Author of the Month
Happy New Year! Here at Aura Libraries, a brand new year always comes with the excitement of discovering new books and authors, or rediscovering old favourites. To kick off 2021, we have chosen Peter Swanson as our January 2021 Author of the Month.
Swanson is best known for his crime and suspense novels which have propelled him into the contemporary thriller genre in recent years. Layered with suspense and brilliantly clever, each and every one of Swanson's books will grip you from start to finish! Whether you are discovering his books for the very first time, or revisiting some of his best known and loved titles, we have put together a small reading list to set you off on a Swanson adventure. Enjoy!
Where it all began: The Girl With a Clock for a Heart (2014)
The game changers: The Kind Worth Killing (2015) and Her Every Fear (2017)
Most recently: Before She Knew Him (2019)
Aura Libraries top recommendation: Eight Perfect Murders (2020) - a homage to the crime fiction genre in more ways than you'd expect; it is the perfect read for any lover of classic crime novels.
We want to know what our library members think of our Author of the Month. Get in touch with us on Twitter (@LibFlintshire) and Facebook (@LlyfrgelloeddAuraLibraries).
Book of the Month
In our book corner this month is Tessa Hadley's Late in the Day.
Friends Christine, Alexandr, Lydia and Zachary have known each other for years. Christine is married to Alex, and Lydia is married to Zach. On one ordinary summer's evening whilst Alex and Christine are at home in London, they receive a phone call from Lydia to inform them of the sudden death of Zach. Struggling to apprehend the loss of their dear friend, Alex and Christine invite Lydia to move in with them, in the hope that they can support each other through their grief. Yet instead of the loss bringing them closer together, Christine, Lydia and Alex find themselves looking more towards the past than the future.
We have chosen Late in the Day as our January 2021 Book of the Month, as we believe it to be a brilliant novel about the changing dynamic of relationships and friendships. This novel, to us, is a remarkable insight into the complexity of human emotion. Aura book score of 4/5
Select & Collect Service
We are so pleased we are able to continue providing our Select & Collect library service for the local community. Aura Library members can Select and Collect books online, by phone on 01352 703750 or by email at libraries@aura.wales. You can browse our catalogue at www.aura.wales/flintshire-library-catalogue/ and place a hold on items to collect from the library counter. We will just need to know your library membership number, a contact telephone number and email address, your book requests/preferences, and your preferred collection point.
Loans will be for the usual three week period, however we will automatically renew items if they are not returned after three weeks: we would like to reassure library users that no fines will be placed. We do however encourage you to return these items as soon as you can so that they may be re-issued to another borrower.
We would like to reassure the community that we are following Public Health Wales guidance on reducing the risk of cross contamination by placing all books in a 72-hour quarantine on return and prior to distribution. When visiting the library please be aware that Covid secure measures apply. Library visitors must adhere to social distancing measures, wear a face covering and make use of the hand sanitization facilities. To keep you and our colleagues safe we are limiting the number of people in the building at any one time and will require you to provide contact details for the Track and Trace system.
More information about our Select and Collect service can be found at www.aura.wales/select-and-collect-service/
Online events with Aura Libraries
To connect with our library members online, we have put together a schedule of online library events, hosted on Zoom. We also post weekly Rhymetime and Storytime videos on our Facebook and YouTube page.
Our online events are as follows:
• Family History Group: second Tuesday of the month 2pm-3pm
• Reading Friends Shared Reading Group daytime session: second Tuesday of the month 11am-noon
• Reading Friends Shared Reading Group evening session: second Wednesday of the month 7pm-8pm
• Rhymetime: third Thursday of the month 2pm-3pm
• Children's Reading Group: last Thursday of the month 4pm-5pm
To register for any of our online events, please email Susannah Hill at susannah.hill@aura.wales
• From everyone here at Aura Libraries, thank you for reading, stay safe and we hope to hear from you or see you soon! Whilst we may be facing difficult times, remember: we are always united by books!
Aura is a charitable, not-for-profit, organisation responsible for managing the majority of leisure, libraries and heritage services in Flintshire. Aura is owned by its employees and operates for the benefit of local communities.
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