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Agatha Arch is afraid of everything
by Kristin Bair O'Keeffe
"Agatha Arch's life shatters when she discovers her husband in their backyard shed in flagrante delicto, giving the local dog walker some heavy petting. Suddenly, Agatha finds herself face-to-face with everything that frightens her... and that's a loooooong list. Agatha keeps those she loves close. Everyone else, she keeps as far away as possible. So she's a mystery to nearly everyone in her New England town. To her husband, she's a saucy, no-BS writer. To her Facebook moms group, she's a provacateur. To her neighbor, she's a standoffish pain in the butt. To her sons, she's chocolate pudding with marshmallows. And to her shrink, she's a bundle of nerves on the brink of a cataclysmic implosion. Defying her aboundant assortment of anxieties, Agatha dons her "spy pants" -- a pair of khakis who's many pockets she jams with binoculars, a fishing line, scissors, a flashlight, a Leatherman Super Tool 300 EOD, candy, and other espionage essentials -- and sets out to spy on her husband and the dog walker. Along the way, she finds another intriguing target to follow: a mysterious young woman who's panhandling on the busiest street in town. It's all a bit much for timorous Agatha. But with the help of her Bear Grylls bobblehead, a trio of goats, and a dog named Balderdash, Agatha may just find the courage to build a better life"--Provided by publisher.
Be kind
by Pat Zietlow Miller
When Tanisha spills grape juice all over her new dress, her classmate contemplates how to make her feel better and what it means to be kind. From asking the new girl to play to standing up for someone being bullied, this moving and thoughtful story explores what a child can do to be kind, and how each act, big or small, can make a difference or at least help a friend.
Added by Alexander
My Shadow Is Purple
by Scott Stuart
My Dad has a shadow that's blue as a berry, and my Mum's is as pink as a blossoming cherry. There's only those choices, a 2 or a 1. But mine is quite different, it's both and it's none.
Added by Alexander
Meet cute diary
by Emery Lee
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Lee Emery
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(T) "Noah Ramirez thinks he's an expert on romance. He has to be for his popular blog, the Meet Cute Diary, a collection of trans happily ever afters. There's just one problem; all the stories are fake ... When a troll exposes the blog as fiction, Noah's world unravels. The only way to save the Diary is to convince everyone that the stories are true, but he doesn't have any proof. Then Drew walks into Noah's life, and the pieces fall into place"--
Added by Alexander
Hair Love
by Matthew A. Cherry, Vashti Harrison
Black Lives Matter, Kids, Diverse Characters
A New York Times Bestseller and tie-in to Academy-Award Winning Short Film "Hair Love" "I love that Hair Love is highlighting the relationship between a Black father and daughter. Matthew leads the ranks of new creatives who are telling unique stories of the Black experience. We need this." - Jordan Peele, Actor & FilmmakerIt's up to Daddy to give his daughter an extra-special hair style in this ode to self-confidence and the love between fathers and daughters, from Academy-Award winning director and former NFL wide receiver Matthew A. Cherry and New York Times bestselling illustrator Vashti Harrison.Zuri's hair has a mind of its own. It kinks, coils, and curls every which way. Zuri knows it's beautiful. When Daddy steps in to style it for an extra special occasion, he has a lot to learn. But he LOVES his Zuri, and he'll do anything to make her —
Added by Alexander
What if it's us
by Becky Albertalli
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Albertal Becky
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(G) Told in two voices, when Arthur, a summer intern from Georgia, and Ben, a native New Yorker, meet it seems like fate, but after three attempts at dating fail they wonder if the universe is pushing them together or apart.
Added by Alexander
Dracula
by Stoker, Bram, 1847-1912.
FICTION Stoker, Bram
Bram Stoker's peerless tale of desperate battle against a powerful, ancient vampire When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula purchase a London house, he makes horrifying discoveries in his client's castle. Soon afterwards, disturbing incidents unfold in England: a ship runs aground on the shores of Whitby, its crew vanished; beautiful Lucy Westenra slowly succumbs to a mysterious, wasting illness, her blood drained away; and the lunatic Renfield raves about the imminent arrival of his 'master'. In the ensuing battle of wills between the sinister Count and a determined group of adversaries - led by the intrepid vampire hunter Abraham van Helsing - Bram Stoker created a masterpiece of the horror genre, probing into questions of identity, sanity and the dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire. For this completely updated edition, Maurice Hindle has revised his introduction, list of further reading and notes, and added two appendices: Stoker's essay on censorship and his interview with Winston Churchill, both published in 1908. Christopher Frayling's preface discusses the significance and the influences that contributed to his creation of the Dracula myth. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Added by Alexander
My shadow is pink
by Scott Stuart
jE/Stuart
Kids, Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+
Inspired by the author's own little boy, 'Shadow's' main character likes princesses, fairies and things 'not for boys'... he soon learns (through the support of his dad) that everyone has a shadow that they sometimes feel they need to hide. This is an important book for a new generation of children (and adults alike) which exemplifies the concepts of unconditional love, respect and positive parenting.
