August 11 at 7:00 p.m. - Evening Book Discussion: Help for the Haunted by John Searles - Meet the Author!

Join us on August 11 at 7:00 p.m as we welcome back last year's wonderful guest speaker, John Searles, who will lead us in a "spirited" discussion of his Alex award winning novel, Help for the Haunted.

January 20 at 7:00 p.m. - Evening Book Discussion: The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure - Skype with Author!

Join us on January 20th at 7:00 p.m. as we skype with Charles Belfoure, author of The Paris Architect, his thrilling novel set in Paris during World War II.

July 7th at 7:30 p.m. - Extraordinary People - Honoring Our Local Celebrities

What does an Emmy winning Saturday Night Live cameraman, a prize winning photographer and a Cosmopolitan Magazine editor have in common?  They are all famous East Meadow residents!  Join us as we learn more about these fascinating people!  Click here for more information on this special program.

Jan Kasoff

Tony Barboza

Camille Perri

June 30th at 7:30 p.m. - Evening Book Discussion: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Join us on June 30 at 7:30 p.m. as we discuss All the Light We Cannot See.  From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning (Pulitzer Prize winner) Anthony Doerr, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

June 18th at 12:30 p.m. - Lunch 'N Books: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Join us on June 18 at 12:30 p.m. as we discuss All the Light We Cannot See.  From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.  This Pulitzer Prize winning novel will be moderated by Marion Wren.     

June 1st - 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. - Adult Summer Reading Club “Out of the Ordinary...Extraordinary” Kickoff

The East Meadow Public Library Reader Services Department is excited to announce our fourth annual Adult Summer Reading Club.  It is a great way to learn about new titles to read during the lazy days of summer and a chance to participate in fun book programs!  Just sign up and then submit any titles you have read during the summer months.

The first sign up day will be Monday, June 1st. Our kickoff party will be held in the library lobby from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.  Can't make it?  You can register anytime between June 1st and August 4th at the Reference Desk or online at our website: https://ny.evanced.info/eastmeadow/sr/homepage.asp?ProgramID=13. Please choose to either enroll and review online or to enroll and submit reviews at the Reference Desk.

May 19 at 7:30 p.m. – Evening Book Discussion: The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud

Join us on May 19 at 7:30 p.m. as we discuss Claire Messud's intriguing novel, The Woman Upstairs.  This Washington Post Top Ten Book of the Year will be presented by Joy Brann.

April 21 at 7:30 p.m. - Evening Book Discussion: The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

  

2015 LONG ISLAND READS SELECTION

Join us on April 21 at 7:30 p.m. as we discuss the mesmerizing and illuminating, Alice Hoffman's The Museum of Extraordinary Things.  It is the story of an electric and impassioned love between two vastly different souls in New York during the volatile first decades of the 20th century.  Hoffman weaves her trademark magic and masterful storytelling to unite her characters in a sizzling, tender, and moving story of self-discovery in tumultuous times.  This Long Island Reads selection will be presented by Harriet Hagenbruch.

April 16 at 12:30 p.m. - Lunch 'N Books: The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

 
2015 LONG ISLAND READS SELECTION
Join us on April 16 at 12:30 p.m. as we discuss the mesmerizing and illuminating, Alice Hoffman's The Museum of Extraordinary Things.  It is the story of an electric and impassioned love between two vastly different souls in New York during the volatile first decades of the 20th century.  Hoffman weaves her trademark magic and masterful storytelling to unite her characters in a sizzling, tender, and moving story of self-discovery in tumultuous times.  This Long Island Reads selection will be moderated by Martin Haas, PhD.

March 31 at 7:00 p.m. - Evening Book Discussion: The Story Hour by Thrity Umrigar - Skype with Author!

Join us on March 31 at 7:00 p.m. as we skype with Thrity Umrigar, author of The Space Between Us, The Weight of Heaven, and The World We Found.  For this special presentation, Ms. Umrigar will discuss her latest work, The Story Hour, a heartbreakingly honest novel about friendship, family, secrets, forgiveness, and second chances.

Reader Services Has Some Books to Keep You Warm

It's winter with a vengeance and we're all stuck inside.  Instead of fretting (and freezing), may we suggest two good, long, page-turners to take you away. Curl up on the couch with a cup of chamomile, your favorite furry friend, and a good book to start feeling warm again.

Theodore Decker, a 13 year old NYC prep school student, is in trouble and may be suspended. On the way to the parent-teacher conference, he and his mother decide to stop in at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to view an exhibition.  While his mother looks at the paintings, Theo separates from her to follow a young girl who's with an older man.  An explosion occurs and he is thrown to the ground along with the other museum attendees. The old man, now dying, insists he take the painting by Fabritius, The Goldfinch, and a ring out of the museum, and gives him a name to contact.  When he gets back to his Greenwich Village apartment, he finds that his mother died in the explosion and that he is virtually an orphan; his father having left them without a contact many years ago.  Thus begins Donna Tartt's tour de force novel The Goldfinch, a compelling book that explores the themes of family, friendship, luck, atonement, redemption and fate.  As they follow Theo's life path, readers will be caught up in the twists and turns that destroy and remake him, and ultimately bring him to the place he needs to be.  This book deservedly won the Pulitzer Prize and the Andrew Carnegie Medal of Excellence.

