MCPL Staff Picks

Teens

  • 2012 to 2013 Rosie Nominees Part 1

    A winner for 2011-12 hasn't yet been announced, but nominees for the 2012-13 Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award have! In this first booklist, we'll look at half of the new nominees, and come back soon to the other half!

  • 2012 to 2013 Rosie Nominees Part 2

    A winner for 2011-12 hasn't yet been announced, but nominees for the 2012-13 Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award have! In this booklist, we'll review the second set of nominees. You can check out the first set of nominees if you missed it.

  • After the Games: Dystopian Fiction for Hunger Games Fans

    Dystopia: An imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one.

    Can't get enough Hunger Games - or can't get your hands on a copy? Check out these titles for other books and series set in a nightmare future. Titles that are not part of a series are noted.

  • Dragons!

    Who doesn’t like dragons?  A legendary serpentine creature that is found in the myths of cultures all over the world.  These books contain worlds where dragons of every kind exist.

  • Reads That Rock: Music Across Genres

    These recent Young Adult books center on music, from jazz to rock to hip hop and beyond.

  • Scary Stories Pt. 1 - There are Monsters and Then There are Monsters

    With Fall just around the corner and Halloween nipping at its heels, it's time for some Teen horror picks. We'll be blogging and putting up booklists for a number of types of horror books over the next seven weeks - feel free to add titles of your own in the comments sections, or to write book reviews for the Teen book review section.

    This booklist is filled with horror titles that don't have any supernatural monsters - just creatures and people doing horrific things. Creepy, freaky, and scary for those of you who don't need to read another book with vampires or werewolves. Enjoy!

  • Scary Stories Pt. 2 - All Kinds of Darkness

    Like to read horror? Tired of picking up a vampire book and getting more romance than frights? The books in this list cover true horror fiction, from vampires and werewolves, to ghosts, zombies, demons, and forgotten horrors from the dawn of time. All of these titles are more horror than humor or romance, so pick one up and lock the doors for a terrifying read!

  • Teen Sports Books

    Are you interested in reading some fiction centered around sports?  The following books all have teenage main characters playing sports and learning about life.

Adults

  • 2013 Books to Movies

    Here's a list of some of the books being made into movies scheduled to be released in theatres in 2013.
    Read the book, then see the movie...eventually.
    Calendar dates are for when the movies are currently scheduled to be released nationally. Click on the date for more info about the movie.

  • A Celebration of Ireland

    Celebrate St. Patricks day by reading a good book about the Emerald Isles.

  • A Geography of Mysteries

    There are many people who enjoy a good mystery. There are also many people who love to travel around the United States. These stories have the best of both. Travel the world around with a good mystery.

  • A Pirate Life For Me

    Pirates and life on the high seas have long been the stuff of romance and swashbuckling adventures. Lately, pirates have returned to the news with their brazen attacks off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Join us for this look at pirates – in both fact and fiction.

  • Amazing Feats of Athleticism and Endurance

    What is the human body capable of if pushed further than what most believe possible?  The following books all show remarkable individuals who can run, swim, climb, or play faster and farther than most.

  • American Civil War

    The bloodiest of American wars occurred over a century and a half ago, and it profoundly changed our country. These novels tell the stories of brothers pitted against brothers, and friends against friends. Gathered here are soldiers' stories, as well as those of wives, children, the old and other civilians—everyone whose life was uprooted by the war.

  • American Civil War: The Indiana Home Front

    Indiana played an important role in the War Between the States. Discover how the Civil War changed and affected the lives of the people of our state through their personal letters, a history of Indiana camps, and travelogues.

  • American Immigrants Stories: Some Came as Indentured Servants

    The history of America includes immigration stories from all over the world. People came in waves from many countries including: Africa, China, Russia, Ireland, and Mexico among other places. While many immigrants came as free people seeking new beginnings and opportunities in life, others came as indentured servants or slaves. These books examine a vibrant but often neglected aspect of our history.

  • Animal Companions

    Animals offer us a touch of wildness and a connection to our planet as one living whole. As Anatole France said, “Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.”

  • Avalanches, Hurricanes and Blizzards

    Over the past few years unusual meteorological events have shown us the impact that weather can have on the world around us. “Hundred-year storms” cause floods too often and send waves crashing through our cities. Snow and ice immobilize some places while destructive winds tear apart buildings. This list highlights storms that have changed history while sending us scurrying for shelter.

