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Both locations of the Cedar Rapids Public Library will be closed on Friday, May 3, for all-staff training.
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Staff Picks for Adults
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Polar Vortex
What do you do when your mother can't remember who you are? You catch the first flight from your adopted home of London to your original hometown of Cedar Rapids, lowa, where she's hospitalized, injured, and struggling with the swirling disorientation of dementia. You take responsibility for finding her new (and, perhaps, final) home--although insurance is running out and you might have to finally patch up your bitter relationship with your sister. And you try not to think about death, lurking around every corner . . . or the coming polar vortex, growing closer and closer as snowflakes swirl ever faster outside.
With cinematic illustrations and moving yet humorous prose, award-winning author and cartoonist Denise Dorrance shares the two most haywire months of her life: the phone call after her mother is discovered lying confused on the living room floor, the mingled shock and familiarity of a harsh Midwestern midwinter, the attempt to settle her homesick mother into a care facility, the limiting and limitless inanities of the US health care system, and the impossible decisions about what comes next. Incorporating vintage postcards, photographs, and letters, Dorrance brilliantly captures the sadness, frustration, and gallows humor of suddenly having to care for an aging parent and facing the moment of transition between life as you've long known it and life as it must become.
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You Don't Look Sick
You've just been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Now what?
Being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis can be overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. In You Don't Look Sick: Quick and Dirty Tips for Surviving Ulcerative Colitis, author and ulcerative colitis veteran AW Cross gives you a first-hand, non-medical perspective about what to expect from your illness and how to get through it with your sanity (and your favorite underwear) intact.
Through a unique blend of practicality and humor, you'll learn how to:
-Cope with the physical consequences and emotional impact of ulcerative colitis
-Pack a survival kit and leave your bathroom with confidence
-Dress, eat, and have sex
-Deal with healthcare professionals and enjoy your stays in the hospital
-Endure poop jokes and use social media responsibly
-Put on your big boy/girl pants and deal with it
Whether you've just been diagnosed or struggled with UC for years, if you're determined not to let your illness define you, this book is for you.
If you'd rather wallow in self-pity, have no sense of humor about your illness, and hate kittens and babies, DON'T BUY THIS BOOK! -
Begin Again
In his first illustrated book created specifically for readers of all ages, Oliver Jeffers shares a very brief history of humanity and shares his dreams for where we go from here.
With his bold, iconic art, Oliver Jeffers follows the human path from the dawn of our species through history, sharing profound, sometimes poignant, commentary on our present, and then offers a challenge: Where do we go from here? How can we create new stories and new systems that allow all of humanity to flourish? How can we journey toward a collective and robust future?
Illustrated in his world-renowned art style, Oliver Jeffers’ reflection on the patterns that have led us to where we are today, the stories we have governed ourselves by, and those we might adopt going forward, is insightful, moving, and powerful. A must-have for anyone who wants the next generation to inherit a world to be proud of--and a perfect gift to share with those you care about. -
Lore Olympus: Volume One
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Scandalous gossip, wild parties, and forbidden love—witness what the gods do after dark in this stylish and contemporary reimagining of one of the best-known stories in Greek mythology, featuring a brand-new, exclusive short story from creator Rachel Smythe.
HUGO AWARD FINALIST • ONE OF NPR’S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • “What Scott Pilgrim did for Canadian slackers, Lore Olympus does for the Greek pantheon, while being so beautiful that you know Aphrodite is just staring daggers in its direction.”—Kieron Gillen, co-creator of The Wicked + The Divine
Persephone, young goddess of spring, is new to Olympus. Her mother, Demeter, has raised her in the mortal realm, but after Persephone promises to train as a sacred virgin, she’s allowed to live in the fast-moving, glamorous world of the gods. When her roommate, Artemis, takes her to a party, her entire life changes: she ends up meeting Hades and feels an immediate spark with the charming yet misunderstood ruler of the Underworld. Now Persephone must navigate the confusing politics and relationships that rule Olympus, while also figuring out her own place—and her own power.