Added by Alexander
The antique gift shop
by Lee, Eun.
MANGA Lee Antique
Did you know that an antique possesses a soul of its own? The Antique Gift Shop specializes in such items that charm and captivate the buyers that they are destined to belong to. Guided by a mysterious and charismatic shopkeeper, the enchanted relics lead their new owners on a journey into the alternate cosmic universe to their true destinies. Eerily bittersweet and dolefully melancholy, the Antique Gift Shop opens up a portal to a world where torn lovers unite, broken friendships are mended, and regrets are resolved. Do you believe?
Added by Alexander
The Colorado kid
by King, Stephen, 1947-
MYSTERY King, Stephen
On an island off the coast of Maine, a man is found dead. There's no identification on the body. Only the dogged work of a pair of local newspapermen and a graduate student in forensics turns up any clues, and it's more than a year before the man is identified.
Added by Alexander
Loveless
by Alice Oseman
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Oseman Alice
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(A) Georgia has parents who are still in love, two sets of grandparents that are still together, and a brother who married his girlfriend, but at eighteen she has never even kissed someone (not even her lesbian best friend, Felipa) or particularly even wanted to; at the prom afterparty she is surrounded by couples making out, and she really does not know what is wrong--but in college she comes to understand herself as asexual/aromantic, and to capture the part of her identity that has always eluded her.
Added by Alexander
Dragons Love Tacos
by Adam Rubin
Explores the love dragons have for tacos, and the dangers of feeding them them anything with spicy salsa.
Added by Alexander
House of Leaves
by Mark Z. Danielewski
FICTION/Danielewski, Mark Z.
Fiction, Horror
“A novelistic mosaic that simultaneously reads like a thriller and like a strange, dreamlike excursion into the subconscious.” —The New York TimesYears ago, when House of Leaves was first being passed around, it was nothing more than a badly bundled heap of paper, parts of which would occasionally surface on the Internet. No one could have anticipated the small but devoted following this terrifying story would soon command. Starting with an odd assortment of marginalized youth -- musicians, tattoo artists, programmers, strippers, environmentalists, and adrenaline junkies -- the book eventually made its way into the hands of older generations, who not only found themselves in those strangely arranged pages but also discovered a way back into the lives of their estranged children.Now this astonishing novel is made available in book form, complete with the original colored words, vertical footnotes, and second and third appendices.The story remains unchanged, focusing on a young family that moves into a small home on Ash Tree Lane where they discover something is terribly wrong: their house is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.Of course, neither Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Will Navidson nor his companion Karen Green was prepared to face the consequences of that impossibility, until the day their two little children wandered off and their voices eerily began to return another story -- of creature darkness, of an ever-growing abyss behind a closet door, and of that unholy growl which soon enough would tear through their walls and consume all their dreams.
Added by Alexander
Solo leveling
by Chugong, author.
MANGA Chugong Solo
"The weakest of the weak, E-class hunter Jinwoo Sung has no money, no talent, and no prospects to speak of. And when he enters a hidden dungeon that fateful day, he ends up being left to die in the aftermath of a horrendous tragedy. At death's door, Jinwoo is suddenly invited to be a "player" by a mysterious voice. Desperate to live, Jinwoo jumps at the chance...but what is this strange new leveling system that only he can see?"--
Added by Alexander
None of the above
by I. W. Gregorio
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Gregorio, I. W.
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(I) Kristen discovers that she is intersex and possesses male chromosomes, a diagnosis that is leaked to the whole school, throwing Kristin's entire identity into question.
Added by Alexander
Milkyway hitchhiking
by Sirial (Author), author.
