Staff Favorites of 2015 - 18th in a Series

As the year comes to a close, library staff members and volunteers reflect on the best books they've read in 2015. Here are a few recommendations from Marta Peppin, one of our Information Specialists. 

Dinner Solved!:  100 Ingenious Recipes That Make the Whole Family Happy, Including You by Katie Workman 

Everyone is Italian on Sunday by Rachel Ray

Southern Routes: Secret Recipes from the Best Down-Home Joints in the South by Ben Vaughn

Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food by Nigella Lawson

 Trisha's Table: My Feel-Good Recipes for a Balanced Life by Trisha Yearwood

Staff Favorites of 2015 - 17th in a Series

As the year comes to a close, library staff members and volunteers reflect on the best books they've read in 2015. Here are a few recommendations from Nicole, one of our Collection Support Aides:

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

Step Aside Pops by Kate Beaton

The Girl with all the Gifts by M.R. Carey

New Year's Eve Activities at the Library

Looking for a fun way to celebrate New Year's Eve with your family? Check out these daytime activities at three of the Forsyth County Public Library branches and learn more at www.forsythpl.org.

Staff Favorites of 2015 - 16th in a Series

As the year comes to a close, library staff members and volunteers reflect on the best books they've read in 2015. Here are a few more recommendations from Angela Robbins, Information Specialist.  

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight

The Guilty One by Lisa Ballantyne

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

The Whites by Richard Price

The Martian by Andy Weir

Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll

Red Notice by Bill Browder

 Primates of Park Avenue by Wednesday Martin

The Dinner by Herman Koch

Staff Favorites of 2015 - 15th in a Series

As the year comes to a close, library staff members and volunteers reflect on the best books they've read in 2015. Here are a few recommendations from Rebecca Razza, Information Specialist:

Power Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan 
Promise of Blood, Crimson Campaign, Autumn Republic

 Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Storm Front by Jim Butcher

The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss

Staff Favorites 2015 - 14th in a Series

My favorite books from 2015 covered a spectrum of genres.

After reading each book in Jeff Vandermeer’s Area X trilogy: Annihilation, Authority and Acceptance, I listened to the audio book and then reread the book in its entirety.  But I have to confess, I still haven’t entirely figured out what’s going on in Area X.   There’s so much to take away from this spooky and mind bending science fiction story, I can’t wait to read it yet again.  Next time I may be taking notes.

I also simply couldn’t put down The Farm by Tom Rob Smith.   This very dark "he said/she" said story is sent in rural Sweden.   I keep comparing it to Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl though I have a lot more sympathy for Smith’s characters than Nick and Amy Dunne. It’s literary suspense at its finest.

If you’re a fan of literary fiction, don’t miss The Echo Maker by Richard Powers.   This National Book Award winning story is set in Nebraska shortly after 9/11. There’s a mystery involved but the real focus of the novel is a disorder called Capgrass Syndrome which leaves a young accident victim unable to recognize his own sister.

The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy is a grim retelling of the fairy tale set during the invasion of Poland.  It’s a spellbinding story - if only it could have been a dark fantasy rather than historical fiction. 

The changeling who narrates Keith Donahue’s The Stolen Child faces an identity crisis worthy of literary fiction and is one of the most “human” characters I’ve discovered in a fantasy novel.  

Bill Bryson’s memoir, A Walk in the Woods isn’t the type of book I typically read (It’s not even “dark”.) but I loved Bryson’s wit and insights along the Appalachian Trail.  Plus the book introduces readers to the unforgettable Stephen Katz.   What’s so unique about Stephen Katz?  You’ll have to read A Walk in the Woods to find out.   

Alicia Cavitt

Information Specialist

Staff Favorites of 2015 - 13th in a Series

As we reflect on the start of a new year, library staff members and volunteers look back on the best books they read in 2015. Here are a few recommendations from Alyson Childers, one of our Information Specialists:

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

The Martian by Andy Weir

The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Me Before You by JoJo Moyes

Staff Favorites of 2015: 12th in a Series

"I read a lot of really great books this year!" says Julie Boyd, Youth Services Supervisor at the Cumming Library. "These selections are some that I find myself thinking about...and recommending to others."

The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud

How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

Cress by Marissa Meyer

The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt

Staff Picks: Humans of New York

Most books about New York City focus on the iconic architecture and landmark public spaces, but Humans of New York and Humans of New York: Stories focus on the human element. They capture the city, which is often a microcosm of the world, at the people level.