This edition of Smythe’s original Eisner-winning webcomic Lore Olympus brings Greek mythology into the modern age in a sharply perceptive and romantic graphic novel.
This volume collects episodes 1–25 of the #1 WEBTOON comic Lore Olympus. -
One-Punch Man, Vol. 27
Life gets pretty boring when you can beat the snot out of any villain with just one punch.
Nothing about Saitama passes the eyeball test when it comes to superheroes, from his lifeless expression to his bald head to his unimpressive physique. However, this average-looking guy has a not-so-average problem—he just can’t seem to find an opponent strong enough to take on!
Psychos intends to fuse with Orochi, the Monster King, which would give them immense power against Tornado. Superalloy confronts Garo and experiences fear of his opponent’s strength… Meanwhile, Saitama gets caught up in a cave-in in the Monster Association’s underground labyrinth! -
ADHD for Smart Ass Women
An unprecedented guide for any woman with ADHD looking to celebrate her unique brilliance and to embark on a journey of self-discovery.
ADHD is one of the most common neurological disor-ders in the United States--yet a staggering 75 percent of girls and women remain undiagnosed. Due to the gen-der gap in medical research, which does not account for symptoms manifesting differently in women--leading to increased problems with anxiety, depression, work-ing memory, sleep, energy, and concentration--many ADHD women are left to navigate a society that fails to understand their struggles and gifts. But what if every woman had the resources and support to uncover the hidden wonders of her neurodivergent brain?
Enter certified ADHD coach and podcast host Tracy Otsuka. Armed with her experience coaching thou-sands of women, cutting-edge medical research, and personal insights from her own diagnosis, she presents a revelatory guide tailored specifically for girls and women with ADHD. In it, Otsuka offers an entirely new set of tools, systems, and strategies to access a world of boundless productivity, focus, and confidence.
With her signature wit and levity--in entertaining chapters designed for ADHD readers--Otsuka explores the unique challenges that ADHD women face and illuminates the extraordinary qualities that set them apart: overflowing creativity, laser-focused attention, deep empathy, and fearless entrepreneurial spirit. Even without an official diagnosis, readers will be equipped with the tools to conquer any to-do list and to tap into their true purpose, personally or professionally.
By dismantling the long-standing stereotypes and misinformation surrounding women with ADHD, Otsuka offers a beacon of hope for any woman looking to transform her symptoms into strengths. Comprehensive, lively, and long overdue, ADHD for Smart Ass Women is the key to unlocking unparalleled potential and to understanding your truly magnifi-cent and brilliant brain.
Are you ready to discover your superpower?
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The Vaster Wilds
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2023
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR, TIME, ESQUIRE, VOGUE, LA TIMES, SLATE, HARPER'S BAZAAR and others
“Part historical, part horror, part breathless thriller, part wilderness survival tale, The Vaster Wilds is a story about the lengths to which we will go to stay alive."—NPR staff pick
“Lauren Groff just reinvented the adventure novel."—Los Angeles Times
“Glorious…surroundings come alive in prose that lives and breathes upon the page." —Boston Globe
A taut and electrifying novel from celebrated bestselling author Lauren Groff, about one spirited girl alone in the wilderness, trying to survive
A servant girl escapes from a colonial settlement in the wilderness. She carries nothing with her but her wits, a few possessions, and the spark of god that burns hot within her. What she finds in this terra incognita is beyond the limits of her imagination and will bend her belief in everything that her own civilization has taught her.
Lauren Groff’s new novel is at once a thrilling adventure story and a penetrating fable about trying to find a new way of living in a world succumbing to the churn of colonialism. The Vaster Wilds is a work of raw and prophetic power that tells the story of America in miniature, through one girl at a hinge point in history, to ask how—and if—we can adapt quickly enough to save ourselves. -
False Knees
Based on Joshua Barkman's popular webcomic by the same name, False Knees is animal humor taken to a very absurd, darkly delightful place.
