Library Blog

Here is my take on graphic novels. I don’t like reading them. I find the pictures distracting. I take more enjoyment from plain text and I like to let my imagination make the pictures from what I am reading. However, I know that there are millions of graphic novel fans and the library aims to please. We recently received bunches of graphic novels to beef up our collection. This is an area that will continue to see more growth. Come on in and explore what we have added to the graphic novel section!

We always welcome suggestions. What are your favorite graphic novels? What do you think should be added to the collection? Or let us know if you don’t like them either. We welcome your preferred book suggestions too.

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.

Title:  Bonds of Brass

Author:  Emily Skrutskie

Share something about your favorite characters. Did they remind you of someone or yourself? Talk about the dynamics between the characters. 

The two main characters are best friends and roommates at their military boarding academy. Their friendship is tested when it is revealed that one of them is the heir to the ruthless empire that recently conquered the star system in which they’re living. And hey, it turns out some of the conquered aren’t really all that happy about it.

What part of the book was most entertaining or meaningful to you? 

I really enjoyed the spaceship buying expedition. It does not turn out at all how you expect.

Did your opinion of the book change as you read it? How? 

I thought the book was a straight-up science fiction/space battles/adventure story. And it is, but it’s also a romance/unrequited love story.

Was the ending satisfactory? Explain.

Not exactly; but it’s not supposed to be. The series is meant to be a trilogy.

What other books by this author would you recommend? 

Definitely the next two books. The last one (Vows of Empire) should be out later this year.

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.  

Title: Joe Ledger & Rogue Team International

Author: Jonathan Maberry

There are ten (ish) books in the Joe Ledger series.

1. Patient Zero (2009)
   2. The Dragon Factory (2010)
   3. The King of Plagues (2011)
   4. Assassin’s Code (2012)
   5. Extinction Machine (2013)
   6. Code Zero (2014)
   7. Predator One (2015)
   8. Kill Switch (2016)
   8.5.  Dark of Night (2016)
   9. Dogs of War (2017)
   10. Deep Silence (2018)

Joe Ledger is G.I. Joe, John Wayne, James Bond, and also a world-class smartass. After a few years as an Army Ranger, he’s now working for Baltimore PD. Although it isn’t long before he gets recruited to join an elite team that is essentially in charge of locating and beating terrorists/supervillains.

Start with all the Joe Ledger books and then read the newer series of Rogue Team International. 

If you’ve ever read any of Jonathan Maberry’s other books (specifically the Rot & Ruin series) you might notice a couple of connections. There are also references to a couple other of Maberry’s series; occasionally characters from one series show up in another. It’s a lot of fun (if you’re a book geek.)

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.  

I was hooked by the story The Silent Patient, by Alex Michaelides. It was a brilliant book with great twists. The list of suspects I had was long, and I was completely wrong on what I thought would happen multiple times.

The book is about Theo Faber, a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time to work with Alicia, who shot her husband five times in the face and never spoke again. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path and in search of the truth.

The best part of the book is when Alicia finally decides to talk, and Theo figures out the truth behind the murder of Alicia’s husband—what looked to be a domestic tragedy turned into something far grander.

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.

Social Emotional Learning

Everyone knows that kids need to learn their ABCs and 123s but Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is just as important. According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.

Learning the five components of SEL, listed below, will help children and adults become self-aware, caring, responsible, engaged, lifelong learners who work together to achieve their goals and create a more inclusive, just world. (CASEL.ORG)

• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills
• Responsible Decision Making

The library has many books to help children with SEL. Come take a look at the SEL books on the January display in the youth area.

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.

One of the best things about fall is football season. It’s fun sitting in the stands in the crisp autumn air on Friday nights rooting for your favorite high school team. The band, the cheerleaders, the student section, and families of the players wearing school colors and cheering for their team add to the excitement. All three of my nephews played high school football and it was a thrill to watch them play.

College game day on Saturdays can keep you glued to the tv all day. Predicting the college rankings and watching them change each week is all part of the action. I grew up in Lubbock, Texas and my family would march with the band to Red Raider Stadium and watch Texas Tech take the field.

Watching the Cowboys on Sundays is fun again! I’ve been a loyal fan since the 1970s, so I’ve witnessed the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Tailgating before a Thanksgiving game with my whole family to celebrate my parents 50^th anniversary is a cherished memory.

If you’re like me and just can’t get enough of football, we have lots of tv shows and movies inspired by the game.

The Blind Side

Draft Day

The Express

Friday Night Lights

Invincible

Little Giants

The Longshots

Remember the Titans

Rudy

We Are Marshall

When the Game Stands Tall

The weather is finally cooling down! With the crisp air comes the joyous time of Halloween. Dressing up like someone else and getting a bunch a free candy to boot is such a great way to kick off the holidays! One of the best things about Halloween is how the community bands together to give goodies to one another. A new tradition that I’ve noticed of late is to “Boo” your neighbor. We booed the folks across the way from us with treats for their pets and goodies for the humans. It was great way to teach my kid that it isn’t just about what you’ll be getting, but that you can spread joy by giving to those around you. I love that I live in a neighborhood that will give generously to my kid come Halloween night. He’ll have enough candy to last a few months.  

At the library we love to spread the joy of Halloween to our patrons. This year we are continuing virtual story times and will have take home crafts to give out during Halloween week. We also plan to award four ginormous candy trophies to four lucky kids who entered either the coloring or writing contest! We have boxes of candy bags ready to hand out to each kid who visits the library Halloween week. Make sure to stop by for treats!  

It is that time of year when we dust off our horror movie collection and put it on display. New to the library collection include The Exorcist (which is also a book), all the Conjuring movies, Host, Relic, and much more. There is nothing like watching a horror movie this time of year. There is something about the weather cooling, and leaves changing color that helps set the mood. You can check out up to ten movies at a time. Just enough to have a horror movie binge marathon. Time to get your scare on!

We have ebooks. You can’t find them on the shelves, but you can find them at this link: netldc.overdive.com.

Once you’re there just sign in up at the top right corner. You’ll use your library card number and your PIN. (The PIN is the last four digits of your phone number.)

Then browse to your heart’s content. It’s easy to tell which books are available and which are waitlisted. Just look for the helpful banners at the top.

Once you’ve decided on a title, this is where things get tricky. There are lots of options for downloading and reading.

Which one works best for you will depend on the kind of device you have as well as the types of file that the publisher has made available. There is also sometimes an option of downloading to your device and reading in the browser window.

Libby is an easy to use app that is available on most devices. You can learn more at the website: meet.libbyapp.com

Kindle is, of course, recommended if you have a Kindle. It does require an Amazon account though. But again, this app is available for most devices.

As always, catch us on social media or comment below. If you have a library question, call 972-780-5052 or email librarians@duncanville.com.