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All Booked Up
Windsor Library's Newsletter for Readers
August 2025
| | Have you read Finnegan's Wake by James Joyce? Did you find yourself enthralled in the grammar of this magnificent book? If so, this is the lecture for you. John O'Connor will guide you through critical interpretation of parts of Joyce's opus on Saturday, August 30 at 11:00 AM. Get ready for a literary exploration of a book notable for its reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction. Please call the Reference Desk with any questions at 860-285-1918. No registration required. | | |
Coming to a bookshelf near you!
(click on the cover to place your hold today)
| | Listen Up (Audiobook Recommendation) | | | | |
Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng
Narrated by Lucy Liu
Length: 11 hours and 30 minutes
Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving father, a former linguist who now shelves books in a university library. His mother, Margaret, a Chinese American poet, left without a trace when he was nine years old. He doesn’t know what happened to her—only that her books have been banned—and he resents that she cared more about her work than about him. Then one day Bird receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, and soon he is pulled into a quest to find her. His journey will take him back to the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of heroic librarians, and finally to New York City, where he will learn the truth about what happened to his mother and what the future holds for them both.
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The Swift and the Harrier by Minette Walters
If you are waiting to read Ariel Lawhon's Frozen River, try this book. Set at the beginning of the English Civil War in 1642, the book centers around the wartime actions of a resourceful young woman, Jayne Swift, who trained as a physician, though she is prohibited from claiming the title of "doctor." The story is gripping, as she resists male oppression, harmful medical practices, and anyone's attempt to make her choose a side in the civil war. Like Lawhon's book, this historical novel is a well researched and satisfying read.
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The Bonus Army by Paul Dickson and Thomas B. Allen
Despite the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 prohibiting federal troops from being used as a domestic police force, they have been called to quell civil disobedience many times in U.S. history, including against striking silver and coal miners, Native American protestors, and, during the Great Depression, against U.S. Veterans of WWI who desperately needed the bonus promised to them for their service. The Bonus Army is an account of the 45,000 veterans and family members who camped in Washington, D.C. and rallied peacefully for "the bonus or a job" for two months in 1932, until President Herbert Hoover ordered Army Chief of Staff Douglas MacArthur to drive them out of the city; MacArthur deployed tanks and bayonet-wielding soldiers, who burned their belongings. Nevertheless, they left a lasting legacy for future veterans. This compelling work of narrative nonfiction is highly recommended.
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West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge
Woodrow Wilson Nickel, age 105, feels his life ebbing away. But when he learns giraffes are going extinct, he finds himself recalling the unforgettable experience he cannot take to his grave. It's 1938. The Great Depression lingers. Hitler is threatening Europe, and world-weary Americans long for wonder. They find it in two giraffes who miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic. What follows is a twelve-day road trip in a custom truck to deliver Southern California's first giraffes to the San Diego Zoo. Inspired by true events, the tale weaves real-life figures with fictional ones, including the world's first female zoo director, a crusty old man with a past, a young female photographer with a secret, and assorted reprobates as spotty as the giraffes. Part adventure, part historical saga, and part coming-of-age love story, West with Giraffes explores what it means to be changed by the grace of animals, the kindness of strangers, the passing of time, and a story told before it's too late.
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Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire
One day, five-year-old Antoinette (Antsy) witnesses a great tragedy. Antsy's world starts to feel unsafe, both emotionally and physically. When the adults around her fail to protect her from a very real danger, Antsy runs and finds herself at a mysterious shop called Lost and Found. Here, Antsy begins to find a strange kind of stability, helping the mysterious shopkeeper maintain the rules of a reality built on loss. But as she grows more comfortable in this space, she begins to question: what is the shop really? Who (or what) controls it? And what does it want from her? The book covers heavy themes of loss and grief and the author handles them both gracefully yet doesn’t shy away from saying hard things. At just over 200 pages, the story doesn’t overstay its welcome, and despite it being the 8th book in the Wayward Children series book, can be read as a standalone entry. If you’re looking for short, emotional read to get lost in, pick this one up today.
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How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley
The novel centers around Lydia, a woman in her fifties who is reeling after a series of losses, both professional and personal. She eventually lands a job managing a failing senior citizens’ club, thinking it’ll be just bingo and Jell-o cups all around. She could not have been more wrong. We follow the group’s deepening bond, culminating as they come together to save their community center from closure while forming an unlikely alliance with the children from the neighboring daycare. Through clever protests, honest conversations, and daring acts of rebellion, these characters push back against the idea that becoming old means becoming irrelevant. A feel-good book in all the best ways, How to Age Disgracefully celebrates friendship, purpose and second chances at any age.
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Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World by Henry Grabar
In honor of National Traffic Awareness Month (which has been around since 2002), we present "Paved Paradise." Part urban planning, part social commentary, Henry Grabar illustrates the deeply influential role of parking in American urban life for better and for worse. From downtown developments that stall because of outdated parking minimums, to the way curb space is allocated, to the social equity implications of car-centric design, the book is full of moments that will make you pause and reconsider what we assume is just “how things work.” Be prepared: you might never look at a strip mall—or a city block—the same way again.
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