EUREKA PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT (Eureka, Illinois)
  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Library Board
    • Library Policies
    • Staff & Employment
    • Friends of the Library
    • Donations
    • Library Newsletter
  • At The Library
    • Program Calendar
    • Kids
    • Teens
    • Adults
    • Get a Library Card
    • Loan Periods and Fines
    • Access Your Account
    • Library of Things
  • Find Books & More
    • Search Catalog
    • Wowbrary: Latest Additions
    • Interlibrary Loans
    • Ebooks & Audiobooks
    • Online Music and Movies
    • Digital Magazines & Newspapers
    • E-Sequels
    • Staff Book Reviews
    • Pages of Eureka
  • Services
    • Outreach
    • Porch Pickup
    • Free Services
    • Copy, Print, & Fax
    • Educational Materials Request
    • Talking Books
    • Explore More Illinois
    • Online Classes
    • Niche Academy
  • Research
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Genealogy & Local History
    • Eureka Pumpkin Festival
    • City & County Resources
    • State & Federal Resources
    • Tax Form Information
    • Voter Information

January 25, 2023 | Adult Review

1/25/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

A Single Thread

Chevalier, Tracy

2019, Viking

Fiction

Print copy at library; large print and audiobook available through interlibrary loan; ebook available through Axis360

1932. After the Great War took both her beloved brother and her fiancé, Violet Speedwell has become a "surplus woman," one of a generation doomed to a life of spinsterhood after the war killed so many young men. Yet Violet cannot reconcile herself to a life spent caring for her grieving, embittered mother. After countless meals of boiled eggs and dry toast, she saves enough to move out of her mother's place and into the town of Winchester, home to one of England's grandest cathedrals. There, Violet is drawn into a society of broderers--women who embroider kneelers for the Cathedral, carrying on a centuries-long tradition of bringing comfort to worshippers.

Violet finds support and community in the group, fulfillment in the work they create, and even a growing friendship with the vivacious Gilda. But when forces threaten her new independence and another war appears on the horizon, Violet must fight to put down roots in a place where women aren't expected to grow. Told in Chevalier's glorious prose, A Single Thread is a timeless story of friendship, love, and a woman crafting her own life.

Read a review by Ann Reeves:

a_single_thread.pdf
File Size: 612 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

January 25, 2023 | Adult Review

1/25/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

Lending a Paw (A Bookmobile Cat Mystery)

Cass, Laurie

2013, Obsidian

Fiction

Print copy and large print copy available through interlibrary loan

With the help of her rescue cat, Eddie, librarian Minnie Hamilton is driving a bookmobile based in the resort town of Chilson, Michigan. But she’d better keep both hands on the wheel, because it’s going to be a bumpy ride…

Eddie followed Minnie home one day, and now she can’t seem to shake the furry little shadow. But despite her efforts to contain her new pal, the tabby sneaks out and trails her all the way to the bookmobile on its maiden voyage. Before she knows it, her slinky stowaway becomes her cat co-pilot!

Minnie and Eddie’s first day visiting readers around the county seems to pass without trouble—until Eddie darts outside at the last stop and leads her to the body of a local man who’s reached his final chapter.

Initially, Minnie is ready to let the police handle this case, but Eddie seems to smell a rat. Together, they’ll work to find the killer—because a good librarian always knows when justice is overdue.

Read a review by Gennifer King:

lending_a_paw.pdf
File Size: 500 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

January 18, 2023 | Adult Review

1/18/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

Simply Korean: Easy Recipes for Korean Favorites That Anyone Can Make

Huh, Aaron

2022, Alpha

Nonfiction

Print copy available through interlibrary loan

If you've always wanted to make your favorite Korean dishes at home, Simply Korean is for you. With streamlined techniques, minimal ingredients, and clear instructions, Aaron and Claire show you the easiest way to make fried rice, bulgogi, kimchi, and more. Learn the best ways to use traditional Korean ingredients, and save money by cooking at home. Includes:
- Introduction to Korean cuisine, including essential ingredients and cooking methods
- How to make restaurant-quality meals at home--shortcuts for boosting flavor and reducing prep
- Easy-to-remember formulas for Korean sauces to make any dish more delicious

Read a review by Gennifer King:

simply_korean.pdf
File Size: 508 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

January 11, 2023 | Adult Review

1/11/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

The Secret Bridesmaid

Birchall, Katy

2021, St. Martin's Griffin

Fiction

Print copy available through interlibrary loan

Sophie Breeze is a brilliant bridesmaid. So brilliant, in fact, that she’s made it her full-time job.

As a professional bridesmaid, Sophie is hired by London brides to be their right-hand woman, posing as a friend but working behind the scenes to help plan the perfect wedding and ensure their big day goes off without a hitch. When she’s hired by Lady Victoria Swann––a former model and “It Girl" of 1970’s London; now the Marchioness of Meade––for the society wedding of the year, it should be a chance for Sophie to prove just how talented she is.

