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Tag Archives: Novel
#BookFaceFriday “Really Good, Actually” by Monica Heisey
There’s no crying in #BookFaceFriday!
Laugh until you cry with this week’s #BookFaceFriday. If ever there was an anti-Valentine’s Day read this one is it. If you love “Bridget Jone’s Diary,” or just belting out “All By Myself” by Celine Dion, I think you’ll enjoy the messy love life in this read. Whatever your Valentine’s Day plans, you can find your next book on Nebraska OverDrive Libraries. Like “Really Good, Actually: A Novel” by Monica Heisey (HarperCollins Publishers, 2023), it’s available as an ebook and an audiobook today.
“Heisey’s portrayal of the joys and pitfalls of online dating will ring true, and Maggie’s self-deprecating, often snarky humor keeps the deeper themes of the story from getting too heavy. It’s a thoroughly modern take on 1990s chick lit, exaggeratedly over the top in the best possible way. Readers will cheer messy Maggie on as she stumbles inelegantly toward a happy, postdivorce life.”
— Booklist
Find this title and many more through Nebraska OverDrive. Libraries participating in the Nebraska OverDrive Libraries Group currently have access to a shared and growing collection of digital downloadable audiobooks and eBooks. 189 libraries across the state share the Nebraska OverDrive collection of 26,554 audiobooks, 32,935 eBooks, and 3,940 magazines. As an added bonus it includes 130 podcasts that are always available with simultaneous use (SU), as well as SU ebooks and audiobook titles that publishers have made available for a limited time. If you’re a part of it, let your users know about this great title, and if you’re not a member yet, find more information about participating in Nebraska Overdrive Libraries!
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading
Tagged bookfacefriday, Ebook, Fiction, Monica Heisey, Nebraska OverDrive Libraries, Novel, OverDrive, Reading, Really Good Actually
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#BookFaceFriday “Finlay Donovan is Killing It” by Elle Cosimano
We’re knocking ’em dead with this week’s #BookFaceFriday!
Your book club may just die … of laughter with this week’s #BookFaceFriday pick, “Finlay Donovan is Killing It: A Novel” by Elle Cosimano (Minotaur Books, 2021)! Looking for a good “whodunit” for your reading group?
We have several mysteries in our Book Club Kit collection; browse them by selecting “Mystery” in the Genre drop-down menu. You can find this title and all the titles available on our Book Club Kits page. It is also available as an e-book and audiobook on Nebraska Overdrive Libraries, where we also have the second book in the series “Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead“.“Part comedy of errors, part genuine thriller… Deftly balancing genre conventions with sly, tongue-in-cheek comments on motherhood and femininity, Cosimano crafts a deliciously twisted tale.”
– Booklist
Book Club Kits Rules for Use
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, bookfacefriday, Elle Cosimano, Finlay Donovan is Killing It, libraries, mystery, Novel, Reading
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#BookFaceFriday “The Forgotten Home Child” by Genevieve Graham
Who could forget #BookFaceFriday?
This week’s #BookFaceFriday is the unforgettable “The Forgotten Home Child” by Genevieve Graham (Simon & Schuster, 2020). Based on the true story of the British Home Children, this historical novel will surely leave your book club group with much to discuss. Didn’t remember to put in your request before this popular title was reserved by another group? Check out these similar titles on our read-alike suggestion page. We’ve taken the work out of finding other books to tide you over until your first choice is available, or just to help you find that next great selection. All titles on this page are in the Book Club Kit collection and suggestions were compiled with the help of the NoveList database from NebraskAccess.
You can find this title and all of the historical fiction available on our Book Club Kits page; just look in the Search Options section and select the Historical Fiction in the Genre drop-down list.
“The Forgotten Home Child is a poignant, edgy, and skillfully written portrayal of a Home Child’s experience that typified so many. The absence of any sugar coating makes this story come to life and brings a level of reality that is often lacking—an emotional journey well worth reading.”
— LORI OSCHEFSKI, CEO of the British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association
Book Club Kits Rules for Use
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
#BookFaceFriday “The Reading List” by Sara Nisha Adams
#BookFaceFriday‘s TBR list has never been longer!
Maybe a little on the nose for a Book Club read but who cares, it was too good not to use for this week’s #BookFaceFriday. We have gotten several new titles in our Book Club Kit collection, just one being “The Reading List: A Novel” by Sara Nisha Adams (William Morrow Paperbacks, 2022.) You can find this title and all the new books available on our Book Club Kits page; just look in the Browse Options section and select the Browse New Additions link for our latest reads. It is also available as an e-book and audiobook on Nebraska Overdrive Libraries.
“This moving debut demonstrates the power of novels to provide comfort in the face of devastating loss and loneliness, with relatable characters and a heartwarming tone throughout. Readers who enjoyed Gabrielle Zevin’s The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry and Nina George’s The Little Paris Bookshop will find themselves drawn in by this book.”
