Welcome
Welcome to Braille Books Acquired. This quarterly newsletter contains a list of Braille books recently acquired by the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA).
In this issue:
- Announcements
- Uncontracted braille
- Fiction for children
- Fiction for young adults
- Fiction for adults
- Non-fiction for adults
Announcements
Although the majority of these books have been published within the last 5 years, there may be some books listed here which are older, but which were only recently added to our collection. To make this clearer for you, we include the date of the print version of each book at the end of its annotation.
CELA Welcomes a new Executive Director
The Centre for Equitable Library Access is pleased to announce Rina Hadziev has been appointed as its new Executive Director, effective October 7, 2019.
Formerly with the Greater Victoria Public Library in Victoria, British Columbia, Rina brings over 15 year of experience in public library leadership, digital collections and technical services. Rina was a member of the CELA board from 2016-2019, and played a key role advocating for improved access to ebooks and digital audiobooks for libraries and their patrons through her participation with the Canadian Urban Libraries Council Digital Content Working Group.
“Rina is passionate about accessibility and equitable access, and her collaborative style will help us continue to build on our existing partnerships and explore new relationships which are essential for the continued improvement of accessible library services,” says Catherine Biss, Chair of the CELA Board of Directors.
Rina succeeds Michael Ciccone who left CELA in late August to become CEO of London Public Library. “I am excited about the opportunity to build on the progress CELA has made since its launch 5 years ago, and to work together with CELA staff and partners to meet the changing accessibility needs of libraries and their patrons,” says Rina Hadziev.
New Printbraille available for fall
While we are working to add printbraille to our website, we have made a fresh selection of printbraille titles available to patrons for fall. Printbraille books can be ordered on our website using the order form on our Kids and Teens page, or those who don’t have access to our website can call our Contact Centre and request the titles. Please note that book numbers are not available for these titles. If leaving a message, please clearly state you are requesting printbraille. There is a limit of 3 titles per patron.
Available printbraille titles
A fire truck for Chuck by Annika Dunklee. K-2. Canadian. Stories in rhyme.
Sun Dog by Deborah Kerbel. K-2. Canadian.
Sloth at the zoom by Helaine Becker. K-2. Canadian.
The reptile club by Maureen Fergus. K-2. Canadian.
Angus all aglow by Heather Smith. K-2. Canadian.
Giraffe and bird together again by Rebecca Bender. K-2. Canadian. Friendship.
Up the mountain path by Marianne Dubuc. K-2. Canadian. Friendship.
Mallard, mallard, moose by Lori Doody. K-2. Canadian.
Ira Crumb feels the feelings by Naseem Hrab. K-2. Canadian. Feelings.
Off and away by Cale Atkinson. K-2. Canadian.
I love you like... by Lori Joy Smith. K-2. Canadian. Friendship.
Island in the Salish Sea by Sheryl McFarlane and Leslie Redhead. Canadian. Family.
Africville by Shauntay Grant. K-2. Canadian history.
Sukaq and the raven by Roy Goose and Kerry McCluskey. K-2. Canadian. Folklore (Indigenous).
The day you begin by Jacqueline Woodson. K-2. School stories.
Mommy's khimar by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow. K-2. Family.
The digger and the flower by Joseph Kuefler. K-2. Nature.
The honeybee by Kirsten Hall. K-2. Stories in rhyme. Nature.
Carson crosses Canada by Linda Bailey. K-2. Canadian.
Poetree by Shauna Lavoy Reynolds. K-2. Poetry.
Eh? to zed: a Canadian abecedarium by Kevin Major. Gr. 3-6. Alphabet books. Canadian.
Black women who dared by Naomi M. Moyer. Gr. 3-6. Biographies.
Go show the world: a celebration of Indigenous heroes by Wab Kinew. Gr. 3-6.
The hockey sweater by Roch Carrier. Gr. 3-6. Canadian. Sports.
When we were alone David Robinson K-2. Canadian. Indigenous.
Awards shortlists
It’s award season and a perfect time to delve into the best in Canadian literature. Again, this year CELA has worked with some of the major literary award organizations to make accessible versions of the shortlisted titles available to our patrons.
Scotiabank Giller prize
The Scotiabank Giller prize has nominated six titles to its shortlist this year and all six are available in the CELA collection.
Immigrant city by David Bezmozgis (book number 2851994), who has been nominated for a third time. In these deeply-felt, slyly humorous stories, Bezmozgis pleads no special causes but presents immigrant characters with all their contradictions and complexities, their earnest and divided hearts.
Small game hunting at the local Coward Gun Club by Megan Gail Coles. (Book number 2851995.) This is blistering Newfoundland Gothic for the twenty-first century, a wholly original, bracing, and timely portrait of a place in the throes of enormous change, where two women confront the traumas of their past in an attempt to overcome the present and to pick up a future.
The innocents by Michael Crummey (book number 2851977) is nominated for the Giller, as well as the Governor General’s Award for Literature and the Roger’s Writer’s Trust award for Fiction. A brother and sister are orphaned in an isolated cove on Newfoundland's northern coastline. As they fight for their own survival through years of meagre catches and storms and ravaging illness, it is their fierce loyalty to each other that motivates and sustains them. By turns electrifying and heartbreaking, it is a testament to the bounty and barbarity of the world, to the wonders and strangeness of our individual selves.
Dual citizens by Alix Ohlin (book number 2851996) is a joint coming-of-age story and an achingly poignant portrait of the strange, painful, ultimately life-sustaining bonds between sisters. Dazzlingly insightful and beautifully crafted, Dual Citizens captures the unique language of sisters and makes visible the imperceptible strings that bind us to the ones we love for good.
Lampedusa by Steven Price. (Book number 2851993.) In sun-drenched Sicily, among the decadent Italian aristocracy of the late 1950s, Giuseppe Tomasi, the last prince of Lampedusa, struggles to complete the novel that will be his lasting legacy, The Leopard. Steven Price's new novel is an intensely moving story of one man's awakening to the possibilities of life, intimately woven against the transformative power of a great work of art.
Reproduction by Ian Williams. (Book number 2856838.) Ian Williams delivers a promising first novel. Reproduction manages to be witty, playful, and disarmingly offbeat - even as it hums with serious themes. Reproduction serves as a literary representation of the various intersections of culture, race, and gender in contemporary Canada. It is a mirror with graffiti/social commentary both humourous and powerful scrawled all over it.
Governor General shortlists
In addition to the shortlist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, CELA produces the fiction and non-fiction shortlist for the Governor General’s award. Congratulations to the following authors for being nominated to the shortlists. Full descriptions of these books are included in the book lists.
