It’s that time of year when I turn to sweaters, blankets, and cups of hot tea. I usually write at least one column about comfort foods and ways to keep warm during the chilly winter season. Well, today I’m giving the cold shoulder to “warm fuzzies” with a column devoted to the word COLD. After all, what better time to embrace brisk reading than when you’re already bundled up and enjoying hot beverages?
Cold has many different meanings, which is why today’s reading list is a bit eclectic. If you’re feeling “cold as ice,” checking out The Last Cold Place: A Field Season Studying Penguins in Antarctica by Naira de Gracia or The White Darkness by David Grann will let you experience what it’s like to observe penguins and trek alone across a very cold continent. Brrr.
Maybe you’re more of a “center ice” kind of reader. You’re in puck-luck because Rising from the Deep: The Seattle Kraken, a Tenacious Push for Expansion, and the Emerald City’s Sports Revival by Geoff Baker will keep you in check while you face off with Seattle’s hockey team.
Sometimes cold refers not to a temperature but to a political state or a type of investigation. For readers of Cold War history, Checkmate in Berlin: The Cold War Showdown That Shaped the Modern World by Giles Milton will immerse you in post-World War II strategic activities. Fans of cold case investigations will enjoy Edward Humes’ The Forever Witness: How DNA and Genealogy Solved a Cold Case Double Murder. You might get chilled to the bone reading this book, but it won’t be because of weather.
Lastly, I offer words of wisdom about how to avoid freezer burn. Make sure freezer items are properly packaged, consumed in a timely manner—and be sure to check out Seriously Good Freezer Meals: 150 Easy Recipes to Save Your Time, Money & Sanity by Karrie Truman. Move from store-bought TV dinners to delicious homemade meals with this “your-freezer-is-your-friend” cookbook.
- Checkmate in Berlin: The Cold War Showdown That Shaped the Modern World by Giles Milton.
- The Forever Witness: How DNA and Genealogy Solved a Cold Case Double Murder by Edward Humes.
- The Last Cold Place: A Field Season Studying Penguins in Antarctica by Naira de Gracia.
- Rising from the Deep: The Seattle Kraken, a Tenacious Push for Expansion, and the Emerald City’s Sports Revival by Geoff Baker.
- Seriously Good Freezer Meals: 150 Easy Recipes to Save Your Time, Money & Sanity by Karrie Truman.
- The White Darkness by David Grann.
New at the Library
Fiction
- Bulletproof Barista by Cleo Coyle.
- Dead Man’s Wake by Paul Doiron.
- Just Once by Karen Kingsbury.
Nonfiction
- Foreign Bodies: Pandemics, Vaccines, and the Health of Nations by Simon Schama.
- A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, a History, a Memorial by Viet Thanh Nguyen.
- Sull’s Manual of Advanced Penmanship: An Instructional Guide to American Cursive, Ornamental Penmanship, and Flourishing by Michael R. Sull.
Children
- Major Taylor: World Cycling Champion written by Charles R. Smith Jr., illustrated by Leo Espinosa.
- The Truth About Max written and illustrated by Alice Provensen and Martin Provensen.
- Wrecker by Carl Hiaasen.
This is just a small sampling of the many new titles added each week to the Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries collection. Find more in our catalog, or call 360-906-5000 to reserve titles or find additional listings.
Jan Johnston, Collection Manager
Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries
You can email Jan at readingforfun@fvrl.org
