El Deafo - Cece Bell

El Deafo - Bell, Cece

Summary: A poignant graphic tale based on the creator's own experiences with hearing loss follows the adventures of young Cece, who develops "superpowers" to manage the challenges of making friends while wearing a bulky hearing aid that sometimes lets her hear things she shouldn't.



Kirkus Reviews
A humorous and touching graphic memoir about finding friendship and growing up deaf. When Cece is 4 years old, she becomes "severely to profoundly" deaf after contracting meningitis. Though she is fitted with a hearing aid and learns to read lips, it's a challenging adjustment for her. After her family moves to a new town, Cece begins first grade at a school that doesn't have separate classes for the deaf. Her nifty new hearing aid, the Phonic Ear, allows her to hear her teacher clearly, even when her teacher is in another part of the school. Cece's new ability makes her feel like a superhero—just call her "El Deafo"—but the Phonic Ear is still hard to hide and uncomfortable to wear. Cece thinks, "Superheroes might be awesome, but they are also different. And being different feels a lot like being alone." Bell (Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover, 2012) shares her childhood experiences of being hearing impaired with warmth and sensitivity, exploiting the graphic format to amplify such details as misheard speech. Her whimsical color illustrations (all the human characters have rabbit ears and faces), clear explanations and Cece's often funny adventures help make the memoir accessible and entertaining. Readers will empathize with Cece as she tries to find friends who aren't bossy or inconsiderate, and they'll rejoice with her when she finally does. Worthy of a superhero.

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The disgusting creatures series - Elise Gravel

The disgusting creatures series - Gravel, Elise

School Library Journal Reviews
Gr 1–2—This series adds two more to its lineup of silly, whimsical facts. The cartoon illustrations and use of speech bubbles make for a winning mixture of entertainment and information. Bold colors and fonts draw attention to important words, which beginning readers will find useful. Humor abounds in both titles. In Spider, the sentence "Some spiders even mimic their prey" is accompanied by an image of an arachnid pretending to be a burger as it stalks its prey (with the speech bubble reading, "Hee hee, he doesn't suspect a thing!"). Lice states that these insects are about the size of a sesame seed, while a text bubble reads, "I might be small, but to your parents, I'm scarier than a lion." The illustrations depict a louse on one page and a large lion paw on the next to add context. Ample spacing throughout makes for an effective layout. VERDICT The comic charm will appeal to a wide berth of new and reluctant readers.—Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI

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Maangchi's real Korean cooking - Maangchi

Maangchi's real Korean cooking: authentic dishes for the home cook - Maangchi

Summary: "Her millions of fans compare her to Julia Child. An Internet sensation, Maangchi has won the admiration of home cooks and chefs alike with her trademark combination of good technique and good cheer as she demonstrates the vast and delicious cuisine of Korea. In Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking, she shows how to cook all the country’s best dishes, from few-ingredient dishes (Spicy Napa Cabbage) to those made familiar by Korean restaurants (L.A. Galbi, Bulgogi, Korean Fried Chicken) to homey one-pots like Bibimbap. With her step-by-step photos--800 in all--Maangchi makes every dish a snap. A full glossary, complete with photos, explains ingredients."--Amazon.com.

Publishers Weekly Reviews
Born and raised in South Korea and now living in New York City, Maangchi is the founder of a popular Korean cooking website. In this delightful collection, she showcases the variety and breadth of Korean cooking. She begins by detailing typical Korean meals, with ever-present rice and kimchi served in a multitude of ways. She also provides comprehensive ingredient and equipment lists that help orient first timers. Recipes start with numerous types of rice—fluffy, toasted, multigrain—that serve as the building blocks of Korean-style curry rice, seaweed rice rolls, and bibimbap. Maangchi also offers an appetizing selection of noodles, including spicy, chewy cold noodles and noodles with black bean paste. Soups and stews, two of the cornerstones of Korean cuisine, are amply represented by dishes like spicy beef and vegetable soup, seafood stew, and kimchi stew with tuna. She dedicates one chapter to kimchi and pickles and another to snacks, with offerings such as spicy stuffed cucumber kimchi and fried kelp. Side dishes steal the show, including braised beef in soy sauce, stir-fried kale with soybean paste, blanched spinach with scallions and sesame, and stir-fried pork. In addition, she provides chapters on pancakes, special-occasion food, desserts, and more. Maangchi has written an essential cookbook for anyone who wants to learn to prepare authentic Korean cuisine.

