What is the staff reading?
This is the very first edition of the Mount Carmel Area Public Library's new blog...What is the staff reading? Each week we are going to take a look at a different staff member and find out just what they are reading, why they are reading it, and their thoughts on what they are reading. We are going to start out our first week by turning things over to our Library Statistician Ralph Hindmarch and find out what he is reading.
Hi. Chances are if you've contacted the library through any electronic means, you'e probably talked to me. If you've visited the library recently, you've probably seen me typing away at the computer right behind the desk. Let me tell you a little bit about what I read. When I was young, I read quite a bit, but as I grew into my teenage years I moved away from reading. Seemed like too many other things going on, and books just toke a backseat. As I got older, my love of professional wrestling was the strange catalyst that got me back into reading. I couldn't get enough of pro wrestler's autobiographies. I read anything I could get my hands on. This lead me into reading a number of other subjects. I've always been a closet nerd, and so my love of sci-fi was met by numerous books on the subject. I became an instant lover of all things Douglas Adams, as well as diving into the large number of Star Wars books in the expanded universe. So now I'm working at a library, and I have a great opportunity to once again get into reading on a full time basis. I recently checked out 3 books at the library, and so I'm going to do things a little differently. I'm going to tell you about each book and why I chose them. The next time I get to blog for you, I'm going to update you on what I've moved on to, and let you know what I thought of these books.
The Stranger She Loved by Shanna Hogan
The back of the book tells of the story of a Mormon bishop whose wife of 30 years is discovered dead in the bathtub. It seems natural until he moves his younger mistress into the house. He instantly becomes a suspect, and this is the story of the six years it took to solve this mystery.
I was instantly interested in this book as I am secretly a closet fan of the Mormon religion. This is the hook that got me. But after reading the back of the book, it sounded to me like a description of one of those true crime TV shows, of which I'm also a fan. I'm looking forward to this book as it seems the back of the book implies that everything is not as it seems, and it takes quite some time before they can finally get a murder conviction. This is all based on a true story, which is something I find can be a real turn on as far as books are concerned. Hopefully this is the case...I'll let you know.
Rogue Lawyer by John Grisham
I've never been a reader of John Grisham or James Patterson or any of these authors that cranks out a ton of books. Just not my thing. But I saw this one come back in, and after checking out the back of the book I just had to give it a chance. The story revolves around a lawyer who lives a dangerous life on the streets, with an office in a van, and takes on the most dangerous cases that no one else would touch. Hench the title, Rogue Lawyer. I've always been a fan of stories that are just on the edge of what is acceptable, be it tv or movies or books. So this one seems like it will be right up my alley. The dangerous nature of the work, and the law aspect of the book (I Love Law and Order) seem like they would be a perfect fit for me. I guess we'll find out.
Graphic Novels & Comic Books (Reference Shelf)
I've always been a fan of comic books and graphic novels. I have large collection, and I even attended the very first Wizard World in Philadelphia. Most recently, I've been in the process of self-publishing my own comic book and graphic novel. So I've been searching out anything on the subject that can give me some insight into the where, why, and how of graphic novels and comic books. I found this by accident. Turns out it is a series of articles and essays written on the subject, which I may find useful in my quest to be the next Stan Lee. It looks rather interesting, and it looks like something I could finish in a sitting or two (short lol). Anyway, I'm hoping this turns out to be a great resource. I'll let you know.
OK, so there you have it. The first blog in our new series What is the staff reading? Hope you enjoyed it Make sure to share this with all your friends on social media and send us your comments and your ideas about what you'd like to see or what you are reading or if you've read any of our choices. In the future, we might be interested in starting a blog with patron's selections, so please be sure to let us know if you would be interested in that and what you are reading. Thanks for reading, and we'll see you in the shelves of our library.
