Spotlight On
A rotating showcase for topics of interest: current, historical, local, global. At the Library,
find a physical display highlighting materials in the collection that deepen one’s
understanding of and give context to the featured subject.
“Spotlight On” is also home to “Staff Picks,” where patrons will find reading, viewing,
and listening recommendations, and a forum for book clubs and other groups
in the community to share what they’re enjoying.
New Books
In welcoming a new school year, I’m choosing to celebrate all things new with a selection of books that are either brand new or new-to-us here at the Hastings-on-Hudson Public Library. Some are so new I haven’t even had the chance to read them yet. Still, I’m very excited to check them out. And see everyone back at the Library this fall! See you soon!
-Allee Manning, Youth Services Librarian
Picture Books
The Greatest
Veera Hiranandani
Local author Veera Hiranandani is back with a brand new picture book that’ll melt your heart. A perfect book to share with a grandparent, as it celebrates how the ordinary, everyday skills and whims of Grandpa make him “the greatest” through a child’s eyes.
Elementary/Middle Grade Graphic Books
Taxi Ghost
Sophie Escabasse
“Witches of Brooklyn” author Sophie Escabasse does it again, blending realistic fiction and fantasy with an adventurous story of family, friendship, and coming into your power. Perfect for fans of the “Witches” series, “Snapdragon” lovers, and anyone who likes a well-illustrated and expressive graphic novel. Its stigma-busting focus on puberty makes this a particularly great fit for those in the shoes of the main character, Adèle, or those about to step into them.
Elementary/Middle Grade Novels
The Apartment House on Poppy Hill
Nina LaCour
Celebrated children’s author Nina LaCour writes delightful books for all ages, and this Young Reader book is no different. It fills an important space in this age group, in which it is challenging to find diverse family representations. LaCour crafts a tender story about community and what it means to be a good neighbor. An excellent feel-good read for bedtime.
The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues
Beth Lincoln
I was in complete agreement with my fifth-seventh grade book club in my love for “The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels” (this book’s predecessor). A wonderful fit for fans of “The Mysterious Benedict Society” or “The Westing Game,” this series is as fun and fast-paced as it is suspenseful and intriguing. A real page-turner, and I’m sure this sequel is no different. (For parents: one thing worth noting is that there’s a fair bit more murder and gristle in the original than you may be used to reading in middle grade mysteries.)
Young Adult Novels
Zombie Apocalypse Running Club
Carrie Mac
Who doesn’t love a good zombie story? This one centers around two twins and their gold medal-winning Special Olympics champion trainer as they work on increasing their speed to stay safe during a zombie apocalypse. Early reviewers call this one “suspenseful” and “relatable,” and say they were particularly drawn to Mac’s unique cast of characters.
When the Ground is Hard
Malla Nunn
This historical fiction novel is only new-to-us here in Hastings, as it was published in 2019. This YA novel is set at a boarding school in Swaziland in the 1960s addresses themes of colorism, classism, bullying, and hope. The prose is excellent and the setting comes alive. Adults may enjoy this one as well, and its conversation-starting themes make it an excellent choice for a one-on-one parent-child “book club.”
The Dog Days of Summer
On days that are drooping with heat, on nights when it’s too hot to sleep, when the thermometer reaches unbreathable temps, sit back and enjoy a few of the titles below.
-Mike McCoy, Reference Librarian
Harlem Shuffle
Colson Whitehead
Ray Carney is a neighborhood businessman who is also a small-time operator. But in this book, he just may be getting in over his head.
The Devil in the White City
Erik Larson
The Gilded Age. Chicago. The 1893 World’s Fair. And America’s first serial killer is on the prowl. It reads like fiction. It’s very real.
Jaws
Peter Benchley
Of course.
Along Came a Spider
James Patterson
The one that started it all. The first Alex Cross story, and it hits the ground running, with suspense and thrills and an unforgettable hero.
Time of Wonder
Robert McCloskey
Yep. A kid’s book. Why not? Summer is all about being a kid, and this is the perfect book about a perfect Summer.
Martha Grimes Selections
Martha Grimes was born in 1931. Grimes is known for her series mysteries featuring detective Inspector Richard Jury, Scotland Yard, and his buddy, the aristocratic Melrose Plant, both men are English to the core. Richard Jury is an orphan from the Second World War, single, tall and handsome, a skilled interrogator, and unlucky in love. Melrose Plant is single and well educated, with a fine mind and not much to do. Plant happens to be the eighth Earl of Caverness, Lord Ardry. However, Plant has relinquished his titles and only uses them if needed in cases he is assisting Jury with. Plant is also unlucky in love. The Jury novels all take place in England, (all her novel titles are the names of real English pubs.) There are a few necessary excursions to places other than England by her quirky, wonderful detectives. Grimes is now in her 90’s and her second to last novel, The Knowledge 2018, is one of the best. Martha Grimes’ Jury mysteries are unique, both serious and funny, very smart and sometimes silly. The author does not attempt to age her characters in any formal sense.
Grimes spent many years as an English instructor and professor. Below are several examples of her novels.
