I am a firm believer that pets enrich our lives by providing comfort, companionship, purpose, and a whole host of other intangible, but still very real, benefits. If you are lucky enough to be on the receiving end of an animal’s love, then you don’t need me to tell you what’s what because you already…
Libertyville has been home to many Lake County firsts, but did you know it was the first county seat? Through a series of events, including but not limited to surreptitious petitioning and a rather bitter political feud, Libertyville went from a small but upcoming village to county seat, then back to a village. Arriving in…
Attention all trekkies! Do you remember the episode “Mirror, Mirror” with the darkside Kirk and Spock (aggressive, mistrustful and opportunistic) from a parallel universe? Trivia time: that parallel universe is used in 8 episodes of various Star Trek series. It seems that the concept of a multiverse has appeal to many sci-fi fans, including this one. In…
The Cook Memorial Library entered the 1950s stuffed to the gills in a repurposed house in need of repairs. Discussion of a possible addition in the early 1940s led nowhere and the funds available for improvements to the building were low. Despite these challenges, the library continued to move forward to serve patrons of all…
Naomi Hirahara’s new historical thriller tells a riveting story about the Japanese community that settled in Chicago from the World War II internment camps. Hirahara is an award-winning mystery author and a former editor for the largest Japanese American newspaper in the United States. She drew on these talents to create Clark and Division, about…
The world is…rather a lot right now, isn’t it? Loud and tense and busy and hot and if you’re anything like me, you need a break. Not a big one. Just a little one. A chance to catch your breath, to escape somewhere quiet, even if only for a bit. A Psalm for the Wild-Built,…
Quentin Tarantino meets The Odd Couple in this searing, heartfelt, suspenseful book. Ike Randolph is a Black ex-con who has been playing it straight for 15 years. He runs his own landscaping business and has made a quiet, stable life for himself with his wife Mya outside of Richmond, Virginia. When his only child Isiah…
What would you do if you lost your home - the home where you raised your children, the source of your livelihood, and where you had lain roots for over twenty years? And in the same week you found yourself homeless and simultaneously without income, what if you also learned that the love of your…
If you love a novel that throws you a good curve ball, The Cover Wife by Dan Fesperman is an espionage thriller with a few red herrings and an interesting cast of characters. The CIA and the FBI are keeping secrets from their own agents, and each other. CIA agent Claire Saylor is a strong female protagonist…
I admit I am a bit of a chicken. I marvel at people who do scary things I never dream of doing. Bungie jumping. Going into space. Flying an airplane. It's amazing I'm the daughter of a man who trained pilots how to fly in World War II. The beauty of books is that you…
