CD Review: Overcomer (Mandisa)

Christian singer, Mandisa, is back with another inspiring album called Overcomer. It has a variety of songs that bring faith, encouragement and support.

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Reviewed by Cathy H.

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog 
  

Review: The Dogs of Christmas by W. Bruce Cameron

Title: The Dogs of Christmas

Author: W. Bruce Cameron

Genre: Christmas, contemporary fiction

Pages: 238

Published: 2013

This is a heartwarming tale of a young man named Josh who suddenly finds himself with a dog he did not ask for nor want.  Despite this, he realizes that the dog needs him and he takes on the responsibility of caring for her and the “baggage” that she brought with her.  I found myself on a roller coaster of emotions while reading the book, which is typical of W. Bruce Cameron’s books.

This book is a very easy, one day read.  While the focus of the book is dogs, there is a bit of family drama, holiday traditions, and a budding romance thrown in to the story as well.  The story emphasizes the true meaning of family and caring for others.   Because of this, I think that the book would appeal to those who are not currently dog lovers.  But just like Josh, a person who never thought twice about dogs,  he fell in love with dogs in this book, you never know if you might fall in love with a dog yourself.

4/5 stars 
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Reviewed by Laura Beth

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!

Television From Across the Pond (DVD Reviews)

Looking for some new TV shows to watch on DVD? Why not try one of these British shows from "across the pond?"

• Last Tango in Halifax tells the story of childhood sweethearts Alan and Celia who re-connect after almost sixty years.  But, the course of true love does not run smoothly, particularly when two somewhat dysfunctional families collide.  This was an award winning series in Britain, and deservedly so.  The acting and writing are excellent, with proper doses of both humor and drama.
• Silk is a contemporary legal drama which follows the passionate barrister Martha Costello as she pursues her "silk" (being appointed to Queen's Counsel).  For fans of legal and courtroom drama.
• If you can't resist period costume drama, you'll enjoy The Paradise. Set amidst the Victorian splendor of Britain's first department store, the series follows Denise as she navigates her way through the power struggles, intrigues and affairs of the store's staff and mysterious owner. 
• Last but not least, the UK's finest import, Doctor Who, comes out with the 50th anniversary special Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor on Dec. 10 (can you tell I'm a fan...?)

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Reviewed by Clare

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!

New book releases for 11/19/13

Lots of exciting new adult fiction book releases today! Here are a few of them:

The Absence of Mercy by John Burley

The Christmas Angel by Jane Maas

King and Maxwell by David Baldacci

A Nasty Piece of Work by Robert Littell

Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich

Which ones are you most excited about?
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As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!

Review: Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini

Title: Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker

Author: Jennifer Chiaverini

Genre: Historical fiction

Pages: 352

Published: 2013

I listened to the Book on CD. I love Jennifer Chiavernin’s Elm Creek Quilt books. She does a great job of keeping me hooked with the historical fiction in the books. When I saw that she tried another time in history in another setting, I decided to listen.

This book (on CD) covered an interesting period of history from a different perspective. Elizabeth Keckley was a black woman who had bought her freedom from slavery. Her skill was sewing.  She caught the attention of Mrs. Lincoln and eventually became her dressmaker and confidant.

You travel through history and learn about a period of history in a different way.

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Reviewed by Cathy H.

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!

CD Review: Bangerz (Miley Cyrus)

Bangerz is the latest album from Miley Cyrus, who caused quite a stir at the MTV Music Awards this year. I'll have to admit though, her crazy stunt worked because I got back into her music again after being reminded of her. Now I am pretty obsessed with both of her hit singles from this album, "We Can't Stop," and "Wrecking Ball." Seriously. I'm obsessed with them and listen to them on repeat.

I've always been a fan of Miley Cyrus, first in her role as Hannah Montana, then later with her music, and it's obvious that she's really changed. While her music this time around is MUCH different, I've enjoyed all of her hit singles, past and present. While Bangerz is a much different album than you would expect from Cyrus (it has kind of a rap or hip hop feel, which isn't always my favorite) it still has some really catchy tunes. My favorites are the above mentioned two hits, as well as "My Darlin'." Some of the songs are just kind of annoying and some of them are both annoying and catchy, like "Love Money Party." All in all, this album is pretty good. It has some really strong tracks, and then some that are not so good. It was worth it for me to listen to this CD just for "We Can't Stop" and "Wrecking Ball" alone, but I was able to find a few other songs I enjoyed as well, though I have to admit, there are also some I have to skip.  I will always and forever be a Miley Cyrus fan though, and I am not afraid to admit it!
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Reviewed by Stephanie

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!

Review: The Time Between by Karen White

Title: The Time Between

Author: Karen White

Genre: Women's fiction , historical

Pages: 352

Published: 2013

For a long while now, I’ve been wanting to read Karen White. Her books always sound like quintessential women’s fiction, and their covers are usually striking. With this latest release from her, I finally got around to reading one of her books, and while I can certainly see why she is such a popular author, I was slightly underwhelmed. This isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy the book, because I did, I just didn’t love it.

Eleanor Murray has a bit of a humdrum and sad life. As a child, her father died in an accident, and her sister later wound up partially paralyzed and permanently bound to a wheelchair after an incident for which Eleanor blames herself. Add that to the fact that her sister also married the man that Eleanor is in love with, and that makes for a pretty strained and messed up relationship between sisters. Her sister also blames her for the accident and as such, Eleanor has devoted most of her life to taking care of her, never living much of her own life. This all changes when her boss offers her a job on Edisto Island, her beloved childhood home, taking care of his old and cranky great-aunt, Helena. Life starts changing when Eleanor begins to unravel the past – both hers and Helena’s – and begins to accept the things she cannot change.

This book had an extremely interesting premise and a great mystery behind it. This is very much a story of sisters, and Helena’s story runs parallel to Eleanor’s as the novel examines the dark side of each relationship. Furthermore, there is a great mystery and secret that Helena keeps, causing her to be bitter and hold everyone at a distance, Eleanor included. While Helena is initially resistant to Eleanor, and quite mean to her, they eventually learn to help each other through the pain of the past, and I really enjoyed seeing their relationship evolve. I also enjoyed the mystery.
The characters were also very well developed and strong. I particularly enjoyed the spunky young daughter of Eleanor’s boss. Because the characters were strong, the relationships between them all were strong as well. I enjoyed this aspect.

Lastly, the writing was beautiful and elegant. As you can see, there were many wonderful things about this book, however, I am only giving it 3 stars because the story moved a bit too slowly for my taste, and had the tendency to drag sometimes. I find I have this problem a lot with books that are “beautifully” written. I really did appreciate the book and can see that the author is an incredibly talented writer, I just would have liked to see the story move along quicker. I definitely will read Karen White again though. I think fans of historical fiction will really enjoy this one as there is quite a bit of history involved too.

My Rating: 3/5
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Reviewed by Stephanie

As always, feel free to call us to check on an item's availability at 720-4106, or try our Barnard Crossing Branch at 663-3357. You can also check our online catalog 24/7 at http://greecepubliclibrary.org/. Click on the title above to link directly to the item in our catalog!