Of course, it’s not ideal that the bride, Lady Victoria’s daughter, Cordelia, is an absolute diva and determined to make Sophie’s life a nightmare. It’s also a bit inconvenient that Sophie finds herself drawn to Cordelia’s posh older brother, who is absolutely off limits. But when a rival society wedding is announced for the very same day, things start to get…well, complicated.

Can Sophie pull off the biggest challenge of her career––execute a high-profile gala for four hundred and fifty guests in record time, win over a reluctant bride, and catch the eye of handsome Lord Swann––all while keeping her true identity a secret, and her dignity intact?

Heartwarming and hilarious, The Secret Bridesmaid celebrates the joys (and foibles) of weddings, the nuances of female friendship, and the redeeming power of love in its many unexpected forms.

Read a review by Cindy O'Neill:

the_secret_bridesmaid.pdf
File Size: 323 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

January 11, 2023 | Adult Review

1/11/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

The Field Guide to Citizen Science: How You Can Contribute to Scientific Research and Make a Difference

Cavalier, Darlene
Hoffman, Catherine
​Cooper, Caren

2020, Timber Press Inc.

Nonfiction

Print copy at library

Citizen science is the public involvement in the discovery of new scientific knowledge. A citizen science project can involve one person or millions of people collaborating towards a common goal. The citizen science movement is approachable and inclusive, making it an excellent option for people looking for ways to get involved and make a difference.

The Field Guide to Citizen Science—by the expert team at SciStarter—makes it easier than ever for those new to the process to get involved. It explains what citizen science is, explores the various types of projects available, shows how to succeed and stay motivated when you’re participating in a project, and explains how the data are used. The included projects range from passive observation to active data collection. With an upbeat and accessible tone and a lively, illustrated layout, this must-have guide is for anyone looking to join the fun and rewarding world of citizen science.

Read a review by Jill Martin:

the_field_guide_to_citizen_science.pdf
File Size: 394 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

December 28, 2022 | Adult Review

12/28/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

Home and Away: a World War II Christmas Story

Hughes, Dean

​2015, Shadow Mountain

Fiction

Print copy at library

A historical fiction novel told from the perspective of a son fighting on the battlefields of Europe during World War II and his mother, struggling with worry and uncertainty about her soldier son while she tries to keep a semblenance of a normal, happy Christmas holiday back on the homefront.Norma Hayes has always tried to make Christmas special for her family, but 1944 will make that more difficult with money being tight and wartime rationing making everything hard to come by. Aware of his mother's hardships and the worry from having her eldest son at war, second son, Dennis, is determined to buy his mother a special gift this Christmas, a lavendar blue dress he hopes will bring her comfort as a symbol of special times gone by and the hope of a brighter future with the family reunited at war's end. Meantime, on a battlefield far from home in Holland with his 101st Airborne battalion, her soldier son catches a familiar scent of lavendar which briefly transports him back to the homefront to the perfume scent his mother wore, giving him a short respite and reuniting the family once again if only in his imagination.

Read a review by Ann Reeves:

home_and_away.pdf
File Size: 507 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

December 28, 2022 | Adult Review

12/28/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

Skipping Christmas

Grisham, John

2001, Doubleday

Fiction

Print copy at library; large print copy and audiobook available through interlibrary loan; ebook and audiobook available through Libby/Overdrive

Imagine a year without Christmas. No crowded malls, no corny office parties, no fruitcakes, no unwanted presents. That's just what Luther and Nora Krank have in mind when they decide that, just this once, they'll skip the holiday altogether. Theirs will be the only house on Hemlock Street without a rooftop Frosty; they won't be hosting the annual Christmas Eve bash; they aren't even going to have a tree. They won't need one, because come December 25 they're setting sail on a Caribbean cruise. But, as this couple is about to discover, skipping Christmas brings enormous consequences - and isn't half as easy as they'd imagined.

Read a review by Debra Blunier:

skipping_christmas.pdf
File Size: 496 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

December 21, 2022 | Adult Review

12/21/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

A Christmas Memory

Evans, Richard Paul

2022, Gallery Books

Fiction

Print copy at library; large print copy and audiobook available through interlibrary loan; ebook and audiobook available through Axis360

It’s 1967, and for young Richard it’s a time of heartbreak and turmoil. Over the span of a few months, his brother, Mark, is killed in Vietnam; his father loses his job and moves the family from California to his grandmother’s abandoned home in Utah; and his parents make the painful decision to separate.

With uncertainty rattling every corner of his life, Richard does his best to remain strong—but when he’s run down by bullies at his new school, he meets Mr. Foster, an elderly neighbor who chases off the bullies and invites Richard in for a cup of cocoa. Richard becomes fast friends with the wise, solitary man who inspires Richard’s love for books and whose dog, Gollum, becomes his closest companion.

As the holidays approach, the joy and light of Christmas seem unlikely to permeate the Evans home as things take a grim turn for the worse. And just when it seems like he has nothing left to lose, Richard is confronted by a startling revelation. But with Mr. Foster’s wisdom and kindness, he learns for the first time what truly matters about the spirit of the season: that forgiveness can heal even the deepest wounds, and love endures long after the pain of loss subsides.

