Nonfiction
Jewelry school : bead stringing
Carolyn Schulz
745.582 /Schulz
Nonfiction, Crafts
Beaded jewelry is popular among crafters as it requires very little by way of tools or materials. Jewelry School: Bead Stringing, written by Carolyn Schulz, author of Jewelry School: Let's Start Beading, helps the reader to make attractive, wearable items of beaded jewelry in no time. Bead Stringing is a progression from Let's Start Beading, and focuses on the specifics of bead stringing, teaching the reader more advanced beading techniques.The book is divided into three sections: beading on tiger tail, beading on thread, and decoration and pattern. Through clear, colorful step-by-step photographs Carolyn Schulz guides the reader through the whole process and focuses on a series of projects that readers will be impatient to try for themselves.
If you want to start at the beginning, this great little book will teach you the basics. -Beth
Quilled Christmas : 30 festive paper projects
Alli Bartkowski
745.59412 /Bartkowski
Nonfiction, Crafts
"Christmas is the perfect time to brighten your home and delight family and friends with handmade decorations, ornaments, stocking stuffers, greeting cards, gift packaging. In these thirty beautiful holiday-themed projects, Alli Bartkowski shows you how to roll, shape, and glue colorful paper strips into eye-catching framed art for your mantel, a handsome nutcracker figurine to display, dainty snowflake ornaments to hang on your tree, and a stunning poinsettia pin to wear at your next holiday party. Each project is designed for a specific skill level (beginner, intermediate, and advanced). Plus, you'll find an in-depth introduction, complete with step-by-step photos, to the essential techniques for making basic quilled shapes, elegant quillography, and dazzling linear art"--Back cover.
An 18th Century Hobby is back yet again. I remember learning to quill in the 1970s, and when I saw this on the shelf I had to give it a try again. All three of the local big-box craft stores (J's, M's, and HL) carry quilling paper - but you have to hunt to find it. -Beth
Modern Scot patchwork : bold quilts inspired by iconic tartans
Kathy Allen
746.46 /Allen
Nonfiction, Crafts
"Pick your favorite kilt and make a tartan quilt!"--Back cover.
What a challenge! Creating a plaid quilt through piecing. -Beth
Cozy wool appliqué : 11 seasonal folk art projects for your home
Elizabeth Angus
746.445 /Angus
Nonfiction, Crafts
"Celebrate the seasons with this sweet collection of folk-inspired projects using wool applique and embroidery. Featuring the author's signature sheep and floral motifs, these 11 small, charming projects made with easy fusible applique will appeal to quilters, needlework enthusiasts, craft sewists, and more! Relax as you hand stitch these folksy, portable cushions and table runners with needle and thread. The mix of wool and cotton is fun to stitch, display and gift."--Provided by publisher.
Wool applique is one of my favorite winter hobbies. The first part of the book contains a stitch gallery plus lots of hints for cutting and embroidering with soluble paper instead of freehand. Can't wait to try a couple of these projects. -Beth
50 knitted dolls
Sarah (Sarah Grace) Keen
745.59221 /Keen
Nonfiction, Crafts
"Delight children and adults alike by creating a whole host of fun and fabulous knitted characters from this latest book by best-selling author, Sarah Keen. Inside you'll find 50 knitted dolls in costume and work attire, including graduates, a doctor, fire-fighter, painter and decorator, ballerina, bride and groom, spaceman, snowman, fitness enthusiast and hiker, to name just a few. All the projects are made from DK yarn, which is easy to wash, durable and child-friendly. They are perfect gifts for loved ones or as a treat to yourself."--
This almost makes me want to learn to knit! They're so cute! -Beth
Lab girl
Hope Jahren
570.92 /Jahren
Nonfiction, Science, Memoir
"An illuminating debut memoir of a woman in science; a moving portrait of a longtime friendship; and a stunningly fresh look at plants that will forever change how you see the natural world,"--Amazon.com.
Added by Jason
Destiny of the Republic : a tale of madness, medicine and the murder of a president
Candice Millard
973.84 /Millard
Nonfiction, History
A narrative account of the twentieth president's political career offers insight into his background as a scholar and Civil War hero, his battles against the corrupt establishment, and Alexander Graham Bell's failed attempt to save him from an assassin's bullet.
Highly readable history covering the political life, assassination attempt, and subsequent slow death of President James A. Garfield. Multiple story lines follow the mental health of the assassin, the various medical blunders that hasten Garfield's decline, and Alexander Graham Bell's attempt to create a device to detect the bullet buried in Garfield's body. -Jason
So you want to talk about race
Ijeoma Oluo
305.8 /Oluo
Nonfiction
"A current, constructive, and actionable exploration of today's racial landscape, offering straightforward clarity that readers of all races need to contribute to the dismantling of the racial divide. In So You Want to Talk About Race, Editor at Large of The Establishment, Ijeoma Oluo offers a contemporary, accessible take on the racial landscape in America, addressing head-on such issues as privilege, police brutality, intersectionality, micro-aggressions, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the "N" word. Perfectly positioned to bridge the gap between people of color and white Americans struggling with race complexities, Oluo answers the questions readers don't dare ask, and explains the concepts that continue to elude everyday Americans. Oluo is an exceptional writer with a rare ability to be straightforward, funny, and effective in her coverage of sensitive, hyper-charged issues in America. Her messages are passionate but finely tuned, and crystalize ideas that would otherwise be vague by empowering them with aha-moment clarity. Her writing brings to mind voices like Ta-Nehisi Coates and Roxane Gay, and Jessica Valenti in Full Frontal Feminism, and a young Gloria Naylor, particularly in Naylor's seminal essay "The Meaning of a Word.""--
This should be required reading, particularly for white people...but ultimately, it's just a great book. Each chapter highlights a different question related to race and racism in the USA. Ijeoma Oluo does a great job of keeping it concise, and offering plenty of passion and humor about the subject. Chapter titles include, "What is the school-to-prison pipeline?" "Why can't I say the N-word?" and "What are microaggressions?" Definitely check it out! -Heidi K
Underground
Haruki Murakami
363.320952 /Murakami
Nonfiction, Literary Nonfiction
In this haunting work of journalistic investigation, Haruki Murakami tells the story of the horrific terrorist attack on Japanese soil that shook the entire world. On a clear spring day in 1995, five members of a religious cult unleashed poison gas on the Tokyo subway system. In attempt to discover why, Haruki Murakmi talks to the people who lived through the catastrophe, and in so doing lays bare the Japanese psyche. As he discerns the fundamental issues that led to the attack, Murakami paints a clear vision of an event that could occur anytime, anywhere.
Novelist Murakami interviews both victims of the 1995 Tokyo Subway Sarin Attack, as well as members of the cult, Aum Shinrikyo, which was responsible for the attack. It is a pretty amazing work--one that captures an historical moment--what happened and the aftermath both for the individuals and the attack's meaning to Japanese society. -Anne M
Lots of fun holiday themed sewing projects. -Beth