Staff Pick - My Name Is Mary Sutter

I first heard about this book at the Iowa Library Association Conference. It was the book chosen as All Iowa Reads book for 2015. It sounded like a good story and when I saw our copy one day, I picked it up.

This story is about a young woman living in Albany, New York just prior to the Civil War. Mary's mother, Amelia is a well-known midwife. Since they were very young, Amelia took her children along when she had a delivery scheduled that would take some time away from home.

Mary quickly became Amelia's diligent helper and learned everything she could about childbirth. Mary and her twin sister, Jenny, turned 20 yrs. old the day their father died in Sept. 1860. The day after his funeral, Mary wrote her first letter to request admission to the Albany Medical School. Her deepest wish was to become a surgeon.

As she leaves for the city of Washington, she plans to do whatever she can to become a nurse while the war rages around her. She couldn't have guessed how difficult it would be to be taken seriously. She is turned down by Dorothea Dix, Female Superintendent of Army Nurses. When Mary arrives at the Union Hotel, it has been occupied as a Hospital. It is old and dirty and not ideal as a Hospital, but Mary goes to work doing anything that needs done. Mopping floors, washing bedding and when the first wounded soldiers come it is Mary working alongside Dr. Stipp taking care of them as best as anyone can.

Mary's story gives the reader a first hand look at the difficulties in the medical field during the Civil War. Mary leaves her family home and it's comforts behind in Albany and learns many new things in the care of soldiers and their wounds.

If you'd like to read My Name Is Mary Sutter, you can find it in our online catalog by clicking here.

- Cindy

Staff Pick - God's Not Dead

I didn't know what I expected when I decided to watch this movie, but I had seen several of my Facebook friends had posts earlier this summer after they had been to the theater to see it.

A Philosophy professor decides he will pass every freshman student without all the dusty old arguments, if they will simply write God is Dead on their first project. As he collects the papers, everyone is compliant, until Josh refuses to write what he does not believe, even for a passing grade.

The professor issues a challenge for Josh to defend his belief to the entire class and for the rest of the semester, he must stand up for his faith in God even though he risks his relationships and possibly his future. 

I really enjoyed the way the story unfolded and I was also impressed with the way the connecting relationships were handled. I thought it was a great story.

If you'd like to check out God's Not Dead on DVD, you can find it in our catalog by clicking here.

-Cindy

Staff Pick - Homer's Odyssey

Homer's Odyssey is about Homer, a two week old kitten. When he was found and brought to the vet, it was clear he was healthy, but with an infection in his eyes that would lead to blindness. The veterinarian made the decision to treat him by removing his eyes. She knew this could make it difficult to find someone to adopt him, but he would be blind either way and with his eyelids sewn closed his appearance would seem mostly normal.

When the vet first approached Gwen Cooper, she had recently split from her boyfriend of 3 years and had custody of their two adult cats while living at her friend Melissa's home. They shared expenses, while Gwen continued to save up for her own place. These were concerns that Gwen was conscious of, up till she met and fell in love with the tiny, black, eyeless kitten who would soon be known as Homer.

Gwen tells the story of the next few years as Homer becomes a member of her cat family and of their adventures as Gwen looks for steady work and they all eventually move to New York City. When Gwen meets Laurence, she knows he's a special man, however he is not a "cat" person. Then she knows she is in love with him and they move in together. He soon learns how to appreciate living with her and her three cats. Finally they get married and blend their forever family.

If you'd like to check out Homer's Odyssey, you can find it in our catalog by clicking here.

-Cindy

Staff Pick: What If...

I saw Shirley MacLaine's book on the NEW SHELF and picked it up. What If...A Lifetime of Questions, Speculations, Reasonable Guesses, and A Few Things I Know for Sure. It is full of questions from a lifetime of speculations from a very interesting woman who has been in show business for many years.

It is a pretty quick read as each question is presented and followed by responses from Shirley MacLaine's very unique perspective. It was quite interesting as she has been learning about the world and religion as well as history and the future in unusual ways.

I have read a couple of her other books, so I kind of knew what to expect. Shirley has an interesting voice and I really enjoyed it. If you'd like to c heck it out, you can find it in our online catalog by clicking here.

-Cindy

Staff Pick: Frontier Magic Trilogy

Thirteenth Child, Across the Great Barrier and The Far West comprise the Frontier Magic Trilogy by Patricia C. Wrede. I read Thirteenth Child back in 2009 and enjoyed the story of Eff the unlucky 13th child and her twin brother. Lan is the seventh son of a seventh son who is expected to be magically gifted and more powerful than the average magician. Eff learns to fit in, in this fantasy story set in an alternate, historical, magical America.

Then a couple of months ago, I picked up the new book, Across the Great Barrier and realized it was book two. I read right through Eff's adventures with her magic. She spends more time in the new frontier on the other side of the Great Barrier Spell. This spell protects the more populated areas from the uncharted territories with dangerous magical creatures, such as saber cats, steam dragons and medusa lizards.

The third book, The Far West takes the twins even further west as they join the expedition that is headed on beyond the Great Barrier Spell. They plan to map the unexplored territory and discover new types of magical plants and wildlife. Eff is learning more about her magic as she matures into a young woman who suddenly finds herself with a young man who wants to marry her, but she is not about to give up her freedom to do just as she pleases.

This series kept me entertained as Eff and her family encountered many adventures and she learns that being the thirteenth child has many meanings, but unlucky was just not her destiny. If you'd like to check out the Frontier Magic Trilogy, find all three books in our online catalog here.

-Cindy