In Barkman's debut print collection, False Knees fans will find old favorites along with an abundance of all-new material. Featuring creatures found in the author's native Ontario, this always sharp, sometimes head-scratchingly bizarre collection of comics offers a view into the secret, surprisingly insightful world of blue jays, squirrels, geese, wolves, and rabbits.
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Ultimate Fanbook: Nintendo
Anyone who loves Nintendo will enjoy this fantastic 100% unofficial book on the world's greatest games company. Inside, you'll discover a complete guide to Nintendo's most iconic characters, including Mario, Luigi, Link, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Samus, Toad, Bowser, Kirby and many more.
Go back in time over 100 years to uncover the origins of the company that began by making playing cards, and glimpse the future of Nintendo with even more amazing games and tech on the horizon. There's also a countdown of Nintendo's best ever games, ranging from stone-cold classics to today's trailblazing blockbusters. It's the perfect title for anyone from casual fans to die-hard enthusiasts! 100% Independent & Unofficial
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The Night Eaters: Her Little Reapers (the Night Eaters Book #2)
The Night Eaters: Her Little Reapers is the second volume in the graphic novel horror trilogy following She Eats the Night from Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda--the creative team behind the New York Times bestselling series Monstress.
It's been four months since the night of gore, chaos, and the failed demonic summoning that revealed the Ting twins' unusual family background. Since then, Milly and Billy have tried to explore their new powers, but their parents, Ipo and Keon, haven't been much help. Despite the lack of explanations, one thing is abundantly clear: the Ting family is part of a much larger supernatural world and something in that world is very, very wrong.
As Ipo and Keon are reluctantly drawn back into the treacherous high society of supernatural elites, their children find that dealings with the spirit world comes at a steep price--when the dead have unfinished business with the living, only blood can balance the scales. To save humanity and themselves, the Tings will have to embrace their inner demons.
Eisner Award-winning and bestselling author Marjorie Liu and illustrator Sana Takeda have done it again, spinning an epic tale of gods and monsters in Her Little Reapers that will leave readers hungry for more.
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The Sky Vault
The third book in Percy's innovative and acclaimed Comet Cycle, The Sky Vault, follows an investigation of a mysterious weather phenomena in Fairbanks, Alaska, and a government secret buried since WWII.
The comet, Cain, came from beyond our solar system, its debris containing elements unknown. Now, in the isolated region of Fairbanks, Alaska, the skies shift and stretch as an interstellar dust cloud seeds the atmosphere. When a plane shudders its way through pulpy, swirling, bruise-shaped clouds, lit with sudden cracks of lightning, the sky opens and the aircraft vanishes...but only for a minute.
When the flight lands, everyone on board and in the community will be changed forever. Chuck Bridges, a local DJ and conspiracy theorist, was on board and later reported dead to his family, but not before proclaiming that something inside the clouds was speaking to him. Now his son, Theo, must chase down answers to the mystery his father unlocked. He'll find himself at odds with Sophie Chen, an agent with a shadowy employer desperate to secure the black box from the airplane, as well as Rolf Wagner, a widowed sheriff investigating a series of increasingly strange and unsettling reports. And then there is Joanna Straub, a contractor reconstructing a top-secret government lab active during WWII and shuttered deep within the nearby White Mountains.
The answer to the comet's origin is about to be unveiled, and its impact on Earth is more treacherous and sublime than humanity could imagine.
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Thornhedge
From USA Today bestselling author T. Kingfisher, Thornhedge is the tale of a kind-hearted, toad-shaped heroine, a gentle knight, and a mission gone completely sideways.
There's a princess trapped in a tower. This isn't her story.
