Knit, Purl, Read

If you like a clever mystery that is short on gory details but long on quirky characters, then cozy mysteries are for you. (See my previous post to learn more.) If you also love to knit, then knitting cozy mysteries are right up your alley.

There are many sub-genres in the cozy category, such as mysteries featuring knitting, cooking and/or baking, tea houses, coffee houses, wine country, animals, antiques and many more interesting themes. Read on for a list of popular knitting cozy mysteries available at the library.

Barbara Bretton - Sugar Maple series - Meet Chloe Hobbs, owner of Sticks and String knitting shop in Sugar Maple, Vermont...and a sorcerer's daughter. Sparks fly when she meets human police officer Luke MacKenzie, who is hard at work investigating Sugar Maple's first murder. Perfect for the reader who enjoys a breezy mystery, knitting, romance and a dash of magic.

Monica Ferris - Needlecraft Mysteries series - When Betsy Devonshire's sister Margot is found dead in her needlecraft store in Excelsior, Minnesota, Betsy begins her own investigation. She finds plenty of suspects, including a disgruntled landlord and a scheming competitor. Recommended for fans of strong characters, well-paced plots and needlecraft.

Sally Goldenbaum - Seaside Knitters Mystery series - Welcome to Sea Harbor, Massachusetts, home of Isabel "Izzy" Chambers' knitting shop and the Seaside Knitters, a diverse group of women who meet weekly to knit...and solve the occasional murder. This series is great for anyone who enjoys knitting with others (such as members of the library's Knitting Circle!)

Maggie Sefton - Knitting Mystery series - Kelly Flynn travels to Fort Conner, Colorado for the funeral of her Aunt Helen, who was recently murdered. Although the local police have written the death off as the result of a random break-in, Kelly is not so sure. She launches her own investigation and learns to knit at the House of Lambspun. Both journeys prove to be enlightening. Recommended for first-time knitters and those who remember the triumphs and tribulations of their own knitting beginnings.

What are your favorite cozy mysteries?

Harry Potter

As the latest glimpse into the enticing world of Harry Potter rapidly approaches (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I hits movie theaters in a mere nine hours!) interest in "the boy who lived" is back on the rise.

The world's fascination is intensified by the fact that this is the second to last part of a long and incredible journey. All of the books have been published and now only two movies remain to be savored. Instead of wringing your hands in despair, use them to pick up a great book, similar in style to Harry Potter. Also, enjoy some fun facts and links to enhance your understanding of this blockbuster series.

Harry Potter Read-Alikes

Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones - "...this comic fantasy follows two orphans, one of whom is a witch, when they are summoned to live in a castle full of necromancers." Publisher's Weekly

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper - "Susan Cooper, in her five-title Dark is Rising sequence, creates a world where the conflict between good and evil reaches epic proportions. She ranks with C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien in her ability to deliver a moral vision in the context of breathtaking adventure." Amazon.com Review

Eragon by Christopher Paolini - "Here's a great big fantasy that you can pull over your head like a comfy old sweater and disappear into for a whole weekend." Amazon.com Review

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman - "In The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman has written a masterpiece that transcends genre. It is a children's book that will appeal to adults, a fantasy novel that will charm even the most hardened realist." Amazon.com Review

Graceling by Kristin Cashore - "In this debut fantasy novel, Cashore treats readers to compelling and eminently likable characters and a story that draws them in from the first paragraph." School Library Journal (Starred Review)

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis - "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is, in turn, beautiful, frightening, wise." New York Times

The Lost Conspiracy by Frances Hardinge - "The author is as inventive with language as she is with social and cultural constructs. This novel is just plain fun." School Library Journal

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin - "...Earthsea is a stunning fantasy world that grabs quickly at out hearts, pulling us deeply into its imaginary realms." Amazon.com Review

Fun Facts

*The Hogwarts motto, "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus" means "never tickle a sleeping dragon."

*The last name Dumbledore means "Bumblebee" in Old English.

*During the filming of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the part of Dobby was played by a ball on a stick (he was later added digitally.)

*The newspaper headline "Harry Potter and the Triwizard Tournament," seen in the film version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was considered for the title of the fourth book.

*Several members of the Black family are named after astronomical objects, including Sirius, Regulus, Andromeda, Arcturus, Bellatrix and Cygnus.

*On one of the many occasions in the book Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince that Professor Slughorn gets Ron's name wrong, he calls him Rupert (Chapter 22.) In all movie adaptations of the Harry Potter books Ron Weasley is played by Rupert Grint.