Fiction
Eye by Marianne Micros 2864201
Late breaking by K.D. Miller 2839911
The innocents by Michael Crummey 2851977
The student by Cary Fagan 2868154
Five wives by Joan Thomas 2876222
Non-fiction
City of Omens by Dan Werb 2865580
Tiny Lights for Travellers by Naomi K Lewis 2865581
To the River by Don Gillmor 2868153
Sea Trial by Brian Harvey 2864200
Fryderyk Chopin by Alan Walker, which is coming soon to the CELA collection.
Service Tip
Our embossed braille books are printed specifically for you so that you have a fresh, clean copy. Once you have finished with the book you may keep it, pass it on, or recycle the book and the box it was delivered in. Please do not return these books to CELA.
Reminder: changes to sending book requests
We have changed our computer systems and website, and as a result, we no longer use the call numbers beginning with B (BR or BI) for braille books. Instead we are now using a book number for each title.
If you normally call, mail or email in your book requests, please list the book number for the book you wish to receive and the format you prefer. If you are leaving a voicemail, be sure to pause between numbers so we know where one number stops and the next one starts.
If you use the website celalibrary.ca to place holds or download books listed in Braille Books Acquired, you can search by title and author, or book number, and select your preferred format.
CELA's Braille magazine service offers over 20 magazines covering computers, health, sports, puzzles, music and other topics, with publications specifically for young adults and also men and women’s magazines. Please get in touch with Contact Centre staff if you would like to add, change or cancel a subscription.
Braille Books Acquired is now available by e-mail. If you would like to receive it in this format, please get in touch with the CELA Contact Centre at 1-855-655-2273, or by e-mail at help@celalibrary.ca.
Thank you.
Uncontracted braille
Fantasy
2130034 Terra Nova by Shane Arbuthnott. 1 v. of Braille, uncontracted (514 pages). The city of Terra Nova was founded on a lie: that the spirits who cross over from the spirit world are evil and must be captured for the safety of humanity. But Molly Stout and her family have learned that the spirits are thinking, feeling beings, enslaved to enrich the wealthy, especially the spirit-harvesting company Haviland Industries and its founder, Charles Arkwright. With the help of her family and the aetheric spirits Ariel and Legerdemain, Molly has been fighting to free the spirits. But Terra Nova runs on spiritual machinery, and for each factory they shut down, another takes its place. As Haviland Industries and the authorities of Terra Nova tighten their nets around Molly, she begins to question whether she is really making any difference or if her rebellion puts people and spirits at risk. Sequel to "Dominion". Grades 5-8. 2018.
Native Peoples
2451375 The Water Walker by Joanne Robertson. 1 v. of Braille (24 pages), uncontracted. This is the story of a determined Ojibwe Grandmother (Nokomis) Josephine Mandamin and her great love for Nibi (Water). Nokomis walks to raise awareness of our need to protect Nibi for future generations, and for all life on the planet. She, along with other women, men, and youth, have walked around all of the Great Lakes from the four salt waters - or oceans - all the way to Lake Superior. The water walks are full of challenges, and by her example Josephine inspires and challenges us all to take up our responsibility to protect our water and our planet for all generations. Grades 3-6. 2017.
Fiction for children
High interest, low vocabulary readers
2451404 Rook by Anthony McGowan. 4 v. of Braille. When Kenny and Nicky rescue a rook left for dead, Kenny is determined to keep it alive. Nicky doubts the scruffy bird will make it, but then Nicky has plenty else to worry about – a school bully, his first love, and the fact that everything is about to go very, very wrong. This book is particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers with an interest age of 13+ and a reading age of 8+. Grades 2-4 and older readers. 2017.
Fiction for young adults
Gay and lesbian fiction
2445528 Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. 4 v. of Braille. 16-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. And worse still, so will the privacy of 'Blue', the pen name of the boy he's been emailing. With messy dynamics emerging in Simon's once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon's life suddenly becomes just a little complicated. Now Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he's pushed out - without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he's never met. For junior and senior high readers. 2015.
2450500 If I was your girl by Meredith Russo. 4 v. of Braille. My name is Amanda. I'm 18. When you look at me, you might see that I'm pretty and popular, you might think my life is easy. But being me has never been easy, because I haven't always been Amanda. When I was born, I was named Andrew. Now, at my new school, I finally feel like myself. But do I owe my new friends the truth about my past? For Senior high readers. 2016.
General fiction
2449170 Give me five by Meg Cabot. 4 v. of Braille. It's nearly Mia's fifteenth birthday. A time when a princess should be getting ready for the biggest night of her life - the Senior Prom, escorted by her ultra-hottie boyfriend Michael. But nothing's going according to plan. Michael hasn't even invited her to the prom yet. Just as Mia cooks up a plan to change Michael's mind, disaster strikes. The kind of disaster that only a miracle can overcome. Sequel to "Mia goes fourth / Princess in waiting", followed by "Sixsational / Princess in training". For junior and senior high readers. 2007.
2449175 Sixsational by Meg Cabot. 4 v. of Braille. It's a new school year for the reluctant Princess of Genovia and Mia is facing a whole heap of new worries, like an English teacher who can't stand her. A potential eco-disaster in Genovia. And getting used to a new-look Boris who has turned into a total hottie over the summer! But worst of all is the loss of Michael, Mia's one true love. Just as Mia's feeling like it's all way too much, Grandmere and Lilly cook up a plan to save Genovia. Sequel to "Give me five / Princess in pink", followed by "Seventh heaven / Party Princess". For junior and senior high readers. 2007.
2449177 Seventh heaven by Meg Cabot. 5 v. of Braille. Poor Mia. Not only has she made a total ass of herself with J.P. (a.k.a. the Guy Who Hates It When They Put Corn in the Chili), trying to prove that she's a super-chilled party girl. She's also bankrupted the student council. Just as Mia's scared that she's lost Michael and a ton of money, Grandmere steps in up with a fund-raising plan. She's going to stage a musical in front of the world's hottest celebs - and the reluctant star will be none other than Mia! Sequel to "Sixsational / Princess in training", followed by "After eight / Princess on the brink". For junior and senior high readers. 2007.
Science fiction
2444902 Flawed by Cecelia Ahern. 7 v. of Braille. Celestine North lives a perfect life. She’s a model daughter and sister, she’s well-liked by her classmates and teachers, and she’s dating the impossibly charming Art Crevan. But then Celestine encounters a situation in which she makes an instinctive decision. She breaks a rule and now faces life-changing repercussions. She could be imprisoned. She could be branded. She could be found flawed. Followed by "Perfect". For junior and senior high readers. 2016.
2445038 Perfect by Cecelia Ahern. 7 v. of Braille. Celestine North lives in a society that demands perfection. After she was branded Flawed by a morality court, all her freedoms have gone. Since Judge Crevan has declared her the number one threat to the public, she has been on the run with the complicated, powerfully attractive Carrick. But Celestine has a secret, one that could bring the entire Flawed system crumbling to the ground. Sequel to "Flawed". For junior and senior high readers. 2017.
