Have you taken a look at Kanopy lately? There is so much great content I can barely make up my mind when it comes to choosing something to watch. Below, I listed several dynamic pictures to suit many tastes and aesthetics. Gather your friends, your family, and the snacks you love. Pull on your jim jams, get comfy, and enjoy the miracle of light that is moving pictures. Classic movie night: The Outlaw (1943) starring Jane Russel and directed by Howard Hughes This is a Billy the Kid story, but the only thing people remember about this movie is Hughes’ supposedly engineered a bra to make s ..read more

One thing I love about working as a librarian is the ability to provide classic services and programs. It doesn’t get much classic-er than the good ol’ book club. We here at Mead run a variety of book clubs to suit an array of tastes and interests. We also provide circulating book kits (six to twelve copies of one title) available for public checkout. Below, I listed a few book club themes along with some titles that would make for excellent discussions in each category. Mystery Club Mead already has a fantastic mystery book club called Moonlight and Murder. Meetings occur every other ..read more

Two months in a row with a non-fiction book topping the most-requested items list – it certainly seems to be the season of the memoir this fall! And this time, it’s Britney Spears’ new book, The Woman in Me, that everyone wants a copy of. And on the fiction side, we have quite a few familiar names as the big authors release new books in time for holiday gift-giving. At the top of that list is Kristin Hannah’s The Women. Get on the waitlists ASAP, and while you wait, check out the similar titles we’ve picked out below! The Women by Kristin Hannah When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “F ..read more

Ann Patchett’s new novel is at the top of our most popular books this month. Set right next door in Northern Michigan, it’s a moving exploration of the relationship between generations, between parents and children, and of how the past informs our view of the present. In non-fiction, we have an investigation into the science of aging – not only how to live longer but how to live better. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family’s orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a ..read more

It’s no surprise to find a novel that’s been chosen for Oprah’s Book Club at the top of our most-requested books, and that’s the case with The Covenant of Water. I was pretty surprised at our top nonfiction book, however – I don’t think I’ve ever seen a travel book so high up on the list before! It does make sense, however, given the time of year – this might be the perfect season to get out for some Wisconsin road trip fun. The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese Spanning the years 1900 to 1977, The Covenant of Water is set in Kerala, on South India’s Malabar Coast, and follows three gener ..read more

Elin Hilderbrand has a new novel out, and that’s topping our fiction holds right now – not too surprising as she’s a very popular author! And on the non-fiction side, we have the dramatic story of an 18th-century shipwreck and the chaos that ensued after one group of survivors washed ashore… only to be followed six months later by a second group accusing them of murder! The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand Hollis Shaw’s life seems picture-perfect. She’s the creator of the popular food blog Hungry with Hollis and is married to Matthew, a dreamy heart surgeon. But after she and M ..read more

I was not familiar with the author of this month’s top fiction book, Jenny Jackson, and taking a look, it looks like this is her debut novel! It’s pretty impressive to end up at the top of the most-requested list with your first book. And in non-fiction, we have a followup book to the popular Evicted by Matthew Desmond. Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson Darley, the eldest daughter in the well-connected old money Stockton family, followed her heart, trading her job and her inheritance for motherhood but giving up far too much in the process; Sasha, a middle-class New England girl, has married ..read more

It’s amazing – this month we have neither a thriller nor a memoir! Instead, our very popular new fiction book is Jojo Moyes’ new novel Someone Else’s Shoes, which seems poised to be a popular book club pick in the future as well. And for non-fiction, The Nazi Conspiracy is topping our charts, filled with spies, assassins, and political intrigue. Get on the waitlists now, and check out our read-alikes while you wait! Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes Who are you when you are forced to walk in someone else’s shoes? Nisha Cantor lives the globetrotting life of the seriously wealthy, until her h ..read more

Every December, hundreds of librarians from across the country vote for their favorite books of the year. This year’s picks include a romance in which the heroine’s fiercely career-driven outlook doesn’t get sacrificed for her love interest, a genetic scifi thriller, and a locked-room mystery set in an upscale hotel. Top Pick: Book Lovers by Emily Henry Nora Stephens’ life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom ..read more

Every month, librarians from across the country pick the 10 upcoming releases they’re most excited to read. This month’s picks include a thriller set in Paris, a story about “the other woman” in Agatha Christie’s marriage, two queer romances, and a mystery revolving around the theft of a Stradivarius violin. Top Pick: The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley Foley hits it out of the ballpark with this solid thriller set in a Paris apartment building. Jess goes looking for her brother, but finds only the smell of bleach and a broken St. Christopher medal lodged in the floorboards. Written in short ch ..read more