Check out these books that inspired feature films!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett – Life is delicious in the town of Chewandswallow where it rains soup and juice, snows mashed potatoes, and blows storms of hamburgers–until the weather takes a turn for the worse.  This family film is in theaters now.

The Informant by Kurt Eichenwald – A true story about corruption in big business and working undercover for the FBI.  This story, with all its plot twists,  is in theaters now.

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak – A naughty little boy, sent to bed without his supper, sails to the land of the wild things where he becomes their king.  The film based on this classic picture book will be in theaters October 16th.

Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan -  Two boys who are best friends visit an illegal freak show, where an encounter with a vampire and a deadly spider forces them to make life-changing choices.  The upcoming film, entitled The Vampire’s Assistant, is based on this series of books and will be in theaters October 23rd.

The Portland Opera 2009/10 season began this week, with the theme of Love & Marriage.  As they say:

“You’re invited to a season that spins, dances, soars & celebrates with Love & Marriage”

It’s a great line-up beginning with La Boheme by Puccini, then moving on to Orphee by Philip Glass, Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte, a work by Leonard Bernstein called Trouble in Tahiti, and finishing with The Barber of Seville by Rossini. If you can’t make it to the performances, check out the many recordings Washington County has of these great operas:

La Boheme performances
Orphee (coming soon)
Cosi Fan Tutte performances
Trouble in Tahiti performances
The Barber of Seville performances

Celebrate your freedom to read- with banned books.

Every year the American Library Association and libraries across the country take a week to bring attention to the practice of book banning.  The ALA compiles a yearly list of books challenged by individuals and groups who want to remove books from schools and public libraries. Reading should be an individual choice, and libraries support freedom of access to materials. We believe that everyone should have the freedom to choose what to read, and that no one individual shouldn’t have the ability to decide what is right for all.

At Cedar Mill Library, there is a display of banned & challenged books available for checkout. Cedar Mill & Bethany have many of the books that were banned or challenged elsewhere. Take a look- you may be surprised at what you find. A brochure, available here,  lists the books that were banned or challenged in 2008-2009, why they were challenged and by whom, and what decision the reviewing entity made. The history of banned books from previous years is available at the CML Adult Reference desk.

While they last, there are bookmarks and “I read banned books” buttons, free for the taking.  New this year, there is also a “name the quotes” contest at both Cedar Mill and the Bethany branch. Quotes from famous banned books are displayed & everyone can enter to win a prize. Come into the library to see how many quotes you can identify.

The Accidental Family by Rowan Coleman – This is a heartwarming English chick lit book about a career woman who loses her best friend in a car crash and takes on the responsibility of raising her friend’s two daughters.

Generosity: An Enhancement by Richard Powers – What if we discovered the gene for happiness?  Find out in this new and thought-provoking novel by a National Book Award-winning author.

John Dies at the End by David Wong – Originally an internet story, this scary novel is a blend of horror, sci-fi and humor.

New World Monkeys by Nancy Mauro – Duncan and Lily accidentally hit a boar (which turns out to be a local town’s mascot) with their car, with bizarre consequences. 

Race for the Dying by Steven Havill – In a departure from his mystery writing, Havill gives us a historical novel about mail-order medical diagnoses in Washington State in the late 19th century.

A Separate Country by Robert Hicks – Set in New Orleans after the Civil War, general John Bell Hood struggles with his inability to admit his failures. 

The Wrong Mother by Sophie Hannah – This is a captivating work of psychological suspense from the author of Little Face.

These titles arrived over the summer and are part of our adult graphic novels collection.  Place a hold or come by the main library to browse the collection.

Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli
Well reviewed new story of a prickly architect who has never actually had one of his buildings made.  As his life falls apart, he escapes to start over.

Planetary by Warren Ellis
Check out Ellis’ take on superheroes in his Planetary series.  Great artwork by superstar artist John Cassaday as well.

Punisher Max V. 1 by Garth Ennis
Ennis takes the Punisher, Marvel’s ani-hero, to even darker places in this noir series.

