Shotgun Lovesongs

Title: Shotgun Lovesongs
Author: Nickolas Butler
Call Number: MCNAUGHTON
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: This is a wonderful story about four friends who grew up together in a tiny Wisconsin town named Little Wing and are now in their mid-thirties. Chapters alternate being told from the first person perspective of the various characters. It is a beautifully written book with a gentle pace that I absolutely loved.

Department: Law School
Status: Staff

Submitted By: Ashley Kemp

Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America

Title: Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America
Author: Melissa V. Harris-Perry
Call Number: E185.86.H375 2011
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: Harris-Perry has woven a tapestry of the world of African American women today. The warp of her book is the sociological and political situation of African American women. Through this warp, she threads the woof, insights from diverse places, anything from the writing of Zora Neale Hurston and Alice Walker to the plight of the displaced citizens after Katrina to Michelle Obama. With its focus on shame and stereotypes, this book is not a comfortable read, but it is a reflection of the fabric of American culture and forces the reader to see that the fabric of our citizenry is in dire need of reweaving.

Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff

Submitted By: Lugene Rosen

After Dark

Title: After Dark
Author: Haruki Murakami
Call Number: PL856.U673 A6613 2008
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: Another great book by Murakami. I love his books because I feel like they give me a window into life in Tokyo, Japan. This book follows the story of two estranged sisters: Mari & Eri. Eri has been strangely asleep for a long time, and seems to be lost in a dream world. Mari can't sleep, so she wanders the streets of Tokyo at night. Read the book to see where the night takes these two sisters, and who they meet along the way.

Department: Library 

Status: Staff
Submitted By: Jessica Bower

The Longest Ride

Title: The Longest Ride
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Call Number:  MCNAUGHTON
Location: 1st Floor Mcnaughton
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: The Longest Ride...What does that refer to? Luke, Sophia, are two individuals who come from different walks of life and discover that The Longest Ride applies to real life, love, bull riding, and challenges. An easy, enjoyable read that switches back and forth between 3 separate lives that are somehow connected and affected by one another.

Department: Center for Global Education
Status: Staff
Submitted By: Jean Lawson

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: The Art and Creation of Walt Disney’s Classic Animated Film

Title: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: The Art and Creation of Walt Disney’s Classic Animated Film

Author: J. B. Kaufman

Call Number: PN1997.S6163 K384 2012

Overall Rating: Highly Recommended

Review: For an avid Disney fan and amateur historian, this gargantuan book was a trip to the ice cream parlor. Telling the history of Walt Disney's first motion picture, the novel gives insightful details and facts on each stage of the movie making process. From character design, layouts, script writing, to animation, this book was a joy to read and extremely interesting.

Department: Administration

Status: Student

Submitted: Melanie Duke

Edith Head: the Fifty Year Career of Hollywood's Greatest Costume Designer

Title: Edith Head: the Fifty Year Career of Hollywood's Greatest Costume Designer

Author: Jay Jorgensen

Call Number: TT505.H4 J67 2010

Rating: Highly Recommended

Review: Edith Head leading such a reclusive and quiet life, this biography gives an insight look into her career, her life at home, and how she became such a prominent costume designer in Hollywood. To those interested in costume design or the behind-the-scenes of the film industry, I highly recommend this enormous read.

Department: Administration

Status: Student

Submitted: Melanie Duke

Evelina, or The history of a young lady's entrance into the world

Title: Evelina, or The history of a young lady's entrance into the world
Author: Francis Burney
Call Number: PR3316.A4 E8 1930
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Highly Recommended
Review: An epistolary novel, this book brings 18th century English society to life. The story follows a teenage girl, Evelina, who relates her entrance into society from the countryside to her adopted father through letters.  This book has a Jane Austen style as our heroine meets a dashing stranger at a ball and eventually falls in love him on her journey of self-discovery. With a mixture of English scandal and propriety, Evelina makes a good summer read.

Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff
Submitted By: Cori Schmidtbauer

A Princess of Mars

Title: A Princess of Mars
Author: Edgar Rice Burroughs
Call Number: PS3503.U687 P65 1970
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: This title is a classic of the pulp genre. Confederate soldier John Carter finds himself on Mars fighting four-armed green Martians as well as fighting for the love of Martian Princess Deja Thoris. Given that it was originally published in 1917, it has aged rather well. I was surprised that I found the Martian characters more interesting and fleshed out than John Carter! That could be an ingredient of the pulp genre, I don't know. Otherwise, it is a good, mindless adventure novel for a summer read.

Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff

Submitted By: Rand Boyd

Bark

Title: Bark
Author: Lorrie Moore
Call Number: McNaughton
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: Lorrie Moore’s writing is like a fine Mourvèdre, a wine known for its meaty richness and wonderful longevity. In this collection of eight stories, she shows that her mastery over words continues: they tumble over the reader like wine over an oenophile’s tongue, igniting images and emotions. Though the book is short, the themes are deep and touch upon the struggles people face connecting (Debarking) and disconnecting (Paper Loses). As always, Moore’s dark humor--with its aftertaste of sweet, salty, sour, and bitter-- is to be savored like a classic vintage.

Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff

Submitted By: Lugene Rosen

Dear John

Title: Dear John
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Call Number: PS 3569.P363 D43 2007
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: This book is best described as a tragic love story. John has a troubled past, but joins the army and becomes a better person. He meets Savannah while on leave, and she changes his life forever. Things do not turn out how you would expect. I recommend this book to those that want to read a story about life, and why every story doesn't have a happy ending.

Department: Library 

Status: Staff
Submitted By: Jessica Bower

The Serpent of Venice

Title: The Serpent of Venice
Author: Christopher Moore
Call Number: MCNAUGHTON
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: Christopher Moore's latest is a hilarious mash-up of one Edgar Allan Poe and two William Shakespeare stories set in "Venice, a long time ago." Even those not familiar with the original works upon which it is based will thoroughly enjoy it. A fun read!

Department: Law School 

Status: Staff
Submitted By: Ashley Kemp

The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter and Miracles

Title: The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter and Miracles

Author: Bruce H. Lipton

Location: 3rd FL Science & Technology Library Books

Call Number: QH581.2 .L56 2012

Rating: Highly Recommended

Review: A cell biologist explains the beginnings of epigenetics, the role of quantum physics and how the community of a trillion cells which make up our bodies led him to find spirituality. We can all benefit from the understanding that our health and happiness are the result of how our environment, emotions and thoughts trigger the expression of our genes. Intriguing, educational and so very important for the human race.

Department: Crean School of Health and Life Sciences

Status: Faculty

Submitted: Jeannie Walker

Stardust

Title: Stardust

Author: Neil Gaiman
Call Number: PR6057.A319 S73 1999
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: Charming and intriguing!  This is not as dark or complex as some of Gaiman’s recent novels, but the story is told beautifully and reads almost like a faerie tale for adults. A whimsical read for summer!
Status: Staff
Department: Strategic Marketing and Communications
Submitted By: Rebecca Green