Early Literacy Fun for Little People

October's Fingerplay of the Month

Here's a fun song that will help your pre-K child learn to experiment with nonsense words and alliteration, a fancy name for two or more neighboring words that repeat the same sound. You can also gently move the hands of your infant and toddler, so they can wiggle and giggle as they listen to you and enjoy your movements. The older boy or girl scouts in your troop will no doubt recognize the tune as a scout camp favorite so have fun as a family with Ram-Sam-Sam!

A Ram-Sam-Sam (Follow-along Video plus Script)

A Ram Sam Sam
A Ram Sam Sam
Guli, guli, guli, guli, guli
Ram Sam Sam
A Ram Sam Sam
A Ram Sam Sam
Guli, guli, guli, guli, guli
Ram Sam Sam
A Rafi, a Rafi
Guli, guli, guli, guli, guli
Ram Sam Sam
A Rafi, a Rafi
Guli, guli, guli, guli, guli
Ram Sam Sam

A Selection of Singable Songs for the Shorter Set

Check out these among other books about songs, some of which illustrate classic tunes and others which set new words to old favorites:

Itsy Bitsy, the Smart Spider by Charise Harper
The Wheels on the Race Car by Alex Zane
Down by the Station by Jennifer Vetter

Tinkle, Tinkle Little Tot by Bruce Lansky
Puff the Magic Dragon by Peter Yarrow

If You're Happy and You Know It by Jane Cabrera

Post by Kathleen Sands

Tailgating Anyone?

Football Season's Here
Fall's the season for professional, college, amateur, and youth gridiron football. While many enjoy watching the game, an equal number consider tailgating an integral part their overall football game experience. Here's a pair of great books to help you enjoy the season:

Steven Travers' Pigskin Warriors: 140 Years of College Football’s Greatest Traditions, Games, and Stars examines how the college sport developed and the influence its had and retains on popular culture. Photographs enhance the text. Travers’ detailed analysis of the game makes for a great sports history read and we'd be remiss if we didn't add... Go UCONN!

Fan Fare: A Playbook of Great Recipes for Tailgating or Watching the Game at Home by Debbie Moose is a treasure chest of tasty recipes, and a fun book for browsing as well. Chapters feature recipes organized by football (or soccer) friendly topic: Kickoff, Bowl Games, Hot Streak, Main Courses, Pit Stops, and Overtime. Menus for every occasion come with extra points tips, to make preparing the food easier. Even the recipe titles are fun.

Bon appetite and if you're looking for a good gridiron DVD, click on over to the library's Movies & Music Blog...

Post by Bev Simmons

Lost Symbol News

Reading the Lost Symbol? Then What?

The library has four copies of Dan Brown's latest, The Lost Symbol; two more are on the way, along with a copy of the book in audio CD format. Please keep in mind that one copy is a Speed Read (7-day circulation period, first-come first served) and if you don't mind reading large print, give us a call and we'll shift your hold to the large print copy. We’d also be grateful to those of you who bought the book but don’t plan to keep it; please consider donating your copy to the library.

Either way -- if you are waiting for Brown's latest or read it in a flash -- you might also like to consider other historical thrillers with similar themes:

The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry (2006)

Foucault's Pendulum (1989) or The Name of the Rose (1983) by Umberto Eco

The Book of Fate (2006) by Brad Meltzer

Enigma (1995) by Robert Harris

The Rule of Four (2004) by Ian Caldwell

The Shadow of the Wind (2004) by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The Expected One (2006) by Kathleen McGowan

The Eight (1998) and sequel The Fire (2008) by Katherine Neville

Favorite Authors, Favorite Stories

Books for Kids

As the outdoor temperatures grow cooler, now is the perfect time to check out and cuddle up with some wonderful books by your favorite authors.

