Hilda C. Landers Library & Archives

The Library at St. Mary’s College of Maryland’s Summer Reading Program will begin on June 4 and  end on August 17, 2012.

The Summer Reading program is open to all members of the SMCM Library community including students, staff, faculty, alumni and residents of the Tri-County area (St. Mary’s, Calvert and Charles counties.) You may read anything you like as long as a copy is available at the SMCM Library or via the USMAI or COSMOS catalogs. To get points you must post a review on the blog.

See About Summer Reading for more information.

But the big prize goes to Kevin Oldfield (11 reviews) and Marissa Parlock (10 reviews). Both win a bag of library swag; books, pens, posters, bookmarks and more.

The winners of the monthly prize drawing are:
June: Kevin Oldfield
July: Marissa Parlock
                               August: Lauren Grey

Don’t forget to pick up your prizes (Library 126)
1. Submit one review and win a mini puzzle.
2. Submit three reviews and win a set of postcards.
3. Submit five reviews and win a poster from Unshelved.
4. Submit seven reviews and win a refrigerator magnet.
5. Submit 10 reviews and win a bag of library swag.
6. Monthly prize drawings.

This is the best novella I have read in recent memory. Haldeman’s The Hemingway Hoax won a Hugo and Nebula in the nineties. The tale concerns an English Professor named John Baird who meets a conman named Sylvester Castlemaine. Castlemaine, with a bit of help from Baird’s wife Lena, convinces Baird to help him fabricate Hemingway’s first novel, and several short stories stolen from Hadley Hemingway on a train ride to Lausanne in 1921. Baird soon discovers that his con will have a dramatic effect upon the future of humanity.

The Hemingway Hoax was a very good read; Haldeman excels at creating humor through incongruity. Haldeman borrows chapter titles from Hemingway’s novels and short stories then connects the content of his chapters with the content of Hemingway’s works in clever ways. For example, a chapter entitled Sun Also Rises deals with maiming and war injuries. The Hemingway Hoax also reveals several interesting facts about the life of Ernst Hemingway; namely that he rewrote his life story at least once and that he wasn’t always a rugged individualist. I highly recommend The Hemingway Hoax.

Availability: USMAI
Review Submitted by: Kevin Oldfield
Rating: Highly Recommended

It was a bit of a challenge to read The Maltese Falcon. Even though Hammett describes Spade as “a blond Satan” with “stooped shoulders” it was difficult for me not to envision Spade as Bogart. Secondly, The Maltese Falcon has been parodied so many times, by people like Woody Allen and Garrison Keillor, that sometimes it was difficult for me not to laugh when I read the scenes that inspired parody i.e. When “Miss Wonderly” hires Archer and Spade and when Gutman explains why he wants the Falcon.

Although, it was well worth the effort, just for the way Hammett describes spade rolling a cigarette. The ending is quite a bit different from the film. Lastly, The Maltese Falcon is also the story that started a genre; herein are double crosses, within double-crosses, a femme fatale, and potboiler suspense. I highly recommend The Maltese Falcon to anyone who is a fan of Noir or old movies.

Availability: USMAI
Review Submitted by: Kevin Oldfield
Rating: Highly Recommended

Thanks to all the readers who posted reviews on our Summer Reading blog. Reviews received before the deadline will be posted today.