Brent Scollie, a graduate of Fort William Collegiate Institute, Queen’s University and the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Library Science, retired from the federal public service in 1997. His insights on the Victorian era in Thunder Bay are derived from many years of research. This has resulted in numerous publications about the period mostly focussed... Continue Reading →
Memoirs/Autobiographies/Biographies
When you think back on the story of your life, do you ever think about writing a book? The beauty of reading memoirs and autobiographies is that, no matter how interesting a person’s life may be, everyone comes from different cultures, backgrounds and experiences, so there is always something to learn. Some give us something... Continue Reading →
Becoming Belle by Nuala O’Connor
In “Becoming Belle,” Nuala O’Connor brings the extraordinary life of Isabel (Belle) Bilton into the mind of her readers. As someone who appreciates a believably written period piece, I was grateful for O’Connor’s appropriate choice of language and sentence structure. It allowed me to fully immerse myself into this almost unbelievable story set in the... Continue Reading →
Royal Wedding Fever
As you may have heard, there was a pretty big wedding across the pond this weekend. If you can’t get enough of the wedding excitement, or are planning your own, visit your Library! You can borrow the DVD of Will and Kate’s wedding if you want to see how it measured up to Harry and... Continue Reading →
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett
Intrigue, moral turmoil and scandal are integral elements to many a great novel. Turns out they are also central to the plot of book thievery. The Man Who Loved Books Too Much dives right into the industry of rare book dealers and the sentiments that drive people to steal from them. It also serves... Continue Reading →
Caesar: Life of a Colossus by Adrian Goldsworthy
Rome was crazy. Senators would fight, sometimes literally, for prestige and any chance to prove themselves worthy of being a senator. Some of the top ranks in Roman politics were Consul which would lead to Proconsul - the rank Caesar was when he invaded Gaul and when he first explored Britannia. In Caesar's day, family... Continue Reading →
Into the Wild
The story of Chris McCandless will captivate you, intrigue you and at times infuriate you. Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild is a non-fiction book that tells the tale of 22 year old Chris McCandless, a young man who gave up all of his possessions and savings after graduating college to begin his journey of hitchhiking... Continue Reading →