A sweeping debut novel, inspired by the life of the author's mother, about a young woman who dares to fight for a brighter future in occupied Korea In early-twentieth-century Korea, Najin Han, the privileged daughter of a calligrapher, longs to choose her own destiny. Smart and headstrong, she is encouraged by her mother but her stern father is determined to maintain tradition, especially as the Japanese steadily gain control of his beloved country. When he seeks to marry Najin into an aristocratic family, her mother defies generations of obedient wives and instead sends her to serve in the king's court as a companion to a young princess. But the king is soon assassinated, and the centuries-old dynastic culture comes to its end. In the shadow of the dying monarchy, Najin begins a journey through increasing oppression that will forever change her world. As she desperately seeks to continue her education, will the unexpected love she finds along the way be enough to sustain her through the violence and subjugation her country continues to face? Spanning thirty years, The Calligrapher's Daughter is a richly drawn novel in the tradition of Lisa See and Amy Tan about a country torn between ancient customs and modern possibilities, a family ultimately united by love, and a woman who never gives up her search for freedom.

Read-A-Likes Book Club

Do you find yourself tired of reading the same old authors? Would you like to broaden your literary horizons but don’t know where to start?

If so, then join the librarians at the Red Wing Public Library on May 3rd anytime between 12pm and 1pm for the second meeting of our Read-A-Likes Book Club. Bring your lunch and we’ll talk about our favorite authors and try to find new ones! Author Jodi Picoult is the subject of our meeting. Read any of her books, or any of the books on our "If you like Jodi Picoult" booklist (printed version available at the library), or a book you think fans of Jodi Picoult might like. Then come to our lunch hour gathering downstairs in the Foot Room and share your thoughts (just listening is ok, too).

Newly arrived CDs include:

The Fame Monster by Lady Gaga






Need You Now by Lady Antebellum






Keep It Hid by Dan Auerbach






Messiah Highlights by Handel

Stephen King says "Carrion Comfort is one of the three greatest horror novels of the twentieth century. Simple as that." And, indeed, it is as simple as that. If you like horror novels, if you like vampire novels, then give this one a try!

This astonishing book - donated to the library by friends and family in memory of Ann Tincher - is a must read for anybody interested in science. As the publisher says, "[a] small revolution is remaking the world. The only problem is, we can’t see it. This book uses dazzling images and evocative descriptions to reveal the virtually invisible realities and possibilities of nanoscience. An introduction to the science and technology of small things, No Small Matter explains science on the nanoscale." The photographs alone make this book a must read - check it out!

Earth Day 2010

Today is the 40th Earth Day, founded in 1970 by US Senator Gaylord Nelson. To mark the occasion, we are featuring several of our most recent books concerning the environment. We have lots and lots more - just give us a call and we'll help you find whatever you're looking for!

Animal Factory: The Looming Threat Of Industrial Pig, Dairy, And Poultry Farms To Humans And The Environment


Ecological Intelligence: How Knowing The Hidden Impacts Of What We Buy Can Change Everything




Chasing Molecules: Poisonous Products, Human Health, And The Promise Of Green Chemistry

Under construction

Please excuse the mess and inconvenience of our closed off East Ave. entrance! We are replacing the existing tiles with new ones that are much less slippery when conditions are wet and snowy. The contractors expect to be done within a week or so with the East Ave. area. At some point later this spring they'll do the 3rd Street entrance area and lobby.

Just in time for the debate over financial reform and regulation comes 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown. Kirkus Reviews calls it "[a] stinging indictment of the reckless "new American oligarchy" that led the nation to an economic precipice-and which, because of the government bailout, the authors say, threaten to put U.S. taxpayers on the hook again. The authors argue convincingly that the philosophy behind the bailout-"too big to fail"-only consolidated more power in fewer firms, solidifying the remaining giants' influence over legislation and necessitating their breakup into smaller units. A detailed, dismaying and damning summation of recent Wall Street-Washington collusion-and the recurrent risk of financial folly." Check it out!

The Surrendered by Chang-rae Lee

From Publishers Weekly: "Lee's masterful fourth novel bursts with drama and human anguish as it documents the ravages and indelible effects of war. June Han is a starving 11-year-old refugee fleeing military combat during the Korean War when she is separated from her seven-year-old twin siblings. Eventually brought to an orphanage near Seoul by American soldier Hector Brennan, who is still reeling from his father's death, June slowly recovers from her nightmarish experiences thanks to the loving attention of Sylvie Tanner, the wife of the orphanage's minister. But Sylvie is irretrievably scarred as well, having witnessed her parents' murder by Japanese soldiers in 1934 Manchuria. These traumas reverberate throughout the characters' lives, determining the destructive relationship that arises between June, Hector and Sylvie as the plot rushes forward and back in time, encompassing graphic scenes of suffering, carnage and emotional wreckage. Powerful, deeply felt, compulsively readable and imbued with moral gravity, the novel does not peter out into easy redemption. It's a harrowing tale: bleak, haunting, often heartbreaking—and not to be missed."