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Hidden girl - Shyima Hall

Hidden girl: the true story of a modern-day child slave - Hall, Shyima

Summary: The author relates how she was sold by poor parents into slavery and forced to endure brutal servitude in California until a neighbor's anonymous call to the police began her journey to freedom and her subsequent efforts to fight for child slaves.

Booklist Reviews
Hall was eight years old when her impoverished Egyptian parents sold her to a wealthy couple. The life of domestic slavery that followed was one of endless labor and physical and verbal abuse. Her experiences don't improve when her captors immigrate to the U.S., smuggling her in with them. Almost two years pass before her plight is discovered, and she is freed. But her difficulties don't end there. As a result of never having been educated, she is illiterate, can't speak English, and can't even tell time. Accordingly, school is an ordeal and the foster homes in which she lives are often problematic. The balance of this affecting and enlightening memoir tells the story of how she survived and, ultimately, thrived. Unfortunately, her story is not unique. She points out that there are almost 43,000 slaves in the U.S. at any given time. By giving a face to one hidden girl, Hall has given a face to many. This is an excellent book for both individual reading and classroom use. Also suggest Rosanne Hawke's Spirit of a Mountain Wolf, reviewed in this issue, for a fictionalized view of child slavery. Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.

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Mind of chef (DVD)

Mind of chef (DVD)

Summary: Season 1 of The Mind of a Chef examined the food-centric world of Chef David Chang. From ramen to rotting bananas, Copenhagen to Kansas City, and pork buns to golf clubs, Season 1 combined travel, cooking, history, science, and humor into an unforgettable journey.

Season 2 of The Mind of a Chef features Sean Brock (Episodes 1-8), Executive Chef and Partner of McCrady's and Husk Restaurant in Charleston, SC and the newly-opened outpost of Husk in Nashville, TN. The second half features April Bloomfield (Episodes 9-16), Executive Chef and Co- Owner of The Spotted Pig, The Breslin Bar & Dining Room, The John Dory Oyster Bar and Salvation Taco, all in New York City.

Season 3 of The Mind of a Chef joins chefs Magnus Nilsson and Ed Lee as they show viewers what it truly means to cook, think, create and live in the food-obsessed world that is The Mind of A Chef. Narrated by Executive Producer and renowned chef Anthony Bourdain

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The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances - Matthew Inman

The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances - Inman, Matthew

Summary: From #1 New York Times best-selling author, Matthew Inman, AKA The Oatmeal, comes this hilarious, beautiful, poignant collection of comics and stories about running, eating, and one cartoonist's reasons for jogging across mountains until his toenails fall off.



