NONFICTION. Keep it Zesty by Edy Massih. The author, born in Lebanon, shares his personal story along with traditional Lebanese recipes, and some with his own take. Personally, I am a huge fan of these flavors and he offers easy-to-follow recipes that aren’t intimidating. The book is organized by meal type first, and broken down from there. Dips and sides, breakfast, lunch (with a section for soups, salads, and sandwiches), easy meals, hosting, and of course the Lebanese staples. The tahini sauce chart, za’atar goat cheese, and herby falafel has me sold. This book can be found under the call number for 641.5956 for Middle Eastern cooking.

NONFICTION. Inky Meditations: Learn to Create Mindful Mesmerizing Paintings with Water and Ink by Inky. The author takes us through the book starting with an introduction on Sumi ink followed by the tools and materials needed (only four!). The painting tips and techniques are described in an easy to follow manner with beautifully shot photos. The book also has warm-up drills to get you started. When you’re ready to go into more detail, the artist has basic plants, flowers, insects, and animals to get ideas from. This book also can serve as a meditative book: with every project/idea, there is a grounding and breath technique the artist recommends. The pictures and art form are very calming. This book can be found under the call number 751.425 for painting with water and ink.

MICHIGAN NONFICTION: Brockway Mountain Stories by Paul LaVanway. These short stories originally published in the Keweenaw County Historical Society’s quarterly publication, “the Superior Signal” 20 years ago, have now been combined in this book, with a few updates. There are great pictures, some in color, and as the title states, stories. The first half of the book is about the Brockway Road and includes everything from the development, to construction, to the building of the Skytop Inn. The second part is on the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge. Anyone interested in local history would be thrilled to peruse these pages. This book can be found under the call number 977.499 for history of Houghton and Keweenaw Counties.

TEEN GRAPHIC NOVEL: The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz is a cute romantic comedy. Yes, there are quite a few cheese puns and I couldn’t help but smile throughout the story because Lady Camembert doesn’t want to marry a man, she will not inherit her family’s fortune. So, she does the only thing she can; Moves away and disguises herself as Count Camembert. Getting involved with Princess Brie creates shenanigans but ultimately, this is a nice love story. This book can be found in the teen graphic novel section under Muniz.

By Stephanie Garn

Technical Services Department Head