Echo V. 1 by Terry Moore
The Strangers in Paradise creator delves deaper into science fiction and consipiracy with this new series about an experimental weapon and the unfortunate woman who it graphs itself to.

Red Star by Chris Gossett
Soviet mythology and science fiction collide in this interesting epic comic.

Apparat by Warren Ellis
Interesting indie work from Ellis.

Powers Definitive collection 2 by Brian Michael Bendis
The nice hardcover treatment of Bendis’ take on superhero detectives continues in volume 2.

Project Superpowers V. 1 by Alex Ross
Ross imagines what it would be like if World War II superheroes came back to life after a long exile in a separate dimension.

Manhunter V. 5 by Marc Andreyko
Andreyko continues his series about a jaded lawyer who takes the law into her own hands in order to ensure justice is done.

RASL V. 1 by Jeff Smith
Smith follows up his successful Bone run with a new series about a dimension hopping thief who must stay one step ahead of his alien pursuers.

Oishinbo: Sake
A fascinating new manga series that explains the history of Japanese cuisine in an entertaining story.

Freddie & Me by Mike Dawson
Dawson’s autobiographical comic about the effect singer Freddie Mercury of Queen had on him growing up.

Halo Uprising by Brian Michael Bendis
Halo gamer and famed comics author Bendis brings Halo to life in this graphic novel.

Hot Gimmick
New larger copy of this manga includes three issues in one.

Nobody by Jeff Lemire
Lemire gives us his take on the invisible man in this new book.

Mijeong by Byung-jun Byun
An interesting collection of Chinese stories about everyday people with some amazing artwork.

Real by Takehiko Inoue
New manga series that takes a look at young men dealing with their recent disabilities through their love of basketball.

A Drifting Life by Yoshiro Tatsumi
Memoir of famed Japanese manga creator Tatsumi.

The 2009-2010 Oregon Symphony Season is almost upon us.  Below is the schedule with links to those recordings that we have available to listen to.  Click on a link to place a hold on the item.

Oct 3-5, 2009
Parker Plays Brahms
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1
Bartók: Divertimento
Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 1

Oct 17-19, 2009
Bach, Beethoven and Bernstein
Bach: Orchestral Suite No. 4
Bernstein: Symphony No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra, “The Age of Anxiety”
Beethoven: Symphony No. 7

Nov. 21-23
A Mozart Wind ensemble
Mendelssohn: The Fair Melusina Overture
Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante for flute, oboe, bassoon and horn
Dutilleux: Symphony No. 2, “The Double ”
Berlioz: Le Corsaire Overture

Dec. 5-7
Yefim Bronfman plays Bartok
Haydn: Symphony No. 1
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2
Ives: Three Places in New England
Haydn: Symphony No. 104, “London”

Jan. 9-11, 2010
Schumann and Shostakovich
Ginastera: Glosses on Themes of Pablo Casals
Schumann: Piano Concerto
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 6

Jan. 23-25
Dvorak’s violin concerto
Martinu: Thunderbolt P-47
Dvorák: Violin Concerto
Respighi: boutique fantasque, ballet after Rossini

Feb 6-8
Prokofiev and Sibelius
Wagner: Siegfried Idyll
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 1
Sibelius: Symphony No. 2

Mar. 6-8
Rossini’s Stabat Mater
Schubert: Symphony No. 6, “Little C major”
Rossini: Stabat Mater

April 10-12
Pinchas Zukerman Plays Brahms
Forsyth: Jubilee Overture
Beethoven: Symphony No. 1
Brahms: Concerto for Violin and Cello

April 24-26
Midori Plays Sibelius
Sibelius: Canzonetta
Sibelius: Violin Concerto
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5

May 8-10, 2010
Dvorak’s Cello Concerto
Barber: Music for a Scene from Shelley
Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Kernis: Newly Drawn Sky
Bernstein: On the Waterfront Symphonic Suite

