The
following titles are now available in the WVLC BDG Collection:
Five
Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital by Sheri Fink. Fink has won the
Pulitzer Prize, the National Magazine Award, and other journalism prizes.
Here she investigates five days at Memorial Medical Center after Hurricane
Katrina destroyed its generators to reveal how caregivers were forced to make
life-and-death decisions without essential resources. Have you ever been
in a city when a natural disaster brought chaos to all? What are the
ethical and legal standards the medical community uphold in a disaster?
Who is responsible for the tragedy at Memorial Hospital? This
title is guaranteed to lead to a discussion not to be forgotten. 551
pages, hardback.
The
Good Lord Bird by James McBride. The 2013 National Book Award winner. “Mistaken
for a girl on account of his curly hair, delicate features, and sackcloth
smock, 12-year-old slave Henry Shackleford realizes that his accidental
disguise affords him greater safety and decides to remain female. Dubbed
"Little Onion" by his liberator, abolitionist John Brown, Henry
accompanies the increasingly fanatical Brown on his crusade to end slavery -- a
picaresque journey that takes them from Bloody Kansas to Rochester, New York,
where they attempt to enlist the support of such notables as Frederick Douglass
and Harriet Tubman before embarking on the infamous, ill-fated 1859 raid on
Harpers Ferry”. - Description by Gillian Speace. 417 pages, hardback.
The
Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd. Inspired by the true story of nineteenth
century abolitionist and suffragist Sarah Grinke. Given a 4.25 rating on
goodreads.com; Monk delivers a strong biographical novel which will have you
talking about women’s rights, abolition, symbolism and imagery, and the
relevancy of historical fiction for readers today. 384 pages, hardback.
Orphan
Train by Christina Baker Kline. A New York Times Bestseller, the
narratives of two women, one who was one of the estimated 250,000 orphaned,
abandoned, and homeless children placed throughout the United States and Canada
during the Orphan Train Movement, from 1854 to 1929 and one, a contemporary
17 year old woman growing up in foster care. Interview with author,
photos, and readers’ guide included in the book. 278 pages,
paperback. See the email below this message – Blogging for a Good
Book review on this book.
We
Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler. “What is the
boundary between human and animal beings and what happens when that boundary is
blurred are two of many questions raised in Fowler's provocative sixth novel
(The Jane Austen Book Club, 2004, etc.), the narration of a young woman
grieving over her lost sister, who happens to be a chimpanzee….. Readers will
forgive Fowler's occasional didacticism about animal experimentation since
Rosemary's voice--vulnerable, angry, shockingly honest--is so compelling and the
cast of characters, including Fern, irresistible. A fantastic novel:
technically and intellectually complex, while emotionally gripping.” (Kirkus
Reviews, March 15, 2013) 308 pages, paperback.
The
WVLC BDG Collection can be found on the WVLC catalog. Follow these instructions for catalog searching:
Click on Basic Search
Place wvlcbdg
in the Search box
In the Within box, pull down Subject
and click on Search
Each title will
be listed, click on the title of choice; inside the title’s record, you can
find a summary and read reviews by clicking on the book’s image.
Please contact Susan Hayden or Robert Gibson for scheduling titles or
more information about the BDG Collection.
All
of the titles ready by book discussion groups can be used by WV Reads 150+
Teams.
