Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen

Hannah's life is upended when her boyfriend Matt disappears. Hannah lives in the Wirral peninsula and is on the fast track for promotion at the company where she works.

Matt doesn't just disappear. He obliterates his presence by taking every single item he owns from her apartment and deleting every photo and text from her computer and phone. 

A quick call to the architectural firm where Matt worked establishes the fact that he no longer works there. His mother has also changed residences. No one can give Hannah any answers. Worst of all, she has been receiving strange text messages and believes someone has been entering her house without her permission. When she goes for a jog, someone films her, and then sends the video to her phone.

While this tense-filled situation has no easy explanation, several characters are suspect. Katie, Hannah's best friend, has always been insanely competitive with Hannah. Her next door neighbors, members of the neighborhood watch, are seriously creepy. Her co-worker seems to be on her side but he also seems deceitful.

 Given how shady her close associations are, any one of these characters could be gas lighting Hannah. Matt has always seen supportive but maybe she's seeing a side of Matt she never knew existed?

Torjussen gives her character an intriguing puzzle to decipher. The reader gets a jolt when a surprising twist is thrown in to the mix. A thrilling, yet well-developed novel with a unexpected conclusion. 

Educational Sites

The Fable Cottage
https://thefablecottage.com
I love this site and will try telling parents about this.

Slope and Y intercept

Photo by John Lockwood on Unsplash

One of the best websites (interactive animations) for explaining slope and y-intercept.

Move the slider for slope and the y-intercept to see different version of the line.

https://www.mathsisfun.com/data/straight_line_graph.html

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Funke's story is about the power and  magic of books. They bring great joy to a family, Mo, Teresa, and Meggie,  and yet they also bring great calamities. When Mo, also called Silvertongue, reads he accidentally transports fictional characters and objects to his own world. Conversely, Mo also inadvertently draws people or things into the book's world. 

To his sorrow, and without meaning to, Mo has read his wife, Teresa, into the dangerous world of Inkheart. He has accidently sent a hapless fire-eater into his own world and let loose some of Inkheart's most dangerous villains. 

Mo pities the fire-eater, Dustfinger, who longs to return to the pages of Inkheart. Dustfinger hates, the speed, and the crowds of the contemporary world.

Though Dustfinger traitorously works with the arch villian, he later tries to free Mo's family from the clutches of Capricorn and his men. Along with two companions, Farid and Gwin, Dustfinger bravely returns to Capricorn's village. 

Mo has two competing desires. He fervently wants to free his wife, Teresa, from Inkheart's pages but he also wants to keep his daughter, Meggie safe. 

Capricorn wants Meggie to read another villian to life, the nefarious Shadow, so that he can execute prisoners. Fengolio, Inkheart's author, desperately wants to re-write his own fictional work. 

This is a heart-stopping race to the finish for Mo, his family, and his friends.  This novel has lots of action but also beautiful passages and characterization.

Travel

Sadly, Shuri Castle that dates from the Ryukyu era has burned to the ground in Okinawa. The World Heritage site was mostly made of wood.

Photo by Galen Crout on Unsplash

Shuri Castle was probably built during the Gusuku period and used as a palace of the Ryukyu kingdom between 1429 and 1879. 

Throughout history, the castle has been burned and rebuilt many times. Hopefully, the castle will be rebuilt after the most recent fire. 

By 663highland - Own work, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6988105

https://www.japan-guide.com/

Failure isn't always bad

 Photo by Jelleke Vanooteghem on Unsplash


This article, "Why We Should Learn To Embrace Failure" really resonated with me today. Elizabeth Day writes in The Guardian how we should learn to embrace failure. Failure is a starting point. There can be no success without it.

Day, a journalist and fiction writer, runs the podcast, How to Fail.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/jul/15/divorce-miscarriage-jobs-learn-to-embrace-failure-elizabeth-day

Day recommends Tim Harford's Adapt: Why Success Always Starts With Failure. 

Parents may want to look at Jessica Lahey's The Gift of Failure.

