New at the library

Boise Public Library

“Fata Morgana” by Basara Svetislav.

Fiction. This is a sardonic and quirky work of short-story fiction. It delves into the life of a young Yugoslavian writer in the late communist era and encourages the reader to find deeper meaning to life.

Eagle Public Library

“Too Much of a Good Thing” by Lee Goldman.

Adult nonfiction. While life expectancy has doubled during the past two centuries, the protective traits that once ensured our species’ survival are now the leading global causes of illness and death. Citing examples such as how our capacity to store food now lures us into overeating, and how a clotting system designed to protect us from bleeding to death now directly contributes to heart attacks and strokes, Dr. Goldman’s book provides a roadmap for getting back in sync with the modern world.

Meridian Public Library

“Mountain Mantras: Wellness and Life Lessons from the Slopes” by Kathryn Kemp Guylay.

Nonfiction. When you read Mountain Mantras, you will learn how to achieve greater success in life, simply by adjusting how you perceive events around you; discover a 6-step framework you can use to overcome towering obstacles in your own life; use visions and visualization to turn your dreams into reality; and learn strategies to engage fully in life, while experiencing improved health and vitality.

Kuna Library

“The Past” by Tessa Hadley.

Adult fiction. Three sisters and a brother, complete with families, descend on their grandparents’ dilapidated old home in the Somerset countryside for a final summer holiday. The house is full of childhood memories — their mother took them there to live when she left their father — but now, they may have to sell it. And beneath the idyllic pastoral surface lie tensions. Passion erupts, family stories and secrets intertwine, and the children make a discovery in an abandoned cottage in the woods that will shatter their innocence forever — and unravel the family entirely.

Garden City Library

“Choosing Hope: Moving Forward From Life’s Darkest Hours” by Kaitlin Roig DeBellis.

Adult nonfiction. Kaitlin Roig’s perfect world was shattered when, one cold December morning, she heard gunshots outside her classroom at Sandy Hook Elementary. But even after saving her entire class of first-graders by locking them all in the bathroom, Roig found that her life was being taken over by the traumatic incident she had survived. This book is a written celebration of her decision to not allow one man’s actions to decide her future.

Ada Community Library

“Girl Waits With Gun” by Amy Stewart.

Adult fiction. In the summer of 1914, Constance Kopp and her two “sisters,” Norma and Fleurette, are hit broadside by a big black motorcar, and their horse buggy is smashed. Though injured, they brave on, having been raised by a mistrustful foreign-born mother who disliked asking strangers into their lives. Someone does need to step up and address compensation for the damages and pursue a positive conclusion to the incident. This will eventually involve worker strike issues, child kidnapping, violence, police assistance and revealing perspectives on the local mill economy and social entitlement.

Nampa Public Library

“Thing Explainer: Complicated Stuff in Simple Words” by Randall Munroe.

Adult nonfiction. Have you ever tried to learn more about some incredible thing, only to be frustrated by incomprehensible jargon? Randall Munroe is here to help. In “Thing Explainer,” he uses line drawings and only the thousand (or, rather, “ten hundred”) most common words to provide simple explanations for some of the most interesting stuff there is, including food-heating radio boxes (microwaves), tall roads (bridges), the big flat rocks we live on (tectonic plates) and the bags of stuff inside you (cells). Funny, interesting and always understandable, this book is for anyone — age 5 to 105 — who has ever wondered how things work and why.

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 9:27 PM with the headline "New at the library."