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Historical Fiction July 2024
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| Rednecks by Taylor BrownSet in 1920-1921 against the backdrop of the West Virginia Mine Wars, Rednecks follows a group of coal miners donning red bandanas and fighting back against unfair labor practices. The compelling story focuses on a variety of characters, including a Black World War I veteran, a Lebanese American doctor, and Ireland-born labor organizer Mother Jones. Read-alikes: Émile Zola's classic novel Germinal; Wiley Cash's The Last Ballad. |
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| Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. ChungUsing her family history, debut novelist Eve J. Chung depicts an aristocratic mother and three daughters in 1948 China after the men of the family flee the communists, leaving them behind. But the quartet fight for survival, traveling from the country to British Hong Kong and finally Taiwan, as the middle daughter dreams of more. Read-alikes: Afterlives by Abdulrazak Gurnah; The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave. |
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| 1795: The Order of the Furies by Niklas Natt och DagIn a Sweden roiled by revolution, amputee war veteran Mikel Cardell and investigator Cecil Winge search for a depraved killer and try to find their missing friend Anna. The final book in the Bellman Noir trilogy, this is "a brutal, satisfying end to a superior series" (Publishers Weekly). To best appreciate the history of the books, newcomers should start with the 1st entry, 1793: The Wolf and the Watchman. Read-alikes: The Alienist by Caleb Carr; the Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries by C.S. Harris. |
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| Spitting Gold by Carmella LowkisTwenty-something Baroness Sylvie Devereux agrees to help her estranged younger sister with one last spiritualist con in 1866 Paris. They target the de Jacquinots, who believe they are being haunted by an ancestor...and they just might be right. This "twisty debut plays with the conventions of the gothic novel" (Kirkus Reviews) and depicts intriguing relationships and compelling characters. Read-alikes: The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner; The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas. |
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| Ella by Diane RichardsThis "electrifying" (Publishers Weekly) first novel focuses on three pivotal years in the life of legendary singer Ella Fitzgerald. In 1932, at the age of 15, Ella begins working for the mob after her mother dies. Later, she ends up at an infamous reform school for girls. Then in 1934, she's on stage for the Apollo Theatre's famed amateur night, preparing to dance. Read-alikes: Can’t We Be Friends by Denny S. Bryce and Eliza Knight; On the Rooftop by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton. |
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| The Library Thief by Kuchenga ShenjéIn Victorian England, white-passing Florence Granger, who her father brought home from Jamaica as a baby, is kicked out after a scandal. Having learned bookbinding from him, she cleverly acquires a position restoring rare books in the forbidding Rose Hall. But events lead her to believe that Lord Belfield's late wife was murdered. For fans of: The Fraud by Zadie Smith; The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. |
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| The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda SkenandoreDr. Tucia Hatherley, who gave up medicine after a fatal mistake, works in a factory and raises her disabled son in 1900. Desperate for more money, she joins a traveling medicine show, taking her across Texas where she forms something of a family with the performers. But there are still dangers to face in this compelling, well-researched novel peopled with complex, believable characters. |
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| The Safekeep by Yael van der WoudenIn this "brilliant debut" (Kirkus Review), 30-year-old Isabel lives by routine and discipline in the Dutch countryside in 1961, carefully minding the home she grew up in. Then her older brother brings his graceless new girlfriend Eva to stay with her while he travels. For fans of: gripping, deftly plotted sensual stories. |
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| Familiaris by David WroblewskiIn this sweeping saga, the prequel to the bestseller The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, John Sawtelle and his new wife Mary travel with their friends and dogs to rural Wisconsin in 1919 to make new lives. John and Mary raise two boys (and a lot of dogs) as the novel follows the family over the next three decades in this 2024 Oprah Book Club pick. Read-alikes: North Woods by Daniel Mason; French Braid by Anne Tyler; Lies and Sorcery by Elsa Morante. |
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Bellydance
Wednesday, July 24,
11:00am
Midwest City
Raqs sharqi, or bellydance as it is referred to in the West, is a dance style that comes from the Middle East. This low-impact class will teach basic bellydance steps to get you moving and grooving. Benefits of bellydance include improved cardiovascular health, core stabilization, balance, muscle strength, and flexibility. Dance has been shown to help keep the mind sharp, relieve stress, and boost mood. P.S. Bellydance is for every body! This class is for all ages, all levels of experience, and all bodies.
