Wii Fit and other ways to get moving

I’ve been using the Wii Fit program for a little over a week now and I really enjoy it! The Wii is Nintendo’s game console (like Playstation) and Wii Fit is a program that uses the Wii and an electronic balance board to allow you to measure how you are doing in a variety of activities that appear on your tv. The board purports to measure your Body Mass Index (even if it’s not exact, at least it is consistent) and your weight. It also measures how well you are balancing. Balance and posture are especially important in order to avoid falls as we age. The activities usually take 2-3 minutes each and are divided into 4 areas: yoga, aerobics, strength training and balance games. I had never done yoga before and I’m enjoying learning the various poses. The strength training consists of push-ups, lunges, and other exercises. The aerobics is a lot of fun: step dancing, virtual hula hoops, and running are some of the activities I’ve tried. The balance games are tough: skiing through the gates by shifting your balance, walking a virtual tight rope, rolling balls by shifting your weight in a labyrinth type game. After the first week I am definitely more conscious about keeping my weight balanced. Wikipedia has a thorough article about the program.

The library has many resources to help anyone become physically fit. Here are some titles search terms to help you find the best match for you.

Yoga

• Yoga for Arthritis (book)
• Radiant heart yoga (DVD)
• Carol Dickman’s Bed Top Yoga (DVD)
• Power Up: The best of Rodney Yee (DVD set)
• Yoga for fun
• Yoga to the Rescue (DVD)
• Yoga for weight loss (DVD)
• Fat Burn Yoga (DVD)
• Yoga for the rest of us (DVD and VHS)
• Jackie Camborde’s real world yoga (DVD)
• Step by step yoga journal (DVD)
• Yoga for stress relief (DVD, VHS and book)

Aerobics

• Walk aerobics for seniors (DVD and VHS)
• Keeping fit in your 50s (DVD)
• Off da hook: hip hop aerobics (DVD)
• Criss-cross cardio (DVD)
• Step & core Pilates (DVD)
• Belly twins belly dance core conditioning (DVD)
• Box and Burn (DVD)

Strength Training

• Biggest loser workout (DVD)
  
• Strength for life
• Walk and Firm with interval training
• Strength training for seniors

Learning the history the easy way

I have just finished the second book of a great historical mystery series by Ariana Franklin. The first book, Mistress of the Art of Death, introduces us to Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar, a female pathologist from Salerno who has been sent to twelfth century Cambridge to investigate the gruesome deaths of four children. The king, Henry II (who was responsible for the death of Thomas a Becket) is worried because the townspeople blame the Jews for the deaths which means he isn’t collecting all his usual taxes. Adelia calls herself a death doctor who learned about the effects of death by studying pigs who have been killed and buried in a variety of ways. The story itself is a thriller, but really the best part is learning about life in England during this time period. Book two of the series, The Serpent’s Tale, features Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry’s wife. Franklin has a website, of course, with discussions about the books.

It’s curious that so many mysteries are set during the 12th century England or Europe. Maybe because you can always throw the plague in to the mix, and the church and state were intriguing against each other.

Here are some other good historical mystery series. I can personally recommend the ones with *.

Molly Murphy: New York, early 1900s by Rhys Bowen

Ursula Blanchard: Elizabethan age, England by Fiona Buckley

Marcus Didius Falco: a “finder” in ancient Rome by Lindsey Davis

Hugh Corbett: England during the twelfth century (Edward I) by P.C. Doherty

Susanna, Lady Appleton: Elizabethan era by Kathy Lynn Emerson

Samurai Mystery: 17th century Japan by Dale Furutani

Katherine Swinbrooke: medieval physician 15th century England by C. L. Grace

Phryne Fisher: early 20th century Australia by Kerry Greenwood*

Ben January: 1830s New Orleans by Barbara Hambly

Hannah Trevor: midwife in 18th century Maine, after Amer. Revolution by Margaret Lawrence *