Meet Toadling. On the day of her birth, she was stolen from her family by the fairies, but she grew up safe and loved in the warm waters of faerieland. Once an adult though, the fae ask a favor of Toadling: return to the human world and offer a blessing of protection to a newborn child. Simple, right?
But nothing with fairies is ever simple.
Centuries later, a knight approaches a towering wall of brambles, where the thorns are as thick as your arm and as sharp as swords. He's heard there's a curse here that needs breaking, but it's a curse Toadling will do anything to uphold...
"The way Thornhedge turns all the fairy tales inside out is a sharp-edged delight."
—Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor -
A House With Good Bones
A haunting Southern Gothic from an award-winning master of suspense, A House With Good Bones explores the dark, twisted roots lurking just beneath the veneer of a perfect home and family.
"Mom seems off."
Her brother's words echo in Sam Montgomery's ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone.
She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam's excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out.
But stepping inside, she quickly realizes home isn’t what it used to be. Gone is the warm, cluttered charm her mom is known for; now the walls are painted a sterile white. Her mom jumps at the smallest noises and looks over her shoulder even when she’s the only person in the room. And when Sam steps out back to clear her head, she finds a jar of teeth hidden beneath the magazine-worthy rose bushes, and vultures are circling the garden from above.
To find out what’s got her mom so frightened in her own home, Sam will go digging for the truth. But some secrets are better left buried. -
Miss Peregrine's Museum of Wonders
“Incredibly immersive. The newest installment to the Miss Peregrine universe is stunning.”
A deluxe companion to the #1 bestselling Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children series. Everything you need to know about the peculiar world, written by Miss Peregrine herself. A gloriously rich and utterly delightful handbook perfect for longtime fans and new readers alike.
Gloriously rich and utterly delightful, Miss Peregrine’s Museum of Wonders is an indispensable guide to the peculiar world, perfect for longtime fans and new readers alike. Covering everything from how to blend in with suspicious normals to the most popular time loops to visit as a temporal tourist, this essential volume is ideal for anyone curious about the world of Miss Peregrine: its strange history, curious practices, fascinating places, most famous (and infamous) names, and much more.
Written in Miss Peregrine’s inimitable style, it’s also a dramatic expansion of the universe fans have already come to love, introducing countless new peculiars, enemies, time loops, stories, and secrets, in addition to hundreds of never-before-seen vintage found photographs and select illustrations. -
Batman: Beyond the White Knight
A lot can change in 10 years, especially in Gotham! Batman, a.k.a. Bruce Wayne, may be behind bars, but the real criminals are still out there.
Gotham Motors CEO Derek Powers has seized control of the Wayne family’s assets and is using them to transform the GTO and the city they’ve sworn to protect. Crime is down, but at what cost? A new Batman has emerged in Powers’s city, and only Bruce is fully aware of the dangers to come. It’s time to destroy the mantle for good, but he’ll need one of his forgotten sons’ help to do so. Enter Jason Todd…the first Robin?!
In this thrilling sequel to the blockbuster comic book hits Batman: White Knight and Batman: Curse of the White Knight, writer/artist Sean Murphy invites the audience to go beyond the Gotham they know to discover an engrossing new take on the city and its heroes. Welcome to Neo-Gotham and the world of Beyond the White Knight! This collection includes Batman: Beyond the White Knight #1-8; Batman: White Knight Presents: Red Hood #1-2.
News & Updates
Check These Out: Staff Book Picks with Lexi
April 22, 2024 – The Cedar Rapids Public Library is made possible by our incredible staff. And we are staffed by book lovers. To celebrate the people who keep our library running, we're highlighting different staff members and five books they love.
Check These Out: Novels to Read for Arab American Heritage Month
April 15, 2024 – April is National Arab American Heritage Month. Recognized by President Joe Biden for the first time in 2021, the month honors the history and heritage of 3.5 million Arab Americans.
Check These Out: The Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2023
April 9, 2024 – Each year, the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom compiles a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books in order to inform the public about censor