Kirkus Reviews
A short, laugh-out-loud graphic book about the promises and perils of exercise.The hilarious and the profound are often only inches apart, and Inman (Why Grizzly Bears Should Wear Underpants, 2013, etc.) consistently nails the space between them. Better known as The Oatmeal, the author's irreverent and peculiar webcomics resonate with millions of cult followers who identify with his self-deprecating musings on life. Part confessional, part commentary, the book has enough humor and satire to qualify as comedy but also just enough honesty to strike resonance and possibly even provide inspiration. Why does Inman run? He likes to eat junk food. Running helps with his depression. It helps him keep ahead of both his personal demons and The Blerch, a pudgy little cherub who follows him around and "represents all forms of gluttony, apathy and indifference" that continually vex him. Inman's caricatures of his own inner battles will be vaguely familiar to most. While running, for examp le, the Blerch floats behind him, offering nonstop suggestions: "Slow down, Captain SpeedyPants! Let's go home! We've got gravy to eat and naps to conquer. Also, the Robocop trilogy on Netflix isn't gonna watch itself." Inman's witty parodies and droll cartoon illustrations deftly penetrate defenses, proving to be oddly reassuring. When an ultramarathon runner portrays himself chugging Skittles and consuming Nutella through a straw, it raises the possibility that progress—whatever the endeavor may be—is possible. Make no mistake, however: Inman is in, but not of, a fitness culture fixated on physical and nutritional perfection. He pokes fun at hypervain gym culture and scoffs at culinary purity and restraint. Exercise is simply a means to an end for him. Running temporarily dials down the volume of his fears and insecurities and keeps him from becoming a fat kid again. That appears to be reason enough to keep him pounding the pavement. Sure to delight Inman's fan s and probably win him some new ones.

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Is There a Dog in This Book? - Viviane Schwarz

Is There a Dog in This Book? - Schwarz, Viviane

Summary: Cats Tiny, Moonpie and André begin to suspect that a dog is in their midst and embark on a furry game of hide-and-seek



Booklist Reviews
With the uncertainty of There Are Cats in This Book (2008) and There Are No Cats in This Book (2010) behind us, our trio of flighty felines have a new problem: someone drank their milk, chewed their toy, and left behind a peculiar odor. Horrors! It must be a "snappy and yappy, smelly and noisy, hair and scary" dog. By directly asking the reader for help lifting flaps, the cats go into hiding, first behind a sofa, then a piano, in a closet.Seeing the cats squashed into ever more uncomfortable spaces is a hoot, especially when contrasted with the innocent-looking purple dog. But as soon as they befriend the pup—with nifty flaps that make each cat lean over to pet it—there comes a new difficulty: the reader scares the dog away, necessitating a flap-fest of searching for it. With sturdy construction nearly worthy of a board book, this ought to withstand plenty of repeat abuse, which it will get, thanks to Schwarz's gregarious dialogue-only text and her adorably simple pen-and-inks. Let the fur fly.

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Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography

Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography - Harris, Neil Patrick

Summary: The Emmy Award-winning star of How I Met Your Mother shares his experiences as a child star, Broadway performer and father in an over-the-top, humorous account creatively designed in the style of the popular interactive adventure series.



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Inside the Human Body

Inside the Human Body

Summary: Survive! Inside the Human Body, Volume 1 begins an epic journey through the human body with a look at the digestive system. This lively, full-color science comic explores Phoebe's insides after she accidentally swallows a microscopic ship. The only problem? Dr. Brain (the ship's eccentric inventor) and Phoebe's friend Geo are on board!


Publishers Weekly Reviews
What better way to understand the human digestive system than to take a trip through it? Eager and curious Geo and scientist Dr. Brain shrink down to microscopic size and inadvertently venture through the digestive tract of Geo's tomboyish friend Phoebe, while Dr. Brain's harried assistant, Kay, desperately tries to alleviate the situation. The madcap plot and near-constant gags (no pun intended) deliver educational content in an entertaining fashion reminiscent of the Magic School Bus series, while the manhwa (Korean comics) form is sure to appeal to many readers. The creators aren't afraid to get technical (occasional "Survival Science" spreads discuss sphincter muscles, parasites, and more) or to indulge in bathroom humor ("Why are you looking for Geo in my poop?" a befuddled Phoebe asks Kay). Like the human body, where, as Dr. Brain emphatically proclaims, "even the smallest cell plays an important role," the book succeeds on the collective efforts of all those involved in its production, including translators and medical experts who reviewed its accuracy. Geo and Dr. Brain explore the circulatory and nervous systems in two subsequent titles, available simultaneously. Ages 7–up.