A Few Recommendations...
Enjoy the latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid series showdown; the latest in the Bone graphic novel series, or many other super-duper fiction books. Learn about sea travel or (drum roll...) monsters! Of course, there are always new books for truck lovers : get your word working skills chugging with old fashioned recognizable nursery rhymes, reset with new catchy truck-related themes.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid #4 : Dog Days by Jeff Kinney (release date, October 12)
Red, White, and True Blue Mallory by Laurie Friedman
Alvin Ho : Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
Bone : Rose by Jeff Smith
Truckery Rhymes by Jon Scieszka
Strega Nona's Harvest by Tomie dePaola
Everything for a Dog by Ann M. Martin
Monsterology or Oceanology brought to you by Ology World

Post by Kathleen Sands

Nature's Children

Non-Fiction Series Books for Kids

Welcome kiddos to the East Hampton Public Library! Your library's Children's Services area has recently rolled out a new and improved collection of books especially designed for you, the young nature lover.

If it's insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds or mammals that you're interested in, stop by the library and take a tour of our latest, updated, and regarded collection of books from Scholastic's Nature's Children series. Click here for a quick selection; a take-home flyer on the full series is also available.

Post by Kathleen Sands

Armchair Travel

Adventure, Exploration, History

From the Amazon, to Antarctica, to the South Pacific, these and other literary travel books are sure to satisfy your urge to roam:

The Lost City of Z : a Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
Grann, a member of the Royal Geographical Society, explores the Amazon on foot.

Sea of Dangers : Captain Cook and his Rivals in the South Pacific by Geoffrey Blainey
English navigator Capt. James Cook and rival French captain Jean de Surville inadvertently shadow each others voyages in search of a missing continent.

The Thames : the Biography by Peter Ackroyd

Ackroyd, who also wrote London : the Biography, takes us on a tour of an historic and storied river.

Some of the Dead Are Still Breathing by Charles Bowden

Through travel vignettes, both strange and scary, Bowden looks into Earth's seemingly doomed future.

Antarctica : Secrets of the Southern Continent by David McGonigal
Well researched with plenty of photos, maps, paintings, and brrrr.

Fatal North : Adventure and Survival Aboard USS Polaris, the First U.S. Expedition to the North Pole by Bruce Henderson
The Polaris expedition, the failed first U.S. expedition to the North Pole, led to a nationwide scandal, charges of murder, an official investigation, and a government cover-up. Adventure travel with a kick...

Out of the Armchair, Into the Air
If you are interested in mixing real life travel into your routine, join us for a teleconference program with Tom Parsons, CEO of bestfares.com. Parsons will be available from 7-7:30 p.m. to field your budget travel questions. Click here to register for this free program.

Strike up the Band!

For Theater Lovers
Given the many fine local theater groups in our area -- Epoch Arts and Podium Players are our favorites, of course -- many in our community may be interested in Geniuses of American Musical Theater : the Composers and Lyricists by Herbert Keyser.

This large format, heavily illustrated book includes concise biographies, as well as insider looks at the men and women who made their mark on Broadway and gave us some of the most enduring musicals of our time. Even if every name in the book doesn't immediately ring a bell, we bet you know more than a little about their work. Example chapters feature:

Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story) -- Cole Porter (Kiss Me Kate, De-Lovely) -- Meredith Willson (The Music Man, Unsinkable Molly Brown) -- Harry Warren (42nd Street) -- Jule Styne (Funny Girl) -- Charles Strouse (Annie) -- Frank Loesser (Guys and Dolls) -- Andrew Lloyd Webber (Cats, Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar) -- Stephen Sondheim (Sunday in the Park with George, Sweeny Todd, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum).

Four Men, Four Banks, and a Crisis

Breaking the Bank
Just when you think you've heard the last "back from the brink", "economy-in-crisis" storyline, in comes an economic history book that's at least as scary as the recent financial meltdown.

Ahamed Liaquat's Lords of Finance : the Bankers Who Broke the World tells the stories of the men in charge of the four principal central banks of the world after World War I : Montagu Norman (Bank of England), Émile Moreau (Banque de France), Hjalmar Schacht (Reichsbank in Germany), and Benjamin Strong (Federal Reserve Bank of New York), who attempted to reconstruct international finance after World War I and return to the gold standard. Liaquat describes how, in the mid-1920s, they appeared to succeed in creating economic growth... and the subsequent problems that led to the Great Depression.

