Binge-worthy Literary Web Series

If you’ve been keeping up with YouTube in the past eight years, you might have noticed a growing trend in book adaptations. More and more, classic literature is being adapted are modernized as web series, typically available through video sites like YouTube.

The series tend to be shot vlog style, meaning they are presented as a video blog. Though the series still have actors, by mimicking the vlog formula, these adaptations tend to feel much more personal. The vlog setting, albeit fictional in this case, also functions on the idea that the characters are aware of their audience, and that other characters in the story are able to watch their videos.

Here are just a few literary web series that put fun new spins on classic tales!

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Feast of the Rings: Eat Your Way Through the Entire Trilogy

This past weekend, my friends and I sat down to accomplish what we considered to be one of the nerdiest things we had ever done: marathon the Lord of the Rings trilogy (extended editions, of course) while eating all the foods from the series along with the characters. We can’t claim credit for the idea, as we were inspired by this Twitter thread. Here’s some ideas on how to hold your own food-filled Lord of the Rings marathon!

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Tips and Tricks for Ancestry.com Library Edition

 

Image result for ancestry library

Looking to research your family tree, but not sure where to start? Want to find out who owned your house in the 1800’s? Ancestry.com is an expansive resource for genealogy and historical information, with over 20 billion records in its database, and about 2 million added each day.

Ancestry.com offers a special edition for library users, which can be instrumental in your genealogical research. Here are some quick tricks and tips to help get you started!

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The Great American Read @ SPL

Have you heard about The Great American Read?  This eight-part series from PBS explores the power of reading through the viewpoints of America’s Top 100 books.  They examine writer’s perspectives, reader’s receptions, and what these books say about diversity our nation.  At the end of the series, the results from a nationwide survey will be announced of what book wins the title of America’s best-loved book. The aim of the campaign is to get the country reading and talking about books – something we do here every day at the Sewickley Public Library!

We thought it would be fun to have our community vote for their favorite book from the Top 100 list of titles from The Great American Read.  Find the voting station set up in the library’s lobby where you can vote for your favorite book! Will it be Little Women? The DaVinci Code? Gone Girl? War and Peace? Come help us decide by casting your ballot anytime throughout the summer.  Voting will be open through Saturday, August 4th.  We will announce the winner on Monday, August 6th!

You can find more information about The Great American Read on the PBS website.  Or jump straight to the list of all 100 titles.

Happy voting!

 

What’s New in the Music Collection?

 

How to Solve Our Human ProblemsROCK / POPULAR MUSIC

How to Solve Our Human Problems by  Belle and Sebastian

Diamond Diana: The Legacy Collection by Diana Ross

See You Around by I’m With Her

Camila by  Camila Cabello

By the Way, I Forgive You by Brandi Carlile

 

SOUNDTRACKS

Black Panther The Album: Music From and Inspired By

Fifty Shades Freed : The Final Chapter

Lady Bird : Soundtrack From The Motion Picture

The Shape of Water: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

New Fiction – – March 2018

Lots of new things in the catalog this month! Check out a few of the more interesting titles and let us know which one catches your eye!


AnatAnatomy of a Scandalomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan

Desperate to clear the name of her loving and charismatic husband in the wake of scandalous accusations, Sophie clashes with a determined prosecution lawyer, Kate, who is determined to uncover the truth and bring Sophie’s husband to justice.


 

Everything Here is BeautifulEverything Here Is Beautiful by Mira T. Lee

The bond between a responsible, self-contained older sister and her mentally ill, impulsive younger sister is shaped and tested over years marked by the loss of their mother, an impetuous first marriage, a fling that results in the birth of a baby and painful sacrifices.

 


The Gone WorldThe Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch

Time-travel secret agent Shannon Moss visits future time periods for clues about a Navy SEAL astronaut’s murdered family and the disappearance of his teenage daughter, a case that is complicated by the SEAL’s and Shannon’s own impact on the timeline.  A Pittsburgh author.

 


The Great AloneThe Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

When her volatile, former POW father impulsively moves the family to mid-1970s Alaska to live off the land, young Leni and her mother are forced to confront the dangers of their lack of preparedness in the wake of a dangerous winter season. By the author of The Nightingale.

 


Song of a Captive BirdSong of a Captive Bird by Jasmin Darznik

A first novel by the best-selling author of The Good Daughter re-imagines the life of rebel poet Forugh Farrokzhad, who is depicted as a passionate young writer in search of freedom and independence from the restrictions imposed on women in mid-20th century Iran.