Invictus is the story of Nelson Mandella and how the South African rugby united a torn nation. It’s an inspiring story and it shows how the love of sport and team can bring people together. It is an integral part of the story of South Africa. There will be a book discussion focused on this book July 15th at 7:00. The library has both the book and the movie if you are interested!

-John

Cormac McCarthy is probably  one of America’s most unique authors, his style of writing, his reclusive nature and the fact that his books are very good are what helps him remain unique. McCarthy’s stark novels typically do not have happy endings and his sparse use of punctuation and style of writing make his books difficult to read.  I would say his two most accessible books are The Road, and No Country for Old Men.

The Road is a story of a man and his son trying to survive after a devastating event brought the world to its knees. They contend with starvation, brutal weather, and bands of roving cannibals. This might sound kind of bleak and believe me it is, but it makes for a good tale I highly suggest this book and will be leading a Book Discussion Saturday, May 1st at 2:00 PM. If you are interested pick up a book at the front desk.

John Long

Tim O'Brien artfully weaves truths and half truths in a stunning series of connected stories all based on a fictional squad he was a member of in Vietnam. The great majority of the stories are a mixture of gallows humor mixed with moments of stark violence and tragedy. I picked the book up not knowing it was fiction and it was only half way through when he started talking about the merits of truth that I began to doubt myself. A quick check verified that it was indeed a "Fiction" book.
Truth or not I think that the feelings the soldiers in this book felt are probably pretty close to what a lot of the soldiers who served in Vietnam felt and I didn't put the book down until i was on the last page.

Thursday, January 28th  at 5 PM I will be leading a book discussion centered around this book. Feel free to join us books are available for checkout at the main desk.

John