What could be better than a murder mystery?  How about one that is somehow tied to a bio-terrorism plot on an international level.  If this sounds intriguing, you'll probably love Terry Hayes' I am Pilgrim, a novel that will leave you breathless.   "Saracen", a radicalized Saudi, patiently concocts a failure proof scheme to take America down and avenge the death of his father.  As ex-CIA operative Pilgrim attempts to unravel his plot, the reader moves with him from Britain to France, Saudi Arabia and  Afghanistan following the clues that will hopefully prevent a melt-down.  First time author Hayes is a screenwriter and his book reads like a James Bond movie.
 
Happy reading!

February 1st through February 14th - Blind Date with a Book

In honor of Valentine's Day, from February 1st through February 14th, we'd like to "fix you up" with a blind date!  We'll select a variety of library books, wrap them up in festive paper and you won't know the "identity" of your blind date till you get home.

Try it! You may end up having a great read with a book you never would have thought to choose.  With each book is a "Rate a Date" slip, simply say whatever you want about your date.  Return your slip to enter our raffle for a special prize, one entry per person.  For more information, please call the Reader Services Department at 516-794-2570 ext.236.

Evening Book Discussion: The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

January 20, 2015 at 7:30 PM -  Evening Book Discussions -  The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

This program usually meets monthly at 7:30 p.m. at the library in a casual atmosphere, and is led by the members of the group. The books are chosen by the participants, and the whole session is discussion oriented. For more information, please call the Reader Services Department at 516-794-2570 ext.236.

What happened to Judge Crater?

The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress by Ariel Lawhon

Inspired by a real-life unsolved mystery, Lawhon’s first novel is a fascinating look at the politics and social milieu of the 1930’s.

Joseph Force Crater, a 41-year-old New York City Supreme Court justice, vanished while out on a night on the town in August of 1930.  No one was ever charged with any crime. His body was never found. 

Ariel Lawhon has taken these facts and woven an intricate story of three women in his life. The book begins with Crater’s wife Stella, tired of his affair with his mistress Sally Lou Ritz, slamming the car door on his hand. The Judge leaves for New York City to see his mistress and within a day has disappeared. 

The Crater’s maid, Maria, is a very attractive Castillian.  She is married to Jude Simon, the lead detective assigned to investigate the disappearance of Judge Crater. The main suspect, the infamous gangster Owney Madden, owns Club Abbey, and uses his power to influence politics and politicians.

Lawhon intersperses the story of Stella, Sally Lou Ritz and Maria to tell the story of how she imagines the judge disappeared. The reader is left to conjecture who really was responsible and how and why they did it.  As a reader, I couldn’t wait for the conclusion. Although I think the ending was a little less believable than I would have liked, I really enjoyed each of the women’s stories and especially enjoyed all the historical facts included in the book. The author is adept at bringing you into the story and really feeling what it was like to live at that time. Recommended!

Come and Gone

Imagine if your only son had drowned on his eighth birthday, over forty years ago. You and your spouse would have mourned and eventually gotten on with your lives. Now, how would you react if your boy came back today, eight years old and ready to resume his life. And he isn’t alone; dead people are returning all over the world to the people and places that they loved. This is the premise of the novel The Returned by Jason Mott.

At first these returnees are greeted with delight, but as more and more people appear, a tipping point for space and supplies causes forced incarceration and rationing. Interned in a prison camp, Jacob the eight year old returnee, is joined by his living father who watches over him, as wave after wave of the departed fight for cots and food. The living are pitted against the newly living and both begin behaving badly. In the end, this incident will bring out the best and the worst of humankind.

This is a thought provoking novel for anyone who has yearned to be reunited just one last time with a relative or a friend who has died. It explores what might happen if this should become a reality, and recalls the old warning “be careful what you wish for.” The Returned is also the basis of a television series, “Resurrection” that debuts in March.

If The Returned interests you, also try The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta. This book is almost the reverse of Mott’s novel as, instead of the dead returning to life, some of the living one day just disappear. Perrotta explores how a small town has coped with this major disruption three years later and how no resident has been left untouched.

Thrills and Chills

Here are some books to keep you up at night:

Cover of Snow by Jenny Milchman

A cold and snowy winter morning in the Adirondack Mountains brings devastation to Nora Hamilton’s life when she finds her Police Officer husband hanging from a frayed rope, an apparent suicide.  Disturbed that she had no idea he was suicidal, Nora starts to ask questions hoping to shed some light on the tragedy.   Surprisingly his co-workers and family seem intent on keeping her from finding answers and Nora discovers that some small towns will go to great lengths to keep past secrets buried.

Night Film by Marisha Pessl

Journalist Scott McGrath destroyed his career and family when he made unfounded accusations about cult-horror-film director Stanislas Cordova.  Convinced that the reclusive filmmaker is involved in something sinister, McGrath decides to investigate when Cordova’s daughter apparently commits suicide.  As he goes deeper and deeper into Cordova’s creepy world McGrath finds that nothing is quite how it seems.

NOS4A2 by Joe Hill

Charles Manx is no ordinary serial killer as most people think.  Instead of killing the children he kidnaps he takes them in his 1938 Rolls-Royce Wraith with a NOS4A2 vanity plate to a terrifying place called “Christmasland,” a place not part of the real world.  After escaping from prison Manx goes after Vic McQueen who sent him there as a child.  Vic, who has an extraordinary ability of her own, now finds that it is up to her to stop Manx from taking her own son to “Christmasland.”