June 30, 2025 – 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 books they love.
Patron Services Specialist Alyssa has worked in the Public Service department of the library since 2022. She can usually be found at Ladd Library, but sometimes at the Downtown Library as well. She is studying for a Masters of Library and Information Services Management at the University of Sheffield.
Alyssa enjoys keeping up on popular reads, cultural nonfiction, historical fiction, and also loves a good classic (choosing a favorite genre is hard!) Outside of work and school, she loves traveling, learning new hobbies, and spending time with her fiancé and three cats.
Browse Alyssa's book recommendations below, and put books on hold in our catalog by clicking on their covers.
I picked up "Recitatif" not knowing what it was about and was taken in by the characters and the depth of meaning behind the way this book is narrated. Like much of Morrison's work, it addresses themes of poverty and racial differences. The story follows two young orphan girls, their presumptions of one another, and their trajectories. What is most fascinating is that she never identifies which girl is white and which is black, which allows the reader to examine their own assumptions and biases about social expectations and norms.
"The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
This one hit all the marks for me – creepily intriguing, historically fascinating, and descriptively written without being too wordy. The book switches between the story of the architects who envisioned and created the impressive Chicago World's Fair in the 1890s, and the conniving con artist and killer who used this event to lure in fairgoers to his "murder hotel". The research and accuracy Larson brings to his books is impressive and makes any of them a spellbinding read.
"Daisy Jones and the Six" by Taylor Jenkins Reid
This one has been said to loosely represent the story of the band Fleetwood Mac, with Daisy Jones as the Stevie Nicks character. The book is formatted as a compilation of interviews from each band member of "The Six," from their beginnings, to finding Daisy, to stardom, through love and loss, to their eventual breakup. It's very "sex, drugs, and rock-'n'-roll," and I loved being taken along with each of the band members on their exciting and intense personal journeys. (I also recommend watching the show afterward if you were missing the musical component of reading a book about a band.)
"Les Misérables" by Victor Hugo
If you have seen the musical or film adaptation, at the risk of sounding cliché, I say: "the book was better." I think the musical highlights many important points of the plot and gives a great baseline, but the book (all five volumes long), draws you into the streets of Paris, the French Revolution, and each character's deep thoughts and desires. If you're not familiar with the story, it follows an ex-convict, a priest, a woman in the sex work industry, and other young revolutionaries through the personal and historical highs and lows of the French Revolution. It is incredibly heartbreaking, heartwarming, and redemptive, and will leave you inspired and reflective.
"Cultish" by Amanda Montell
"Cultish" is a fascinating look at what makes a cult or sect, particularly the ways that language and shared concepts bring people together, but also can unfortunately leave others out. Amanda Montell writes about why humans are drawn to exclusive communities, and the positives and negative influences of such groups.
"Remarkably Bright Creatures" by Shelby Van Pelt
"Remarkably Bright Creatures" blends themes of familial relationships, mystery, grief, redemption, and learning into the sweetest story. An older, widowed woman named Tova befriends Marcellus, a giant octopus, during her overnight cleaning shift at the aquarium. Marcellus taught me a lot about his species, while filling the story with unexpected schemes, insight, and surprising care for Tova.