The County Library discussion

We’re back at it again! It’s time for the 2024 Fall Round of Reader’s Choice.

Here are the nominees:
The Bandit Queens
Beyond That, the Sea
The Blonde Identity
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them
Forager: Field Notes for Surviving a Family Cult
Frontier
The Hike
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise
Murder in Postscript
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide
The Quiet Tenant
The September House
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library
You, with a View

Visit your local branch to see the displays or check Libby for our digital copies!

Visit our Reader’s Choice page to see past winners and more about the program: https://www.slcolibrary.org/we-recomm.... Online voting will be available after July 1.

Can’t wait to hear what you all think!

Currently Reading:

Read:
The September House – 4.5
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide – 4
The Long March Home – 4
The Quiet Tenant – 4
A Fever in the Heartland – 4
Ink Blood Sister Scribe – 3.75
The Seven Year Slip – 3.5-4
Murder in Postscript – 3.5
The Bandit Queens – 3.5
The Blonde Identity – 3
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise – 3
Sisters of the Lost Nation – 3
The Hike – 3
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library – 3
Beyond That, the Sea – 3
Forager: Field Notes for Surviving a Family Cult – 3
Frontier – 2 (DNF)

Interested:
(done)

Maybe:
(done)

Not likely:
Camp Damascus (3.96)
The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession (4.20)
You, with a View (4.13)

+ on hold
++ checked out
(x.xx) average GR rating

They're all available on audio!! Hooray!!

But some are 15+ weeks out....so I really hope they add some copies, lol.

It usually ends up being less than that, but yeah. I found two that were available right away.

Cool.

I've already read one of them this year. The other 19 are on the list.

Finished my first one: The Hike. Nice adventure; relied on dumb decision making.

Finished Beyond That, the Sea.
Not really my thing.... even though it seemed like it should be. Character driven, which is fine except it seemed like you only got glimpses of the characters and they were all such desperately unhappy people.
There was ultimately growth and healing so thank heavens for that.

Running List
Beyond That, the Sea- 3

The Long March Home was rough but not too depressing.

The Long March Home felt very Pearl Harbor - the movie from the early 2000s.
The reviews are interesting... apparently it's a Christian publisher and yeah ...if you go into it thinking you're reading a Christian novel you're probably not going to be happy.

Running List
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Long March Home - 4

I guess that would explain the clean language.

Yeah but still pretty gritty for Christian publishing.
In stark contrast, You with a View is decidedly NOT full of clean language. I made it to 44% and bailed. I could maybe get past the swearing (though it felt like a lot) but the constant sexual talk ... not for me.
So if you prefer clean reads you may want to skip this one.

Running List
Beyond That, the Sea- 3
The Long March Home - 4
You with a View - dnf

I have previously read:
A Fever in the Heartland (5 stars)
and The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise (4 stars)

I have The Blonde Identity on hold.

Already on my TBR:
The Bandit Queens
Beyond That, the Sea
and The Seven Year Slip

Added to my TBR: Murder in Postscript

Possibly Interested in:
The Quiet Tenant
The Teachers
What You are Looking For Is In the Library

The Bandit Queens
Beyond That, the Sea
The Blonde Identity
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them
Forager: Field Notes for Surviving a Family Cult
Frontier
The Hike
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise
Murder in Postscript
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View

Ink Blood Sister Scribe was pretty good, and I am liking September House.

Two big thumbs up for The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise. I read it earlier this year and would highly recommend it.

I also previously read Beyond That, the Sea, also a good one.

I loved September House. Definitely more horror and kind of gruesome at times with ghosts with missing body parts and stuff.

Here's my list!

The Blonde Identity - 4 stars
Forager - 3.5 stars
The Hike - 4 stars
The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise - 4 stars
The Seven Year Slip - 5 stars
What You Are Looking for Is in the Library - 5 stars (my favorite so far)
You with a View - 4 stars

TBR:
The Teachers
Sisters of the Lost Nation

September House was not my jam.

Running List
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Long March Home - 4
You with a View - dnf
September House - 2.5-3 (can't decide)

Here's my stars and thoughts!

Camp Damascus: 5 stars (This really was just a delightful horror book for me and I thought it was a great mix of creepy, humor and heartfelt feelings.)

Forager: 3 stars (I love a cult book-- this one fell flat for me but others liked it.)

