Prospect Heights Public Library Staff Picks

Musician's Daughter

by Susan Dunlap

Fifteen year old Theresa's life in 18th century Vienna changes drasticly when her father is found murdered on Christmas Day. She now has a goal to find her father's murderer, why he died and his very special violin.

Franz Joseph Haydn feels sorry for the family that has no one to provide for their needs and enlists Theresa as his copyist so there will be some income for the family.

As Theresa discovers more about her dad's secret life she realizes he was involved in things of which the family had no clue.

Rosalie Kendall-High School Liaison/Adult Services

Raven Stole the Moon

by Garth Stein

Two years after her son, Bobby, drowned in a boating accident, Jenna Rosen flies to Alaska to revisit the scene of the tragedy and learns his soul has been imprisoned by Indian spirits. Being part-Indian herself, she turns to a shaman to have Bobby's soul freed.

Olga Niemasz, Adult Services

Girl in Translation

by Jean Kwok

Kim, age 11, and her widowed mother migrate to New York's Chinatown after tuberculosis leaves them destitute in Hong Kong. "Fitting in" for this "Mother and Cub" means more than being accepted in Chinatown. It means finding the resources for Kim to pursue her academic talents. They are forced to reexamine everything when Kim's teenage romance threatens her college hopes and her ambition threatens her mother's relationship with their immigration sponsors. It isn't until the very last chapter that you learn how much they both give up to "fit in."

Maria Ampulski, Adult Services