Nancy Moskowitz's blog

Those Who Love the Night by Wessel Ebersohn
Look of Love by Mary Jane Clark
Parliament of Spies by Cassandra Clark
Believing the Lie by Elizabeth George
Confession by Charles Todd
Racing the Devil by Jaden Terrell
Fifth Victim by Zoe Sharp
Boca Daze by Steven M. Forman
Darkening Field by William Ryan
$10,000 in Small Unmarked Puzzles
Death by Killer Mop Doll by Lois Winston
Chalk Girl by Carol O'Connell
Gone West by Carola Dunn
Golden Scales by Parker Bilal
Killer Crullers by Jessica Beck
Cold Comfort by Quentin Bates

What are your New Year's resolutions?  Many people use the new year as a clean slate to embark on all kinds of self-improvement projects.  Losing weight, quitting smoking, exercising more, learning a new language...Hey, stop, we can help you with the last one (actually the library can help with all of them, but let's concentrate on learning a new language).  We have a great on-line language learning product called Mango Languages.  When Rosetta Stone stopped selling its on-line database to libraries, we scrambled to find a suitable replacement, and we found Mango.  Their program is fun, effective and easy.  You'll have the choice of Mango Basic, which covers 49 languages, including Farsi, Korean, Mandarin and Croatian, as well as ESL courses for specific language speakers.  Mango Complete.

There is no question that people in today's economy are struggling.  Those of us who have jobs are grateful to have them, and those of us who don't, sorely need a hand.  This is where the library comes in, via our database Career Transitions.     It is a comprehensive source of information for the job seeker.  It includes a resume builder option, career guidance, tips and tricks videos on how to snag that job, and even an interactive interview experience.  Job listings from indeed.com make this a convenient and powerful job search tool. Whether you are a young graduate still looking for that first job, or a middle-aged career changer, you will find Career Transitions will be an enormous help to you.The search function is very easy to use, and the "My Jobs" feature will keep track of your progress as you apply for jobs.  It is a very impressive database and one which is certainly useful during these tough economic times. Remote usage is available with your New City library card.  So log on, try it, and good luck to you all.

Some of you might remember the black, maroon and tan lawbooks we kept on shelves and shelves in the reference area. They were McKinney's Statues (the laws of NY) and the U.S. Code Annotated (the laws of the U.S.) and U.S. Supreme Court Reports. Several years ago, we replaced all of them with Westlaw, an on-line database for NY statutes and cases, federal laws, Supreme Court cases, and legal forms. We are quite satisfied with the switch, and we are the only public library in the county with Westlaw access. Many lawyers who come in don't use the books and are delighted to see what they used in law school or their law firms, Westlaw.  Not only have we saved a huge amount of space, but the on-line version is less expensive than the books, and we don't have to use staff time to update them with pocket parts.  For non-lawyers, researching the law is a difficult task, whether you are searching books, or databases.  The librarians will assist you, but we also have access to Westlaw's extremely helpful research attorneys.

This month, I want to highlight one of our newest databases, Financial Ratings Series Online. You will find it under the business tab of our database page.  It is a reliable source for checking on investments, banks and insurance companies. Stocks and mutual funds are rated as a buy or sell, and  they are clearly explained. Banks and insurance companies are given a letter grade and a lengthy, but clear, explanation.  The user interface is intuitive and easy to use, in fact, Library Journal called it "delightfully simple and straightforward".  Updates are done on an ongoing basis, making it a timely source you won't want to miss.  The convenience factor of remote access cannot be beat, either.  Roll out of bed in the middle of the night, log-on to our website and there you have it.  No more waiting for Morningstar and Value Line to be filed, the information comes to you.  Don't despair, print Morningstar and Value Line users, we still have our print copies waiting for you at the reference desk.