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Healthier Soda Alternatives with Natural Grocers
Thursday, July 25,
6:00pm
Village
Soda, pop, cola -- whatever you call it -- contains a mishmash of chemicals and enough sugar to ruin your good health. Learn tips in this class to break the sugar addiction and improve your health and the health of your family. Free samples will be available.
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Bingo Friday!
Friday, July 26,
2:00pm
Almonte
Join us every Friday for bingo! This family friendly event will feature trivia, jokes, and facts on the theme of the week!
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Neighborhood Arts: Oklahoma Violin Ensemble at Rodeo Cinema
Friday, July 26,
2:00pm
Rodeo Cinema
The Oklahoma Violin Ensemble invites you to experience the beauty of live string music. We want to share the string music that changed our lives, as we are grateful and blessed to have learned to play the violin at an early age. Our goal is to give young children the opportunity to experience what we experienced: the beautiful resonance of stringed instruments and the power it holds as a musical language—a universal language with no boundaries. We will perform kids' favorite soundtracks from movies and TV shows, as well as your grandparents' favorites! This event is held at multiple libraries. Funded in part by Arts Council Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Arts Council, and National Endowment for the Arts.
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Swing and Foxtrot Dance Adventure
Saturday, July 27,
10:30am
Edmond
This fourth week of our Summer Dance Adventure for teens & adults, we welcome Femeya Cole from Adelante Dance Studio in Moore, who will teach us two popular ballroom dances - Swing & Foxtrot. Swing, a lively dance that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s-1950s, has a bouncy character. Foxtrot, which originated in New York City when a vaudeville choreographer named Harry Fox slowly "trotted" across the dance floor, is a great social dance, easy to lead and to follow. Both swing and foxtrot are traditionally danced to Big Band music. Dress comfortably and bring water! PLEASE cancel your registration if you later realize you cannot attend, so someone else can dance in your place. Your registration will hold your place until five minutes after the listed start time of the program. At 0:05, any remaining spaces will be given to those who are on the waitlist and present at the library, in the order they registered. There will be a limited number of seats available on a first come, first served basis for those teens or adults who would like to watch only.
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Western Legends and Modern Legacies in Conjunction With the Society of Urban Poets
Monday, July 29,
6:00pm
Ralph Ellison
This isn't just any reading program – it's your ticket to the dusty trails, thrilling tales and the real-life legends of the West. These icons aren’t just figments of imagination; they’re flesh and blood heroes and heroines whose daring deeds shaped the frontier and our culture today. We’ll tell you how it all began. You tell us how it ends! This presentation brings in the Code of the West and talks about some of the heroes that made the West what it was, and how to bring that into today. There will be audience participation. After tales of the old west, you can join the Society of Urban Poets for some poetry. They meet the last Monday of each month to share poetry, and all are welcome.
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Mindful Skills for Relaxation - Bargello Stitch Can Koozies
Tuesday, July 30,
6:30pm
Warr Acres
Join us monthly to learn new skills that will build mindfulness and lead to deeper relaxation during your “me” hours. This month we will be creating a koozie using plastic canvas and a 1960's style of needlepoint called Bargello. Take home a retro koozie and learn a fast and relaxing craft to pursue in the future.
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Resources at Your Library
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America's GenealogyBank
Search over 300 years of historical U.S. newspapers, books, pamphlets, local histories, military records, funeral sermons, land grants, birth and marriage records, and more.
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Cypress Resume
Create professional resumes, cover letters and reference lists in minutes by simply entering basic information about yourself.
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Fold3
Provides access to historic U.S. military records, including the stories, photos and personal documents of the men and women who served. You can also search archives for African Americans, Native Americans and the U.S. Bureau of Investigation case files, historical newspapers, historical documents, U.S. Census records, U.S. naturalization records, and city directories.
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Metro Grows
Metro Grows is a program that lends gardening tools from the library, provides library events geared towards gardening, and provides Discovery Backpacks for kids ages 4-12.
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HeritageHub
The largest and most comprehensive collection of newspaper obituaries and death notices. Extensive editorial review of all newspaper sections ensures thorough selection of obituaries for easy access. An easy-to-use interface allows searching by name, date range, or text such as institutional name, social affiliation(s), geographic location(s), philanthropic activities, etc. Formerly known as America's Obituaries & Death Notices.
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Contact your librarian for more great books! |
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