Noe Valley Voice September 1999
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New Books in Noe

Here's a selection of new books at the Noe Valley ­ Sally Brunn Library, graciously provided by the library staff. Besides books and magazines, the branch offers the Noe Valley Archives, two drawers of old issues of the Noe Valley Voice, and a peaceful deck and garden to read them in. Hours are Tuesdays, 10 to 9; Wednesdays, 1 to 9; Thursdays, 10 to 6; Fridays, 1 to 6; and Saturdays, noon to 6. The branch is located at 451 Jersey St.; 695-5095.

Adult Fiction

- In Murder in the Marais, a first novel by Noe Valley author Cara Black (see story, this issue), a young Parisian detective, hired by a rabbi to decipher an old photograph, becomes involved in solving two Nazi-inspired murders.

. Night Gardening, by E. L. Swann, portrays an Irish-American widow recovering from a serious illness who forms a restorative friendship with an architect.

- Set in Berkeley, California, The Physics of Sunset, by Jane Vandenburgh, is an exploration of unexpected physical attraction and its consequences.

- Ernest Hemingway's last unpublished work, True at First Light, is a fictional memoir of his final African safari in 1953.

Adult Nonfiction

- A Border Passage, by Leila Ahmed, narrates the experiences of a Muslim Cambridge-educated feminist in the contrasting cultures of Egypt, England, and the U.S.

- Covering emotions, problem-solving, and effective listening, Difficult Conversations, by Douglas Stone, Bruce Palton, and Sheila Heen, shows how to avoid the conversational pitfalls of blame and angry confrontation.

- In 1185 Park Avenue, fiction writer Anne Roiphe, describes what it was like to grow up rich and Jewish in the New York of the 1940s and '50s.

- Featuring poems, cartoons, essays, and folk tales, Honey, Hush, edited by Daryl C. Dauce, is a rich anthology of African-American women's humor from slavery days to the present.

Annotations by Roberta Greifer

Children's Fiction

- Two children enjoy delicious food close to its source in Picnic Farm, by Christine Morton. Ages 2 to 4.

- If you have a range of different feelings about your younger sibling, you'll find a kindred spirit in Frog Face: My Little Sister and Me, by John Schindel. Ages 4 to 7.

- In Commander Toad and the Voyage Home, by Jane Yolen, the crew of the ship Star Warts makes a very interesting discovery on an unexplored planet. Ages 5 to 8.

- "Chocolate," "Berries on the Bushes," "Forty Performing Bananas," and "Grandma Louise's Gingerbread" are a few of the selections in Sweets and Treats: Dessert Poems, compiled by Bobbye S. Goldstein. Ages 6 to 9.

- A story from the Ramayana concerning love, good and evil, and a great battle is dramatically retold by Erik Jendresen and Joshua M. Greene in Hanuman: Based on Valmiki's Ramayana, illustrated with paintings by Li Ming. Ages 7 and up.

- When Allie is stuck on a cliff and hears a voice helping her, she becomes involved in an intriguing mystery in The Ghost of Fossil Glen, by Cynthia C. DeFelice. Ages 9 and up.

Children's Nonfiction

- If you wonder how huge skyscrapers are constructed and supported, Into the Sky, by Ryan Hunter, will satisfy your curiosity. Ages 5 to 8.

- Robert Ballard, who found the wreck of the Titanic, provides stories about the Titanic and four other ships in Ghost Liners: Exploring the World's Greatest Lost Ships. Ages 10 and up.

Annotations by Carol Small

Preschool Story Time

- Kids 3 to 5 are invited to the library's preschool story time, starting at 10 a.m. on Tuesdays Sept. 7, 14, and 21.

Infant and Toddler Lapsits

- Moms and dads should bring their babies for finger play and lullabies to the Wednesday evening lapsits, on Sept. 15, 22, and 29. The music begins at 7 p.m.

Films for Kids

- Elephants, Hot Hippo, and Tangram are among the films for kids 3 to 5 to be shown on Tuesday, Sept. 28, at 10 and 11 a.m.

For other library events, call 557-4400 or visit the San Francisco Public Library's web site at http://sfpl.lib.ca.us.