Sutherland Shire Libraries News

The National Year of Reading's January theme "Amazing Reads" is nearly over, but this doesn't mean you have to stop reading amazing books! Next time you are in the library looking for an Amazing Read, what could be more amazing than a book that has made it into the "1001 books you must read before you die" collection?


The 1001 books collection includes many well known titles, some being those books that you may feel you really should read...one day. These are classic books that transcend time, each with something to offer the reader-they are all definitely worth reading!
With so many amazing books to choose from in this great collection , how do you decide what to read? Here are some suggestions:
You can google it, or ask a well read friend.
Some people use the alphabetical system, starting at A and working through the collection to Z, or vice-versa.
Others browse the shelves of this collection, serendipitously encountering titles that look vaguely familiar, books they have always planned to read.
Still others do judge a book by its cover, or by the number of pages. (Are you up to the challenge of an epic saga)?
A really great way to read this collection is one used by library staff. As you know, library professionals celebrate everything and anything. So we suggest you try reading a book (or two) each month, in the month of an authors birthday.

To get you started, here’s a list of authors birthdays for every month of the year. Reading one or two books a month will provide you with between 50-100 years of reading celebration!

January: J.R.R Tolkien (3rd), E L. Doctorow, (6th) Edgar Allan Poe (9th), Nevil Shute (17th)
February: James Joyce(2nd), Jules Verne (8th), John Steinbeck (27th), Charles Dickens (7th) (its also Dickens 200th Anniversary this year, so read, or re-read, two of his works and make it a double celebration).
March: Gabriel Garcia Marquez ( 6th) Douglas Adams(11th)
April: Charlotte Bronte (21st), William Shakespeare (23rd).
May: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (22nd), Patrick White(28th).
June: Thomas Hardy (2nd), George Orwell (25th), Salman Rushdie (19th), A.S Byatt (24th).
July: Rohinton Mistry (3rd), Marcel Proust (10th), Aldous Huxley (26th)
August: Sir Walter Scott(15th), Mary Shelley (30th).
September: Leo Tolstoy (9th?), H.G Wells(21st) Truman Capote (30th)
October: Thomas Keneally (7th) Oscar Wilde(16th)
November: Bram Stoker (6th)Kazuo Ishiguro (8th), Robert Louis Stevenson (13th), Voltaire (21st), C.S Lewis(29th), Jonathan Swift (30th), Mark Twain (30th).
December: Joseph Conrad (3rd), Jane Austen (16th), Rudyard Kipling (30th).
photo credit:Flickr user- ailatan

Angela, the library's Outreach and Collection Services Coordinator, shares her latest top ten Amazing Reads.

1. Wolf Hall / Hilary Mantel.
Well written, insightful historical novel set in the times of Henry V111. The author presents an interesting depiction of Thomas Cromwell, a key personality of the Tudor period. Along with Cromwell’s relationships with other characters of the period, the author delves into the politics and society of this much written about period of history.


2. A dog's purpose / W. Bruce Cameron.
A good story written through the eyes of a dog who is searching for his purpose in life over the course of several doggy lives.

3. The help / Kathryn Stockett
Somewhat superficial fictional insight into the lives of black maids and their white employers in Southern USA in the 1960s. By superficial, I mean that the some of the really serious issues are secondary to the characters. A mix of humour and heartache. The character construction make this a 4 star read.

4. No country for old men
I like the writing of this author Cormac McCarthy. He uses words sparingly to describe images and characters. This book begins with a drug deal gone wrong. A chance find of a bag of drug cartel cash by a struggling Vietnam veteran is followed by a storm of ensuing violence as the dug cartel hit men try to recover the cash. Then, there is the dead eyed psychopath Anton Chigurh, one of the most memorable baddies that I have ever encountered in a fiction book. The story is narrated by the ageing Sherrif Ed Tom Bell who battles with the increasing violence and wonders about his ability to deal with this new type of brutal criminality. A five star read for me. The Coen brothers film of this book is one of my top pick films. Javier Bardem as Anton was a highlight.

5. The slap / Christos Tsiolkas
A child is slapped at a family barbecue by an adult who is not a parent. This Australian author examines some of the universal themes of the dynamics of family life, relationships, child rearing practices, acceptable behaviour and other dilemmas through a multicultural Australian family. Very readable, provocative, with some unlovely characters.

6. Breath / Tim Winton
Set in a fictional town in the 1970s, this Australian book examines a young man’s coming of age and explores addiction, risk taking and consequences of actions. A surfing environment provides the backdrop for an older surfer with issues of his own to encourage the young man and his friend to take greater risks forcing the 2 young men to take very different paths. Well written, some confronting issues with a slightly abrupt ending.

7. People of the book / Geraldine Brooks
The story of an Australian rare book expert who is offered the job of the analysis and conservation of the famous Sarajavo Haggadad, a priceless illustrated Jewish book rescued from Serbian shelling during the Bosnian War. Through a series of tiny clues she traces the history of the book.

