Staff Picks

February 2026

Peggy recommends:

The Smiling Land by Alan Doyle

In The Smiling Land, Alan Doyle, former front man for one of Canada’s favorite folk rock bands, Great Big Sea, and current front man for his own Beautiful, Beautiful band, takes us on a journey in and around his beloved Newfoundland. Along the way, he shares bits of history concerning each place visited, his own stories from growing up on The Rock and the joy of sharing the travel with his wife and 18-year-old son. Altogether, we get the unique experience of touring this beautiful island with Alan as our tour guide and it’s a kick!

The Black Wolf by Louise Penny

In this follow-up to The Grey Wolf, a near deaf Inspector Gamache is trying to prevent another major catastrophe with international connections and implications. Our favorite characters from Three Pines return, but only in brief moments. And while this is ventures away from Three Pines a bit, it is still a good read.

 

Fiddler on the Roof DVD

One of my all-time favorite musicals whose storyline reflects on a lot of what’s happening culturally in the world today.

Jasmine recommends:

Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann
I read this book a year or two ago and it hit home for me for multiple reasons. Alice is in college, figuring out how to be an adult, managing friendships, work, school, parents, not sure what love looks like for her because she is asexual…and oh, she works at a library! This book was for ME! Alice just broke up with her girlfriend over her asexuality and has given up on love until she meets this new boy who has her swooning in a whole new way. But will he be able understand her and accept the things she just can’t feel or do?
This book to me is a beautiful queer love story that I can actually relate to, which is unusual for me in media. It deals with very real young adult struggles, it’s unique, and it’s entirely adorable.

 

Kim recommends:
Although Groundhog Day has passed for this year, the movie Groundhog Day (1993) is a good watch anytime. Director and co-writer (with Danny Rubin) Harold Ramis does very well with the tonal shifts, as Bill Murray playing TV meteorologist Phil Connors repeats the same February 2nd again and again and again and again….
The movie is heartwarming, funny, clever, even philosophical. It’s also romantic, with Andie MacDowell as the woman who helps Phil become a better man, a little bit every day. There are too many fantastic supporting performances to name them all, but I’m especially fond of Stephen Tobolowsky as Ned Ryerson, Phil’s old acquaintance who has become a pushy insurance salesman, and Robin Duke as the helpful but confused waitress.

 

Amie recommends:

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Ryland Grace is a Junior High science teacher who wakes from a coma to find himself 12 light years away on a small spaceship. And then it gets worse. I accidentally spoiled it for myself because I looked up the movie, BUT it was still wonderful! Absolutely worth the read. Everything Andy Weir writes is wonderful and educational. I could totally survive on a spaceship 12 light years away. AND I CAN’T WAIT FOR THE MOVIE!

Recipes for Love and Murder Season 2 DVD

Picks right up where we left off. Fun for all, sweet little murders and lovely recipes.

January 2026

Kim recommends:

Cats in Construction Hats by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen & Leeza Hernandez

Poem Review
Different colors for cats, and hats.
In the middle of construction,
“Helpful” rats cause vast destruction!
“Oh, no!” “Watch that!” “Boom!’ “Crash!” “Eek!” “Drat!”
But it’s a storm they can weather.
Red Cat tells them, “Work together.”
The cats and rats work as a team.
And they build a home like a dream.
Prose Review
The picture book Cats in Construction Hats by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen & Leeza Hernandez is more than just a simple concept book.  It’s adorable, funny, inspiring, and recommended for ages 2 and up, where each age and stage can get something different out of it.
Peggy recommends:
This new Inspector Lynley book isn’t what we’re used to, but interesting nonetheless. Back story is the big feature in terms of the crime in this novel, but the book is filled with a lots of characters and a lot of character development. A Slowly Dying Cause finds Lynley and Havers at odds, but for personal rather than professional reasons this time. What I found intriguing was how each character revealed parts of their own back stories, with little glimpses into what drives their decision making and thought processes. While I was not entirely satisfied with this new “Lynley” book, I still found I could not put it down.
Amie recommends:

The Dog Who Followed the Moon by James Norbury

This book is beautifully heartbreaking. I love it so much. Sob!

 

The Princess Bride (DVD)
RIP Rob!
John recommends:

Jeeves and the King of Clubs by Benn Schott

Jeeves and the King of Clubs is a novel in homage to P. G. Wodehouse   It took me two tries to get through this book but I’m glad I did.  This book by Ben Schott is very well written.  Mr. Schott is a scholar, and the book was extremely capably researched by him. In fact, I recommend reading the notes on the text before reading the book. It would also be a good idea to keep a dictionary handy, preferably an Oxford English Dictionary.

Anyone who has read a Jeeves and Bertie book by Wodehouse knows that the Jeeves character is clever almost to the point of genius. In this book he is in form and the plot, which involves the British government, has Jeeves and Bertie recruited to foil a fascist villain and unrepentant jerk. One amusing aside is that if you ever saw the Blues Brothers movie you will recognize the scene with Nazis on the bridge, which in the movie were routed by the Blues Mobile. Schott creates a much more amusing route.

There have been other parody tributes to P.G. Wodehouse, but this one is the best. It was written and published with the permission of the Wodehouse estate. And the ending … the perpetual bachelor, Bertie Wooster, meets a young lady who may have real potential for matrimony. It seems to demand a sequel, but when?

Marina recommends:

Rebel Blue Ranch series by Lyla Sage

Sometimes you just need a lighthearted small-town cowboy romance to escape to on these stormy days, and the Rebel Blue Ranch series is a great option. As a complete four book series, you will have enough reading material for a few rainy days and won’t have to wait for the next book to be published.

 

Sarah recommends:

Map of the soul: 7 – BTS (CD)
This k-pop group will be returning with new music in 2026 after a three year break so now is a perfect time to relisten to one of their best albums–or try them out for the first time!
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