PageTurners Read “Like Water for Chocolate”

Like Water for Chocolate
by Laura Esquivel

Tita is the youngest daughter of an affluent rancher in Mexico at the turn of the twentieth century. As the youngest, she has always known her future: she is responsible for caring for her mother unto her death. But what will happen when Tita falls in love with local boy, Pedro? Readers will certainly not expect the lengths her mother will go to keep Tita with her always. “Like Water for Chocolate” is a passionate love story with elements of magical realism. It uses food and the art of cooking to empower its main character even when her choices are limited.

The PageTurners Book Club read and discussed Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel on Thursday, January 6. Five people attended. Most enjoyed the book, but we were unanimous in disliking the ambiguous timeline near the end of the book that made characters and their actions confusing. The group gave the book a 3.58 / 5; and the lowest rating was a 3 / 5, while the highest was a 4.5 / 5.

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Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel is available at the Rice Lake Public Library. There are over ten copies of this book in the MORE System. Please visit the card catalog website or call us at 234-4861 to reserve a copy today.

The PageTurners Book Club is sponsored by the Friends of the Rice Lake Public Library. It usually meets on the first Thursday of each month at 6 pm at the Rice Lake Public Library. Discussion lasts an hour; everyone is welcome.

NEW PROGRAM FOR ADULTS–GAME NIGHT!

Missing the opportunity to go out and mingle at the local game or community activity?  Tired of sitting inside?  Feeling the effects of Cabin Fever?

Join us the last Tuesday of every month for Game Night for Adults.

 

Adult Game Night

This month, Tuesday January 25th at 6:15, we’ll learn the game Bunko.

Ask people who have played the game and you’re likely to hear the words “FUN” and ‘EASY”

What is Bunko?

Bunko dates back as far as the 1800′s and over the years many variations of the game have passed from generation to generation.

From the website Tricia\’s Bunko Rules: ”Strictly speaking, Bunco is a game of dice, played in rounds. Players take turns rolling the dice and trying to accumulate as many points as possible to win each round. The game is played at tables of four in competing teams of two.”

Last person holding the Bunko fuzzy dice gets their name put in for a drawing for FOL library bag.  Highest score at the end of the game earns FOL loot good for 2 books from the Back Alley Book Store.

Prizes, snacks, mocktails, and Fun!!! Hope to see you Tuesday Night January 25th!

National Get Organized Month

January is National Get Organized Month! This makes sense because many people make new year’s resolutions to clean house and organize paperwork. We want you to succeed, and here are some books and DVDs to encourage you and guide you in how to reach your goals.

One Year to an Organized Life
by Regina Leeds

Offers tips and ideas for organizing each room of the house in a week-by-week guide that focuses on large and small projects, including creating routines, preparing for holiday guests, and cleaning out storage spaces.

 

Teach Yourself Decluttering
by Bernice Walmsley

Teach Yourself Decluttering takes you step by step–and room by room–throughout your home and office to help you organize your life. Understanding that clutter is often psychological, this guide first helps you identify why you cling to clutter. Then, through a realistic and effective action plan, along with lots of inspirational advice, the author shows you how to: Reduce your paperwork–on your desk and in your computer; Get crafty about corralling clutter; Keep closets under control .

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Organizing for Your Brain Type
by Lanna Nakone

Let your natural inclinations guide you toward gaining control of your environment and learn to live life on your own terms. Drawing on the science of brain function and her experience as a professional organizer, Lanna Nakone offers tailored and specific advice that will actually work to help you tame your desk, unclutter your closet, manage your time, and save your sanity. Chapters specific to each brain type offer practical tips and strategies for implementing an organizing system, maintaining your system, and coexisting with different brain styles.

The American (2010) (via What to Watch.)

In honor of our first Saturday Cinema showing, here is a review of the film.

Rated R This film is very slow-paced with little action and not much dialogue. Anton Corbijn uses imagery and color to tell his story. It’s so slow it borders on boring until the last thirty minutes then all your questions are answered. The ending is a wow. I would just watch this for the beautiful Italy scenery is worth the watch. … Read More

via What to Watch. The opinions expressed in this review do not necessarily reflect those at the Rice Lake Public Library.

Summer Films

Waiting for summer to arrive, here’s a list of films at your local library to tie you over until June.

