Posted by Candice on Friday, Jul 28, 2017
B.Y.O.Book, the Library's books-in-bars book club, has some new events coming up! Grab a book, then pull up a chair to discuss it with us, while enjoying some food and drink at a great, local restaurant. Find more information and register for events by clicking on the links below.
August 15, at The Mill, 6 p.m., we'll talk about Carson McCullers' The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter
September 19, at Basta Pizzeria Ristorante, 6 p.m., we'll talk about Elena Ferrante's My Brilliant Friend
October 24, at Share Wine Bistro & Small Plate Lounge, 6 p.m., we'll talk about Jeff Speck's Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time
A limited number of each title will be available at the Info Desk on the 2nd floor of the Iowa City Public Library for checkout; there are also copies in the Library's print, audio, and digital collections. Please call the Info Desk at 356-5200 for more information, or email candice-smith@icpl.org
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About the Author
I work at the Info Desk on the second floor, and I select books for the adult nonfiction collection. I have a degree in anthropology, which really helps in selecting...well...almost anything. I also manage the Art To Go collection of framed prints and original art, and the nonfiction DVDs.
What do you like to read?
In no particular order:... more
This was so good! I came across this title on ICPL's 'Featured Collections' scroller on the website (which, by the way, is a great way to find titles you might not be aware of), and I was hooked from the beginning. The story is told in alternating chapters by Mae and Chris, and the first thing of note is that I found both narrators to be unique and excellent, with a nice range of emotion (even hard-on-the-outside Chris). You know when a narrator sounds just like the character you're imagining? This had that going on for me. The story itself is compelling and original, even while having well-known elements that are in the miasma surrounding Hollywood: the big players, the world of dirty secrets perpetrated by those who hold the power, the broken systems, the people who fall through the cracks, and the people who perpetuate all of this in various ways. I found all the characters to be nicely fleshed out, especially Mae and Chris of course, but the side characters are also given unique characteristics and situations that tell their stories. One final note: this is the second book I've read or listened to recently that has a female "cleaner" at the center of it, someone who helps cover up bad situations for powerful people in Hollywood (the other is the Devil's Playground), and it is making for some very interesting post-book thinking. -Candice