Annual Book Sale

Our big Annual Book Sale is this weekend as part of the community's SalemFest event. Every year I wonder if we will have enough to make it a big sale, and each year I walk into the room where we store the sale books and am amazed at the generosity of our community. Do we have books to sell!











This is an important fundraiser for us as the money raised through our book sale - annual and daily - provide the total funding for our Summer Reading Club, all our programming throughout the year, incidentals like software and signs. So every purchase of a book gets cycled right back to our service to the community.

I will post additional photos as we set up for the sale, during and after the event.

Information is light

I recently came across this quote by Tom Stoppard: "Information is light. Information in itself, about anything, is light". I didn't find the context, so I am not sure how Mr. Stoppard intended it to mean, but I immediately flashed (if you will excuse the pun) onto the cartoon staple of a light bulb over a character's head - enlightenment, understanding, ideas. I certainly think that the library is responsible for a great deal of light in people's lives. It is an extremely rare book, piece of music or film that doesn't shed a bit of light on the human condition, a bit of understanding about our neighbors, insights into ideas. It is that Aha moment, that moment where you say to yourself while reading, "Oh I didn't know that". Light shining on life is key to understanding.

Light shining is key to seeing in a more mundane way as well. Thanks to the Kelley Library Board of Trustees, there is more and better light shining in the Children's Department. Long a place of bright spots and dim spaces, the light now is brighter without being squint bright, and dispersed throughout shedding light on books long lost in the shadows. Who knows what insights, ideas and understanding will be result from some good lighting? And where better to start than with our children?

Stop in and catch some light.

Book: The dog it was that died, and other plays, by Tom Stoppard
Book: Complete lighting design, a practical design for perfect lighting, by Marilyn Zelinsky
Book: Against the machine: being human in the age of the electronic mob, by Lee Siegel
Book: Seeking enlightenment - hat by hat, by Nevada Barr

Have you met Cathy?

Cathy is another 'recent' addition to the staff, having been with the Library about 5 years now. She hails from Rhode Island and got into the library field by way of teaching and working with special needs children. Being the youngest on the staff at the time, she was called to work with the teens and preteens when we decided to ramp up our services to this age group. But most of the time, Cathy can be found in the children's room, ready to help kids of all ages find just what they want - and often something they didn't realize they wanted until they dipped into the book.

Like so many of the people who work here at Kelley, Cathy has a fun sense of humor. However, she takes her job very seriously, carefully considering all the factors when planning a program, selecting materials, and everything else that comes her way. She has an easy manner with everyone who uses the children's room, and is sincerely concerned about the children who come in.

I asked her the famous 5 questions:

1. When I am not at the library, you can find me: In Rhode Island, visiting my family.
2. Describe your perfect day: On the beach, reading a book, followed by a nice dinner and then somewhere afterwards, like a play or Cirq du Soleil.
3. If you had to live somewhere else than NH, where would it be? I want to travel, but I would start with Ireland.
4. What 3 things can you always find in your fridge? Ice cream, salad mix, and turkey.
5. You would be surprised to find out that I: was a party girl in college.

Cathy is all grown up now, and is a very caring person with children. She's another person that makes the staff here so special.

What are those arrows for?

Have you noticed those bright pink arrows that have appeared recently on our website? They look like this:




They are much smaller on the webpage of course, but perhaps you have seen them. We introduced the pink arrow as an indicator for further information. Just click on the arrow and it will lead you to something relevant to the topic.

Right now we are using the pink arrow to lead you to some books and other materials that we think will be of interest to you. These titles are selected by the Kelley Library staff and are chosen to expand on the topic of an upcoming program or provide suggestions for books that are similar in theme or style to the books being read in our various book groups.

But it doesn't stop there. Once you click, check out the various menu entries on the left. This provides you with a wide range of suggested reading, new publications, newsletters that you can sign up for that will come to your email regularly with additional recommendations. There is an Author A-Z that gives a very nice overview of a ton of popular authors.

And the best part? Each of these additional pages includes a Check Our Catalog link and takes you right to our catalog for you to reserve the title you are interested in. If what you are looking for isn't there, let us know and we will be sure to get it for you - just call, stop in, or email us (our addresses are here). Oh and be sure to keep clicking the pink arrow - you never know what treasures or treats it will lead you to.

Book: The Joy of Geocaching, by Paul Gillin
Book: 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, edited by Peter Boxall.

A new addition to the staff?

We have frequently hosted programs featuring animals of all shapes and sizes, the most recent being our Summer Reading Kick-off with Wildlife Encounters Zoo.










But today, we saw something very new in the library. Saydi was on the 'job' for the very first time.