Sound Familiar?
For more recent "more banks and a crisis story" reads, try Vanity Fair's interview with former Treasury Chief, Henry Paulson (Paulson's book On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System is due out next month) or try:

A Colossal Failure of Common Sense : the Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers by Lawrence G. McDonald

House of Cards : a Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess on Wall Street by William D. Cohan

In Fed We Trust : Ben Bernanke's War on the Great Panic by David Wessel

Street Fighters : the Last 72 Hours of Bear Stearns, the Toughest Firm on Wall Street by Kate Kelly

And Then the Roof Caved in : How Wall Street's Greed and Stupidity Brought Capitalism to Its Knees by David Faber

Fool's Gold : How the Bold Dream of a Small Tribe at J.P. Morgan Was Corrupted by Wall Street Greed and Unleashed a Catastrophe by Gillian Tett

A Flower is an Object of Beauty...

Flower Arranging

Flowers are a work of nature and provide a spot of beauty that can go a long way to brightening someone’s day. These titles show how to make lovely floral arrangements that reflect individual taste and skill. Even if you are not inclined to be crafty, these books in themselves are inspirational and ideal for browsing.

Lucinda Rooney’s Bouquets with Personality is indeed what the title suggests; a book that reflects the unique personality of individual floral arrangements. Here an understanding of color, design, and botanical knowledge combine to produce magnificent three dimensional works of art.

Bill Murray’s Entertaining with Flowers: The Artistry of Bill Murphy ALFD offers stunning ideas for table arrangements. Contents include: Valentine Wedding Party, Spring Bridal Shower, Tropical Dinner Party, Summer Wedding, Garden Party, Fall Wedding, Retirement Celebration, Winter Wedding, and Specially-Themed Event.

Classic Floral Designs by Ed Smith is a showcase of basic techniques using round, fan shaped, vertical, and right triangle containers. Features unique to this book include advice on mixing candles and topiary designs, and for caring for your new arrangements.

Cindy Smith’s Splendid Flowers for Every Day beautifully covers arrangement ideas for birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, reunions, weddings, friendship, cultural celebrations, and new life celebrations.

Flowers: the Book of Floral Design by Malcolm Hillier is a gorgeous coffee table book that not only examines flowers by color, but also catalogs plants by characteristic and scent.

A Master Guide to the Art of Floral Design by Alisa A. de Jong-Stout provides how-to guidance on the mechanics of creating various bouquets, and a stunning array of contemporary arrangements, some with an Eastern-inspired flair.

Know Your Neighbors

As we are sure you've noticed, members of the East Hampton Belltown Garden Club regularly grace our library with glorious and inventive arrangements. The Club meets in the library community room and sponsors gardener workshops, field trips, and town beautification projects. For more information, contact Peggy Becker @ 860-365-0533 or Gloria Standish @ 860-267-2633.

Post by Bev Simmons

Cool Crafts for Kids at the East Hampton Public Library

September's Time for Window Magic
Several kid-friendly crafts, made at the East Hampton Public Library during our Cool Crafts for Kids programs, recently won prize ribbons at the Haddam Neck Fair, held this past Labor Day weekend. Goodness gracious and boy-oh-boy were we ever flattered! Thank you all for doing such a great job and for believing in your cool craft talents!!

Our 2009-2010 Cool Crafts Program Series kicks off this Saturday, September 26, at 11 a.m. in the library community room. Kids ages 3-7 will be invited to craft a stained glass "animal" and use autumn leaves and paint to craft a decorative banner.

Click here to register for the program or phone the library at 860-267-6621. Parent particpation is required and program starts on time.

Hot Picks : Week of September 21

Autumn's Arrived, Along with Great Books

Autumn 2009 officially begins on Tuesday, August 22. As many of you know, Tuesday is also the day of the week to expect latest hot picks! If you haven't yet placed your holds for these selections, which will no doubt become bestsellers in short order, place a reserve online or give us a call at 860-267-6621. Also keep in mind our Speed Read option; Speed Read copies circulate for 7 days, first come-first served, no reserves.

An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon

More about Jamie and Claire... think blockbuster! For more about the series, click here.

Hardball by Sara Paretsky

In this 13th novel to feature gutsy PI V.I. "Vic" Warshawski, last seen in 2005's Fire Sale, V.I. becomes embroiled in the ugly side of Chicago politics. Expect to see continuing characters (niece Petra, for one) in Paretsky's latest.

