Restless in the Grave by Dana Stabenow

Kate Shugak goes to Newenham undercover to help out Sergeant Liam Campbell while proving his wife Wy Chouinard, didn’t kill her biggest competitor in the air taxi business, Finn Grant. Kate, accompanied by her half wolf and half dog, Mutt, rents a place from the victim’s family and finds work in the local bar where she hears unsavory rumors about the late Finn Grant. Finn Grant died in a plane crash but whether the crash was accidental or something more sinister remains to be uncovered by Kate.  

Kate soon gets into her share of trouble when she is attacked and thrown into a chest freezer with Mutt. As the list of suspects grows to include family and enemies around town, Kate finds that Grant has been buying up property and businesses whether owners want to sell or not.

Dana Stabenow combines the Kate Shugak and Liam Campbell series for another suspenseful and action packed book set in Alaska. And being in Alaska doesn’t hurt.

www.stabenow.com

NEW CHILDREN'S BOOKS

By Colton Burpo

 

By Jane O'Connor

By Jane O'Connor

By Paul Meisel

By Keith Baker

Helsinki White by James Thompson

Inspector Kari Vaara, has been asked by Jyri Ivalo, the National Chief of Police, to run a black ops unit. Inspector Vaara, a national hero for solving previous high profile cases, can do no wrong. Vaara takes on criminals dealing with drugs, money and guns with the help of Milo and Sweetness, both of whom he can barely control. While dealing with excruciating headaches, he learns he has a brain tumor which must be operated on immediately. His American wife Kate and new daughter, Anu, offers an escape from the illicit crimes, Vaara and his cohorts take on for the benefit of the politicians who want kickbacks from all the money the black ops group has stolen. Because Finland has such a pure reputation, no one would believe that a black ops team is even possible or that corruption could be so widespread among the highest levels of government.

The operation for the brain tumor is deemed a success, but Vaara has lost all sense of emotion when dealing with his family or the dirty jobs Juri Ivalo expects him to do.  His wife Kate has reservations over this new life they are immersed in and feels nothing good can come of being situated between the criminals and the national police.

Third in the series, Helsinki White is darker than the previous Inspector Vaara mysteries  and the characters and situations have also taken on a darker cast.

Cresendo Youth Orchestra

The Crescendo Youth Orchestra gave a beautiful performance at the Hibbing Public Library on February 13th and 23rd. The Encore group will perform on February 28th starting at 3:15pm on the children's side of the library. If you are interested in joining this group, or would like more information please contact Juile Stein at minnesotafiddler@yahoo.com. String Camp (open to beginners ) is June 4-7 at Minnesota Discovery Center.

National Consumer Protection Week

March 4-10th

It’s important that you remember to protect yourself, and one place where you need security is in the consumer marketplace. That’s why USA.gov supports National Consumer Protection Week, which runs from March 4th-10th. This special week is dedicated to encouraging consumers to take full advantage of their consumer rights and make better-informed purchasing decisions.

Did You Know?

• If you suspect you’re a victim of online fraud or a scam you can submit a report to the FBI through the Internet Crime Complaint Center? Here you can report an incident that happened to you, or someone else.
• There is a statute of limitations on old debts and a collector’s ability to sue you for them? This does not mean that you no longer owe the money, or that the collector can’t still get you to pay them. It means that you can’t be sued to cough up the dough after a certain amount of time has passed. The Federal Trade Commission can help you when it comes to understanding old debts.
• If you have a safety issue with a consumer product you can report it to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission? Besides alerting others to potentially dangerous products, you can search recalls and reports on other items you might already own or receive alerts about newly discovered hazardous items. You can also download the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s “Recalls.gov” application on your mobile phone—giving you the most up-to-date recall information wherever you are.
• Teens today are at risk in ways that no generation before them has had to consider? Teach your teenagers the dangers of inappropriate texting and explain to them how what they choose to post online can affect them now, and for the rest of their lives.
• The Consumer Action Handbook is your free guide to help you navigate an increasingly complex marketplace? Updated annually, it includes a sample complaint letter and the contact information for many large companies to help you get in touch with them and rectify your issue.