-Regina Kelly, Reference Librarian
The Man with a Load of Mischief
Martha Grimes
The first book, published in 1981 is named after a pub called “The Man with a Load of Mischief.” The cast of characters is introduced. Richard Jury lives in London and works at Scotland Yard, his sergeant is a very perceptive, rather sweet, hypochondriac named Wiggins, and the rest of the crew are residents of a small village (wary of outsiders) called Long Piddleton. Long Pid is in Northamptonshire, also the home seat of the former Earl of Caverness, Melrose Plant. The residents all hang out in a pub called The Jack and Hammer. In the first book, everyone smokes and drinks martinis, except for Plant, he favors Old Peculiar, a dark, strong ale. It is Plant’s 40th birthday as the first novel opens. There are two murders, one body is discovered headfirst in a barrel of beer at The Man with a Load of Mischief. The second on top of the sign at The Jack and Hammer. Richard Jury and Sargent Wiggins are assigned to the case and thus begins their long association with the Long Pid regulars. Most of the villagers are sure that the murderer is an outsider, but Jury and Plant disagree.
The Anodyne Necklace
Martha Grimes
The 1983 novel, The Anodyne Necklace, we move back and forth between the Anodyne Necklace and Littlebourne. This cozy won a Nero Award. There are severed fingers, sweet old ladies, an awful upper-class penny-pinching family, and a perfectly wonderful character named Emily, who is nine years old and delightful. Martha Grimes creates fabulous child characters and wonderful dialogue. There is also the Cripps family, we would not want to actually meet them, but they are pretty hilarious. Watch out for Friendly Cripps.
Jerusalem Inn
Martha Grimes
In 1984, Grimes gives us a Christmas novel. It is poignant, even beautiful, Jerusalem Inn. The characters are wonderful and the setting, a snowy former Abbey. There is another wonderful child character who lives in a rough pub called Jerusalem Inn, and a young, snooker-playing peer named Tommy. It is a closed house mystery that has to do with the tracing of a baby born to a teenage couple, one of whom is at the house party. Jury, Plant, Wiggins and a few of the other regulars are there. There is a kind priest and a professional pool shark and a famous painter and a poet. Melrose Plant brings his valet, Ruthven (pronounced Rivven.)
The Knowledge
Martha Grimes
In 2018, Grimes, now a MWA Grand Master, gives us The Knowledge. The magnificently kooky characters are all there and a whole gang of street kid assistants. Especially Patty Haigh, a ten year old London kid (think of Lisbeth Salander, but with stupendous social skills.) It begins with a London black cabbie, Robbie Parsons. The novel has murder, art theft, astrophysicists who gamble, a precious tanzanite mine in Kenya and a hilarious Safari that Jury asks Melrose Plant to sign up for so he can find and keep Patty safe.
Explore More…
Interested in The New York Times best sellers? See them here!
Not sure what to do with leftover solar eclipse glasses? Please consider donating to one of the organizations that is collecting them for distribution to other countries that have upcoming eclipse events. Follow this link for more information.
For those of you who attended any of the summer series at the Library, “The Drs. Clarke and Their Circle,” you may be interested in a podcast that was featured in the “Goings On” column of the September 4th issue of The New Yorker magazine. Here is a brief description: In 2020, Vann R. Newkirk II and The Atlantic (where Newkirk is a senior editor) released “Floodlines,” a majestic, artfully produced, Peabody-winning podcast series about Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath in New Orleans. With similar sensitivity, finesse, and attention to exacting detail, this year’s ambitious “Holy Week: The Story of a Revolution Undone” chronicles the tumultuous period of agony and uprisings that followed the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., on April 4, 1968. The show skillfully weaves together original reporting by Newkirk with vivid archival audio and sophisticated sound design to tell the stories of families, activists, and politicians in Washington, D.C., and beyond. We follow some of their struggles to cope and to find faith during a historic moment that’s often overlooked—and that reveals much about our own time.—Sarah Larson
Watch a Youtube video from the Social Security Administration about scam awareness.
200 Books That Shaped 200 Years of Literature from The Center for Fiction
Meet Libby, the library reading app that has now replaced the OverDrive app. Upgrade to Libby today. You’ll find the same great titles and all of your loans, holds, and wish list items waiting for you. Watch a video about Libby to get started.
The New York State Department of Labor is partnering with Coursera to offer free classes to unemployed New Yorkers.
The Westchester-Putnam Career Center Network (WPCCN) and Westchester Community College (WCC) are actively recruiting men and women, 18 and up, who reside in Westchester, NY and are interested in exploring careers in healthcare with free training. Follow this link for more information.
Visit Westchester Library System’s website for Seniors to see library programs and services just for seniors. This includes information on VisionLabs, a program designed to find new ways for libraries to serve patrons with visual impairments and emerging vision loss.
The Television News Archive, launched September 2012, is an archive of hundreds of thousands of hours of news programming from 20 different networks, made sharable and searchable through closed captioning data. Follow this link to check it out.
The Internet Archive’s Democracy’s Library is working to provide free and open access to government materials in an online catalog for the public.
You can now turn your smart phone into a mobile PDF scanner! Download the free Adobe Scan app and scan any text, convert to PDF or JPEG, edit and share easily.
Westchester Library System and Other Events