MANGA Sirial Milkyway
There are as many people on Earth as there are stars in the sky. Milkyway--a peculiar cat with a pattern of the Milky Way splashed across her back--travels across time and space; sometimes to observe, other times to interact with an unfolding story. From Sirial, the creator of One Fine Day, comes the full-color tale of Milkyway hitchhiking across the bright stars of people's lives, loves, tears, and laughter.
Added by Alexander
Looking for Alaska
by Green, John, 1977-
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Green, John
Sixteen-year-old Miles' first year at Culver Creek Preparatory School in Alabama includes good friends and great pranks, but is defined by the search for answers about life and death after a fatal car crash.
Added by Alexander
She drives me crazy
by Kelly Quindlen
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Quindlen Kelly
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(L) After an embarrassing loss to her ex-girlfriend in their first basketball game of the season, seventeen-year-old Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with her nemesis, Irene Abraham, head cheerleader for the Fighting Reindeer. When the accident sends Irene's car to the shop for repairs, the girls are forced to carpool, and their rocky start only gets worse. In trying to get back at her toxic ex, Scottie bribes Irene into a fake-dating scheme that threatens to reveal some very real feelings.
Added by Alexander
The color trilogy
by Kim, Tong-hwa, 1950-
MANGA Kim Color
First love is never easy. Ehwa grows up helping her widowed mother run the local tavern, watching as their customers – both neighbors and strangers – look down on her mother for her single lifestyle. Their social status isolates Ehwa and her mother from the rest of the people in their quiet country village. But as she gets older and sees her mother fall in love again, Ehwa slowly begins to open up to the possibility of love in her life.In the tradition of My Antonia and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, from the pen of the renowned Korean manwha creator Kim Dong Hwa, comes a trilogy about a girl coming of age, set in the vibrant, beautiful landscape of pastoral Korea.
Added by Alexander
Murder on the Orient Express
by Christie, Agatha, 1890-1976.
MYSTERY Christie, Agatha
“The murderer is with us—on the train now . . .” Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Without a shred of doubt, one of his fellow passengers is the murderer. Isolated by the storm, detective Hercule Poirot must find the killer among a dozen of the dead man’s enemies, before the murderer decides to strike again. “What more . . . can a mystery addict desire?” — New York Times
Added by Alexander
American gods
by Gaiman, Neil.
SCIENCE FICTION Gaiman Neil
Just released from prison, Shadow encounters Mr. Wednesday, an enigmatic stranger who seems to know a lot about him, and when Mr. Wednesday offers him a job as his bodyguard, Shadow accepts and is plunged into a dark and perilous world.
Added by Alexander
Two will come
by Kang, Kyungok.
MANGA Kang Two
Ordinary high school girl Jina discovers that she is heir to a terrible legacy handed down from her family's sinister history. Long ago, her ancestors killed a magical serpent known as an Imugi, believing that it would bring them good luck. Unfortunately, the creature cursed them as it died, decreeing that one family member of each generation for that day forth will be killed by two people closely acquainted with that person. In this day and age, no one wants to believe in such outmoded superstitions, but one of Jina's relatives has been murdered without fail in every generation. Now, Jina has been informed that she will be next to die...
Added by Alexander
Chocolat
by Shin, Ji-Sang, author, illustrator.
MANGA Shin Chocolat
How far would you go to meet your favorite boy band? Kum-Ji was little late getting under the spell of the chart topping boy band DDL. Unable to join the DDL fan club, she almost gives up meeting her idols until she develops a cunning plan, becoming a top member of their rival fan club for a brand-new boy group, Yo-I (Chocolat). This way she can always be near Yo-I at all their concerts. Funnily enough Yo-I always seem to play the same shows with DDL. It's almost the perfect plan except it's really complicated being a super fan for one band when your heart lies with another. Follow the adventures of Kum-Ji in this full-blown romantic comedy as she tries to keep her scheme.
Added by Alexander
Sense and sensibility
by Austen, Jane, 1775-1817.
FICTION Austen, Jane
Jane Austen's first published novel, sparkling with wit and artistry, captures the inequities of birth, class, and marriage faced by the sisters Dashwood. Published in 1811, Sense and Sensibility has delighted generations of readers with its masterfully crafted portrait of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. Forced to leave their home after their father's death, Elinor and Marianne must rely on making good marriages as their means of support. But unscrupulous cads, meddlesome matriarchs, and various guileless and artful women impinge on their chances for love and happiness. The novelist Elizabeth Bowen wrote, "The technique of [Jane Austen's novels] is beyond praise ... Her mastery of the art she chose, or that chose her, is complete." This Modern Library Paperback Classics edition contains a new Introduction by Pulitzer Prize finalist David Gates, in addition to new explanatory notes.