Newly arrived at the library:



The Hurt Locker (Rotten Tomatoes rating 97%)






Precious (Rotten Tomatoes rating 91%)







Up in the Air (Rotten Tomatoes rating 90%)

From Library Journal: "Sixty-eight-year-old Maj. Ernest Pettigrew has settled into a genteel life of quiet retirement in his beloved village of Edgecombe St. Mary. Refined, gentlemanly, unwaveringly proper in his sense of right vs. wrong, and bemused by most things modern, he has little interest in cavalier relationship mores, the Internet, and crass developments and is gently smitten by the widowed Mrs. Ali, the lovely Pakistani owner of the local shop where he buys his tea. After the unsettling death of his brother, Bertie, the Major finds his careful efforts to court Mrs. Ali (who shares his love of literature) constantly nudged off-course by his callow son, Roger; a handful of socialite ladies planning a dinner/dance at the Major's club; and the not-so-subtle racist attitudes his interest in Mrs. Ali engender. This irresistibly delightful, thoughtful, and utterly charming and surprising novel reads like the work of a seasoned pro. In fact, it is Simonson's debut. One cannot wait to see what she does next."

How to get things right

We live in a world of great and increasing complexity, where even the most expert professionals struggle to master the tasks they face. Longer training, ever more advanced technologies—neither seems to prevent grievous errors. But in a hopeful turn, acclaimed surgeon and writer Atul Gawande finds a remedy in the humblest and simplest of techniques: the checklist. First introduced decades ago by the U.S. Air Force, checklists have enabled pilots to fly aircraft of mind-boggling sophistication. Now innovative checklists are being adopted in hospitals around the world, helping doctors and nurses respond to everything from flu epidemics to avalanches. Even in the immensely complex world of surgery, a simple ninety-second variant has cut the rate of fatalities by more than a third. In riveting stories, Gawande takes us from Austria, where an emergency checklist saved a drowning victim who had spent half an hour underwater, to Michigan, where a cleanliness checklist in intensive care units virtually eliminated a type of deadly hospital infection. The Checklist Manifesto is essential reading for anyone working to get things right.

It's camping time!

From School Library Journal: "From the backyard to the backwoods, this book is stuffed with information about gear, packing lists, where to go, what to do while you're camping, and what to do when you get back. There are 174 games, skills, projects, recipes, songs, experiments, crafts, and more to make, learn, play, and do outdoors. Activities include knot tying, campfire cooking, using a compass, marking a trail, identifying plants and animals, weather watching, and stargazing just to name a few. Written on a kid's level from a kid's-eye view, this volume is perfect for would-be campers as it prepares adventurers to go into the great outdoors and have fun." Check it out!

Entr'Acte is here!

Newly arrived at the library are several copies of Entr'Acte, a film shot locally and featuring many area actors. Those of you who didn't get a chance to see it when it played at the Sheldon Theater should come check it out!

The race to save endangered species

From Kirkus Reviews: "Biologist, conservationist and Animal Planet star Jeff Corwin recounts his heartwarming experiences travelling the globe to film rare animals and their devoted human caretakers. The author writes that more than 3,200 species are considered to be critically endangered-some with fewer than 100 individuals-and he estimates that "if the rate of extinction isn't slowed, by the end of the century, more than half the animal species alive today will be lost forever." Corwin experienced one of his most poignant moments in Hawaii, when he saw the puaiohi thrush, one of only 15 individuals left in the species. Although at first sight it looked ordinary, "it . . . transformed into the most vivid bird I'd ever seen. Every little feather, every twitch of its head seemed as vital an expression of life force as I'd ever witnessed."

From Library Journal: "While "God" is in the title of this latest work by best-selling author Roth, she touches only lightly on religion, focusing instead on why some people use food to mask their emotions. Through a series of inquiries, Roth helps overeaters find the underlying reasons for using food as an emotional buffer. Roth also provides seven basic guidelines for eating (which do not include counting calories) and other therapeutic self-help tools. Whether the trap is eating brownies or shopping in excess, Roth's advice could be applied to any addiction. This is an excellent book for anyone tired of quick-fix diets. Having experienced the ups and downs of emotional eating herself, Roth offers readers genuine and heartfelt advice."

Author Jess Lourey to speak at the Library

Speaking at the library this Saturday at 10:00 a.m. as part of the Friends of the Library's Hot Reads program will be writer Jess Lourey. She is the author of Murder by Month mystery series. Refreshments will be served and door prizes awarded!

From Publishers Weekly: "Weaving together the stories of three very different women loosely tied to each other, debut novelist Blake takes readers back and forth between small town America and war-torn Europe in 1940. Single, 40-year-old postmistress Iris James and young newlywed Emma Trask are both new arrivals to Franklin, Mass., on Cape Cod. While Iris and Emma go about their daily lives, they follow American reporter Frankie Bard on the radio as she delivers powerful and personal accounts from the London Blitz and elsewhere in Europe. While Trask waits for the return of her husband-a volunteer doctor stationed in England-James comes across a letter with valuable information that she chooses to hide. Blake captures two different worlds-a naive nation in denial and, across the ocean, a continent wracked with terror-with a deft sense of character and plot, and a perfect willingness to take on big, complex questions, such as the merits of truth and truth-telling in wartime."

Happy April Fools Day!

No doubt you've already noticed some of today's April Fool pranks on the web (if not, try here, here or here). For great April Fool's Day pranks of the past, see this Wikipedia article. And to read about some of the greatest pranks ever pulled off by college students, check out this article from Time Magazine. Have fun!