The Vista Book Group met in May to discuss The Dog Stars by Peter Heller.  An award winning adventure writer and author of several nonfiction books this is Heller’s first work of fiction.  The Dog Stars is a novel about a pilot living in a harsh post-apocalyptic world but there still a sense of beauty and tenderness that underlays the bleakness.

Here are some books that appeared on various news shows in the last few weeks. If you are an avid reader of Garden and Gun and enjoy stories about good food and drink then you will probably savor Julia Reed's But Mama Always Put Vodka in Her Sangria. If you grew up in the eighties when MTV was born and came of age then you may want to dive into VJ, coauthored by the five original VJs.    Do any of the books listed below sound like your kind of read?  

Here are some books that appeared on various news shows in the last few weeks. If you are an avid reader of Garden and Gun and enjoy stories about good food and drink then you will probably savor Julia Reed's But Mama Always Put Vodka in Her Sangria. If you grew up in the eighties when MTV was born and came of age then you may want to dive into VJ, coauthored by the five original VJs.    Do any of the books listed below sound like your kind of read?  

History buffs have a nice selection of new releases to choose from this week. 

Charlaine Harris has just released the last entry in the Sookie Stackhouse series, Dead Ever After, and according to various blogs that I've read many Sookie fans are quite upset!   However, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly (linked below) when asked whether she was happy with the ending, she said "It’s the ending I had planned all along, maybe from like the second book on. There will be people who are super happy and there will be people who will not be happy, but you have to stay true to your own vision."  

Mo Willems adds another fun tale to the shelves at Richland Library with his book, That Is Not a Good Idea!  Check it (or a number of additional new arrivals) out at your library, today!

On CBS This Morning sociologist Dr. Pepper Schwartz, Ph.D. discussed her book The Normal Bar which was cowritten with fellow sociologist James Witte, Ph.D and wellness entrepreneur Chrisanna Northrup.  The Normal Bar outlines the elements that constitute "normal" behavior among happy couples and provides practical suggestions on how couples can establish a "new normal" in their own relationship.

Last week’s new arrivals included a new fantasy/horror mash up novel by Joe Hill titled Nos4A2 and a new western, Butch Cassidy, by William Johnston.

Fans of Fforde’s other works (the Thursday Next Series, Shades of Grey) will recognize the subtle and offbeat humor sprinkled throughout The Last Dragonslayer.  Fforde’s first foray into teen fiction follows the young Jennifer Strange, a not-quite 16 year old foundling who has taken on the task of running Kazam magical management.  When magicians across the country begin to have premonitions of the death of the last dragon, and something called Big Magic, Jennifer decides to get to the bottom of things by seeking out the last dragonslayer.  Magic, mayhem, twists, and turns ensue as Jennifer discovers the history of dragons, magic, and her own role in the world of magic.