Staff Recommendations
Pages
-
Dreamers and Schemers: How an Improbable Bid for the 1932 Olympics Transformed Los Angeles From Dusty Outpost to Global Metropolis
by Siegel, Barry
Reviewed by: Nicholas Beyelia, Librarian, History and Genealogy DepartmentJanuary 21, 2020
Call Number: 796.321 O53 1932 Si
This book follows the machinations of Los Angeles real estate mogul William May Garland as he attempts to bring the 1932 Olympic Games to Los Angeles. Barry Siegel, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and UC Irvine Professor, rewards the reader with an enjoyable account of a winsome individual with a dogged determination to bring an international spotlight to a city that was still struggling for recognition.
William Garland, like most early Angelenos, was a transplant, in this case from Maine. He arrived in Los Angeles around 1890 and became involved with the real estate business... Read Full Review
-
Riot Baby
by Onyebuchi, Tochi
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryJanuary 13, 2020
Ella has what she refers to as her Thing. It allows her to see things that have not yet happened. As a young girl growing up in Compton, California, this is more of a curse than a blessing. Ella is rarely happy by the future she sees. And, as she grows older, her Thing will allow her to do more than simply see into the future.
Kev is born in the early hours of the riots that erupted in South Central Los Angeles in the spring of 1992. He and Ella are moved to the East Coast and Harlem by their mother after the riots. Life is hard for people of color in Harlem and Kev is no exception.... Read Full Review
-
Steel Crow Saga
by Krueger, Paul
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryDecember 30, 2019
A prince, a soldier, a detective, and a thief. Four very different people, with very different histories and experiences. There are two things that they all share: they have survived the war that just ended, and during that war they have all suffered significant losses. Over the course of a few days, the prince, the soldier, the detective and the thief will learn, in very real, tangible ways that they are more alike than unalike, and it is a lesson that very well may change their world.
Sergeant Tala, of the army of the Republic of Sanbu, is a warrior. She has fought in the war her... Read Full Review
-
Carrie Fisher : a life on the edge
by Weller, Sheila,
December 23, 2019
Call Number: 812.092 F533We
The actress and writer Carrie Fisher spent her entire life in the public eye. The daughter of two entertainment industry icons, Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, she grew up in Beverly Hills when it was the epicenter of Hollywood glamour. Her parents’ relationships were frequently tabloid fodder, and she was one of the more popular kids at Beverly Hills High. She later found fame in a galaxy, far, far away as Princess Leia in Star Wars and became an unlikely sex symbol with her “take no prisoners” attitude. Fisher appeared in two critically acclaimed New York-based films in the... Read Full Review
-
Mexican American baseball on the Westside of Los Angeles
by Santillan, Richard,
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionOctober 15, 2019
Call Number: 796.231 S235-5
This book is part of a series of books that document Mexican American baseball. They are photographic essays which include meticulously researched information. The focus is baseball, but the books are more than a history of the sport as organized and played by Mexican Americans. The text and photographs present a cultural history of prejudice and exclusion of Mexican American players from all-white leagues. The books also document the participation of women in... Read Full Review
-
Feels Like Home: Reflections on Central Library
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionOctober 1, 2019
Call Number: 027.47949 L881Fe
One year ago, on September 13, 2018, the Los Angeles Public Library celebrated Central@25. This event commemorated the 25th anniversary of the reopening of Central Library. The day of appreciation, celebration and honors was the idea of Christina Rice, Senior Librarian, LAPL Photo Collection. Preliminary planning began approximately six months before the event. There were many staff suggestions to make the day grand and wonderful, but Ms. Rice suggested a book. At the time, I thought it was an impossible dream that a book of any... Read Full Review
-
The Ruby Slippers of Oz: Thirty Years Later
by Thomas, Rhys
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibrarySeptember 23, 2019
Call Number: 791.1 W835Th-1
“Keep tight inside of them. Their magic must be very powerful, or she wouldn't want them so badly," said Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, talking about the ruby slippers.
In L. Frank Baum’s children’s novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the magic shoes worn by the Wicked Witch of the East – and transferred to Dorothy after the Witch of the East’s untimely demise – were silver. In 1938, when MGM began pre-production of the motion picture based on Baum’s novel, it was decided that silver simply would not do for the lavish Technicolor film. With the slash... Read Full Review
-
The Lost History of Dreams: A Novel
by Waldherr, Kris
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibrarySeptember 16, 2019
When famous, and some would claim infamous, poet Hugh de Bonne dies unexpectedly, his last remaining family relations are called upon to enact his final request. De Bonne wishes to be buried on the moors near Shropshire, in a chapel of stained glass he had built 16 years earlier as the final resting place for his wife, Ada. He wants his body placed in the chapel next to that of his wife and for a daguerreotype to be made of their remains accompanied by his niece by marriage, Isabelle Lowell.
Robert Highstead, de Bonne’s cousin, is a former Oxford historian and now works as a... Read Full Review
-
Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients Into Foods & Remedies That Heal
by Foret, Rosalee de la
Reviewed by: Julia G, Young Adult Librarian, Robertson Branch LibrarySeptember 10, 2019
Call Number: 615.32 F718
We tend to think of chamomile as a gentle herb, with effects that are mostly psychological. A cup of chamomile tea is nice before bedtime, but is there anything to this pretty little herb beyond the relaxing ritual of a steaming mug?
Yes! I felt chamomile’s powerful effects firsthand when I began taking medicinal doses for stress and tension headaches (parenting two young kids is rewarding, but it’s no walk in the park). Chamomile, it turns out, is a potent nervine and antispasmodic herb, and a chamomile infusion has become my go-to remedy for stress.
I have Alchemy... Read Full Review -
Magic for Liars: A Novel
by Gailey, Sarah
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibrarySeptember 3, 2019
When Sylvia Capley, the Health instructor at Osthorne Academy for Young Mages, is found in the school library bisected from head to toe, cleanly down the middle, the National Mage Investigative Service (NMIS) concludes that her death was an accident, a spell gone wrong. The Headmaster of the school doesn’t agree with their conclusions and reaches out to Ivy Gamble, a bay area Private Investigator who specializes in small time cases, insurance fraud and cheating spouses. But as the twin sister of Osthorne’s Theoretical Magic teacher, she is an outsider who is aware of the magical community... Read Full Review
-
Happiness is Baking: Cakes, Pies, Tarts, Muffins, Brownies, Cookies: Favorite Desserts From the Queen of Cake
by Heatter, Maida
Reviewed by: Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & FictionAugust 26, 2019
Call Number: 641.71 H442-2
This is the most recent cookbook from the Queen of Cake, Maida Heatter, which is a collection of her favorite recipes. In the introduction she writes about how determined a baker can be to get a recipe, and how much satisfaction there is in baking and giving desserts to others. This cookbook is different from her other works only in its new format that has a very bright colorful layout and illustrations by Alice Oehr. Everything else is the same as in her other cookbooks: table of contents, complete index, meticulous easy-to-follow directions and an opening chapter, "Before you... Read Full Review
-
Red, White & Royal Blue
by McQuiston, Casey
Reviewed by: Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch LibraryAugust 19, 2019
Alex Claremont-Diaz is the 21-year-old First Son Of The United States (FSOTUS). He has lived in the White House with his older sister, June (FDOTUS) for the last three years, during his mother’s first term in office. He is a media darling, being continually followed, photographed and dissected by the press. He, June, and Nora, the granddaughter of the Vice President, are referred to as “The White House Trio,” three ambitious and beautiful, young people of which the press and the American public cannot get their fill.
Alex is scheduled to attend the latest Royal Wedding in London,... Read Full Review