Catherine LeVendeur: 12th century Europe by Sharan Newman

Abel Jones: Civil War-era United States by Owen Parry

Justin de Quincy: 12th century England/France by Sharon Kay Penman

Thomas and Charlotte Pitt: 19th Century London by Anne Perry*

William Monk: 19th century London, just after the Crimean War by Anne Perry*

Amelia Peabody: early 20th century, all over by Elizabeth Peters

Sano Ichiro: 17th century Japan by Laura Joh Rowland

Roman Sub Rosa: another “finder” in ancient Rome by Steven Saylor

Roger Chapman: 15th century England by Kate Sedley

Sister Fidelma: Irish nun/judge in ancient Ireland by Peter Tremayne

Lists of Authors’ books: using Biography Resource

Recently a patron asked for a list of books by a particular author. Some authors have nice printable lists on their websites, but other authors include pictures of books and other extras that make printing a list out difficult. However, one of the databases, Biography Resource, features the writings of authors in their biography articles. Some (for example, the article about Nora Roberts) includes lists by series.

Here’s what the list looks like for James Patterson:

WORKS

• The Thomas Berryman Number, Little, Brown, 1976.
• The Season of the Machete, Ballantine, 1977.
• The Jericho Commandment, Crown, 1979, also published as See How They Run.
• Virgin, McGraw, 1980.
• Black Market, Simon and Schuster, 1986.
• The Midnight Club, Little, Brown, 1989.
• Along Came a Spider, Little, Brown, 1993.
• Kiss the Girls, Little, Brown, 1995.
• Hide and Seek, Little, Brown, 1996.
• Jack and Jill, Little, Brown, 1996.
• (Coauthor with Peter de Jonge) Miracle on the 17th Green, Little, Brown, 1996.
• Cat and Mouse, Little, Brown, 1997.
• See How They Run, Warner Books, 1997.
• When the Wind Blows, Little, Brown, 1998.
• Pop Goes the Weasel, Little, Brown, 1999.
• Cradle and All, Little, Brown, 2000.
• Roses Are Red, Little, Brown, 2000.
• First to Die, Little, Brown, 2001.
• Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas, Little, Brown, 2001.
• Violets Are Blue, Little, Brown, 2001.
• Second Chance, Little, Brown, 2002.
• (Coauthor with Peter De Jonge) The Beach House, Little, Brown, 2002.
• Black Friday, Warner Books, 2002.
• Four Blind Mice, Little, Brown, 2002.
• The Lake House, Little, Brown, 2003.
• (Coauthor with Andrew Gross) Jester, Little, Brown, 2003.
• The Big Bad Wolf, Little, Brown, 2003.
• Sam’s Letters to Jennifer, Little, Brown, 2004.
• (Coauthor with Andrew Gross) Third Degree, Little, Brown, 2004.
• London Bridges, Little, Brown, 2004.
• (Coauthor with Maxine Paetro) Fourth of July, Little, Brown, 2005.
• (Coauthor with Howard Roughan) Honeymoon, Little, Brown, 2005.
• (Coauthor with Andrew Gross) Lifeguard, Little, Brown, 2005.
• Mary Mary, Little, Brown, 2005.
• (Coauthor with Maxine Paetro) The Fifth Horseman, Little, Brown, 2006.
• Cross, Little, Brown, 2006.
• (Coauthor with Peter De Jonge) Beach Road, Little, Brown, 2006.
• (Coauthor with Andrew Gross) Judge and Jury, Little, Brown, 2006.
• Double Cross, Little, Brown, 2007.
• (Coauthor with Michael Ledwidge) Step on a Crack, Little, Brown, 2007.
• (Coauthor with Maxine Paetro) The Sixth Target, Little, Brown, 2007.
• (Coauthor with Michael Ledwidge) The Quickie, Little, Brown, 2007.
• (Coauthor with Gabrielle Charbonnet) Sundays at Tiffany’s, Little, Brown, 2008.
• (Coauthor with Maxine Paetro) Seventh Heaven, Little, Brown, 2008.
• The Day America Told the Truth, Prentice-Hall, 1991.
• (Coauthor with Peter Kim) The Second American Revolution, Morrow, 1994.
• SantaKid, Little, Brown, 2004.
• Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, Little, Brown, 2005.
• Maximum Ride: School’s Out–Forever, Little, Brown, 2006.
• Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports, Little, Brown, 2007.
• Maximum Ride: The Final Warning, Little, Brown, 2008.

