Martha Canfield Library E-news
Welcome to the July edition of the Martha Canfield Library’s e-newsletter. If you have any suggestions, you can email them to our hotmail account or leave them in our suggestion jar on the front desk.
Berkshire Bank Grant
You could help us win a $5,000 grant from the Berkshire Bank. All you need to do is log on to www.facebook.com/BerkshireBank, click “Like” and then click in the link to “Summer of Excitement Promotion” to nominate the Martha Canfield Library to be eligible. The charity with the most votes will win $5,000 and the other organizations nominated will be eligible for a drawing to win a $1,000 grant. Voting is open through August 31. Pass the word to your friends and relatives, we could be winners!
Tag Sale
What’s been hidden in the Library basement? We’re cleaning out some of our extra pieces of furniture, toys, CD racks and other odds and ends. Stop in on Saturday, June 30 from 10 to 3 and find out what’s for sale. Proceeds benefit the Library.
News
Again this year we have a state parks pass, a state historic sites pass and a Clark Art Institute pass. The Vermont State Parks pass will give free entry to any state park for one vehicle with up to eight people for the day. The Vermont Historic Sites pass provides free entry to any of eight historic sites, including the Bennington Battle Monument, for a family or group of up to eight people. The Clark pass gives free admission for two adults (children and members are always free). Each pass may be borrowed for up to three days. Passes may be reserved two days in advance, if available.
On Our Website
Have you always wanted to learn how to draw? Do you need to brush up on your math skills? Do you need to learn a new computer program? You will probably find an online course in Universal Class, a link to over five hundred free courses on a wide variety of subjects in the arts, business, technology, crafts, health and medicine, parenting, office skills, law and much more. To register for the site you will need to enter a library membership ID that includes part of your library card barcode number. The password format is 2VSNA900XXXXXX, just replace the six X’s with the last six characters of your barcode. Once you register and create your username and password, you will use that to login. This service is provided by the Vermont Department of Libraries. Happy learning!
For Kids
“Dream Big – READ!” this summer at the Library. Come in and join our reading club or attend some of our special programs and activities.
July 11, 2012, 10:30-11:30 am: Bats - program given by Maureen Chaffee. (Grades 1-6)
July 18, 2012, 10:30-11:30 am: Gordon McClellan, Children’s writer, will be giving a book reading. There will be craft activities after the reading.
(Grades K-6)
July 25, 2012, 10:30-11:30 am: Library Scavenger Hunt - A search for knowledge in the Children’s Room. (Grades K-6)
July 28, 2012, 7:30 -9:30 pm (Rain or Shine): The Moon and Planets. This program is part of the National Sidewalk Astronomy Program. (For All Ages)
And watch for more programs in August.
In the Canfield Gallery
Sheep grazing under a hot July sun, Battenkill River ice floes floating by a gray barn, and orange and red trees against a sapphire blue October sky: these are among the vibrant images in Ned Reade’s new show of watercolors, “The Four Seasons in Vermont Valleys”. The show opens with a reception on Saturday, July 7 from 3 to 5 pm. The show will be up from July 5 to 30.
Sometimes the most memorable visual memories of Vermont are the ones we see every day, the ones that invite reflection and help to slow the pace of life. Sap buckets hanging at odd angles above melting snow, high summer clouds dodging the Green Mountains, and an old tractor waiting for another day in the fields all create a “sense of place” that is Vermont. Mr. Reade paints these scenes in a loose and spontaneous manner that captures the season of the year and fixes the moment in time. He knows the mountains and valleys well since he and his wife, Maria, have owned a house along the Battenkill River for more than two decades.
Mr. Reade has painted up and down the East Coast and in many countries in Europe including France, Italy, and Scotland. He has studied drawing at the New York Studio School of Drawing and Painting, and has painted at the Vermont Studio School in Johnson, VT and at La Romita School of Art in Terni, Italy. Last year he won an “Award for Excellence” at the Kent Art Association in Kent, CT, and his work hung in the June members’ show at the Southern Vermont Art Center. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Martha’s Vineyard Art Association where he shows annually in the summer. In Pawling, NY, Ned is Chairman of the Arts Department at the Trinity-Pawling School where his wife, Maria, is the Dean of Faculty.
Book Sale
Are you looking for some good summer beach reads? Or paperbacks to take on vacation? Check out our book sale in the Community House on Route 7A. We’ll be open every Friday and Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm, and every Sunday from 1 to 4 pm through Columbus Day. In addition to a wide range of fiction we have how-to books, biographies, poetry, gardening, cooking, puzzles, videos and more.