Source: US.Gov Team

Save the Dates for Great Programs

The library will be offering some great programs thanks to the Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

Tuesday, February 28th at 2:30 p.m.
The Sound of Science
The flute and violin duo of Betty Braunstein and Steve Highland will be exploring the connection between sound and science.  They will be using items such as a tuning fork, slinky, and beaker of water.  There will be hands-on demonstrations, computer animations, and live music.  All to show you why music to your ears is also music to your brain.  This program is great for all ages and everyone is welcome.

Tuesday, March 6th at 10:00 a.m.
321 Art Studio of Chisholm
Draw Your Own Adventure
Join us for this program and become an author and illustrator.  Hear the story "Harold and the Purple Crayon", talk about adventures, and create your own book.  Fun for kids pre-school age and up.

Tuesday, March 20th at 10: a.m.
Creativity Tank - Native American "Who Am I?" Sculptural Story Totems
Participants will explore modeling materials to bring their stories to life in a 3-D sculpture story totem.  Traditionally carved by Native Americans, totems provided a record of their lives.  With respect to traditional materials and symbols, everyone will use "Model Magic" clay to form three-dimensional images that describe their own interests or story.  All ages welcome.

Wednesday, March 28th at 4:00 p.m.
Puppet Tellers - "Night on Bear Island"
A story about friendship and fear of the unknown.  Great for pre-school and above.

Once There Were Castles: Lost Mansions and Estates of the Twin Cities by Larry Millett

Larry Millett: "All houses are precious vessels filled with history, and in the case of mansions the stories of their owners tend to be especially fascinating, if only because they are founded on the twin American obsessions of money and status. Mansions are validations to the world of their owners' success, and in the beginning dreams pour into them like summer sunlight. Sometimes the dream holds and sometimes, it fades, and when mansions come down memories always float like airy fugitives amid the dust and debris. So it is with the lost mansions of the Twin Cities."
Larry Millett is better known for his six mystery novels featuring Sherlock Holmes, but he is also an architectural historian as well as a former architecture critic at the St Paul Pioneer Press.
Find the book in the new book section under 728.809776579 MILLE

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Ann Patchett's latest novel, State of Wonder, takes you to the jungles of the Brazilian rainforest.  Marina Singh, a researcher for a multinational pharmaceutical company leaves behind her life in Minnesota when she learns that her friend and colleague, Dr Anders Eckman, has died while working in the Amazon.  While there she is given the task to investigate and report back on the research being done on a possible new drug in development.  Issues of morality and scientific ethics are brought into play upon confronting the eccentric Dr. Annick Swenson.  We also witness Marina having to adapt and navigate this unfamiliar wild territory.  This book explores relationships, it's a murder mystery and a jungle adventure with surprises right up to the end.

The Rope by Nevada Barr

Anna Pigeon, thirty five and newly widowed, leaves the safety of New York and her sister to travel to a new job as a seasonal employee at Glen Canyon National Recreational Area.
Anna wakes up:
"A wild spin of pain forced the black drowning tide in
Anna's mind to recede. Either she was waking up or falling down. She wasn't sure. Hot iron pressed against the soles of her feet, the burn cutting through the crud clogging her brain. The inside of her eyelid turned bleeding red. Shying from the glare, she turned her head, her cheek rasping against whatever she'd passed out on. Movement loosed a vicious wailing inside her skull: an unoiled hinge, nails on a blackboard, a dull Boy Scout knife scraping piano wire."
Find out what happens next and check out the new book by Nevada Barr in the new book section.

Celebrating Valentines Day

Everyone made a beaded bracelet for someone special.

The Source by James Michener

Compelling historical fiction based on tremendous research into how humans came to develop religion. This title is available in book format from the Hibbing Public Library and through interlibrary loan in the Arrowhead Library System.

New Books With Intriguing First Lines.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
First Line: "The Rutherford girl had been missing for eight days when Larry Ott returned home and found a monster waiting in his house."


