Library Blog - What We're Reading

It's winter in Sokcho, a tourist town on the border between South and North Korea. The cold slows everything down. A young French Korean woman works as a receptionist in a tired guesthouse. One evening, an unexpected guest arrives: a French cartoonist determined to find inspiration in this desolate landscape. She agrees to accompany him on trips to discover an "authentic" Korea, [b]ut he takes no interest in the Sokcho she knows. As she's pulled into his vision and taken in by his drawings, she

Title: Persepolis Author: Marjane Satrapi Genres: memoir, history, graphic novel 2022 Read Great Things Categor(ies): A book about travel; An Artsy Book; A book about community Political protests in Iran have been in the headlines over the past two weeks, with numerous demonstrations in the country propelled by the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who died while in police custody. Today I'm highlighting an accessible and personal history of conflict within and surrounding Iran from the

Title: The Nineties: A Book Author: Chuck Klosterman Genres: history, essays 2022 Read Great Things Category(ies): A book with a number in the title; Blast from the past: A book of short stories or essays (2020); Our favorite category--A book on the Durham Tech Library Blog This book was read by Main Campus Reference Librarian Stephen Brooks, who is still a playful, discouraged idealist. As such, this What We're Reading blog is less a review or summary of the book and more of a personal journey

Jude Fawley is a fool trying to be an angel and is in an untenable situation: holding on to his dream and driven by passion, while trying to do the right thing. Title: Jude the Obscure Author: Thomas Hardy Genres: fiction, classic literature, social commentary Read Great Things 2021 Categories: A book that takes place outside the continental United States; A book about family; A book recommended by a Durham Tech Library staff member. This book was read by Stephen Brooks, Main Campus Librarian

Title: The Way to Rainy Mountain Author: N. Scott Momaday Genres: memoir, biography, folklore Read Great Things Challenge 2020 category: A book about the great outdoors (sort of). This book was read by Stephen Brooks, Main Campus Reference Librarian. Why did you read this book? It was assigned book club reading. N. Scott Momaday is the descendant of Kiowas, a Native American tribe indigenous to the Great Plains of what is now the United States. This book is many things, including a biography of

This series was read by Courtney Bippley, Reference Librarian, Lance Lee, Spanish Instructor and TLC Director, and Meredith Lewis, Orange County Campus Librarian. Title: The Murderbot Diaries ( All Systems Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol, and Exit Strategy), a series of 4 novellas Author: Martha Wells Genre: Science Fiction #ReadGreatThings2019 Category: A book about technology [fiction counts for this category, too!] Why did you choose to read this book? Courtney (CB): Meredith told

Title: Wrecked: An IQ Novel Author: Joe Ide Genre: mystery, street lit Why did you choose to read this book? This is the third book in the IQ series, which features protagonist Isaiah Quintabe (“IQ”), a small-time, self-styled private investigator from East Long Beach, California. I enjoyed the first two books— IQ and Righteous —so I picked up the third. There are several traits of the main character I appreciate. IQ, motivated by the memory of his older brother Marcus, who was murdered, pursues

This book was read by Library Director Irene Laube. One doctor's passionate and profound memoir of his experience grappling with race, bias, and the unique health problems of black Americans. When Damon Tweedy begins medical school,he envisions a bright future where his segregated, working-class background will become largely irrelevant. Instead, he finds that he has joined a new world where race is front and center. The recipient of a scholarship designed to increase black student enrollment

This is the first in a new type of blog post from the Durham Tech Library. Each post will allow a staff member to highlight a book they've read recently. This post is brought to you by Stephen Brooks, reference librarian, who read the book Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. This novel follows several members of an American family, the Berglunds, as well as their close friends and lovers, as complex and troubled relationships unfold over many years. The book follows them through the last decades of the