Artwalks in New York by Marina Harrison and Lucy Rosenfeld

Talk about travel on a shoestring! This small paperback outlines, borough by borough, the hidden art treasures in NYC. Museums are listed, of course, but what I love are the outdoor sculptures found on any corner during a walk thru the greatest city in the world. Included are also churches, cemeteries, gardens, architecture, historical sights, colleges and universities, parks, auction houses, seaports, and art galleries. Enough details to pique your interest with info on free/cheap/fees plus intriguing: "while you are in the neighborhood, you may want to take a short walk to..." pulling you to your next destination. Only bad news? Book was printed in 2004 and details need some updating/research to get accurate facts on some trips.

Reviewer: Lucy F.

The Gatecrasher by Madeleine Wickham

A goldigger falls for a handsome widower but has to deal with a secret from her past.

Reviewer: Provvi P.

Hotel Riviera by Elizabeth Adler

A story about an American who owns a hotel in the South of France and who tries to solve the mystery of her husband's disappearance.

Reviewer: Provvi P.

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson

In the future, humanitys dependancy on robots have backfired on them. Archos, a computer program developed by the government becomes sentient and decides that humans must go. He sends signals to all other robots that turns them into killing machines. This book read a lot like World War Z with first person accounts of the robot/human war. This a great summer read for Sci-Fi fans.

Reviewer: Laura McK.

The Sopranos Family Cookbook As Compiled By Artie Bucco

What a hoot! All the characters from the Sopranos television series offering recipes and cooking advice in character. The surprise here is that the recipes for Italian food are superb! Great text, great photos of the actors and the food,

fun reading! Some recipes: "Minestra (escarole and mini meatballs soup)" by Carmela Soprano; "Zeppole," by Bobby Bacala; "Grilled Rolled Swordfish,: by Tony Soprano; "Risotto With Truffles and Champagne," by Adriana La Cerva.

Sounds good, no?

Reviewer: Lucy F.

A Good Fall by Ha Jin

Ha Jin is one of my favorite authors and his collection of short stories in this book explores the life of Chinese immigrants living in Flushing, New York. Jin is always masterful at developing characters from stereotypes to three-dimensional beings. Universal issues of love, seeking acceptance, experiencing loneliness, and seeking economic security, are intertwined with the immigrant experience in America.

Reviewer: Lucy F.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

This book was thoroughly enjoyable and lived up to all the hype. There was an interesting mix of Jack's viewpoints, that provided something for both young and older readers. Hopefully the transition to movie will not be disappointing.

Reviewer: Laura McK.

Italian Fever by Valerie Martin

A writer mysteriously dies in Italy while writing his next novel and ihs assistant visits the location he died in a meets up with all sorts of interesting characters and situations trying to find out the circumstances behind his death.

Reviewer: Prowi P.

Leaving Van Gogh by Carol Wallace

Take a trip back to Paris in the 1890's when you read this historical fiction novel based on the life of the painter Van Gogh. The author used research from her thesis in art history to write the book so many of the details are true. Gives insight on how talented Van Gogh was. Unfortunately it was not widely recognized during his lifetime and his mental illness was not diagnosed/treated.

Reviewer: Susan

The Lost Painting by Jonathan Harr

Non fiction account of the quest for a Caravaggio painting which leads the reader on a trip from Italy, Scotland and Dublin. The art of restoring a masterpiece along with trying to prove its provence is a highly complicated job performed by experts and scholars. At times it gets too detailed but a wonderful story filled with unique characters too strange not to exist in real life.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks

The story takes place in North Carolina and is the love two of two neighbors. Mid story we skip ahead 10 years and we see the couple married and the husband having to make a difficult choice. Typical of most Nicholas Sparks books, it is a sweet, unrealistic love story.

Reviewer: Tracy E.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream by Hunter S. Thompson

Having seen the movie when it first came out, I decided to listen to this book after all these years. Talk about a "Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream" that only a mind like Hunter S. Thompson can bring to the reader. Journeying to Las Vegas in a rented red convertible with a trunkload full of drugs, Raoul Duke (Thompson) and his lawyer Dr. Gonzo go through many exploits during their trip to write an article about a major racing event. Drug-fueled hallucinations abound and many interesting locals are met. Even those diner employees, who think their search for the "American Dream" is an actual building that used to be a local drug hangout before it was burnt to the ground.

Like all Thompson novels, a reader must prepare themselves for outrageous situations involving booze, drugs, and explicit language.

Reviewer: Stephanie S.

Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly

Mickey Haller is a defense attorney who works out of the backseat of a Lincoln Towncar, defending the the seedy side of L.A. Things turn upside down for Mickey when he gets a case that will change his life. Suspenseful right to the end with a twist that is hard to see coming.

Reviewer: Laura McK.

