With the recent announcement by Condé Nast that Gourmet magazine will cease publication at the end of this year, and with Thanksgiving mere weeks away, food is on many of our minds.  While most of us associate food with good cooking and good eating, not many make the connection between food and good writing.   It is true, however, that over the years some amazing books have been inspired by an appreciation for food.   While you are probably aware that the Chatham Area Public Library offers an array of cookbooks for every palate, you may not know that we also offer a variety of narrative nonfiction books that will stimulate your inner epicurean.

Many memoirs concentrate on the writer’s love of food, cooking, and eating.   Ruth Reichl, editor of Gourmet magazine and former restaurant critic for the New York Times, has written several memoirs along these lines.   In Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table, Reichl describes growing up with a mother who not only couldn’t cook, but would routinely throw together appalling concoctions that would quite literally make anyone who ate them violently ill.   Reichl describes how, from such inauspicious beginnings, she learned to love food and how cooking figured into her personal and professional life.  Reichl continues her story in Comfort Me with Apples: More Adventures at the Table, in which she recounts her transition from cook and chef to restaurant critic.

Many people who work in the food industry have written wildly entertaining accounts of their years spent in the kitchen.  Anthony Bourdain, known for hosting the TV series No Reservations, is the author of a number of books as well.  In Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly, Bourdain traces his culinary career and reveals some of the dark secrets of the restaurant industry along the way.  Steve Dublanica wrote Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip–Confessions of a Cynical Waiter (based on his popular blog, Waiter Rant), recalling anecdotes about his customers’ odd, rude, or clueless behavior.

Other foodies take the approach of writing about particular ingredients or meditations on where our food comes from.  One wouldn’t think it, but it is possible to write a fascinating book about the humblest of foodstuffs, and Mark Kurlansky demonstrates this powerfully in Salt: A World History, which traces the socio-cultural importance of salt from ancient to modern times.  Kurlansky also wrote an interesting account of a more exotic food, combining the history of the oyster and of New York City into one compelling narrative in his book The Big Oyster: History on the Half-Shell.

One well-known exposé of the fast food industry is Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal, which was the basis of the 2006 film Fast Food Nation.  In the book, Schlosser reveals not only the practices of the fast food industry, but also the impact it has had on our health and other aspects of the culture and economy.

On the other end of the spectrum from Schlosser’s fast food focus is Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life.  In this book, Kingsolver describes how she and her family started to actively investigate where the food in their refrigerator came from, and then embarked on an experiment to buy food produced as locally as possible–preferably by themselves or their neighbors.  Kingsolver concludes by arguing for the reinstatement of diversified farms as the suppliers of the majority of foods.

Before the stupor following Thanksgiving dinner sets in, head out to the Chatham Area Public Library and pick up a book or two about food.  They’re sure to make your mouth water!

The Chatham Area Public Library is offering a Computer Basics class on Saturday, November 7 at 10:00 a.m.  Please call the Library (483-2713) to sign up.

Learn everything you need to know to get started.  We’ll be taking things from the most basic level–how to turn the computer off and on, how to open and close programs, how to navigate around the desktop and start menu.  We’ll also set aside plenty of time to answer your questions.

Registration is required; please call the Library to sign up (483-2713).

This entry includes many “schtick lit” titles in addition to those included in October 15th’s “Library Lines.”  They’re grouped into rough subject categories; some titles appear in more than one category (as appropriate).

As mentioned in “Library Lines,” schtick lit refers to non-fiction titles in which authors spend a year or so immersing themselves in an unfamiliar subject, place, or activity and then write about the experiment.

All of the following books are available in the Rolling Prairie Library System.  If the title and author are followed by a call number, then the Chatham Area Public Library owns the book.  If not, we can request it be sent to Chatham for you to pick up.

Shopping and Not Shopping

A Year without “Made in China”: One Family’s True Life Adventure in the Global Economy by Sarah Bongiorni

Give It Up! My Year of Learning to Live Better with Less by Mary Carlomagno

Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping by Judith Levine

Living with Less and Green Living

Give It Up! My Year of Learning to Live Better with Less by Mary Carlomagno

Sleeping Naked Is Green: How an Eco-Cynic Unplugged her Fridge, Sold her Car, and Found Love in 366 Days by Vanessa Farquharson 333.72092 FAR

Animal, Vegetable Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver  641.0973 KIN

The Urban Hermit: A Memoir by Sam MacDonald

Siesta Lane: One Cabin, No Running Water, and a Year of Living Green by Amy Minato