While its hard to look at failure as a gift, its ultimately more healthy to look at failure as an opportunity.

Adafruit's HalloWing

Adafruit's new product, Hallowing, is perfect for Halloween,
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3900

A similar yet different product, Adafruit's Animated Eyes Bonnet For Raspberry Pi,
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3813.

Photo by David Menidrey on Unsplash

Check the Adafruit website for availability.

Columbus Day

Before you decide whether to celebrate Columbus day, read a biography about him. One of the best recent books about Columbus is actually about his illegitimate son, Hernando Columbus.

The Catalog of Shipwrecked Books: Christopher Columbus, His Son, and the Quest by Edward Wilson-Lee is an amazing story about Hernando and his desire to honor his father's memory while also creating the first private library.

Gravity is the Thing by Jaclyn Moriarty: a Fun Novel That is also Thought Provoking

Young adult author Jaclyn Moriarty's newest novel is for adults, Gravity is the Thing, that is both a  mystery, love story, comedy, and a light-hearted critique of the self-help industry.

Abi Sorenson's life is upended when her fifteen-year-old brother disappears on her birthday. 

In his place, Abi begins receiving anonymous chapters from a self-help book called the Guidebook. She receives the chapters for twenty years and is asked now and then to mail "reflections."

Abi who has always believed there must be some connection between the missives and her brother's disappearance agrees to go to an all-expense paid trip to a remote island off of Tasmania.

The invitation promised someone would explain the truth of the Guidebook. On this island, she meets a kooky cast of participants who have also been receiving chapters of the Guidebook in the mail.

The truth, however, is not what Abi nor anyone else expects; she is curiously let down. She ultimately decides, as do a few others, to continue to take seminars with Wilbur, even though some think the seminars are a cult or a sham.

Nicole, Niall, Sasha, Anthony, Abi, and pest control man meet every Tuesday for wine and cheese or dessert at Wilbur's apartment. Though she expects little of these meetings, they have a profound effect upon her life. 

Abi, who recently went through a divorce, and who subsequently opened a business, the Happiness Cafe, is looking for self-love, a sense of belonging, and romance.

The flight lessons, as the webinar is called, ultimately does give Abi what she needs though not in the way she predicts. This is an enjoyable, delightful, slightly off-kilter novel about self-discovery.

Getting Started with Linkedin Learning and Marketing

For most of us involved in the library field or any other service-driven field, marketing is an essential part of what we do. Unless you're already an HTML expert, Jen Kramer's "Practical HTML for Marketing Projects" is a good starting point. 

She discusses text editors e.g. Sublime text and goes over basics for the beginner. 

Jen Kramer's "Practical HTML for Marketing Projects" is an ideal place to start before diving into more complicated videos.

Kramer  gives two challenges and their solutions. She stresses that her solutions are her interpretation of the design problem. Other solutions may work as well.

She cheerfully announces, "there's never just one solution in web design."

For learning how to create "repositories" in Github, watch James Williamson's "Github for Web Designers."

The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld

Naomi's earliest memory is of herself as a ten-year-old running naked in a strawberry field. She runs towards migrant workers who take her to a sheriff.

Twenty years later, Naomi is a thirty-year-old private investigator trying to find a child who has disappeared while out on a family trip. Naomi has become a private investigator to atone, as she puts it, to "atone" for her past. 

The child she seeks to save, however, has been lost for three years in a remote part of Willamette Valley. There's no evidence to suggest that the child is alive. The case is inactive and its assumed she has perished in the snow. 

Naomi learns from each case and this case gives her most valuable insight yet. Glimmers of the past return as she finds the living conditions of the girl, a cave in a remote claim.

Denfeld, a former private investigator, writes a taut, psychological mystery with details that ring true.  

A harrowing work of psychological fiction set in Oregon's Willamette Valley where fur trapping is still commonplace in remote towns. In one such town, a mysterious figure lives in obscurity. Years ago, he had been kidnapped and tortured by someone he calls simply "The Man."

