Friday Reads: Lab Girl

Adam Pellman, our Cataloging & Acquisitions Librarian, is a big fan of this week's Friday Reads pick, Lab Girl by Hope Jahren:

Adam Pellman with Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

I recently finished reading Hope Jahren's superb memoir Lab Girl, and I've already recommended it to half a dozen people since then. Jahren is a geochemist and geobiologist who has spent much of her career studying fossil forests and teaching at universities in the U.S. and abroad, but her book is far more than the dry account of her life and work that one might expect from someone in her field.

Jahren writes beautifully about her her childhood in Minnesota, her college life and early struggles to fund and run laboratories with her longtime colleague Bill, her struggles with manic depression and workplace sexism, and her experiences with love and motherhood. The chapters about her life are interspersed with shorter chapters about tree life and other elements of the natural world, and Jahren's elegant prose truly illuminates the wonder and beauty of nature.

Strong writing skills are one of the essential elements of the liberal arts education that students get here at Seton Hill, and great science writing like Jahren's is a testament to the value of those skills.

P.S. This book really is amazing, and it's not that long, so I can't recommend it highly enough.

Friday Reads: Herding Cats

Today Michelle Frye shares about the book that has had her laughing out loud all week-- Herding Cats by Sarah Andersen!

Michelle Frye is reading Herding Cats by Sarah Andersen

After a long while since I read anything resembling a comic book, a student recommended
Herding Cats by Sarah Anderson. There are four cats in my household, so even the title and cover held instant appeal.

The first read had me grabbing sticky-notes and marking the pages that made me laugh out loud.
The author’s bold illustrations have basic figures, but display clear (and hilarious) expression.
Anderson shares the experiences of insomnia, procrastination, retail and music therapy, and
her adaptation to general “adulting." Even the portrayal of days sidelined by doubt and anxiety
are conveyed with warmth and humor.

This is a light and quick read – it could be a perfect pick-me-up for college students who might
also battle with the snooze button in the morning, or who consider pumpkin lattes medicinal.
Find it in the graphic novels display near the Library circulation desk!

Homecoming Book Sale

Homecoming is just around the corner, which means so is our annual book sale!

This year's sale will take place Friday, October 11th through Sunday, October 13th during library operating hours. Stack up your purchases and pay just a dollar an inch! (Cash or check only.) This year we have everything from philosophy and history to baby-food cookbooks. Stop by Reeves Room 116 and find a bargain!

October DVD Spotlight: Horror Movies

Another October is upon us, and that means it's scary movie season!  If you're in the mood for chills and thrills, Reeves Memorial Library has got you covered.  We've got horror movies about all manner of things that go bump in the night, from vampires and zombies to mutant animals and murderous aliens.  And let's not forget the scariest monster of all, humankind.

Featured titles include:

Audition (1999)

This cringe-inducing Japanese film, surely one of the most disturbing movies ever made, is both an extremely unsettling piece of revenge horror and a surprisingly affecting examination of loneliness.

The Exorcist (1973)

This horror classic, about a possessed teenage girl, is considered by many to be the scariest movie ever made.

Get Out (2017)
Jordan Peele's acclaimed hit, about a young African-American man's nightmarish weekend visit to his white girlfriend's parents' house, is the perfect combination of slowly-escalating unease, disturbing horror, and brilliant social commentary.

Nosferatu (1922)

This silent, expressionistic adaptation of the Dracula story features some of the most haunting imagery in all of cinema.

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

With equal parts horror and humor, this wildly entertaining film tells the story of a slacker who tries to win back his ex-girlfriend amid the chaos of a zombie apocalypse.

The Thing (1982)
Tension and paranoia abound in John Carpenter's gory horror classic, about an Antarctic research station that comes under attack by a shapeshifting alien.

Stop by the library and check one out today ... if you dare.