Monthly Archives: November 2018

“The Library Book” by Susan Orlean (“Orchid Thief”) recounts the fire that gutted the Los Angeles public library, destroying nearly a million volumes. Her question: did someone purposefully set fire to the library—and if so, who? Along the way, she … Continue reading →

The Nichols Library plans to be open today from 1-6pm. 

J. K. Rowling’s“Fantastic Beasts” series.  In “The Crimes of Grindelwald”, the dark wizard escapes and spins a new web of intrigue.   In “The Meltdown” by Jeff Kinney, a winter storm turns wimpy kid Greg Heffley’s neighborhood turns into a snowy … Continue reading →

As a student at the University of Texas in 1956, Afro-American soprano Barbara Smith Conrad was cast as the romantic lead in a student musical.  Local conservatives, offended that having a black women was cast with a white male, succeeded … Continue reading →

Bob Cousy was by all accounts one of the finest ball-handlers to have played pro basketball.  But his story, told in “The Last Pass”, is part of a bigger picture, of a team that won 5 straight titles and of … Continue reading →

Why we celebrate Armistice (Veterans) Day.*   On the the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the First World War, war that turned Europe into a wasteland came to an end, with the hope it might be … Continue reading →

In “War of the Wolf” by Bernard Cornwell,  Lord Uhtred is sent relieve the siege of Ceaster and rescue   King Edward’s son.  In fact, he has been sent “to rescue a man who did not need rescuing.”   Uthred, who has … Continue reading →

Those looking for drama can turn to “A Well-behaved Woman by Therese Fowler, a novel about an outsider in the world of the Vanderbilts.  21-year-old Alva Smith has impeccable antecedents but no money. She sets her sights on railroad scion … Continue reading →

“Mamma Mia 2 Here we go Again” offers sun-splashed Aegean settings, romance, and plenty of ABBA. The reviewer’s consensus?  A guilty pleasure.  The classics hit the owl-hoot trail in “Damsel”, a “quirky” western about an Odysseus (Robert Pattinson) who ventures … Continue reading →

Cheeky—and tense” might describe the sixth season of “The Americans”, the story of two Russian undercover spies posing as citizens.   The time is 1987, and the USSR is splitting into rival factions, one  supporting Gorbachev, who favors peace with the … Continue reading →