Recommended Websites

jkrowling.com - The official website of the genius behind Harry Potter

harrypotter.scholastic.com - Explore Harry's magical world for yourself - Repel a dementor! Transfigure a rock! Unlock Moody's trunk!

Fun facts found at www.imdb.com

Veterans Day

November 11th is a day to honor all veterans on a national scale. This particular date is quite significant, given that on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice was called between the Allied nations and Germany in the First World War. The following year, November 11th was celebrated as Armistice Day. It became a legal federal holiday in 1938. After WWII and the Korean War, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor American veterans of all wars.

The library has a wide variety of resources to help honor American veterans on November 11th and all year long.

CDs
The Civil War: Its Music and Sounds
United States Army Field Band
United States Marine Band

DVDs
Band of Brothers
The Deer Hunter
Full Metal Jacket
Muse of Fire
The Pacific
Platoon
Vietnam: A Television History
The War
WWII in HD

Fiction Books

All Quiet on the Western Front by Eric Maria Remarque
The Marines of Autumn by James Brady
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes
The Sandbox by David Zimmerman
The Thin Red Line by James Jones
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

Non-fiction Books
Helmet for My Pillow by Robert Leckie
Joker One by Donovan Campbell
The Last Stand of Fox Company by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin
Never will We Forget: Oral Histories of WWII by Marilyn Mayer Culpepper
Radioman by Ray Daves

Websites
History.com
Lehigh Valley area Veterans Day events (from The Morning Call)
U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs
Veterans of Foreign Wars

Interesting Facts
~There are currently about 23.2 million military veterans in the United States
~9.2 million of those veterans are over the age of 65
~1.9 million veterans are under the age of 35
~Congress passed a bill that moved Veterans Day to the fourth Monday in October, in 1968 (the law went into effect in 1971.) President Ford returned the holiday back to November 11th in 1975, due to the date's historical importance
~Britain, France, Australia and Canada also honor the vets of WWI and WWII on or near November 11th

How will you commemorate Veterans Day this year?

Interesting facts found on History.com's Veterans Day Facts page.
Information about Veterans Day found on History.com's Veterans Day page.

November 2010's Must-Reads

If you are boldly attempting the NaNoWriMo challenge, you may not have too much time to devote to reading this month. On the other hand, you might appreciate a good book to make your procrastination interesting and/or to help inspire your own words. If you have no idea what NaNoWriMo is (see my earlier post on the subject) and just need help finding your next favorite book, read on for some of November's best and brightest.

The Forever Queen by Helen Hollick (Nov. 1st) - "Hollick does a remarkable job of bringing to life a little known but powerful queen, as well as the milieu and world she inhabited. The scope is vast and the cast is huge, but Hollick remains firmly in control, giving readers an absorbing plot that never lags over the course of a fat, satisfying book." - Publisher's Weekly

The Wolves of Andover by Kathleen Kent (Nov. 8th) - "Kent doesn't disappoint in this prequel to The Heretic's Daughter, taking readers back to Massachusetts before the Salem witch trials as strong-willed 23-year-old Martha Allen falls in love with strong-armed hired hand Thomas Carrier...Kent weaves in references to her first novel while creating an immersive stand-alone...Kent brings colonial America to life by poking into its dark corners and finding its emotional and personal underpinnings. - Publisher's Weekly

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton (Nov. 9th) - "A letter posted in 1941 finally reaches its destination in 1992 with powerful repercussions for Edie Burchill, a London book editor, in this enthralling romantic thriller from Australian author Morton." - Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)

Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King (Nov. 9th) - "King fans (and those who have always wanted to give him a shot) will devour this collection of campfire tales where marriages sway under the weight of pitch-black secrets, greed and guilt poison and fester, and the only thing you can count on is that 'there are always worse things waiting.' Full Dark, No Stars features four one-sitting yarns showcasing King at his gritty, gruesome, giddy best, so be sure to check under the bed before getting started." - Amazon.com Review (Amazon Best Books of the Month, November 2010)

The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley (Nov. 11th) - Mosley (Known to Evil) plays out an intriguing premise in his powerful latest: a man is given a second shot at life, but at the price of a hastened death...Mosley's depiction of the indignities of old age is heartbreaking, and Ptolemy's grace and decency make for a wonderful character and a moving novel." - Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)

The Baker Street Irregular by Jon Lellenberg (Nov. 30th) - "Lellenberg...makes an impressive fiction debut with this gripping period spy novel...His own background as former director of the Pentagon's special operations bureau's policy and strategy office serves him well in recreating the grind and tedium of actual intelligence work." - Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)

*If you do happen to be participating in NaNoWriMo, honorable mention goes to the book you are writing. Keep up the good work!