2385830 Catching fire by Suzanne Collins. 8 v. of Braille. After winning the brutal Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen returns to her district hoping for a peaceful future. But Katniss starts to hear rumours of a deadly rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that she and Peeta have helped to create. Sequel to "The Hunger Games", followed by "Mockingjay". For junior and senior high readers. 2009.
2445513 Matched by Ally Condie. 7 v. of Braille. On her 17th birthday, Cassia meets her match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life. Except he's not. In Cassia's society, officials decide who people love. How many children they have. When they die. But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy, she is determined to make some choices of her own. Followed by "Crossed". For senior high readers. 2011.
Fiction for adults
Canadian fiction
2851995 Small game hunting at the local coward gun club by Megan Gail Coles. 1 volume of Braille. February in Newfoundland is the longest month of the year. Another blizzard is threatening to tear a strip off downtown St. John's, while inside The Hazel restaurant, a storm of sex, betrayal, addiction, and hurt is breaking. Iris, a young hostess from 'round the bay, is forced to pull a double despite resolving to avoid the charming chef and his wealthy restaurateur wife. Just tables over, Damian, a hungover and self-loathing server, is trying to navigate a potential punch-up with a pair of lit customers who remain oblivious to the rising temperature in the dining room. Olive, a young Indigenous woman far from home, watches it all unfurl from the fast and frozen street. It is through Olive, largely unnoticed by the others, that we glimpse the truth behind the scathing lies and unrelenting abuse, and it is her resilience that proves most enduring in the dead of this winter's tale. 2019.
2851977 The innocents by Michael Crummey. 1 volume of Braille. A brother and sister are orphaned in an isolated cove on Newfoundland's northern coastline. Their home is a stretch of rocky shore governed by the feral ocean, by a relentless pendulum of abundance and murderous scarcity. Still children with only the barest notion of the outside world, they have nothing but the family's boat and the little knowledge passed on haphazardly by their mother and father to keep them. As they fight for their own survival through years of meagre catches and storms and ravaging illness, it is their fierce loyalty to each other that motivates and sustains them. But as seasons pass and they wade deeper into the mystery of their own natures, even that loyalty will be tested. Bestseller. 2019.
Family stories
2856838 Reproduction by Ian Williams. 1 volume of Braille. Felicia and Edgar meet as their mothers are dying. Felicia, a teen from an island nation, and Edgar, the lazy heir of a wealthy German family, come together only because their mothers share a hospital room. Felicia's mother dies and Edgar's "Mutter" does not - not right away, anyway. On her own in the cold white north, Felicia drops out of high school and takes a job as Mutter's caregiver. While Felicia and Edgar don't quite understand each other, and Felicia recognizes that Edgar is selfish, arrogant, and often unkind, they form a bond built on grief (and proximity) that results in the birth of a son Felicia calls Armistice. Army, for short. Some years later, Felicia and Army (now 14) are living in the basement of a home owned by Oliver, a man of Portuguese descent who works a gripe about his ex-wife into any conversation. Oliver has two kids, the teenaged Heather and the odd little Hendrix, and these three, along with Felicia and Army, form an unconventional family, except that Army wants to sleep with Heather, and Oliver wants to kill Army. Army has never met his father, but his fascination with his absent father - and his absent father's money - begins to grow as odd gifts from Edgar begin to show up (like a case of Jolly Ranchers and some red shoelaces). And Felicia, who has kept her distance from the man, feels Edgar's shadow looming over them. 2019.
General fiction
2448233 Theory by Dionne Brand. 1 v. of Braille (245 pages). Theory begins as its narrator sets out, like many a graduate student, to write a wildly ambitious thesis on the past, present, and future of art, culture, race, gender, class, and politics - a revolutionary work that its author believes will synthesize and thereby transform the world. While our narrator tries to complete this magnum opus, three lovers enter the story, one after the other, each transforming the endeavour: first, there is beautiful and sensual Selah, who scoffs at the narrator's constant tinkering with academic abstractions; then altruistic and passionate Yara, who rescues every lost soul who crosses her path; and finally, spiritual occultist Odalys, who values magic and superstition over the heady intellectual and cultural circles the narrator aspires to inhabit. Each galvanizing love affair (representing, in turn, the heart, the head and the spirit) upends and reorients the narrator's life and, inevitably, requires an overhaul of the ever larger and more unwieldy dissertation, with results both humorous and poignant. 2018.
2868154 The student by Cary Fagan. 1 volume of Braille. Set in Toronto, this short novel is a portrait of two pivotal times in the life of Miriam Moscowitz. The first section describes her experiences as a bright young university student in the 1950s and recounts the discrimination she faced as a woman; the second section revisits Miriam's life half a century later, exploring the changes in her community and within herself. 2019.
2446033 Motherhood by Sheila Heti. 1 v. of Braille (300 pages). Motherhood treats one of the most consequential decisions of early adulthood - whether or not to have children - with the intelligence, wit and originality that have won Sheila Heti international acclaim. 2018.
2451337 The honey farm: a novel by Harriet Alida Lye. 1 v. of Braille (521 pages). The drought has discontented the bees. But Cynthia knows how to breathe life back into her farm: offer it as an artists' colony with free room, board, and "life experience" in exchange for backbreaking labour. Silvia, a wide-eyed graduate and would-be poet, and Ibrahim, a painter distracted by constant inspiration, are drawn to Cynthia's offer, and soon, to each other. But something lies beneath the surface. The Edenic farm is plagued by events that strike Silvia as ominous: taps run red, scalps itch with lice, frogs swarm the pond. One by one, the other residents leave. As summer tenses into autumn, Cynthia's shadowed past is revealed. 2018.
2851996 Dual citizens by Alix Ohlin. 1 volume of Braille. Lark and Robin are half-sisters whose similarities end at being named for birds. While Lark is shy and studious, Robin is wild and artistic. Raised in Montreal by their disinterested single mother, they form a fierce team in childhood despite these differences. As they grow up, Lark excels at school and Robin becomes an extraordinary pianist. At seventeen, Lark flees to America to attend college, where she finds her calling in documentary films, and her sister soon joins her. Later, in New York City, the sisters find themselves tested: Lark struggles with self-doubt, and Robin chafes against the demands of Juilliard. Under pressure, their bond grows strained and ultimately broken, and their paths diverge. Lark leaves New York when she meets Lawrence Wheelock, a renowned filmmaker who becomes both her employer and occasional lover, while Robin returns to Canada. When Wheelock denies Lark what she hopes for most of all - a child - she is forced to re-examine a life marked by unrealized ambitions and thwarted desires. And as she takes charge of her destiny, Lark discovers that despite their complicated, oftentimes painful relationship, there is only one person she can truly rely on: her sister. 2019.