50 First Dates (2004) Rated PG-13

Henry Roth lives an enviable life in a Hawaiian paradise, spending every night with a different beautiful tourist in search of an island fling. It’s a great life, no strings attached–until he meets Lucy. He and Lucy hit it off right from the start, but the next day she acts like she doesn’t know him. Lucy suffers from short-term memory loss, so every night all memory of her day is erased. But a man in love will go to great lengths to win the girl of his dreams. In an effort to help her remember him, he makes a video tape for her to watch every morning.

Bee Movie (2007) Rated PG

Having just graduated from college, Barry B. Benson finds himself disillusioned with the prospect of having only one career choice – honey. As he ventures outside of the hive for the first time, he breaks one of the cardinal rules of the bee world and talks to a human, a New York City florist named Vanessa. He is shocked to discover that the humans have been stealing and eating the bee’s honey for centuries. He ultimately realizes that his true calling in life is to set the world right by suing the human race. That is until the ensuing chaos upsets the very balance of nature. It is up to Barry to prove that even a little bee can spell big changes in the world.

Esther Williams Vol. 2 (1945-1953) Rated NR

Thrill of a romance: A war hero takes swimming lessons in order to woo the instructor. Fiesta: A woman disguises herself as a matador to fill in for her brother. This time for keeps: A veteran falls in love with a swimmer. Pagan love song: A love story set on Tahiti. Million dollar mermaid: Dramatizes the life of Annette Kellerman. Easy to love: A water skier falls in love with her agent.

Jaws (1975) Rated PG

A man-eating shark causes havoc off the Long Island coast and three men join together to hunt and destroy it.

South Pacific (1958) Rated NR

Set in the Pacific theater during World War II, this musical film explores the theme of racial prejudice in two parallel stories–that of a Navy nurse’s love for a plantation owner with two Eurasian children, and a Marine lieutenant’s love for a native woman.

New Year, New Resolutions

With every new year, people think up new resolutions to work on some part of their life. Resolutions are usually goals that, if met, will improve their quality of life. Here are some of the top five resolutions that people make, and how the Rice Lake Public Library can help you achieve them!

Spend more time with friends/family. The Rice Lake Public Library offers a variety of programs, for young and old to enjoy. And they’re free! Make a date with a fellow mom to go to a children’s storytime, or join the PageTurners Book Club. Visit our calendar to see what events, times, and dates work best for you!

Get fit through diet and/or excercise. No, unfortunately, the library doesn’t have a gym or a certified nutritionist, but we have the next best thing. You can find all sorts of cookbooks and workout DVDs at the library. Some popular items in this category are:

 

Quit an addictive habit (smoking, drinking, caffeine, etc.) Even if you’ve tried before and failed, don’t give up. Some studies say that smokers try an average of four times before they successfully give up the habit. Here are some books about quitting:

 

Get out of debt. If you have money woes, this might be the year you turn it around! Join the millions of Americans who have resolved to spend this year getting a handle on their finances. It’s a promise that will repay itself many times over in the year ahead.

 

Helping others. Giving of your time and talents can help others, but also yourself. Studies have shown that volunteering benefits include connecting people together, reducing depression, and keeping people physically healthy. Consider helping out this year at your church, school, or other community organization. The website Charity Vault lists some of the many volunteer opportunities in the Rice Lake area.

Tax Forms 2011

Tax Season is upon us and this tax season started with a printing delay as Congress made late tax changes.What this means for you:

• IRS Forms ordered in August are only now beginning to trickle into the library.
• IRS forms, however, are available to download.
• WI forms are not expected until mid February
• Some WI forms are available to download (check daily for updates)

We at TheRLPL are able to assist you in obtaining the forms you are looking for if you know your form number. As much as we would like to assist you further we are unable as we are not trained in tax matters.