Saydi is a gentle, lovable dog who has agreed to come to the library regularly to read with children. She is ably assisted by her friend, Brittany Owens, and settles down for an hour or so to listen to whatever book her new friends decide to read. She will be coming once or so a month.

It was interesting to see what books the children selected. One or two read a section of the book they were currently reading - being careful to bring Saydi up to speed on the plot before diving into the book. Another group chose a selection of dog themed books - The Big Red Dog and the like - no doubt to be sure that the books would be of interest to Saydi too.

It was also interesting to see how Saydi reacted to the readers. Always gentle and patient, Saydi lay down for a good listen with the first reader. The next reader was a young boy and something about him brought Saydi nose to nose for a close-up listen (and a few licks).










Another group of the day lulled Saydi to sleep, just like so many moms and dads have with children over the years.










After all, books and reading are emminently adaptable. You can do it all alone, the book drawing you into the story and letting you become part of the events. You can do it one on one: a parent, grandparent (or loving pet) nestled together with a child, sharing the wonderful story unfolding on the pages. And it can be a group activity as well, allowing everyone to share a single experience, yet challenging the readers to talk about how the story affected each one in a different way. There is something remarkable about books and reading, don't you think?

Book: How to get your child to love reading, by Esme Raji Codell
Book: Marley and Me, by John Grogan
Book: Best books for kids who (think they) hate to read : 125 books that will turn any kid into a lifelong reader, by Laura Backes

eBooks revisited

A few weeks ago I talked about Kelley participating in the downloadable ebooks program offered through the State Library of NH. What I didn't mention was the fact that we had purchased a Kindle and were in the midst of preparing it for circulation.

We are proud to announce that the Kindle is now available for use. We decided, after much discussion, to devote the content to books on the NY Times best sellers lists - fiction and nonfiction. We thought using these titles would provide a variety of books of popular interest and reflecting a wide range of topics, points of view, and ideas.

Right now the Kindle has 10 titles, five from each list, and we will be adding to the selections regularly. You can reserve it just like any other library item either at the library or online here.

Why a Kindle? Well, it is the easiest for the library to access additional books to add and Amazon has a large library of books to select from. Why an ebook? The library has a long standing reputation of offering new formats as they become standardized, balancing keeping on the forefront with jumping on formats that won't last. It's a balance of embracing the new with fiscal responsibility. Why offer the Kindle for circulation? It is a great tool for many of our users. It is an easy way to take a wide selection of books on a trip without having to lug around all those books. It is a wonderful option for people with sight issues (the font size can be changed easily) or with other physical limitations (it is light, doesn't require being held open, is enormously portable, and can be propped up for reading). And just like the many formats we offer books in already (audio, large print, print, downloadable) it is another way to make reading accessible to the community.

Try it out, tell us what you think.

Book: 2001, a space odyssey, by Arthur C Clarke.
Book: Collapse: how societies choose to fail or succeed, by Jared M. Diamond
Book on CD: Microtrends[the small forces behind tomorrow's big changes], by Mark J. Penn
DVD: The Terminator

Have you met Audrey?

No doubt you have met Audrey. She is a fixture at the circulation desk, sure and calm, someone who is unruffled in the face of a long line, or a challenging question - she knows just the person to refer you to if the question is better answered by someone else. She is a very precise and careful worker, making sure that everything is done properly, fully and correctly. She takes similar care in selecting our paperbacks, and seamlessly repairing our books. At the same time, she is the go to person for artistic or creative ideas. Each winter, she designs and assembles the Library wreathe for the Greystone fundraiser. She came up with some very clever ideas for entertaining the Teddy Bears at their sleepover. She did the pillows and curtains for the children's room. She has a great sense of humor, a little on the dark side, but always ready with a laugh.

It is always interesting to realize that while Audrey is a familiar figure in our lives, there are interesting things about her that we just don't know. To find out about a few of them, we are asking her the famous 5 Questions.

1. When I am not at the library, you can find me: sitting on my deck. (Hpoefully not in the dead of winter - but then, who knows?)

2. Describe your perfect day: Warm weather, sunshine, water to look at, a good book, and a glass of wine.

3. If you had to live somewhere else than NH, where would it be: Someplace more temperate, perhaps the Carolinas.

4. What 3 things can you always find in your fridge: Diet Coke, salad fixings, and olives (black and green)

5. You would be surprised to find out that I: am a great grandmother.

Audrey says she has been here for almost 22 years. I asked why work at a library and she said that she has worked at a library in some capacity since she was in 5th grade, so libraries are part of her life. She is certainly part of the life here at Kelley.