Wow, it just started raining like crazy! I'm wondering if it's all the water pouring out of the sky or the fact that I was watching the movie on TV the other night, but today I offer you The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea by Sebastian Junger.

A storm, a cold front and a hurricane all crashed together on the Atlantic Ocean in October of 1991. The fishing boat Andrea Gail was caught in 100 foot tall waves and over 100 miles per hour winds. Though all the crew was lost at sea, Junger masterfully recounts what would happen to a vessel in that situation. Through interviews and research of other fisherman, sailors and ocean rescue crews who survived the storm (or who had been in similar situations), a compelling and dramatic story is told- a frighteningly real tale of modern seafaring life.

"She's comm' on, boys, and she's comm' on strong", radioed Captain Billy Tyne of the Andrea Gail off the coast of Nova Scotia. ~ Last words from the Andrea Gail before the boat and her crew disappeared.

Last October, I had the pleasure of attending Cincinnati's annual Books by the Banks Festival. There were tons of authors, publishers, librarians, and people who just came to enjoy the day. I was lucky enough to host a panel of authors talking about their current books and answering questions from the audience.

One of the authors was Beth Hoffman who lives in Northern Kentucky, and I'm so glad I got to read her debut novel Saving CeeCee Honeycutt. It takes place in 1967, starting in Ohio. CeeCee is 12 and essentially taking care of her mentally unstable mother, who thinks it's still 1951 and she has been crowned the Vidalia Onion Queen. When a tragedy occurs, unknown great aunt Tootie comes to the rescue, taking CeeCee to live with her in Savannah. CeeCee is introduced into a world of wealth; odd and eccentric ladies; injustices that must be fought; and the fun that life can be. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed The Help, or Clare Luce Booth's play/film The Women, or just likes books with interesting and inspiring female characters.

This year's Books by the Banks is being held on Saturday, October 22 at the Duke Energy Convention Center. Mark your calendars and hope to see you there!

Well everyone, I'm only one week away from finishing the Teen Reading challenge. Lots of other librarians and readers are participating, reading as many young adult books as we can within a three month period. It's a great reason to read all those books I meant to get to as a teenager, and I rather like having an adult perspective now.

Somehow, I managed to get through high school and college without reading J.D. Salinger's classic The Catcher in the Rye. I have now rectified this situation with pleasing results. Narrator Holden Caufield is sixteen years old in 1945. Although an intelligent boy, his bad grades get him expelled from his most recent fancy prep school. Unwilling to face his parents right away, Holden checks into a New York hotel not far from his family's apartment. After several awkward attempts to connect with adults and friends his own age, Holden visits his little sister Phoebe, the only person he really seems to communicate with. Although things don't work out exactly as Holden planned them, he realizes how troubled he is, and that he needs help with his passage into adulthood.

The language and style of the writing are what really impressed me. Holden comes off as just what he is - a teenager with troubles who's trying to figure out life. The Catcher in the Rye is one of the most commonly challenged books (books people ask to be restricted or removed from a library) due to profanity, sexuality, and encouraging teen rebellion, but also makes Top 100 book lists everywhere and has won countless awards worldwide. I say read it and judge for yourself.

NBCC Awards: The National Book Critics Circle awards honor the best literature published in English in six categories—autobiography, biography, criticism, fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Announced in March, check out some of the winners for the 2010 publishing year:

Fiction - Jennifer Egan, A Visit from the Goon Squad

Biography - Sarah Bakewell, How To Live: Or, A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty         Attempts at an Answer

Autobiography - Darin Strauss, Half a Life

Poetry -  C. D. Wright’s One with Others: [a little book of her days]

Non-Fiction - Isabel Wilkerson, The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration

Criticism - Clare Cavanagh, Lyric Poetry and Modern Politics: Russia, Poland, and the West