KDL Recommends

This book was a real eye opener into the human condition. If you ever thought you were a good, honest person, this book will change your perspective about yourself and other people.
-Barbara at KDL’s Kentwood branch

Delightful tale with WONDERFUL illustrations—book jacket proclaims…”For Every Bad King there are a Thousand Great Mustaches! Vive la Moustache!”
This would be a great storytime story!
-Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

One of my favorite quotes from the book: “The sun kept on with its slipping away, and I thought how many small good things in the world might be resting on the shoulder of something terrible.”
-Morgan at KDL’s East Grand Rapids branch

Hoping to save their family and the citizens of Ferryport Landing from the evil plans of Mirror, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm seek counsel from the other magic mirrors, who advise them to join forces with the Scarlet Hand.

Recommended by Beth at KDL’s Gaines Township branch

It was a great read that explored and compared different views on Death and Dying and what comes after. It used jokes and comics to break up all the angst, and pokes fun at famous philosophers and theologians all the while asking mind scrambling questions such as What is a soul? Is “Now” our real eternity?
-Emmy at KDL’s Tyrone Township branch

Examines the life of the Italian scientist from a first-person perspective that surveys his achievements while covering his world-changing ideas about a heliocentric solar system and his imprisonment for heresy.

Recommended by Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

Wonderful illustrations!
-Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

After losing her werewolf lover Jake and giving birth to a son, Talulla confronts a psychotic new WOCOP leader, an unlikely human lover, blood-drinking religious fanatics, a pack of London werewolves, and the world’s oldest living vampire.

Recommended by Shaunna at KDL’s Grandville branch

Tale of the birth of Jesus the Christ, where the Magi are not “wise men” or astrologists/astronomers of their era following the star-in-the-east…but instead are two thieves led by the “Antioch Ghost”, another thief who avoids capture by any one or any ruling entity. The thieves just happen to run into Joseph, Mary and child and so their collective stories blend into one. I wasn’t sure if this would be just an irreverent twist to a “sacred” story, but I can see why Grahame-Smith has his “faithful followers” too. If one can read through the grit and gore of what was probably more realistic to the folks living in that era instead of what we see through our lens of today, there is even a satisfactory ending.

-Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

Wow. It isn’t often that a book is so easily readable and still so touching. Hazel is a girl with cancer. She has gotten treatment that has bought her some time, but she basically sits at home miserable all the time. Until one day, she meets Augustus at a support group. This book is funny, sad, uplifting and depressing all at the same time. I could not put it down.
-Shannon at KDL’s Comstock Park branch

An amusing book for middle schoolers narrated by Charlie, who prides himself on having never finished reading an entire book.
-Susan at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

This is a must read for those who like a good psychological thriller. This story grabs you from the very beginning and haunts you after the last page. Those who loved reading SJ Watson’s Before I Go to Sleep or fans of the movie Sleeping with the Enemy will definitely want to read this tale of love gone wrong.
-Heather at KDL’s Krause Memorial branch

An Iraqi version of the Cinderella story in which a kind and beautiful girl who is mistreated by her stepmother and stepsister finds a husband with the help of a magic fish.

Recommended by Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

Loved The Humming Room by Ellen Potter!

Setting is in the New York area of the St Lawrence Seaway with its 1000 islands.

Reads like a great historical fiction.
-Laura at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

Women can be either highly sexualized (and visible) or their contributions so taken for granted that they might as well be invisible. Here’s an entertaining take on the experience of living an invisible life.
-Helen Kay at KDL’s Spencer branch

This was a fascinating fast read that made me want to have fire drills.
-Penni at KDL’s Service Center

I really enjoyed the character’s struggles—and felt they were realistic in the time period. Clara combines a strong female character that is constricted by her times and Mr. Tiffany.
-Michelle at KDL’s Service Center

This is a powerful novel that describes the degradation in the Niger Delta wrought by the oil companies and told through the personal story of Blessing, a young teen dealing with many familial crises. As Blessing’s grandmother says, “Those people using our oil to make their cars drive fast, do they know we are dying?”
-Helen Kay at KDL’s Spencer Township branch

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein was a great historical fiction/adventure/suspense novel about two young women who fought in WWII.
-Susan at KDL’s Plainfield Township branch

The story of two close friends who accept a teaching job in what was then the Colorado frontier in 1916. Their adventures make for an exciting and humorous read, and there is a Grand Rapids connection as well.
-Mark at KDL’s Krause Memorial branch

You can tell good writing when you easily remember a large cast of characters. This time travel book was also believable with Oxford Historians going back in time to get a better record of history.
-Michelle KDL’s Service Center

Another great fast paced adventure by Daniel Wilson set in the future where the United States Supreme Court has just ruled that people with implanted upgrades do not have the same rights as regular citizens. This leads to a new segregation of the American nation but on a whole new level. Daniel Wilson is very creative and produces a world that the reader can easily see and feel, and that might not be too far off in our future.
-Craig at KDL’s Cascade branch

I recently watched the DVD “Fat, Sick, And Nearly Dead.” It’s about 2 guys who are just that, and the 60 day juice fast that resulted in a lot of lost weight, a complete reversal of the diseases they were suffering from, and a massively improved outlook on life. It’s very inspirational, and made me dust off my juicer! It’s so true that you are what you eat!
-Kris at KDL’s Comstock Park branch

I just watched The Trip, which stars Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon. They go on a restaurant tour / road trip, sing ABBA to one another, discuss whether or not they’d be willing to give their children a fatal disease if it meant they’d win an Oscar, and do impressions. It’s… funnier than it sounds. Also sadder. Very British. Cannot adequately describe, but highly recommend.
-Monica at KDL’s Wyoming branch