Noe Valley Voice May 2001
RETURN TO HOME PAGE
FEEDBACK

More Books to Read

This month's new books list, provided by librarians Roberta Greifer, Lea Rude, and Carol Small, features the latest by Margaret Drabble and Joyce Carol Oates, real-life psychedelic adventures, and an introduction to Nate, the Great San Francisco Detective. To check out a book's availability, call 695-5095, or visit the Noe Valley­Sally Brunn Library at 451 Jersey Street, just off Castro Street. Besides books, the branch offers magazines, CDs, videos, an outside deck, computers with Internet access, and the archives and index to the Noe Valley Voice. Hours are Tuesdays, 10 to 9; Wednesdays, 1 to 9; Thursdays, 10 to 6; Fridays, 1 to 6; and Saturdays, 10 to 6.

Adult Fiction

- How It All Started, the first novel by award-winning short-story author Pete Fromm, is the tale of a deeply connected brother and sister struggling with manic-depression in the stark Texas desert.

- Intrigued by the topic of genetic inheritance, Faro returns to the small English town of her ancestors and confronts questions of family, tradition, and history, in The Peppered Moth, the new novel by Margaret Drabble.

- Faithless: Tales of Transgression are short stories that examine the most private psyches of ordinary men and women, by the celebrated and prolific Joyce Carol Oates.

- Inspired by the lives of Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock, Modern Art, a novel by Evelyn Toynton, explores the life of the widow of a successful avant-garde artist and her struggle to protect his memory while creating her own artwork.

Adult Nonfiction

- Novelist and essayist Jonathan Rosen compares the associative logic and vastness of the Talmud and the Internet, and explores ancient religion and modern technology in The Talmud and the Internet: A Journey Between Worlds.

- In Tripping: An Anthology of True-Life Psychedelic Adventures, Charles Hayes has collected a broad range of stories from people of all walks of life, offering firsthand accounts of the psychedelic experience.

- In Healing Dreams: Exploring the Dreams That Can Transform Your Life, Mark Ian Barasch reveals a multilayered method of exploring dreams that may help clarify one's goals.

- In his richly illustrated book Renaissance, art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon challenges a number of misconceptions about one of the most exciting periods in art history,.

Annotations by Lea Rude

Librarian, Noe Valley Branch

Children's Fiction

- Using charcoal sketches with occasional added highlights of red, Ian Falconer gives us a vivid portrait of an energetic and creative porcine protagonist in Olivia. Ages 3 to 6.

- The words of Sandra L. Pinkney and the photographs of Myles C. Pinkney complement each other to show the range of beauty in the skin, hair, and eyes of African-American children in Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children. Ages 3 to 7.

- In Moses Goes to School by Isaac Millman, a young boy in a school for deaf children has a happy reunion with his friends after the summer break, learns more about using American Sign Language, and enjoys "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Ages 4 to 7.

- After several requests--for a drink of water, for a story, for a song, for kisses--the young dragons at long last get all the nurturing they need in Good Night, Good Knight, by Shelley Moore Thomas. Ages 4 to 7.

- Helping his cousin Olivia Sharp, a capable and conscientious boy detective finds a lost book, "so the world doesn't come to an end," in Nate the Great San Francisco Detective, by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and Mitchell Sharmat. Ages 5 to 7.

- Having felt for a while that his "show-and-tell" ideas were not as good as those of some of the other students, a second-grader comes up with a terrific project in Gus and Grandpa and Show-and-Tell, by Claudia Mills. Ages 5 to 7.

- In Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos, a boy with ADHD learns a lot about his father, struggles with the return of "that old Joey," and emerges triumphant. Ages 10 and up.

- In A Year Down Yonder, the most recent winner of the Newbery Award, Richard Peck shows how 15-year-old Mary Alice comes to appreciate her unusual, clever, and very kind grandmother. Ages 10 and up.

Annotations by Carol Small
Children's Librarian, Noe Valley Branch

All events take place at the Noe Valley ­ Sally Brunn Library, 451 Jersey Street * 695-5095

Puppet Shows for Preschoolers

- Norita Gonzales of Mascaritas Puppet Theater performs two puppet shows for preschoolers, The Hungry Wolf and The Selfish Giant, on Tuesday, May 29, at 11 a.m.

Preschool Story Time

- Children ages 3 to 5 will hear delightful tales at the library's preschool story time,
10 a.m., Tuesdays, May 1, 8, and 22.

Films

- Preschoolers 3 to 5 can watch films, including Corduroy, Elephants, and Red Ball Express at 10 and 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 15.

Wednesday Lapsits

- Come and enjoy stories, songs, and fingerplay with your baby or toddler at the library lapsits, on Wednesdays, May 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30 at 7 p.m.