Education and Intellectual Pursuits

Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble by Stefan Fatsis

Do-Over! In which a Forty-Eight-Year-Old Father of Three Returns to Kindergarten, Summer Camp, the Prom, and Other Embarrassments by Robin Hemley  818.09 HEM

The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to become the Smartest Person in the World by A.J. Jacobs  031 JAC

My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student by Rebekah Nathan

Crossworld: One Man’s Journey into America’s Crossword Obsession by Marc Romano

The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University by Kevin Roose

Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages by Ammon Shea

Sports, Games, and Adventures

A Few Seconds of Panic: a 5-foot-8, 170-Pound, 43-Year-Old Sportswriter Plays in the NFL by Stefan Fatsis  796.33264 FAT

Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble by Stefan Fatsis

French Revolutions: Cycling the Tour de France by Tim Moore

Frost on my Moustache: The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and Loafer by Tim Moore

Paper Lion by George Plimpton

Crossworld: One Man’s Journey into America’s Crossword Obsession by Marc Romano

Animals

A Dog Year: Twelve Months, Four Dogs, and Me by Jon Katz

Dogged Pursuit: My Year Competing Dusty, the World’s Least Likely Agility Dog by Robert Rodi

The Daily Coyote: A Story of Love, Survival, and Trust in the Wilds of Wyoming by Shreve Stockton 599.7725 STO

Relationships and Sex

Just Do It! How One Couple Turned Off the TV and Turned on their Sex Lives for 101Days (No Excuses) by Douglas J. Brown

The Year of Yes: A Memoir by Maria Dahvana Headly

365 Nights: A Memoir of Intimacy by Charla Muller with Betsy Thorpe

Religion and Self-Improvement

My Jesus Year: A Rabbi’s Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of his Own Faith by Benyamin Cohen

The Year of Living Like Jesus: My Journey of Discovering What Jesus Would Really Do by Ed Dobson

My Year Inside Radical Islam: A Memoir by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything across Italy, India, and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert  910.4 GIL

The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs  220 JAC

Helping Me Help Myself: One Skeptic, Ten Self-Help Gurus, and a Year on the Brink of the Comfort Zone by Beth Lisick

The Urban Hermit: A Memoir by Sam MacDonald

Travels with my Donkey: One Man and his Ass on a Pilgrimage to Santiago by Tim Moore

The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University by Kevin Roose

Travel

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything across Italy, India, and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert  910.4 GIL

A Year In Provence by Peter Mayle  944 MAY

Frost on my Moustache: The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and Loafer by Tim Moore

The Grand Tour: The European Adventure of a Continental Drifter by Tim Moore

Travels with my Donkey: One Man and his Ass on a Pilgrimage to Santiago by Tim Moore

The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner

Food

Animal, Vegetable Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver  641.0973 KIN

The Urban Hermit: A Memoir by Sam MacDonald

Eat my Globe: One Year to Go Everywhere and Eat Everything by Simon Majumdar

Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell  B POWELL

The Scavenger’s Guide to Haute Cuisine by Steven Rinella

Miscellaneous

Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream by Barbara Ehrenreich  331.137 EHR

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich  305.569 EHR

The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment by A.J. Jacobs

A Devil to Play: One Man’s Year-Long Quest to Master the Orchestra’s Most Difficult Instrument by Jasper Rees

Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon  363.2 SIM

Self-Made Man: One Woman’s Journey into Manhood and Back Again by Norah Vincent

Voluntary Madness: My Year Lost and Found in the Loony Bin by Norah Vincent  362.21 VIN

Useful ideas, authors, and book suggestions for this post were derived from:
An NPR interview with writer Steve Almond
01/16/08 and 01/30/08 posts on the blog Book Trout
My Year of Reading Year Of Books blog by Pam, a Massachusetts librarian

The movie Julie & Julia has been a recent favorite at the box office, so maybe you’ve read Julie Powell’s book of the same title, which the movie was based on.  In both the book and the movie, Powell sets out to cook all 524 recipes in Julia Child’s book Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year.  Though among the best-known at the moment, Julie Powell is not the only writer to take on a brazen year-long challenge–to do or be or act in some unusual or unfamiliar way–and then write about the results.  Part immersion journalism, part memoir, these books have been dubbed “schtick lit” by writer Steve Almond.  If you’ve already read Julie & Julia and you’re interested in exploring the genre further, then the Chatham Area Public Library offers many other titles to whet your appetite.

One recent example is Vanessa Farquharson’s Sleeping Naked Is Green: How an Eco-Cynic Unplugged her Fridge, Sold her Car, and Found Love in 366 Days. The subtitle explains the premise of Farquharson’s book fairly thoroughly–she challenges herself to make at least one “green” lifestyle change every day and then she reports on the results.  Which changes are manageable?  Which are just too much effort for the results?  And how do these changes affect other aspects of her life?