2404188 Liminal by Jordan Tannahill. 1 v. of braille (447 pages). At 11:04 a.m. on June 17, 2016, Jordan walks into his mother's bedroom, concerned that she hasn't yet wakened. As his eyes adjust to the half-light, he finds her lying motionless in bed with her mouth agape. In that instant he can't tell whether she is asleep or dead, and finds himself plunging headlong into the dark heart of human consciousness, where uncertain revelation lies in wait. From androids to cannibals to sex clubs, an unforgettable personal odyssey emerges, populated by a cast of sublime outsiders searching for the ever-elusive nature of self. Part ontological mystery, part millennial saga, "Liminal" is a riotous and moving portrait of a young man in uncertain times, a generation caught in suspended animation, and a son's enduring love for his mother. 2018.
Ghost and horror stories
2451487 The small hand: a ghost story by Susan Hill. 2 v. of Braille. Returning home from a visit to a client late one summer's evening, antiquarian bookseller Adam Snow takes a wrong turn and stumbles across the derelict old White House. Compelled by curiosity, he approaches the door and, standing before the entrance, feels the unmistakeable sensation of a small hand creeping into his own, 'as if a child had taken hold of it'. Intrigued by the encounter, he determines to learn more, and discovers that the owner's grandson had drowned tragically many years before. At first unperturbed by the odd experience, Snow begins to be plagued by haunting dreams, panic attacks, and more frequent visits from the small hand which become increasingly threatening and sinister. 2010.
Historical fiction
2447194 Days without end: a novel by Sebastian Barry. 4 v. of Braille. After signing up for the US army in the 1850s, aged barely seventeen, Thomas McNulty and his brother-in-arms, John Cole, go on to fight in the Indian wars and, ultimately, the Civil War. Having fled terrible hardships they find these days to be vivid and filled with wonder, despite the horrors they both see and are complicit in. Their lives are further enriched and imperilled when a young Indian girl crosses their path, and the possibility of lasting happiness emerges, if only they can survive. Winner of the 2016 Costa Book Award and the 2017 Walter Scott Prize. 2016.
2445233 The pale horseman by Bernard Cornwell. 5 v. of Braille. It is the lowest time for the Saxons. Defeated comprehensively by the Vikings who now occupy most of England, Alfred and his very small group of surviving followers retreat to the trackless marshlands of Somerset. Forced to move restlessly to escape betrayal or detection, they travel by small boats from one island refuge to another, hoping that they can regroup and find some more strength and support. Only Uhtred remains resolute. Determined to discover the enemy's strategies, he draws once again on his Viking upbringing, and attempts to enter the Viking camps and become accepted by their leaders in an attempt to uncover their plans. But the attractions of his many friends among the Vikings coupled with his disillusion with the Saxons' leadership and anger at Alfred's criticism of his own conduct, draw him back again to his allegiance to the Vikings. Sequel to "The Last kingdom", followed by "The Lords of the North". 2006.
2445240 The lords of the North by Bernard Cornwell. 5 v. of Braille. The year is 878 and the Vikings have been thrown out of Wessex. Uhtred, fresh from fighting for Alfred in the battle to free Wessex, travels north to seek revenge on renegade Danish lord Kjartan for his father's death. While Kjartan lurks in his formidable stronghold of Dunholm, the north is overrun by chaos, rebellion and fear. Together with a small band of warriors, Uhtred plans his attack on his enemy, revenge fuelling his anger. He is resolute on bloody retribution. But, he finds himself betrayed and ends up on a desperate slave voyage to Iceland. Sequel to "The pale horseman", followed by "Sword song". 2007.
2444881 Earthly joys by Philippa Gregory. 9 v. of Braille. Set in the 1600s and seen through the eyes of John Tradescant, gardener to the great men of the age. As gardener and confidante to Sir Robert Cecil, Tradescant is well placed to observe the social and political changes that are about to sweep through the kingdom. Moving to the household of the flamboyant Duke of Buckingham, Tradescant witnesses at first hand the growing division between Parliament and the people; and the most loyal of servants must find a way to become an independent squire. Followed by "Virgin earth". 1999.
2445242 Virgin earth by Philippa Gregory. 12 v. of Braille. John Tradescant the Younger has inherited his father’s unique collection of plants along with his unerring ability to nurture them. But as gardener to Charles I, he confronts an unbearable dilemma when England descends into Civil War. Fleeing from the chaos, John travels to the Royalist colony of Virginia in America. But the virgin land is not uninhabited. John’s plant hunting brings him to live with the native people, and he learns to love and respect their way of life just as it is threatened by the colonial settlers. Sequel to "Earthly joys". 2000.
2448168 Trinity by Conn Iggulden. 8 v. of Braille. It's 1454 and King Henry VI has remained all but exiled in Windsor Castle, struck down by his illness for over a year, his eyes vacant, his mind a blank. His fiercely loyal wife and Queen, Margaret of Anjou, safeguards her husband's interests, hoping that her son Edward will one day know the love of his father. Richard Duke of York, Protector of the Realm, extends his influence throughout the kingdom with each month that Henry slumbers. The Earls of Salisbury and Warwick make up a formidable trinity with Richard, and together they seek to break the support of those who would raise their colours in the name of Henry and his Queen. But when the King unexpectedly recovers his senses and returns to London to reclaim his throne, the balance of power is once again thrown into turmoil. Sequel to "Stormbird", followed by "Bloodline". 2014.
2448169 Bloodline by Conn Iggulden. 8 v. of Braille. Winter 1461. Richard Duke of York is dead, his ambitions in ruins, his head spiked on the walls of the city. Edward of March, now Duke of York, proclaims himself England's rightful king. Factions form and tear apart as snow falls. Through blood and treason, through broken men and vengeful women, brother shall confront brother, king shall face king. Two men can always claim a crown. Only one can keep it. Sequel to "Trinity", followed by "Ravenspur: Rise of the Tudors". 2015.
2447030 God of vengeance by Giles Kristian. 8 v. of Braille. Norway AD 785. A land of petty kingdoms and ambitious men. When King Gorm betrays Jarl Harald and puts his family to the sword, he makes a terrible mistake - he doesn't kill Harald's youngest son, Sigurd. Now on the run, hunted by powerful men and hiding in a sacred fen, Sigurd believes the gods have turned their backs on his family. Yet all men know that Odin is drawn to chaos and bloodshed, as a raven is to the slaughtered dead. And Sigurd means to spill blood. Followed by "Winter's fire". 2014.
