Known and Unknown, A Memoir by Donald Rumsfeld

This accomplished contributor to the United States government reflects on his public and private career. Available at Hibbing Public Library and in the Arrowhead region in book, sound recording (discs) and e-book formats.

New Books - New Authors

The library has an easy way to discover new books and authors.  Just visit our home page at www.hibbing.lib.mn.us and click on the “BookNews” icon.

You will discover links to our monthly newsletters featuring a wide variety of books for all ages.  Each newsletter is devoted to a specific genre or subject and includes descriptions of the books with reviews.  There are also links to award winning and bestselling books.

Subscribe to as many newsletters as you wish and start getting the monthly updates in your email.

Farewell, Boo

Boo, the library pet gerbil, died Monday, August 22, 2011.


His library family is sad that he is gone, but is glad that he was loved by the children who visited him. Boo can now reunite with his brother Peek, who died on Sunday, November 22, 2010.

Our gerbil brothers came to live in the Children’s Room on January 10, 2009 when they were just young pups.

Gerbils live 2-3 years so both Peak and Boo lived very long lives.

Ghost in the Wires by Kevin Mitnick with William L. Simon

Kevin Mitnick:
“I have hacked into some of the largest companies on the planet and penetrated the most resilient computer systems every developed – hired by the companies themselves, to help them close the gaps and improve their security so they don’t become the next hacking victim. I’m largely self-taught and have spent years studying methods, tactics, and strategies used to circumvent computer security, and to learn more about how computer systems and telecommunication systems work.
Kevin Mitnick became the world’s most wanted computer hacker and his hacking escapades landed him in prison for five years.
Find Ghost in the Wires in the new book section under 364.16 MITNI
You can follow Kevin Mitnick on Twitter and you can see him on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_VYWefmy34

In Search of the Rose Notes by Emily Arsenault

“Fitting that Charlotte would call while I was doing nothing. When we were kids, she was always saving me from nothing. What are you doing? Nothing. And compared to Charlotte’s house, with its big brother, its basketball hoop, its VCR, its trampline, and its pantry full of Oreos, my place really was nothing.”

Nora and Charlotte were grade school friends who spent all their free time together. After school, Rose the babysitter, often played games with them until the day she went missing. Sixteen years later, Charlotte calls Nora to tell her that Rose has been found. Nora goes back to Waverly, reconnects with Charlotte, and they fall back into their routine of trying to figure what happened to Rose.

Emily has a website: http://emilyarsenault.com/author/

Sherlock Holmes - Always a Favorite!

View the Sherlock Holmes Book Display on the table in the reading room.

Sherlock Holmes—ever popular, has many books written by Doyle as well as other authors—Laurie King, Minnesota author Larry Millett, etc., blogs, museums, movies, websites and even The Sherlock Holmes Collections at the University of Minnesota. We have some of his movies and books here for checkout.


Sherlock Holmes, created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is the brilliant London-based "consulting detective", famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to change into any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve difficult cases.

Holmes, who first appeared in publication in 1887, was featured in four novels and 56 short stories, starting with A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of the Four. The character grew tremendously in popularity with the beginning of the first series of short stories in Strand Magazine in 1891; further series of short stories and two novels published in serial form appeared between 1891 and 1927. Sherlock Holmes is still popular today with new movies featuring Robert Downey Jr. (Sherlock, 2009) with the sequel showing in December 2011. PBS has a contemporary series also called Sherlock with 3 episodes and more to follow.

Minnesota Fall Explorer

The new edition of the Minnesota Explorer is now available at the library.  Articles include:

• Fall Music Fests
• New Minnesota Wineries and how to get information on tours and events
• Where the best corn mazes will be this fall
• A full calendar of great events including art and sporting
• Quick Fall getaway ideas

Pick one up while the supply lasts.

Movies from Books

A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of children's novels (or novellas) by Lemony Snicket (the nom de plume of American author Daniel Handler) which follows the turbulent lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire after their parents' death in an arsonous house fire. The children are placed in the custody of their distant cousin Count Olaf, who begins to abuse them and openly plots to embezzle their inheritance. After the Baudelaires are removed from his care by their parents' estate executor, Arthur Poe, Olaf begins to doggedly hunt the children down, bringing about the serial slaughter and demise of a multitude of characters.

The entire series is actively narrated by Snicket, who makes numerous references to his mysterious, deceased love interest, Beatrice. Both Snicket and Beatrice play roles in the story along with Snicket's family members, all of whom are part of an overarching conspiracy known to the children only as "V.F.D."

Since the release of the first novel, The Bad Beginning, in September 1999, the books have gained significant popularity, critical acclaim, and commercial success worldwide, spawning a film, video game, and assorted merchandise. The thirteen books in the series (or "tridecalogy") have collectively sold more than 60 million copies and have been translated into 41 languages.

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 film directed by Brad Silberling. It is an adaptation of the The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, being the first three books in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The film stars Jim Carrey, Liam Aiken, Emily Browning, Timothy Spall, Billy Connolly, and Meryl Streep, with narration by Jude Law and cameos by Catherine O'Hara and Dustin Hoffman. The film tells the story of three orphans who are adopted by a mysterious theater troupe actor named Count Olaf as he attempts to steal their late parents' fortune.