  • Best Novels of the 20th Century

    In the 20th century, fiction came into its own with the blossoming of the novel as a popular form.  Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Willa Cather, Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner shared their individual views of a rapidly changing world. Voted as the best books of the 20th Century, these novels were selected by both publishers and readers. Try some and discover really fine literature that endures.

  • Brrrrr! Non Fiction About Cold Places

    Inhospitable! Lonely! Desolate! These are words that often come to mind when we think of the cold places of the world. These cold places however, have been an important part of human history and they have often tested those who lived in them. This list features titles that remind us that cold places have done more than make us shiver.

  • Changing the World One Step at a Time

    Mahatma Gandhi and Florence Nightingale noticed huge problems that seemed to have no solutions. Yet, they devoted their lives to making incremental changes that eventually encouraged more people to follow them and use techniques that they pioneered.  What these “world-changers” have in common is a belief that each of us can make a difference in the world.

  • Christmas Novels

    The following books are all Christmas themed novels that will warm your heart and lift your spirit.  Immerse yourself into a heartwarming story that will surely get you into a yuletide mood.

  • Classic Horror Novels

    Mad scientists, vampires, a bizarre baby, medical students gone amuck, these classic novels have frightened people for decades. Lock your windows and doors. Sit back and relax, but keep your phone handy while reading these scary tales. Hey, what’s making that screeching noise?

  • Contemporary Short Stores

    So, you don't think you have the time for a good story? Sure you do. Not every great story is a novel. Enjoy these collections of short stories ... reading in small bites.

  • Erotic Fiction

    Often taboo, sometimes enticing, rarely boring, explore the world of erotic fiction.

  • Fiction From Across the Pond

    Excited about the television series Downton Abbey?  Want to learn more about that small country across the pond where people almost speak our language? This sampling of contemporary novels includes work by some of the best British novelists working today.

  • Friendship: From the Offbeat to the Sublime

    “Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.” Albert Camus describes in these words what friends do best, accompany us through the travels and travails of life.

  • Graphic Novels 101

    Just starting out reading graphic novels? Here are some titles you might enjoy.

  • Graphic Novels for Grownups

    Once comic books were thought to be “just for kids;” today they are full of wonderful art and contain stories that rival even the best novels. Try some of these well-designed books that develop plots and build characters through both pictures and text.

  • Green Fiction

    Green fiction is a relatively new genre that celebrates the natural world. It’s also called eco-fiction and includes many books centered on nature or in which environmental themes are paramount. If you love hiking or biking through the country side, take along one of these books that explores the magic of woodland and cave or examines our role as stewards of it.

  • Growing Up Hard: Memoirs of Poverty During Childhood

    The books in this list celebrate people who have started life in poverty and survived the odds to become leaders and examples to many around them. Our early life situations should not make us despair of success. For as Martha Graham said, “Fire is the test of gold; adversity, of strong men.”

  • Hard Hitting Military Science Fiction

    How are battles fought in the future?  Explore worlds where genetically enhanced soldiers fight in hi-tech battle armor while massive fleets of spaceships battle for supremacy above them.  Action packed and often thought provoking, these novels will definitely keep you reading late into the night.

  • Hardboiled Detective Fiction

    In the 20s and 30s, Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler pioneered the clever, tough-talking, detective who was not afraid to face violence and never got too distracted by a pretty face. The term comes from hard-boiled eggs that are tough and hard to destroy. Don your trench coat and wide-brimmed hat and follow some very interesting cases to the end.   

  • I Never Saw That Coming

    Some writers pave the route to a novel’s end with so many clues that you’d have to quit reading at page fifteen not to guess the conclusion. These books employ a literary kind of “smoke and mirrors” to keep you off-course and guessing what will happen.  They offer twists that you can’t predict and take you to a different place than you were expecting. And keep you guessing up to the end.

  • If You Like George R. R. Martin...

    This series by George R.R. Martin is being adapted to the small screen by HBO. But don’t suffer withdrawal pangs after you've read the books or watched the series. Instead get acquainted with other intriguing fantasy series. They make great reading especially after you've tackled their better-known cousins.

