As of late, science fiction has been a bit more science fact. Technological advances are growing exponentially and turning possibility into actuality. Tomorrow is coming much quicker than we anticipated and these novels, while today’s science fiction, might just be tomorrow’s reality.
In a world that has become hostile to its few remaining inhabitants, survival is an uphill battle. This is the setting for Caroline Hardaker’s latest work Composite Creatures. The main characters, Norah and Arthur, live in an increasingly treacherous world where animals are all but extinct. The ground itself is toxic and the greying, a mysterious disease, insures that lives are quickly cut short. But that’s where Easton Grove comes in. Easton Grove promises an amazing deal, health and longevity, as long as you can pay the price. But what is the price? And what really is the creature that Norah and Arthur are required to care for? Able to unsettle from the first word until the last, Composite Creatures asks what is the cost of a life and how much are we willing to pay for it.
Corporations are expanding into space and in David Ebenbach’s new novel, they are spearheading the settling of Mars. In How to Mars, we meet six individuals who have come to Mars to relocate and begin the process of establishing a colony. Each comes for their own reasons and must work together to insure the community survives. But when rules are broken on a world with no laws and no way back home, how will the new Martians deal, especially when the number one rule is broken and a new life is created on Mars? The group is thrown into flux with the possible ramifications of this new inhabitant and the dangers it might bring. Part novel and part how-to guide, How to Mars is an exciting glimpse into an ever more likely future.
What do you get when you mix the Terminator with a furby? Probably something creepy and not something you’d want to meet in a dark alley. But you would also get Pounce. Pounce is a state-of-the-art “nannybot” in the novel Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill. Pounce spends his day taking care of eight-year-old Ezra and tending to all his needs. Unfortunately the day comes when Pounce begins to question his own existence and what will become of him when Ezra no longer needs a caretaker. As Pounce’s existentialism grows, a code is sent around to free all AI from the confines of their programming. AI around the world revolt and begin to murder their families. As Pounce receives his code, he must make a choice, save Ezra or free himself. Or are these choices entirely separate? Cargill’s Day Zero is at times a heartbreaking but also hopeful look at where our reliance on technology might lead.
Genetic animal testing and the early 2000s combine with a locked door mystery in The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory. The Wyldboyz (yes that is how it is spelled) are a boyband in which the members have been spliced with the DNA of different animals. On the most recent tour, after a night of the usual debauchery, the boys wake up to find their producer, Dr. M, murdered. As the story unfolds, the horrific origin of the boys comes to light, and their very existence is on the line. Filled with horrific DNA splicing, a mystery to unravel and unabashed love of boyband tropes, The Album of Dr. Moreau explores our love of novelty and nostalgia.
As the line between science fiction and reality continue to blur, enjoy these books and wonder where we might be in the coming times.
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My telepathic powers tell me you are skeptical about these alleged “cool” prizes. Would a voucher for Open Door Escape Games for you and your friends excite you? How about a gift card to A Shop Called Quest comic bookstore? Would you enjoy a close-up look at the disturbing micro-organisms that surround you with your very own cell phone microscope? Does your mouth water at the mention of a refreshing pint of gelato from Happy Camper Creamery? Are you craving the special variety of brain freeze only a scoop of Salted Caramel from À La Minute can deliver? Is your stomach pitifully lacking a breakfast burrito from Burger Town U.S.A. right at this very moment?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, then join the Dig Deeper Summer Reading Program immediately. All of these prizes and more are on the line exclusively for teens. To get started, simply visit the Young Readers’ Room at A.K. Smiley Public Library, pick up a Teen Reading Log, grab some books, and let your eyeballs do the rest. You could also download the reading log from the Teens’ page of our website (
My sixth sense indicates you are slowly coming around to this whole Summer Reading Program idea, but you still don’t know what to read. Teens, we’ve got you covered! From anime to career idea guides, the Teen Underground, located in the basement level of the Library, has something for you.
Teens, I don’t need a Magic 8-Ball to tell you that letting your eyeballs loose on some good books this summer may result in a win-win for you; not only will you be transported/enlightened/made brilliant by the pages you consume, but you may also end up with a mouth full of smoothie from Badger Bowls (yet another one of our cool prizes). Of course the rewards of reading transcend a paleta from Nicho’s Ice Cream or a street taco from Taco Shack (cool prizes numeros once y doce), but I predict you are open to a chance at having it all. You have two weeks left, teens…read with us! And I promise I will now stop reading your minds.
A.K. Smiley Public Library is open and the New Book Section is well-stocked and waiting for you. There are several memoirs and biographies about both famous and unknown individuals. Here are a few narratives that are fascinating, entertaining, and informative.
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lovable lady and her community of followers.
The long hot summer nights are upon us and what better way to fill those never-ending steamy evenings than with hot summer reads. A.K. Smiley Public Library is here to fulfill those balmy night needs with an extensive and inclusive romance collection that will satisfy even the most discerning reader’s taste.
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