2447032 Winter's fire by Giles Kristian. 7 v. of Braille. Norway, AD 785. Sigurd Haraldarson has proved himself a great warrior. He has gone a long way towards avenging the murder of his family. And yet the oath-breaker, King Gorm, who betrayed Sigurd's father, still lives. Sigurd knows that he and his band of warriors are not yet strong enough to confront the treacherous king. And so the fellowship venture west, to Sweden, to fight as mercenaries. And it is there that Sigurd's destiny will be forged. Sequel to "God of vengeance", followed by "Wings of the storm". 2016.
2065876 The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry. 7 v. of Braille. Set in Victorian London and an Essex village in the 1890's, "The Essex Serpent" has at its heart the story of two extraordinary people who are drawn together and torn apart. They are Cora Seaborne and Will Ransome. Cora is a well-to-do London widow who moves to the Essex parish of Aldwinter, and Will is the local vicar. They meet as their village is engulfed by rumours that the mythical Essex Serpent, once said to roam the marshes claiming human lives, has returned. 2016.
2851993 Lamedusa by Steven Price. In 1955, Giuseppe Tomasi, the last prince of Lampedusa, was diagnosed with advanced emphysema; shortly after, he began work on a novel that would fail to be published before his death four years later. When "The Leopard" at last appeared, it won Italy’s Strega Prize and became the greatest Italian novel of the century. This book explores the final years of Tomasi, as he struggles to complete his only novel. 2019.
Multi-cultural fiction
2851994 Immigrant city by David Bezmozgis. 1 volume of Braille. In the title story, a father and his young daughter stumble into a bizarre version of his immigrant childhood. A mysterious tech conference brings a writer to Montreal where he discovers new designs on the past in 'How it used to be.' A grandfather's Yiddish letters expose a love affair and a wartime secret in 'Little rooster.' In 'Roman's song,' Roman's desire to help a new immigrant brings him into contact with a sordid underworld. At his father's request, Victor returns to Riga, the city of his birth, and has his loyalties tested by the man he might have been in 'A new gravestone for an old grave.' And, in the noir-inspired 'The Russian Riviera,' Kostya leaves Russia to pursue a boxing career only to find himself working as a doorman in a garish nightclub in the Toronto suburbs. 2019.
Mysteries and crime stories
2448103 A kind of anger by Eric Ambler. 5 v. of Braille. A car hurtles down the driveway of a luxury villa in Switzerland. The driver is a young woman, Lucia Bernardi. Inside the house, police find the body of her lover on the bedroom floor. The dead man, Ahmed Fathir Arbil, was an Iraqi refugee, who has been tortured and killed. Lucia vanishes into hiding in the South of France. Piet Mass, a journalist for the World Reporter, sets out on Lucia's trail, hoping for a scoop. Soon he must decide whether to publish his story, which will lead to Lucia's exposure and almost certain death, or join her in executing a perilous scheme that could net them both a fortune. 2016.
2447288 61 hours by Lee Child. 7 v. of Braille. Winter in South Dakota. Blowing snow, icy roads, a tired driver. A bus skids and crashes and is stranded in a gathering storm. There's a small town twenty miles away, where a vulnerable witness is guarded around the clock. There's a strange stone building five miles further on, all alone on the prairie. There's a ruthless man who controls everything from the warmth of Mexico. Jack Reacher hitched a ride in the back of the bus. A life without baggage has many advantages. And crucial disadvantages too, when it means facing the arctic cold without a coat. But he's equipped for the rest of his task. He doesn't want to put the world to rights. He just doesn't like people who put it to wrongs. Sequel to "Gone tomorrow", followed by "Worth dying for". 2010.
2450368 Red bones by Ann Cleeves. 6 v. of Braille. When an elderly woman is shot in what appears to be a tragic accident, Shetland detective Jimmy Perez is called to investigate the mystery. The sparse landscape and the emptiness of the sea have bred a fierce and secretive people. As Jimmy looks to the islanders for answers, he finds instead two feuding families whose envy, greed and bitterness have lasted generations. Then there's another murder and, as the spring weather shrouds the island in claustrophobic mists, Jimmy must dig up old secrets to stop a new killer from striking again. Sequel to "White nights", followed by "Blue lightning". 2015.
2450369 Blue lightning by Ann Cleeves. 5 v. of Braille. A woman's body is discovered at the renowned Fair Isles bird observatory, with feathers threaded through her hair. The islanders react with fear and anger. Detective Jimmy Perez has no support from the mainland and must investigate the old-fashioned way. He soon realises that this is no crime of passion but a murder of cold and calculated intention. There's no way off the island until the storms abate and so the killer is also trapped, just waiting for the opportunity to strike again. Sequel to "Red bones", followed by "Dead water". 2015.
2448510 The black echo by Michael Connelly. 7 v. of Braille. One Sunday Harry Bosch gets a call out on his pager. A body has been found in a drainage tunnel off Mulholland Drive, Hollywood. And Harry knows him. Billy Meadows was a fellow tunnel-rat out in Vietnam, running against the VC and against the fear that they called the Black Echo. At first Meadows looks like just another overdose victim but then comes news that he may have been involved in a huge bank heist eight months earlier, a case which the FBI are investigating. When Harry goes to the Feds to reveal what he has learned, they dismiss both him and his evidence out of hand. Followed by "The black ice". 1997.
2450335 The Scarpetta factor by Patricia Cornwell. 12 v. of Braille. It is the week before Christmas. The effects of the credit crunch have prompted Dr. Kay Scarpetta to offer her services pro bono to New York City's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. But in no time at all, her increased visibility seems to precipitate a string of dramatic and unsettling events. Sequel to "Scarpetta", followed by "Port Mortuary". 2009.
2445991 Faithful place by Tana French. 8 v. of Braille. The course of Frank Mackey's life was set by one defining moment when he was 19 - the moment his girlfriend, Rosie Daly, failed to turn up for their rendezvous and failed to run away with him as they had planned. Frank never heard from her again. Twenty years on, Frank's still in Dublin, working as an undercover cop. But what happened to Rosie? Sequel to "The likeness", followed by "Broken harbour". 2011.
2444904 Closed casket: the new Hercule Poirot mystery by Sophie Hannah; based on the character created by Agatha Christie. 5 v. of Braille. Lady Athelinda Playford has planned a house party at her mansion in Clonakilty, County Cork. As guests arrive, Lady Playford summons her lawyer to make an urgent change to her will, one she intends to announce at dinner that night. She has decided to cut off her two children without a penny and leave her fortune to someone who has only weeks to live. Among Lady Playford’s guests are the famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, and Inspector Edward Catchpool of Scotland Yard. When a crime is committed Poirot must find the culprit. 2016.