– Booklist
Book Club Kits Rules for Use
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, bookfacefriday, libraries, Novel, Reading, Sara Nisha Adams, The Reading List
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#BookFaceFriday “Keeping Faith” by Jodi Picoult
Keep your hat on ‘its #BookFaceFriday! 
Some authors are just perfect for book club discussions and #BookFace! With subjects and characters that keep the conversation flowing check out “Keeping Faith: A Novel” by Jodi Picoult (William Morrow, 2006,) available in the NLC Book Club collection. We have twenty, say that again, TWENTY Jodi Picoult titles in our Book Club Kit Collection! If that’s not enough for you, there are even more Picoult books available in the Nebraska OverDrive Libraries collection, both in eBook and Audiobook format.
Keeping Faith is a raging success. . . . A triumph. This novel’s haunting strength will hold the reader until the very end and make Faith and her story impossible to forget.
Book Club Kits Rules for Use
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, Book Covers, bookface, bookfacefriday, books, Jodi Picoult, Keeping Faith, Novel, OverDrive
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#BookFaceFriday “Next Year in Havana” by Chanel Cleeton
Things are heating up with this week’s #BookFaceFriday!
As summer temperatures rise so does our search for the perfect summer read, and maybe the perfect summer drink. A Tequila Mockingbird or Margarita Atwood anyone? We think this week’s title “Next Year in Havana: A Novel” by Chanel Cleeton (Berkley, 2018) has excellent potential, and would pair perfectly with an ice-cold Cuba Libre. Even if you don’t leave your backyard this summer, you can still take a trip with this Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. Find all the most recently added books with the Browse New Additions search tool. We can’t wait to see what all of our book clubs think of our newest additions.
“A flat-out stunner of a book, at once a dual-timeline mystery, a passionate romance, and paean to the tragedy and beauty of war-torn Cuba. Simply wonderful!”
—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network and The Huntress
Rules for Book Club Kits
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
This week’s model is NLC’s Accountant, Laura Stueck! She might be the most important person at the NLC, because she’s the one who makes sure we all get paid!
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, bookfacefriday, Chanel Cleeton, Next Year in Havana, Novel, Reading
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#BookFaceFriday “The Authenticity Project” by Clare Pooley
Sit back and relax with this #BookFaceFriday!
Every week the Nebraska Library Commission adds new titles to our Book Club Kits Collection! Some we purchase, some are donated by libraries and book clubs. We’ve recently gotten in some great titles, like “The Authenticity Project” by Clare Pooley (Penguin Books, 2020). From the Book Club Kits main page you can narrow your search to New Additions, browse by genre or subject matter, find copies of large-print or audio options, or dive into the list of read-a-likes we’ve compiled to help you find your group’s next book. Take a little time and explore all the Nebraska Library Commission’s Book Club Collection has to offer, we promise, you won’t be disappointed!
“The Authenticity Project reads like a gorgeous box of chocolates: sweet, surprising and impossible not to love. I found myself cheering, cringing, laughing and crying as I read this book and – above all – remembering the true value of community and human connection.”
—Tara Conklin, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Romantics
Rules for Book Club Kits
- These kits can be checked out by the librarians of Nebraska libraries and media centers.
- Circulation times are flexible and will be based upon availability. There is no standard check-out time for book club kits.
- Please search the collection to select items you wish to borrow and use the REQUEST THIS KIT icon to borrow items.
- Contact the Information Desk at the Library Commission if you have any questions: by phone: 800/307-2665, or by email: Information Services Team
This week’s model is NLC staff member Chelsea Lemburg, she’s been working as our Library Innovation Studios Project Assistant but will be transitioning into her new position as Federal Documents Staff Assistant in July! We are so glad she’ll be staying with the NLC when the Library Innovation Studios grant is finished!
Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, bookfacefriday, Clare Pooley, Novel, Reading, The Authenticity Project
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#BookFaceFriday “Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine”
Socially awkward never looked so good…
Calling all book clubs! Check out “Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine: A Novel” by Gail Honeyman (Penguin Books, 2018). If it’s good enough for Reece Witherspoon, it’s probably good enough for me. As a NEW YORK TIMES bestseller and a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick, this is the perfect choice for your next read. I found Eleanor the perfect antiheroine, hilarious and awkward with a heartbreaking past. This novel is a part of our NLC Book Club Kit collection, and can be reserved for your book club to read today!
“Eleanor Oliphant is a quirky loner and a model of efficiency with her routine of frozen pizza, vodka and weekly phone calls with Mummy. [She’s] a woman beginning to heal from unimaginable tragedy, with a voice that is deadpan, heartbreaking and humorous all at once.” –NPR.org
This week’s #BookFaceFriday model is NLC’s Interlibrary Loan Staff Assistant, Lynda Clause!
