PORTSMOUTH — Have some free time but nothing to read?
We recently asked the fine folks at the Portsmouth Free Public Library for some book recommendations. Here’s what they came up with — all recent releases:
Cynthia Merrill, library assistant
Book: The Library Book, by Susan Orlean (Simon & Schuster, 2018)
Why are you reading this? “It's a true story about about the fire in the Los Angeles Public Library in 1986 and recounts the tragedy from the librarians themselves. It has a bit of a mystery twist in it as well, because the perpetrators of the fire were never caught.”
Nicole Carrubba, children's librarian
Book: The Summer of a Thousand Pies, by Margaret Dilloway (Balzer + Bray, 2019)
Why are you reading this? “I liked the cover and it's a brand-new book. I like to read a lot of new books. It has a lot to do with baking and it's a coming-of-age story, which are among my favorites. It speaks of the character's development and growth through baking.”
Sue Rousseau, teenage/reference librarian
Book: What I Leave Behind, by Alison McGhee (Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, 2018)
Why are you reading this? “It's 100 chapters and each chapter has a total of 100 words. The story revolves around a boy who is coping with his father's death. It's a quick and easy read and something I usually recommend to teens who say they don't like to read. It has a tight format and that's what I liked about it.”
Carolyn Magnus, library director
Book: Auntie Poldi and the Sicilian Lions, by Mario Giordano (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018)
Why are you reading this? “I am currently reading this with my book group in Newport. We read mostly light stuff and I decided to pick up this mystery instead.”
Other items that may interest you