Author Focus: Cara Black

Cara Black

by Louise Hilton.

Cara Black is an American author best known for her bestselling Aimée Leduc mystery series set in Paris in the mid-1990s.  Black lived in Paris for many years and her intimate knowledge of the city comes across in her writing. There are currently 13 novels in the series and each one is set in a different quartier in the French capital. Black deftly weaves in tidbits about each neighborhood’s unique flavor and history into each mystery, which enhance the appeal of the series. The heroine is Aimée Leduc, a half-American, half-French private investigator, a quirky, smart, fiercely independent 30something with a  penchant for “bad boys” and vintage Chanel. Her best friend and partner at Leduc Detectives is René, a dwarf, computer hacker, and martial arts expert. A host of other eccentric characters round out the cast in this intriguing series that is definitely worth a read. Check out the author’s official website for more details on each title.

Bastille Day’s tomorrow so curl up with one of Black’s novels and a café crème – or glass of vin rouge – and be swept away to the City of Lights!

Your Favorite Magazines on Zinio

If you haven’t tried Zinio yet, you’re missing out. With just your library card, you can access the latest digital issues of your favorite magazines for free. There are hundreds of magazines to choose from and no limit to how many you can download.

You can read them directly on your computer, or you can download them for offline reading on your smartphone or tablet. They look fantastic! To find out more information about using Zinio, take a look at our Zinio Guide.

Head over to the library’s Zinio catalog and see the collection.  You can either search for a specific title or browse magazines by genre. Magazines you can read include Consumer Reports, Cosmopolitan, ESPN The Magazine, Food Network magazine, Maxim, Newsweek, Rolling Stone, and hundreds more! Go and take a look and I guarantee there will be something that interests you!

2013 Travel Guides

Now is the perfect time to think about out this year’s vacation plans with our great selection of travel guides.  We have plenty of new 2013 travel guides to help you find places to stay and things to do.

Whether you’re considering a road trip, heading across the country or further afield, we are sure to have the guide for you. To see more guides visit our Travel InfoGuide.

Mango Languages: ESL Courses

Did you know that Mango Languages is available in English as a Second Language (ESL) versions for speakers of 15 foreign languages? Whether you want to practice your spoken English or offer an introductory course for a friend, Mango’s engaging, fun process will get users speaking from the first lesson and give them a great tool to practice and improve. The best part? It’s all available for free through our Library website and you can access it from home using your library card. You can find more ESL resources on our Language Learning InfoGuide.

Google Maps: Street View Collections

If you’re a user of Google Maps, you’ll be familiar with the ‘street view’ feature, which allows you to see 360º street-level images. You may have even seen the Google cars driving around town taking pictures.

There is a section of Google Maps called the Street View Collection. This collection shows street-level tours of exotic and interesting locations all over the world. Currently these include Scott’s hut in the Antarctic, the Swiss Alps, the Amazon , and the Kennedy Space Center. If the collection is a building, then you are taken inside it. My favorite of the collections is the World Landmarks where you can visit the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben and the Colosseum. Visit the Street View Collection and take a world tour from the comfort of home.