820 LaSalle St.
Ottawa, IL
(815) 433-7323
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Tales from the Front Counter
Hello all! We had some fabulously fun children's
events at the store the past few weeks. We celebrated the 200th
anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birthday and
Josh dressed in tie, tails and beard as a young Lincoln. Storyteller Tim Trumbo served
as his aide-de-camp and we had wonderfully-attired guests dine on b-day cake. (Click here to check out photos of the events!)
The Valentine's Day Cutest Pet Contest netted $2,600 for the Pet Project animal shelter. The Third Annual Dr. Seussathon,
co-sponsored by the Starved Rock Reading Council, organized by Donna "Drama"
Stone, brought all sorts of Seuss-inspired and attired creatures to the BoMo
(Book Mouse, natch). Over 100 kids enjoyed songs, stories, and pictures
with our life-sized Horton. Thank you to emcee Linda Volkman, Streator High School, our readers
and, of course, the coolest Cat-in-the-Hat -- Josh and the wonderful
Rachel.
This April 18, we welcome back the Creepy, Crawly Critter Pet Shop for Bugs, Bugs, Bugs Day. From 10:30 a.m.
to 1 p.m. we'll have a bug show-and-tell, story-telling about our 6-legged
friends (?!), bug crafts and games, etc. For information on these
and other events, click on special events below, or go to our website!
Earth Day is April 22. Shop locally.
The less you drive the more you save $$ and the earth. Read on.
Eileen Fesco
Book Mouse Owner
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Paws and Claws
Our Book Mouse manager, Sonny the Cat, posed for his portrait as part of the Annual Cutest Pet
Contest for 2009. For a complete list of this year's winners, click on our Web Site and go to the special events page!
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Special Events
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Author James Ballowe will speak and sign copies of his book
on Saturday, April 4 from 11:30-1 p.m. He is th e author of A Man of Salt and Trees, the first
full-length biography of Joy Morton (1855-1934), founder of the Morton Arboretum and Morton Salt.
Rob Borshsenius, author of Way Back
When: Stories From a Small Town, will sign copies of his
book on Saturday, April 11 from 11:30-1 p.m. All the proceeds from this
book will be used to finance the roof and steeple project at the Norway
Methodist Church.
Help us celebrate the anniversary of an all time favorite, The Very Hungry Caterpillar during Toddler Time, 10:30-11 a.m. April 18.
Join us for Bugs, Bugs, Bugs at the Book Mouse on April
18, from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is co-sponsored by Creepy Crawly Critters Pet
Shop.
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Mondays at the Mouse
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Each Monday from
6:30 p.m. to 7:30 or 8 we will offer you an opportunity to learn
something new or rekindle your interest in a topic.
April's topic is "meditation." Different instructors will describe the
purpose and practice of meditation and everyone will have the time to
relax and meditate.
In
May, different speakers will discuss community-supported farming and the "Shop Local" movements.
We're looking for ideas on what you'd like to learn about
in the casual and convenient setting of our bookstore. For details, check out our web site.
For additional ongoing events, click here!
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Turning the Pages
Here's what our staff are reading. Select one of these staff favorites and receive 20 % off your purchase.
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Eileen's Pick
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Coop: A Year of Poultry, Pigs and Parenting
by MICHAEL PERRY
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The only thing better than hearing Michael Perry talk about life is
reading Perry's wry, tender, self-effacing and funny books.
In Coop, we find relatively
newly-married 40+ Michael planning for the birth of his first child and
figuring out how to manage -- with his wife Anneliese and her daughter,
Amy -- a newly-inherited farmstead in rural Wisconsin.
Perry writes with a poet's pen.
He selects just the most memorable combinations of sentences to describe
his everyday discoveries. I found that
some of his sentences begged to be read out loud to see if the spoken words
were as delight-inducing as those on the page.
Coop is due out April 21.
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Eileen's Pick
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Truck, a Love Story
by MICHAEL PERRY
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Before you read Coop I recommend that you read Perry's previous
book, Truck: A Love Story.
It recounts one year in the author's life during which he
falls in love with a truck and a woman -- not necessarily in that order.
That's how he described the book at the
Midwest Bookseller Association's meeting in September 2007. He had the 200+ booksellers either laughing
or smiling in agreement with his sometimes touching and sometimes tickling
tales.
Truck won the Midwest
Booksellers Association Choice Award for nonfiction that year and Perry's Coop
will likely be in the running this year.