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Who Was Laura Ingalls Wilder? - Patricia Demuth

Who Was Laura Ingalls Wilder? - Demuth, Patricia

Summary: Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books, based on her own childhood and later life, are still beloved classics almost a century after she began writing them. Now young readers will see just how similar Laura's true-life story was to her books. Born in 1867 in the "Big Woods" in Wisconsin, Laura experienced both the hardship and the adventure of living on the frontier. Her life and times are captured in engaging text and 80 black-and-white illustrations.

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The moth

The moth (Anthology)

Summary: "In the tradition of book anthologies created from public radio programs such as StoryCorps and This I Believe, THE MOTH collects the best storytelling moments--most in print here for the very first time--straight from their archive of more than 3000 shows since the first Moth Evening in 1997. From James Braly's struggling with what to do when his three-year-old son wants a pink bicycle to Dr. George Lombardi's flying to India to save Mother Theresa's life, from former U.S. Press Secretary Joe Lockhart'soversleeping after a long night in a Moscow bar and missing Air Force One on his first international trip, to Ed Gavagan's surviving being stabbed by a gang and then testifying at their trial, these 40 stories range from sublime to heartbreaking to hilarious, and this collection will feature the very best. Backed by The Moth's own efforts and their expanding syndication and live event efforts in 2012-2013, this book will be an important and cherished read for existing fans of the program, literary fans of some of the featured storytellers, and oral history buffs coast-to-coast"-- - (Baker & Taylor)

Kirkus Reviews
Storytellers from a diverse array of backgrounds present true tales via a New York–based organization broadcasting at themoth.org. For all its vital cultural roots, storytelling makes a strange bedfellow with the printed page. In this self-congratulatory volume--readers can plow through a preface, a foreword and an introduction before even getting to the first story--stories originally told before live audiences are transcribed and edited to no discernible purpose, considering that they are all available in their original formats on the website. The stories run the gamut from childhood memories to love and marriage to illness, crime, war and family secrets, with several epiphanies thrown in for good measure. Some are quite moving--e.g., rapper Darryl "DMC" McDaniels' account of how Sarah McLachlan's music saved him from depression and geneticist Paul Nurse's discovery that the woman he had thought was his sister was actually his mother. Malcolm Gladwell's "Her Way" manages to be both hilarious and heartbreaking in its evocation of a friendship's end. Others that should pack a punch, including writer Jillian Lauren's "The Prince and I," about her stint as a courtesan to the Sultan of Brunei, fall flat on the page. Therein lies the problem with this anthology: These stories are meant to be experienced in a live venue, where listeners can immerse themselves in each teller's unique sense of tone and timing. Unlike personal essays, stories require give and take from an audience, which prompts the question: Why bother printing these in an age when people who couldn't attend the original sessions can easily access live footage online? Other contributors include A.E. Hotchner, Adam Gopnik, Sebastian Junger and Nathan Englander. Comes across as a vanity project that does little credit to the storytelling process. Copyright Kirkus 2013 Kirkus/BPI Communications.All rights reserved.

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Find Momo - Andrew Knapp

Find Momo: my dog is hiding in this book. Can you find him? - Knapp, Andrew

Summary: Thousands of Internet fans play hide-and-seek with Momo the border collie every day, and now you can, too. Momo and his best buddy Andrew Knapp have traveled all over—through fields, down country roads, across cities, and into yards, neighborhoods, and surreal spaces of all sorts. The result is a book of spectacular photography that’s also a game you can play anytime. Lose yourself in page after page of Andrew’s beautiful, serene, dreamlike images, and sooner or later you’ll find Momo’s sweet, eager face looking back at you. (Can’t find him? Don’t worry…the answers are in the back.) - (Random House, Inc.)

