What We Liked This Year

Library Director

Ann Rohrbaugh

The Best of 2010 | Ann’s Blog Posts

Fiction

• Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
• Invisible Bridge – Julie Orringer
• Glass Room by Simon Mawer
• The Signal by Ron Carlson
• Unfinished Desires by Gail Godwin
• Shadow Tag by Louise Erdrich
• Lake Shore Limited by Sue Miller
• Where the God of Love Hangs Out by Amy Bloom
• February by Lisa Moore
• A Good Fall by Ha Jin

Nonfiction

• Why My Third Husband Will Be a Dog by Lisa Scottoline
• Mennonite In a Little Black Dress  by Rhoda Janzen
• This Book is Overdue!: how librarians and cybrarians can save us all by Marilyn Johnson
• Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder
• Harry Truman’s Excellent Adventure by Matthew Algeo
• Gettysburg: The Graphic Novel by C. M. Butzer
• Lit: A Memoir by Mary Karr
• Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother-Daughter Story by Sue Monk Kidd
• Not So Big Remodeling by Sarah Susanka
• Not Becoming My Mother and Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way by Ruth Reichl

Information Technology Department

JD Andersen

The Best of 2010

Books

• The Inheritance by Simon Tolkien 
• Changes  by Jim Butcher 
• Side Jobs  by Jim Butcher 
• Rose in a Storm  by Jon Katz 
• Naked Heat  by Richard Castle 
• First Lord’s Fury  by Jim Butcher 
• Stay  by Allie Larkin 
• The Burning Land  by Bernard Cornwell 
• Towers of Midnight  by Robert Jordan 
• Tongues of Serpents  by Naomi Novik 

Movies 

• How to Train Your Dragon  
• Repo Men
• The Road
• Just Wright
• The Karate Kid
• Whip It  
• The Last Station  
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
• Valentine’s Day
• Capitaine Alatriste
• A Single Man

Childrens Services

Bill Caskey 

The Best of 2010 | Bill’s Blog Posts

Books 

• Keeper  by Kathi Appelt 
• The Passage  by Justin Cronin 
• The Fantastic Adventures of Baron Munchausen  by Janisch Heinz  
• A Whole ‘Nother Story  by Cuthbert Soup 
• Prime Baby  by Gene Luen Yang 
• You Are Not a Gadget  by Jaron Lanier  

Music 

• Banjo to Beatbox  by Cathy and Marcy 
• Paper Cuts by Corn Fed Girls 
• Sunny Day  by Elizabeth Mitchell 
• Adrift  by Red Sea Pedestrians 
• Jungle Gym  by Justin Roberts 

Movies 

• Fantastic Mr. Fox

Head of Adult Services

Michael Cockrell

The Best of 2010 | Michael’s Blog Posts

Books

• Zero History by William Gibson
• Just Kids by Patti Smith
• Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
• Life by Keith Richards
• The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
• The Disappearing Spoon: and other true tales of madness, love, and the history of the world from the periodic table of the elements by Sam Kean
• A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
• The Wave: in pursuit of the rogues, freaks, and giants of the ocean by Susan Casey
• You Are Not a Gadget: a manifesto  by Jaron Lanier
• Point Omega by Don Delillo

Music

• Exile on Main Street [Reissue]  by The Rolling Stones
• Brothers  by The Black Keys
• Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty  by Big Boi
• Ali & Toumani  by Ali Farka Toure and Toumani Diabate
• The Suburbs  by Arcade Fire
• This Is Happening  by LCD Soundsystem
• Contra  by Vampire Weekend
• Harlem River Blues  by Justin Townes Earle
• Snakes for the Divine  by High On Fire
• Congratulations  by MGMT

Teen Services

Stewart Fritz 

The Best of 2010 | Stewart’s Blog Posts

Books & Music

• Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour (Scott Pilgrim vol. 6) by Brian Lee O’Malley 
• Mercury by Hope Larson 
• I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly 
• Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi 
• Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness 
• Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter by Tom Bissell 
• About a Mountain by John D’Agata 
• Plastic Beach by Gorillaz 
• Contra by Vampire Weekend 
• The Suburbs by Arcade Fire

