artwork that reverence the earth and emphasize the necessity of our roles as “Earth Keepers”. After reading it, I decided to borrow the audio book to listen to it in N. Scott Momaday’s own voice." -Mary
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