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Brew masters (DVD)

Brew masters (DVD)

Summary: Sam Calagione, craft beer maestro, and his team at Dogfish Head Brewery travel the world – and their own backyard – searching for exotic ingredients and discovering ancient techniques to produce beers of astounding originality. They also deal with funky bottles, ruthless timelines, clouds of construction dust – even the quest for the right saliva. Sometimes it all comes together, sometimes it all hits the fan. No matter what happens, Sam and team Dogfish Head put it all out there, and have a good time doing it. Be a part of their quest to reclaim beer’s heart and soul. - (Alert)

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A little book of sloth - Lucy Cooke

A little book of sloth - Cooke, Lucy

Summary: Hang around just like a sloth and get to know the delightful residents of the Avarios Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica, the world's largest sloth orphanage. You'll fall in love with bad-boy Mateo, ooh and ahh over baby Biscuit, and want to wrap your arms around champion cuddle buddy Ubu!


Booklist Reviews
Kids, you can't possibly imagine the level of cuteness at work in this book. Here's a visual: a baby sloth hugs a teddy bear, and he's smaller than the bear. There are sloths in pjs, sloths gnawing on green beans, and even a pile o' sloths in a bucket. Of course, in addition to the huggable pictures and handsome book design, there's a story here too. Cooke, photographer, zoologist, and founder of the Sloth Appreciation Society, introduces a rehabilitation sanctuary in "a sleepy corner of Costa Rica," home to approximately 150 slow-moving residents. Judy Arroyo is "mom" to each of these creatures, from Buttercup, the first tiny orphan that landed on her doorstep, to Sunshine and Sammy, rescued from poachers. Cooke points out in her lively text that there are two families of sloth: the three-fingered Bradypus and the two-fingered Choloepus ("a cross between a Wookie and a pig"). Fascinating facts about sloths abound. Move over puppies, kittens, and piglets—kids are going to have a new favorite animal when they get their hands on this, especially given the unofficial sloth motto: "Just chill." Copyright 2012 Booklist Reviews.

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Ruby star wrapping - Melody Miller

Ruby star wrapping: creating packaging to reuse, regive, and relove - Miller, Melody

Summary: "This is the ultimate resource for those who are as creative as they are willing to conserve. Ruby Star Wrapping inspires you to think resourceful, think reusable, think unusual when it comes to gift packaging. Raid the pantry for boxes, use old linens for pouches, and make beautiful accessories out of fabric and paper scraps--the projects here illustrate how to create beautiful, reusable packaging from the common materials in your home. With its thirty easy-to-make giftwrap patterns, this book reminds us of the wonderful creative potential inherent in the act of giving a gift. When wrapped with thought, beauty, and a little ingenuity, the packaging can be a gift in itself."--www.Amazon.com.

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Bake it in a cupcake - Megan Seling

Bake it in a cupcake - Seling, Megan

Summary: Shares recipes for creating treats with surprises inside, from cherry pie dark chocolate cupcakes and Boston cream puff pie cupcakes with chocolate ganache to French toast cheesecake cupcakes and creme egg cupcakes.

"It's a fact: Bake It in a Cupcake is stuffed with awesome, over-the-top deliciousness. Brimming with fun and decadent recipes, it's an essential volume for the adventurous baker, and bound to garner a cultlike following of enthusiastic tasters." — Jessie Oleson of CakeSpy.com

"The cupcake is my oldest friend and arguably the love of my life. (Sorry, Terry.) I didn't think the cupcake could be improved, but Megan Seling has done it. Her pumpkin pie–filled cupcake is possibly the best cupcake I've ever eaten. I've sampled several dozen of Megan's stuffed cupcakes—each a delicious work of art and a mind-boggling feat of engineering—and now it's your turn. Prepare to have your mind and your taste buds blown—along with any preconceived notions you may have had about what a cupcake can be." — Dan Savage, author of Savage Love, creator of the “It Gets Better” Project, consumer of cupcakes

