eBranch Blog

December 29, 2006

2006 National Film Registry Additions

The 2006 additions to the National Film Registry were announced December 27. Each year, the Librarian of Congress names 25 films that are "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant to be added to the list. There are now 450 films on the list.

Applause (1929)
The Big Trail (1930)
Blazing Saddles (1974)
The Curse of Quon Gwon (1916-17%2)
Daughter of Shanghai (1937)
Drums of Winter (1988)
Early Abstractions #1-5,7,10 (1939-56)
Fargo (1996)
Flesh and the Devil (1927)
Groundhog Day (1993)
Halloween (1978)
In the Street (1948/52)
The Last Command (1928)
Notorious (1946)
Red Dust (1932)
Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1971-72)
Rocky (1976)
Sex, Lies and Videotape (1989)
Siege (1940)
St. Louis Blues (1929)
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964)
Tess of the Storm Country (1914)%
Think of Me First as a Person (1960-75)
A Time Out of War (1954)
Traffic in Souls (1913)

Previous Post: 2005 List

December 28, 2006

Chat Reference 24/7/365

Have you ever been stumped late at night or on a holiday and wanted an answer to a question, but the library wasn't open? Well, now our chat reference service is open 24 hours a day - 7 days a week - 365 days a year to answer your questions. The service is part of the QuestionPoint 24/7 service and is sponsored by the Houston Area Library System; Harris County Public Library, Fort Bend County Libraries, and Houston Public Library are the local participating libraries. The service is staffed by Harris County staff from 1 PM - 5 PM, Monday - Friday. During other hours, you will be assisted by librarians from other library systems throughout the United States. Because you may be assisted by librarians from other systems who do not have access to your account record, we recommend you use our Ask a Librarian email service for questions about your account.

Chat Now

President Gerald R. Ford, 1913-2006

Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States, passed away at the age of 93 on Tuesday, December 26. Ford became president when President Nixon resigned in 1974 due to the Watergate scandal.

Books

White House Tribute Site

White House Biography

Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum

Gerald Ford Memorial

New Bestsellers 12/22/06

The following books are appearing on the best seller lists for the first time this week. For a complete listing see our collection of Best Seller Lists.

Library Journal's Fiction & Nonfiction lists have been updated for January 15, 2007.

The Criticas Fiction and Nonfiction lists have been updated for December 2006.

E = Essence Magazine
NYT = New York Times
PW = Publisher's Weekly
USA = USA Today
* = Titles that have previously appeared on the bestseller lists but are new to our catalog.

Fiction

MISTRAL'S KISS, by Lauren K. Hamilton. (Ballantine, $23.95.) After Meredith Gentry gives up her job as a p.i. to assume her duties as a faerie princess, she must prove her fertility through sex with her bodyguards. But there are unexpected consequences. (NYT #8)

TRUE EVIL, by Greg Iles. (Scribnerm $25.95.) A divorce attorney may be murdering his client's spouses. (NYT #15)

Walter Mosley. Fear of the Dark
Fearless and Paris search for Paris's con artist cousin Ulysses S. Grant in Los Angeles during the 1950's. (E #3)

Carl Weber & Mary B. Morrison. She Ain't the One
Ashlee Anderson flies to D.C. from Texas for alone time where she meets Jay Crawford. After returning to Texas, Ashlee stops taking her medication and things get bumpy in the long distance romance. (E #5)

December 27, 2006

The CSPAN2 Book TV Bus Is Coming...

The Book TV Bus launched in September of 2005 and has been touring the nation ever since, promoting C-SPAN2's unique weekend-long programming of nonfiction books and authors, and collecting interesting literary programming from communities around the country.

The bus is a customized 45-foot long motor coach with a mobile television production studio and media demonstration center on board, giving the crew a perfect venue to conduct author interviews and the public a vivid glimpse into TV production and Book TV's programming.

Join the CSPAN2 Book TV Bus on Thursday January 11 from 12-2 at the Katherine Tyra @ Bear Creek Branch Library. Or catch the Book TV Bus at the Cy-Fair College Branch Library from 3-6 pm on Thursday January 11.

To keep up with Book TV, check out our Book TV this Weekend newsletter. It arrives weekly with information on upcoming programming and links to previous interviews. Sign-up for this newsletter on the Newsletter Sign-Up Page.

December 18, 2006

New Bestsellers 12/18/06

The following books are appearing on the best seller lists for the first time this week. For a complete listing see our collection of Best Seller Lists.

Library Journal's Fiction & Nonfiction lists have been updated for December 15.

E = Essence Magazine
NYT = New York Times
PW = Publisher's Weekly
USA = USA Today
* = Titles that have previously appeared on the bestseller lists but are new to our catalog.

