Books in our Branch

This month's book list, chosen by Noe Valley librarians Carol Small and Wayne Donica, features a biography of Johnny Cash and a list of books recommended for children from birth to 3 years old. To find out which selections are available, call 695-5095, log onto www.sfpl.org, or visit the Noe ValleySally Brunn Library at 451 Jersey Street near Castro. Besides books, the library has magazines, videos, DVDs, music CDs, and the archives and index to the Noe Valley Voice. It also offers newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal and New York Times, a collection of books in Spanish, works about women's history, and a section on career resources. Branch hours are Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Wednesdays, 1 to 9 p.m.; Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays, 1 to 6 p.m.; and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Adult Fiction
- Amanda Bright@Home by Danielle Crittenden is about a mother of two who is torn between working (out in the world) and staying at home to take care of the children.
- Montana schoolgirl Lucy Diamond yearns to leave behind her tomboy ways in Pete Fromm's humorous coming-of-age novel, As Cool As I Am.
- Coalescent, by science-fiction writer Stephen Baxter, follows present-day characters back to the collapse of the Roman Empire in Britain and into a distant war-torn future.
- In The Cutting Room, a tongue-in-cheek crime novel by Laurence Klavan, bumbling movie trivia buff Roy Milano goes on a quest for a never-released Orson Welles film.
Adult Nonfiction
- The Burning Tigris by Peter Balakan is a narrative of the mass murder of the Armenians by the Ottoman Turks in the late 1890s and early 1900s.
- Award-winning journalist and muckraker John Stossel takes on the establishment, with strong opinions about government waste and the liberal media, in Give Me a Break.
- Johnny Cash: He Walked the Line is a rags-to-riches tale of the troubled "Man in Black," and his influence on folk, gospel, rock, and country music.
- Drawing on court records, interviews, and secret Vatican documents, David French describes the ruined lives of young victims and the guarded reactions of the church, in Our Fathers: The Secret Life of the Catholic Church in an Age of Scandal.
Children's Fiction
- With Baby Day! written and illustrated by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace, a young child can go through a day with a baby, seeing many familiar objects, routines, and human interactions through the infant's eyes. Ages 1 to 3.
- In Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush, Will Hillenbrand incorporates a familiar song into a story where two shy youngsters help each other feel more comfortable on the first day of kindergarten. Ages 4 to 5.
- In Butterflies for Kiri, a story about a girl given beautiful origami paper for her birthday, Cathryn Falwell shows that skill, practice, inspiration, and support can all contribute to a child's expressing her creative impulses. Ages 4 to 6.
- Although Mrs. Teaberry says that Zeke the dog "promises not to be a bother," this is not the case during a hectic and difficult afternoon in Mr. Putter and Tabby Stir the Soup, written by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Arthur Howard. Ages 5 to 7.
- A friendship between a doctor's daughter and a boy the town regards with fear is described in its turn-of-the-century historical context in The Silent Boy, by Newbery Medal winner Lois Lowry. Ages 10 and up.
Children's Nonfiction
- John Harrison never received the prize money he probably deserved, but as Kathryn Lasky and Kevin Hawkes explain in The Man Who Made Time Travel, he produced the clocks necessary for explorers on the sea to determine their latitude, which contributed to the creation of the British Empire. Ages 7 to 10.
- In The Kurds of Asia (part of the "First Peoples" series), Anthony LoBaido, Yumi Ng, and Paul A. Rosario look at the history, culture, and economy of the Kurds, whose homeland is divided among three countries. Ages 7 to 10.
- Parents can give their children the best possible literary start in life with suggestions from Kathleen Odean's Great Books for Babies and Toddlers: More Than 500 Recommended Books for Your Child's First Three Years.
LIBRARY EVENTS
Stories and Films for Kids
- Children 2 and up are invited to attend preschool story time, 10 a.m. on Tuesdays, March 2, 9, and 30. Meanwhile, kids a bit older (3 and up) can come watch short films, at 10 and 11 a.m., on Tuesday, March 16.
Infant and Toddler Lapsits
- Parents and their babies and toddlers can participate in stories, songs, and fingerplays at the library's lapsits, 10 a.m. on Saturdays March 2, 9, and 30.