And, don’t forget to check out our new book sale section in the Library, in the corner opposite the checkout desk and open during regular library hours. Wolf has been stocking it with all kinds of new donations.
We are happy to accept donations of gently used books, DVDs, games, puzzles and CDs at the Library during our regular hours. But, please, we can’t use books with mold, mouse droppings, dirt or insects. Mold on books can be a health hazard for staff and for you, especially if it spreads to other books in the building. Mold is not always obvious as it often hides under the paper dust jackets. Please check any books you plan to donate, it costs the Library money to dispose of moldy books. In addition, we can’t use Readers’ Digest Condensed books, textbooks, or old encyclopedias.
Volunteer Opportunities
We’re looking for someone to help out at the checkout desk. If you enjoy helping people, are comfortable using a computer and have some spare time on Wednesday from noon to 2 please stop in and see Phyllis.
Wish List
A sandwich board sign with interchangeable letters would be a great help in letting you know when and where our programs are. If you would like to contribute a sign, please contact Phyllis at the library.
The Mystery Corner
Younger Detectives
By Martha Folsom
After taking a look at our senior citizen sleuths, I visited the youth room and the children's room and found some fun mysteries.
The Wizard of Dark Street: an Oona Crate Mystery, by Shawn Thomas Odyssey
It is 1877, and twelve-year-old Oona is the Wizard's Apprentice of Dark Street. Being the Wizard's Apprentice is an important task, but what Oona longs to be is a detective. Soon she must become one to solve one of the most important cases imaginable. Her helpers are Deacon, a black raven that can talk, and Samuligan, the Wizard's faerie servant. It is a well plotted story that would stand up favorably against any "adult" mystery. The necessary clues are there, if you can see them; the outcome logical. And there is the magic element that makes it so much fun.
The Case of the Missing Marquess: an Enola Holmes Mystery, by Nancy Springer
Enola Holmes is the much younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft. When her mother goes missing, Enola's brothers decide that she should go to boarding school. Enola decides to take the search for her mother into her own hands and runs off to London. Here she encounters her first mystery and shows us that detection runs solidly in the family genes.
Hoot, by Carl Hiaasen
In this Newbery Honor book (2003) for young adults there are some very intriguing characters. Among them: Officer Delinko, who manages to get the windows of his Crown Vic police car spray painted black when he falls asleep on stakeout duty; Curly, a beleaguered construction foreman; Garrett, the king of phony farts; Mullet, a run-away with a cause; Beatrice the Bear, Mullet Finger's sister; as well as poisonous snakes with sparkly tails, alligators in the portable latrines on the construction site, slippery fish and, most important of all, owls.
Chasing Vermeer, by Blue Balliett
Petra is trying to solve a complex mystery surrounding a painting. She also wonders if perhaps humans need questions more than they need answers; why yellow is a happy color and whether ideas and thoughts have a life of their own. She also begins to see the possibility that the world changes if/when we change our view of what we are seeing. Good characters. It's the start of an enjoyable YA series.
The Midnight Tunnel, by Angie Frazier
This fun mystery features an eleven-year-old girl who wants to be a detective like her uncle. When a young child goes missing from the inn her parents manage, and her uncle is called in to investigate, it is Suzanna that solves the mystery. I hope that this turns out to be a series. Suzanna isn't a clone of Flavia de Luce, nor does she try to be, but she is a very enjoyable, smart, determined kid and, like Flavia, she's very much a kid. The book is in our library's junior fiction department, unlike Flavia who is found roaming the adult department
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, by Alan Bradley
Youth should not be put off by the fact that Flavia's mysteries are in the adult fiction section. They will enjoy her. Alan Bradley has commented that Flavia de Luce walked "full-blown" onto the pages of another book he was writing and "hijacked the story". I can believe this. Flavia is an utterly unique, eleven-year-old heroine. She is a totally smart, precocious and believable person with a deep and abiding interest in chemistry and poisons. She has a running feud with her sisters. She's a kid. But she is smart, and when her father is arrested for murder she is determined to prove him innocent.
Death Cloud, by Andrew Lane
Here our hero is the young Sherlock Holmes about to solve his very first case. He isn't a miniature version of the adult Holmes but you learn the origin of some of Sherlock's habits. It's a good read.
We would love to hear from you about this column, your favorite writers, writers we have missed, best mystery ever... Let us hear from you. Email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Staff Pick by Phyllis Skidmore
Quiet: the Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, by Susan Cain
In today’s media saturated world, where those who sit back, observe and evaluate before speaking are considered less powerful and successful, Cain contends that introverts have just as much to offer to create a successful business or society. Extroverts can lead the way and promote ideas or actions, introverts take time to reflect and refine ideas. Each has much to offer the other to create a balance in the workplace, family and government. Cain compiles a variety of research into the development of children, the nature of highly sensitive people, and how people learn to deal with their natures. She gives examples of companies that have succeeded by having an introvert and an extrovert working together in top positions. This is a fascinating read, I couldn’t put it down.
