What better way to beat the heat than to curl up with a good book set in a cold climate? Your SaddleBrooke Community Libraries offer a variety of Fiction and Nonfiction books to enjoy during the summer. But if your idea of a “cool book” is something “hot off the press” the Libraries also have a selection of the latest best sellers, books by new authors and a variety of nonfiction topics. You can learn more about finding those at the end of this article.
Regarding those cold climates, your first thought is probably books set in Alaska, Iceland or the Antarctic. And, indeed, we have many of those. But high altitude mountaineering also happens in a cold climate. For something different, pick up the new novel “Breathless” set on the eighth highest mountain in the world nicknamed the Killer Mountain. The author actually climbed the mountain that is the setting for this sinister thriller that will have you shivering with dread as you learn about extreme mountaineering with a killer on the mountain. If you prefer a nonfiction approach to high altitude exploration “The Third Pole: mystery, obsession and death on Mount Everest” is compelling reading.
Closer to home, there are many mysteries set in the Alaskan wilderness. In J.A. Jance’s latest mystery “Nothing to Lose” J. P Beaumont follows a lead all the way to Alaska where he encounters a tangled web of family secrets. Paige Shelton’s Alaska Wild series offers three titles featuring an author who moves to Alaska to escape an obsessed fanatic. She becomes involved in solving local mysteries while learning about living in a remote part of Alaska. Popular author Kristin Hannah offers a solid novel about isolation and survival in harsh conditions in “The Great Alone.”
Iceland apparently inspires murder mysteries such as those by Ragnar Jonasson. Other authors with mysteries set in Iceland include Nicholas Petrie “The Wild One” and Michael Ridpath “The Wanderer.”
Several popular authors have set stories in a variety of other icy locations. Brad Thor’s recent chiller “Black Ice” takes place high above the Arctic Circle. It will keep you turning pages. A bit on the fringe of science fiction, pick up books by these well-known authors for a cool escape: Douglas Preston’s “Beyond the Ice Limit,” James Rollins’ “The Last Odyssey” and Clive Cussler’s ‘Fast Ice.”
Ready for some facts about cold places? The Libraries have a selection of books about polar explorations. Read about the Franklin expedition in “Ice Ghosts.” Or pick up “Icebound: Shipwrecked at the edge of the world” or “Alone on the Ice.” A range of scientific topics are covered in “The Ice at the End of the World;” “Atlas of a Lost World: Travels in Ice Age America;” “Owls of the Eastern Ice;” or “Telescope in the Ice.”
If you’re inspired to travel to some of these cold places, the DesertView Library’s Travel Collection has guidebooks to help plan your journey. But there are also books to learn more about your destinations, such as “How Iceland Changed the World: the big history of a small island.”
A more complete list of “Cool Books” will be posted in all three libraries during the summer. You can reserve specific titles in the Library catalog. Use the link on the library website, https://sblibraries.com.
Also use the library catalog to easily find a list of the most recent books of all types. On the left side of the Home Page select “New Additions” for items added in the last 30-days. Or to narrow or expand the list, use the box labelled “All Time Periods” and select new items added in the past seven-days, 30-days or 90-days. These lists include not just books but also new DVDs and audiobooks. It’s easy to reserve selected titles, but if you need assistance contact either the DesertView Library or the SaddleBrooke One Library. Phone numbers and hours are on the Library website.
Enjoy some “cool books” this summer, but please don’t drop them in the pool!
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