Fiction

Philippa Gregory. The Boleyn Inheritance
A tempestuous Tudor tale about two queens, Anne of Cleves and Catherine Parr, and the woman who destroys them both. (NYT #12, PW #11)

Thomas Harris. Hannibal Rising
Chronicles serial killer Hannibal Lecter's childhood and early adulthood after being taken from a Soviet orphanage to live with his uncle and aunt in France. He becomes the youngest person ever to attend medical school in France. (NYT #6, PW #4, USA #6)

Nonfiction

James A. Baker, Lee Hamilton, Co-Chairs. Iraq Study Group Report
A report from the group studying the situation in Iraq and proposed strategies. (USA #11)

Rhonda Byrne. The Secret
In this book, you'll learn how to use The Secret in every aspect of your life -- money, health, relationships, happiness, and in every interaction you have in the world. You'll begin to understand the hidden, untapped power that's within you, and this revelation can bring joy to every aspect of your life. (PW #15)

James J. Cramer with Cliff Mason. Jim Cramer's Mad Money
Every night on Mad Money, he provides valuable information about stocks, steering investors away from danger zones and leading them to the investments that can turn a lackluster portfolio into a powerhouse of profit. In his new book, he shows investors how to take the advice on his TV program and put it into action. (PW #5)

December 15, 2006

Books @ the Movies This Weekend

This weekend two book related movies open - Charlotte's Web and Eragon - both of which I have been anticipating. Eragon is based on the book of the same name by Christopher Paolini about a boy who becomes a dragon rider. Charlotte's Web is the classic children's story by E.B. White about Wilbur the pig and his friend Charlotte the spider. Charlotte's Web was was previously made into an animated movie back in the 1970s by Hanna Barbara.

E. B. White. Charlotte's Web
Wilbur, the pig, is desolate when he discovers that he is destined to be the farmer's Christmas dinner until his spider friend, Charlotte, decides to help him.

Charlotte's Web
Featuring the voices of Debbie Reynolds (Charlotte), Paul Lynde (Templeton), Henry Gibson (Wilbur), Agnes Moorehead (the goose).

Christopher Paolini. Eragon
In Aagaesia, a fifteen-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power, peopled with dragons, elves, and monsters.

December 11, 2006

New Bestsellers 12/11/06

The following books are appearing on the best seller lists for the first time this week. For a complete listing see our collection of Best Seller Lists.

E = Essence Magazine
NYT = New York Times
PW = Publisher's Weekly
USA = USA Today
* = Titles that have previously appeared on the bestseller lists but are new to our catalog.

Fiction

Michael Crichton. Next
Blends fact and fiction into a breathless tale of a new world where nothing is what it seems and a set of new possibilities can open at every turn. (NYT #2, PW #1, USA #2)

Clive Cussler & Dick Cussler. Treasure of Khan
When Dirk Pitt is nearly killed rescuing an oil survey team, it appears a simple act of nature. But when the survey team is abducted and Pitt's research vessel nearly sunk, however, it's obvious there's something more sinister involved. All trails lead to Mongolia where a mysterious mogul is conducting covert deals for supplying oil to the Chinese while wreaking havoc on global oil markets utilizing a secret technology. The Mongolian harbors a dream of restoring the conquests of his ancestors, and holds a dark secret about Genghis Khan that just might give him the wealth and power to make that dream come true. (NYT #5, PW #6, USA #10)

Dean Koontz. Brother Odd
St. Bartholomew's Abbey sits in majestic solitude amid the wild peaks of California's high Sierra, a haven for children otherwise abandoned, and a sanctuary for those seeking insight. Odd Thomas has come here to learn to live fully again. But trouble has a way of finding Odd Thomas, and it slinks back onto his path. (NYT #6, PW #5, USA #6)

Joseph Wambaugh. Hollywood Station
A string of seemingly unrelated events lurs the cops at Hollywood Station into a case of Russians, diamonds, and counterfeiting. (PW #13)

Nonfiction

Jimmy Carter. Palestine
The former president, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, offers an assessment of what must be done to bring permanent peace to Israel with dignity and justice to Palestine. (NYT #7, PW #5)

IT'S OKAY TO MISS THE BED ON THE FIRST JUMP, by John O'Hurley. (Hudson Street, $19.95.) The enduring wisdom of dogs, from a "Dancing With the Stars" champion and TV dog show host. (NYT #15)

December 08, 2006

New Books, Movies, Audio Lists Updated

The New Books, Audios, and Movies lists have been updated with titles cataloged in November 2006.

For the most up-to-date listing, please check the catalog's New Additions, New DVD, New Video, New Audiobook or New Music browse searches.

December 05, 2006

Chinese American Fiction Book List

In May 2007, HCPL will partner with APAHA and iFest for the Big Read, which will feature Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club. If you can't wait, check out our new Chinese American Fiction book list, featuring books by Amy Tan, and other authors, about Chinese Americans.

Kim Wong Keltner. Buddha Baby
Lindsey Owyang, a sassy third generation Chinese-American, with two part-time jobs and two love interests, decides to investigate her family?s mysterious San Francisco Chinatown heritage.

New Bestsellers 12/4/06

The following books are appearing on the best seller lists for the first time this week. For a complete listing see our collection of Best Seller Lists.

Library Journal's Fiction & Nonfiction lists have been updated for November 15.

E = Essence Magazine
NYT = New York Times
PW = Publisher's Weekly
USA = USA Today
* = Titles that have previously appeared on the bestseller lists but are new to our catalog.

Fiction

Tony Hillerman. The Shape Shifter
Retired from the Navajo Tribal Police, Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn is called upon once again to solve a crime. This time it's Joe's last case, a case that remains unsolved and contines to haunt him. (PW #7)

Thomas Pynchon. Against the Day
Spans the period from the 1893 Chicago World's Fair to just after World War I and takes place around the world. (PW #11)

NYT Business

Neal Gabler. Walt Disney
The definitive portrait of one of the most important figures in twentieth-century American entertainment and cultural history. (#16)

David Nasaw. Andrew Carnegie
Majestically told and based on materials not available to any previous biographer, the definitive life of Andrew Carnegie-one of American business's most iconic and elusive titans. (#15)