Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit. In addition to the books, audiobooks, and video games the library owns, did you know we have a small selection that changes every 8 weeks?  Shelved in special sections, these rotating materials check out just like our other materials – except that if you see something you think you might like, check it out before it’s gone!  My reviews for the next 6 weeks will be of rotating collection materials available for checkout through October 7th.

Graphic novels have come a long way from the early days as superhero comic serials.  Now, complete stories in bold illustrations by very talented artists are becoming quite popular.  The Girl Who Owned a City, written by O. T. Nelson, adapted by Dan Jolley, illustrated by Joelle Jones, and colored by Jenn Manley Lee tells the story of Lisa and her little brother Todd, abandoned in a rough world where a mysterious virus has killed everyone over the age of 12.  Lisa is a skinny blonde kid, dressed in dusty a clothes who is trying her best to provide for her little brother.  However, a gang has formed and is enticing the neighborhood kids to join.  This gang is mean, rough, and will surely destroy what little civility is left.  We see in illustrations in the opening pages that Lisa is teaching herself to drive, hunt abandoned houses for food, and stay safe.  But when the forming gang starts taking over her friends and threatening a food supply, Lisa steps up to the plate to reclaim her friends, neighborhood, and eventually becomes the leader of her city.

If the premise of a 12-year old suddenly gaining the wisdom and ability to unite a city of children sounds far-fetched, just remember that this graphic novel falls squarely in the post-apocalyptic fantasy realm, and check all realistic expectations at the door.  Still, then end of this short, stand-alone work is ultimately uplifting.  And, reading a book in graphic novel form forces the brain to read and process the information on the page differently.  This rotating book is in the Young Adult age range, and is shelved near that department at the library.

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles in both our permanent and rotating collection to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit, on the North Campus. This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”


The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson, et. al.
ISBN: 9780761356349, 128 p., illustrated
Young Adult Rotating section 

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.  

Although I have a piano in my house when people ask me to play I always defer and say I play badly, and for my own amusement.  This can be attributed to my stop-and-start lessons as a young girl: each of my three piano teachers got pregnant within a few years of me starting lessons!  Still, if the sheet music is easy enough I do enjoy playing.  The library has a music section in the adult non-fiction department, and now has two new books of piano, vocal, or guitar sheet music for anyone’s entertainment. 150 of the Most Beautiful Songs Ever contains popular tunes from the 1920s through the 1990s by various artists.  Each arrangement has a piano line, a vocal line, and guitar chords.  The arrangements stay in the keys of C, G, and F whenever possible and are easy enough for even me to pick out by sight.  Some titles include Blue Moon, How Deep is Your Love, Some Enchanted Evening, You are So Beautiful, Georgia on My Mind, Unchained Melody, Tears in Heaven, and many more. 

The companion volume, 150 More of the Most Beautiful Songs Ever is arranged for easy piano only.  The notes are big and clear on the page and the arrangements are mostly in the keys of C, G, and F.  This collection includes a few more movie tunes, such as Can You Feel the Love Tonight from Lion King, and If I Change the World from the older movie Phenomenon.  Of course, standards from many of the Rogers and Hammerstein musicals are included as well.  So, if you would like a quick distraction between chores or errands and have a piano or guitar, why not try and see how many tunes you can recognize out of these big books of sheet music?

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit, on the North Campus. This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

150 of the Most Beautiful Songs Ever published by the Hal Leonard Corp.

ISBN: 9780881883077, 573p.

150 More of the Most Beautiful Songs Ever published by the Hal Leonard Corp.
ISBN: 9781617740329, 558p.

Both: Adult Non-Fiction, Music and Entertainment Section

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.  

The weight loss industry is huge, and seems to grow bigger every year.  This is not without with some reason.  Americans are on average heavier now than they were 70, 50, or even 30 years ago.  The library too has its share of self-help books, weight loss guides, and specialty cookbooks to help people with nearly any diet need.  Some of our books focus on activity plans or weight training, some focus on eliminating or reducing salt, sugar, carbohydrates, or fat from the diet, and many have a combination of the two.  One popular method in recent years has been to focus on weight loss from a spiritual point of view. There are now many Bible-study based weight loss programs found in and out of churches around the country.  For a slightly different point of view the Port Library now has Cravings: a Catholic wrestles with food, self-image, and God by Mary DeJurris Poust.  The author focuses on her own weight loss and spiritual journey, guiding the reader through a spiritual journey as they reassess how to eat.  This book is not focused on what to eat, or how much, but eating mindfully and looking to God and faith to fill the void many people try to fill with busy activities and mindless eating.  Each chapter has discussion questions meant for personal reflection, and a meditation for the section.  The author includes several personal anecdotes to help the reader along on their journey.  And don’t worry about a list of dos and don’ts; with only eight chapters and less than a hundred and fifty pages you won’t be reading long.  Instead, the book guides the reader through simple, step-by-step ideas of increasing spiritual health as physical health is addressed.  This book would be a good addition to other diet books or cookbooks, even if the reader has other medical concerns that limit certain foods.  Because of the focus on spirituality over food, this book will be shelved in the library’s section of Bible study and religion books, rather than health and wellness.

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit, on the North Campus.  This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”


Cravings: A Catholic Wrestles with Food, Self-Image, and God by Mary DeJurris Proust.
ISBN: 9781594713057, 149p.
Adult Non-Fiction, Faith & Religion Section

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit. 

Some readers like to read only one kind of fiction.  Librarians and literary types call different kinds of fiction "genres" and the library has separated some of its fiction books into genres to help patrons find what they like more easily.  But for some, keeping just in mystery, western, romance, or science fiction is boring.  I like to read nearly every genre myself, especially if the author has a style I like.  However, there is another sort of book, more popular in recent years, which combine genres.  One such book is Opening Night Murder by Anne Rutherford.

This paperback novel is being called a historical mystery by the publisher, and was called a Restoration mystery with a little romance by another reviewer.  The story centers around a fictional mistress named Suzanne Thornton in 1660s London.  The prologue starts as Suzanne, who is managing a restored Globe Theatre, witnesses a murder on opening night of a Shakespeare play.  Chapter one then begins several months earlier and describes how Suzanne, previously a mistress, is abandoned by her current lover and left nearly penniless.  Fortunately her first love returns from exile and Suzanne has hopes he will support her and the illegitimate child he fathered nearly 20 years before.  However, the path to true love and romance does not run smoothly, and to top it all off the murder described in the prologue is pinned on Suzanne’s son.  It is quite the mystery, suspense, and romance all with the backdrop of regency England.  The descriptions in the book include elements from the time period, but the action, dialogue, and vocabulary is all modern.  If the story line sounds interesting so far, I suggest you come to the library and check it out yourself to see what genre you think it fits into best!

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit, on the North Campus. This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

Opening Night Murder by Anne Rutherford
ISBN: 9780425255865, 309p.
Adult Mystery