New October OverDrive Titles!

Last Updated on Monday, 26 October 2009 09:02

Frequently Asked Questions - Reader Services

Have you downloaded a good book lately? Your hometown library provides you access to thousands of books that you can listen to and or read with only a few quick clicks of the mouse. And with cooler weather moving in to the region you may find yourself wanting to snuggle up under a blanket with a good mp3, wma or ebook title.

Below you will find a sampling of this month's titles. Whether your interest are short story classics, Oklahoma celebrities, spirituality, wild things, ramen noodles or even zombies in the 1800s destroying a budding romance - you are sure to find something in the PLS Virtual Library downloadable collection!

The Wild Things, by Dave Eggers and Where the Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak
The Wild Things is about the confusions of a boy, Max, making his way in a world he can't control. His father is gone, his mother is spending time with a younger boyfriend, and his sister is becoming a teenager. At the same time, he finds himself capable of startling acts of wildness: he wears a wolf suit and he bites his mom. During a fight at home, Max flees and runs away into the woods. He finds a boat there, jumps in, and ends up on the open sea, destination unknown. He lands on the island of the Wild Things, and soon he becomes their king. But things get complicated when Max realizes that the Wild Things want as much from him as he wants from them. In Where the Wild Things Are, Max is the hero of this beloved children's classic in which he makes mischief, sails away, tames the wild things and returns home for supper.

Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Underminds America, by Barbara Ehrenreich
Americans are a "positive" people--cheerful, optimistic, and upbeat: this is our reputation as well as our self-image. But more than a temperament, being positive, we are told, is the key to success and prosperity. In this utterly original take on the American frame of mind, Barbara Ehrenreich traces the strange career of our sunny outlook from its origins as a marginal nineteenth-century healing technique to its enshrinement as a dominant, almost mandatory, cultural attitude. With the mythbusting powers for which she is acclaimed, Ehrenreich exposes the downside of America's penchant for positive thinking: On a personal level, it leads to self-blame and a morbid preoccupation with stamping out "negative" thoughts. On a national level, it's brought us an era of irrational optimism resulting in disaster. This is Ehrenreich at her provocative best--poking holes in conventional wisdom and faux science, and ending with a call for existential clarity and courage.

Little Bit Wicked, by Kristin Chenoweth
"Life's too short. I'm not." You might know her as a Tony Award-winning Broadway star, who originated the role of Galinda the Good Witch in the smash musical Wicked and won a Tony for 1999's You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Or you may recognize her from her starring roles on TV-The West Wing, Pushing Daisies, Sesame Street...oh, and her huge hit sitcom Kristin on NBC. Or her appearance on Pat Robertson's The 700 Club. The 700 Club? Kristin is a wonderful collection of contradictions- but everyone who's ever met her remembers her as the little girl with the big voice. At four foot eleven, Kristin Chenoweth is an immense talent in a petite but powerful package. In this lively, laugh-out-loud audio book, Kristin shares her journey from Oklahoma beauty queen to Broadway leading lady, reflecting on how faith and family have kept her grounded in the dysfunctional rodeo of showbiz.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance - Now with Ulitraviolent Zombie Mayhem!, by Jane Austen
So begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, an expanded edition of the beloved Jane Austen novel featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield. Can Elizabeth vanquish the spawn of Satan? And overcome the social prejudices of the class-conscious landed gentry? Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies transforms a masterpiece of world literature into something you'd actually want to listen to.

The Ramen King and I: How the Inventor of Instant Noodles Fixed My Love Life, by Andy Raskin
For three days in January 2007, the most-emailed article in The New York Times was "Appreciations: Mr. Noodle," an editorial noting the passing, at age 96, of billionaire Momofuku Ando, the inventor of instant ramen. The very existence of the noodle inventor came as a shock to many, but not to Andy Raskin, who had spent nearly three years trying to meet Ando. Why? To fix the problems that plagued his love life. The Ramen King and I is Raskin's memoir about how despair—and a series of bizarre adventures at Japanese restaurants—led him to confront the truth of his romantic past, and how Ando became his unlikely spiritual guide. Through letters ostensibly penned to the culinary sage, Raskin reveals a relationship history plagued by infidelity, jealousy, and betrayal.

Reason for God: Belief in an Age of God, by Timothy Keller
The End of Faith. The God Delusion. God Is Not Great. Letter to a Christian Nation. Bestseller lists are filled with doubters. But what happens when you actually doubt your doubts?

The Body and Shawshank Redemption, by Stephen King
Made into the acclaimed film Stand By Me, The Body is a mesmerizing tale of four young boys and their quest to find a dead body, never realizing how much death will affect their lives and their friendship. Based on a a novella from Different Seasons, this unabridged tale focuses on a man convicted of murder, who finds himself in a prison ruled by a sadistic warden and secretly operated by a clever convict.

Cask of Amontillado, by Edgar Allan Poe
First published in the November 1846 issue of Godey's Lady's Book, the story is set in 19th century Italy and concerns the deadly revenge taken by the insane narrator on a friend who he claims has insulted him. Like several of Poe's stories, and in keeping with the 19th century fascination with the subject, the narrative revolves around a person being buried alive.

Clan of the Cave Bear - Earth's Children Series Book 1, by Jean M. Auel
A remarkable epic of one woman's odyssey--filled with mystery and magic. Here is the saga of a people who call themselves the Clan of the Cave Bear; how they lived; the animals they hunted; the great totems they revered. But mostly it is the story of Ayla, the girl they found and raised, who was not like them. To the Clan, her fair looks make her different--ugly. And she has odd ways: she laughs, she cries, she has the ability to speak. But even more, she struggles to be true to herself and, with her advanced intelligence, is curious about the world around her. Although Ayla is clearly a member of the Others, she is nurtured by her adoptive parents, befriended by members of the Clan, and gradually accepted into the family circle. But there are those who would cast her out for her strange, threatening ways.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey
In this classic 1960s novel, Ken Kesey's hero is Randle Patrick McMurphy. You've never met anyone like Randle Patrick McMurphy. He's a boisterous, brawling, fun-loving rebel who swaggers into the ward of a mental hospital and takes over. He's a lusty, profane, life-loving fighter who rallies the other patients around him by challenging the dictatorship of Big Nurse. He promotes gambling in the ward, smuggles in wine and women, and at every turn, openly defies her rule.