National Book Award

The finalists for the National Book Award have been announced:

Fiction
Aleksandar Hemon, The Lazarus Project - Call number F Hemon
Rachel Kushner, Telex from Cuba
Peter Matthiessen, Shadow Country
Marilynne Robinson, Home - Call number is F Robinson
Salvatore Scibona, The End

Nonfiction
Drew Gilpin Faust, This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War - Call number LT 973.71 Fau
Annette Gordon-Reed, The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family - Call number Bc Hemingses
Jane Mayer, The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals - Call number 973.931 May
Jim Sheeler, Final Salute: A Story of Unfinished Lives
Joan Wickersham, The Suicide Index: Putting My Father’s Death in Order

Click here to see more finalists in young people's literature and poetry.

October is National Book Group Month

Did you know about these resources for book groups (at the library and beyond)?

• Through the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium (MVLC), of which GPL is a member, more than 200 book club kits for adults, young adults and children are available. Each kit includes 15 copies of one title, a discussion guide to assist book club leaders, and when available, a large print copy of the same title, and a DVD or video relating to the book. These kits can be reserved up to three years in advance in order to facilitate long-term planning.


• Looking for discussion questions and guides for your next title? Try Reading Group Guides and Book Browse, or go straight to the author or publisher's website - most publishers have discussion questions available for their recent titles.


• Picking your next book? Find out what's coming soon at Early Word (targeted at booksellers and librarians, but great for finding out what's getting the latest buzz) and Overbooked (lists of books by topic and the latest releases).


• Or check out books at the library like Nancy Pearl's Book Lust or Read it and eat : a month-by-month guide to scintillating book club selections and mouthwatering menus.


• The Gleason Public Library (GPL) maintains an information file on the various book discussion groups that abound in Carlisle. This file contains information on each group: their book selections for the current year, their meeting dates and times, whether or not they are accepting new members and the names of contact people. This information is used by the library staff for obtaining books through interlibrary loan, by book group members as a convenient reminder, and by other book groups and patrons as a good source of reading selections and a means of avoiding scheduling conflicts.
  
  To maintain this valuable resource, the library staff is collecting information from each of Carlisle’s book groups. Contact Martha Patten (mpatten@mvlc.org) or Kay Edelberg (kedelberg@mvlc.org) or call the library (1-978-369-4898) to update your group’s information.