“The Secret Lives of Bats” by Merlin Tuttle Book Review.

Ever wondered if all bats cause rabies?  Exactly how much food must a bat consume on a day-t0-day basis?  And why is Austin, Texas such a popular place for bats to congregate?  These are just a few of the questions answered by Merlin Tuttle, founder of Bat Conservation International and Ph.D. graduate in Ecology and Evolution from the University of Kansas.

The book does NOT read like a dissertation, but is interwoven with three genre formats: part narrative, part memoir, and part informative text.  One chapter discusses Tuttle’s experiences studying vampire bats, and within the chapter he tells of a young boy that essentially “befriended” one of the furry critters being studied, in very much the same way a person would raise a dog for the purposes of being used as a pet.  Yet within this same chapter he discusses the challenges he faced while using the netting to capture some of the bats, and also presents factoids such as the daily amount of guano produced by an individual bat.

Anyone interested in debunking preconceived notions and blanket stereotypes of bats should definitely consider giving this work of non-fiction a fair shot.  As with most works of fact, individual chapters can be chosen to read while others could be omitted.  In essence, an overall sense of being better informed can be accomplished, something that is paramount within the majority of works of literature.

Some of the information may feel a bit superfluous to the less detail-oriented reader, but there is something for everyone to enjoy.  And just as an all-you-can-eat buffet has a variety of food, so this book provides a plethora of situations involving the furry winged wonders of nature:  one chapter talks about cacti that have adaptive features conducive to attracting bats while another chapter discusses the obstacles and successes regarding the establishment of a national park for a specific species of bats in American Samoa.

Ultimately, this book is worth reading, if for nothing else than to browse a few chapters of interest.  The book is available for checkout for anyone with a Gaston College Library Card, and is part of the Summer Reading display located on the First Floor of the Morris Library.  I encourage everyone to stop by to see this book and others, as well.

Until next time, keep reading, and we hope to see you soon at our libraries!

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Thoughts about “My Southern Journey” by Rick Bragg.

Hello, my fellow Gaston College Book Club followers!  Evening Librarian Whit Preston here with some thoughts about a book that is somewhat themed around the May 2016 Library Display: The Great Outdoors.  When one thinks of being outside, such concepts as camping, hiking, and sunbathing at the beach all come to mind.  This is somewhat the case with today’s book-du-jour.

My Southern Journey: True Stories from the Heart of the South by Rick Bragg can best be described as a memoir, which can essentially be categorized as narrative nonfiction.  A 56-year old Alabama native, Bragg recounts firsthand experiences he has had from his childhood to the present.  The majority of the stories have been published in Southern Living and Garden & Gun, both of which garner a hefty readership monthly.  Bragg’s ability as an expository writer is evident within each of this collection’s entries.  Some stories are bittersweet, yet many touch on a universal ideal: that of the experiences which live within every person that can be unique, definitive, and even awkward.  One particular story describes Bragg’s experiences with eating oysters not once, but several times throughout his life.  His unflinching honesty and tell-it-like-it-is approach to each story offers a certain level of humor but also a slice of life to the little things that make an individual appreciate the experiences that comprise a person’s existence.

Be forewarned:  this is not necessarily a cohesive overarching story, but rather vignettes about specific experiences of Rick Bragg.  However, each story has been categorized within a particular idea:  one group is titled “Home”, while another is titled “Place”.

This is a great book for both the born-and-bred Southerner, as well as those who originate from other areas of the United States and the world.

That is all for now!  The next post (perhaps the next two or more) will be themed around Summer Reading,  and will be drawn from books that have been released within the past two to three years.

Please feel free to post your own thoughts and comments, and as always, visit the Gaston College Libraries in-person or on our website!

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“Star Wars: Aftermath” by Chuck Wendig Book Review

Hello, fellow Gaston College Book Club followers!  Evening Librarian Whit Preston here once again for a review of a book that might appeal to some of you die-hard Star Wars fanatics.  As many of you might know, Disney has made the decision to separate the Expanded Universe into two different groups:  the Expanded Universe Legends is the first of these and is not considered canon.  The second group includes new stories that attempt to fill in the gaps between the six theatrical films and is thus considered canon.  And while each fan has their own feelings about this decision, we as a demographic must accept Disney’s decision for what it is.  The novel being reviewed below is considered part of the latter group.

Star Wars: Aftermath by Chuck Wendig is the first in a planned trilogy of stories that takes place shortly after the events of Return of the Jedi.  Essentially, Wedge Antilles is on a reconnaissance mission for the New Republic when he becomes marooned and captured by the Empire.  The captors are part of a group of Imperial military officials attempting to recuperate from the defeat at The Battle of Endor and essentially are in denial that the Emperor has been killed.

Although the story is roughly 350 pages, the pacing does not fully become rapid until about the last 100, and the first 200 pages are boring.  Anyone looking for the inclusion of the main heroes and surviving villains should look elsewhere.  Wedge Antilles is the closest original trilogy character to receive a moderate amount of mention, and even his character only receives several chapters of inclusion.