Love this #BookFace & reading? We suggest checking out all the titles available for book clubs at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ref/bookclub. Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Art, Book Club Kits, Book Covers, bookface, bookfacefriday, books, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Fiction, Gail Honeyman, Novel, Reading
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Friday Reads: The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn
A. J. Finn’s The Woman in the Window is a whodunit thriller with lots of surprises and unexpected outcomes. The book has been likened to Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train and Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl and with elements of a Hitchcock movie.
Anna Fox, a psychologist in her late 30s, is the protagonist. Anna lives alone in an upscale Manhattan home. A young carpenter is a tenant who occupies the basement. The reader soon learns that Anna is agoraphobic and has not left her home during the past year. While living alone she has frequent phone conversations with her husband and 8-year-old daughter who are supposedly living elsewhere. Much of Anna’s time is spent watching black and white movie classics. Home bound, Anna observes her neighborhood and neighbors from her living room window. It is there that she witnesses, from a distance, a violent act in a home occupied by a family new to the neighborhood.
Anna’s fear of leaving her home, her aloneness and depression contribute to excessive drinking with wine as her favored drink. Her drinking, mixed with prescription drugs, compromises her credibility when she reports the incident to the police. Is she delusional? The conflict grows from there among Anna, the new and troubled neighbors, the police, and even her tenant. And there is Anna’s past – how did she become agoraphobic? What’s the story behind the absence of her husband and daughter?
The Woman in the Window is A. J. Finn’s first novel and a best seller from the get go. Though, not surprising because Finn (a pseudonym) is Dan Mallory, an experienced executive mystery fiction editor for William Morrow, the books publisher.
Finn, A J. The Woman in the Window. HarperCollins, 2018. Print.
Posted in Books & Reading
Tagged "The Woman in the Window", #FridayReads, A.J. Finn, Fiction, Friday Reads, Novel
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#BookFaceFriday “Falling in Love with Natassia”
We’re celebrating Valentine’s Day a little early with this week’s #BookFaceFriday!
We thought the cover of “Falling in Love with Natassia” by Anna Monardo (Doubleday, 2006) would be perfect for #BookFace (or I suppose it’s more like #BookLegs today). Nevertheless, we love how this shot turned out. “Falling in Love with Natassia” is a part of our Book Club Kit collection. Put it on your list to check out today!
“A passionate novel about a dancer and her daughter as they rediscover the nature of grace—within their bodies and their souls. Anna Monardo writes beautifully and vividly about the fusion of love and sorrow, about the mystery of redemption.”
—Ursula Hegi, author of Stones from the River
Anna Monardo’s work has appeared in a variety of anthologies and journals, including Prairie Schooner, where a prize-winning excerpt of Falling in Love with Natassia was first published. After many years in New York City, she now lives in Nebraska, where she teaches in the Writer’s Workshop of the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
This week’s #BookFace model is Library Development Services Staff Assistant, Linda Babcock!
Love this #BookFace & reading? We suggest checking out all the titles available for book clubs at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ref/bookclub. Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Anna Monardo, Book Art, Book Covers, bookface, bookfacefriday, books, Falling in Love with Natassia, Fiction, Novel, Reading
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#BookFaceFriday “The Miniaturist”
Happy #BookFaceFriday everyone!
This week we took a little trip to seventeenth century Amsterdam with our #BookFace post. “The Miniaturist” by Jessie Burton (Ecco, 2015) follows eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman as she begins a life in Amsterdam. Take a little adventure yourself and request this kit for your next book club read! “Burton’s writing is expressive and descriptive. While her prose is rich, it does not overwhelm the story…This historical novel with its strong female characters will appeal to those who enjoy the haunting undercurrents of Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s The Shadow of the Wind.” (—Library Journal)
This week’s #BookFace model is Devra Dragos, NLC’s Technology & Access Services Director.
Love this #BookFace & reading? We suggest checking out all the titles available for book clubs at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ref/bookclub. Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
Posted in Books & Reading, General
Tagged Book Club, Book Club Kits, Book Covers, bookface, bookfacefriday, books, Fiction, Jessie Burton, Novel, Reading
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#BookFaceFriday “Looking for Alaska” & “Reconsidering Happiness”
We’ve got a double #BookFace for you today book lovers!
I know the new year is supposed to be all about starting new goals and breaking bad habits, but we decided to put that off for one more week. Besides, my New Year’s resolution is always to read more books, and I was probably going to do that anyway. This #BookFaceFriday we decided to indulge in a bad habit instead with John Green’s “Looking for Alaska” (Speak, 2006) and “Reconsidering Happiness” by Sherrie Flick (Bison Books, 2009). Both novels have 4.5 – 5 star ratings on Amazon and are available to borrow as book club kits through your library!
This week’s #BookFace model is Holly Woldt, NLC’s Library Technology Support Specialist. (P.S. we did not actually light up in the Library Commission, that would be against the rules.)
Love this #BookFace & reading? We suggest checking out all the titles available for book clubs at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ref/bookclub. Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!