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Eileen's Pick
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Valeria's Last Stand
by MARC FITTEN
You can imagine this book as a
screenplay with eccentric and playful characters. They ham it up on stage each player
out-farcing the other for your guffaws and applause.
First-time novelist Marc Fitten has a lot of
fun with his cantankerous, bicycle-riding heroine, Valeria. Her sparring with the conniving, passionate
tavern owner, Ibolya, for the affections of the village potter are very
humorous.
This has been called an adult
fairy tale and fable. The author displays
all the basic human emotions: lust, anger, delight, envy, sloth, greed, love,
hope, etc., in a light and engaging style.
This was Chaucer meets Shakespeare with a little Barbara Cartland tossed
in the mix. Enjoy!
Quick note: Sonata
for Miriam by Linda Olsson (author of Astrid and Veronica) is out in paperback. You may remember this author as one of my favorite
discoveries from last summer. Olsson has
a gorgeous way of putting together a story.
If you loved Astrid and Veronica, you must pick up this book.
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Rachel K's Pick
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Death: A Life
by GEORGE PENDLE
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As a fake autobiography, Death: A Life, is a
smile-until-it-hurts satire of love, addiction, torture, and acceptance.
Wildly original, this story follows Death, son of Satan
and Sin, from his earliest beginnings to what could be his ironic demise.
Death, a regularly tortured, under-appreciated child, finds his calling on God's
new creation, Earth. There he learns he can usher souls into the
afterlife with a bit of darkness from the Endless Abyss.
After decades of
soul-snatching Death becomes ill with love for a woman named Maud and begins to
grow human himself. He is sent to the oldest of clinics for treatments of
psychological disorders. Meanwhile,
the Archangel Gabriel gladly takes Death's
place but quickly learns Death is the only one fit for the job.
Death recovers and takes back his most prized position.
Finally, the day comes for Death's death. Who or what will save him from
his demise?
This story is indeed strange, but quite a
read. I recommend this book to adults looking for a humorous,
light-hearted read.
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Josh's Pick
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Hater
by DAVID MOODY
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This
book sucked me in from the get-go! The moment the old lady was stabbed to
death I knew something wasn't right. Maybe it was the fictional world the
author created or the author himself. At that point in the story I
couldn't even imagine why someone would commit such a heinous act.
Like a
river busting through the dam, just a few violent crimes
became several hundred. Those crimes became riots,
and the riots break into an all-out war for survival.
During that time
the people comitting the violent acts are labelled "haters", yet
there is still no explanation. I read on, compelled to find out the reason
and, boy, I'll tell you: You never see it coming. If you enjoyed the
movie "28 Days Later," then this will rock
your world in most unsettling ways.
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Rachel H's Pick
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You Know You Love Me
by CECILY VON ZIEGESAR
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I simply love this
book! A week ago I had never read a Gossip Girl novel, and now I am
hooked.
This series follows several rich, spoiled, upper-East Side
teens through their senior year of high school.
Love, hate, hook-ups,
break-ups, modeling gigs, college interviews, and even weddings; this
book has it all.
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Maria's Pick
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Impulse
by ELLEN HOPKINS
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Impulse is about three teens in a rehab facility
called Aspen Springs. Vanessa, Tony, and Connor are there because the
secrets in their past have led them to harm themselves, abuse prescription
drugs, and attempt suicide.
Vanessa and her mother have a lot in common. They both suffer from bipolar disorder and mild schizophrenia.
Vanessa's biggest fear is ending up like her mother, whose drug use has put her
in a permanent catatonic state. Her self-mutilation has dropped her right into
the middle of her own personal hell.
Tony's history of sexual abuse and violence sent him into a juvenile detention center for the past six years.
Overdosing on perscription medication has also sent him to Aspen Springs.
As perfect as Connor's life may seem on the outside, it is crumbling on
the inside. When he becomes involved with his English teacher, he finally
thinks his life has meaning. By the time the relationship ends, Connor is so overwhelmed
by emotion he sees no other choice but to pull the trigger.
The stories of these three unlikely friends will leave a lasting
impression on you, and the final choices of these protagionists will stay
with you forever.
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Liz's Pick
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The Elvis Enyclopedia
by ADAM VICTOR
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I recommend this book for
anyone who loves the King himself, Elvis Presley.