Journalist A.J. Jacobs is something of an expert at the schtick lit genre.  In The Know It All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World, Jacobs attempts to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica (clocking in at almost 33,000 pages) in a year.  In addition to relating various factoids and tidbits he gleaned from the encyclopedia, the book recounts Jacobs’s voyages into the world of the mind.  He ventures to the places he assumes smart people are–Mensa meetings, crossword puzzle conventions, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? tryouts, and Alex Trebek’s backyard.

Jacobs wrote another book that falls within the boundaries of schtick lit:  The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible.  In it, Jacobs compiles a list of all the rules and directives in the Bible, and then spends the rest of the year trying to live strictly by as many of them as he can.  Along the way, Jacobs explores the question of literalism in religion, and examines the practices based on a literal interpretation of the Bible as conducted by an assortment of religious groups.

In Nickel-and-Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America journalist Barbara Ehrenreich, herself a Ph.D.-holding member of the upper-middle class, immerses herself in the world of the working poor in order to discover whether it’s possible to survive on minimum wage.  She decamps to various parts of the country–Maine, Minneapolis, and Key West–to work at such low-paying jobs as waitress, maid, and retail clerk.

Norah Vincent details what is possibly the most audacious of all these experiments in her book Self-Made Man: One Woman’s Journey into Manhood and Back Again, in which the author passes as a man for a year in order to uncover the secrets of and make observations about life on the “other side.”  Interestingly, the depression that she experienced at the conclusion of this experiment led her directly to her next project, entitled Voluntary Madness: My Year Lost and Found in the Loony Bin, in which she checks herself into several mental health treatment centers of different types (a large public hospital, a small private hospital, an alternative treatment center).

If none of these titles strike your fancy, but you find the concept of schtick lit intriguing, don’t despair!  There are books in the genre that explore topics from sports to shopping to education.  Certainly there is something for everybody, and you can find it all at the Chatham Area Public Library.

Fall has arrived and October is just a week away. Have you noticed that every month is deemed as this themed month or that cause month? Well October is no exception, and this fact has not been lost on the Chatham Area Public Library.

For example, October is Vegetarian Month, and October 1st is World Vegetarian Day. The goal is to promote the health, social, environmental, and ethical benefits of the vegetarian lifestyle. If you are considering a switch to vegetarianism, have a look at The New Becoming a Vegetarian: The Essential Guide to a Healthy Vegetarian Diet. It contains all the nutritional information and rationale for making the transition, as well as tips on shopping, recipes, and vegetarian diplomacy. For some great cooking ideas, Everyday Vegan: 300 Recipes for Healthful Living springs from the natural, whole foods approach to eating. But if thought that vegetarian diets were bland, then you must see Mediterranean Harvest: Vegetarian Recipes from the World’s Healthiest Cuisine. Covering the range of culinary delights, this book contains recipes that will make anyone’s mouth water, vegetarian or not.

By coincidence, October is also Eat Country Ham Month to promote the history and flavor of cured ham. While nearly forty years old, American Heirloom Pork Cookbook contains the timeless recipes and pork wisdom that still guide the general use of pork products today. On the other end, and with a fairly descriptive subtitle, Bruce Aidells’s Complete Book of Pork: A Guide to Buying, Storing, and Cooking theWorld’s Favorite Meat attributes the appeal of pork to its adaptability to almost any taste, from spicy Asian to light and healthy grills.

Another cause to which October is dedicated is National Dental Hygiene Month in order to stress the importance of preventative oral health care. One authoritative work on the subject is The Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery’s Guide to Family Dental Care. By contrast it is interesting that October is also National Bake and Decorate Month to kick off the fall by baking fun and tasty foods. Make it a special celebration with ideas from cookbooks like Eat Dessert First: The Red Hat Society Dessert Cookbook, Cookies, Pies, Breads & Tarts, and Chocolate Snowball and Other Fabulous Pastries from Deer Valley Bakery. If you are into sugar art, or you are looking for creative and edible ways to express yourself, Great Little Sweet Treats: Crafts From Your Kitchen contains plenty of ways to use cookies, cakes, and candies for gifts, decoration, and fun.

October 1st is also the 25th anniversary of the coinage of a word now quite commonly used. In the book Neuromancer, science fiction author William Gibson featured the word “cyberspace” in 1984. The origin of cyberspace is in a book, and the evolution of cyberspace has been chronicled in books. Today one can find works like Cyber Bride: The Complete Online Guide to Planning Your Wedding and Blogwild: A Guide for Small Business Blogging. How appropriate for National Book Month.