Audiovisual & Law Librarian

Ryan Gage

The Best of 2010 | Ryan’s Blog Posts: Books, Music, Movies

Fiction

• Point Omega by Don Delillo
• The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis by Lydia Davis
• To the End of the Land by David Grossman
• Summertime by J. M. Coetzee
• The Infinities by John Banville
• Apparition & Late Fictions by Thomas Lynch
• The Wilding by Benjamin Percy
• Super Sad True Love Story: A Novel by Gary Shteyngart
• By Nightfall by Michael Cunningham
• Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes

Nonfiction

• The Moral Landscape: how science can determine human values by Sam Harris
• Autobiography of Mark Twain
• There’s a Road to Everywhere Except Where You Came From: a memoir by Bryan Charles
• The Enigma of Capital: and the crisis of capitalism by David Harvey
• How Markets Fail: the logic of economic calamities by John Cassidy
• The Memory Chalet by Tony Judt
• Ill Fares the Land  by Tony Judt
• Saul Bellow: Letters by Saul Bellow
• The Spirit Level: why greater equality makes societies stronger by Richard Wilkinson
• Cartographies of Time by Daniel Rosenberg

Movies

• True Grit  (coming soon!)
• In Treatment Season 2
• The Social Network
• Obscene: a portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press
• Tetro
• The End of Poverty?: think again
• The White Ribbon
• My Dog Tulip
• Winnebago Man
• Blue Valentine

Music

• Crazy for You  by Best Coast
• Vol. 2  by She & Him
• Teen Dream  by Beach House
• And If  by Anat Fort Trio
• Dark Night of the Soul  by Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse
• Suburbs  by Arcade Fire
• Infinite Arms  by Band of Horses
• An Introduction to Elliott Smith  by Elliott Smith
• I'm Having Fun Now  by Jenny and Johnny
• Forget by Twin Shadow

Head of Patron Services

Kevin King 

The Best of 2010 | Kevin’s Blog Posts

Music

• The ArchAndroid by Janelle Monae 
• This Is Happening by LCD Soundsystem 
• Sigh No More  by Mumford & Sons 
• Harlem River Blues by Justin Townes Earle 
• Together by The New Pornographers 
• Scott Pilgrim vs. The World Motion Picture Soundtrack by Various Artists 
• The Suburbs by Arcade Fire 
• Contra by Vampire Weekend 
• False Priest by Of Montreal 
• How I Got Over by The Roots 

Movies 

• Toy Story 3
• Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
• The Kids Are All Right
• The Other Guys
• Bored to Death - Season 1
• Kick-Ass
• How to Train Your Dragon
• Get Him to the Greek
• Despicable Me
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Audiovisual Library Assistant

Karl Knack

The Best of 2010 | Karl’s Blog Posts

Movies

• Exit Through the Gift Shop
• Inception
• Day and Night
• The Social Network
• Despicable Me
• The Walking Dead
• Mad Men [season 4]
• Toy Story 3
• Broken Embraces
• Alice in Wonderland

Music

• 7” by Minutes
• Blood/Candy by The Posies
• Together by The New Pornographers
• I Learned the Hard Way by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
• National Ransom by Elvis Costello
• Ghana Special: modern highlife, afro-sounds, & Ghanaian blues 1968-81
• The Lady Killer by Cee-Lo Green
• American VI: ain’t no grave by Johnny Cash
• Shadows by Teenage Fanclub
• Leave Your Sleep by Natalie Merchant

