Provo City Library Staff Reviews
Books read and reviewed by librarians at the Provo City Library
Thursday, June 1, 2023
Meet Me at the Lake
Historias Cortas Inspiradas en Sueños y Realidad
Xlibris, 2019. ESL
A veces vivimos momentos difíciles en nuestras vidas. Otras veces nos reímos de las circunstancias que se nos presentan. Y todos buscamos las respuestas al sentido de nuestra vida y quizás muchas de ellas las encontramos en nuestros sueños. Estos tres cuentos nos hablan de esos momentos que hemos vivido de una u otra forma. Sufrimos, nos reímos y soñamos.
Edición bilingüe.
Si le gusta «Bilingual Short Stories Based in Reality and Dreams» le recomendamos:
University of Wisconsin Press, 2010. Memoria
Una mujer que vive y se comunica en múltiples países, Susana Chávez-Silverman transmite su desplazamiento cultural y lingüístico de manera humorística, agridulce e incluso tangible en esta obra literaria verdaderamente bilingüe. Estas piezas meditativas y líricas combinan una confesión personal conmovedora, una observación diaria detallada y un impulso de memoria que cambia a lo largo del tiempo y entre los espacios geoculturales. El ingenioso y extravagante uso que hace la autora del espanglish, un idioma híbrido inglés-español, y su adaptación de la "crónica" confesional hacen que estas memorias sean convincentes y poderosas. «Killer Crónicas» confirma que no hay voz latina como la de Susana Chávez-Silverman. Incluye un capítulo que obtuvo el primer premio en el Concurso de Excelencia Literaria Chicana de la revista El Andar en la categoría de memorias personales.

por NPG Music
NPG Music/Kamms, 2006. 2 hr. ESL
Etiquetas: Español, MEB, No Ficción, ESL, Audiolibro, Bilingüe, Memoria
What's Gotten Into You?
This book takes on the big task of summarizing a variety of ideas ranging across a variety of scientific pursuits, all to answer the question: What are our foundational elements, and how do they work together? This is also one of the most accessible versions of this type of book that I've read. What I especially appreciated was that Levitt tackles the questions of not just how the elements that make up our bodies were formed (which many popular astrophysics books tackle), but also how they combined and evolved over time to create sustainable life. For that reason, the chapters on the discovery of photosynthesis, and how cells came to be, were the most interesting chapters to me. I also appreciated the stories of the scientists whose work led to what we understand about our world today. This is a great introduction to scientific principles that will appeal to anyone curious about the science behind the origin of life.
If You Like What's Gotten Into You? you might also like:
Another accessible astrophysics book, particle physicist Harry Cliff parses the discovery of the various pieces of fundamental matter that create our universe by examining Carl Sagan's famous statement: "If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe." In order to do that, Cliff visits some of the most famous labs across the earth that focus on this research.
The discovery of cells—and the reframing of the human body as a cellular ecosystem—announced the birth of a new kind of medicine based on the therapeutic manipulations of cells. A hip fracture, a cardiac arrest, Alzheimer's, dementia, AIDS, pneumonia, lung cancer, kidney failure, arthritis, COVID—all could be viewed as the results of cells, or systems of cells, functioning abnormally. And all could be perceived as loci of cellular therapies. In The Song of the Cell, Mukherjee tells the story of how scientists discovered cells, began to understand them, and are now using that knowledge to create new treatments and new humans.
Nonpareil science writer David Quammen explains how recent discoveries in molecular biology can change our understanding of evolution and life's history, with powerful implications for human health and even our own human nature.
MB
Saturday, May 27, 2023
Nerdcrush
by Alisha Emrich
Running Press Teens, 2023. 262 pages. Young Adult Fiction
Shy sixteen-year-old Ramona uses cosplay as a way to escape
her shyness and feel seen, but when she emails her crush using her online
persona, Rel, and he starts to fall for her, Ramona must decide whether to hide
behind her character forever or take a chance and let her crush see the real
her.