May 22-24, 2010
Mahler’s Titan
Lindberg: Purcell Variation
Britten: Violin Concerto
Mahler: Symphony No. 1, “The Titan”

We get new and updated resources in our Reference Collection every week. Check out updated guides to stocks, bonds, legal terms, the US Budget, and 2005 aerial photography of the Willamette River. Look for them near the Adult Services Reference desk, plus some titles have circulating copies available, or are accessible online. Links below:

Title:  All about bonds, bond mutual funds, and bond ETFs  
Author:  Faerber, Esme.
Edition:  3rd ed., Fully rev.
Publisher, Date:  New York : McGraw-Hill, c2009.

Title:  All about options : the easy way to get started  
Author:  McCafferty, Thomas.
Edition:  3rd ed.

Title:  Nolo’s plain-English law dictionary  
Call Number:  349.7303
Edition:  1st ed.
Publisher, Date:  Berkeley, Calif. : Nolo, 2009.

Title:  2005 Willamette River aerial photography with public lands, land trusts and revetments [electronic resource]  
Edition:  Rev. ed.
Publisher, Date:  [Salem, Or.] : Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board
View Online at: http://oregon.gov/OWEB/docs/pubs/WillametteRiver_Atlas_2008.pdf

Title:  Updated summary tables, May 2009 : budget of the U.S. Government fiscal year 2010.  
Author:  United States. Office of Management and Budget.
Publisher, Date:  Washington : Executive Office of the President
View Online at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2010/assets/summary.pdf

Title:  New era of responsibility : renewing America’s promise  
Author:  United States. President (2009- : Obama)
Web Link:  http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/a_new_era_of_responsibility2.pdf

Books for every mood… We’ve updated our book list brochures — all lists available on our website at  Reading Room — Book Lists. Award winners, Art In Fiction, and much more!  Find your next read in the Reading Room @ CMCL.

We have several new classical recordings that arrived the past few months that classical fans might be interested in.  There are several Bach recordings in this group, so place a hold and bring one home to listen to before the Bach Festival arrives on the 27th.

Bach Cantatas by Natalie Dessay
Soprano Dessay and composer Emmanuelle Haim tackle Bach’s Cantatas in this meeting of frequent collaborators.

Bach Partitas Nos. 2-4by Murray Perahia
A master of counterpoint and harmony, Perahia returns to form with this recording, named one of the best of 2008 by Amazon.

Bach Violin Concertos by Julia Fischer
One of the best newcomers in classical music dedicates an entire recording to Bach. 

Bel Canto Spectacular by Juan Diego Florez
Florez, a much sought after tenor, gathers an all star group of collaborators for his latest recording.

String Quartet of Ravel, Debussy and Faure by Ebene Quartet
This quartet of versatile musicians is well known for their flexibility and creativity.

Haydn & Hummel: Trumpet Concertos by Alison Balsom
Trumpet concertos from one of todays premiere trumpet players.

Homage by James Ehnes
Violinist Ehnes performs some of the greatest pieces for violin on 12 of the greatest violins ever made.

Musical Banquet by Nigel North & Monika Mauch
Soprano Mauch and Luntenist North record this set of traditional lute songs from around Europe.

Shostakovich Symphony No. 10 in E Minor by London Philharmonic Orchestra
Taken from a 1986 recording at the Royal Albert Hall in London, this represents a standout performance of one of Shastakovich’s best works.

President Obama is doing his summer reading and talking about how much he likes Netherlandby Joseph O’Neill.  Netherland is a book about New York’s multicultural nature after 9-11.  It follows Dutch banker Hans after the dissolution of his marriage as he reconnects with the sport of cricket.  He meets Chuck, a West Indian entrepreneur, who introduces him to the vibrant, marginal cultures around New York.  Hans struggles with his own tragedies as he attempts to rebuild his life.  His arc mirrors that of the New York he discovers.  Find out if this book warrants all the attention by selecting the link above and placing a hold.