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

This book is a continuation of See's "Shang Hai Girls." Joy, the daughter of Pearl, is 19 years old and leaves the only life she has known in Chinatown, San Francisco, to pursue an idealistic life in China. The book follows her introduction to the life of a peasant with some perks provided by her biological father, an artist. As her day to day life reveals cracks in her dreamed of image of Mao's China, her mother pearl sets off to rescue her and bring her back to the home.

Pearl's reintroduction to a China she once knew but no longer recognizes adds history and pathos to her experience. The story has plots and subplots with shocks and surprises for the readers. The relationship between Pearl, her sister, May, Joy and Joy's biological father all evolve and develop as See provides an historically accurate and beautifully detailed backdrop of China.

Reviewer: Lucy F.

Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese

A wonderful story of twin boys set in Ethiopia where an Indian couple adopt the babies when their mother, a nun, dies in childbirth.The culture and the life of this area is fascinating. As grown men their lives diverge but many surprises come their way there and in America.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

I resisted reading another novel about the holocaust.The story is wonderful and powerful. It shifts from an American who marries a Frenchman today and her life in Paris to a young Jewish girl who is caught up in the roundup of Jews in Paris during the war. The French have hidden their past and the American woman gets the newspaper assignment to write the story. All this with a connection to her husband's family apartment and her own marrige falling apart.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

Drawing Conclusions by Donna Leon

Another mystery novel set in Venice where Inspector Brunetti must solve a potential murder of an old woman. The beauty of Venice,the class structure, and the politics of Italy all come together to create a picture of a different world caught up in a setting as old as the 1400's.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

A novel set in the Balkans where a young doctor tries to understand her grandfather and his tales of his past. As a child they both visit the zoo until the wars come to their area. The destruction and hatred that follow scar their land. The tiger's wife is caught up in the deceit by her father and the domestic violence of her trapped husband.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

Christine Falls, The Siver Swan, Elegy For April by Benjamin Black

A series of novels by well known author John Banville are set in Dublin in the 1950's. An alcoholic pathologist and his family are caught up in different murders in each novel .He tries to solve them while dealing with his demons, the Church, politics and a strict culture of rules demanded by this society.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin

Here we travel back in time to the 1890's and to England where a wealthy American heiress and her driven mother want her to marry a titled Britishman. This actually happened where a cash poor royal needs some money and an heir to keep his estate going.A clash of cultures where Cora tries to understand and fit in this new, old world. A better kind of romance novel.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

Bloodmoney by David Ignatius

Journalist and author writes knowingly of covert operations starting in Pakistan where a professor is turned into a terroist because a drone killed his family.We travel to London, the Middle Eat, and Pakistan trying to capture the man who is killing CIA agents.It is a matter of honor but money and double dealing keep the reader awake.

Reviewer: Rosemary S.

We're On Our Way!

HPL patrons are already reading and reviewing books for this year's Adult Summer Reading Club. Sign up for the club online through our catalog or in-person. Read or listen to and then review the travel-related books of your choice...submit your reviews online at tinyurl.com/hplsummer11.

Each review earns you a chance in our raffle. First Prize? A COLOR NOOK! Second Prize? AN mp3 player! Third Prize? Books!

Take a trip to a novel destination this summer at Huntington Public Library!

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente.

September, a girl of twelve, is swept away from her boring life in Omaha to Fairyland. Reminiscent of other classic tales involving children adventuring to magical places, this book forges it's own place in literature. There is wonderful characterization and wordplay that takes this beyond the target audience (young teens). I believe adults would enjoy the lush language in addition to the words of wisdom woven throughout this fairy tale. Splendid!

Reviewer: Stephanie S.

Lidia's Italian American Kitchen by Lidia Bastianich

A cookbook offering Italian specialites the can be done easily at home.

Reviewer: Prowi P.

Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy by Lidia Bastianich

A cookbook that offers 175 Regional Recipes from the famous chef.

Reviewer: Prowi P.

The Beach House by Jane Green

The book was about a home in Nantucket that the owner opens up for summer rentals and about all the interesting people she meets that are her tenants, their lives and how their lives become intertwined with her life.

Reviewer: Prowi P.

Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris

Being an avid watcher of the popular HBO show True Blood, I knew that reading the Sookie Stackhouse series was a must. This book continues Sookie's path to enlightenment about the supernatural world that lies in state of Lousianna. With a sniper on the loose, a new packmaster for the Shreveport Werewolves and someone constantly out to kill Ms. Stackhouse, this literal southern gothic takes it's toll on the reader.

Reviwer: Gabrielle V.

The First Review is IN!

Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares

This is the newest book in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. The girls are all grown up and about to turn thirty when tragedy strikes. What tears them apart may just be the thing that makes them realize true happiness. The book takes us on a journey from NYC to San Fransisco, Greece and finally to Pennsylvania where many questions are answered.

Reviewer: Tracy

It's Adult Summer Reading Club Time! Choose a Novel Destination

Our Adult Mid-Winter Reading Club Has Ended

Thank you to all of our participants!