If you like Nerdcrush, you may like:
by Crystal Maldonado
Holiday House, 2022. 326 pages. Young Adult Fiction
Twenty-one-year-old Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends,
tons of followers on Instagram. Except it's all fake. Max is actually
17-year-old Kat Sanchez, a quiet and sarcastic, bisexual Puerto Rican teenager
living in Bakersfield, California. While Kat's life is far from perfect, she
thrives as Max: doling out advice, sharing beautiful photos, networking with
famous influencers, even making a real friend in a follower named Elena. When
one of Max's posts goes ultra-viral and gets back to the very person she's been
stealing photos from, her worlds-- real and fake-- comes crashing down. Can she
figure out a way to get herself out of the huge web of lies she's created
without hurting the people she loves? Or is already too late?
by Sarah Dessen
Viking Childrens Books, 2011. 402 pages. Young Adult Fiction
Following her parents' bitter divorce as she and her father
move from town to town, seventeen-year-old Mclean reinvents herself at each
school she attends until she is no longer sure she knows who she is or where
she belongs.
by Elise Bryant
Balzer and Bray, 2021. 378 pages. Young Adult Fiction
Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the
protagonist in her own life. She's rarely seen herself reflected in the pages
of the romance novels she loves. The only place she's a true leading lady is in
her own writing--in the swoony love stories she shares only with Caroline, her
best friend and #1 devoted reader. When Tessa is accepted into the creative
writing program of a prestigious art school, she's excited to finally let her
stories shine. But when she goes to her first workshop, the words are just ...
gone. Fortunately, Caroline has a solution: Tessa just needs to find some
inspiration in a real-life love story of her own. And she's ready with a list
of romance novel-inspired steps to a happily ever after. Nico, the brooding
artist who looks like he walked out of one of Tessa's stories, is cast as the
perfect Prince Charming. But as Tessa checks off each item off Caroline's list,
she gets further and further away from herself. She risks losing everything she
cares about--including the surprising bond she develops with sweet Sam, who
lives across the street. She's well on her way to having her own real-life love
story, but is it the one she wants, after all?
AG
Friday, May 26, 2023
Cinder & Glass
Thursday, May 25, 2023
The Sunbearer Trials
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
How to Be a Happier Parent
How to Be a Happier Parent
by KJ Dell'Antonia
2018. Nonfiction
An encouraging guide to helping parents find more happiness in their day-to-day family life, from the former lead editor of the New York Times' Motherlode blog.In all the writing and reporting KJ Dell'Antonia has done on families over the years, one topic keeps coming up again and again: parents crave a greater sense of happiness in their daily lives. In this optimistic, solution-packed book, KJ asks: How can we change our family life so that it is full of the joy we'd always hoped for? Drawing from the latest research and interviews with families, KJ discovers that it's possible to do more by doing less, and make our family life a refuge and pleasure, rather than another stress point in a hectic day. She focuses on nine common problem spots that cause parents the most grief, explores why they are hard, and offers small, doable, sometimes surprising steps you can take to make them better. Whether it's getting everyone out the door on time in the morning or making sure chores and homework get done without another battle, How to Be a Happier Parent shows that having a family isn't just about raising great kids and churning them out at destination: success. It's about experiencing joy—real joy, the kind you look back on, look forward to, and live for—along the way.
Saturday, May 20, 2023
Mad Honey
By Jodi Picoult & Jennifer Finney Boylan
Ballantine Books, 2022. 452 pages. Fiction
Olivia McAfee knows what it feels like to start over. She never imagined she would end up back in her sleepy New Hampshire hometown, living in the house she grew up in, and taking over her father's beekeeping business. Lily Campanello is familiar with do-overs, too. When she and her mom relocate to New Hampshire, for her final year of high school, they both hope it will be a fresh start. For just a short while, these new beginnings are exactly what Olivia and Lily need. Their paths cross when Olivia's teenage son, Asher, falls for the new girl in school, and Lily can't help but fall for him, too.
Then, one day, Olivia receives a phone call: Lily is dead, and Asher is being questioned by the police. Olivia is adamant that her son is innocent. But, she would be lying if she didn't acknowledge the flashes of his father's temper in him, and as the case unfolds, she realizes he's hidden more than he's shared with her. The courtroom drama makes for gripping reading; a reveal about Lily at the midway point adds another dimension to the case, and Olivia grapples with the possibility that her son could take after her ex-husband more than he does her.