A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve
The latest tale, set in Kenya, by the author of blockbusters The Pilot's Wife (an Oprah pick) and Testimony (2008), among others.

The Greatest Show on Earth : the Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins

The author of several books, Dawkins intends to convince the unconvinced that Darwin was right. Pair this with a number of books that say Darwin was wrong and decide for yourself.

The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith

This is Smith's sixth novel featuring Scottish philosopher Isabel Dalhousie. Smith's especially good at observing what makes people "tick" and does so with great humor and style.

The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood

If you enjoyed Atwood's Oryx and Crake (2003), try this one. This multi-layered dystopian novel echoes many a current debate about ecology, ethics, and environmental stability.

Attention Fair Ladies and Gentleman (and Children) of the Realm

Connecticut Renaissance Faire
Beginning on September 26th the Connecticut Renaissance Faire opens its doors at the Hebron Fairgrounds. Immerse yourself in medieval times with classic food, shows, and re-enactors. Be sure to prepare by reading how to make an authentic costume, learning a famous medieval poem or story, and practicing your knight in shining armour skills. Check out the following books before you cross the moat!!

Medieval Life by Andrew Langley
How to Be a Medieval Knight by Fiona Macdonald
Medieval People by Sarah Howarth
A Renaissance Town by Jacqueline Morley
The Renaissance by Rupert Matthews

For costume ideas, consult a range of costume reference books available at the library (The Chronicle of Western Fashion : from Ancient Times to the Present Day by John Peacock ; Costume by L. Rowland-Warne, and The Encyclopedia of World Costume by Doreen Yarwood are particularly good) or peruse simple on-the-web advice @ eHow, Life 123, or About.com's DIY Fashion.

For more information, including dates, schedule of events, and entrance fees, visit the Connecticut Renaissance Faire's website.

Post by Kathleen Sands

Photo (above) by Pearse Pinch

Helping Hands : Youth Community Service Project

Warm PJs and a Good Night Story

We hope you've noticed the Pajama Program box, located opposite the library's main circulation desk. The box is there owning to the initiative and generous spirit of Heather Congdon, an EHHS senior. What's the box for? In Heather's own words:

Calling Out to My Community!

The Pajama Program provides new pajamas and books to children who are waiting to be adopted. Most of these children have been abandoned or abused and most have not experienced the comforts of being tucked into bed at night. Your help with this creative program can provide the comfort of warm bedtime clothing and stories. Please help with this great program. All the donations will go to children in the CT area.

Where to Donate

Pajama Boxes are located at the library; KOCO (Kids of Chatham Organization), and for students, at the East Hampton High School. Heather not only self-initiated this service effort; she designed all of the promotional posters.

Time to buy some new jammies and a book; don't you think? Donations will be accepted through the end of October.

It's Going to Be Spooktacular!

Annual Costume Party for Little People
Join us in your favorite costume on Saturday October 31, at 10 a.m. for our annual Halloween costume celebration! David Costello, author and illustrator of the charming and boo-riffic book, Here They Come, will be joining us for a story, monster drawing activities, and more!

Following David's program, don your walking shoes (or assemble that stroller) for our grand parade to the Village Center! Here you'll enjoy and learn about a day-long schedule of festivities delivered by our neighbor businesses and Epoch Arts group, offered in collaboration with the East Hampton Economic Development Commission.

To participate in the library's costume party, click here to register, phone 267-6621, or stop by the library. Spots are limited, so register today!

Further Reading and Planning
Here's a short list of books that may be helpful as you prepare to enjoy our Village Center's festivities on October 31st. More information to follow on how to make a Halloween day of it on Main Street!!

The Halloween Handbook : 447 Costumes by Bridie Clark and Ashley Dodd

Baby Costumes by Bettine Roynon

Best of Halloween Tricks & Treats

Halloween : a Grown-up's Guide to Creative Costumes, Devilish Decor & Fabulous Festivities by Joanne O'Sullivan

Pumpkin Carving by Ed Palmer

Play with Your Pumpkins by Joost Elffers and Saxton Freyman

Post by Kathleen Sands

Love a Good Yarn?