2450165 The order of things by Graham Hurley. 6 v. of Braille. DS Jimmy Suttle is called to a brutal murder in the picturesque Devon village of Lympstone. Harriet Reilly, a local GP, has been found disembowelled in the bedroom of her partner, climate scientist Alois Bentner. Suttle's estranged wife, Lizzie, a journalist, investigates rumours of a local GP offering mercy killings to patients meeting certain criteria. The name of the GP is Harriet Reilly. Sequel to "Sins of the father". 2016.
2445378 The girls by Lisa Jewell. 5 v. of Braille. Pip and Grace move with their mother Clare into an apartment in Virginia Terrace, a picturesque communal garden square, and an oasis in urban London. On a midsummer night, as a festive neighbourhood party is taking place, preteen Pip discovers her thirteen-year-old sister Grace lying unconscious and bloody in a hidden corner of a lush rose garden. What really happened to her and who is responsible? 2016.
2448184 Good me bad me by Ali Land. 5 v. of Braille. Annie's mother is a serial killer. The only way she can make it stop is to hand her in to the police. As her mother's trial looms, the secrets of her past won't let Annie sleep, even with a new foster family and name - Milly. Now, surely, she can be whoever she wants to be. But Milly's mother is a serial killer. And blood is thicker than water. Good me, bad me. She is, after all, her mother's daughter. 2017.
2446893 Let me lie by Clare Mackintosh. 1 v. of Braille (636 pages). The police say it was suicide. Anna says it was murder. They're both wrong. Last year, Tom and Caroline Johnson chose to end their lives; one seemingly unable to live without the other. Their daughter Anna is struggling to come to terms with her parents' deaths, unwilling to accept the verdict of suicide. Now with a young baby herself, she feels her mother's absence keenly and is determined to find out what really happened to her parents. But as Anna digs up the past, someone is trying to stop her. Sometimes it's safer to let things lie, 2018.
2450476 The north water by Ian McGuire. 5 v. of Braille. Behold the man: stinking, drunk, brutal and bloodthirsty, Henry Drax is a harpooner on the Volunteer, a Yorkshire whaling ship bound for the hunting waters of the Arctic Circle in 1859. Also aboard is Patrick Sumner, an ex-army surgeon with a shattered reputation, no money and no better option than to embark as ship's medic on this ill-fated voyage. In India during the Siege of Delhi, Sumner thought he had experienced the depths to which a man can stoop and imagined he'd find respite on the Volunteer, but now, trapped in the wooden belly of the ship with Drax, he encounters pure evil and is forced to act. 2016.
2445888 Dissolution by C. J. Sansom. 8 v. of Braille. It is 1537 and Thomas Cromwell has ordered that all monasteries should be dissolved. Cromwell's Commissioner is found dead, his head severed from his body. Dr Shardlake is sent to uncover the truth behind what has happened. His investigation forces him to question everything that he himself believes. Followed by "Dark fire". 2007.
2447350 Dark fire by C.J. Sansom. 6 v. of Braille. 1540. When a friend's niece is charged with murder and threatened with torture for her refusal to speak, lawyer Matthew Shardlake is granted a reprieve to investigate the case if he will also accept a dangerous assignment to find a legendary weapon. Sequel to "Dissolution", followed by "Sovereign". 2005.
Romance
2450029 The High Tide Club by Mary Kay Andrews. 1 v. of Braille (871 pages). When ninety-nine-year-old heiress Josephine Bettendorf Warrick summons attorney Brooke Trappnell to her 20,000-acre barrier island home, Brooke is puzzled. Everybody in the South has heard about the eccentric millionaire mistress of Talisa, but Brooke has never actually met her. Josephine's cryptic note says she wants to discuss an important legal matter, but why enlist Brooke and not the prestigious Atlanta law firm she has used for years? Brooke travels to Shellhaven and meets the cagey Josephine, whose home is a crumbling pink mansion at the edge of the turquoise sea. Over the course of a few meetings, Josephine spins a tale of old friendships, dark secrets, betrayal, and a long-unsolved murder. She is hiring Brooke for two reasons: first, to protect her island from those who would despoil her land, and second, to help her make amends with the heirs of the women who were her closest friends, the girls of The High Tide Club, so named because of their youthful skinny dipping escapades: Millie, Ruth and Varina. When Josephine dies with her secrets intact, Brooke is charged with contacting Josephine's friends' descendants and bringing them together on Talisa for a reunion of women who've actually never met. Bestseller. 2018.
2444715 A vintage wedding by Katie Fforde. 7 v. of Braille. Beth, Lindy and Rachel are looking for new beginnings. They find themselves living in the same small Cotswold country town. So they set up in business together, organising stylish and perfectly affordable vintage weddings. Soon they are busy arranging other people's Big Days. What none of them know is that their own romances lie waiting, just around the corner. 2016.
2448596 The fortune hunter by Daisy Goodwin. 8 v. of Braille. In 1875, Sisi the Empress of Austria is the woman that every man desires and every woman envies. Beautiful, athletic and intelligent, Sisi has everything - except happiness. Bored with the stultifying etiquette of the Hapsburg Court and her dutiful but unexciting husband, Franz Joseph, Sisi comes to England to hunt. She comes looking for excitement and she finds it in the dashing form of Captain Bay Middleton, the only man in Europe who can outride her. Ten years younger than her and engaged to the rich and devoted Charlotte, Bay has everything to lose by falling for a woman who can never be his. But Bay and the Empress are as reckless as each other, and their mutual attraction is a force that cannot be denied. 2014.
2448488 A walk to remember by Nicholas Sparks. 3 v. of Braille. Landon Carter would never have dreamed of asking Jamie Sullivan out, but a twist of fate throws them together. In the months that follow, Landon breaks down Jamie's natural reserve and begins to get to know her, and to fall in love. Then he discovers that Jamie has a reason for not letting people close. 2013.
2449971 Fall from grace: a novel by Danielle Steel. 1 v. of Braille (485 pages). Sydney Wells' perfect life with her wealthy, devoted husband vanishes when he dies suddenly in an accident. Widowed at forty-nine, she discovers he has failed to include her in his will. With Andrew's vicious daughters in control of his estate, and no home or money, Sydney finds a job in fashion, despite her own designer daughters' warnings. Naïve, out of her element, and alone in a world of shady international deals and dishonest people, she is set up by her boss and finds herself faced with criminal prosecution. Husband, safety, protection, money, and reputation gone, faced with prison, Sydney must rebuild her life from the bottom to the top again, with honor, resourcefulness, and dignity. Bestseller. 2018.
