Cover to Cover
A column from the Monroe Public Library
monroepubliclibrary.org
Each month, we interview a community member about his or her reading life. For our inaugural column, we sat down with Bobbie Bernet of Monroe.
Q: What are you reading right now?
A: I just finished "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr, which has been on the bestseller list. And I got it from your relatively new shelf where you can get books that are in high demand without waiting two or three years for your name to come up on hold. I love that book shelf. The other one I read from that a few months ago was Sue Monk Kidd's "The Invention of Wings." I just read a Lord Peter Wimsey book because someone at the Library Lunchtime Book Club mentioned it. I needed something lighter after reading "All the Light We Cannot See," which is set during World War II.
Q: What book inspires you?
A: Inspires me ... I'm not sure that books inspire me. I read books for recreation mostly. I like novels and mysteries that have a real sense of place - they make me want to go to there. There's an author that someone told me about last year named Martin Walker who crafts really smart mysteries set in southern France, the "Bruno, Chief of Police" mysteries. You definitely want to go experience what he's describing, right down to what they're eating. I'd love to go to Middle Earth - or at least New Zealand. I'd also like to revisit Venice after reading Donna Leon's books.
I like Bill Bryson's writing a lot. About a year ago, I read "One Summer: America, 1927." It's an interesting history of what happened that summer. We lent the book to Allen Redford, who directs the Bel Canto Singers. At our May concert, we're doing all 1920s music because he enjoyed the book so much.
Q: What was your favorite book when you were growing up?
A: I loved the Nancy Drew books. She was a great role model - she was very independent and smart and she could do things and go places and be inventive and not be afraid of anything.
Q: Tell us about a book you were disappointed in.
A: "Atlantic" by Simon Winchester. I've liked his books, but I thought Atlantic was a slog to get through, though parts of it were interesting. It's 500 pages, and halfway through I thought about whether I had learned anything I needed to know. I had a librarian friend in college who introduced me to the 50-page test. If I'm not interested ... or if I'm disappointed ... in a book, I don't finish it. There are too many other things to read - so many books, so little time.
Q: If you were stranded on a desert island, what title would you want to have with you?
A: I don't reread many books, as there are so many others to read. I guess I'll take the last set of the Encyclopedia Britannica so I don't run out right away. Do they even still print it? If they don't, I'll take the most recent encyclopedia still in print. Because then it would be a long time before I ran out, and I do like to keep learning ...
Columnists' Notes: For our first column, we felt that Bobbie's own words stood well on their own. The column's format may differ from month-to-month. The Encyclopedia Britannica ceased its print edition in 2010. World Book is still issued in print every year. Bobbie was instrumental in founding the library's current book club, the Library Lunchtime Book Club, which meets in the second-floor program room at noon on the second Wednesday of the month. The Bel Canto Singers concert mentioned will take place May 3 at the Monroe Arts Center.
Q: What are you reading right now?
A: I just finished "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr, which has been on the bestseller list. And I got it from your relatively new shelf where you can get books that are in high demand without waiting two or three years for your name to come up on hold. I love that book shelf. The other one I read from that a few months ago was Sue Monk Kidd's "The Invention of Wings." I just read a Lord Peter Wimsey book because someone at the Library Lunchtime Book Club mentioned it. I needed something lighter after reading "All the Light We Cannot See," which is set during World War II.
Q: What book inspires you?
A: Inspires me ... I'm not sure that books inspire me. I read books for recreation mostly. I like novels and mysteries that have a real sense of place - they make me want to go to there. There's an author that someone told me about last year named Martin Walker who crafts really smart mysteries set in southern France, the "Bruno, Chief of Police" mysteries. You definitely want to go experience what he's describing, right down to what they're eating. I'd love to go to Middle Earth - or at least New Zealand. I'd also like to revisit Venice after reading Donna Leon's books.
I like Bill Bryson's writing a lot. About a year ago, I read "One Summer: America, 1927." It's an interesting history of what happened that summer. We lent the book to Allen Redford, who directs the Bel Canto Singers. At our May concert, we're doing all 1920s music because he enjoyed the book so much.
Q: What was your favorite book when you were growing up?
A: I loved the Nancy Drew books. She was a great role model - she was very independent and smart and she could do things and go places and be inventive and not be afraid of anything.
Q: Tell us about a book you were disappointed in.
A: "Atlantic" by Simon Winchester. I've liked his books, but I thought Atlantic was a slog to get through, though parts of it were interesting. It's 500 pages, and halfway through I thought about whether I had learned anything I needed to know. I had a librarian friend in college who introduced me to the 50-page test. If I'm not interested ... or if I'm disappointed ... in a book, I don't finish it. There are too many other things to read - so many books, so little time.
Q: If you were stranded on a desert island, what title would you want to have with you?
A: I don't reread many books, as there are so many others to read. I guess I'll take the last set of the Encyclopedia Britannica so I don't run out right away. Do they even still print it? If they don't, I'll take the most recent encyclopedia still in print. Because then it would be a long time before I ran out, and I do like to keep learning ...
Columnists' Notes: For our first column, we felt that Bobbie's own words stood well on their own. The column's format may differ from month-to-month. The Encyclopedia Britannica ceased its print edition in 2010. World Book is still issued in print every year. Bobbie was instrumental in founding the library's current book club, the Library Lunchtime Book Club, which meets in the second-floor program room at noon on the second Wednesday of the month. The Bel Canto Singers concert mentioned will take place May 3 at the Monroe Arts Center.