It’s August and time for refreshing iced drinks, cold salads, poolside fun, and air conditioning. It’s also time for our hard-working ovens to take a vacation. All the recipes mentioned in this article will utilize the stovetop or barbecue when cooking is required. With this in mind, we will try to keep the food simple, fun, and not too fancy.
Elizabeth Heiskell welcomes you with Southern hospitality and dishes from the Delta region in her third cookbook, “Come On Over!” Many of Elizabeth’s recipes feature seafood, like Butter-Poached Shrimp with Tomatoes and Basil over Angel Hair Pasta, Crabmeat Maison, Seaside Shrimp, and Smoked Tuna Dip. Cold Salads to try might be Shaved Carrot and Walnut, Mediterranean Chopped, and BLTA salad. Garden cucumbers can be used in Chicken and Ranch Wraps, Bread and Butter Pickles, and Cold Cucumber Dip. Other Southern-inspired specialties are Watermelon and Tomato Gazpacho, Pimento Cheese-Stuffed Burgers, Fireside Dip, and Summer Beer.
If you watch HGTV’s show “The Kitchen,” then you will be acquainted with the authors of these next two cookbooks. First, Jeff Mauro also invites you to “Come On Over” and sample some of the 111 recipes offered in his inaugural cookbook. If you are in the mood for snack foods and nibbles, then do try a handful or three of Pancetta and Parm Popcorn, The Most Addictive Sweet and Salty Nut Snack, Crispy Plantain Chips, and Smoked BBQ Cheddar Crackers. It will be worth firing up the grill for Takeout-Style Chinese Spare Ribs, Smoked Cauliflower “Butt,” Reverse-Seared Rib Eyes, Roasted Mexican Street Corn Salad, and Grilled Pineapple Guacamole. Sandwiches can be a quick and simple summertime meal. Jeff’s recommendations include Jalapeno Pepper Grilled Cheese, Juiciest Turkey Burgers Ever, The Sloppy Lo, and Mauro’s Muffuletta.
Finally, Katie Lee Beigel keeps it simple with her latest book, “It’s Not Complicated.” Katie begins by offering a selection of cool cocktails like a Lillet Fizz poured over frozen grapes, Mango Mexican Mule, Amalfi Spritz, Cosmo Americano, and Iced Peach Bourbon Lemonade. Lemon Caper Deviled Eggs, Blue Cheese Stuffed Dates, Fig and Pepita Goat Cheese Log plus Tomato Bruschetta would pair nicely with the above drinks. Pasta can also serve as a light summertime meal like Spaghetti with Clams, Lemon Pasta, and Spaghetti with Zucchini. For something cold and sweet, Katie has a No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake, Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream Bonbons, Chocolate Pudding, and fresh Strawberry Ice Cream.
For more summertime recipes, check out “How to Grill Vegetables” by Steve Raichlen, “Rodney Scott’s World of BBQ” by Rodney Scott, “Everyday Barbecue” by Myron Mixon, “Good Housekeeping Super Salads” by Good Housekeeping, “Food52 Mighty Salads” by Amanda Hesser, and “Ice Pop Joy” by Anni Daulter.
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.
Corporations are expanding into space and in David Ebenbach’s new novel, they are spearheading the settling of Mars. In 
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 
Genetic animal testing and the early 2000s combine with a locked door mystery in 
We’re excited to announce that we recently added a new database: 
Job searchers and students can benefit from 
Also be sure to check out 
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.
“
lovable lady and her community of followers.