The photography is stunning and revealing and touches on the vast variety of the people that thrive or survive in the city. All walks of life, all ages and ethnicities; I could people watch all day when I visit. These books allow for that experience in a small way from the comfort of home in Georgia.

Humans of New York
by Brandon Stanton

Humans of New York: Stories
by Brandon Stanton

Mary White
Information Specialist
Cumming Library

Library Partners with UNG for Cottrell MBA Speaker Series

Make a new year’s resolution you can keep and mark your calendar to attend the Cottrell MBA Speaker Series presented by the Mike Cottrell College of Business at the University of North Georgia and the Forsyth County Public Library.

“We’re so pleased to partner with the library and bring the passion and expertise of our professors and instructors into the Forsyth community,” says Dr. Jeremy Bennett, director of MBA programs at the University of North Georgia. “The Cottrell MBA Speaker Series will help local residents and business owners better understand current best practices in finance, technology, marketing, and management.”

Dr. Ellen Best

The Cottrell MBA Speaker Series begins on Wednesday, January 27 at 7:00 p.m. at the Sharon Forks Library with a Personal Finance session led by Dr. Ellen Best, assistant professor of accounting. Dr. Best will focus on family budgeting and tax issues for 2015 and 2016.

“One of the biggest mistakes individuals can make with their personal finances is to always be reactive, and never proactive. This session will give an overview on addressing your current situation, as well as laying out some key steps to help you better prepare for the future,” says Best.

Dr. Ellen Best joined the faculty of the Mike Cottrell College of Business at the University of North Georgia in 2013. Dr. Best has teaching experience in the areas of managerial accounting and taxation, and her research interests include judgment and decision making in accounting, business ethics, and tax education research. Prior to her doctoral studies, Dr. Best worked in corporate taxation in the Atlanta office of KPMG, focusing mainly on foreign inbound clients. Dr. Best holds a Ph.D. in Accountancy, a Master of Taxation and a BBA in Accountancy, all from Georgia State University.

Dr. Bryson Payne

Dr. Bryson Payne, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and professor of computer science, teaches the “Information Management” portion of the Cottrell MBA program. He will lead a discussion on Cybersecurity at the Sharon Forks Library on Thursday, March 24 at 7:00 p.m. Dr. Payne will discuss trending topics in technology and data security, as well as the practical steps individuals and businesses can take to protect themselves.

After a break for the summer months, the Cottrell MBA Speaker Series will resume at the Post Road Library on Tuesday, September 13 at 7:00 p.m. with a presentation on Agile Marketing Planning from Nick Kastner, marketing manager and instructor of marketing.

Dr. Wendy Walker, assistant professor of management, teaches the “Leadership and Motivation” course for second-year Cottrell MBA students. Dr. Walker will discuss Transformational Leadership with patrons and business leaders at the Post Road Library on Wednesday, November 2 at 7:00 p.m.

The Cottrell MBA program recently relocated from the UNG campus on Pilgrim Mill Road to a renovated space on the fourth floor of Cumming City Hall. New MBA classes begin each fall and applications to the Cottrell MBA programs located in Cumming and Gainesville are being accepted now at www.ung.edu/mba.

For more information on the Cottrell MBA Speaker Series or to register to attend, please visit www.forsythpl.org.

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UPDATE:

As requested by patrons attending the Personal Finance presentation, Dr. Ellen Best has provided copies of the materials she discussed:

• Slide Deck (PDF format)
• Budget Template and Sample Budget (Microsoft Excel format)

Staff Picks: Information Doesn't Want to Be Free

A physical book is a very special thing. The library can buy a bestseller, lend it out, and when thirty copies are no longer needed on the shelves the library can donate the surplus to the FCPL Friends and Advocates. 

The Friends, in turn, can sell that book and use the proceeds to support the library's Summer Reading Fun or other programs. The reader who bought the book can donate it back when they are finished with it, get a tax deduction, and the whole process continues with many happy readers along the way.

So why can’t patrons donate eBooks to the library when they are finished reading them?  

Why aren’t all titles available as eBooks at the library?  

Because digital rights management goes beyond what is protected by copyright.  In Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, Cory Doctorow explains how artists and producers get paid for their work, and how controlling access to information can have far-reaching consequences.

He also explains Doctorow's Laws for the Internet Age: 

1. Any time someone puts a lock on something that belongs to you and won’t give you the key, that lock isn’t there for your benefit.
2. Fame won’t make you rich, but you can’t get paid without it.
3. Information doesn’t want to be free, people do.

If you're curious about the future of the arts, literature, and other material in digital format, Mary, one of our Information Specialists, recommends that you read Information Doesn't Want to Be Free.