Nickelodeon Movies purchased the film rights to Daniel Handler's book series in May 2000 and soon began development of a film. Barry Sonnenfeld signed on to direct in June 2002. He hired Handler to adapt the screenplay and courted Jim Carrey for Count Olaf. Sonnenfeld eventually left over budget concerns in January 2003 and Brad Silberling took over. Robert Gordon rewrote Handler's script, and principal photography started in November 2003. A Series of Unfortunate Events was entirely shot using sound stages and backlots at Paramount Pictures and Downey Studios. The film received generally favorable reviews from critics, grossed approximately $209 million worldwide, and won the Academy Award for Best Makeup.

Website of the Week: Wordnik

Are you a Logophile? According to Merrian-Webster, "Someone who loves words is called a logophile. Despite there being quite a few of us word-lovers, logophile is not common enough to find its way into
most dictionaries. Logophile comes from two Greek roots--logos, meaning "speech, word, reason" and philos, meaning "dear, friendly"--and these roots have also played a part in other more common English words.
Check out the website: Wordnik: http://www.wordnik.com/ and click on a word floating down the screen to find out definitions, where the word originated and how the word is used in a sentence.
Wordnik says this about itself: Wordnik is billions of words, 969,697,008 example sentences, 6,702,650 unique words, 224,828 comments, 169,023 tags, 121,189 pronunciations, 63,099 favorites and 945,572 words in 30,392 lists created by 71,572 Wordniks.

Th1rteen R3asons Why: a novel by Jay Asher

This is a Young Adult novel for teens but also for parents, families and teachers.
Like it or not, teen suicide is a reality.  Clay Jensen has been wondering for two weeks why his classmate and crush Hannah Baker killed herself.  Now he has received a box of audiotapes in the mail and Hannah herself is going to tell him why she is dead.  He and 12 others must listen...

  It is sad, it is scary, it is a book to make us think and perhaps change.  This book has "grown into a major phenomenon over the last four years" (Entertainment Weekly, June 2011 interview with author, shelf-life.ew.com/2011/06/13/jay-asher-thirteen-reasons-why/) and is now available for purchase in paperback. 
Or you can get on the list to read it at your local library...
The hard cover edition at the Hibbing Public Library includes thirteen questions for and answer by the author. It also includes ways to ask for help such as 1-800-SUICIDE=(800)784-2433 or1-800-442-HOPE= (800)442-4673 or www.hopeline.com

In addition, I just received an email from Minnesota State Library Services recommending the following website, an on-line "knowledge path" of centralized resources on  Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Challenges in Children and Adolescents: http://www.mchlibrary.info/KnowledgePaths/kp_Mental_Conditions.html

So please read the book, see the signs, show you care, and make a positive difference in someone's life.  Don't give up on yourself or your friends and family.  Life can be hard but it IS worth living. ~GR

Shock Value by Jason Zinoman

Read how horror movies evolved from the early monster movies of the 1950s to the supernatural genre of the 1960s to the 1970s like Romero's low budget Night of the Living Dead and Wes Craven's Last House on the Left.
Some horror classics are Rosemary's Baby, Pyscho, Exorcist and Frankenstein.
This book is for anyone who has watched a horror movie and been scared witless. Check out the book and watch a horror movie you haven't seen before. Do early horror movies seem rather tame compared to horror movies currently playing? Which horror movie is your favorite? Least favorite? Which movie made you so scared you still get a shiver thinking about it? 
Shock Value can be found in the new book section under: 791.43617 ZINOM

New book display in the kid's room

Stop by the kid's room to check out the new book display, Military Non-fiction.  The book display will change every two weeks, so you may see something new!

New Historical Society Display at the Library

The Oliver Hotel Ball Park was built in 1895 and that same year Hibbing’s first baseball team was formed.  Some players at that time were Thomas Brady, Archie McFaden, Frank Shinner, Dick Griffin, Lee Quillan, Doc Lackey and Lester Sicard. 

By 1904 Thomas Brady, the village’s municipal judge, took over management of the team and they became known as Brady’s Colts. That year they won the Northern Minnesota Independent Team Championship and in 1906 they were the State Independent team champions.

Baseball and its intense popularity survived on the Iron Range until about 1925.  The decline in Hibbing was attributed to the increase in the number of automobiles.  Fans that formerly flocked to the ball park on Sunday, now were motoring to the area lakes.  Another factor was the decline in money available for governmental sources to help finance teams by giving the players well-paying jobs.

The Hibbing Historical Society currently has a display at the library with pictures of these early teams.  Also included in the display is a baseball autographed by Roger Maris.  Maris was born in Hibbing and lived here until he was ten years old.  He played for 12 seasons in Major League baseball, including seven World Series and three world championship teams.  In 1961 he broke Babe Ruth’s single season home run record by hitting 61 home runs.

