Afternoon Book Discussions

     Join us for our afternoon book discussions; they take place on the third Wednesday of each month from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. We just have released our schedule for the second half of 2016. It is as follows:

Wednesday, July 20^th; registration begins June 15^th. The Last Runaway. Written by Tracy Chevalier.   Forced to leave England and struggling with illness in the wake of a family tragedy, Quaker Honor Bright is forced to rely on strangers in the harsh landscape of 1850 Ohio and is compelled to join the Underground Railroad network to help runaway slaves escape to freedom.

Wednesday, August 17^th; registration begins July20^th. Dead Wake: the Last Crossing of the Lusitania. Written by Erik Larson. A chronicle of the sinking of the Lusitania discusses the factors that led to the tragedy and the contributions of such figures as Woodrow Wilson, bookseller Charles Lauriat, and architect Theodate Pope Riddle.

Wednesday, September 21^st; registration begins August 17^th. The Wright Brothers. Written by David McCullough. Chronicles the story-behind-the-story about the Wright brothers, sharing insights into the disadvantages that challenged their lives and their mechanical ingenuity.

Wednesday, October 19^th; registration begins September 21^st. The Light between Oceans. Written by M.L. Stedman. Moving his young bride to an isolated lighthouse on Australia’s Janus Rock where the couple suffers miscarriages and a stillbirth, Tom allows his wife to claim an infant who has washed up on the shore only to witness a rift in their marriage that is further complicated by a search by the baby’s desperate mother.

Wednesday, November 16^th; registration begins October 19^th. The Silent Wife: a Novel. Written by A.S.A. Harrison.Told in alternating voices, this gripping novel follows the events leading up to the violent dissolution of Jodi and Todd’s marriage – a union steeped in lies, infidelity, jealousy and denial.

Wednesday, December 21^st; registration begins November 16^th. Girls of Atomic City: the Untold Story of the Women who Helped Win World War II. Written by Denise Kiernan. Looks at the valuable contributions made by the thousands of women who worked at a secret uranium-enriching facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee during World War II.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

            Learn how to promote the mental health of all Americans, this month and every month, by reading some of these current books.

            Capture: Unraveling the Mystery of Mental Suffering, is written by David A. Kessler, MD, a former FDA commissioner and the author of the bestselling book The End of Overeating. He identifies what the “capture” phenomenon is – a “process by which our attention is hijacked and our brains commandeered by forces outside our control”.  Kessler presents case studies that demonstrate how a neural mechanism can override positive mental health and deteriorate to such behaviors as overeating, obsessiveness, fighting, and suicide, leading to mental illness. He then demonstrates how people can overcome these problems through a range of behaviors.

            Andy Warhol Was a Hoarder: Inside the Minds of History’s Great Personalities, is written by Claudia Kalb. This book is a mix of pop psychology and biography, revealing suspected mental illnesses of the famous. Was Albert Einstein autistic? Frank Lloyd Wright a narcissist? Did Marilyn Monroe have borderline personality disorder?  Historical records and interviews with mental health experts reveal the answers.

            Kokoro Yoga: Maximize Your Human Potential and Develop the Spirit of a Warrior, written by Mark Divine, a retired U.S. Navy SEAL, offers the reader an “integrated physical, mental, and spiritual training” experience. It’s perfect for those people suffering from PTSD and recovering from injuries, as well as those suffering from anxiety.

More Culinary Mysteries

            Fictional caterers seem to have an ability to solve murders. They can decipher clues while deciphering recipes and create exquisite cuisine while creating order out of criminal mayhem.

            Isis Crawford is the author of the Mystery with Recipes series. In A Catered Fourth of July, sisters Bernie and Libby Simmons cater their town’s Revolutionary War re-enactment. When someone is killed, the sisters go into action to prevent Bernie’s boyfriend Marvin from being charged with murder. In A Catered Mother’s Day, Bernie and Libby help their friend Ellen who is overworked running her pet treat company and underappreciated by her family. They set up a practical joke to help Ellen get the recognition she deserves but instead get her accused of murder.

            Camilla T. Crespi wrote The Breakfast Club Murder, in which her main character Lori Corvino tries to revive her catering business after her divorce. With distractions such as her unhappy teenage daughter and her vegan mother, Lori really has problems when her ex-husband’s new wife is found murdered. Guess who is the prime suspect?

            Joanne Fluke writes the Hannah Swenson Mystery with Recipes! Series. In Double Fudge Brownie Murder, Hannah finds the body of the judge who was to preside over her trial for vehicular homicide. She’s now the murder suspect. Meanwhile, her romantic life gets complicated. In Wedding Cake Murder, Hannah preps for her wedding and for the Food Channel desert chef contest. The celebrity chef judge is found murdered. Hannah conveniently is available to investigate.

            Katherine Hall Page is the author of the Faith Fairchild Mystery series. In The Body in the Birches, caterer Faith and her family become involved when one of the heirs to the Birches manor is murdered. Was another family member willing to kill in order to inherit? And in The Body in the Piazza, Faith and her husband Reverend Tom celebrate their wedding anniversary in Italy but find time to delve into murder and sabotage.

            All of these books include recipes and/or food facts.   

           

A Collection of Culinary Mysteries

            Enjoy food and drink without the calories when you read some of these mysteries featuring characters that combine their culinary careers with a sideline of amateur sleuthing.

            Here are two Chocoholic Mystery selections written by JoAnna Carl. In The Chocolate Clown Corpse, nobody in town was sad when a hated novelty shop owner was murdered. But when Lee Woodyard, owner of the chocolate shop next door, ponders a store expansion, she discovers that the killer is still on the loose and ready to strike again. And, in The Chocolate Falcon Fraud, Lee Woodyard is catering a chocolate party for the town’s crime film festival, when a dead body shows up on her doorstep.   

            These are two recent Tea Shop Mystery selections, written by Laura Childs. Ming Tea Murder has tea shop owner Theo Browning unwillingly attending the gala opening of an eighteenth century Chinese teahouse exhibit at the local museum. When a philanthropist is murdered, Theo investigates. In Steeped in Evil, Theo gets an invitation to a wine-tasting party that turns into disaster after a body in discovered in one of the wine barrels.

            In Scorched Eggs, from Laura Childs’ Cackleberry Club Mystery series, cafe co-owners Suzanne, Petra and Toni go into detective mode when their friend from the County Services Department is killed in a suspicious fire.

            Author Cleo Coyle writes mysteries featuring coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi. In Billionaire Blend, Clare rescues a billionaire tech guru from a bomb explosion. To thank her, he hires her to create an expensive coffee blend. But attempts on his life keep on coming. Who is doing this and why? In Once Upon a Grind Clare’s ex-husband (a coffee hunter) gives her magic coffee beans. She roasts them and sells the coffee during “Fairy Tale Week”. When fairy tale –style crimes start to occur, Clare gets help solving them with coffee-induced visions.
            As an added bonus, all of these books feature recipes and/or food information.