Picoult's books are reliably engaging, poignant, heartbreaking and heartfelt; Mad Honey is no exception. One of the highlights is the richly complex setting that Picoult was able to create at Olivia's beekeeping farm. The language could almost be described as delicious, because Picoult's words seem to bring the sweet honey right off the page! Additionally, Picoult handles yet another hot-button issue with tact, compassion, care, and understanding. This book will completely surprise you and requires readers to have an open mind and an open heart. If you're looking for a lesson in compassion, while also following along with a devastatingly suspenseful murder trial, this book is for you.
If you like Mad Honey, you might also like:
By Ann Napolitano
The Dial Press, 2023. 387 pages. Fiction
William Waters grew up in a house silenced by tragedy, where his parents could hardly bear to look at him, much less love him--so when he meets the spirited and ambitious Julia Padavano in his freshman year of college, it's as if the world has lit up around him. With Julia comes her family, as she and her three sisters are inseparable. But then darkness from William's past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia's carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters' unshakeable devotion to one another. The result is a catastrophic family rift that changes their lives for generations. Will the loyalty that once rooted them be strong enough to draw them back together when it matters most?
Our Missing Hearts
By Celeste Ng
Penguin Press, 2022. 335 pages. Fiction
Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving father, a former linguist who now shelves books in a university library. His mother Margaret, a Chinese American poet, left without a trace when he was nine years old. He doesn't know what happened to her--only that her books have been banned--and he resents that she cared more about her work than about him. Then one day, Bird receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, and soon he is pulled into a quest to find her. His journey will take him back to the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of heroic librarians, and finally to New York City, where he will finally learn the truth about what happened to his mother, and what the future holds for them both.
LKA
Monday, May 15, 2023
Dominicana

por Angie Cruz
Brilliance Audio, 2021. 11 hr. 43 min. Ficción
Ana Canción, de quince años, nunca soñó con mudarse a Estados Unidos, como lo hicieron las niñas con las que creció en el campo dominicano. Pero cuando Juan Ruiz propone y promete llevarla a la ciudad de Nueva York, ella tiene que decir que sí. No importa que tenga el doble de su edad, que no haya amor entre ellos. Su matrimonio es una oportunidad para que toda su familia unida pueda eventualmente emigrar. Entonces, en el día de Año Nuevo de 1965, Ana deja todo lo que sabe y se convierte en Ana Ruiz, esposa confinada a un frío departamento en el sexto piso de un edificio en Washington Heights.
Si le gusta «Dominicana» le recomendamos:
El Inmortal
por Francisco Montaña Ibáñez
Dreamscape Media, LLC, 2021. 2 hr. 36 min. Ficción
Este libro narra dos historias de Bogotá. La de cinco hermanos colombianos que enfrentan la orfandad y la miseria con valentía. Y la de una niña huérfana que hará cualquier cosa para conocer al misterioso chico inmortal. El momento en que sus vidas se entrelazan jamás te dejará.
Los Demonios del Mar
por José Javier Esparza
Brilliance Audio, 2021. 18 hr. 46 min. Ficción
Año 844, los vikingos atacan las costas de España. Después de haber sometido Irlanda y media Inglaterra, asolar Francia y sojuzgar nada menos que París y Nantes, los normandos desembarcan en la Torre de Hércules, en La Coruña. En tierras gallegas serán derrotados por las huestes del reino de Asturias. Pasarán después a sangre y fuego Lisboa, Cádiz y Sevilla, pero también aquí terminarán vencidos por los ejércitos del emir Abderramán.
MEB
Etiquetas: Español, MEB, Ficción, Libros de Audio, Jóven Adulto
Tuesday, May 9, 2023
A Curse So Dark and Lonely
A Curse So Dark and Lonely
By Brigid KemmererBloomsbury YA, 2019. 484 pages. Fantasy
Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year, Prince Rhen, the heir of Emberfall, thought he could be saved easily if a girl fell for him. But that was before he turned into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. Before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.
