Library Lines ...

March is here and with it comes the annual time change where we lose an hour. Sunday, March 13, will be the beginning of Daylight Saving Time, when our clocks "spring forward."

I mentioned last week that newly released books have started coming in here at Rhoads Memorial Library, thanks to a shipping snafu that has been resolved. I listed books written by authors whom our patrons enjoy; this week a variety of works by lesser-known authors are featured, along with a brief synopsis. They include:

-"Her Hidden Genius" by Marie Benedict is a historical novel about Rosalind Franklin, a chemist tasked with unearthing the secrets of DNA. After years of study, the double helix structure of DNA reveals itself to her with perfect clarity. Little did she know that the three men with whom she worked would take credit for her discovery.

-"Beautiful Little Fools" by Jillian Cantor revisits the Jazz Age world of Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby", retelling the story from three women's perspectives. Their stories unfold in the years leading up to the August 1922 day when Jay Gatsby is killed. Each woman is pulled into his romantic obsession, with devastating consequences for all of them.

-"Small World" by Jonathan Evison finds several passengers forced together by fate on a speeding, modern train. In exploring their lives and those of their ancestors, 170 years of American nation-building is covered. The California gold rush and development of the transcontinental railroad is viewed from varying perspectives.

-"Just Like the Other Girls" by Claire Douglas is a psychological thriller that finds Una Richardson hired as a companion to Mrs. Elspeth McKenzie, a wealthy elderly lady. Una believes the home will be a comforting haven, only to learn that two girls previously employed in that position had fates that no one will talk about. What is the family hiding?

-"The Leopard is Loose" by Stephen Harrigan finds the fragile, 1952 postwar tranquility of five-year-old Grady McClarty's world shattered when a leopard escapes from the Oklahoma City Zoo. While local residents are fearful and ever vigilant, Grady finds his imagined fears giving way to real world terror.

-"The Last Dance of the Debutante" by Julia Kelly is set in 1958 Great Britain, where it is announced that it will be the last year for debutantes to curtsy before young Queen Elizabeth and officially come out into society. Three very different young women "do the Season", which is a grueling string of balls and cocktail parties. Each woman strives to find love, truith, and herself.

-"The Berlin Exchange" by Joseph Kanon is an espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War. In 1963, a captured American physicist, Martin Keller, who has spied for the KGB, is swapped by the British and returns to East Berlin. He wonders: who asked for him? Who negotiated the deal? His physics expertise is out of date, so what do they want?

Until next week, Happy Reading!