Christchurch Photo Hunt 2015
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‘Arrivals and Departures — The Journeys that Have Shaped Us’. Take ownership of your city’s heritage: send in some of your old photos to help grow a photographic archive. You could win a tablet or eReader. Copies of photograph entries may be displayed in libraries and uploaded to Kete Christchurch.
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Infinite home
by Kathleen Alcott
Likeable and touching story of the disparate tenants of a Brooklyn brownstone and the community they form around their ageing landlord when their home is suddenly threatened.
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| Did you ever have a family by Bill CleggAfter losing her entire family in a house fire the night before her daughter's wedding, June Reid is nearly catatonic, hiding out in a motel room thousands of miles from her hometown. Told from her point of view as well as others also affected by the fire (some tangentially, as with the wedding florist), this "ineffably sad" (Booklist) fiction debut is also incredibly moving and deftly written. Fans of the author's memoirs (including Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man) will appreciate his writing; if the hold list is long, try Per Petterson's tale of survivor's guilt, In the Wake. |
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| Undermajordomo Minor: a novel by Patrick deWittLooking for that fairy tale feeling without wanting elves, princesses, or "morals of the story"? This dark and witty fable might be a good fit for you. Written by Man Booker nominee Patrick deWitt, Undermajordomo Minor follows established liar Lucien "Lucy" Minor as he leaves his village to take a job with a mad baron in a mysterious castle. His way is hampered by pickpockets and thieves, some of whom come to be friends once he's arrived at his destination -- and one of whom proves to be his rival in matters of the heart. A bit of violence, a bit of crassness, and a lot of humour make this book a quirky read; pick it up if you like whimsical but weird Wes Anderson films. |
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| This is your life, Harriet Chance! A novel by Jonathan EvisonStyled a bit like that mid-century game show This Is Your Life, this amusing if bittersweet novel jumps around in time, showing clips of Harriet Chance's life from childhood, young adulthood, and the present day, when she's a 78-year-old widow being visited by the ghost of her husband. She's also embarked on a somewhat ill-conceived cruise to Alaska, joined by a daughter she's not close with. It's an illuminating trip for Harriet, exposing her relationships (and her mistakes) with her daughter, her husband, and even her friends. |
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The death of Rex Nhongo
by C. B. George
Harare, Zimbabwe, 2011. This is a story of five marriages and one gun. A British couple wonder at the unknowable city beyond their guarded compound while they build walls between themselves. An American begins to suspect his new home is having an insidious effect on his 'African queen' and their young daughter. An enthusiastic young intellectual follows his wife and his dreams to the city and finds only disillusion. An Intelligence Officer loses a crucial piece of evidence. It will cost him his marriage and his girlfriend, maybe even his life. A taxi driver and his wife, living on the knife-edge of poverty, find a gun in the cab. From this point on, all their lives are tied to the trigger. C. B. George's Zimbabwe is a personal portrait, both tender and brutal.
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The Loney
by Andrew Michael Hurley
If it had another name, I never knew, but the locals called it the Loney: that strange nowhere between the Wyre and the Lune where Hanny and I went every Easter time with Mummer, Farther, Mr and Mrs Belderboss and Father Wilfred, the parish priest. A strange and haunting novel that has been praised highly and described as brilliant piece of neo-Gothic.
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The Antipodeans: a novel
by Greg McGee
Beginning with the return to Venice of an old and sick man determined to confront his past, and accompanied by his daughter who is escaping hers, The Antipodeans spans three generations of a New Zealand family and their interaction with three families of Northern Italy.
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| Finale: a novel by Thomas MallonSet firmly in the 1980s, this fictional analysis of the Reagan Administration brings all the events of 1986 to life -- in particular, the War on Drugs, AIDS, and the Iran-Contra affair. Margaret Thatcher, Jimmy Carter, and other well-known figures each share their perspectives along with those of wholly fictional characters. Though the many voices and settings make for a complex and fast-paced tale, the combination of political and personal motivations is "wicked good" (Washington Post). |
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Orhan's inheritance: a novel
by Aline Ohanesian
Inheriting the family kilim rug dynasty when his eccentric grandfather is found dead, Orhan struggles with will stipulations that leave the family estate to a stranger who holds secrets from the final years of the Ottoman Empire.
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The Man Booker Prize winner was announced on October 13th. Since it probably has quite the hold list, why don't you try a book nominated in a previous year?
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| We need new names: a novel by NoViolet BulawayoTen-year-old Darling used to go to school, but as Zimbabwe falters under a violent regime, she and her friends spend much of their time stealing fruit from rich neighbourhoods (and hiding as gangs invade the homes there). Though their lives are chaotic, they find stability of sorts in each other and their games. When Darling is sent to America, it's not the paradise they envisioned, and her frank observations of the differences between the two countries make it clear that, despite her opportunities, she may not be better off. Debut author NoViolet Bulawayo is a writer to watch; the short story that became this novel's first chapter won the Caine Prize, also known as "the African Booker"; the novel itself was shortlisted for the Booker in 2013. |
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| The luminaries: a novel by Eleanor CattonUpon his arrival in the mining town of Hokatika, New Zealand, during the 1866 gold rush, Walter Moody enters the nearest hotel, where he encounters a group of 12 prominent locals with an unusual hobby: discussing the unsolved crimes that have rocked their small frontier community. Among other dirty deeds, they include the murder of one man, the disappearance of another, the attempted suicide of a local prostitute, and the appearance of a cache of gold in the residence of the town drunk. However, the group's interest in the crimes may not be entirely recreational. Twists and turns abound in this intricately plotted neo-Victorian novel, which won the Man Booker Prize in 2011. |
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| The narrow road to the deep North by Richard FlanaganReflecting on his nearly eight decades on Earth, Tasmanian surgeon Dorrigo Jones returns repeatedly to two life-changing events: the illicit affair he had with his uncle's wife and his time as an Allied POW during World War II, when he and others labored on the infamous Thai-Burma "Death Railway." Skillfully evoking both the transcendent heights of young love and the agonizing depths of human suffering, The Narrow Road to the Deep North, winner of the 2014 Man Booker Prize, will linger in readers' memories. |
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| The lowland: a novel by Jhumpa LahiriA pair of brothers take centre stage in this sweeping family saga by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri. Born in Calcutta several years before Indian independence and partition, Subhash and Udayan Mitra come of age in the late 1960s, just as the country's political climate shifts. Elder brother Subhash, serious and scholarly, pursues graduate study in the United States while younger brother Udayan, passionate and rebellious, becomes active in protest movements and secretly marries Gauri, a woman of whom his family does not approve. Once inseparable, Subhash and Udayan's lives seem destined to diverge, possibly forever. Booklist called The Lowland "an absolute triumph"; it was shortlisted for the Booker in 2013. |
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| A tale for the time being by Ruth OzekiThis complex, intricate novel was shortlisted for the Booker in 2013. The story is framed by a Canadian writer (named Ruth, like the author) who finds a diary and some letters sealed in a lunch box washed up on the beach. The diary, written by a depressed Japanese-American teen living in Tokyo some years before, entrances the writer, as do the letters, all of which share the stories of the teen, her 104-year-old great-grandmother, and their family. Chapters alternate between the diary and Ruth's commentary; readers who like a challenge will enjoy this wide-ranging novel. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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