Fall Hobbies and Crafts

Autumn is the season when many begin preparing for indoor activities. If you are interested in trying out a crafty new activity, the following titles offer a unique way to express yourself through fibers.

Barbara Parry’s Teach Yourself Visually Hand-Dyeing presents a colorful, and as the title suggests, easy to see guide to hand-dyeing. The book includes: step-by- step instructions, a glossary, a listing of suppliers, major fiber/sheep & wool festivals, craft schools, and additional books of interest.

Showing its reader how to design drafts, Deborah Chandler’s Learning to Weave deals with warping, self-taught weaving.

Teach Yourself Visually Handspinning by Judith Mackenzie McCuin offers two-page lessons on the basic fibers and tools necessary to produce a unique finished product, by means of using either a spinning wheel or an inexpensive spindle.

Weaving Made Easy : 17 Projects Using a Simple Loom by Liz Gipson provides templates for all weavers.

Time to Weave : Simple Elegant Projects to Make in Almost No Time by Jane Patrick contains project ideas not offered in other sources.

Luxury Yarns : One-Skein Wonders edited by Judith Durant shows what time, practice, and color selection can do with only one skein of yarn.

The library also holds a variety of titles (here's a sampling) about more conventional yarn-friendly hobbies, knit and crochet. We welcome your suggestions for purchase.

Post by Bev Simmons

Never Have We Been So Excited about Peter Pan!

Pixie Dust Reads...
Be sure to check out Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson's the Never Land book series, which includes Escape from Carnivale, Cave of the Dark Wind, and Blood Tide; all of which have just arrived @ your library. (Art work, left, by Greg Call.)

Also check out the ever-popular "Peter and the.." series, which is a prequel to Peter and Wendy. This series includes Peter and the Starcatchers, Peter and the Shadow Thieves, and Peter and the Secret of Rundoon.

For our younger library fans and for families, try live action and animated Peter Pan DVDs, Peter Pan pop-up book by master Robert Sabuda, and of course J.M. Barrie's classic fairy tale in book and audio formats. Fly up, up and away to the EHPL as fast as your pixie dust will fly you!!

Post by Kathleen Sands

New Media Marketing

Web 2.0: Blog, Facebook, e-Mail & More

If you have clicked your way around the Internet to find sites with hometown flavor, we’re sure you’ve noticed a growing number of local businesses are using web tools to spread the word about their local knowledge and services. We here spread the word about a few very good, most often requested books about this topic. Pick and choose depending on type of business and target audience.

Advertising 2.0 : Social Media Marketing in a Web 2.0 World by Tracy L. Tuten

Facebook Marketing : Leverage Social Media to Grow Your Business by Steven Holzner

How to Say It : Marketing with New Media : a Guide to Promoting Your Small Business Using Websites, e-zines, Blogs, and Podcasts by Lena Claxton and Alison Woo

How to Make Money with MySpace : Reach Millions of Customers, Grow Your Business, and Find Your Fortune Through Social Networking Sites by Dennis L. Prince

Fiction or Non-Fiction : All Hot Picks

Latest and Greatest

Whether you've decided to tackle French cooking, your health, or the latest tear jerker, mid-September offers many fine choices.

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

Divorce, family drama, young love, reunion -- it's all here in Sparks' latest multi-layered love story.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

Catch the kitchen buzz with master chef Julia Child, the subject of popular book to film, Julie and Julia. Join us in November for a book discussion of Child's My Life in France.

Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer

Krakauer takes a turn at investigative reporting by telling the story of NFL star Pat Tillman, who was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004.

Why Our Health Matters by Andrew Weil, M.D.
Weil offers prescriptions for reforming our health care system and our attitudes about our health and well-being.

The Guinea Pig Diaries by A.J. Jacobs

Jacobs (The Year of Living Biblically) poses as woman to examine the world of online dating. In another "experiment", he outsources some of his daily tasks to a company in India. We admit we're curious...

The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott

This intricately plotted thriller, set in Napoleonic Paris, includes touches on history, science, crime, and love. If this offering is half as good as Stott's Ghostwalk (2007), expect bestseller status.

