Jackson County Public Library: Hot Titles

Library Journal : Chapman, best-selling author of the nonfiction series "The Five Love Languages," and veteran fiction author Palmer (The Affectionate Adversary) team up for a new series exploring the seasons of marriage. In the first entry, empty nesters Steve and Brenda have lost touch with each other. Brenda views Steve as obsessed with his real estate career and thinks he has lost interest in her. Steve can tell something is bothering his wife, but he hasn't got a clue what to do about it. When Brenda begins to behave strangely and form questionable relationships, everyone in the small town of Deepwater Cove is talking about it. These two accomplished authors combine their skills in this charming, poignant effort. This would make a great book club selection and stir up conversations on marriage and the seasons of life. Recommended for public libraries. Chapman is a pastor in North Carolina; Palmer resides in Missouri.

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions Inc. Terms

Library Journal : Chapman, best-selling author of the nonfiction series "The Five Love Languages," and veteran fiction author Palmer (The Affectionate Adversary) team up for a new series exploring the seasons of marriage. In the first entry, empty nesters Steve and Brenda have lost touch with each other. Brenda views Steve as obsessed with his real estate career and thinks he has lost interest in her. Steve can tell something is bothering his wife, but he hasn't got a clue what to do about it. When Brenda begins to behave strangely and form questionable relationships, everyone in the small town of Deepwater Cove is talking about it. These two accomplished authors combine their skills in this charming, poignant effort. This would make a great book club selection and stir up conversations on marriage and the seasons of life. Recommended for public libraries. Chapman is a pastor in North Carolina; Palmer resides in Missouri.

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions Inc. Terms

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New York Times Bestsellers

Superfreakonomics

by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Publishers Weekly : Economist Levitt and journalist Dubner capitalize on their megaselling Freakonomics with another effort to make the dismal science go gonzo. Freaky topics include the oldest profession (hookers charge less nowadays because the sexual revolution has produced so much free competition), money-hungry monkeys (yep, that involves prostitution, too) and the dunderheadedness of Al Gore. There&'s not much substance to the authors&' project of applying economics to all of life. Their method is to notice some contrarian statistic (adult seat belts are as effective as child-safety seats in preventing car-crash fatalities in children older than two), turn it into economics by tacking on a perfunctory cost-benefit analysis (seat belts are cheaper and more convenient) and append a libertarian sermonette (governments tend to prefer the costly-and-cumbersome route). The point of these lessons is to bolster the economist&'s view of people as rational actors, altruism as an illusion and government regulation as a folly of unintended consequences. The intellectual content is pretty thin, but it&'s spiked with the crowd-pleasing provocations—'A pimp&'s services are considerably more valuable than a realtor&'s&' —that spell bestseller. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

The Scarpetta Factor

by Patricia Cornwell

Publishers Weekly : Bestseller Cornwell's solid 17th thriller to feature Dr. Kay Scarpetta (after Scarpetta) finds Scarpetta—who's the senior forensic analyst for CNN—probing the murder of a Central Park jogger as well as looking into the disappearance of Hannah Starr, a wealthy financial planner. Quizzed on-air about previously undisclosed details of the perplexing Starr case, Scarpetta realizes that the tentacles of the case reach further than she imagined. Her niece, forensic computer whiz Lucy Farinelli, has her own reasons for digging into Starr's disappearance, along with Lucy's girlfriend, New York County ADA Jaime Berger. NYPD Det. Pete Marino, another series staple, is also in the loop as a member of Berger's task force. But it's the dark past of Scarpetta's psychologist husband, Benton Wesley—particularly his presumed death in Point of Origin and shocking reappearance five years later in Blow Fly—that binds the disparate pieces together and make this one of Cornwell's stronger recent efforts. (Oct.)

Caldecott Medal Winners

Hey, Al

by Richard Egielski

School Library Journal : K Up The theme here is, ``be happy with who you are,'' or maybe, ``there's no free lunch.'' Al, a janitor, lives a meager existence with his companion (dog) Eddie in New York City. They complain to each other about their lot and are ready to take off to a better place with a huge bird who just pops in and invites them. This ``island in the sky'' is perfect. All its inhabitants are friendly birds, and there's nothing to do but enjoy the tropical paradise. But when they both begin to sprout feathers and beaks, they realize that there is a price to pay, so they take off, Icarus-styleincluding a plunge into New York Harbor. Safely home, they discover that ``Paradise lost is sometimes Heaven found.'' Egielski's solid naturalism provides just the visual foil needed to establish the surreal character of this fantasy. The muted earth tones of the one-room flat contrast symbolically with the bright hues of the birds' plumage and the foliage of the floating paradise. The anatomical appropriateness of Al and Eddie plays neatly against the flamboyant depiction of the plants. Text and pictures work together to challenge readers' concept of reality, with touches such as the stacks of delivered newspapers outside Al's door when he returns fromhis ``dream''? Kenneth Marantz, Art Education Department, Ohio State University, Columbus

Newbery Medal Winners

The Higher Power of Lucky

by Susan Patron

School Library Journal : Gr 4-6–When Lucky's mother is electrocuted and dies after a storm, Lucky's absentee father calls his ex-wife, Brigitte, to fly over from France to take care of the child. Two years later, the 10-year-old worries that Brigitte is tired of being her guardian and of their life in Hard Pan (pop. 42) in the middle of the California desert. While Lucky's best friend ties intricate knots and the little boy down the road cries for attention, she tries to get some control over her life by restocking her survival kit backpack and searching for her Higher Power. This character-driven novel has an unusually complicated backstory, and a fair amount of exposition. Yet, its quirky cast and local color help to balance this fact, and the desert setting is fascinating. Lucky's tendency to jump to conclusions is frustrating, but her struggle to come to terms with her mother's death and with her new life ring true. Phelan's cover and line drawings are simple and evocative, a perfect complement to the text. Fans of novels by Deborah Wiles and Katherine Hannigan will be happy to meet Lucky.–Adrienne Furness, Webster Public Library, NY