Nothing has ever been easy for Harper. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, Harper learned to be tough enough to survive. When she tries to save a stranger on the streets of Washington, DC, she's pulled into a magical world.
Harper doesn't know where she is or what to believe. A prince? A curse? A monster? As she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what's at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.
If you like A Curse So Dark and Lonely you might also like:
Once Upon a Broken Heart
By Stephanie Garber
Flatiron Books, 2021. 416 pages. Fantasy
How far would you go for happily ever after?
For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings... until she learns that the love of her life will marry another.
Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic but wicked Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be given at the time and place of his choosing.
But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that bargaining with an immortal is a dangerous game—and that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’d pledged. He has plans for Evangeline, plans that will either end in the greatest happily ever after or the most exquisite tragedy...
Daughter of the Pirate King
By Tricia Levenseller
Feiwel and Friends, 2017. 308 pages. Fantasy
A 17-year-old pirate captain intentionally allows herself to get captured by enemy pirates in this thrilling high seas tale.
There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I've gotten what I came for.
Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map—the key to a legendary treasure trove—seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship. More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the map: her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.
In Daughter of the Pirate King, debut author Tricia Levenseller blends action, adventure, romance, and a little bit of magic into a gripping tale on the high seas.
To Kill a Kingdom
By Alexandra Christo
Feiwel & Friends, 2018. 344 pages. Fantasy
Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever.
The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy?
Monday, May 8, 2023
Finding Water
By Julia Cameron
Jeremy P. Tarcher 2006. 286 pages. Nonfiction
Outlines a twelve-week program for overcoming a creative block or otherwise working through dry periods in an artist's life, in a guide that covers such topics as staying focused, starting new projects, and finding inspiration.Saturday, May 6, 2023
Papá, ¡Tú Puedes!
por Javier Serrano Palacios
Brilliance Audio, 2019. 5 hr. 6 min. No Ficción
Ser padre es algo importantísimo. Y a la primera pregunta que surge inevitablemente, "¿Seré capaz?", responde este divertido audiolibro: claro que sí, hombre, podrás, con la ayuda del mejor manual de instrucciones, el que tienes en las manos. Y además no solo puedes, debes. "Reivindicar el derecho a encargarnos del niño, aunque seamos torpes al principio y nos dé pánico, es el primer paso para entrar en el apasionante mundo de la paternidad", dice su autor. ¡Adelante!
Este audiolibro es muy recomendable para madres primerizas, para que vean que bienintencionados son los hombres, y absolutamente imprescindible para padres primerizos. Consumir preferentemente antes de que nazca la criatura... y hacerlo con mucho humor.
Si le gusta « Papá, ¡tú puedes!» le recomendamos:
Guía Para Ser Buenos Padres De Hijos Adolescentes
por Fernando Alberca de Castro
Brilliance Audio, 2020. 5 hr. 42 min. No Ficción
En este audiolibro los padres encontrarán consejos prácticos y extremadamente útiles para ayudar a su hijo adolescente a sobrellevar la inseguridad que conlleva esa fase de la vida, a controlar la agresividad y canalizar la energía, a incentivar la voluntad y la capacidad de esfuerzo de modo que afiancen su autoestima y personalidad, a expresar adecuadamente las emociones, a madurar intelectual y emocionalmente y mejorar la conducta en la familia y en la escuela, entre otros. En treinta y ocho capítulos se repasan los aspectos más importantes de una etapa llena de encrucijadas.
Los padres tienen ante sí en esos pocos, pero cruciales años la valiosa oportunidad de transmitir las últimas grandes enseñanzas para sus hijos, las que les permitirán alcanzar una vida feliz, antes de que se alejen de casa para formar su propia familia. Los hijos, por su parte, están ante la última gran oportunidad de conocer de las personas más indicadas y próximas a ellos cómo es y cómo debería ser el camino a seguir. Ambos se distanciarán en mayor o menor medida tras la adolescencia, y lo que hagan durante ella y el modo en que la aprovechen, marcará la relación entre ellos para el resto de sus vidas.
