Mauritius

Title: Mauritius
Author: Theresa Rebeck
Call Number: PS3568.E2697 M38 2008
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review:  Mauritius is a wonderful 21st century example of excellent playwriting. Each scene is calibrated with just the right amount of tension and intrigue to keep the story moving forward. The characters all seem to be balancing on a razor, as they negotiate the power of a stamp collection. That’s right – this tightly wound drama is about a stamp collection, and stamps have never been more interesting or dangerous. While plays are meant to be seen more than read, this was an exciting gasp-out-loud page turner that I recommend to readers and theatre fans alike.
 Department: Strategic Marketing and Communications
Status: Staff
Submitted By: Rebecca Green

One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories

Title: One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories

Author: B.J. Novak

Call Number: MCNAUGHTON

Location: 1st Floor, McNaughton

Rating: Highly Recommended

Review: Quick read with some really interesting short stories. Some of the stories are connected, so I would suggest reading them in order.

Department:: Law School Career Services

Status: Staff/Administrator

Submitted By: Joan Seguin

By Its Cover

Title: By Its Cover
Author: Donna Leon
Call Number: McNaughton
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: Librarians beware! This book will strike fear in your heart. In Venice Italy, someone is stealing rare books and pages from books from the library. Add to this a murder, and you have a great mystery to solve.
Submitted By: Cathy Elliott
Department: Law Library
Status: Staff/Administrator

Outliers: The Story of Success

Title: Outliers: The Story of Success
Author: Malcolm Gladwell
Call Number: BF637.S8 G533 2008
Location: 2nd Floor Social Sciences
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: I've been trying to read more non-fiction and I appreciate the way Gladwell presents his information as a series of stories. Outliers really asks you challenge the way you view the concept of success and successful people. Even if you don't agree with all of his conclusions it will definitely make you think differently!
Submitted By: Kerry Ortloff
Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual

Title: Food Rules: An Eater's Manual
Author: Michael Pollan
Call Number: RA 784 .P6429 2009
Location: 3rd Floor Science and Technology
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: A quick read that focuses on food in the Western diet with a few pages of explanation, followed by 64 food "rules". Some of Pollen's "rules" are obvious common-sense but are presented with interesting details that make them fun to read. I would recommend this book for anyone interested in better understanding why and how our diets have become so complicated and unhealthy, and what to do about it.
Submitted By: Theresa Paulsrud
Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff

China Dolls

Title: China Dolls
Author: Lisa See
Call Number: McNaughton
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: Helen, Grace, and Ruby meet in San Francisco in 1938 and form a bond that will survive betrayal, internment, infidelity, and show biz. While telling an entertaining story, Lisa See also offers a unique insight into a racially difficult period in the history of our country.
Submitted By: Cathy Elliott
Department: Law Library
Status: Staff/Administrator

We Have Always Lived In The Castle

Title: We Have Always Lived In The Castle
Author: Shirley Jackson
Call Number: PS3519.A392 W4 2006
Location: 2nd Floor Humanities
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: This story is told through the eyes of one of the Blackwood Sisters - "Merricat". Shirley Jackson is known for her gothic psychological way of writing and this is no exception. A chilling tale about a murder, the isolated Blackwood sisters, an uncle who survived, a cousin who comes to disrupt things and a town that hates them. I don't want say too much because it's a very interesting tale into the lives of the Blackwood Sisters!
Submitted By: Jami McCoy
Department: Advancement
Status: Staff/Administrator

The Infatuations

Title: The Infatuations
Author: Javier Marías
Call Number: McNaughton
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Not Recommended
Book Review: While this book had an interesting premise, the syntax and slow pace made it extremely difficult to get through. It was a long, frustrating read that I do not recommend.
Submitted By: Ashley Kemp
Department: Law School
Status: Staff

Never Go Back

Title: Never Go Back
Author: Lee Child
Call Number: McNaughton
Location: 1st Floor McNaughton
Rating: Recommended
Book Review: If you can wipe the image of diminutive Tom Cruise playing Jack Reacher onscreen and focus on Cobin’s 6’5” retired MP Officer, this book is a thrill ride. It takes up after Cobin’s last outing, 61 Hours, where Reacher talked to the new head of his old unit, Susan. From there, Cobin doesn’t miss a step as he puts Reacher through his paces, making him the focus of a frame-up and allowing him to kick ass and take names while he solves a political mystery, faces the prospect that he may have a child, attempts to start a romance, and saves the day. It is great literature? No. Is it a great summer read with a charismatic lead character busting heads? You betcha.  
Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff
Submitted By:Lugene Rosen

Magnificence

Title: Magnificence
Author: Lydia Millet
Call Number: PS3563.I42175 M34 2013
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: In Magnificence, Lydia Millett takes the reader on a ramble through the psyche of Susan, the narrator and self-proclaimed adulterous slut, who struggles to find meaning after the sudden stabbing death of her husband, Hal. Susan’s new life is a series of menageries, from the physical (she has inherited a mansion filled with taxidermied creatures) to the emotional (she creates bonds with a group of aging women who won’t leave her house) to the philosophical (her thoughts are like packs of wild dogs, snapping at the heels of the social norms). Among fur and bone and glass eyes, Susan comes to grips with her new life and the knowledge that preservation applies to more than the remains of animals; it applies to the human soul, as well.  
Department: Leatherby Libraries
Status: Staff
Submitted By:Lugene Rosen

Flowers for Algernon

Title: Flowers for Algernon
Author: Daniel Keyes
Call Number: PS3561.E769 F5 1987
Location: 2nd Floor Arts and Humanities
Rating: Highly Recommended
Book Review: Wow--what an emotional roller coaster of a book!  I find myself frequently revisiting the thought provoking and gut wrenching story of Charlie Gordon, a man with an IQ of 68 whose intelligence skyrockets following a controversial experimental procedure.  What follows is a beautiful and heart breaking exploration of humanity and the jumbled path of self-discovery.  
Department: Rodgers Center
Status: Staff
Submitted By: Ashley Bloomfield

The One & Only

Title: The One & Only

Author: Emily Griffin

Call Number: McNaughton

Location: 1st Floor McNaughton

Rating: Not Recommended

Book Review: I was surprised at the story line and ending of this book. It was an unpleasant surprise considering I was a big fan of her previous books. I thought this book took an inappropriate turn into a strange dynamic of relationships.

Department: Social Media and Online Communications

Status: Staff

Submitted By: Michelle Leslie

The Son

Title: The Son

Author: Jo Nesbo

Call Number: McNaughton

Location: 1st Floor McNaughton

Rating: Highly Recommended

Book Review: After his father's suicide, Sonny turns to heroin and ends up in jail. He is content to plead guilty to the crimes of others to ensure his drug supply, until he finds out more about his father's death. This knowledge sends him on a murderous spree to avenge the death and wipe out the past, but eventually the past will catch up with him, or will it?

Department: Law Library

Status: Staff

Submitted By: Cathy Elliott