Book Review: Broken Harbor

Mick Kennedy is the top investigator in the Dublin Murder Squad. But his latest case might be more than he can handle. A family has been attacked in a half-abandoned development of luxury homes on the remote Irish coast, the children smothered, the parents stabbed, and only the mother survives, clinging to life in the hospital. It should be an easy case, but too many things don't add up: no evidence of a break-in, dozens of baby monitors lined up on the table, and holes punched in the walls throughout the victims' house. When Kennedy's partner continues to have doubts about the lead suspect, the detective's open-and-shut case threatens to collapse, and with it his trust in everything he believes about crime and justice.

Broken Harbor is the fourth novel by award-winning mystery writer Tana French. More than just a police procedural, it's a terrifying and all-too-plausible portrayal of anxiety and depression spiraling down into madness, and how a detective comes to recognize himself a little too much in the crime he's investigating. For more mysteries with a flavor of psychological suspense, try authors Mo Hayder and Minette Walters. - Michelle (Sunset)

Basha Library staff picks

Check out October's suggestions from Basha Library staff!

Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
Low Pressure by Sandra Brown
44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith
Heidi Heckelbeck Has a Secret by Wanda Coven
Handmade Silk Paper by Kath Russon
Tithe by Holly Black
Star of the Morning by Lynn Kurland
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace from LEGO
SilverFin by Charlie Higson
The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
12.21 by Dustin Thomason
Stalemate by Iris Johansen

Book Review: Dreamland

NFL teams from the east coast lose Monday night games to west coast teams at an astonishing rate. An oil refinery in Texas explodes when workers fail to notice a leak. A man drives across town and attacks his wife's parents, but is unable to remember the crime. What do these stories have in common? The answer is as simple as sleep. Dreamland: Adventures in the Strange Science of Sleep is a fascinating collection of facts and anecdotes, from sleep-deprived students who perform better on tests after a nap, to countries like Spain giving up their traditional siestas due to pressures from the global economy, to the way dreams and their interpretation have changed from ancient times through Freud's time to today. Author David K. Randall began his research after suffering bouts of sleepwalking, which his doctor was never able to diagnose, but his book may help readers with their own sleep problems, or at least give them something to think about before they go to bed.

Dreamland joins a growing list of recent nonfiction that is as engaging as it is informative, such as Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America and Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. You'll learn something and you'll have fun doing it. - Michelle (Sunset)

Closed October 8 - Do job and career development

All four Chandler Public Library branches will be closed Monday, October 8 for the Chandler school district's Columbus Day holiday and staff training. You can still get help with job searching, resume writing, and career skills with Job and Career Accelerator.

Whether you're searching for a new job or just starting out, touching up your resume or boosting your computer skills to be more marketable, Job and Career Accelerator has something for you. Search numerous online job listings at the same time. Use the handy tools to build a resume and cover letter. Take tutorials for Microsoft programs, Photoshop, and more. There's even a career aptitude test to help you explore careers you might enjoy. Job and Career Accelerator is available from home, through the library's website, using your library card and PIN numbers. Then choose New User Registration and create an account, which will allow Job and Career Accelerator to save your resumes and searches each time you log in.

News for eBook Users!

Attention ebook users! There are two new features to help you access ebooks: a new collection called Open Library, and a new version of Adobe Digital Editions.

New collection: Open Library
As you search the library catalog, you may find some titles with a call number of EBOOK OPENLIBRARY:

These are part of a new, free ebook collection that you can access by clicking the link marked "Access via Open Library." You can read these ebooks online in your web browser - no additional software is needed - and certain titles can be downloaded using Adobe Digital Editions. You will need to create a free account with Open Library. For more information, visit this page.

If you use Adobe Digital Editions (ADE) to read ebooks on your computer or transfer them to a Nook, Sony, or similar reader, there's a new version of ADE available. When you install the new version, you have the option to import books you had checked out on the previous version. Check out the new right-click option: now you right-click to get options such as Return and Remove. The new version automatically authorizes ereader devices you plug in to your computer. It is also compatible with screen reading software for visually impaired users.
(Please note: Overdrive is aware of a bug that causes due dates to display incorrectly, and Adobe hopes to correct the problem as soon as possible. Your due dates still show correctly when you log in to your Greater Phoenix Digital Library account.)
To learn more about ADE 2.0, visit this page.
Visit this page to download Adobe Digital Editions 2.0.