Science fiction
2450597 An ocean of minutes by Thea Lim. 1 v. of Braille (499 pages). America is in the grip of a deadly flu pandemic. When Frank catches the virus, his girlfriend Polly will do whatever it takes to save him. She agrees to a radical plan - time travel has been invented in the future to thwart the virus. If she signs up for a one-way-trip into the future to work as a bonded labourer, the company will pay for the life-saving treatment Frank needs. Polly promises to meet Frank again in Galveston, Texas, where she will arrive in twelve years. But when Polly is re-routed an extra five years into the future, Frank is nowhere to be found. Alone in a changed and divided America, with no status and no money, Polly must navigate a new life and find a way to locate Frank, to discover if he is alive, and if their love has endured. Bestseller. 2018.
2451778 Just one damned thing after another by Jodi Taylor. 6 v. of Braille. When Madeleine Maxwell is recruited by the St. Mary's Institute of Historical Research, she discovers the historians there don't just study the past - they revisit it. But one wrong move and History will fight back to the death. And she soon discovers it's not just History she's fighting. Follow the tea-soaked disaster magnets of St. Mary's as they rattle around History. Because wherever the historians go, chaos is sure to follow. Followed by "A symphony of echoes". 2015.
Short stories
2864201 Eye by Marianne Micros. 1 volume of Braille. Set in ancient and modern Greece, and in contemporary Europe and North America, these tales tell of evil-eye curses, women healers, ghosts, a changeling, and people struggling to retain or gain power in a world of changing beliefs. Here you will find stories of a nymph transformed into a heifer, a young soldier who returns home to discover that his brother is a changeling, an ancient temple uncovered during the construction of a church, a betrayed woman lost in a labyrinth, and a wise woman confronting changes to her position when modern technology comes to her village. 2018.
2839911 Late breaking by K. D. Miller. 1 volume of Braille. Inspired by the work of Alex Colville, the linked stories in this book form a suite of portraits that evoke the paintings’ looming atmospheres and uncanny stillness while traveling deeply into their subjects’ vividly imagined lives. Throughout, the collection bears witness to the vulnerability of the elder heart, revealing that love, sex, and heartbreak are not only the domain of the young, and deftly rendering the conflicts that divide us and the ties that bind. 2018.
War
2444711 A girl in wartime by Maggie Ford. 6 v. of Braille. It's June 1914 and young Connie Lovell should be helping with the war effort. Instead, she applies for a job at the 'London Herald', where she meets the handsome editor Stephen Clayton. Nine years her senior, she knows her family won't approve, but she is helplessly drawn to him. Despite a past he won't talk about, he is undeniably attracted to her. But as WWI rages on, will Stephen be forced to enlist, and can their union survive the consequences? 2016.
Westerns
2448095 Kid Dynamite by Michael D. George. 2 v. of Braille. Sent from the safety of the distant east, government agent Scott Taylor arrives at Adobe Wells. His mission is to tackle the corruption which is rife in the arid landscape in which he finds himself. But Cody Carter has other plans. He has ruled Franklin County for years with his own small army of outlaws and bribed displaced Cheyenne warriors to do his killing for him. Notified of the coming of Taylor by a well-paid spy in Washington DC, Carter sends out his top gunman to stop the agent. Scott has no idea that Kid Dynamite is waiting to kill him in his own evil way. 2008.
Non-fiction for adults
Arts and entertainment
2450584 Sex and the city and us: how four single women changed the way we think, live, and love by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong. 1 v. of Braille (491 pages). Coinciding with the twentieth anniversary of the iconic television series, this book tells the story of how a columnist, two gay men - Darren Star and fellow executive producer Michael Patrick King - and a writers' room full of women used their own poignant, hilarious, and humiliating stories to launch a cultural phenomenon. Featuring interviews with the cast and writers, including star Sarah Jessica Parker, the book presents a behind-the-scenes look at a TV series that changed the way women everywhere see themselves. 2018.
Biography
2451385 Sounds and sweet airs: the forgotten women of classical music by Anna Beer. 7 v. of Braille. Since the birth of classical music, those women who dared to compose have been patronised, had their sex lives scrutinised and the veracity of their authorship questioned. "Sounds and Sweet Airs" reveals the hidden stories of eight remarkable composers, taking the reader on a journey from 17th-century Medici Florence to London in the Blitz. Revealing not just the lives and works of eight exceptional artists, historian Anna Beer also asks tough questions about the silencing of their legacy, which continues to this day. 2016.
2378042 A Newfoundlander in Canada by Alan Doyle. 1 v. of Braille (384 pages). Great Big Sea front man Alan Doyle describes leaving Newfoundland and discovering Canada for the first time. He turns his perspective outward from Petty Harbour toward mainland Canada, reflecting on what it was like to venture away from the comforts of home and the familiarity of the island. Often in a van, sometimes in a bus, occasionally in a car with broken wipers, "using Bob's belt and a rope found by Paddy's Pond" to pull them back and forth, Alan and his bandmates charted new territory, and he constantly measured what he saw of the vast country against what his forefathers once called the Daemon Canada. In a period punctuated by triumphant leaps forward for the band, deflating steps backward and everything in between, Alan's few established notions about Canada were often debunked and his own identity as a Newfoundlander was constantly challenged. Touring the country, he also discovered how others view Newfoundlanders and how skewed these images can sometimes be. Bestseller. 2017.
2864200 Sea trial by Brian Harvey. 1 volume of Braille. After a 25-year break from boating, Brian Harvey circumnavigates Vancouver Island with his wife, his dog, and a box of documents that surfaced after his father's death. John Harvey was a neurosurgeon, violinist, and photographer who answered his door a decade into retirement to find a sheriff with a summons. It was a malpractice suit, and it did not go well. Dr. Harvey never got over it. The box contained every nurse's record, doctor's report, trial transcript, and expert testimony related to the case. Only Brian's father had read it all - until now. In this beautifully written memoir, Brian Harvey shares how after two months of voyaging with his father's ghost, he finally finds out what happened in the O.R. that crucial night and why Dr. Harvey felt compelled to fight the excruciating accusations. 2019.
2444708 Barracoon: the story of the last "black cargo" by Zora Neale Hurston; edited by Deborah G. Plant; [foreword by Alice Walker]. 1 v. of Braille (257 pages). The true story of one of the last known survivors of the Atlantic slave trade - abducted from Africa on the last "Black Cargo" ship to arrive in the United States. In 1927, Zora Neale Hurston went to Plateau, Alabama, just outside Mobile, to interview eighty-six-year-old Cudjo Lewis. Of the millions of men, women, and children transported from Africa to America as slaves, Cudjo was then the only person alive to tell the story of this integral part of the nation's history. Bestseller. 2018.
