FDL Reads: Goblin Market
Goblin Market by Diane Zahler
Reviewed by: Chelsea Bunton, Youth Services Assistant
Genre: Fantasy
Suggested Age: Middle School (5th-8th)
What is this book about? Lizzie and Minka are two sisters who are incredibly different from each other. While Minka is beautiful, social, and outgoing – Lizzie is quiet and introverted. Because of their differences, duties assigned to them at home vary: Lizzie helps in the garden and fields with her father, while Minka goes to the town market every Friday to sell their stock of vegetables and bread. It is on one of these trips to town that Minka meets a very interesting boy who she becomes quickly enamored with. But her sister Lizzie is very suspicious of this new acquaintance and his wonderous fruits- especially when Minka suddenly falls ill and begins to lose her hair after eating some. Lizzie is determined to discover the truth of this boy and just why her sister has become so sickly, yet still devoted to the creepy and questionable “Emil.”
My review: This book was a fun, spooky read. The setting and tone of the story is what really drew me in. I love the feel of a fairy tale, and the setting of this book in a historical Slavic era helped solidify that sense of a Grimm-like myth. The characters were round and realistic, and I was supportive of their mission as Lizzie tried so desperately to overcome her introverted tendencies for the good of her sister. Though the tone is slightly dark, the content of this story doesn’t go too far for children – it is an appropriate introduction to dark fantasy for middle grade readers who aren’t ready for something too scary. It also serves as a good reminder to be wary of strangers, no matter how alluring they may seem or how delicious their fruit!
Three words that describe this book: Creepy, Mysterious, Fantastical
Give this a try if you like… Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales by Soman Chainani, Baba Yaga’s Assistant by Marika McCoola, The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black
Rating (out of 5): 3/5
Early Literacy – Never Too Early!
Reading to your children as early as possible is so very important to their future development! Reading to an infant may seem silly sometimes – of course they don’t understand everything that is going on – but the benefits can be long-standing. Studies show that reading to babies helps stimulate growth in communication, basic concepts, and listening skills. It’s never too early to start your child on their reading pathway! Here are some suggestions to get started:
Baby’s Black & White Books: Outdoors by Grace Habib
High-contrast pictures are great for babies’ developing eyes! They are easier for them to focus on and help their retinal growth. This book has various high-contrast images as well as some peek-a-boo spots for baby to have fun with!
Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton
Funny rhymes are super helpful for babies developing speech sounds and patterns. Repetitive and expected sounds help create neural pathways toward more sophisticated speech. And animal sounds are always fun!
Eyes, Nose, Fingers, and Toes by Judy Hindley
This book will help baby start associating words with their own body. This can be their first self-connection to text, which will help them better develop understanding of literature as well as make positive associations with books.
Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Colors are sometimes the first basics babies learn about the world. Mouse Paint uses high-contrast images and simple text to explore the world of art and color in the world.
– Chelsea, Youth Services Assistant
FDL Reads: The Woman They Could Not Silence
The Woman They Could Not Silence: One Woman, Her Incredible Fight for Freedom, and the Men Who Tried to Make Her Disappear by Kate Moore
Reviewed by: Melissa Friedlund, Reference Specialist
Genre: Nonfiction, 19th century America, women’s rights, mental health
Suggested Age: Adult
What is the book about? In 1860, Elizabeth Packard was locked away in an asylum for three years by her husband. At the time, Illinois law required a public trial for anyone to be committed against their will, except in the case of a husband committing his wife. This book details how she persevered despite her confinement in the Jacksonville Insane Asylum. Once released, after being declared “incurable,” Elizabeth fought to change the law so that other married women like her could not be committed by their husbands simply by declaring them insane for any reason. She fought to be with her children. She fought to free her friends, still institutionalized. She fought for married women throughout the country, changing laws in several states. Elizabeth Packard just wanted to be a mother to her children, but she ended up being so much more.
My Review: I listened to the e-audiobook on the Axis 360 app and found it to be a riveting book. I really wanted to know how Elizabeth’s story ended and finished listening in just a few days. This was a fascinating piece of history that I had never heard before. Elizabeth Packard was not only tenacious and fearless, she was also admirable for her lack of vengeance, despite the deplorable treatment she endured. Kate Moore has done a fabulous job of bringing this story to light.
