Library Blog

NEW DISPLAY

2012-01-13T18:30:00.000-05:00

BOOK CLUB NEWS

2012-01-09T22:03:00.003-05:00

We started off the New Year on January 6, by discussing books we had
read about the problems in our environment. Two of these books were
focused on global warming and the need to change our use of energy.
"Hot, Flat, and Crowded" by Thomas Friedman was described as very
informative and thought provoking, almost like a "course" on the
subject. After describing the situation, the author stresses the need to
change our ways of thinking.   In "Hot", by Mark Hertsgaard, the author
(who has a 5 year old son) anticipates "living through the next 50
years on earth". Our reader found the book depressing! The author blames
large corporations for our overuse of fossil fuels, and sees little
change in the USA.

Another of our members read "The Ripple Effect" by Alex Prud'-ome. This
was all about water and declining supplies of free water. It begins with
the (true) story of an unsolved murder in a water treatment plant. This
led to the observation that we are more likely to read books that are
about people, not just facts and ideas.

A very different book, on a more positive note, was "Hope for the
Animals” by Jane Goodall. We all remember the author as the young
woman who wrote "In the Shadow of Man" (1971) about living in the
jungles of Tanzania and observing the chimpanzees.   In the years since
she has advocated tirelessly for saving animals of every kind from
extinction.   This book is a compilation of stories, told in a very
personal way, of the many people who have worked to save the animals
in danger, sometimes with success, sometimes still working, but not
giving up.
A very different book, “Lasso the Wind" by Timothy Eagan, was described
by our member as "a good read"! It is about the history of the
environment in the American west, with some positive reports such as
needed removal of dams and cleaning up of polluted waters.

For our next meeting, February 7, we’ll be reading any book by Willa
Cather. Newcomers are always welcome.

Margery Robertiello

BOOK CLUB SELECTION FOR DECEMBER

2011-12-19T14:30:00.003-05:00

Book Club Selection

2011-10-27T19:17:00.003-04:00

LIBRARY EBOOKS ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR KINDLE

2011-09-29T11:01:00.000-04:00

Visit www.slibrary.org

click on audio & ebooks

Book Club Selection of the Month

2011-09-22T19:07:00.002-04:00

Final Summer Workshop at Bancroft Library

2011-08-20T11:36:00.000-04:00

BASIS and Moveable Books at Bancroft Public Librarybookzoompa.wordpress.com

August Book Club

2011-08-18T11:49:00.000-04:00

For our August Book Club meeting we all read books of our own choice by
author Tony Hillerman.

Hillerman, who was raised in the Southwest, is well known for his
mysteries set in the vast "four corners' region , in which the mailn
characters are Navajo Tribal Police. Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn and
Sergeant Jim Chee are college educated Navajos, part of the modern
American world , but also part of their traditional culture. And the
stories and their outcomes weave the two together.

Most of our members enjoyed these mysteries. One person found the plot
of "Listening Woman" (1994) very convoluted and preferred "The Wailing
Wind" (2002), whic seemed better focussed. One member, reading
Hillerman for the first time, was unfamiliar with the histories of
characters from previous books, which could become confusing. Another
was enthusiastic about "A Thief of Time", in which the mystery centers
on the theft of ancient pottery. Another expressed interest in learning
more about the Indian culture.

A completly different book, entitled "Hillerman Country" is a collection
of extraordinary photographs of the four corners region of the
Southwest, taken by Barney Hillerman,. The collection is organized by
regions of special meaning to the Navajo people, with text by Tony H. A
wonderful book for browsing.

For our next meeting , September 6, we will be reading The Brain that
Changes Itself, byNorman Doidge M.D.

New members always welcome!!

Salem Survivors Benefit

2011-08-08T23:17:00.000-04:00

Music From Salem Children's Workshop

2011-08-05T14:08:00.000-04:00

Champagne and Strawberries Fundraiser

2011-06-20T14:19:00.000-04:00

We'd like to share a photo collage from our recent "Champagne & Strawberries" fundraiser:

(click on the photo to enlarge)

Memorial Day 2011

2011-05-28T19:33:00.000-04:00

Lots of plants/books/baked goods for Sale

A beautiful warm day..lots of activity at the library and in the village...

MAY BOOK CLUB SELECTIONS

2011-05-21T12:17:00.000-04:00

At our May meeting we discussed two books, both about life on the Great Plains of the midwest in the late 1880's. The building of railroads and the offer of free land to farmers, brought immigrants and others to settle in this part of the country, in the face of enormous hardships.

"The Children's Blizzard", by David Laskin, is an historical account of an immense blizzard that caught the settlers entirely by surprise. On an unusually balmy day in January 1888, the weather changed in minutes to one of the fierest storms ever described. Anyone caught outdoors in the wind and blinding snow was in danger on death-----which included many school children on their way from school or home.

The author begins with brief descriptions of individual families: a couple from Norway who had come to escape poverty; a family with two children from the Ukraine, part of a group of 53 Mennonite families who came for religious freedom; a family wih seven children in which the mother had died during the first winter.

As the book proceeds,the author carefully descibes the meteorology and path of the storm, and inter weaves the stories of the individuals who survived--or did not --on that day. Especially touching were the young teachers in their one-room school houses trying to find safety for their charges. The stories are heart wrenching but also inspiring.

Our second book, The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder, is a novel about a family living on the plains in the 1880"s. The author was born in1867, and while this is fiction, it may reflect her own life.Everyone seemed to enjoy this book, which was full of details of the daily life of that time and place .

For our next meeting (June 7) three books are recommended, all about food and farming. The Dirty Life,by C Kimball, The Last Farmer,byHoward Cohn, or Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by B Kingsolver. Read one or all three!!

BK LUV3

2011-02-14T17:49:00.000-05:00

History of Bancroft Library

2010-06-28T20:14:00.000-04:00

School Children Visit the Library

2010-06-16T18:29:00.000-04:00

Video - School Visit

2010-06-15T19:19:00.000-04:00

2010-06-05T08:09:00.000-04:00

"BE CREATIVE" - Art Program

2009-08-13T10:52:00.000-04:00

Now on display at the library--Laurie Richardson--making mobiles art program July 23, 2009

2009-07-27T20:27:00.000-04:00

Music From Salem

2009-07-13T18:13:00.000-04:00

Salem Library Scrabble Club

2008-03-27T15:07:00.000-04:00

Check out our web site for dates and time.

STUDENT VOLUNTEER

2008-03-26T10:39:00.000-04:00

March 2008

2008-03-25T16:00:00.000-04:00