Teen Services

Jill Lansky 

The Best of 2010 | Jill’s Blog Posts

Books

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid. The Ugly Truth by Jeff Kinney 
• The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger 
• Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson 
• Sweet, hereafter by Angela Johnson 
• Star Wars, Year by Year: a Visual Chronicle by Pablo Hidalgo 
• Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson 
• Gooney Bird is so Absurd by Lois Lowry 
• Dino-Baseball by Lisa Wheeler 
• Fancy Nancy. Spectacular Spectacles by Jane O’Connor 
• Half Baked: the story of my nerves, my newborn, and how we both learned to breathe by Alexa Stevenson

Adult Services

Mandana Nordbrook

The Best of 2010

Books

• Ape House: A Novel  by Sara Gruen
• Fall of Giants by Ken Follett
• The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith
• In the Womb: Animals  by Michael Sims
• Oh No! She Didn’t: The Top 100 Style Mistakes Women Make and How to Avoid Them  by Clinton Kelly
• Awkward Family Photos  by Mike Bender
• Sizzling Sixteen  by Janet Evanovich
• Glee: The Beginning  by Sophia Lowell
• What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell
• PostSecret: Confessions on Life, Death, and God by Frank Warren

Children’s Movies

• Toy Story 3
• How to Train Your Dragon
• The Princess and the Frog
• Despicable Me
• Alice in Wonderland
• Fantastic Mr. Fox
• Marmaduke
• Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
• The Spy Next Door
• Tooth Fairy

Adult Movies 

• Avatar
• Invictus
• Robin Hood
• Book of Eli
• Nine
• Shutter Island
• Sherlock Holmes
• The Young Victoria
• Good Hair
• Adam

ONEplace Assistant

Monica Priest 

The Best of 2010 | Monica’s Blog Posts

Books

• Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult
• Witch & Wizard by James Patterson

Movies

• Eat, Pray, Love
• Letters to Juliette
• The Twilight Saga: New Moon

Lead Librarian, Alma Powell Branch Library

Judi Rambow

The Best of 2010 | Judi’s Blog Posts

Fiction 

• Red Hats by Damon Wayans 
• The Help by Kathryn Stockett 
• Tough Customer by Sandra Brown 
• Little Bee by Chris Cleave 
• One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia 
• The Red Umbrella by Christina Gonzalez 
• Shattered by Karen Robards 
• Indulgence in Death by J. D. Robb 
• Live to Tell by Wendy Corsi Staub 
• The Dead Hand of History: a DCI Monika Paniatowski Mystery by Sally Spencer 

Nonfiction 

• Obama: Only in America by Carole Boston Weatherford 
• Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes 
• Michelle Obama: an American Story by David Colbert 
• Dave, the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave by Laban Carrick Hill 
• Rachel Ray’s Look + Cook  by Rachael Ray 
• Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud by Cornel West 
• Real Cajun by Donald Link 
• Freedom’s Teacher: the Life of Septima Clark by Katherine Mellen Charron 
• A Century and Some Change: My Life Before the President Called My Name by Ann Nixon Cooper 
• A Princess Found by Sarah Culberson 

Movies 

• Blind Side  
• Toy Story 3

Readers Services Librarian

Diane Randall

The Best of 2010 | Diane’s Blog Posts

Books

• The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson
• The Passage by Justin Cronin
• The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
• The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
• Island Beneath the Sea by Isabelle Allende
• The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman
• Claude and Camille by Stephanie Cowell
• Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner
• Brava Valentine by Adriana Trigiani
• South of Broad by Pat Conroy 

Teen Services

Karen Santamaria 

The Best of 2010 | Karen’s Blog Posts

Books

• Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia 
• “The Events of October:” Murder-Suicide on a Small Campus by Gail Griffin 
• Welcome to Utopia: Notes from a Small Town by Karen Valby 
• Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel 
• Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick 
• This Book is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson 
• Going Bovine by Libba Bray

Adult Services Librarian

Steve Siebers 

The Best of 2010 | Steve’s Blog Posts

Books

• The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall 
• I Love You, I Hate You, I’m Hungry by Bruce Kaplan 
• What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell 
• Nurtureshock by Po Bronson 
• War Dances by Sherman Alexie 
• How They See Us by James Atlas 
• Political Awakenings: conversations with history: interviews with twenty of the world's most influential writers, thinkers, and activists by Harry Kreisler 
• Talk Thai by Ira Sukrungruang 
• Droppers: America’s First Hippie Commune, Drop City by Mark Matthews 
• Union Atlantic by Adam Haslett  

“Also Liked...”

