Check It Out

I’m Mark Munger and you are listening to Check it Out.

A ship set in ice. An axe. A giant disappearing into arctic waters. Such are the uncommon beginnings to an uncommon Western. In the Distance by Hernan Diaz approaches one of the great American genres with a cold but intense embrace.

This is Kelsey Patterson with the Sioux City Public Library and you’re listening to Check It Out. Lately, I’ve been really drawn to reading wintery works of crime fiction and wanted to share with you, two of my favorites. Today, I’m recommending The Hunting Game by Helene Tursten and The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. Apparently, I’m also a fan of books with the word “hunting” in the title, but I won’t even try to analyze what that says about me or my reading habits.

This is Kelsey Patterson with the Sioux City Public Library and you’re listening to Check It Out.

Support for Check It Out comes from Avery Brothers.

Support for Check It Out comes from Avery Brothers. 

Support for Check It Out comes from Avery Brothers.

Support for Check It Out comes from Avery Brothers.

This is Sarah Enright with the Sioux City Public Library and you’re listening to Check It Out. When a book begins to draw attention and quickly moves up on best-seller lists, I usually tend to steer clear. Many times hype has created expectations that have left me disappointed.

This is Kelsey Patterson with the Sioux City Public Library and you’re listening to Check It Out. Probably best known for his No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series (which is one of my personal favorites), Alexander McCall Smith dives into a new mystery series set in Sweden in The Department of Sensitive Crimes. Dubbed “Scandi-Lite” by his publisher, this book doesn’t have the bleakness of Scandinavian noir, but it isn’t quite a cozy mystery either.

In this story the Mayan god of death sends a young woman on a harrowing, life-changing journey in this dark, one-of-a-kind fairy tale inspired by Mexican folklore.