With the second season of Downton Abbey currently airing for us Americans on PBS, I'm sure many of your teen patrons have been looking for a way to extend the experience into their reading lives.
School library Journal offers a list of great books to keep the Downton experience alive between episodes including our tie-in titles, THE WORLD OF DOWNTON ABBEY and BELOW STAIRS. And just for fun, we want to add a deliciously scandalous novel to this fine list: THE AMERICAN HEIRESS.
Of THE WORLD OF DOWNTON ABBEY School Library Journal says,
"Filled with lush photos, interesting facts, and insider perspectives, this volume will captivate YAs who long to linger in the stately halls of Downton Abbey."
See a sample spread here on the blog.
Of BELOW STAIRS School Library Journal says,
"Entertaining and poignant anecdotes (an employer with a fetish for viewing house staff in their curlers or the sad fate of a pregnant under-parlor maid fired for being seduced by her mistress's nephew) and vividly drawn characters are woven into a narrative that skillfully re-creates a moment in time."
See School Library Journal's full list of Downton-esque books here.
And a little something fun for the crafty crowd: Downton Abbey Paper Dolls!
Read moreAnd wrapping up our week of annual best books lists is Library Journal's Best Books of 2011! Here are all of the Macmillan titles you should check out (library pun totally intended):
Midnight Rising by Tony Horwitz
Tides of War by Stella Tillyard
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
Pulphead: Essays by John Jeremiah Sullivan
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
Now You See Me by S.J. Bolton
Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill
Wicked Autumn by G.M. Malliet
Stealing Mona Lisa by Carson Morton
Leviathans of Jupiter by Ben Bova
The Unremembered by Peter Orullian
The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi
The Children of the Sky by Verner Vinge
Eviction Notice by K'wan
Summer Rental by Mary Kay Andrews
Pacific Glory by P.T. Deutermann
The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin
You’re Next by Gregg Hurwitz
Strong at the Break by Jon Land
Excellent picks, Library Journal! If you readers want to see all of Library Journal's great picks from 2011, you can see their "best of" lists right here.
Read moreI know, I know; "Tuesday Fun Day" doesn't exactly rhyme, but we were out of the office on Monday and I simply refuse to skip Fun Day, so you're just going to have to deal.
First of all, I have to tell you that I spent the long weekend completely wrapped up in Nebula-nominee SHADES OF MILK AND HONEY. My only question: why did I wait so long to pick it up?! This book is 100% swoon-worthy. It's no surprise that The Salt Lake County Library System selected it as a Reader's Choice-nominee! In response to the news, author Mary Robinette Kowal's said,
"I adore libraries, so to be on this list is a real honor."
A big round of applause to the 2011 RWA Librarian of the Year, Wendy Crutcher! This honor is awarded to a librarian who demonstrates outstanding support of romance authors and the romance genre. Read her acceptance speech on her blog.
Vogue weighs in on this Summer's Best Beach Reads, including Deborah Kay Davies’ TRUE THINGS ABOUT ME and Daisy Goodwin’s THE AMERICAN HEIRESS.
Fans of Alyson Noël can enter to win an MP3 player with the EVERMORE (The Immortals Series, Book 1) audio book already uploaded!
Finally, as the library marketing world starts to say our farewells to Marcie Purcell of Random House who is retiring after 20 years of service to libraries, Talia is introducing a new Marcie into her life.
Librarians, meet Marcie, Talia's new scruff ball:

June is Audio Book Month and it's just in time for road trip season. If you're looking for some books to keep you entertained on your way to the Great Lakes, the Grand Canyon, or the beach, we have a few recommendations to keep your time in the car flying by on par with your speedometer.
How about packing into a fixer-upper for the summer with four ladies and all their baggage with Mary Kay Andrews' SUMMER RENTAL?
If you only made it to the beach, but were hoping for a summer abroad, Daisy Goodwin's THE AMERICAN HEIRESS will transport you to London circa 1893.
Looking for something that will keep you from falling asleep in the sun and waking up to a sunburn? Try Joseph Finder's BURIED SECRETS, an Editor's Pick at AudioFile Magazine.
Read moreNot sure which book to bring to the beach this summer? Let The New York Times help you out with their list of Books to Bury Yourself In. We've highlighted our favorites below.
The Times kicked off their list with THE GIRL WITH THE STURGEON TATTOO, "a nifty parody due late this summer. Its Goth heroine, Lizzy Salamander, spends Wednesdays kickboxing, Thursdays doing Krav Maga and Fridays memorizing pi. Its muckraking journalist hero, Blomberg, has been asked to stop investigating 'a vast ring of corruption, prostitution and ethnic cleansing involving the prime minister and the CEOs of Volvo, Saab and H&M' and instead write about Abba’s Christmas reunion concert."
"For those disinclined to laugh about the Larsson legacy, there is THE TATTOOED GIRL, a paperback devoted to topics like “Lisbeth Salander, the Millennium Trilogy, and My Mother.” This book is also a guide to Scandinavia’s next crime-writing stars, like the author of THE HYPNOTIST, Lars Kepler. THE HYPNOTIST is a debut novel. It’s the summer’s likeliest new Nordic hit."
"Norb Vonnegut offers a gleeful peek at the world of hedge fund moguls in THE GODS OF GREENWICH, a funny, savvy book that can be as absurd as its title."
"In GONE WITH A HANDSOMER MAN, by Michael Lee West, Teeny Templeton — called Possum Head as a child — catches her fiancé with two other women. Since this is a Southern story in the Steel Magnolia vein, Teeny’s first response is to throw peaches at him. Her second, better idea is to remember that peach seeds contain cyanide."
"THE AMERICAN HEIRESS is also far from fluff. Its author, Daisy Goodwin, has written a Gilded Age period piece (published in England as MY LAST DUCHESS) about an American girl from a Vanderbilt-like family who snags a British title, sort of the way Consuelo Vanderbilt did."
And finally, "BENEATH A STARLET SKY, an outrageously name-dropping novel set at the Cannes film festival, offers a giddier view of France. But it’s the closest thing to BERGDORF BLONDES that can be found this summer. And its authors, Amanda Goldberg and Ruthanna Khalighi Hopper, have that rare gift among today’s few viable chick-lit authors: a sense of humor."
Read moreDuring this month's EarlyWord Galley Chat the conversation turned toward Daisy Goodwin's scandalous and luxe, THE AMERICAN HEIRESS. @EarlyWord expressed some confusion about the recommendation, "Talia recommended AMERICAN HEIRESS? But, it doesn't sound like there's any gore in it!" Fortunately Stephanie Chase (@acornandnuts) was there to clarify the appeal, "American Heiress is like a delicious piece of cake." We agree.
Library Journal gave THE AMERICAN HEIRESS a starred review that says, "Top-notch writing brings to life the world of wealth on both sides of the Atlantic. This debut’s strong character development and sense of place will please fans of historical romance, including book club members."
Publishers Weekly calls the story "lush," "propulsive," and "fresh." They also caught up with Goodwin to discuss her inspirations for her magnetic characters, clashing cultures, and explosive costumes. Read the full interview here!
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