Fireside Chat

Our next Fireside Chat will be Friday, February 29, 2010, at 3 p.m. Relax as we introduce some of the newest books available at the Riverhead Free Library--the latest fiction and non-fiction--including mysteries, gripping true adventure tales, self-help, biographies, and much, much more. Here's a sampling...
Bluebird: Women and the New Psychology of Happiness by Ariel Gore is sure to please those tired of searching for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Gore asks the question: "Can a woman be smart, empowered, and happy?" Determined to find out, she chronicles her inquiry with curiousity and humor. Bluebird is a smart, uplifting study of the real secret to joy.

Integrating archaeological, genetic, linguistic, and literary information, The Vikings: A History by Robert Ferguson is a readable and accessible book that serves as a solid introduction to Viking history. This provides an intriguing look at these restless voyagers and conquerers.


Miss O'Dell: My Hard Days and Long Nights with the Beatles, the Stones, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and the Women They Loved by Chris O'Dell with Katherine Ketcham is the ultimate rock 'n' roll memoir. Chris O'Dell was one of the first woman tour managers for some of the world's most influential musicians today. She was a friend, confidante, and lover to these revered musical icons and lived in the "fast lane" for almost twenty years. Baby boomers in particular will enjoy this front row seat to rock history.

In the News: Haiti

The recent earthquake in Haiti shed light on the plight of this nation, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. A land with a rich history of Voodoo, gods, and goddesses, Haiti emerged from dictatorship to democracy over a decade ago.

In Krik? Krak!, Haitian-born author Edwidge Danticat movingly describes what life was like under the dictatorship in a collection of nine interrelated stories. Praised by critics, this collection of intimate histories reveals the longing for peace and happiness of a people who live in the embrace of mythic powers and rites of passage.

All Souls' Rising by Madison Smartt Bell is "A serious historical novel that reads like a dream," according to the Washington Post. Nominated for multiple awards, Bell's book fictionalizes the horrific slave rebellion of the 1790s that brought an end to white rule in French colonial Haiti. Not for the faint-hearted, this work offers a fascinating glimpse into a little-known episode that took place in our hemisphere.

Those who prefer a true look at Haitian history, may want to read the book Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti by social activist and filmmaker Maya Deren. Written in 1953, this anthropological investigation tells of the Haitian deities, practitioners, and Voodoo rituals that Deren encountered as a result of vast fieldwork and personal research in Haiti. Here, she was unexpectedly accepted as a member of a Haitian village.

Look for these books on display, at the Reference Desk, or check with a librarian.