It's All about the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels by Robert Penn

Robert Penn has been riding bicycles for thirty-six years: "If you've every experienced a moment of awe or freedom on a bicycle; if you've every taken flight from sadness to the rhythm of two spinning wheels, or felt the resurgence of hope pedalling to the top of a hill with the dew of effort on your forehead; if you've ever wondered, swooping bird-like down a long hill on a bicycle, if the world was standing still; if you have ever, just once, sat on a bicycle with a singing heart and felt like an ordinary human touching the gods, then we share something fundemental. We know it's all about the bike."

Join the Great River Energy Ride on the Mesabi Trail this Saturday, August 13 and experience the euphoria that riding a bike can do for you. 800 people so far are planning on a fun day on the Mesabi Trail.
See the Website: www.mesabitrail.com/great-river-energy

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

First line: “I had just come to accept that my life would be ordinary when extraordinary things began to happen.”

Jacob Portman grew up with fantastic and tall tales told to him by his Grandfather Portman in which he used very odd pictures as illustrations.

Jacob describes his Grandpa, “Growing up, Grandpa Portman was the most fascinating person I knew. He had lived in an orphanage, fought in wars, crossed oceans by steamship and deserts on horseback, performed in circuses, knew everything about guns and self-defense and surviving in the wilderness and spoke at least three languages that weren’t English.” Jacob and his father travel to Cairnholm in Wales to see the orphanage his grandfather had been sent to during the war and while there, some very odd things occurred. An unusual first book complete with quirky vintage photographs makes for fun reading.

Ransom Riggs has a blog: http://www.ransomriggs.com/

The Spiderwick Chronicles: Read the books then see the film

The Spiderwick Chronicles is a series of children's books by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black. They chronicle the adventures of the Grace children, twins Simon and Jared and their older sister Mallory, after they move into Spiderwick Estate and discover a world of fairies that they never knew existed.

The Field Guide was first published in 2003 and followed by four more novels, along with several companion books. A second series, entitled Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles, has also been written, with The Nixie's Song published in September 2007, A Giant Problem published in September 2008, and The Wyrm King published in September 2009.

A feature film adaptation of the series was released by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies on February 14, 2008 . Directed by Mark Waters, it starred Freddie Highmore, Sarah Bolger, Martin Short, Nick Nolte, and Seth Rogen. It followed the basic overall plot of the five novels in the Spiderwick Chronicles series, but left out the majority of the plot from the fourth book and contained several major differences.

And the winner is...

Congratulations to those readers on the blue team. They won the “most books read” contest for the summer by reading a total of 3350 books. All members of the blue team get a free Dilly Bar from DQ. Stop by the desk to get yours.

Green team read 3030 books. Thanks to all our readers!

Akata Witch By Nnedi Okorafor

A new Young  Adult novel by an interesting author "born in the United States to two Igbo (Nigerian) parents".  This is not her first novel but the first time I've run across this author.  

My one line summary plot summary? 

"Harry Potter goes to Africa".  

Seriously, the four young teens (two girls, two boys) in this book are called on by the Leopard People to save the world.  Sunny did not even know she WAS a Leopard person.  Now she is putting her cell phone aside and joining her friends Orlu and Chichi, as well as their new American friend Sasha, to learn the juju magic necessary to defeat Black Hat Otokoto, a ritual serial killer who is preparing to call up the deepest evil.  I liked reading about life in two different cultures: modern Nigeria and the alternate, magical/spiritual reality of the Leopard People.  ~Ginny Richmond, Library Director

Original Sin: A Sally Sin Adventure by Beth McMullen

Lucy, suburban housewife, aka Sally Sin, former spy for the USAWMD, is living the domestic life in San Francisco with a husband and 3 year old son. Lucy has adjusted well to life outside the spy game with few exceptions. As a retired spy, Lucy has a few ground rules for retirement that she must follow:
1. You were never here.
2. We were never here.
3. We’re still not here.
The last rule: “We reserve the right to call on you if your expertise is required. And if we do, you must call back.” Unfortunately, Simon Still, Lucy’s former boss calls her back with a slight problem. New book, new series, new author - written with plenty of humor and spy thriller action, Original Sin is a great start to a new series. Website: http://bethmcmullen.com/

Split Second by Catherine Coulter

FBI Agents Lucy Carlyle and Cooper McKnight along with Agents Savich and Sherlock from previous FBI thrillers are tracking an unusual serial killer. The killer is a woman killing other women as well as being the daughter of infamous serial killer Ted Bundy.

Lucy Carlyle is devastated by her father’s death when he leaves her with a family mystery spoken on his deathbed. Lucy must track a serial killer, resolve the murder in her own family and contain the feelings she has for her new partner, Cooper.

Well known for her FBI novels with a trace of psychic abilities displayed by the FBI agents, Catherine Coulter has a website: http://www.catherinecoulter.com/

In case you missed it...

If you missed last week's deadline for the picking up your Summer Reading Program prizes, don't despair!  You can still pick up your prize bag this week.  But get here before 5:00pm this Friday, August 5, or you really will miss out!

Aren't you glad you read the blog?