There are callbacks to a few staples within the Star Wars universe, one of which is a Battle Droid repurposed as one of the main character’s guardians.  A few short chapters include characters Admiral Ackbar, and Han Solo and Chewbacca, and this certainly is meant to be a “meanwhile in other parts of the galaxy…”-sort of plot filler, albeit one that will have many readers clambering for more.

This is a title that can only be recommended for those that need to pass the time until the new movies are released.  Otherwise, stick to the Star Wars: Shattered Empire graphic novels.  Luke Skywalker, among other main characters, are included enough within that story arc to where readers looking for the original trilogy characters will be deservedly treated.

There should be a copy of this novel available soon at the Gaston College Libraries.

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“Dark Places” by Gillian Flynn Book Review

Warning:  This novel contains a few small spoilers, but the story’s resolution and culprits are not fully revealed.

Gillian Flynn has been able to make quite a name for herself, and although the lion’s share of her popularity may be attributed to Gone Girl, there have been other novels written by her.  And while everyone’s opinion of her novels can span a cornucopia of thoughts and emotions, most readers would agree that she can spin a fantastic story that usually involves a psychotic female character somewhere in the mix.  In the case of the novel being reviewed today, this trend is certainly obvious.

Dark Places can best be categorized as a thriller in a general sense.  However, some of the story’s main focuses are the twisted and demented motivations of people, as well as the lengths some will go to sacrifice and cover up family misdeeds.  Essentially, the Day family, consisting of a mother, a deadbeat father who comes and goes as he pleases, several daughters, and a son, are destitute and living on the family farm in a 1980’s Kansas town.  One evening, Ben, the son, supposedly murders all of the family members except for Libby, who somehow makes it out alive.

Fast forward 25 years later.  Libby is approached by a group obsessed with her family’s case, and due to her desperate grab for money, decides to meet with them to answer questions about a variety of topics related to her family’s demise.  During that time, Libby begins to wonder if her brother was in fact the main culprit.  She begins to unravel some of her preconceived notions that might have been fabricated by the psychologists, police and others in a way that made Ben an easy scapegoat. As she continues to investigate some of the key players in the case, consisting of family members and the supposed living victims of Ben, she realizes that a cover-up may have in fact been allowed to occur.  During his teenage years, Ben was accused of molesting several fifth grade girls, and also was picked on by his high school classmates for being poor and wimpy, among other disturbing tendencies that will not be divulged.

Each chapter in the story tells of a specific scenario for a specific character.  These chapters alternate back and forth from the 1980’s to the present.  Additionally, the novel itself does a great job of varying from mundane exposition to manic page-turning goodness.  And although the essential characterizations and happenings are similar to what one might find on an episode of The Jerry Springer Show or the latest installment of stories on Investigation Discovery, the desire to discover who and what were the motivating factors that led up to the story’s climax make for a compelling story.

Readers be warned: a few of the chapters go into fairly graphic detail of murders and mutilations.

This particular novel has a forthcoming movie adaptation starring Charlize Theron and Chloe Grace Moretz.

The Gaston College Libraries has a copy of this novel for checkout.

As always, please feel free to leave any comments and questions at the end of this post.

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“The Drop” by Dennis Lehane Book Review

Good day, Gaston College Book Club followers!  Whit Preston, Evening Librarian here with a book review of a story full of grit and despicable characters.  The author, Dennis Lehane, should be familiar to many of you, especially considering that another book of his, Mystic River, has been made into an Oscar-winning film.

Transitioning back to the novel at-hand, The Drop is equal parts lost family legacy as much as it is a venture in restitution.  At the heart of this novel is Bob, a bartender whose cousin, Marv, ruled the Boston neighborhood in which they reside, until a prominent mafioso supplants Bob and Marv’s crew.  Adding insult to injury is the fact that Marv, once the owner of the bar in which he and Ben toil, is usurped by the gangsters and becomes a drop bar, a place where money collected for criminal activities, is randomly selected as an individual night’s laundering point for the cash received by the mafia cronies.

The character of Bob is one whose heart and soul longs for some glimmer of hope in his seemingly bleak lot in life.  That hope comes in the form of a pit bull puppy whose owner beat and abandoned it near Bob’s neighborhood.  Several additional key story components are thrown into the mix, one of which comes in the form of Nadia, a friend who mentors Bob into a proud pet owner and acts as a fulcrum later in the story, also.

Overall, the story is extremely well-paced, the action does not falter at any point, and the ultimate revelations are properly sequenced at the right moments.  This story has also been made into a movie that is equally enjoyable, especially for anyone who has enjoyed the films of James Gandolfini, Tom Hardy, or Noomi Rapace.  Be warned though: read the novel first since the film follows the book almost verbatim.

The novel, as well as other books by Dennis Lehane, are currently available for checkout at the Gaston College Libraries.

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