Wednesday, May 16, 2007

"Arctic Bird Migrations" with Peter McKinley May 23rd


Many people are aware of the ongoing conservation efforts to preserve and protect our Hampton Marshes. What is not so readily known is that the marshes are a crucial summer waypoint for many arctic birds that use these areas to rest and replenish their fat reserves. Conservation Biologist Peter McKinley will give an illustrated lecture on these birds and their migration habits at the Lane Memorial Library on Wednesday, May 23rd beginning at 6:00 pm. Suitable for adults and children, this multimedia presentation will introduce the public to yet another fascinating and important aspect of our marsh ecosystem. For more information, contact Darrell Eifert, Lane Memorial Library at 926-3368, or visit the New Hampshire Estuaries Project at http://www.nhep.unh.edu/.

Monday, May 14, 2007

Reverse Reader's Advisory

Some of the books I enjoy most have been recommended by other readers. Have you ever read a book that when it ended, you wanted more? Recently one of our wonderful patrons of the library asked me if I’d ever read These Is My Words by Nancy Turner and told me it was an historical novel about a pioneer woman in the Arizona Territories. I read it and enjoyed the story of a young woman who endured hardships and made a life for herself and her family; it had enough historical information to keep it realistic and keep me happy. Last week this same patron asked if I’d read it. When I told her how much I’d enjoyed it, she asked if I’d read the sequel. Duh! I hadn’t even checked for a sequel. Off to the shelves I went to retrieve Sarah’s Quilt: A novel of Sarah Agnes Prine and the Arizona Territories, 1906. It didn’t take me any time at all to remember Sarah’s story and to enjoy this follow-up story even more. More than just enjoying it however, I am in awe of the life that women endured, just one hundred years ago – in my own grandmother’s lifetime! When we are bombarded daily with images and stories of the fast-paced senseless lifestyles of some of the rich and the famous, reading the no-nonsense story of what it took for our ancestors to survive, just one century ago, made a deep impression. Both novels were based on the author’s family stories about her great-grandmother, giving a veracity to the stories that makes you believe the characters are real.

Another instance of reverse reader’s advisory is having my bank teller recommend a series of futuristic novels by J. D. Robb, a pseudonym for Nora Roberts. I was embarrassed that I didn’t know that series and came back to the library to check if we had any of those books. We didn’t. We do now! This series features Police Detective Eve Dallas on the New York City police force in the not too distant future, but distant enough that cars “fly”! In each novel from the first one Naked in Death, to the most recent, Innocent in Death, Lt. Eve has to solve a murder. She is assisted by her husband, dashing multimillionaire Roarke, a businessman with a shadowy past. There are now 25 books in the series, and in each, the strong female character prevails, often just barely. There’s enough cops and robbers procedure with a touch of the technology wielded by Roarke to satisfy my reading tastes – I do like it when the good guys win!

And if you haven’t read any of Jodi Picoult’s novels, it’s time to start. She lives in NH and has appeared locally at book talks and signings and is very accessible. Staff members recommended her books to me as a good read, and they all are. She thoroughly researches her topics and sets them in a believable story. Those topics range from the ethics of having a baby specifically to medically help an existing child in My Sister’s Keeper, to school bullying in Nineteen Minutes. I’ve recommended the latter book to each and every teacher I know and would recommend it to parents who may think that bullying violence couldn’t happen here!

Happy Spring almost Summer, Happy Reading! Watch for our new summer reading program for adults based on the theme Reading Roadtrip USA.

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Wednesday, May 02, 2007

LML Readers Theatre Troupe

Join us next Monday, May 7, for the final performance of the season by the fabulous LML Readers Theatre Troupe. Readers theatre offers a full-cast audio experience with minimal staging--and perhaps some help from our puppet friends. If you enjoy hearing stories read aloud, you will definitely have fun with this performance. Plus, it's free! During this half-hour adventure, the troupe will share a handful of short fractured folk tales that are appropriate for all ages (though perhaps best appreciated by elementary school students). Hope to see you there!

Monday, May 7th @ 4:00 p.m.
In the Library's Lane Room

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Nathaniel Philbrick

Friends to Host Author Nathaniel Philbrick

Lane Library, in partnership with Barnes and Noble Bookstores, will be sponsoring author Nathaniel Philbrick for a reading and signing of his book Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community and War.

This event will take place at Winnacunnet High School on the evening of May 15th at 7:00 PM. Admission is free.

Philbrick will do a reading from the Mayflower, which is a new history focused on the founding of the Plymouth colony, followed by the book signing. Philbrick is a respected author of many titles regarding maritime history including Away Off Shore, Sea of Glory, and In the Heart of the Sea, for which he won the National Book Award for non-fiction.

Friends of the Lane Memorial Library have agreed to help host this special evening by aiding with promotion, offering a bake sale at the reading, and assisting with book signing. Barnes and Noble’s Community Relations Manager, Sally Stoklosa, has committed a 20% share of all vouchered book sales sold that night to the Friends organization. So, not only is May 15th a great opportunity to meet this acclaimed author, but potentially a wonderful fundraiser for the Friends! Get your vouchers for the book at the Lane Memorial Library's main desk.

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