Fifth Victim by Zoe Sharp
First Line: "The only thing more terrifying than fighting for your life is fighting for someone else's."

New Books With Foreign Locations.

The Leopard by Jo Nesbo
Called the best current Nordic writer of crime fiction, Jo Nesbo's books have been translated into forty languages. Previous novels include The Redbreast and The Snowman. http://jonesbo.com/


The Darkening Field by William Ryan
Captain Alexei Korolev of Criminal Investigations Division of the Moscow Militia finds himself on an airplane bound for Odessa in this historic thriller. Second novel in series by an English author. http://www.william-ryan.com/

Soft Target by Stephen Hunter

Stephen Hunter's new novel invites you to spend 4 hours at the Mall of America in Minneapolis on Black Friday. You and about 9,988 other people are there to shop but there are 12 others that have different plans.

Stephen Hunter's novel, Dead Zero, introduced Ray Cruz. Cruz is a hero; a retired marine sniper. He just happens to be at the mall with his new fiancée and her family. Twelve gunmen open fire in the mall corridors, driving the pack before them. Those on the upper floors take cover or get out any way they can; but within a few minutes the gunmen have herded more than a thousand hostages into the amusement park. Ray is one of the hostages. The only one with a plan and the courage to play it out.

The story follows the hostages, the gunmen, the police response, and the struggle of the Minnesota State Police and the FBI to control the crisis. The story is filled with suspense and there are some very graphic, violent scenes.

Reviews of the novel have been good:

"Stephen Hunter didn’t invent the high-action thriller. But, as he once again demonstrates in the lightning-paced Soft Target, he might as well have. . . . Soft Target is Die Hard with a brain and a plan. A lean, action-packed tale that begs to be read in a single sitting.”

-- The Providence Journal

“Combining elements of the locked-room mystery, the disaster novel, and the lock-and-load thriller, Hunter produces a remarkably gripping tale, building character (the captives, the bureaucrats, and the “terrorists” all get compelling back stories) every bit as convincingly as he drives the narrative to its High Noon--style finale.”

-- Booklist (starred review)

"Any thriller in which Middle Eastern terrorists whack Santa on the first page is bound to be exciting. As always, Hunter has crafted a fast-paced and all-too-plausible telling of our worst nightmares coming true. Ray Cruz is a worthy successor to Swagger. Hunter’s fans, along with new readers, will enjoy the violent battle between Cruz and the bad guys.”

-- Library Journal

Take an afternoon to read Soft Target.  It will be an afternoon well spent.

Free Tickets at the Library!

Don't Miss This Great Event!



Check out tickets at the Hibbing Public Library for free admission to the Kenya Safari Acrobats.  They will be performing on Friday, March 9, 2012 at 7:30 PM in the Hibbing High School Auditorium.

This program is in partnership with the Mesabi Concert Association and was funded in part with money from Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.



Should I Prepare My Own Taxes? by Lifehacker

According to the article by Life Hacker, ask yourself these questions to decide if you should do your own taxes or hire a professional: http://lifehacker.com/5879395/should-i-prepare-my-own-taxes

Do taxes yourself:
1. Do you have a really simple return?
2. Do you like the hands on approach to your finances?
3. Do you have time to spend on doing your taxes?
You can use one of the tax software packages that is readily available.
Hire a Tax Professional if:
1. You don't have the time.
2. You are not comfortable doing your own taxes and feel you might make a mistake.

AARP volunteers are available to give tax help at the library on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Although library staff can't tell you what form to use or help you with your taxes, we have forms, instructions and reproducible forms available by the front gate.

2012 Hot Reads for Cold Nights

The annual adult winter reading program is in full swing.  Hot Reads mugs, notepads, and magnets are being given away daily.  Just check out library materials for a chance to win.

Put your name in the drawing for a chance to win one of two Hot Reads Baskets.  Enter your name every time you visit the library.  It’s easy and fun.

Friends of the Library and ALS are sponsors of the Hot Reads for Cold Nights program.