Three Words That Describe This Book: Inspirational, Captivating, Enlightening
Give This a Try if You Like…Radium Girls by Kate Moore, Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II by Liza Mundy, The Flight Girls by Noelle Salazar
Rating: 5/5
Community Survey
The library wants to hear from you! We’ve kicked off a new strategic planning process in 2023 and invite you to complete our community survey! The survey will be open February 1-28 and allows the library to learn about your experiences with our services, programs, staff, and facilities directly from you. As part of the strategic planning process, your responses will help inform the library’s future plans. The survey should only take about 8 minutes to complete online HERE or in person at the library throughout the month.
Your input is important to us even if you don’t have a library card or haven’t visited FDL recently, so please share your input and help us grow! We appreciate your time & support!
All responses are strictly confidential and no identifying information will be shared. The information collected from the survey will be used to determine how we develop the library’s collections, services, programs, and spaces in the future.
Please ask a librarian if you have questions or need assistance accessing the survey.
#FDL: Try these if you like The Last of Us
The Last of Us is currently topping the streaming charts. If you are enjoying this post apocalyptic show based on a video game, check out these other items you can access through our library!
A YA novel about a 15 year old who is separated from her family after a war breaks out, cutting off all communications, electricity, and societal stability. A film adaptation starring Tom Holland and Saoirse Ronan was made in 2013. The movie is available now on hoopla. – Post apocalyptic, Dystopia, Romance, War, Survival fiction
This novel is made up of the first-hand accounts of survivors after a zombie apocalypse devastates the world. – Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic, Horror, Military
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith
The characters from Pride and Prejudice deal with a Zombie outbreak in the English village of Meryton. This book has been adapted to a film and graphic novel. – Humor, Horror, Romance, Paranormal, Retelling
Also made into a film with Viggo Mortensen, this Pulitzer Prize winning novel follows an unnamed father and son as they travel through a scorched America, trying to reach the coast amidst many dangers, including cannibalistic brigands. –Post Apocalyptic, Dystopia, Horror, Award-Winning
A collaborative tabletop game where players take the role of a survivor against hordes of the undead. We have the 2nd edition as well!
A 2003 film starring Cillian Murphy about a man who wakes from a coma to find himself in the middle of a deserted city after citizens are infected with a rage virus.
A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II
Science fiction horror films focused on one family trying to survive after an alien invasion wipes out much of humanity.
#FDL is a weekly update on all things Fondulac District Library and books.
FDL Reads: Elsewhere
Elsewhere by Alexis Schaitkin
Reviewed by: Beth Weimer, Communications Specialist
Genre: Literary Fiction
Suggested Age: Adults
What is the Book About?: Somewhere, an idyllic but isolated community lives amongst the clouds in a remote mountain valley. Growing up, young girls like Vera experience a lifestyle that is wholesome and traditional, except for the ‘affliction’ that marks their community: the regular, unexplained disappearance of young mothers. It’s a burden they bear collectively because it makes them special, unlike towns Elsewhere; something strangers like Ruth will never understand. But the constant speculation of who will go next takes on different depths when Vera becomes a mother and begins to feel herself slipping away, like her own mother did long ago…
My Review: There’s not a whole lot I can say without spilling this story’s secrets. I was left with a lot of questions, but I really enjoyed Schaitkin’s atmospheric style, framing, and peripheral insights. Obviously, the novel explores the all-consuming nature of motherhood, and there’s much to unpack within the role’s mythological layers of love, status, sacrifice, and darkness. The story also exposes our capacity for cruelty, obsession, and self-inflicted realities, as well as the inescapable impact of place. The vagueness of time and other elements leaves a lot open to the reader’s interpretation, and I realized the twist long before Vera did, but still enjoyed the unfolding. This book is sometimes categorized as dystopian or speculative, but I can’t imagine our own Elsewheres don’t actually exist.
Three Words That Describe This Book: Provocative, Broody, Memorable
Give This a Try if You Like… Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin, The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin, The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
Rating: 4/5