Sounds of Summer

Sounds of Summer!

If you're planning on what type of music to listen to while you're enjoying the outdoor summer weather, please browse our Bliss Music Collection. Since summer is a time for reruns on TV, why not check out our Movies & TV section? Fans of Mad Men will enjoy the music soundtrack, as will fans of Empire or Glee. We also have a TV Land presents Favorite TV Theme Songs, but don't hate us if you  find yourself whistling the Andy Griffith theme song all day! If you're a fan of the series The Americans, try Now That's What I Call the 80s! to get you back into the mood. If you're a Downton Abbey fan, we have the soundtrack for that, too.

Enjoy your summer!

THE DELI - The New Rochelle Connection

THE DELI - The New Rochelle Connection

Twenty years ago today (June 13, 1996), the independent comedy THE DELI began filming in and around the Amico & Sons Deli at 255 Union Avenue in West New Rochelle, currently the location of the Tejeda Deli Grocery.  

Screengrab from THE DELI

Tejeda Deli Grocery, 255 Union Ave

The winner of the 1997 Excellence in Filmmaking Award from the National Board of Review, THE DELI has been described as “an enchanting slice-of-life comedy about a hard luck gambler who gets in over his head when he starts putting his store’s profits on the line. Mike Starr (DUMB AND DUMBER, GOODFELLAS) plays Johnny Amico, a delicatessen owner who plays the same numbers in the lottery every week for his mother.  The one week he doesn’t play, his mother’s numbers come up and he hatches a madcap plan to raise the prize money.  With one week to make good on his debts, Johnny rides a comic rollercoaster as he desperately tries to save his deli and help his mother while battling a crazy bunch of bookies, gangsters and neighborhood nuts!”  Featuring a cast of familiar faces including Heather Matarazzo, Debi Mazar, Gretchen Mol, Chris Noth, Vincent Pastore, Michael Imperioli, Matt Keeslar, Jerry Stiller, Frank Vincent, Burt Young, Ice-T, Heavy D, David Johansen, William McNamara, Tony Sirico, Iman, Reb Brown, and Shirley Stoler, THE DELI is a rarely-seen slice of New Rochelle film history now available to borrow in our DVD section.

Secrets on the Shelves I

Secrets on the Shelves is a feature where we take a look at an interesting item that is located on the shelves of the New Rochelle Public Library’s collection.

Our first selection is in honor of Women’s History Month and it is located in the 800s on the 2nd floor. It is a book called The Plays and Poems of Mercy Otis Warren.  

Mercy Otis Warren was a female writer who wrote political propagandist poems and plays during the American Revolution. In a time where few women could read or write and those who could did not speak out, Warren spoke out in her plays and poems. In her work, she encouraged colonists to rebel against British rule and the infringement of their rights as citizens.

She corresponded with many of the Founding Fathers during the Revolution such as John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and future presidents George Washington, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.

Many men are responsible for shaping our nation, but there were also some women whose voices have since been forgotten by the general public. If you’re interested in Mercy’s work, this book can be found on the 2nd floor under the call number 818.109 W.  A biography on Mercy called The Muse of the Revolution: The Secret Pen of Mercy Otis Warren and the Founding of a Nation by Nancy Rubin Stuart is also located on the second floor in the biography section under “W” for Warren.

Contributor: David Torres, Librarian @ NRPL

Librarian, Writer, Poet...

Librarian, Writer, Poet...

You may know Susan Moorhead, one of our Children's Librarians. Did you know that she is also a writer and a poet? Susan's stories, poems and essays have appeared in a variety of print and online publications and anthologies. Most recently, Susan's short story, Eva's Ocean, was published in the annual 2015 The Westchester Review! 

You can read some of Susan's works online. Click here to read The Exit, a wonderful short story which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Loose Ends is a lighter, funnier story which you can read here. 

Summer Reading

Summer Reading 

Now that that those lazy, hazy summer days are upon us, here’s hoping you are finding plenty of time to read. If you have not yet discovered Lucinda Riley, her new book would be a great place to start. Published May 5, The Seven Sisters is the first in a linked series of 7 novels focused on the mysteries surrounding six girls adopted by an enigmatic billionaire. Upon his death each girl is given a clue to her origins; the first sister, Maia, follows hers to Rio, finding links to the building of the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue. Riley does the dual timeline story—one of my favorite plot devices—beautifully, and I can hardly wait for the second novel, promised for November 2015.

A number of long-time favorite authors had summer books published in May and June: be on the lookout for Nancy Thayer’s The Guest Cottage, Mary Kay Andrews’ Beach Town, Mary Alice Monroe’s The Summer’s End, Dorothea Benton Frank’s All The Single Ladies, and Shelley Noble’s Whisper Beach. Also published in June is Elin Hilderbrand’s The Rumor, which finds Grace spending too much time with her hunky landscape architect, while friend Madeleine has rented a room in town as a hideaway, hoping to overcome writer’s block. Teens Allegra, Hope and Brick are in the throes of young love. Rumors abound. Gather up your towels and sunscreen and head to the beach with this one. Friendships and marriages will be tested before the rumors can be put to rest. 

Readers wondering if Judy Blume was working on any new adult titles should enjoy In the Unlikely Event, published June 2, which is a wonderful coming-of-age story set in the 1950’s in a community traumatized by a series of devastating plane crashes. Teenager Miri grabbed my attention right off and held it all the way through; secondary characters are memorable as well.

A title to look out for in July is Amy Reichert’s The Coincidence of Coconut Cake, a charmer a la 'You’ve Got Mail' with a restaurant owner and critic at odds with one another. It’s also a love letter to Milwaukee’s foods and festivals and may make you want to plan a trip. Also due out in July is Circling the Sun by Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife. With a fascinating subject in aviatrix Beryl Markham, a compelling sense of place and the dramatic Karen Blixen/Denys Finch-Hatton/Beryl love triangle to pull in Out of Africa fans—it’s hard to see how this one can miss.

Science fiction fans who loved Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One will be thrilled to get their hands on Armada, publishing July 14. Another delightful—and thought-provoking—romp through classic science fiction themes, Armada is tremendous fun.

Mystery readers can look forward to Andrew Mayne’s second Jessica Blackwood  mystery, Name of the Devil, due out July 7, where we learn a little bit more about magician-turned FBI agent Jessica, her unusual family, and how other FBI agents are dealing with the suddenly high-profile rookie. Jessica has another spooky and intriguing case to deal with when a rural church mysteriously explodes and the small congregation goes missing. Also publishing in July are Kathy Reichs’ Speaking in Bones and Elizabeth Gunn’s Noontime Follies, the next title in her excellent Jake Hines series. But the real bonanza arrives in August, which must be “Mystery Month” this year. Look for Linda Fairstein’s Devil’s Bridge, Sue Grafton’s X, Margaret Maron’s Long Upon The Land, Sara Paretsky’s Brush Back, Martin Walker’s The Patriarch, and—last but not least—Louise Penny’s Nature of the Beast. Penny set the bar high with her last two books but she has no trouble clearing it with this one. All our old friends are back in Three Pines where a young boy with the compulsion to tell tall tales tells one true story with disastrous results. But which story was the truth and why is it so threatening?


Contributor: Beth Mills, Senior Librarian @ NRPL