If you are a fan of the western genre, chances are you have heard of Lonesome Dove. Likewise, if you follow award winning books, you may have seen it on a list for its 1985 Spur Award or its 1986 Pulitzer Prize. Some of you may have even watched the CBS miniseries from 1989 starring Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. Lonesome Dove is not an obscure novel and it has received a great deal of praise, but coming in at a whopping 843 pages it can be daunting to those of us more used to a book in the 200-250 page range.
Socrates famously worried that the development of writing would atrophy the ability to store and remember information, that dependence on external memory would negatively change the brain. And he was right, reading and writing have changed the way human brains work--though whether for better or worse is still up for debate. Similarly, Nicholas G. Carr famously asked Is Google Making Us Stupid? in an article in The Atlantic a dozen years ago.
Shortly before the library closed due to the novel coronavirus, my co-worker, Adam, loaned me a set with all five of the original Planet of the Apes films - three of which are currently in the Johnson County Library collection, and two of which are available to stream from home on IndieFlix.
Psst! Hey, parents! I know you’re at home right now. I know your kids are out of school. I know this because I’m at home right now, and my kid is out of school. I know this because WE’RE ALL #ATHOMETOGETHER RIGHT NOW.
Ahem. Sorry for shouting. These are stressful times.
If it’s at all possible, I want you to find a private spot in your house—please stop laughing—away from your kids, so you can fully concentrate on a little parenting secret I’d like to share with you.
Johnson County Library is pleased to announce that Martha Gershun has won our Essay writing contest on the theme of Connection with "Emma Goldman's Amber Necklace."
I came into this with no previous knowledge of the character, his context, or his setting, so I'm sure there are some layers of the story I missed. Nevertheless, I found it fascinating and entertaining.
The Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia is ravaged by the opioid epidemic. One sister, Mickey Fitzpatrick, patrols the streets as a police officer. The other sister, Kacey Fitzpatrick, works the streets and succumbs to addiction at an early age. The sisters keep their distance from one another now. Their relationship is strained but each hopes a reunion is right around the corner, just as soon as Kacey can get clean.
The third album released by the Swedish sister duo Johanna Söderberg and Klara Söderberg, but by popular opinion their most powerful. These sisters are 4 time recipients of the Swedish Grammis awards - similar to our American Grammy's. This album is an indie rock and folk music combo breath of fresh air that can easily and should be played from start to finish. In the last few years they have been making their presence known globally and have been featured on many well known TV shows in North America. Give it a try, great for a long drive or working around the house.
This was a very odd read. It started weird, strange even, and then went full on psychological thriller and yet I find myself wondering what I just read.
An unnamed woman is offered the chance to step into the life of a celebrity because she looks similar to Rosanna Feld, an actress who has gone into seclusion after a mental health crisis. Rosanna can no longer go out in public to be photographed by the paparazzi or give interviews to help further her career. Max offers her a chance to live the Hollywood life and is being paid handsomely to leave her old life behind.
From Ötzi the Ice Age hunter-gatherer to billion-dollar pharmaceutical research and development labs people have been looking for substances to ease pain, cure disease and prolong a healthy life.
