Atlas of Unknowns by Tania James

Although they tell you never to judge a book by its cover, in this particular instance, the cover of Atlas of Unknowns is one of the best examples of symbolism and theme that I've ever seen. The cover shows a picture of a butterfly with a map superimposed onto each wing - one of under-developed/rural India and one of Queens, NY. Anju and Linno are sisters living in Kerala, India with their poor father and grandmother. When Anju wins a scholarship to a prep school in America (by betraying her sister), Linno is the one who has to keep the remaining family together. There's a lot of other important secondary characters, but ultimately, the purpose of this book shows the rocky relationship between the sisters. Though they are completely different individuals and at different places in the world, they are still family.

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"Proof: the Science of Booze" by Adam Rogers

Proof: the Science of Booze caught my eye when I was looking for something new to read in the science section--specifically in the topic of chemistry. Adam Rogers presents a book that is a comprehensive look at the science behind alcohol and the mystery of why it has the effect that it does...all leading the reader to the grand conclusion of: "we still don't know." Serious examination and studies all lead to the same result of "we know what it does but we don't know why." So why would anyone be interested in a book that takes eight chapters and almost 250 pages to tell you that much about alcohol? Well, for starters there's a ton of information that is just downright cool to learn about; like the physiological effects of what is happening to your body during a hangover, a molecular explanation about what yeast is doing to the sugars and why it is vital to the final product, or a history of prohibition that you wouldn...

"A Banquet of Consequences" by Elizabeth George

Elizabeth George's Inspector Lynley mystery series is probably one of my favourites in the style of English detective stories. It's the series that I keep returning to, when I slip into a reading rut and can't focus on reading something new, particularly to the first book in the series A Great Deliverance. While there are lots of decent mystery series circulating now, the first book in George's Lynley stories has a certain grim insistence about it that keeps drawing me back to it. And in her latest contribution to the series, George has written a story that in many aspects parallels her first--however, these parallels did not become immediately apparent until the climax of the story. One of the things that I like best about Elizabeth George's writing is that she realises that a lot of times, the supporting characters can have better story potential than the main title character. She uses this to her advantage in almost all of the Lynley seri...

OCFPL Book Club - May

This month's book was The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo. T he book club enjoyed this book quite a bit. It was a slow start in the beginning but as the story continued, it picked up speed and the story just grabbed you. The wonderful elements of suspense and superstitions kept the book captivating and wonderful. There are two stories in the book, Ji Lin's story and Ren's story. Both crisscross each other but also have the support of their own in the book. We enjoyed the adventurous nature of the characters. The journey of a dancehall girl and a houseboy on a mission from his former employer. With man-eating tiger on the prowl, ghostly spirits, and death, what is there not to enjoy from this book. The supernatural/superstitious elements and the culture of the time in Malaysia, it brought us to a world we never knew and wanted to explore more about. We hope this get's picked up as a mini-series. It would playout wonderfully on screen. We give this book 4 books out of 5....

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