  • Imagining the Earth: Nature Poetry that Celebrates Our Planet

    From its beginnings poetry has celebrated nature: everything from trees to gardens to mountains to the endless changing seas. Kentucky poet and ecologist Wendell Berry called nature poetry “a secular pilgrimage” and Wordsworth said, “There are spirits in the woods.” Enjoy these collections of contemporary nature poems.

  • International Travel Tales

    Whether you’re traveling a few miles or embarking on a trip around the world travel is almost always an adventure. This list features humorous, insightful and inspiring stories about international travel. Let it be your passport for many adventures.

  • Islands: Life Surrounded by Water

    Who hasn’t dreamed or retreating to a small island where fish leap out of turquoise waters and coconuts fall from the trees? In these novels explore one of the verdant ones off the coast of Indian, Ceylon, or South Carolina.  With one of these books in tow, board a sailboat and explore Paradise on your own.

  • Library Staff Recommended Books for 2012

    “Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home." Anna Quindlen spoke about the importance of books in How Reading Changed My Life. Being lucky enough to work everyday in a place full of books, librarians come across a wide assortment of the new, the odd, the classic, and the utterly fascinating. Here's a list of titles that our staff recommended for their favorite books of 2012. It features fiction, fantasy, mysteries, nonfiction and young adult.

  • Love oh Careless Love

    Celebrate Valentine's Day by reading a steamy new romance novel.

  • Maker Books

    Maker culture is all about taking the do-it-yourself attitude and adding technology. Check out these titles at the Library for maker projects from wearable fashion to robotics; Arduino ideas to salvaging parts from junk electronics; and even Twitter-monitoring Christmas trees!

  • Many Voices, One Story

    Looking for a more film-like approach to the novel? Tired of one character telling his or her story in chronological sequence? For a more symphonic approach, try these books that offer a many-character, storytelling approach.

  • Nature Writing

    "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could learn what it had to teach..." Thoreau penned these words in his classic Walden. Since then many authors have celebrated the natural world. Here are a few more to discover or to savor again.

  • Not for the Faint of Heart

    In the tradition of H. P. Lovecraft and the prolific Stephen King, horror comes in many shapes and guises. If you’re the type who screams loudly at horror films whenever the music changes or a green alien dives from the sky, you may not be an ideal candidate for these titles. But if you enjoy terrifying yourself, read these books that are "not for the faint of heart."

  • Poetry Anthologies: Great Poems to Savor

    Want to rediscover poets from your youth? Or find some contemporary poets that speak just to you? These anthologies let you explore modern poetry. You can choose by poet, subject, or time period. Enjoy these poems that make language new again.

  • Post Apocalyptic Fiction

    These novels focus on the end of the world as we know it by describing how survivors adapt after horrible events kill millions. For it’s not mere survival that counts. Choose your dessert or your poison—some of these novels uplift, others horrify, but you will definitely forget about your everyday problems while reading them.

  • Sometimes It Is Better to Leave Family Secrets Alone

    It seems to be human nature to just be focused on events that take place during your lifetime.  So it can come as a shock to find out your family had lives, secrets and happenings from the time before you were born.  The following titles illustrate how these secrets can cause heartbreak or give closure to those who discover them.  For more books check the MCPL online catalog using the search terms: Subject - Family secrets-Fiction.

  • Steam Punk

    Welcome to the world of dirigible fleets and clockwork dragons, of brass goggles and wizards in top hats and frock coats. Through these fantasy novels, explore the world before electricity became universal when steam power made the world go round.

  • Stories of a river, a home, a station and some cities

    Human history is often the story of change, growth and response to external forces and the desire to tame them. Whether you view these events in a positive or negative light, you can't deny that man has left his mark on the world around him. Join us in examining human history in terms of the cities, rivers, homes and places that helped shape us.

  • Tearjerkers

    Books, like life itself, do not always portray a happy-go-lucky world view. This collection of novels and memoirs covers items that portray life realistically: the good times balanced by bad, happiness followed or proceded by sorrow. Because they go to the heart of human experience, they will reward you. Reminder: keep Kleenex handy.

  • Urban Fiction

    Urban fiction is a literary genre set in a city landscape; however the genre is as much defined by the socio-economic realities and culture of its characters as the urban setting. The tone for urban fiction is somewhat dark, focusing on the underside of city living. Here is a short list of some of the library's hottest urban fiction.

Children

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