Helpful Links:
• IRS home page
• WI DOR home page
• Online Directory for Tax Preparers in the Rice Lake Area

DE-stress at TheRLPL:
• Go to the movies—for free! Once a month join us for Saturday Cinema. January 15th at 7:00 pm The American with George Clooney is showing. Snacks provided
• Play Games! The last Tuesday of every month join us at 6:15 for Adult Game Night. January 25th.
• Work on a puzzle! January 29th is National Puzzle Day. Patrons of all ages are encouraged to put together puzzles located in both the youth services area and the Friendship Room. That day also kicks off TheRLPL Puzzle Exchange. Swap one of your puzzles for a new to you puzzle. When you have put that together bring it back and exchange for another!
• Read –take a break with a favorite magazine or paper while enjoying a hot cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate.
Beverage—$1.00
Newspaper/Magazine—Free
Peace of Mind—Price less

New Books for a New Year

January 2011
The Memory Palace by Mira Bartok
The Memory Palace is a breathtaking literary memoir about the complex meaning of love, truth, and the capacity for forgiveness among family. Through stunning prose and original art created by the author in tandem with the text, The Memory Palace explores the connections between mother and daughter that cannot be broken no matter how much exists—or is lost—between them.

February 2011
The Other Life by Ellen Meister
Happily married with a young son and another child on the way, Quinn Braverman has the perfect life. She also has an ominous secret. Every time she makes a major life decision, she knows an alternative reality exists in which she made the opposite choice-not only that, she knows how to cross over. But even in her darkest moments-like her mother’s suicide-Quinn hasn’t been tempted to visit . . . until she receives shattering news about the baby she’s carrying.

March 2011
The Tiger’s Wife by Tea Obreht
In a Balkan country mending from years of conflict, Natalia, a young doctor,  is confronting a private, hurtful mystery of her own: the inexplicable circumstances surrounding her beloved grandfather’s recent death. Grief struck and searching for clues to her grandfather’s final state of mind, she turns to the stories he told her when she was a child. But the most extraordinary story of all is the one her grandfather never told her, the one Natalia must discover for herself. One winter during the Second World War, his childhood village was snowbound, cut off even from the encroaching German invaders but haunted by another, fierce presence: a tiger who comes ever closer under cover of darkness.

April 2011
The Uncoupling by Meg Wolitzer
When the elliptical new drama teacher at Stellar Plains High School chooses for the school play Lysistrata-the comedy by Aristophanes in which women stop having sex with men in order to end a war-a strange spell seems to be cast over the school. Or, at least, over the women. One by one throughout the high school community, perfectly healthy, normal women and teenage girls turn away from their husbands and boyfriends in the bedroom, for reasons they don’t really understand. As the women worry over their loss of passion, and the men become by turns unhappy, offended, and above all, confused, both sides are forced to look at their shared history, and at their sexual selves in a new light.

May 2011
Kamchatka by Marcelo Figueras
Buenos Aires, 1976. The military has staged a coup, and people are beginning to disappear. A ten-year-old and his brother are yanked from school and told that they are going on a family trip, but like any smart ten-year-old the boy understands that they are going into hiding.

New Year’s Eve Films

Not planning on going out this New Year-here’s some films that you curl up and watch.

Are We There Yet? (2005) Rated PG

Nick offers to take Suzanne’s kids cross-country in an effort to win her heart. He must survive 24 hours with two kids bent on destroying him. Through all the road-blocks, he impresses not only Suzanne, but himself also.

Boogie Nights (1997) Rated R

A film that throws the covers back on California’s adult entertainment industry in the swinging seventies through the story of rising porn star Dirk Diggler. It’s a touching and often humorous portrait of a most unusual family of filmmakers, brought to dazzling life by an all-star cast and sizzling seventies soundtrack.

End of Days (1999) Rated R

When a burned-out former New York City cop named Jericho is assigned to security detail for a mysterious and foreboding stranger, Jericho thwarts an assassination attempt. During the ensuing investigation, he and his parner save the life of a beautiful and terrified woman, whose destiny involves death, the devil and the fate of mankind.

Poseidon Adventure (1972) Rated PG

The survivors of a capsized cruise ship fight for life. Spectacular visual effects.

Very Merry Pooh Year (2002) Rated G

After fond recollections of a Christmas past, the countdown to New Year’s begins! Rabbit plans a party, but when Pooh and friends bother him, he starts to sulk– threatening to move away. To appease Rabbit, everyone makes a New Year’s resolution to change. But see what happens to the Hundred Acre Wood when Piglet starts bouncing to conquer his dear, Pooh become gloomy from not eating any honey, and Tigger– unbounce-able.

When Harry Met Sally (1989) Rated R

Will sex ruin a perfect relationship between a man and a woman? That’s what Harry and Sally debate during their first meeting and for the next eleven years.