En este audiolibro los padres de hijos adolescentes encontrar n consejos prácticos para ayudar a su hijo a sobrellevar la inseguridad, controlar la agresividad, aumentar la voluntad y la capacidad de esfuerzo, mejorar su autoestima y personalidad, expresar las emociones, madurar intelectual y emocionalmente, mejorar su conducta en la familia y en la escuela, aprendiendo a evitar los errores m s frecuentes de los padres de hoy y aprovechar esta etapa tan crucial en la vida de sus hijos.
Nuestros Hijos En La Red: 50 Cosas Que Debemos Saber Para Una Buena Prevención Digital
por Silvia Barrera
Brilliance Audio, 2020. 7 hr. 22 min. No Ficción
La creciente conectividad de los dispositivos móviles supone un riesgo para nuestros hijos. Instagram, Twitter, Facebook y WhatsApp son una realidad: los niños y las niñas se comunican a través de redes sociales, y cada vez desde edades más tempranas. Aunque se trata de un medio que no conocemos bien y que nos genera dudas y temores, no podemos vivir de espaldas a los avances tecnológicos. ¿A qué edad debemos comprar un móvil para nuestros hijos? ¿Es prudente publicar información sobre ellos en la red? ¿Debemos usar herramientas de control parental? ¿Son seguras las aplicaciones que descargan? Nuestros hijos en la red es una guía clara que nos enseña todo lo que los padres deben saber para ayudar a los hijos a navegar en la red con seguridad. Porque una buena prevención digital es una fuente de tranquilidad familiar.
Conoce los riesgos de Internet y enseña a tus hijos a evitarlos de la mano de una experta en ciberseguridad.
Inicios de sesión inesperados que te alertan de intentos de robo de cuenta de las redes sociales de tus hijos; mayores de edad y desconocidos que envían solicitudes de amistad a través de Facebook a las cuentas de los miembros más jóvenes de tu familia; cargos en tus tarjetas de crédito por compras de bienes o servicios que no has consumido provenientes de un juego online llamado Clash Royale... ¿Sabes cómo actuar ante estas situaciones?
MEB
Etiquetas: Español, MEB, No Ficción, Paternidad, Libros de Audio
Thursday, May 4, 2023
Love from Mecca to Medina
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
Gwendy's Final Task
By Stephen King & Richard Chizmar
Cemetery Dance Publications, 2022. 412 pages. Fiction
When Gwendy Peterson was twelve, a mysterious stranger named Richard Farris gave her a mysterious box for safekeeping. It offered treats and vintage coins, but it was dangerous. Pushing any of its seven colored buttons promised death and destruction. Years later, the button box has entered Gwendy's life again. Now, evil forces seek to possess the button box and it is up to Senator Gwendy Peterson to keep it from all of them. At all costs. But where can you hide something from such powerful entities?
This is the third and final book in King's Gwendy series and it did not disappoint. You don't need to have read the first two in order to fall in love with Gwendy's unwavering determination, but she's such a likeable character that I recommend not missing them! Gwendy's final task turns out to be a much bigger task than she anticipated, and she's not ready to face it at all, but she'll do it anyway. Gwendy is the most incredibly unassuming hero the world has ever seen.
If you like Gwendy's Final Task, you might also like:
By Joe Hill
William Morrow, 2007. 376 pages. Fiction
Middle-aged rock star Judas Coyne collects morbid curios for fun, so doesn't think twice about buying a suit advertised at an online auction site as haunted by its dead owner's ghost. Only after it arrives does Judas discover that the suit belonged to Craddock McDermott, the stepfather of one of Coyne's discarded groupies, and that the old man's ghost is a malignant spirit determined to kill Judas in revenge for his stepdaughter's suicide.
Home Before DarkBy Riley Sager
Dutton, 2020. 384 pages. Fiction
Twenty-five years after her father published the wildly popular nonfiction book based on her family's rushed exit from the haunted Victorian estate, Maggie inherits the house and begins renovations only to make a number of disturbing discoveries. Is the place really haunted by evil forces, as her father claimed? Or are there more earthbound-and dangerous-secrets hidden within its walls?
LKA