You now have access to a publication called Booklist Reader. Click on this link and find your next book to purchase! Each month, issues are packed with author interviews, top 10 lists, essential reading lists, feature articles and recommendations for high-demand, newly released books published during the cover month in a section named Reserve These Reads. In addition, every issue of Booklist Reader includes rich and diverse recommendations based on monthly editorial themes.
The Central Plains Library System has a set with 10 books. Call the office or email Denise or Deb to reserve this set for your Book Club.
Nebraska Public Media Book Club Kit
Inspired by the new Ken Burns documentary The American Buffalo
Book | Great Plains Bison by Dan O’Brien Film | Seed Warriors by Rebekka Schlichting (Ioway Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska)
This book club kit explores the themes of conservation, restoration and respect. What can we learn from the stories of bison and the Pawnee seed keepers? How can conservation be practiced today? The downloadable, print-at-home book club guide includes: · Discussion questions written by filmmaker Rebekka Schlichting · Additional reading suggestions and organizations to explore · Two recipes from Chef Anthony Warrior
About the book & film · Great Plains Bison, written by buffalo rancher Dan O’Brien (also featured in The American Buffalo), traces the history and ecology of this American symbol from the origins of the great herds that once dominated the prairie to its near extinction in the late 19th century and the subsequent efforts to restore the bison population. A project of the Center for Great Plains Studies and the School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska; published by Bison Books. · Seed Warriors, directed by Rebekka Schlichting (Ioway Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska), follows a group of seed keepers in their ancestral homelands of Nebraska as they seek to regain sovereignty over the food system. By reclaiming their sacred corn seeds, they work to return to the healthy, traditional lifeways of the Pawnee people. Learn more at PawneeSeed.org. Produced in collaboration with Nebraska Public Media for the HOMEGROWN: Future Visions digital shorts series. HOMEGROWN: Future Visions is a Co-Production of Firelight Media and the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), with funding provided by the CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (CPB), In Association with PBS.
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK
“Hard to put down, harder to forget.” — Stephen King, #1 New York Times bestselling author
White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences… Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn’t write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American—in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R.F. Kuang.
Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena’s a literary darling. June Hayward is literally nobody. Who wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks.
So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers during World War I.
So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song—complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.
But June can’t get away from Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June’s (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves. Description from Amazon.com
Tabletop and board games aren’t just for rainy days or awkward family events anymore. As the game industry grows, people of all ages are jumping to play “the original social network.”
In our ever-increasing technological world, playing old-school games is a welcome retreat from the overexposure to Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and the rest of social media. Over the past few years, board games have become the hot new hobby. Instead of friends sitting around the same table and staring at their phones, they are now either working with or against each other. Millions upon millions of new fans have begun to join their friends in real life for a fun game of Pandemic, 7 Wonders, or Ticket to Ride.
The Everything Tabletop Games Book shows how to play some of the best tabletop games in the world, from classic strategy games like Settlers of Catan to great new games like Gloomhaven. Throughout the book, you’ll learn the different genres of tabletop and board games; how to play each game; rules and strategies to help you win; and even where to play online—including new expansions to keep your favorite games fresh and exciting.
Many libraries are holding successful “Game Nights” for all ages. If you need help figuring out where to start and what games to play, borrow this book from the Central Plains Library System. Email Denise or Autumn to borrow anything from the System’s Professional Collection.
Since 2007, Women’s National Book Association’s initiative, National Reading Group Month, has promoted the value of book discussion groups in October.
The goals of National Reading Group Month (NRGM) are:
increase public awareness of the joy and value of shared reading
provide a time for reading groups to celebrate their accomplishments and plan for the future
provide opportunities for individuals to join an existing reading group or start a new one
encourage libraries, bookstores, and organizations to host special reading group events
The Central Plains Library System has added a number of books sets to encourage shared reading. Here are our new titles:
Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult (10 copies) This book is a riveting novel of suspense, an unforgettable love story, and a moving and powerful exploration of the secrets we keep and the risks we take in order to become ourselves. Good Morning America Book Club Pick People‘s Book of the Week New York Times Bestseller
The Mystery of Hunting’s End by Mignon G. Eberhart (10 copies) The Sand Hills of Nebraska, where Mignon G. Eberhart lived as a newlywed, inspired the setting of this 1930 chiller. Smack in the middle of the rolling desolation is Hunting’s End, a weekend lodge owned by the rich Kingery family. To that place socialite Matil Kingery invites a strange collection of guests—the same people who were at the lodge when her father died of “heart failure” exactly five years ago. She intends to find out which one of them murdered him. 2023 One Book One Nebraska Selection
Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng (10 copies) This book is an old story made new, of the ways supposedly civilized communities can ignore the most searing injustice. It’s a story about the power—and limitations—of art to create change, the lessons and legacies we pass on to our children, and how any of us can survive a broken world with our hearts intact. Reese’s Book Club October Pick New York Times Bestseller
Slammed by Colleen Hoover (16 copies) Colleen Hoover’s romantic, emotion-packed debut novel unforgettably captures all the magic and confusion of first love, as two young people forge an unlikely bond before discovering that fate has other plans for them.
The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn (10 copies) A transporting, irresistible debut novel that takes its heroine, Cristabel Seagrave, from a theatre made of whalebones to covert operations during World War II—a story of love, family, bravery, lost innocence, and self-transformation. TODAY Show #Read with Jenna Book Club Pick Camilla the Queen Consort’sRoyal Reading Room Club Selection New York Times Bestseller
A question that has been coming up frequently now that libraries are opening to the public is whether or not there should be a disclaimer stating that the library is not responsible should a visitor or patron become ill with COVID-19. Recently, the Western New York Library Resources Council asked an attorney that exact question. Go to this website to see the answer.
What digital products are available to my library through the Co-op: The two products that the Co-op requires purchasing in order to join are Zinio Digital magazines and Recorded Books’ OneClickDigital downloadable audiobook titles.
Who belongs to the Central Nebraska Digital Co-op? Currently there are a number of libraries in this group including: Hastings, Grand Island, Kearney, Holdrege, North Platte, Columbus, Ralston, Papillion, Bellevue, York.
Is my library eligible to belong to the Co-op? The Co-op is charged for content/subscriptions and platform fees. We are priced for the platform based on circulation statistics for all member libraries combined. We can accept any accredited public library into the group (except for Lincoln and Omaha; who are too big).
How much does it cost to join and what are the ongoing expenses? The co-op is charged in October for services. The pricing structure is based on a formula which takes into account your library’s LSA, Operating Budget, and Total circulations to create a percentage of the total. If your percent obligation is under $500, you’ll be charged $500 for [each] year.
What are the best features of belonging to the Co-op? (patron access from library webpage, simultaneous users, keep the magazines, etc.) The great thing about the products that we subscribe to currently is the simultaneous access to magazines and audiobooks. An entire classroom of students can check out the same issue of National Geographic magazine.
Want to read and review some wonderful books before they are available to the general public? Check into one or more of the online services that supply E-galleys and ARC’s (Advanced Reader Copy). I use two of these services: Edelweiss and NetGalley. When you are approved for a book, you receive it digitally. I have mine sent to my Amazon Kindle account. Read the book and check back into the website to either write your review there or post the link to your review elsewhere (website, blog, newsletter, etc.) If you are interested in becoming a reviewer, go to:
