Hardcover Fiction:

1. THE HELP, by Kathryn Stockett. (Amy Einhorn/Putnam, $24.95.) A young white woman and two black maids in 1960s ­Mississippi.

2. THE LOST SYMBOL, by Dan Brown. (Doubleday, $29.95.) Robert Langdon among the Masons.

3. KISSER, by Stuart Woods. (Putnam, $25.95.) Stone Barrington, the New York cop turned lawyer, pursues a case of financial fraud on the Upper East Side.

4. BLOOD TIES, by Kay Hooper. (Bantam, $26.) The F.B.I. agent Noah Bishop and his special crimes unit pursue a brutal enemy.

5. THE FIRST RULE, by Robert Crais. (Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated, $26.95.) Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, set out to clear the reputation of a former military contractor who has been murdered.

Hardcover Nonfiction:

1. GAME CHANGE, by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. (Harper/HarperCollins, $27.99.) Behind the scenes at the 2008 election with Barack Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, John and Elizabeth Edwards, John McCain and Sarah Palin.

2. I AM OZZY, by Ozzy Osbourne with Chris Ayres. (Grand Central, $26.99.) Recollections of heavy metal’s “Prince of Darkness.”

3. THE POLITICIAN, by Andrew Young. (Thomas Dunne/St. Martin’s, $24.99.) A tell-all by John Edwards’s closest aide.

4. COMMITTED, by Elizabeth Gilbert. (Viking, $26.95.) The author of Eat, Pray, Love wrestles with, and overcomes, her ambivalence about marriage.

5. HAVE A LITTLE FAITH, by Mitch Albom. (Hyperion, $23.99.) A suburban rabbi and a Detroit pastor teach lessons about the comfort of belief.

Children’s Chapter Books:

1. THE HUNGER GAMES, by Suzanne Collins. (Scholastic, $17.99.) In a dystopian future, a girl fights for survival on live TV. (Ages 12 and up)

2. CATCHING FIRE, by Suzanne Collins. (Scholastic, $17.99.) The protagonist of The Hunger Games returns. (Ages 12 and up)

2. WITCH AND WIZARD, by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. (Little, Brown, $17.99.) One of each, brother and sister, flex their newfound powers. (Ages 12 and up)

3. FALLEN, by Lauren Kate. (Delacorte, $17.99.) Thwarted love among misfits at a Savannah, Ga., boarding school. (Ages 12 and up)

4. PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS (THE ULTIMATE GUIDE), written by Mary-Jane Knight. Designed by Philip Chidlow.. (Disney-Hyperion, $12.99.) Gods, beasts and tips for children with one immortal parent, based on the series by Rick Riordan. (Ages 10 and up)

5. WHEN YOU REACH ME, by Rebecca Stead. (Wendy Lamb, $15.99.) A sixth-grade girl in New York City begins receiving mysterious notes. (Ages 9 to 12)

On February 12, 1933, Gertrude O’Neill wrote an article for the South Bend Tribune about Valentine’s Day–or, as she called it, “the one day of the year that is so peculiarly a day of courting, of sentiment, of romance, in fact, of all that the heart connotes emotionally.” She recommended that gentlemen purchase valentines with pastel shades or, alternatively, in the newest fashion:  “black, silver and glossy paper.” O’Neill noted that flowers also were a “thrillingly subtle remembrance of the day,” but warned wooers to reflect carefully on the meaning of their bouquets. She explained that “there are tulips … and violets for friendship….  Forget-me-nots are sweetly suggestive and orchids reveal ‘you’re the only one.’ The ever lovely roses are the genuine semblance of all that is dear and suggest sincere friendship that borders dangerously on love.”

Also in 1933, just like today, folks threw parties and dances for Valentine’s Day. At that time, even private dinner parties could be mentioned in the paper, so we know that Miss Louise Studebaker entertained a group of young people in her home for the occasion. Many married couples had bridge parties, with decorations such as “red candles in crystal holders.” The “Married Folks Dancing Club” held a Valentine’s dinner dance for its members.

Even The Workers’ Relief Association, a Depression-era association, sponsored a ball. By pooling members’ funds, a nice dance could be held at little cost to each individual. This year, with the country in the midst of a recession, many people are again looking for ways to treat their Valentines without having to use up what’s left of their savings. Here are some low-cost ideas for St. Joseph County:

• Check out a museum pass from SJCPL and visit the Studebaker National Museum’s “National Treasures” exhibition for free! See eight famous (and lovely) vehicles from the Studebaker collection that the National Park Service has designated as official National Treasures.
• Rent a romantic movie from SJCPL’s Sights & Sounds department on the 3rd Floor of Main Library in downtown South Bend. Cost:  $0.50 per day, for up to four days. Here’s a short list of some good romances and romantic comedies: His Girl Friday (Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell), Gigi (Leslie Caron and Louis Jourdan), Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard), A Room with a View (Julian Sands and Helena Bonham Carter), Moonstruck (Cher and Nicholas Cage), When Harry Met Sally (Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal), Monsoon Wedding (Vasundhara Das and Parvin Dabas), Possession (Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart), and Something New (Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker).
• Attend Jane Eyre, the Musical at Bethel College on February 11, 12, or 13. The tickets are $15 per person ($13 for students and seniors).
• Enjoy some Mendelssohn and Brahms at the Notre Dame Symphony Orchestra’s Winter 2010 Concert, “Musical Valentines.” The concert is on Friday, February 12, and only costs $6 (less for seniors and Notre Dame employees and students).
• If any snow arrives and sticks, take part in the Cocoa, Candlelight, and Cross-County Ski at St. Patrick’s County Park next Friday, February 12. Pay the gate fee of $3 per car and $10 to participate in the skiing and get your hot cocoa. You can rent skis for $10 a pair.
• Go snowshoeing at Ferrettie/Baugo Creek County Park next weekend. The cost is $3 per car to enter the park, and you can rent snowshoes for only $3 per person. Lots of fun and a great bargain. If you want to take the whole family, you can also try innertubing at Ferrettie/Baugo or St. Pat’s.
• Make like the 1933 “Married Folks Dancing Club” members and attend a dinner dance. Southside Christian Church is hosting a Valentine’s Day dinner dance on Friday, February 12: “Suggested donation of $10/person at the door, but no one will be turned away.”
• Hear local folk singer Judy Berg perform at the Artpost gallery downtown on Saturday, February 13. The cover charge is only $5.
• The least expensive, easiest, and possibly most romantic option of all: check out a love story or poems from SJCPL and read it to your sweetheart over a special home-cooked meal! I’d suggest Griffin & Sabine, Jane Hirshfield’s poems in After, or The 100 Best Love Poems of All Time (which includes Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?,” Emily Dickinson’s “Wild Nights!,” and ee cummings’s “i carry your heart with me”).

Any other suggestions for low-cost Valentine’s Day celebrations?

Libba Bray’s newest creation is Going Bovine. The cover art is eye-catching (how often do book covers show a human-looking cow with a garden gnome tucked under its foreleg?). The writing crackles with wit–no wonder it won the Michael L.Printz Award for literary excellence in YA fiction. For the first few chapters, I thought Going Bovine was going to be a change of pace for this author. Then as I kept reading–and laughing–the Libba Bray alternate universes unfolded. Like Bray’s Victorian trilogy, there are many layers to this book. It often seems a ‘companion’ piece to Don Quixote. It has mythology (in this case, Norse mythology) and a time-traveling Inuit pop music group. It was a lovely romp, with the unexpected thrown in at every turn. As an added treat, the author also created a quirky trailer about her book: Going Bovine is mooo-velous!

Mi Papá Diego Y Yo/My Papa Diego and Me por Guadalupe Rivera Marín & Diego Rivera–Memorias del hijo del artista Diego Rivera.

La Puerta  Hechizada por Sandra Montañez Carreño–La puerta es la entrada a un mundo mágico con brujas juguetonas, duendes traviesos y más.

Cheech y el Autobús Fantasma por Cheech Marin. El actor y comediante creó el personaje del chofer de un autobús escolar. En este libro, Cheech y sus ‘Cheecharones’ intentan de todo para deshacerse de los fantasmos.

Dog Who Loved Tortillas/La Perrita Que Le Encantaban Las Tortillas por Benjamin Alire Sáenz. Un libro bilingüe sobre una perrita y la familia que la quiere.

Nonfiction
Green Barbarians: How to Live Bravely on Your Home Planet by Ellen Sandbeck
I Am Ozzy by Ozzy Osbourne
The Only Thing Worth Dying For: How Eleven Green Berets Forged a New Afghanistan by Eric Blehm
The Skinnygirl Dish: Easy Recipes for Your Naturally Thin Life by Bethenny Frankel
Start Over, Finish Rich: 10 Steps to Get You Back on Track in 2010 by David Bach

DVDs
Amelia
Love Happens
More Than a Game
New York, I Love You
Zombieland

CDs
Crazy Heart: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack—Various Artists
Forget and Not Slow Down—Relient K
Grammy Nominees 2010—Various Artists
The Sun Came Out—7 Worlds Collide
Y Not—Ringo Starr

Children’s
A Friend Like You by Tanja Askani (Preschool)
Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman (Grades 4–6)
The Great Big Book of Mighty Machines by Jean Coppendal (Preschool–Grade 3)
Lone Wolf (Wolves of the Beyond) by Kathryn Lasky (Grades 4–6)
Polo and the Dragon by Regis Faller (Preschool–Grade 2)

Audiobooks
Death of a Valentine by M.C. Beaton
The First Rule by Robert Crais
The Honor of Spies by W.E.B. Griffin
Impact by Douglas Preston
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

Los Casos de la Doctura Anabel Ochoa–La doctura Anabel Ochoa fue un personaje extraordinario dentro del ámbito de la comunicación, particularmente en el contexto del la educación sexual en México.

Pregúntale a Silvia…los secretos de Eva por Silvia Olmedo.La vida de una mujer nunca es facil. Infidelidad? Prevenir un embarazo? Que debo hacer por mi carrera? Identidad soy gay? En este libro se reunen personajes y circunstancias de la vida real con consejos practicos que ayudaran a las lectoras a enfrentar algunas de las situaciones dificiles de la vida. Un libro informativo, divertido y controversial.

Bebé y niño, guía útil por Dra Carol Cooper.  La guía esencial para abordar y disfrutar el rápido desarrollo de tu bebé.

Guía de supervivenica para mamás por Cheryl Saban. Aprende a gestionar ese cúmulo de sensaciones y emociones desbordadas que pueden sobrevenir tras el parto.

Adolescentes y sexo:el papel de los padres por José María Corominas. Un libro que puede ser leído por los padres para prepararse bien para hablar con los hijos adolescentes.

25,000 nombres de bébe: la mejor guía para escoger el nombre adecuado por Carla Veazquez de Haro.

For biographical information, check out our online source, Gale Biography Resource Center. Books covering subjects ranging from slavery to civil rights can be found in the following sections: African American History, African American Social Issues, and Slavery and Anti-Slavery Movements. One of my favorite authors of African-American studies is Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

The areas mentioned  are just some of the suggested areas that you can find books about the extensive history of African-Americans at SJCPL.

But as I perused the various chapters of the book I realized that I do indeed act old. For example, one suggestion is “Enough With The Seinfeld Already.” Now, I am not a huge Seinfeld fan, but I do frequently refer to my wallet as the George Costanza wallet because it is a black, man-style wallet and I keep a TON of receipts in it. Another is “Never Admit You Hated The Dark Knight.” I guess then I probably shouldn’t admit I have never seen The Dark Knight then, should I? Yet another piece of advice is “Don’t Wake Up Before Dawn.” I have become, though no fault of my own, an early riser. I have a chubby beagle who loves to eat and pesters me until I get up and feed her. The latest she can wait before fainting from hunger is 7:00 a.m. Now, you might be thinking, how old is this lady, 82? But before you judge, here are a few more old things you might want to avoid that are explained in the following chapters. (I know some of you library staff members in particular are guilty of a few of these.)

Don’t Worship Jane Austen

Don’t Admit You’re Crazy About Springsteen

Fall Is So Not Your Favorite Season

Don’t Advise People to Carry an Umbrella

Don’t Dance to “Sexual Healing”

If you want some more tips on how to act younger, check out a copy of How Not to Act Old at your favorite SJCPL location today!

Hardcover Fiction:

1. THE HELP, by Kathryn Stockett. (Amy Einhorn/Putnam, $24.95.) A young white woman and two black maids in 1960s ­Mississippi.

2. KISSER, by Stuart Woods. (Putnam, $25.95.) Stone Barrington, the New York cop turned lawyer, pursues a case of financial fraud on the Upper East Side.

3. THE LOST SYMBOL, by Dan Brown. (Doubleday, $29.95.) Robert Langdon among the Masons.

4. THE BURNING LAND, by Bernard Cornwell. (Harper/HarperCollins, $25.99.) In the fifth of the Saxon Tales, the ninth-century Saxon warrior Uhtred breaks with King Alfred, but eventually returns to help fight the Danes.

5. THE FIRST RULE, by Robert Crais. (Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated, $26.95.) Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, set out to clear the reputation of a former military contractor who has been murdered.

Hardcover Nonfiction:

1. GAME CHANGE, by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. (Harper/HarperCollins, $27.99.) Behind the scenes at the 2008 election with Barack Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, John and Elizabeth Edwards, John McCain and Sarah Palin.

2. COMMITTED, by Elizabeth Gilbert. (Viking, $26.95.) The author of Eat, Pray, Love wrestles with, and overcomes, her ambivalence about marriage.

3. STONES INTO SCHOOLS, by Greg Mortenson. (Viking, $26.95.) Building schools, many of them for girls, in northeast Afghanistan; takes up where Three Cups of Tea left off.

4. HAVE A LITTLE FAITH, by Mitch Albom. (Hyperion, $23.99.) A suburban rabbi and a Detroit pastor teach lessons about the comfort of belief.

5. GOING ROGUE, by Sarah Palin. (Harper/HarperCollins, $28.99.) A memoir by the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate.

Children’s Chapter Books:

1. CATCHING FIRE, by Suzanne Collins. (Scholastic, $17.99.) The protagonist of The Hunger Games returns. (Ages 12 and up)

2. WITCH AND WIZARD, by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. (Little, Brown, $17.99.) One of each, brother and sister, flex their newfound powers. (Ages 12 and up)

3. PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS (THE ULTIMATE GUIDE), written by Mary-Jane Knight. Designed by Philip Chidlow.. (Disney-Hyperion, $12.99.) Gods, beasts and tips for children with one immortal parent, based on the series by Rick Riordan. (Ages 10 and up)

4. FALLEN, by Lauren Kate. (Delacorte, $17.99.) Thwarted love among misfits at a Savannah, Ga., boarding school. (Ages 12 and up)

5. WHEN YOU REACH ME, by Rebecca Stead. (Wendy Lamb, $15.99.) A sixth-grade girl in New York City begins receiving mysterious notes. (Ages 9 to 12)

First, horse-drawn plows would scrape the snow off of the ice. They had to be very careful in their measurements of the ice to make sure it was thick enough to hold the horses and men doing the work. The porous ice that was underneath the snow would then need to be removed with another horse-drawn tool: the planer. This would reveal the final field of solid, clear ice.

The ice was then scored into blocks with a scoring plow or a crosscut saw, cutting grooves 3 to 4 inches deep. If this was a large-scale operation they could cut the blocks as big as 5 feet square, but if it was more of a family operation, with only a few people, then they would have to keep them to a more manageable size.

Getting the ice blocks inland was tricky. Since they had to start from the outer ice on inland, they needed to create a channel to float the ice in. After cutting the first row with the crosscut saw, they were carefully moved down and under the ice field to create the waterway to pull the second and subsequent rows down.

Once inland the ice was pulled up an ice ladder or ramp, which had one end in the water and the other end resting on the bed of a bobsled. The horses would then pull the loaded sled to the ice house. In order for the ice to remain ice until it was needed in the summer the ice houses would be heavily insulated with different layers of straw and saw-dust. The blocks themselves would also be covered in straw and saw-dust.

It’s pretty remarkable to think about the whole process involved to get something that nowadays is generally readily available. It’s also interesting to think of how an entire industry was killed off by the technological advances that quickly took off. Refrigerators were first introduced around 1915, gained wider acceptance in the 1930s as prices fell, and by the late ’30s were in approximately 60% of U.S. homes. I wonder how much bailout money the ice industry would get now?

Few people have played as integral a role in as many major events in American history as Howard Zinn. As the chair of the history department at Spelman College, Professor Zinn was a faculty organizer of SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) which played a major role in the civil rights movement. He was an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War, and every war since. His book A People’s History of the United States has sold more than 2 million copies and has changed the way that many look at the role of the United States in the world.

This is one of my favorite Howard Zinn quotes:

To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places-and there are so many-where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.

Check out some of the many books authored by Professor Zinn, for both adults and teens, that we have here at SJCPL.

What’s worse, in the case of this CD and DVD release, is that by the time Nirvana headlined Reading in 1992, Kurt Cobain had pretty much checked out; he hated everyone and hated the music he was playing. His hatred shows in their performance of their most popular song, “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

Regardless of the mental state that Kurt Cobain was in, their set is pretty amazing, and the DVD that was also released is a must see for any fan of Nirvana, or music in general.

Sadly, there aren’t really any good copies of the performance they put on in 1991. This grainy footage will have to do. It’s sad that life wore on Cobain so much throughout the course of the year, but it is what it is. Enjoy both clips and come check out both the CD and the DVD of this landmark concert.

Nirvana: Live at Reading (CD)

Nirvana: Live at Reading (DVD)

Robert Brown Parker

He was a veteran of the US Army in Korea and received a PhD in English literature from Boston University. Parker, who was known for having characters of various races, religions and sexual preferences, wrote the Jesse Stone and Sunny Randall mystery series as well as several westerns.

Give one of Robert Parker’s enjoyable books a try. Special credit will be given to all readers who correctly solve the riddle of Spenser’s first name.

Get ready for 10 super science programs next week! Beginning with the German Township Branch on Monday, we’re offering great children’s and family science programs all over St. Joseph County. From owls to bees to healthy eating habits, we’ve got something you’ll want to see, hear, and learn about. Click here to see the full layout of countdown programs. And once you finish the countdown, make sure to blastoff to Science Alive! on Saturday, February 6, when the Main Library becomes a giant science museum. Who knows–your child might be a budding science supernova–perhaps the next Albert Einstein, Madame Curie or Jane Goodall! For the full list of programs and exhibits at Science Alive!, please click the logo above. For more info, please call 574-282-4607.