The Wheaton Whistle

Posted in Photos on August 11th, 2008
No Comments

Found my romance book to take on the airplane! I enjoy Suzanne Enoch’s historical romances and this summer she started a new regency series called The Notorious Gentlemen. The first book is After The Kiss and the second is Before the Scandal. Each man has served his country well during the Peninsular War and now must face various problems upon returning to England. And of course, they each meet the perfect lady to help them. I have already put the book out of sight so I won’t be tempted to read it before I leave! I plan to visit some bookstores while I’m in London. Maybe I’ll find some books that haven’t made it to America yet.

We will arrive at Heathrow and take the express train to Paddington Station. I wonder if I’ll find any little bears looking for a home like the Brown family did in the children’s classic Paddington Bear by Michael Bond.

I practiced my packing for a second time. I tried to switch things around to see if I could get more space in the suitcase and realized that I did it right the first time!

Beth, Reader’s Services Librarian

Posted in Books, Recommendations on August 5th, 2008
No Comments

Would you like to listen to an audiobook without the hassle of downloading or carrying around CDs or cassettes? Try a playaway! They are similar to an mp3 player, but just hold the one book that you would like to listen to. Each playaway is about the size of a deck of cards and only requires one AAA battery. Use your own headphones to listen while working out, gardening, or anything else. Or check-out one of the library’s adapters, so you can listen to the playaway in your car. Playaways are located on the first floor, near the AV Desk. WPL is getting new playaways every month. Here are a few that will be on the shelves soon: The Road by Cormac McCarthy, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, and many many more!

Can’t wait to try one? Browse our selection online or in the library!

Posted in CDs and Audio Books, Recommendations on August 1st, 2008
No Comments

I have been on the hunt for a couple of paperbacks to take with me when I fly to London next month. I’m easily distracted while I travel to and from the places I’m visiting. I have to check that my passport is in my bag (for the 10^th time). I people-watch. How many gates down is the next Starbucks? And why did half of the people in my boarding area just stand up and move to the gate without hearing an announcement? So I need a book that will keep my interest but allow for distractions. Something engaging but not demanding. And since the actual traveling part of travel (planes, trains and automobiles) can make me anxious, I want a story that will comfort me. For me, that means a mystery, a romance or a western.

After reading a review of Mike Doogan’s Alaskan mystery, Lost Angel, I decided to throw that in my carry-on bag. Nik Kane is a former policeman just released from a seven year prison term resulting from a false conviction. While trying to get his life back in order, he accepts a job from a remote religious community to find out what happened to the daughter of one of the leaders. Of course, I read the first chapter because you don’t want to be flying over the Atlantic when you discover that the review of the book was better than the book. And the book was really good! I finished it in one weekend! The second book in the series, Capitol Offense, is due out in paperback before I leave. Maybe that one will make it to the airport.

I’m also taking Elmer Kelton’s Buckskin Line, the first book in his Texas Rangers series. This weekend I’m on the lookout for a romance to take with me. And I have to practice pack one more time!

Beth Rupert, Reader’s Services Librarian

Posted in Books on July 29th, 2008
No Comments

Looking for ways to lead a more sustainable, earth-friendly lifestyle? Check out these great resources from the Wheaton Public Library!

The Carbon-Free Home: 36 Remodeling Projects to Help Kick the Fossil-Fuel Habit by Stephen and Rebekah Hren

“It’s hard to imagine a more comprehensive, and comprehensible, guide to making your home work for you and for the planet, inside and out. It’s frugal, it’s sensible, and it will help!”
—Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy and Fight Global Warming Now

Read more reviews from Amazon.