No matter what month October is to you, the Chatham Area Public Library can help you celebrate it, as long as you don’t ask about cybercooking.

If you are looking for something fun to do this weekend, then look no further!  On Saturday (Sept. 26) afternoon from 1:00 to 3:30, plan to be at the Chatham Area Public Library for the Canine Carnival.

Round up the kids and the dogs, and head out to the Library’s south lawn for a bevy of activities including dog health and care information, treats for humans and canines, a dog obedience and training demonstration, crafts for kids, and lots more!

Better start brushing up Rover’s fur…The highlight of the day will be a fun dog show featuring your dog!  Does your dog have the fluffiest coat?  The biggest paw print?  Do the best trick?  If so, you can sign him up for the dog show and stand to win one of several prizes.

Don’t miss out!  The Canine Carnival promises to be a great time!

Please only bring dogs who are friendly to people and other dogs. Please bring water and a dish for your dog. Please plan to clean up after your dog. In case of rain the trivia, crafts, information, and so on will still be available indoors, however we request that dogs not be brought into the building.

The library has recently subscribed to World Book Online, which you can access from any library computer with internet (click here) or from your home computer (click here).  You will need to enter your library card number for remote access.  Our World Book Online subscription consists of three parts:  World Book Online Info Finder, World Book for Kids, and Enciclopedia Estudiantil Hallazgos.

World Book Online Info Finder Public Library Edition is the optimal resource for patrons in elementary and middle school seeking help with their homework and research projects.  It includes all the articles from the print versions of the World Book Encyclopedia, plus thousands of additional articles, learning resources, and research tools, and features rich multimedia, a collection of age-appropriate science fair projects, a Biography Center, virtual tours, video showcases, links to current events and world newspapers, 21st-century research skills, and much more.

Key features include:
• More than 40,000 encyclopedia and reference articles
• Biography Center, with more than 10,000 biographies searchable by gender, field of endeavor, nationality, and time period
• Comprehensive multimedia collections, including World Book Explores video library and geography resource guides
• Thousands of high-quality Web links selected by World Book editors and expert contributors
• Powerful research tools, including a Citation Builder, How to Do Research guides, and personalized My Research accounts
• Convenient one-click dictionary
• Dynamic Interactive Earth feature, including the World Book Atlas, Interactive Maps, Outline Maps and Flags, and more
• Science projects and experiments, including a collection of last-minute projects
• Current magazines

World Book Online for Kids was designed specifically to meet the needs of primary school aged library patrons.  This site offers simple navigation, easy-to-read articles and a wealth of engaging multimedia, games, science projects, interactive tools, and activities for younger children.

Key features include:
• Thousands of easy-to-read articles
• Engaging images and illustrations
• Interactive games and activities
• Interactive maps
• Outline maps and flags
• A biography center
• Science projects
• Teacher resources

The redesigned Enciclopedia Estudiantil Hallazgos is the optimal beginner’s Spanish language reference tool. The site offers World Book’s excellent editorial content, rich media, and engaging features in Spanish.

Key features include:
• Search and browse options make finding content easy.
• Dozens of hands-on activities engage different learning styles.
• The World of Animals feature allows users to explore a wealth of animal facts, images, and videos, and compare animals side by side.
• A Spanish visual dictionary helps young learners clarify word meanings and grasp complex visual topics in Spanish and English.
• Bilingual features allow users to switch between Spanish and English content.

September is International Update Your Resume Month.  Writing a resume can often be a painful experience, but it’s necessary if you want to attain your dream job.  There are lots of books and other materials at the Chatham Area Public Library that can help you spruce up your resume and find your perfect place in the work world.

There are many books that can guide you in your quest to write a resume that will highlight your skills.  Tom Jackson’s The Perfect Resume: Today’s Ultimate Job Search Tool explains not only how to fashion the ideal resume, but also clarifies how the hiring process works in the modern business world and how you can tailor your resume to that process.  Other books are focused purely on tips and tricks to make your resume a winner.  Resumes for Dummies by Joyce Lain Kennedy and Resumes that Knock ‘em Dead by Martin Yate would be two good places to start.

There are specialty resume books as well.  Are you pressed for time?  Need a new resume in a hurry?  Peggy Schmidt’s book The 90-Minute Resume may be just what you need.  For those who didn’t attend college, Best Resumes for People without a Four-Year Degree by Wendy S. Enelow will be suited specifically to your needs.  Women often face the challenge of re-entering the job market after they have taken time out to raise their children.  Eva Shaw’s Resumes for Women will help you craft a winning resume if this is your situation.