8.The girl with the dragon tattoo / Stieg Larsson ; translated from the Swedish by Reg Keeland.
The Millennium Trilogy - This book is the first book of the trilogy. When disgraced journalist Mikael Blomqvist is hired by Henrik Vanger to investigate the disappearance of his great niece Harriett many years ago, he discovers events linked to a series of gory murders. He then crosses paths with Lisbeth Salader an antisocial computer hacker with a difficult past and a desire for revenge.Well written with many gory parts trilogy of thrillers.

9. We need to talk about Kevin : a novel/Lionel Shriver
A novel about a high school massacre told through a series of letters between the teenage killers mother and his estranged father. Eva the reluctant mother faces herfear that her dislike of her difficult son helped to create the killer. Nature vs nurture.

10. The strain / Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
This is the first book in The Strain trilogy. A plane makes a perfect landing but nearly all the passengers are dead. A vampire tale written by movie producer Guillermo del Toro, of Pans Labyrinth fame and Chuck Hogan. Vampires have been somewhat romanticised by Twilight but the vampires in this book are dark, ancient and terrifying. This book is somewhat predicable however an engaging read for those who like this genre. I have finished the trilogy and was disappointed with the ending.

Bonus read:
11. The street sweeper : a novel / Elliot Perlman
A well researched book by an Australian author/lawyer. This book is a blend of historical factual events and fiction. This story takes the reader from current day New York and Melbourne back through two of the critical periods in world history.

Photo credit: Flickr user: shawnzrossi -"Girl reading by window book"

Summer Reading Club is going well in the Children’s Library with lots of kids participating across the Shire. If you aren’t part of the club there is still time – but hurry! The Summer Reading Club wraps up on Friday 3rd February. So if you want to go into the draw for our major prizes including digital camera, iPod touch or an e-reader, get reading and return your reading logs to your nearest Shire Library now.

We are also building an amazing book shelf here at Sutherland Library full of all your favourite books. On our shelf so far are titles such as:

BFG by Roald Dahl
Rainbow Magic Fairy series by Daisy Meadows
Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton
The Cat in the Hat Comes Back and Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss
Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox
Selby series by Duncan Ball
Inheritance by Christopher Paolini
We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen
Bertie and the Bear by Pamela Allen
Press Here by Herve Tullet
Angel Cake by Cathy Cassidy
and of course the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling.

Are we missing any? Post your favourite book titles now and we will add them to our display.

More Amazing Monday Reads! Martin, our E-services Librarian shares his list of Amazing Reads.

Into thin air / Jon Krakauer A bank of clouds was assembling on the not-so-distant horizon, but journalist-mountaineer Jon Krakauer, standing on the summit of Mt. Everest, saw nothing that "suggested that a murderous storm was bearing down." He was wrong. The storm claimed five lives and left countless more--including Krakauer's--in guilt-ridden disarray.

Breath / Tim Winton Breath is an extraordinary evocation of an adolescence spent resisting complacency, testing one’s limits against nature, finding like-minded souls, and discovering just how far one breath will take you. It’s a story of extremes—extreme sports and extreme emotions.

Foucault’s Pendulum / Umberto Eco One for the conspiracy theorists, a literary Da Vinci Code...Bored with their work, three Milanese editors cook up "the Plan," a hoax that connects the medieval Knights Templar with other occult groups from ancient to modern times. This produces a map indicating the geographical point from which all the powers of the earth can be controlled—a point located in Paris, France, at Foucault’s Pendulum. But in a fateful turn the joke becomes all too real, and when occult groups, including Satanists, get wind of the Plan, they go so far as to kill one of the editors in their quest to gain control of the earth.

Everything is Miscellaneous / David WeinbergerMy favourite book on the impact that new technology is having on our lives. In this book David Weinberger charts the new principles of digital order that are remaking business, education, politics, science, and culture. In his rollicking tour of the rise of the miscellaneous, he examines why the Dewey decimal system is stretched to the breaking point, how Rand McNally decides what information not to include in a physical map (and why Google Earth is winning that battle), how Staples stores emulate online shopping to increase sales, why your children's teachers will stop having them memorize facts, and how the shift to digital music stands as the model for the future in virtually every industry. Finally, he shows how by "going miscellaneous," anyone can reap rewards from the deluge of information in modern work and life.

Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance This book has little to do with eastern philosophy or motorcycle repair. In essence it is an essay on quality. Maybe its resonance had something to do with the time of life that I read it - as a young adult, but it remains for me a though provoking book. Some may find it too pretentious and for that reason I’m too scared to read it again. I do think that everyone should read it at least once.

Bustin’ Down the Door / Wayne ‘Rabbit’ Bartholomew Most sporting biographies I’ve read are dryer than a Sao biscuit. Rabbit’s story is a rollicking ride that tells the history of professional surfing through the eyes of someone who lived it. He’s a natural raconteur with a thirst for adventure. A must read for any surfers.

Fatal Storm / Rob Mundle
This book is an account of the horrific 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht race in which several lives were lost. While Rob Mundle isn’t the most engaging writer ever to put pen to paper the tragic series of events during the race leave a lasting emotional impact on the reader.
Photo credit: "Bookman" from Flickr user Markhillary.

We really do live in the Lucky country with so many fantastic children's authors and illustrators. To celebrate this Australia Day check out our top Aussie children's picture books available at Sutherland Shire Libraries.