Added by Alexander
Dorothy of Oz
by Son, Hee-Joon.
MANGA Son Dorothy
Mara Shin tries to find her way home along a yellow-brick road that only she can see, along with her dog Toto and her fugitive companions: a human clone with telekinetic powers, a cyborg, and a chimera, in this graphic novel loosely based on the classic story.
Added by Alexander
Perfect on paper
by S. Gonzales
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Gonzales S
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(B) Seventeen-year-old Darcy Phillips, a bisexual girl who gives anonymous love advice to her classmates, is hired by the "hot" guy at school to help him get his ex back.
Added by Alexander
The heartbreak bakery
by A. R. Capetta
YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Capetta, A. R.
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
(Q) Teenage baker Syd sends ripples of heartbreak through Austin's queer community when a batch of post-being-dumped brownies turns out to be magical--and makes everyone who eats them break up. Syd (no pronouns, please) has always dealt with big, hard-to-talk-about things by baking. Being dumped is no different, except now Syd is baking at the Proud Muffin, a queer bakery and community space in Austin. And everyone who eats Syd's breakup brownies...breaks up. Even Vin and Alec, who own the Proud Muffin. And their breakup might take the bakery down with it. Being dumped is one thing; causing ripples of queer heartbreak through the community is another. But the cute bike delivery person, Harley (he or they, check the pronoun pin, it's probably on the messenger bag), believes Syd about the magic baking. And Harley believes Syd's magical baking can fix things, too--one recipe at a time.
Added by Alexander
The picture of Dorian Gray
by Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900
FICTION Wilde, Oscar
The handsome appearance of dissolute young Dorian Gray remains unchanged while the features in his portrait become distorted as his degeneration progresses
Added by Alexander
The time traveler's wife
by Audrey Niffenegger
FICTION/Niffenegger, Audrey
Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction
A dazzling novel in the most untraditional fashion, this is the remarkable story of a passionate love affair that endures across a sea of time and captures the two lovers in an impossibly romantic trap.
Added by Alexander
Akiko on the Planet Smoo
by Mark Crilley
Diverse Characters, Adventure, Early Chapter Books, Fantasy
Akiko Series, Book 1 When this fourth-grader comes home from school one day, she finds an envelope waiting for her with no stamp and no return address. The message inside reads Dear Akiko: We are coming to get you. Meet us outside your bedroom window tonight at 8:00. Don't forget your toothbrush. How could anyone meet her outside her window? She lives on the 17th floor, for goodness sake. But that evening, as Akiko is preparing to study for tomorrow's geography test, she finds a small spacecraft hovering outside her window with two odd little men inside. They have been sent to whisk Akiko off to the Planet Smoo where she will lead a team enlisted to find the King of Smoo's kidnapped son, Prince Froptoppit. Akiko, the leader of a rescue mission? She's too timid to be on the school's safety patrol! So begins Akiko's adventure across the land of Smoo to find a prince and become a leader.
Added by Alexander
Interview with the Vampire
by Anne Rice
Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Horror
The Vampire Chronicles, Book 1 The spellbinding classic that started it all, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author “A magnificent, compulsively readable thriller . . . Rice begins where Bram Stoker and the Hollywood versions leave off and penetrates directly to the true fascination of the myth—the education of the vampire.”—Chicago Tribune Here are the confessions of a vampire. Hypnotic, shocking, and chillingly sensual, this is a novel of mesmerizing beauty and astonishing force—a story of danger and flight, of love and loss, of suspense and resolution, and of the extraordinary power of the senses. It is a novel only Anne Rice could write.
Added by Alexander
My Lists
About Me
Alexander Arman has served as a Library Aide since July 2021. Alexander is responsible for checking out library materials such as books and DVDs to patrons and collecting the returned materials to then be organized and reshelved. Additionally, he helps answer any questions from patrons to the best of his ability.
Alexander is intent to gain hands-on experience during his employment here in the Iowa City Public Library before returning to achieve his Master’s Degree in Library Information and Sciences. Alexander has previously volunteered in helping support his community at his high school library and continues to serve in order to help the Library industry. He enjoys reading a variety of works with focus of diverse characters.
He has spoken publicly on topics such as intellectual freedom, inclusive labeling, diverse book displays, and library inclusivity.
Added by Alexander