Could this be mysterious figure be tied to the missing girl?

As Naomi reaches out to her foster bother, some of her lost memories return. After solving the case of the missing girl, called the "Snow Girl," Naomi vows to solve a more personal missing person case. 

The Butterfly Girl is the second novel in the Naomi Cottle series. 
https://renedenfeld.com/author/

Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg

This atmospheric, creepy novel uses a superb narrative technique. The story is told through the eyes of Green, a young girl who has grown up in an artists commune at Foxlowe.

She has no parents and all is shared equally in the family in a pile called the Jumble.  Green thinks, however,  she belongs to Freya Marsh. Freya, the de facto leader, is an affectionate tormentor who loves and tortures Green.

The family's actions are compared to a shoal of fish; none of them wants to be "edged" or ostracized. Green feels being "Edged" is worst than taking the Spike Walk--a horrid punishment that Freya invented.

Though the family think they have retreated into safety, real danger lurks through the halls of the ancestral home. Freya takes a baby away from her mother. The family seems unable to sense the growing moral uncertainty. 

Instead of checking her authority, the family goes along with whatever Freya decides. Thus, when Freya arrives with an infant, the family never questions her origins. They simply welcomes the infant as a new family member. Curiously, Green names the infant Blue.

In order to feel safe from the outside world, the family performs numerous rituals. During the Winter Solstice  they perform the Scattering--a line of salt is poured around the house to protect the house from outsiders. Green, in a fit of jealous, puts the infant outside the salt line, an action that will have serious repercussions . 

Green, Blue, and Toby grow close in the years that follow. The grown believe that they have provided the children with the most magical childhood. They don't go to school and are not subjected to society's rules.

The ungrown are not given access to the most basic things e.g. mirrors and cannot leave the grounds or talk to strangers. Green in never given a chance to leave Foxlowe until a tragedy occurs.

Psychologically damaged, Green may never be able to integrate into society.  One of the growns who became a Leaver is determined to give her a chance. Can he help her or will he only make things worst? 

Green is a fascinating yet unreliable narrator in this novel that is both complex and frightening.

Normal People by Sally Rooney

In this novel, two teenagers avoid each other at school yet are also fiercely, strangely attracted to one other. 

The two come from different worlds. Marianne has a much higher socioeconomic status than Connell. Her parents are barristers whereas Connell is raised by a single Mom. Connell's mother is, in fact, a housekeeper for Marianne's parents. 

Due to some quirk on her part, Marianne has a lower social status in school than he does. Connell is a popular football player while she is lonely and ostracized.

In spite of this, the two teenagers come together for secret trysts. Terrified, though, that anyone would find out about their affair, Connell treats Marianne coldly. He invites someone else to the Debs.

At Trinity University, the pair become friends and lovers once again. She is now more popular than he is yet they still struggle to communicate. Their relationship continues to be passionate, volatile, and heart-breaking.

After a misunderstanding, the two start seeing other people. Marianne, intelligent yet damaged psychologically by her family, seeks out boyfriends that are cruel to her. 

Connell feels Helen is a better choice until a funeral at his home town bring his illusions crashing down. 

This novel, which was long listed for a Man Booker prize, will soon become a 12-part half-hour drama on BBC3.

The Van Apfel Girls are Gone by Felicity McLean

This debut by Australian author, Felicity McClean, is a tantalizing page-turner. This exciting novel is a mystery and coming-of-age story in one. Tikka remembers her childhood--she grew up in a small Australian river valley.

One incident irrevocably changed the Tikka's life: the summer of 1992. Her neighbors, Corrie, Hannah, and Ruth, disappeared one fateful day. The police assume its a missing case but Tikka and her sister are withholding information. Tikka knows that the Van Apfel girls were planning to runaway, a fact she kept from police. Years later, as an adult, she wonders if she made the right choice.

She dwells on the Apfel girls' disappearance to the point where it begins to affect her mental health. As Corrie's memory consumes Tikka, she begins to see Corrie everywhere, or at least people who that look like Corrie.