A truly definitive encyclopedia, this book covers almost everything Elvis's life from getting started and hitting it big to
his wife and family.
This book also covers Elvis with tremendous
photographs and the songs he made legends. I simply love this book and
anyone who loves Elvis would love it too.
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Peggy's Pick
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Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
by JAMIE FORD
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This
is a World War II love
story with a twist.
This gentle tale differs from the latest torrent of
tales about Germany
or Europe because it's set in an American
Chinatown in 1940s Seattle. At school, teenager
Henry Lee is an outcast because of his nationality, and at home he is torn
between his father's ties to the old country and his new home. All Asians are
not created equal in Henry's home, where his fiercely nationalistic father
forces Henry to wear an identification button to set him apart from those "other"
Asians.
Henry discovers love when he befriends Keiko, who is Japanese, but
their budding romance is cut short when she and her family are placed in an internment camp.
Forty years later, the adult Henry
embarks on a quest for a keepsake buried in the basement of an abandoned hotel
where the internees' belongings had been stored, and unearths the bittersweet
past. His life has come full circle, and he begins to understand love in its
many facets: of father for son, first love,
mature love.
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For the Young Adults ...
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I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of
this tale and read it all in one gulp.
A village is surrounded by
living dead, the Unconsecrated, protected only by a semi-sturdy fence and
the Guardians.
These human-eating creatures were once healthy villagers:
mothers, fathers, sons and daughters of those who
are still whole, If anyone is bitten by these creatures, they become the
undead.
All trust that the Sisterhood will protect them but Mary
begins to believe otherwise. Is the village the only safe place left in
the whole world? Is there some way to elude the slow-moving but voracious
flesh-eaters or is escape futile? How long will the guradians be able to
protect the village?
This is a suspenseful and dark adventure both
Teens and adults would enjoy.
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Ottawa's Reddick
Library picked The Hunger Games for its teen book club and we heard it was a
great choice. For all those reality TV addicts out there this is the
ultimate challenge.
From the cover: "In the ruins of a place once
known as North America lies the nation of Panem,
a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is
harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one
boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 to participate in the annual
Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV."
The
book raises issues and questions that are pertinent to our present
world. This could be this decade's 1984/Animal Farm. This is another
book that both parents and kids could share.
Eileen
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It Happened at the Book Mouse !
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We all loved Lincoln (above and top) on
February 14, when the Book Mouse
celebrated the birthday of our 16th
president with a cake and fun!
Prizes were awarded to some of our
friends who donned stovepipe hat
or dress and shawl (as Mrs. Lincoln)
to celebrate with us.
Horton heard that the Book Mouse was honoring his old friend, The Cat in the Hat, and joined his buddy for the annual Seuss-athon
sponsored by the Book Mouse and the Starved Rock Reading Council.(above
right and right) To see more photos from that exciting day, click our Web Site and click on the Dr. Seuss-athon page!
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| Take Note !
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Works by Ottawa High School art students will be on display at the Book Mouse through the month of April. Stop by and admire our creative young artists' efforts.
Ottawa's Farmers' Market will open Saturday, May 9 on Jackson Street, just around the corner from our front door. To tide
you over till then, enjoy a mini market at Jeremiah Joe's Coffee on Saturday, April 4 from 8 a.m. to noon.
The Ottawa Art League is celebrating its 42nd anniversary. Artists will display their works at the Book Mouse from May 3
to June 27. A wine and cheese reception will be held on June 27 at noon.
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| Ongoing Events
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WCMY 1430 Book Club
Last Tuesday of the month.
9:20-10 a.m.
Toddler Time
3rd Saturday of the month.
10:30-11 a.m.
Dungeons and Dragons
2nd & 4th Fridays. 7-10 p.m.
Teen Book Club
Last Wednesday of every month.
4 p.m.
Heritage River Writers
poetry group
last Wednesdays: 6:30 p.m.
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Here's What You Just Did !
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BY SHOPPING AT AN INDEPENDENT BOOK STORE
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1) You kept dollars in our economy
2) You embraced what makes us unique
3) You created local jobs 
4) You helped the environment
5) You nurtured community
6) You conserved tax dollars
7) You created more choice
8) You took advantage of our expertise
9) You invested in entrepreneurship
10) You made us a destination
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Don't see a favorite title
on our shelves?
Ordering is easy! Just
call the Book Mouse at (815) 433-7323 or Email Us
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