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STAFF PICKS FOR ADULTS
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown (Movie released May 2009, starring Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor )
Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon finds himself in Rome, where he has to race against time to prevent the Illuminati, a secret society, from putting in motion a terrorist act that could destroy the Vatican. This book is from the author of The Da Vinci Code.
Public Enemies by Brian Burrough (364.973 BURROU) (Movie released July 2009, starring Johhny Depp and Christian Bale)
The story of the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young J. Edgar Hoover, his FBI and an assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (Movie released November 2009, starring Jim Carrey)
Cruel miser Ebeneezer Scrooge has never met a shilling he doesn't like … and hardly a man he does. And he hates Christmas most of all. When Scrooge is visited by his old partner, Jacob Marley, and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present, and Christmas Yet-to-Come, he learns eternal lessons of charity, kindness, and goodwill.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (Movie “Sherlock Holmes” released December 2009, starring Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law)
The world’s greatest detective gets re-booted with an action-adventure twist this Christmas, but Holmes can still count on having Mr. Watson by his side (and Irene Adler, the only woman ever to get close to Holmes) as he uses his superior deductive powers to stop an occultist. See also the books in the “Irene Adler series” by Carole Douglas Nelson, starting with Good Night, Mr. Holmes.
I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle (Movie released July 2009, starring Hayden Panetierre)
Recklessly announcing his love for the head cheerleader during his valedictorian commencement speech, Denis Cooverman is inducted into the wilder side of youth culture by the object of his affection, who turns out to be more than he bargained for.
The Informant by Kurt Eichenwald (364.16 EICHEN) (Movie released October 2009, starring Matt Damon)
Within a major American corporation, a senior executive has been serving as a secret government informant. He covertly tapes incontrovertible proof of a vast international criminal conspiracy. But just when the FBI is about to snap on the cuffs, they receive scalding news: Their star snitch is a champion embezzler. Apparently for years he's been siphoning millions of dollars from the company and transferring the loot overseas. Before the last twist, the C.I.A., political heavy-weights, botched crimes, suicide attempts, acts of extortion, and courtroom surprises have abounded.
Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane (Movie pending release February 2010, starring Leonardo DiCaprio)
The year is 1954. U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels and his new partner, Chuck Aule, have come to Shutter Island, home of Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane, to investigate the disappearance of a patient. Multiple murderess Rachel Solando is loose somewhere on this remote and barren island, despite having been kept in a locked cell under constant surveillance.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy (Movie released November 2009, starring Viggo Mortenson)
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands, the clothes they are wearing, and each other.
New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (Young Adult) (Movie released November 2009, starring Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner )
For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. When her beloved Edward and his family leave Forks rather than risk revealing that they are vampires, it is almost too much for Bella to bear, but she finds solace in her friend Jacob, until he starts changing in terrible ways.
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (Movie released August 2009, starring Eric Bana)
This is the love story of Henry and Claire whose lives are punctuated by Henry's disappearance to different points in time - sometimes even back to visit Claire as a young woman. When Henry meets Claire, he is twenty-eight, and she is twenty. He's a hip, handsome librarian; she is an art student with Botticelli hair. Henry has never met Claire before; Claire has known Henry since she was six...
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (Movie released June 2009, starring Cameron Diaz and Alec Baldwin)
Conceived to provide a bone marrow match for her leukemia-stricken sister, teenage Kate begins to question her moral obligations in light of countless medical procedures and decides to fight for the right to make decisions about her own body.
Julie and Julia by Julie Powell (641.5 POWELL) (Movie released August 2009, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams)
Julie Powell needs something to break the monotony of her life. So, she invents a deranged assignment: She will take her mother's dog-eared copy of Julia Child's 1961 classic, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," and cook all 524 recipes in the span of just one year.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (Young Adult) (Movie released July 2009, starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson)
Harry searches for the full and complex story of the boy who became Lord Voldemort, and thereby finds what may be his only vulnerability. Sixth-year Hogwarts student Harry Potter gains valuable insights into the boy Voldemort once was, even as his own world is transformed by maturing friendships, schoolwork assistance from an unexpected source, and devastating losses.
Push by Sapphire (Movie “Precious” released November 2009, starring Gabourey Sidibe and Mo’Nique)
This story recounts a young, black street-girl's horrendous and redemptive journey through a Harlem inferno. For Precious Jones, 16 and pregnant with her father's child, miraculous hope appears and the world begins to open up for her when a courageous, determined teacher bullies, cajoles, and inspires her to learn to read, to define her own feelings and set them down in a diary.
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (Movie released December 2009, starring Marc Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Susan Sarandon )
The spirit of fourteen-year-old Susie Salmon describes her murder, her surprise at her new home in heaven, and her witness to her family's grief, efforts to find the killer, and attempts to come to terms with what has happened.
The Surrogates by Robert Venditti (Movie released September 2009, starring Bruce Willis)
The year is 2054, and the Central Georgia Metropolis is held in a grip of fear by a series of crimes committed by the mysterious lightning-wielding techno-terrorist dubbed Steeplejack. His attacks stem from an agenda that seeks to disconnect humanity from its dependence on "surrogates," androids that the consumer can link with and allow to carry out the user's life, acting as a full-time stand-in.
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DID YOU KNOW . . . ?
If you're in the mood for a high-octane, blood-pumping read, you can find a list of books titled “Reads Like an Action Movie!” at the Wake County Libraries website www.wakegov.com/libraries When you visit our website just click on the READING tab and select Reading & Book Lists - Adult. There you’ll find many great lists. Click on General Fiction and scroll down - hey, presto there’s the list!
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