• Growing Up Bin Laden by Najwa Bin Laden 
• The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore 
• Made in America: a social history of American culture and character by Claude Fischer

Music

• Broken Bells  by Broken Bells
• No Better Than This  by John Mellencamp
• The Big To-Do  by Drive By Truckers
• Brothers  by The Black Keys
• One Fast Move or I'm Gone: music from Kerouac's Big Sur by Jay Farrar & Ben Gibbard
• Mines  by Menomena
• Dark Night of the Soul  by Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse
• Infinite Arms  by Band of Horses
• Destroyer of the Void  by Blitzen Trapper
• Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Tribute to John Prine  by Various Artists

Adult Services Librarian

Matt Smith

The Best of 2010 | Matt’s Blog Posts

Books

• Renters Rights: the basics by Janet Portman
• Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy by Richard Brian Davis
• Galileo Goes to Jail: and other myths about science and religion by Ronald L. Numbers
• The Best of All Possible Worlds by Steven Nadler 
• Terminator and Philosophy by Richard Brown

Audiovisual Library Assistant

Hanna Slotwinski

The Best of 2010

Music

• Sale El Sol by Shakira 
• Come Around Sundown by Kings Of Leon 
• Rock Dust Light Star by Jamiroquai 
• Greatest Hits by Bon Jovi 
• In And Out Of Consciousness by Robbie Williams 
• Messy Little Raindrops by Cheryl Cole 
• Speak Now by Taylor Swift 
• Schwerelos by Andrea Berg 
• Seasons Of My Soul by Rumer 
• Fly Me To The Moon by Rod Stewart 

Head of Youth Services

Sue Warner 

The Best of 2010 | Sue’s Blog Posts

Children’s Books

• Here Comes Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara
• City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems, illus by Jon J. Muth
• Mama Miti by Donna Jo Napoli, illus by Kadir Nelson
• Farm by Elisha Cooper
• Mama, Is It Summer Yet? by Nikki McClure
• Beaver is Lost by Elisha Cooper
• A Bedtime for Bear by Bonny Becker, illus by Kady Macdonald Denton

Adult Books

• The Grace of Silence: A Memoir by Michele Norris
• Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other: In Praise of Adoption by Scott Simon
• The First Rule by Robert Crais
• Making Toast: A Family Story by Roger Rosenblatt
• The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
• The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley
• All Cakes Considered: A Year’s Worth of Weekly Recipes Tested, Tasted, and Approved by the Staff of NPR’s All Things Considered by Melissa Gray
• The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley
• Picturing Hemingway’s Michigan by Michael Federspiel

Added Titles (all children’s)

• Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld
• The Boss Baby by Marla Frazee
• It’s A Book by Lane Smith
• Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee, illustrated by Tony Fucile
• The Danger Box by Blue Balliett

Reading Together Coordinator & Programming Specialist

Lisa Williams 

The Best of 2010 | Lisa’s Blog Posts

Cookbooks

• Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce
• Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
• Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz
• Cheese Making Self-Sufficiency by Rita Ash
• Cake Pops : Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for More than 40 Irresistible Mini Treats  by Bakerella
• The Essential New York Times Cookbook: Classic Recipes for a New Century by Amanda Hesser
• The I Hate to Cook Book: Updated and Revised by Peg Bracken
• In the Green Kitchen by Alice Waters
• The Ciao Bella Book of Gelato & Sorbetto: Bold, Fresh Flavors to Make at Home by F.W. Pearce & Danilo Zecchin
• Twain’s Feast: Searching for America’s Lost Foods in the Footsteps of Samuel Clemens by Andrew Beahrs