Frontier: 4 stars (I enjoyed the structure of this book and enjoyed the gritty western feel at the beginning.)

Ink Blood Sister Scribe: 4 stars (Who can resist a fantasy world with powerful books? Not me.)

Murder in Postscript: 3 stars (A cute historical mystery, with a hint of future romance.)

The Seven Year Slip: 4 stars (I enjoyed the growth in the characters in this romance.)

What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: 5 stars (An undeniably adorable and heartfelt collection of characters finding their best selves/lives.)

On my TBR:
A Fever in the Heartland
The September House

The Hike was fine.

Running List
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Long March Home - 4
You with a View - dnf
September House - 3? 2.5?
The Hike - 3

What You Are Looking For is cute but I started getting bored after about the third person.

I loved the idea of You With a View. Knew it wouldn't be anything deep, but I generally like this kind of book - except I really didn't. Didn't like the language and it just kept being a book about sex instead of building a relationship between the 2 in the romantic match. It could have been so much more. Only getting a 2 because of the idea of it.

I enjoyed the Bandit Queens. I definitely don't agree with a lot of things that the women did. I understood why they did it. There was just something about it that intrigued me as I went along.

The Bandit Queens - 4
Beyond That, the Sea
The Blonde Identity
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland:
Forager:
Frontier
The Hike
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise
Murder in Postscript
Murder Your Employer:
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers:
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View - 2

I quite enjoyed Murder in Postscript. It was funny because I was struggling to get into it. I put it down and read a different book and then picked it up and started over again and this time I liked it from the start.

Bandit Queens was pretty good. Near the beginning, it feels like it veers off on a sudden tangent, and then it got back on track.

Really enjoyed "The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise"

The Bandit Queens - 4
Beyond That, the Sea
The Blonde Identity - 3
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland:
Forager:
Frontier
The Hike
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise - 4
Murder in Postscript - 4
Murder Your Employer:
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers:
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View - 2

Ellen wrote: "We’re back at it again! It’s time for the 2024 Fall Round of Reader’s Choice.

Here are the nominees:
The Bandit Queens
Beyond That, the Sea
[book:The Blonde Identi..."

"Other" got taken off the library list on the voting page. Does that mean those of us outside of Salt Lake County are not supposed to vote anymore?

I had assumed voting was for county residents only.

Camp Damascus was an interesting concept but felt rushed and incomplete.

Running List
Beyond That the Sea - 3
The Long March Home - 4
You with a View - dnf
September House - 2.5
The Hike - 3
Camp Damascus - 3

Audrey wrote: "I had assumed voting was for county residents only."

I thought so too and said something about it some time ago. I think it was one of the librarians who told me about "other" and encouraged me to vote. So I had been voting from then till this round.

Tanner and Louise is good/fine. Now waiting for holds.

Forager was interesting but felt very unresolved and more like a novel than a memoir. I'm not saying these weren't her experiences, just that the tone of the book didn't feel like I expected.
Also, I do not recommend reading this back to back with Camp Damascus. Gets a little confusing lol.

Running List
Beyond That the Sea - 3
The Long March Home -4
You with a View - dnf
September House - 2.5
The Hike - 3
Camp Damascus - 3
Forager - 3

Patty wrote: "Audrey wrote: "I had assumed voting was for county residents only."

I thought so too and said something about it some time ago. I think it was one of the librarians who told me about "other" and e..."


Audry was right that this is a program for County Library patrons. If we cannot verify that a voter has a Salt Lake County Card, their votes will not be counted. With the ease of online voting, this is to discourage any authors or fan groups from submitting a large number of votes for their favorite nominee (if they aren't in our County!). In the past, the "Other" vote entries were only counted if the person voting had an active library card. I'm sorry you were misinformed!

However, I love hearing your feedback on the titles in the Goodreads discussion group so I hope you continue to give us your ratings! It's super helpful to get everyone's insight and thoughts on the titles as we continue to work to pick a fun and diverse list of titles twice a year.

Ellen wrote: "Patty wrote: "Audrey wrote: "I had assumed voting was for county residents only."

I thought so too and said something about it some time ago. I think it was one of the librarians who told me about..."