In A Christmas Memory, Richard Paul Evans (#1 New York Times bestselling author and the “King of Christmas fiction”) delves deep into his childhood memories to take readers back to an age when his world felt like it was falling apart, reminding us that even in the darkest of times, the light of hope can still shine.

Read a review by Ann Reeves: 

a_christmas_memory.pdf
File Size: 325 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

December 14, 2022  | Adult Review

12/14/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas

Collins, Ace

2003, Zondervan

Nonfiction

Print copy and large print copy available through interlibrary loan

The cheer of a crackling hearth fire. Colorful cards from friends and loved ones. An evergreen tree festooned with ornaments. The golden traditions of Christmas—gifts, wreaths, stockings, carols, mistletoe, and more—infuse our celebration of the season with meaning and glowing memories. And, in ways you may not realize, they point us to the birth of Christ. Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas reveals the people, places, and events that shaped the best-loved customs of this merriest of holidays. Here are spiritual insights, true-life tales, and captivating legends to intrigue you and your family and bring new luster and depth to your celebration of Jesus’ birth. Discover how • after eighteen centuries of all but ignoring the event, churches began to open the door for believers to commemorate Jesus’ incarnation. • the evergreen tree, once a central theme in the worship practices of pagan cultures, came to represent the everlasting love of God. • the magi’s three gifts—gold, frankincense, and myrrh—are filled with spiritual symbolism. The traditions of Christmas lend beauty, awe, and hope to the holiday, causing people all over the world to anticipate it with joy. The stories in this book will warm your heart as you rediscover the true and eternal significance of Christmas.

Read a review by Joan Herron:

stories_behind_the_great_traditions_of_christmas.pdf
File Size: 330 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

December 7, 2022 | Adult Review

12/7/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

Christmas Bells: a novel

Chiaverini, Jennifer

2015, Dutton

Fiction

Print copy at library; large print copy and audiobook available through interlibrary loan

I heard the bells on Christmas Day/ Their old familiar carols play/ And wild and sweet/ The words repeat/Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
 
In 1860, the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow family celebrated Christmas at Craigie House, their home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The publication of Longfellow’s classic Revolutionary War poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride,” was less than a month hence, and the country’s grave political unrest weighed heavily on his mind. Yet with his beloved wife, Fanny, and their five adored children at his side, the delights of the season prevailed.

In present-day Boston, a dedicated teacher in the Watertown public school system is stunned by somber holiday tidings. Sophia’s music program has been sacrificed to budget cuts, and she worries not only about her impending unemployment but also about the consequences to her underprivileged students. At the church where she volunteers as music director, Sophia tries to forget her cares as she leads the children’s choir in rehearsal for a Christmas Eve concert. Inspired to honor a local artist, Sophia has chosen a carol set to a poem by Longfellow, moved by the glorious words he penned one Christmas Day long ago, even as he suffered great loss.

Christmas Bells chronicles the events of 1863, when the peace and contentment of Longfellow’s family circle was suddenly, tragically broken, cutting even deeper than the privations of wartime. Through the pain of profound loss and hardship, Longfellow’s patriotism never failed, nor did the power of his language. “Christmas Bells,” the poem he wrote that holiday, lives on, spoken as verse and sung as a hymn. 

Jennifer Chiaverini’s resonant and heartfelt novel for the season reminds us why we must continue to hear glad tidings, even as we are tested by strife. Reading Christmas Bells evokes the resplendent joy of a chorus of voices raised in reverent song.

Read a review by Debra Blunier:

christmas_bells.pdf
File Size: 503 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments
<<Previous

    Authors

    EPLD staff.

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020

    Categories

    All
    Adult
    Middle Grade
    Picture Books
    YA

    RSS Feed

Address
202 S. Main St.
​Eureka, IL 61530
Phone
309-467-2922
Hours
​
Monday
9:00 am - 8:00 pm
Tuesday
9:00 am - 8:00 pm
Wednesday
9:00 am - 6:00 pm
Thursday
9:00 am - 8:00 pm
Friday
9:00 am - 6:00 pm
Saturday
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
© COPYRIGHT 2022. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Library Board
    • Library Policies
    • Staff & Employment
    • Friends of the Library
    • Donations
    • Library Newsletter
  • At The Library
    • Program Calendar
    • Kids
    • Teens
    • Adults
    • Get a Library Card
    • Loan Periods and Fines
    • Access Your Account
    • Library of Things
  • Find Books & More
    • Search Catalog
    • Wowbrary: Latest Additions
    • Interlibrary Loans
    • Ebooks & Audiobooks
    • Online Music and Movies
    • Digital Magazines & Newspapers
    • E-Sequels
    • Staff Book Reviews
    • Pages of Eureka
  • Services
    • Outreach
    • Porch Pickup
    • Free Services
    • Copy, Print, & Fax
    • Educational Materials Request
    • Talking Books
    • Explore More Illinois
    • Online Classes
    • Niche Academy
  • Research
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Genealogy & Local History
    • Eureka Pumpkin Festival
    • City & County Resources
    • State & Federal Resources
    • Tax Form Information
    • Voter Information