Shelf Talk May 2

Ah, spring! We thought it would never get here…but here it is in all its color, warm breezes and lightness – of clothing (from coats to light jackets or shawls), drinks (from cocoa to lemonade), diet (from thick soups to light fare), like salads, fruits, cold soups and gazpachos…even our reading lists are lighter in spring.

Of course, some readers consider Milan Kundera’s “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” to be “light reading.” But I’m talking beach reads, books for car travel during vacations and nonfiction like Chelsea Handler’s new book, “Life Will Be the Death of Me” and others on our lists this month.

So, celebrate the rites spring. Time to lighten up your world and your life! First stop? Dripping Springs Community Library!

ADULT DEPARTMENT

Cheer up, Mr. Widdicombe. By Evan James.  From a bright new voice in contemporary fiction comes a hilarious and sophisticated comedy of manners about a delightfully eccentric family and the absurd happenings that befall them during one frenzied summer at their home in the Pacific Northwest. The inimitable—some might say incorrigible—Frank Widdicombe is suffering from a deep depression. Or so his wife, Carol, believes. But Carol is convinced their new island home—Willowbrook Manor on the Puget Sound—is just the thing to cheer her husband up. And so begins a whirlwind summer as their house becomes the epicenter of multiple social dramas involving the family, their friends, and a host of new acquaintances.

The Widdicombes’ son, Christopher, is mourning a heartbreak after a year abroad in Italy. Their personal assistant, Michelle, begins a romance with preppy screenwriter Bradford, who also happens to be Frank’s tennis partner. Meanwhile, a local named Marvelous Matthews is hired to create a garden at the manor—and is elated to find Gracie Sloane, bewitching self-help author, in residence as well. When this alternately bumbling and clever cast of characters comes together, Willowbrook transforms into a circus of uncovered secrets, preposterous misunderstandings, and irrepressible passions. Written in a singularly witty and satirical style, Cheer Up, Mr. Widdicombe is perfect for fans of Maria Semple's Where'd You Go, Bernadette? Andrew Sean Greer's Less, and Jess Walter's Beautiful Ruins.

YOUNG ADULT DEPARTMENT

Sky without stars. By Jessica Brody and Joanne Rendell.

 A thief.

An officer.

A guardian. 

Three strangers, one shared destiny…

When the Last Days came, the planet of Laterre promised hope. A new life for a wealthy French family and their descendants. But five hundred years later, it’s now a place where an extravagant elite class reigns supreme; where the clouds hide the stars and the poor starve in the streets; where a rebel group, long thought dead, is resurfacing.

Whispers of revolution have begun—a revolution that hinges on three unlikely heroes…

Chatine is a street-savvy thief who will do anything to escape the brutal Regime, including spy on Marcellus, the grandson of the most powerful man on the planet. Marcellus is an officer—and the son of a renowned traitor. In training to take command of the military, Marcellus begins to doubt the government he’s vowed to serve when his father dies and leaves behind a cryptic message that only one person can read: a girl named Alouette. Alouette is living in an underground refuge, where she guards and protects the last surviving library on the planet. But a shocking murder will bring Alouette to the surface for the first time in twelve years…and plunge Laterre into chaos. All three have a role to play in a dangerous game of revolution—and together they will shape the future of a planet. Power, romance, and destiny collide in this sweeping reimagining of Victor Hugo’s masterpiece, Les Misérables.

CHILDREN’S DEPARTMENT

A feel-better book for little tempers. By Holly Brochmann, Leah Bowen, et al.  

Sometimes the LITTLEST kids can have the BIGGEST tempers! A Feel Better Book for Little Tempers assures little kids that anger is normal — everyone gets angry sometimes, even adults! The rhyming narration helps kids to identify anger and provides them with helpful tools to manage and move past it.

Includes a Note to Parents and Caregivers with more information on how you can help your little one manage their little (or not-so-little!) tempers.