McLean has a delightful sardonic wit. She frames the story with the Lindy Chamberlain case, a woman whose baby girl disappears while on a camping trip.

Tikka stages a skit based on the case for a school event the evening of the Van Apfel girls' disappearance. Just as it had in the Chamberlain case, the Van Apfel case causes many tongues to wag. Characters jump to conclusions about a male teacher.

Many novels focus on missing girls. Julia Phillips' Disappearing Earth focuses on how a Siberian community reacts to the disappearance of two of their own. 

Though it addresses the self-help industry and single motherhood,  Jaclyn Moriarty Gravity Is The Thing, is also about missing persons. 

Other titles about missing persons:
Lippman, Lauran. Lady in the Lake. 
Miranda, Megan. All the Missing Girls.
O'Nan, Stewart. Songs for the Missing. 

Biloxi by Mary Miller

Louis McDonald, Jr always assumed he would inherit his father's estate after he retired. He didn't count on his wife leaving him and his Dad leaving the bulk of his estate to her.

Though he is, at times, an unlikeable character who drinks too much, Louis can also make amusing, wry observations.

His life goes in an unexpected direction when Layla, an overweight mixed-breed dog, and her wacky owner, Sasha, comes into life.

Louis' plight will appeal to anyone whose life didn't turn out the way they expected.

His life is peppered with a myriad of inconveniences. For instance, there is a bird that keeps hitting his window each morning. Even though his wife left him, his brother-in-law keeps visiting with left-overs. He is diabetic but can't remember to manage his sugar levels. 

Louis is an endearing curmudgeon who has a hard time finding the right things to say to people. The only one who seems to accept his failures are Layla, the dog who has entered his life by coincidence.  

While there's not much action, there's a lot of reflection and humor in this novel.

The Monkey's Raincoat

"I had very much wanted to turn up some good news for Ellen Land. But good news, like magic, is sometimes in short supply."

Elvis Cole, The Monkey's Raincoat by Robert Crais.

This award-winning novel, the first in the Elvis Cole series, The Monkey's Raincoat is grisly yet entertaining. Elvis and his partner, a buddy from Vietnam, have taken on a challenging case.

Smart-mouthed and cocky, Elvis is also pure-hearted. He risks everything for his client, Ellen, who husband and son have gone missing. 

Cole likes Disney figurines and the fierce loyalty of his partner, Joe Pike. He hunts down criminals who take advantage of the weak, yet he also despises red tape and police bureaucracy.

His renegade tactics test the patience of LAPD. In the end, he does what he sets out to do--he solves the crime. He also gives Ellen her bit of good news. 

Imagine it Forward by Beth Comstock

Comstock has done everyone a service by describing how she changed the trajectory of her career. Despite being a self-described "introvert", Comstock led innovative change at NBC and GE. 

If you're looking to boost your career or change your work environment, this book is worth a read. 

Few professionals are able to tackle a subject like this with honesty and objectivity. Comstock is one of the few who does it effectively. She's honest about herself: she learned she comes across as blunt. 

Yet, she also learned how to use "permission slips" that allowed her to make positive steps forward and "sparks" that encourage discovery in the workplace. 

After being promoted to chief marketing officer at GE, she created program called "Imagination Breakthroughs." The program encouraged discovery and new revenue generating projects.

She also started "Ecomagination" which involved starting new green energy initiatives that lifted GE's brand value. 

Comstock celebrates these successes but she also doesn't shy away from describing failures which is to her credit. 

Promoted to a new position at GE, Comstock continued to find new ways to tell GE's story despite some unfortunate turn-of-events--the stock market crash of 2008 and some other mishaps. 

She brings many innovative people on board at GE--Ben Kaufman, CEO of Quirky.com--in order to change the status quo. Her changes resulted in a much more welcoming and innovative corporate culture.

Sprinkled throughout the text are quotations and challenges that will help readers create change in their own lives. She also uses text boxes to elaborate more fully on key terms e.g. "Emergence."