Let JCPL Point You In the Right Direction!

Only a directional dyslexic could end up lost in the space of a lunch hour. Geographically challenged as I am, I decided to take the scenic route on my lunch hour one day when I worked in Rensselaer instead of my home library in DeMotte. Multiple turns, however, don't agree with me, and I somehow found myself lost. Everyone who knows me well and takes their chances traveling with me instinctively checks the gas tank to be sure that when we end up in Timbuktu, we'll at least have the means for escape. Seems I'm not alone. "You Are Here: Why We Can Find Our Way to the Moon, But Get Lost in the Mall," written by behavioral neuroscientist, Colin Ellard, opens by highlighting the animal instincts that light the way for our feathered and furry friends, going on to describe experiments that reveal how hopelessly disconnected the human race has become from our surroundings, resulting in advances such as GPS, Google maps and other modern conveniences and tools designed to keep us on course.

You won't need a tracking device to find this new nonfiction title on the shelves of JCPL, or any of the others listed here, for that matter. Read on!

Food and restaurant icon, Ruth Reichl, reminisces about her mother, exploring the mystery of the mother-daughter relationship as she recounts her mother's kitchen misadventures in "Not Becoming My Mother: And Other Things She Taught Me." Reichl's mother, Miriam, but called Mim, had a highly eccentric and sometimes even reckless way of cooking. With at least one incident of mass food poisoning to her credit, Mim's kitchen adventures will go down in history in this ironically funny memoir.

A request to write the eulogy of an 82 year old rabbi from Mitch Albom's hometown takes Albom on a journey of faith, exploring issues and questions that are probably on the minds of many readers as they struggle through the tough times of today's fast paced society. "Have a Little Faith" by Mitch Albom is the true story of the author's involvement in the lives of two men of God, each of whom serve their Maker and congregations in completely different settings, but who share an uncommon unity as their two worlds combine to bring hope, endurance and faith to people who are seeking to find peace in whatever setting or situation they find themselves in.

Here's to the sweet life: Let them eat cake! "Let Me Eat Cake: A Celebration of Flour, Sugar, Butter, Eggs, Vanilla and a Pinch of Salt" by Leslie Miller delves into the moist underbelly of the cake world, tracing the history and evolution of our most beloved comfort food; cake. Through her travels and interviews with famous chefs, as well as visits to bakeries and wedding cake boutiques, the author samples some of the best cakes ever made, learning along the way to celebrate the pure pleasure and taste explosion of the ingredients that combine to create the most joyful dessert of all time.

Overcoming desperate situations with the intervention of miraculous twists of fate are defined as miracles by many who have had such experiences. "Christmas Miracles" by Cecil Murphey and Marley Gibson is a collection of stories that transcend the ordinary, chronicling special moments that can renew the joy of everyday living just because they were so unexpected and so extremely incredible, encouraging the reader with its simple message of hope.

If you need help with navigating while traveling, consulting a loggerhead turtle, who understands the importance of magnetic fields, or a goose that can cut a path and migrate without losing its way, may be a good idea. I would love to be of assistance, and I would, if only you could point me in the right direction!

Books are Like American Express: Don't Leave Home Without Them!

Vacation destination: Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Using Mapquest to cut the quickest path to the cabin we had rented in the mountains, we set out on our excursion, making our way into the heart of Tennessee, where the Mapquest directions began to get a little dicey, because each road turned into another. Reading one street sign after another, I marveled at the originality of the names. When we passed a sign that read, "Stinky Creek Road," my first thought was, "Oh boy; I hope that doesn't turn into the Little Valley Road we're in search of!" Luckily, it did not, but the more we drove the more Twilight Zone-y things got. Watching street signs like it was my job, I read each one out loud. "Shiloh," I said as we passed a road that cut to the right. The next was "Old Shiloh," and after that, "Shiloh Church," and the next, "Little Shiloh." By now, I'm getting the picture, and decided to read something other than street signs!

To me, books are like American Express; I never leave home without them. Opening "Love Mercy" by Earlene Fowler, I was instantly transported to Morro Bay, California, where the main character, Love Mercy Johnson, is living her life, running her restaurant, The Buttercream. Estranged from her three granddaughters and giving up hope of ever seeing any of them again, Love's predictable life gets turned upside down when her eighteen year old granddaughter, Rett, hitches her way across the country in search of her grandma, hoping to make a connection with her. As the story unfolds, both women, each grieving in her own way for the losses she has experienced, forge a bond, realizing the possibility of reestablishing their lost family ties.

Looking for more "vacation destination" titles to read? Check out the new adult fiction from the Jasper County Public Library listed here!

Sharing a nursery business and twelve years of marriage, Charlie and Laura Rider are settled and happy in their daily lives. Crossing their paths is Jenna Faroli, the host of the most popular radio show in town. Forming a bond with Jenna via email correspondence, Charlie allows Laura to hone her writing skills, crafting colorful stories through the emails sent to Jenna, transforming each woman's views of themselves, and blurring Charlie's feelings enough to complicate things in "Laura Rider's Masterpiece" by Jane Hamilton.

Vampires are more popular to the fiction genre than ever, their immortal lives spilling over tenaciously into the mainstream, and the Dark-Hunter Novels by Sherrilyn Kenyon are no exception. Tormented and inventive hero, Kyrian of Thrace, journeys through the night, happily stalking his prey, until he becomes the victim, finding himself handcuffed to Amanda, a smart, sexy woman who, unlike other women, wants nothing to do with the attraction he finds himself feeling toward her. "Night Pleasures" by Sherrilyn Kenyon is the fourth book in the Dark-Hunter Series, a story that rattles the toughest of the vampire breed, Kyrian of Thrace, an immortal hero who finds himself more than just a little disturbed by a human who may turn out to be his worst nightmare.

Haunted by years of past trouble, rebellion and bad behavior, Chris Flynn finally gets it right, and settles into the routine of a daily job at his father's company. Things are looking up for Chris, with stability and his mistakes firmly in the past, he forms what he hopes to be a lasting bond with a woman he respects and admires. When the temptation of his past behavior comes knocking, threatening his new-found peace and the hope of redemption, Chris must look to his father and most trusted friends to pull him back from the brink of is own destruction in "The Way Home" by George Pelecanos.

The way home from Little Valley Road took me in the reverse, passing Little Shiloh Road, Shiloh Church Road, Old Shiloh Road, and finally, just plain Shiloh Road. When we passed Stinky Creek Road, I knew we were headed in the right direction. Now that we're home, and I'm through reading "Love Mercy," all roads lead to JCPL, where the next great story is set to "transport" me to a brand new destination!