My LINKcat AccountThe Summer Reading Program is finally over. Thanks to all the participants who “read their eyes out” during the 68 days (or 1,632 hours; 97,920 minutes) of summer reading. This has been an extraordinary summer. This was a record-breaking summer. We’ve had high temperatures, high humidity, lots of rain, and lots and lots of books read. This year we had the highest number of participants in the Summer Reading Program – 676. Those participants completed 5,418 activities and wrote 269 reviews. Last summer the previous record was broken with over 32, 000 books read. This year that record was broken with 38,052 books read. Way to go! And while I just said that the Summer Reading Program was over, there is still one thing left to do. There will be a celebratory party on Wednesday, August 27th from 5-7 pm. There will be food. There will be games. There will be a color dying event –bring a white T-shirt. Awards will be announced. Prize basket winners will be announced. Plan on attending! Now that the pressure of reading all those books for the Summer Reading Program is over, you can still keep reading. You don’t want to lose your competitive edge because the Winter Reading Program is just around the corner. Below are some of the new titles which recently arrived at the library. Check them out and read them at a more leisurely pace. Enjoy!
New Non-Fiction
“Cloud Warriors: Deadly Storms, Climate Chaos and the Pioneers Creating a Revolution in Weather Forecasting” by Thomas E. Weber. Looks at the people pushing boundaries of science and technology to build better weather forecasts—providing life-saving warnings and crucial intelligence about nature’s deadliest threats.
“The Story of ABBA: Melancholy Uncovered” by Jan Gradvall. Through exclusive interviews and over a decade of deep research, a renowned music journalist explores the secrets to ABBA’s success.
“The CIA Book Club: The Secret Mission to Wind the Cold War with Forbidden Literature” by Charlie English. Recounts a covert Cold War operation led by George Minden to smuggle banned literature into Eastern Europe, focusing on the cultural and psychological battle against Soviet censorship and the role underground reading networks played in weakening totalitarian control, especially in Poland.
“The Carpool Detectives: A True Story of Four Moms, Two Bodies, and One Mysterious Cold Case” by Chuck Hogan. Follows four mothers who, driven by a shared fascination with true crime and a desire to reclaim their sense of purpose, undertake their own investigation into a decade-old double homicide, uncovering new evidence, confronting real risks, and challenging the boundaries of amateur sleuthing.
“One Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports” by Christine Brennan. Drawing on dozens of extensive interviews and exclusive, behind-the-scenes reporting, a veteran journalist narrates Clark’s rise—including the formative experiences that led to her scoring more points than any woman or man in major college basketball history
New Fiction
“Mean Moms” by Emma Rosenblum. In a satire of upper-crust moms, when a new mom at private school Atherton Seminary, beautiful Sofia, integrates herself into the clique of wealthy moms Frost, Nell, and Morgan, inexplicably bad things start to happen to the women, and they wonder if someone is out to get them.
“Hotel Ukraine (Arkady Renko)” by Martin Cruz Smith. As Russia's invasion of Ukraine rages on a legendary Moscow investigator battles worsening Parkinson’s while uncovering a diplomat’s murder tied to a paramilitary group and a deadly conspiracy that puts both him and his journalist partner in grave danger.
“Wayward Girls” by Susan Wiggs. In 1968 Buffalo, six teenage girls are sent to the Good Shepherd Refuge, an institution controlled by the Sisters of Charity, for reasons ranging from being gay to rebellious, where they face forced labor, exploitation, and personal struggles while finding strength and solidarity.
“The Dragon Wakes With Thunder, No.2 (The Dragon Spirit Duology)” by K.X. Song. After winning a war and facing imprisonment for defying tradition, Hai Meilin—guided by the sea dragon Qinglong—must navigate palace politics, rising rebellions, and conflicting loyalties as rival factions across the Three Kingdoms seek her power for their own ends.
“The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand” by Christopher Golden & Brian Keene, editors. Set during and after the events of The Stand, this authorized anthology gathers original stories from acclaimed writers who expand on the novel’s apocalyptic world, exploring survival, morality, and human resilience amid civilization’s collapse and the uncertain rebuilding that follows.
“The Magician of Tiger Castle” by Louis Sacher. As political pressure mounts in the faltering kingdom of Esquaveta, Princess Tullia falls for a scribe, forcing disgraced court magician Anatole to choose between salvaging his reputation and protecting the one person who still believes in him.
“For Richer For Poorer” by Danielle Steel. As fashion designer and single mother Eugenia Ward faces business setbacks, her daughter's questionable, lavish wedding and a looming hurricane, she finds unexpected support and a chance for a new beginning with a real estate developer.
“People Like Us” by Jason Mott. The novel rooted in reality follows two Black writers trying to find peace in a world riven with gun violence, one on a global book tour after a big prize win, the other set to give a speech at a school after a shooting.
“Something to Look Forward to: Fictions” by Fannie Flagg. This collection of thirty humorous and heartfelt stories follows everyday Americans—from a Kansas great-grandmother to small-town café regulars—navigating love, loss, and change with wit and resilience, all observed by a curious outsider trying to understand the quirks of the human spirit.