• Other Works

• Adaptations: Virgin was adapted as the television movie Child of Darkness, Child of Light, 1991; Kiss the Girls was adapted for a film starring Morgan Freeman as Alex Cross, Paramount, 1997; Miracle on the Seventeenth Green was adapted as a television movie, 1999; Along Came a Spider was adapted for a film, 2001; First to Die was adapted for a television miniseries which aired on NBC, 2003; Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas was adapted as a television movie, 2005; Women’s Murder Club was adapted as a television series, 2007.

Made to Stick: Audio book you’ll be talking about

I recently listened to Made to Stick by Chip Heath & Dan Heath, a nonfiction audio and found that I was referring to it in conversation the whole week. The authors have researched what makes one idea stay in our minds longer than another. By looking at hundreds of examples they culled the key points down to six: simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional and story. (Check out their website for more information.)

What was interesting was that the business-oriented book captured my attention. I wondered what other business books might be good “listens.”

Here is Library Journal’s 2006 list of recommended audio business books:

FOLLOW THE LEADER

* Covey, Stephen R. Principle-Centered Leadership. 6 CDs. unabridged. SAILS only has cassette version.

* Drucker, Peter F. Managing in the Next Society. 3 CDs.

* Goleman, Daniel & others. Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence. Cd and cassette.

* Welch, Jack with Suzy Welch. Winning. Cd and cassette.

MANY ROADS TO ENLIGHTENMENT

* Anderson, Chris. The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More.

* Charan, Ram. Profitable Growth Is Everyone’s Business: 10 Tools You Can Use Monday Morning. Not in SAILS.

* Collins, Jim & Jerry I. Porras. Built To Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies. Cd and cassette.

* Kofman, Fred. Conscious Business: How To Build Value Through Values. Not in SAILS.

* Krames, Jeffrey A. What the Best CEOs Know: 7 Exceptional Leaders and Their Lessons for Transforming Any Business. Not in SAILS.

TEAMWORK

* Lencioni, Patrick. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Not in SAILS.

* Singer, Blair. The ABC’s of Building a Business Team That Wins: The Invisible Code of Honor That Takes Ordinary People and Turns Them into a Championship Team.

HOW THEY DID IT

* Liker, Jeffrey K. The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World’s Greatest Manufacturer.

* Lundin, Stephen & others. Fish!: A Remarkable Way To Boost Morale and Improve Results. Not in SAILS.

* John Yokoyama and Joseph Michelli. When Fish Fly: Lessons for Creating a Vital and Energized Workplace from the World Famous Pike Place Fish Market

* Underwood, Jim. More Than a Pink Cadillac: Mary Kay Inc.’s 9 Leadership Keys to Success. Not in SAILS.

Subject Headings Clarified: Religious books for Children

A patron recently asked for our Christian section for children and we realized we don’t really have a section for that, other than the general 200s in the children’s room. We’ll be taking a look at what’s available in the next year to see what will fit our collection needs, but in the meantime here are some links to books to order from other libraries.

Often the secret to finding the books — since there doesn’t seem to be specific publishers as there are with Christian Fiction for adults — is knowing the subject headings.

Try these:

Bible. O.T. Biography Juvenile

Bible O.T. Psalms Juvenile

Bible Stories English Juvenile

Jesus Christ Parables Juvenile

Jesus Christ Biography Juvenile

People of the Bible series