Official Book Club Selection : a Memoir According to Kathy Griffin by Kathy Griffin

Bravo TV's resident "D-List" star takes a wisecracking turn at memoir in book, as opposed to, videotape form.

You Were Always Mom's Favorite : Sisters in Conversation Throughout Their Lives by Deborah Tannen

Tannen (You're Wearing THAT?) is a linguistics professor at Georgetown University. As the title suggests, here she takes on the strange, rivalrous, and wonderful relationship between sisters.

Dan Brown's New Thriller

The Lost Symbol
Dan Brown's long awaited, next historical/religiously tinged novel will be released next Tuesday, six years after The Da Vinci Code became an international bestseller.

The Lost Symbol will again feature Robert Langdon, fictional professor at Harvard University, as a the main character. Langdon's first appearance was in Brown's Angels and Demons. Little is known about the book, other than pure speculation and that which comes from pre-publication buzz – and there sure is a ton of both.

Guess we'll have to wait and place our reserves...

Dan Brown's Robert Langdon Books
Angels and Demons
The Da Vinci Code
The Lost Symbol

Other Books by Dan Brown
Deception Point
Digital Fortress

September is National Sewing Month

May your bobbin always be full!
~ Author Unknown

In 1982, then-President Ronald Reagan signed Proclamation 4976 and designated September as National Sewing Month. Well before then, sewing was a necessary skill or a $$ saving American hobby. It remains a little of each to this day.

Here are but a few selections from a range of DIY sewing choices you'll find @ your library. Titles feature projects from easy to advanced. Even if you do not own, or have not yet tamed your sewing machine, beautiful color photos will make for enjoyable browsing and perhaps, inspiration.

Bend the Rules with Fabric : Fun Sewing Projects with Stencils, Stamps, Dye, Photo Transfers, Silk Screening, & More by Amy Karol

Sewing Techniques & Patterns by Marie-Noëlle Bayard

Pillows: Designer Sewing Techniques by Christopher Nejman

New from Old : How to Transform & Customize Your Clothes by Jayne Emerson

Quick Curtains : Over 40 Fabulous Designs for Your Windows by Chris Jefferys

The Complete Guide to Upholstery : Stuffed with Step-by-step Techniques for Professional Results by Cherry Dobson

The Sewing Stitch and Textile Bible : a Complete Illustrated Guide to Techniques and Materials by Lorna Knight

The library also holds a variety of titles for yarn-lovers (knit/crochet/felting) and for quilters. We regularly add to these collections and as always, we welcome your suggestions.

Surf's Up!
"Reuse, remake, & restyle" are encouraged by these sewing organizations. Link to free patterns, instructions, & supply lists:
American Sewing Guild
Home Sewing Association

Post by Bev Simmons

Outlander

Epic, Intricate, Mythical, Magical

Diana Gabaldon's Outlander books have been growing, growing, growing in popularity even though the first book was published more than a decade ago. Little wonder. Gabaldon's stories have all the elements of ancient and modern myth and legend and these do take time spread...

Read the series in order and owing to state grant funds, we're working to add a full complement of Outlander books in audio CD format. Keep an eye for audio additions later next week.

In Order:

Outlander -- Dragonfly in Amber -- Voyager -- Drums of Autumn -- The Fiery Cross -- A Breath of Snow and Ashes -- An Echo in the Bone (Release date : Tuesday, September 22)

Fall Gardening

Planning for Next Year
Fall is a special season to plan for the future of your garden. The library has a wonderful selection of titles to help you grow a better garden, even if you are new to the hobby. Here's a short list and we welcome your recommendations.

Tracy Disabato-Aust's, 50 High-Impact Low Care Garden Plants delivers information regarding the necessary height/spread and sun/shade needs of fifty different plants.

Try The Organic Fruit & Vegetable Gardner Year: A Seasonal Guide for Growing What You Eat by Graham Clarke, an especially useful title for grow-your-own planners.

Carolyn Hutchinson’s Time-Saving Gardener Tips & Essential Tasks will help you manage your seasonal time efficiently for better results.

100 Garden Tips & Time Savers by Walter Chandoha provides year round gardening information.

The Perennial Care Manual: A Plant-by-Plant Guide: What to Do & When to Do It by Nancy J. Ondra contains beautiful choices tied to when-to information.