2451249 Robin by Dave Itzkoff. 1 v. of Braille (1235 pages). From his rapid-fire stand-up comedy riffs to his breakout role in Mork & Mindy and his powerful Academy Award-winning performance in Good Will Hunting, Robin Williams was an innovative actor and comedian. He often came across as a man possessed, holding forth on culture, politics, and personal revelation with mercurial, tongue-twisting intensity as he inhabited and shed one character after another. In his comedy and in celebrated films like Dead Poets Society, Good Morning, Vietnam, The Fisher King, Aladdin, and Mrs. Doubtfire, Williams showcased his gift for improvisation, bringing his characters to life and using humor to seek deeper truths. Culture reporter Dave Itzkoff shows how Williams also struggled mightily with addiction and depression and with a debilitating condition at the end of his life that affected him in ways his fans never knew. Drawing on more than a hundred original interviews with family, friends, and colleagues, as well as extensive archival research, Itzkoff provides a portrait of a performer whose work touched so many of our lives. 2018.
Food and drink
2395551 Jamie's ministry of food: anyone can learn to cook in 24 hours by Jamie Oliver. 4 v. of Braille. Sixty years ago food was in short supply and malnutrition rates were high. "The Ministry of Food" was set up to teach the public how to make the best use of the food available to them. Fast forward to the present day, where we have unlimited choices and plenty of food, yet we're living in a world of junk food, additives and preservatives. Our war is now against obesity, as most people have little or no idea about how to cook and what makes a balanced diet. We need to learn from the past. We need to look back at the way our grandmothers and great-grandmothers cooked - wholesome, tasty food that was simple and quick to prepare. 2008.
2449399 Nigella bites: from family meals to elegant dinners - easy, delectable recipes for any occasion by Nigella Lawson. 3 v. of Braille. A collection of uncomplicated, fresh recipes that are easy to make after a busy day at the office, fun to linger over at weekends or to make with the kids, dreamy to look at and delicious to eat. Recipes include late breakfasts, party food, TV dinners, trailer trash and indoor picnics. 2002.
General non-fiction
2868153 To the river by Don Gillmor. 1 volume of Braille. In the spring of 2006, Don Gillmor travelled to Whitehorse to reconstruct the last days of his brother, David, whose truck and cowboy hat were found at the edge of the Yukon River just outside of town the previous December. David's family, his second wife, and his friends had different theories about his disappearance. Some thought David had run away; some thought he'd met with foul play; but most believed that David, a talented musician, who at the age of 48 was about to give up the night life for a day job, had intentionally walked into the water. Just as Don was about to paddle the river looking for traces, David's body was found, six months after he'd gone into the river. And Don's canoe trip turned into an act of remembrance and mourning. At least David could now be laid to rest. But there was no rest for his survivors. As his brother writes, "When people die of suicide, one of the things they leave behind is suicide itself. It becomes a country. At first I was a visitor, but eventually I became a citizen." In this tender, probing, surprising work, Don Gillmor brings back news from that country for all of us who wonder why people kill themselves. And why, for the first time, it's not the teenaged or the elderly who have the highest suicide rate, but the middle aged. Especially men. 2018.
2865581 Tiny Lights for travellers by Naomi K. Lewis. 1 volume of Braille. When her marriage suddenly ends, and a diary documenting her beloved grandfather's escape from Nazi-occupied Netherlands in the summer of 1942 is discovered, Naomi K. Lewis decides to retrace his journey to learn about her family history. Despite suffering from extreme disorientation and a lifetime of anxiety, she travels alone for the first time. Moving from Amsterdam to Lyon - relying on the marvels of GPS - she discovers family secrets and her own narrative as a second-generation Jewish Canadian. With vulnerability, humour, and wisdom, Lewis's memoir asks tough questions about her identity as a secular Jew, the accuracy of family stories, and the impact of the Holocaust on subsequent generations. How do immigrants weave their sense of identity into their chosen countries? Must we be able to locate ourselves within family and cultural geography to belong? 2019.
History
2445677 The long weekend: life in the English country house between the wars by Adrian Tinniswood. 8 v. of Braille. Life in the English country house during the 1920s and 1930s was by turns opulent and ordinary, noble and vicious. Tinniswood uncovers the truth about a world half-forgotten, draped in myth and hidden behind stiff upper lips. Drawing on hundreds of memoirs, on unpublished letters and diaries, on the eye-witness testimonies of belted earls and unhappy heiresses and bullying butlers, "The Long Weekend" gives a voice to the people who inhabited this world. 2016.
Politics and government
2451488 Political order and political decay: from the Industrial Revolution to the globalization of democracy by Francis Fukuyama. 16 v. of Braille. This is the story of how state, law and democracy developed after the French and American Revolutions. It is also the story of how, in the United States and in other developed democracies, unmistakable signs of decay have emerged. Fukuyama argues that the key to successful government can be reduced to three key elements: a strong state, the rule of law and institutions of democratic accountability. 2015.
Social issues
2865580 City of Omens by Dan Werb. 1 volume of Braille. Despite its reputation as a carnival of vice, Tijuana was, until recently, no more or less violent than neighboring San Diego, its sister city across the border wall. But then something changed. Over the past ten years, Mexico's third-largest city became one of the world's most dangerous. Tijuana's murder rate skyrocketed and produced a staggering number of female victims. Hundreds of women are now found dead in the city each year, or bound and mutilated along the highway that lines the Baja coast. When Dan Werb began to study these murders in 2013, rather than viewing them in isolation, he discovered that they could only be understood as one symptom among many. Environmental toxins, drug overdoses, HIV transmission: all were killing women at overwhelming rates. As an epidemiologist, trained to track epidemics by mining data, Werb sensed the presence of a deeper contagion targeting Tijuana's women. Not a virus, but some awful wrong buried in the city's social order, cutting down its most vulnerable inhabitants from multiple directions. Werb's search for the ultimate causes of Tijuana's femicide casts new light on immigration, human trafficking, addiction, and the true cost of American empire-building. It leads Werb all the way from factory slums to drug dens to the corridors of police corruption, as he follows a thread that ultimately leads to a surprising turn back over the border, looking northward. 2019.
Travel and geography
2451407 Southern Cross to Pole Star: Tschiffely's ride: 10,000 miles in the saddle from Argentina to Washington D.C. by Aimé Tschiffely. 8 v. of Braille. Aimé Tschiffely had an unlikely dream: to ride 10,000 miles from Buenos Aires to New York City. On April 23rd 1925, this quiet, unassuming schoolteacher, with little equestrian experience, set out on his epic journey. His only companions were two native Argentine horses called Mancha and Gato. Together the trio traversed the Pampas, scaled the Andes and swam across the crocodile-infested rivers of Colombia. Along the way they were assailed by vampire bats, mistaken for gods and stalked by hostile revolutionaries. After two harrowing years, the man who had originally been labelled 'a lunatic' by the press was accorded a ticker-tape parade when he rode triumphantly through the streets of New York. 2014.