Well, it has certainly been HOT this week!  A bad week for the air conditioner to go out, but that is one of the reasons we have basements, I guess!  We have been lucky at the Library.  If we keep the inside door closed the temperature stays pretty low, so there is a refuge for you on Thursday night and Friday afternoon!  Come in and take advantage of the coolness and all our good books.  In case you are curious about the new Harper Lee (She wrote To Kill a Mockingbird.) book that has come out, we have it at the library!!!  It is Go Set a Watchman and I am in the process of reading it now so I can review it for you.  I can say that many of the reviews on Amazon have not been very good, but it is not because the book is not good, but because of the revelation in the book that Atticus Finch is a bigot.  I cannot as yet say that this aspect of him is blatantly revealed or rather discreetly brought to the attention of the reader, but I, personally, wonder that he could be any other way given where he lived and the circumstance of the time.  Just because he so greatly defended Tom Robinson does not mean that he was not a bigot any more than the criminal defenders in the courts today love criminals.  So don't buy it, check it out from the library!

Here's a couple reviews:

Guilt by Jonathan Kellerman.  (HC/LP) (Alex Delaware series #28)  (2013)  Having read several of this series over time, I am always amazed how this (or any author of any series) manages to come up with new ideas for their books while also having them fit in with their character's personality, etc.  This one involves a murder, of course, but it also involves a Hollywood celebrity couple that the reader should have no trouble identifying.  Though the writing of this FICTION book does not mean that this scenario is true,  I wonder how an author can legally do so, slander laws being what they are.  Anyway, a baby's bones are found buried in a metal box when a huge tree blows over in a storm.  A few days later another baby's skeleton is found in a park.  Not far away a woman's dead body is found.  Is there a connection?  Alex and Milo do a complete police procedural, but Alex--with a slightly different viewpoint-- is the one that comes up with the correct answer this time.  It is all very interesting following his/their chain of thought.  I, personally, was not thrilled with the character that was introduced at the start of the book, so if you feel that way--she doesn't have a very large part in the story, so be sure to read on.  Police procedurals are my favorite and watching/reading Milo and Alex work their way to a successful end is a great mystery book to me!

The Call of the Wild by Jack London.  (HC/RP)  (Youth Classic)  (1960)  Though I may have read this book when I was younger (say, age 12), I have no memory of it at all.  Therefore, it was with great pleasure that I read such a literary classic, having no idea what was to come except through the clues given by the author.  Buck, the dog "hero" of the story, began his life in a comfortable home in the Santa Clara Valley (near San Jose) of California.  He never would have known the adventures and love he later experienced without the occurrence of the Alaskan gold rush and a gardener who thought he needed more money than he was making.  Don't want to give away too much, but It was amazing to to read through the changes wrought in Buck's life by his new experiences.  Of course, author London personifies Buck completely and by doing so mimics a person in the same situations.  Faced with savagery, starvation and being pushed beyond physical limits, it is easy to see how a man could react in the same way.  I will say again that that good youth and young adult books are not just for a particular age group.  These really good books tell several levels of stories depending on the reader's level of understanding, and that many youth and young adult books are not to be missed due to their story and insights.

The Second Wife by Brenda Chapman.   (PB)  (2011)  This little book reminds me of the paperback books called "dime novels" which were popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  In England they were called "penny dreadfuls".  This particular series of books are called "Rapid Reads"  and have only about 100 pages.  This author has written several books for youth and young adults, but only this one for adults, but with the length of the book, the plot needs to be fairly simple.  Gwen Lake is a 45 year old police detective, but because of her organizational and number skills she has been used as the "office manager" for her small town police force.  When her husband left her for another woman, she saw her future flashing before her eyes and she didn't like it!  So, when "the other woman" calls her for a meeting, Gwen, though unsure what to expect, decides to go.  A few days later the woman is dead and Gwen's ex-husband is the main suspect!  Still, after 22 years of marriage she could not believe her husband was a murderer!  While he is in jail Gwen begins her own investigation of the murder.  A neat little story and it went fast!