I will. I just appreciate that you put the list online and that I can talk about it here. I really miss the library system there and Reader's Choice was one of the big reasons. I have been reading them for about 26 years! I was introduced to them by a South Salt Lake librarian in the building where my husband was working at the time and have looked forward to each new list every year except the first couple after I moved here when I didn't know you could get it online.

I had mixed feelings about Forager. I agree with others of having a hard time with how it was written. It actually made me worry about my writing as sometimes it felt kind of like my own! However, I also kind of listened through it as if I were listening to as if I were listening to a refugee story since I read quite a few of those and understand the difficulty for them. Growing up like she did will definitely have her doing things differently.

The Bandit Queens - 4
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Blonde Identity - 3
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland:
Forager - 3
Frontier - 1
The Hike
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise - 4
Murder in Postscript - 4
Murder Your Employer:
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers:
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View - 2

I finished with, but didn't finish Frontier. I was slogging through it big time and found it just depressing and uninteresting.

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "Yeah but still pretty gritty for Christian publishing.
In stark contrast, You with a View is decidedly NOT full of clean language. I made it to 44% and bailed. I could maybe get past the swearing (..."

I once read a book that was Christian Fiction Romantic Suspense. It was really jarring when after bombs went off in an airport concourse and they were fleeing for their lives to take a minute - while hiding somewhere in the airport - for the heroine to try to proselytize to the hero.

They didn't even go into it more naturally, with like her thanking God for their escape, and him scoffing. It was just action, hide. You know, you should really let Jesus into your life. It came out of nowhere, and then I did some digging, and realized I was reading a Christian Fiction Romantic Suspense. lol.

I finished The Hike. I liked it, but I don't really have anything to say about it. lol

The Bandit Queens - 4
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Blonde Identity - 3
Camp Damascus
A Fever in the Heartland:
Forager - 3
Frontier - 1
The Hike - 4
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise - 4
Murder in Postscript - 4
Murder Your Employer:
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers:
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View - 2

I had to step away from this for a bit and I don't know if I'll finish all of them this time.
but
I finished Fever in the Heartland today. Oh my gosh.
fascinating, infuriating, and honestly terrifying. The parallels to current politics and rhetoric are freaking me out.

Running List
Beyond That the Sea - 3
The Long March Home - 4
You with a View - dnf
September House - 2.5
The Hike - 3
Camp Damascus - 3
Forager - 3
Ink Blood Sister Scribe- didn't finish but might try again eventually
The Teachers - dnf
Fever in the Heartland - 5

Seven Year Slip was fairly good. How to Murder Your Employer finally came in.

And all the holds are coming in at once. Of course.

Audrey wrote: "And all the holds are coming in at once. Of course."

It's THE LAW of library holds when you have more than one hold. It's as if the gremlins of the library system are saying "Hey, George, let's get her with this batch and see what she does!" "I dunno Celeste. She's pretty good. Still, this might do her in!" And they share an evil laugh.

So true. At least I can do the deliver later option now.

Finally just shelved Camp Damascus. Ick.

Murder Your Employer was interesting. Excellent narration.
The Blonde Identity is more rom-com than thriller.
The Quiet Tenant was really intense.
Murder in Postscript is cute; historical cozy mystery.

Patty wrote: "Finally just shelved Camp Damascus. Ick."

The more I looked into it, the more it looked like it wasn't my jam.

Lol Debbie about holds.

I liked Murder Employer. Thought it was funny there were several references to Hungary since we listened to it in part while we were in Hungary.

The Bandit Queens - 4
Beyond That, the Sea - 3
The Blonde Identity - 3
Camp Damascus - 1
A Fever in the Heartland:
Forager - 3
Frontier - 1
The Hike - 4
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Long March Home
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise - 4
Murder in Postscript - 4
Murder Your Employer - 4
The Quiet Tenant
The September House - 3
The Seven Year Slip
Sisters of the Lost Nation
The Teachers:
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library - 3
You, with a View - 2

Fever in the Heartland was pretty good. Now on Sisters of the Lost Nation, which has a narrator with a very scratchy voice and is hard to understand at times.

Looks like I am done. I quit Frontier; it was just kind of boring. The sci fi picks lately have not been that great.

My instincts were pretty accurate. I decided not to read three of them.

Final ratings and ranking in message 2.

The online voting quit working. I submitted a few books and now nothing happens when I hit submit. If I refresh or restart the computer, it goes back to the last book I tried to submit. Has anyone else seen this?