Staff Favorites 2022

It's hard to believe it's already 2023! 2022 really seemed to fly by. If you're curious about some of the things our staff loved throughout the year, check out the list below! Images are clickable to place things on hold or see if something is available.

Corvid

The Afterman: Ascension (2012) and the following album, The Afterman: Descension (2013), have got to be my favorite albums of all time. Just the right amount of prog, Coheed & Cambria hits all my musical buttons with ripping brass sections and killer guitar solos. My favorite song off the album is Gravity's Union, but every single track is a certified banger in my heart.

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic was written in 2006 and was adapted into an Off-Broadway musical in 2013. Both works are heart wrenching, chronicling Alison's upbringing, coming out as a lesbian in college, finding out her father is gay, and his subsequent suicide. Fun Home doesn't shy away from pain--it relishes the tragedy that comes with being a part of a family.

Cards Against Humanity (Family Edition)

Did you know you can check out board games at the library? I've taken this game out six times now, and every time my family has played it at least one of us is complaining about our stomach hurting from laughter. This game is made for mature kids and immature adults. Fart jokes abound.

One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston

I could wax poetic for eons detailing all of the reasons I loved this book, but I don’t have the space allotted for all I wish to say. If you love contemporary romance, time travel, and a wide cast of LGBTQ+ characters, please please give this book a try. So often, the LGBTQ+ community is offered stories falling into a trope known as “bury your gays,” so my heart felt set up to break for the bold lesbian stuck in the subway, and the sweet bisexual girl trying to help her get unstuck. I cannot overstate how much I loved this story. I read it twice in a month. There are so many movies and songs referenced from all eras, and I made a playlist on Spotify chronicling each of them! It hit all of the soft parts of my romantic heart. It was not short on pain, as my lovely queer community comes with years of health crises, abuse, and protests, so be mindful if you are sensitive to these themes, and let your heart be whisked away on the Q with August and Jane.

Martha

By Any Other Name – Lauren Kate

I loved this book. It was like a 3 for 1 sale for book lovers – besides the main story of an

author who has writer’s block, you get the stories of the novels already published before the writer’s block. And the back story of the editor of those books. This is the romance novel of how romance novels should be written and published!!

Lessons in Chemistry – Bonnie Garmus

If you haven’t picked this up yet, put it at the top of your list. Even if you already know how to cook, Elizabeth Zott has plenty to teach you about cooking, and about how the world sees women. Set in the 1960s, this could have been written for 2022.

Kit McBride Gets a Wife – Amy Barry

“Well, spit.” This book was a gem, though a little rough and uncut, as one would expect for Montana in 1886. Junebug McBride is sorely tired of doing cooking, laundry, and other household chores for her four older brothers. When a local trapper asks her to write up an advertisement for him to the Matrimonial News, she figures a wife is just what she needs – the only question is which brother would be the best to advertise for.

The Half Life of Valery K – Natasha Pulley

This was a great story! For anyone that likes historical fiction, or novels based on true events, check this out. Siberia 1963, a biochemist, Dr Valery Kolkhanov, is moved from prison to City 40. There he will serve the rest of his prison term studying effects of radiation on the local environment. Just where did this radiation come from, and what exactly is being hidden from the people who live in the city? And from the people who are there to study it?

Laura

Spider-Man: No Way Home

There's probably 0 surprise on this, the person with a Spider-Man/Stan Lee tattoo loved No Way Home. It really hit everything I wanted from a Spider-Man movie. There was some heartbreak, triumph, humor, and life lessons. It was great seeing the other Peters and all of the old villains. And I'm really excited to see where this version goes from here.

Queer Ducks (And Other Animals): The Natural World of Animal Sexuality - Eliot Shrefer

I loved this book's humorous approach to nonfiction and found myself laughing out loud often. Eliot made the topic really approachable and I felt like I learned a lot. Jules Zuckerberg's comics throughout were also wonderful. It was an incredibly thought provoking and validating read.

Jaws

I hadn't seen Jaws before this year, but watched it over the summer with a friend who regards it as a favorite. I can see why it's stood the test of time and is still scaring audiences today. It has really great filmmaking, performances, and (of course) an effective score. Definitely a must-watch over the summer months.

Spider-Gwen: Gwenverse -Tim Seeley

I love Spider-Gwen/Ghost Spider. So, I was immediately taken with so many different versions of Gwen. As the tagline says: NOT ENOUGH GWENS! Particular favorites were Thorgwen and Gwenverine. It's a really fun 5 issue run, which you can find in our system compiled into one graphic.