"As someone who has disliked everything about cupcakes except eating them, I finally have been broken–and have surrendered to the awesomeness of the Cupcake Age–by Megan Seling's Bake It in a Cupcake. If you even remotely care about having fun in the kitchen, eating tasty tidbits, and awakening the creative monster within us all, then this book is for you. And it’s mandatory for parents!"— Andrew Zimmern, chef, author, and host of Travel Channel's Bizarre Foods - (Andrews McMeel)

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New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance - Elna Baker

New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance - Baker, Elna

Summary: In this hilarious, tongue-in-cheek memoir, writer, actress, and gorgeous stand up comedian Elna Baker tells what it's like to be the Mormon "Tina Fey"--the girl who distresses her family when she chooses NYU over BYU; the girl who's cultivating an oxymoronic identity as a bold, educated, modern, funny, proper, abstinent, religious stand-up comic, equal parts wholesome and hot.

Kirkus Reviews
Debut memoir from a 20-something Mormon stand-up comedian.Baker was once just a funny fat girl weighing in at nearly 250 pounds. Then she rapidly shed the pounds ("In five and a half months I lost eighty pounds, which is the equivalent of pooping out a fourth grader") and emerged as a slim beauty, still funny and ready for romance—up to a point. The author writes that she was ready for some kind of amorous encounter, but as a practicing LDS believer, sex before marriage is prohibited—as is drinking. "Mormons are known for saying no," she writes. "No sex, no drugs, no alcohol and no caffeine. NO." So she relates, in unrelenting cuteness, her romantic adventures—not having sex with lots of dreamy guys, but kissing and telling all. For New York Mormon singles events, Baker concocted some truly unfortunate costumes, including a fortune cookie that got crushed and looked like a certain part of the female anatomy. She discusses her situation with The Almighty (a largely one-way discussion) and her struggles to suppress her sexuality while defending her spirituality: "I thought, he only wants to see me naked because I lost weight and I look more attractive now. And this only happened because I prayed and asked God for a miracle. Misusing my new body would be like taking a gift from God and defiling it…Is it right to suppress my sexuality? Or do religious choices just make me happy because I was trained to feel this way?" For the most part, Baker spins a witty girly-girl story, a romantic caper for ladies about trying to find a job, a boyfriend and, ultimately, herself.A sexy, lubricious outing by a formerly zaftig comic. Copyright Kirkus 2009 Kirkus/BPI Communications.All rights reserved.

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A separation (DVD)

A separation (DVD)

Summary: A married couple are faced with a difficult decision - to improve the life of their child by moving to another country or to stay in Iran and look after a deteriorating parent who has Alzheimer's disease.


Video Librarian Reviews
An Oscar winner for Best Foreign Film, writer-director Asghar Farhadi's ambiguous, enigmatic meditation on marital conflict is set in contemporary Iran, where two couples appear before a judge to defend their legal, moral, and religious beliefs in family court. As the drama begins, Simin (Leila Hatami) has received permission for her family to emigrate from Tehran, following a year-and-a-half of bureaucratic aggravation. Simin is trying to convince her banker husband, Nader (Peyman Moadi) and adolescent daughter Termeh (played by the director's daughter, Sarina Farhadi), to opt for a better life. But middle-class, moderate Nader feels he must stay and care for his frail father (Ali-Asghar Shahbazi), who is afflicted with Alzheimer's. When frustrated Simin moves back to her parents' home, Nader hires poor, pious Razieh (Sareh Bayet) to care for his father during the day—unbeknownst to her debt-ridden, unemployed husband, Hodjat (Shahab Hosseini). When pregnant Razieh is subsequently injured in an accident, the foursome winds up before an Iranian judge. Deftly exploring ethical and cultural issues surrounding Iranian women living under the Islamic theocracy that has dominated the country since the 1979 revolution, A Separation is highly recommended. (S. Granger)Copyright Video Librarian Reviews 2011.

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