Bossypants

Tina Fey's new biography is a must-read, certainly, for fans of tv's Saturday Night Live (SNL) and 30 Rock.  In it, Fey traces her journey towards comedy stardom with all the self-deprecation, irony and intelligence that mark her writing style.  At the same time, she shares glimpses of her personal life as a daughter, and single-girl turned wife and mother.  Those interested in what Fey has to say about her Sarah Palin schtick won't be disappointed as she offers readers a behind-the-scenes (though certainly not a tell-all) about the role that breathed life into SNL.  Hugely recommended on audio, as Fey reads (and ad-libs) in her laugh-out-loud Liz Lemon-like manner.

Skype Author Visit

Last evening, Tatjana Soli, author of The Lotus Eaters, visited via Skype with members of our adult summer reading program, One Community, One Book.

Summer Reads

Looking for a good summer read?  Check out these sights for this summer's top picks:

NPR's 2011 Summer Books

O Magazine:  Paging Summer!:  20 Tantalizing Beach Reads


New York Times 2011 Summer Reading Special

Redbook Magazine:  The Hottest Beach Reads of the Season


Marie Claire's Best Summer Beach Reads For Your Personality

The Uncoupling

Unless you've taken a Humanities or Classics course, you likely haven't read (or seen performed) Aristophanes' infamous play, Lysistrata.  But I highly recommend it.  It's the story of a group of wives and women living in Ancient Greece who band together and commit to end the Peloponnesian War by...wait for it...withholding sex from their men.  Needless to say, the ban on sex infuriates the men...but the women ultimately bring peace.

Meg Wolitzer tells a modern-day version of this story in her newest book The Uncoupling.  This version centers on a group of teachers, students and couples from Eleanor Roosevelt High whose new, edgy drama teacher selects Aristophanes' Lysistrata to perform for the school's annual play.  While her motive for performing the play isn't political as was Aristophanes' original manuscript, it certainly inspires community conversation.  And an accompanying mysterious wind that blows through the town touches each of the female characters, magically calling them to action within their own relationships. 

Readers will likely laugh out loud at the dialogue and unromantic situations of the characters, unable to side with either the men or the women.  Perfect for the poolside.