Surf's Up and Old Fashioned Phone
CT Agricultural Station
Plant Pathology & Ecology (203) 974-8606
Plant Inquiries (203) 974-8601
Soil Testing (203) 974-8521
Brooklyn Botanic Garden Help Line (BBG titles available)

Know Your Neighbors
We're sure you have noticed that East Hampton's Belltown Garden Club members regularly grace our library with beautiful and inventive arrangements of seasonal flowers and plants. The club regularly meets in the library's Community Room and also sponsors workshops and trips. To connect with local gardeners extraordinaire, contact Hollye Thomas at 860-992-5817 or Karen Galmon at 860-267-4169.

Nearby Gardening Centers
Paul & Sandy’s Too (East Hampton)
Jessica's Garden (Marlborough)
Pine Ledge Gardens (Portland)
Wheeler Farm Gardens (Portland)

Post by Bev Simmons

New Feature! Early Literacy Fun for Little People

September's Fingerplay of the Month

Learning to read begins well before the first day of school. Fingerplays are a fun way to improve your favorite little person's motor skills and coordination; help them learn to follow along; or to teach concepts (up/down, body parts, counting). Fingerplays can also help your child learn to hear, make, and play with sounds; as well as words and sounds within words (phonological awareness).

We offer here the first in a once-a-month online series, featuring fingerplays that you can enjoy in early childhood programs @ your library and again at home. Let's get ready to 'ribit' and have some fun!

Three Fat Freckled Frogs (Follow-along Video plus Script)

Three fat freckled frogs
Sitting on a bumpy log
Eating some nice delicious bugs

Yum, yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are two fat freckled frogs

Ribit, ribit!

Two fat freckled frogs
Sitting on a bumpy log
Eating some nice delicious bugs
Yum, yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there is one fat freckled frog

Ribit, ribit!

One fat freckled frog
Sitting on a bumpy log
Eating some nice delicious bugs
Yum, yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are no fat freckled frogs
Ribit, ribit!

Further Froggie Picks for Growing Readers

Here's a very short list of picture or easy frog-friendly books that grow with your learning-to-read child. Ribit, ribit!

Frog by Susan Cooper
Froggy Plays... by Jonathan London

What a Party! by Sandy Asher

Better Move On, Frog! by Ron Maris Finklehopper
Tadpole Rex by Kurt Cyrus
Frog by Irene Livingston
The Biggest Frog in Australia by Susan Roth
Frog and Toad series books by Arnold Lobel

Post developed by Kathleen Sands;
Marilou Overson served as videographer

Poet of the Month

September's Featured Poet
X.J. Kennedy (1929-), who writes delightful poetry for children as well as adults, is the recipient of the PSA’s 2009 Robert Frost Metal for lifetime service to poetry, the 2004 Poet’s Prize (for The Lords of Misrule: Poems 1992-2002), and others too numerous to list in this space. He was educated at Seton Hall, Columbia, and the Sorbonne. He served four years in the Navy. He has taught English at U Michigan, UNC Greensboro, Tufts, and served as a visiting professor at Wellesley, U of C at Irvine, and the U of Leeds. Here are two examples of his poetry for children:

A Mammoth Surprise

Down the trunk of an elephant, Daredevil Jed
With incredible speed took a slide on his sled
At a time when that pachyderm, lunching on hay,
Was happily tucking a bundle away.
Off that doubled‑up nose‑hose, poor Jed shot the chutes‑‑‑
Blubbery brutes have such rubbery snoots.

A Needed Invention

For safety's sake, each jumbo jet
Should travel with a safety net
Suspended from its underbelly
Or racing on the ground below it
To break its fall or slightly slow it,
Sort of an upside‑down umbrelly

Further Reading:
Elefantina's Dream / verse by X.J. Kennedy ; pictures by Graham Percy.

Knock at a Star : a Child's Introduction to Poetry / [compiled by] X.J. Kennedy, Dorothy M. Kennedy ; illustrated by Karen Ann Weinhaus.

Content developed by local resident and poet Leland Jamieson, author of:
21st Century Bread (2007)
In Vitro : New Short Rhyming Poems Post-9/11 (2009)