Now you’ve got your ideal resume.  How about a killer cover letter to go with it?  Ronald L. and Caryl Rae Krannich promise to teach you how to write Job Search Letters that Get Results.  You could also check out High Impact Resumes and Letters by Ronald L. Krannich and William J. Bannis.  William S. Frank’s 200 Letters for Job Hunters will also give you guidance on scripting that perfect letter.

Of course, writing an appealing resume and cover letter are not the only aspects of a triumphant job search.  You can find tips and hints on networking, successful interviewing, and more in such books as Career Building: Your Total Handbook for Finding a Job and Making it Work or Monster Careers: How to Land the Job of your Life.  Sharon McDonnell’s You’re Hired! Secrets to a Successful Job Search is another book that covers multiple aspects of the job search.

When you’re at the library to pick up some of these books, remember that we also have a computer lab where you can get help typing up and printing out your resumes and cover letters.  Programs such as Microsoft Office’s Word have templates that can help you out, and our staff is also always willing to assist you.

Job-hunting is certainly a difficult task right now, but the Chatham Area Public Library can offer these and many more tools to help you succeed.

How often do your recreational activities depend upon electricity? Would you like to spend some entertaining time away from the television screen or computer monitor? Do you remember how to play an actual, not virtual, game? Did you know that the Chatham Area Public Library has all the information you need for rediscovering those low-tech leisure activities?

For countless years the best and cheapest form of entertainment has been provided by a deck of cards. The New Complete Hoyle: The Authoritative Guide to the Official Rules of All Popular Games of Skill and Chance is the reference for hundreds of card games for adults and children, as well as casino games, social gambling games, and dice, board, and parlor games. Family Card Games contains more than sixty games divided into games for two, games for four and for all the family, gambling games, games for the young, patience games, and simple card tricks. Friday Night Poker: Or Penny Poker for Millions will show you how to be a better poker player and win more pots in those low stakes games that most people play versus the high stakes, high pressure stuff you see on T.V. The Illustrated Book of Card Games for One: Over 120 Games of Solitaire contains some fascinating games to be played alone that make that game of solitaire on your computer look silly.

Your opportunities for a little amusement don’t stop at a deck of cards. Written in the1970’s, The Book of Darts contains instructions for forty different dart games, strategies for winning, tips for choosing equipment, and a chronicle of the rise in the game’s popularity in England and in the U.S. The Complete Book of Dice Games describes thirty nine different dice games for the home, the bar, and the casino. Backgammon for Blood is for the beginner and enthusiast alike, as it contains the best and most ruthless strategies for winning in competitive backgammon. Casino Gambling for the Clueless demystifies the rituals and customs that surround casino gaming by explaining how the games are played, and the details of gambling etiquette.

There are a myriad of other types of games as well. The Monopoly Book: Strategy and Tactics of the World’s Most Popular Game addresses some of the ambiguities of the board game’s rules and supplies over twenty theories and methods for winning. Likewise, Bowling clearly and concisely explains techniques for success and rules of individual, team, and league bowling. Great Party Games for Grown-Ups has everything except charades. Topics include word games, action and outdoor games, memory games, and card, number, and strategy games. Finally, The Fun Encyclopedia: An All Purpose Book for Those Interested in Recreation for Clubs, Schools, Churches, and the Home is a one thousand page compendium of leisure activities from the social and active to the individual and subdued. While dated, it is rewarding in its breadth of information and scope of recreational endeavors.

If you have seen too much screen, then let the Chatham Area Public Library help you get your game on. Break away from the electronics and amuse yourself with a real game. Real fun is always better than virtual fun anyway.

Our Midday Movie for September is October Sky.  Based on the memoir Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam, the movie tells the story of his youth in a West Virginia coal-mining town.  Inspired by the launch of Sputnik, and despite his father’s disapproval, Homer takes up building and launching model rockets with the hope of winning the science fair (and thereby a college scholarship).  In real life, Hickam went on to work for NASA as an aerospace engineer, in addition to writing several best-selling books. This inspirational movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Laura Dern, and Chris Cooper, and was directed by Joe Johnston.

Mark your calendar–we will be screening the movie on Wednesday, September 9 at 2:00 p.m. in the library’s Conference Room.  Come for the movie, stay for the discussion afterwards.  Admission is free, everyone is welcome, and snacks will be provided.

We hope to see you here on September 9 for the Midday Movie–and we hope you’ll bring a friend along with you!