Wanted: Reader's Picks
How about a Biography Reader's Pick for this newsletter? Or a History Reader's Pick, a Young Adult Reader's Pick -- even a Cookbook Reader's Pick? Send us short reviews of favorite books you think other like-minded readers will enjoy. E-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or drop them off at the desk.
By the way, if the library doesn't yet own the book, perhaps you'd like to purchase a copy -- at the library's 20-45% discount -- and gift it to the collection. Talk to Phyllis.
New Books
Fiction
The Innkeeper’s Song, by Peter S. Beagle
The Owl Hunt, by Richard S. Wheeler
Pacific Glory, by P. T. Deutermann
Out of Oz, by Gregory Maguire
The Beginner’s Goodbye, by Anne Tyler
The Rise of the Iron Moon, by Stephen Hunt
The Road to Grace, by Richard Paul Evans
In One Person, by John Irving
Bring Up the Bodies, by Hilary Mantel
Mystery
Fourth Day, by Zoë Sharp
Stay Close, by Harlan Coben
What It Was, by George Pelecanos
Non-fiction
Cesar’s Way: the Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems, by Cesar Millan and Melissa Jo Peltier
The Procrastination Equation: How to Stop Putting Things Off and Start Getting Stuff Done, by Piers Steel
J. D. Salinger: a Life, by Kenneth Slawenski
Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It, by Gary Taubes
Planet Arctic: Life at the Top of the World, by Wayne Lynch
Muzzled: the Assault on Honest Debate, by Juan Williams
Drift: the Unmooring of American Military Power, by Rachel Maddow
The Passage of Power, by Robert A. Caro
Against Wind and Tide: Letters and Journals, 1947-1986, by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
The Wild Life of Our Bodies, by Rob Dunn
Microstyle: the Art of Writing Little, by Christopher Johnson
DNA USA: a Genetic Portrait of America, by Bryan Sykes
Wild: From Lost To Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, by Cheryl Strayed
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, by Jon Meacham
The Quick Recipe, by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated
Audiobook CDs
The Beginner’s Goodbye, by Anne Tyler
Come Home, by Lisa Scottoline
Death Comes to Pemberley, by P. D. James
Letter from a Stranger, by Barbara Taylor Bradford
What Doesn’t Kill You, by Iris Johansen
Young Adult
Rebel Fire, by Andrew Lane
The Big Crunch, by Pete Hautman
The Invaders, by John Flanagan
Tuesdays at the Castle, by Jessica Day George
The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green
Divergent, by Veronica Roth
The Enchantress, by Michael Scott
Bitterblue, by Kristin Cashore
Caddy’s World, by Hilary McKay
Children
Fiction
The Fenway Foul-Up, by David A. Kelley
The Pinstripe Ghost, by David A. Kelley
Big Trouble in the Big Apple, by Geronimo Stilton
Ghost Pirate Treasure, by Geronimo Stilton
Dreams in the Golden Country: the Diary of Zipporah Feldman, a Jewish Immigrant Girl, by Kathryn Lasky
Shark Bait, by Justin D’Ath
I Survived: Hurricane Katrina, 2005, by Lauren Tarshis
Ivy + Bean Bound to be Bad, by Annie Barrows and Sophie Blackall
Ivy + Bean Doomed to Dance, by Annie Barrows
EllRay Jakes Walks the Plank, by Sally Warner
Bramble and Maggie: Horse Meets Girl, by Jessie Haas (VT author)
Kindred Souls, by Patricia MacLachlan
Inside Out and Back Again, by Thanhha Lai
Storm Runners, by Roland Smith
The Surge, by Roland Smith
Eruption, by Roland Smith
The Mysterious Howling, by Maryrose Wood
Beginning Readers
Cork & Fuzz: the Collectors, by Dori Chaconas
Fancy Nancy and the Too-Loose Tooth, by Jane O’Connor
Picture Books
Bad Kitty, by Nick Bruel
The Duckling Gets a Cookie!?, by Mo Willems
And Then it’s Spring, by Julie Fogliano
The Perfect Present, by Fiona Roberton
Zero the Hero, by Joan Holub
Non-Fiction
Dinosaurs, by Will Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne
G-Man: Learning To Fly, by Chris Giarrusso
Scary Godmother, by Jill Thompson
Time Zones, by David A. Adler
The Fairy House Handbook, by Liza Gardner Walsh