November New Popular Books

The following new books have been added this month to the Popular Reading Collection located next to the circulation desk.   These books and any other titles currently checked out can be placed on hold.
See a staff member at the circulation desk for assistance.

 

The Messenger, by Daniel Silva
The Right Attitude to Rain, by Alexander McCall Smith
Terrorist, by John Updike
The Mission Song, by John Le Carre
Motor Mouth, by Janet Evanovich
The Wrong Man, by John Katzenbach
The Night Gardener, by George Pelecanos
Thirteen Moons, by Charles Frazier

This Month's Great Escapes
by Bill McCleary 


On, Off, by Colleen McCullough

Ms. McCullough will be forever remembered for The Thorn Birds and that may be the last book I’ve read by her.  She has written a number of books since then, many set in ancient Rome, but for some reason or another I missed reading them—maybe there was always some other book that appealed more.  When we received On, Off  I thought it might be another ancient Rome novel but I happened to glance at the book jacket and saw that it was a modern murder mystery.  Well, fairly modern—it’s set in Connecticut of 1965.  Hmm.  This is more my style.  If a research monkey presumed dead and packaged to be disposed of hadn’t revived just before his cremation, a serial killer might still be going his merry way in the swinging 60s.  But the monkey woke up—mad—and tore up the packages surrounding him.  One of the packages contained the torso of a young girl.  All of the packages were suppose to contain dead research animals being stored for disposal at a medical research facility nicknamed the Hug.  Assigned to the murder is police lieutenant Carmine Delmonico, and he is the heart and strength of the story.  Lonely and divorced, fortysomething, Carmine, at this point in his life, lives for his job.  He is a complex, interesting, intelligent, surprising man—and a bulldog.  Carmine determines that the murder is not a single act but the latest in a string of murders of young girls—all a certain age and type.  Since the previous victims were likely to also have been disposed of at the Hug, Carmine starts his investigation there.  With no scarcity of Hug suspects, one of the enjoyments of the book is getting to know the varied personalities working at the research facility.  One of them is probably the serial murderer—but which one?  As Carmine races to solve the case, the murders continue, one each month, seemingly right under his nose.  With hardly a clue left behind.  Maddening.  And another month approaches…  This was a terrific read and such a complete surprise and departure for the author.  I think I need to check out some of her previous books to see what I’ve been missing!


The Traitor, by Stephen Coonts

CIA agent Tommy Carmellini was introduced in a previous Coonts book.  Tommy was working as a thief when he was recruited to use his same breaking-and-entering skills for the agency.  His old boss, Jake Grafton, is the new CIA officer in charge of Europe and one of the first things he does is to assign Tommy to his staff.  Jake and Tommy are based in Paris and as soon as they arrive they are given two big assignments to tackle.  First, the G8 will be meeting in Paris in a week or so and Jake wants the CIA to be on top of any terrorist activities that might be aimed at the meeting—and stop them.  Jake has also heard that the head of the French intelligence service might have a secret agent that has become a high-ranking member of al-Qaeda and Jake wants to know if it’s true and the name of the agent.  And, can the agent’s information be trusted?  Pursuing their investigations, Jake and Tommy manage to offend a large swath of Paris—but as the G8 conference draws closer there seems to be a terrorist plot afoot.  This was mildly entertaining but not great—the Paris setting helped, though.


Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen

Jacob Jankowski is either ninety or ninety-three; he can’t remember.  Stuck in a nursing home after the death of his wife, Jacob’s short-term memory can be iffy but he remembers clearly events of long ago.  Looking out his window one day, Jacob sees that a small circus of sorts has come to town.  Seeing the circus being set up triggers memories of a life-altering event in Jacob’s past.  As a young man, Jacob is about to take his final exams at Cornell to become a veterinarian when he is notified that his parents were killed in a car crash.   After their funerals, this being during the Great Depression, he also learns that his parents signed away all their assets to pay for Jacob’s college education without telling him.  Parentless and broke, Jacob goes a little crazy and leaves Cornell without graduating.  Instead of the life he has envisioned, Jacob ends up working as a circus veterinarian—at least for a time.  And, what a time it is as Jacob looks back at life in a circus when circuses were huge, moving enterprises and the circus coming to town was a big, big event.   This was very entertaining and interesting--with a great ending. 


Hit Parade, by Lawrence Block

This is a rather curious series, indeed, and maybe not for everyone.  The main character, John Keller, is a hit man.  Every few weeks or so he travels from New York City to White Plains to meet with his partner, Dot, who gives him his latest assignment.  Dot, of indeterminate age, lives in an old Victorian house and she serves as a go-between, maintaining confidentiality between client and hit man—and collecting the money.  In this latest from Block, we follow along with Keller through a parade of diverse hits all over the country.  With the tough airline security post-9/11, Keller’s job has become more difficult and he’s stuck doing a lot more driving than before.  But, one copes.   Some of the individuals on his hit parade are deserving and, perhaps, some are not.  But, the interesting and entertaining aspect of this book is observing the interaction of Keller with his victims and with Dot—who is a wacky, wonderful foil for Keller, a strangely likable guy despite his line of work. 






 
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Revised Oct. 31, 2006

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