Ready, Set, Green: Eight Weeks to Modern Eco-Living from the Experts at TreeHugger.com by Graham Hill and Meaghan O’Neill

“Written by the visionaries at Treehugger.com, the most heavily trafficked site of its kind, Ready, Set, Green is the definitive (and recyclable) guide to modern green living. It offers solutions to make your home, office, car, and vacation more eco-friendly. For example:

• Using a dishwasher instead of hand washing will save you 5,000 gallons of water annually.
• Eating less beef will save you 250 pounds of CO2 per year.
• Washing your clothes in cold water instead of hot will save 200 pounds of CO2 annually.
• Replacing three of your home’s most frequently used lightbulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs will save 300 pounds of CO2 every year.” –From the Trade Paperback Edition

Posted in Books, Recommendations on July 28th, 2008
1 Comment

Looking for a book for your next book club meeting?  We’ve discussed over 90 different books in our Contemporary Book Discussion group, and they are now easily accessible on LibraryThing.  View the list of book discussion books.  Click on a title to get a rating, read reviews, talk about it, find others like it, buy it or borrow it.  To see if it’s available at the library, click on Worldcat in the “Buy, borrow, swap or view” box. Scroll down and click on the link to Wheaton Public Library.

We have discussion guides for these books and multiple copies, so we may be able to loan a copy to each person in your group.  Ask someone at the Reference Desk for information, or call 630-868-7520.

Another source for books to discuss is the library’s online newsletter called Book Club Picks. This newsletter is published on the 15th of each month and you can sign up to have it emailed to you. There are other BookNews newsletters too. Don’t forget to check the websites listed on Discussion Guides, part of the Books & Reading section on our site.

By the way, LibraryThing is a great way to keep track of the books you’re reading, the books you’ve read and the books on your wish list.  Create your own library catalog, write reviews and share with others.

Posted in Books on July 15th, 2008
2 Comments

It feels like summer is finally here! For many of us, that feeling brings the urge to find some good summer reading. For the beach, for the backyard or front porch, for the airplane or for sitting in the airport waiting for the airplane, our librarians are always happy to suggest some books. Tell us what you like and let us make some suggestions. Or we can email you some suggestions based on your preferences. Check out the reading lists on the library’s Books and Reading page.

There are numerous media sources that publish summer reading lists also. Take a look at these sites: National Public Radio ; Chicago Tribune ; Wall Street Journal ; Real Simple magazine ; Salon magazine ; USA Today ; and Los Angeles Times.

Here’s hoping you find time to enjoy some reading this summer!

Beth, Reader’s Services Librarian

Posted in Books, Recommendations on June 30th, 2008
No Comments

Reading Room, originally uploaded by Wheaton Public Library.

Looking for a quiet place to read? Check out the library’s quiet reading room. Free wi-fi too!

Posted in Photos, Uncategorized on June 30th, 2008
No Comments

On Friday, May 30, 2008, I attended BookExpo America (BEA) in Los Angeles. BEA is the largest annual book trade fair in the United States. It is where publishers, authors, librarians, and booksellers gather to, as BEA states, “get a great READ on the industry.” There were over 1200 publishers exhibiting. We were told that 1000 authors were there this year! Librarians love BEA because you find out what will be buzzing for the summer and fall seasons! You also get to meet authors (lots of standing in long lines)! This year, I met authors like Debbie Macomber, Susan Wiggs, Ethan Canin, and Alan Cheuse, the “Voice of Books” on NPR. I also attended a panel on “The Future of Reading” – I already believed reading books had a future, however!

My brother, Dave, lives in LA and also attended BEA as part of his work handling licensing for Warner Bros. He snapped a few camera phone pictures of me.

Posted in Events, Photos on June 12th, 2008
No Comments

Third Circle by Amanda Quick A new one by Amanda Quick will always keep me up late for a few nights. Quick writes suspenseful, spicy historical romances. As Jayne Ann Krentz, she writes suspenseful, spicy contemporary romances. Several years ago, she started writing a series using both names. It’s called the Arcane Society and is about men and women with psychical powers. Second Sight and Third Circle are set in Victorian-era England. White Lies and Sizzle and Burn, by Krentz, are contemporary. Try the setting you like best first, but if you enjoy it, I bet you’ll like the rest also!

Posted in Books, Recommendations on June 9th, 2008
1 Comment