Monday, September 27, 2010

Banned Books Week : September 25 - October 2, 2010

Celebrate Your Freedom to Read
Banned Books Week has been observed since 1982; this annual event reminds Americans not to take their freedom to read for granted.

Stick up for your freedom to read this week and read a banned book. Our good guess is many of you have already read more than a few...

Surf's Up
Peruse a listing of the Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009 or view of a map of Book Bans and Challenges, 2007-2010.

Banned Books Week in the News
Christian Science Monitor
The New Statesman (A British Current Affairs and Political Magazine)

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Left, Right, Left, Right

Hot Political Reads
Politics is always a dicey subject but a popular pursuit for sure. Here's a short list of latest notable books about the national political scene and the people who serve at the top of the pyramid.

Obama's Wars by Bob Woodward
Crimes Against Liberty by David Limbaugh (son of Rush)
Pinheads and Patriots by Bill O'Reilly
The Obama Diaries by Laura Ingraham
The Promise by Jonathan Alter
The Bridge by David Remnick

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Are You Ready for Some Footbaaaaaaall?!

With a Little Learning on the Side...
Football season is officially here!

If you're a fan, stay in the zone and check out nicely done educational videos created by the National Science Foundation, NBC Learn, and the NFL. The series, entitled The Science of NFL Football, will add a new video each week through October 29th. Each mini-learning sesson focuses on an issue in the sciences, such as nutrition, physics, math, etc. and how it relates to the game. Click here to join the fun.

Also check out biographies of your favorite stars or stories with a football theme. A few of our favorite books for the younger set are listed below as well as a few favorite films:

Books and Reading
Tom Brady by Calvin Miller
Peyton Manning by Joanne Mattern
Tee Dee the Football by Michael Serrian
75 Seasons : The Complete History of the National Football League by Will McDonough
Gym Candy and Payback Time by Carl Deuker
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Crackback by John Coy

Fire Up the DVD Player
Big Fan
The Blind Side
Brian's Song
Remember the Titans
Friday Night Lights
We Are Marshall

Almost all of the above films are based on books or have documentary film tie-ins available for checkout. Watch for more football-related posts as the season unfolds.

Post by Kathleen Sands

Introducing JobNow™ by Brainfuse™

The Latest Addition to Our Online Service Portfolio
We are pleased to offer a new online service called JobNow™: a real-time resume and interview coaching/career advice service that uses innovative online platform technology. JobNow™ is available to local users via any Internet-ready computer. Register to use the service at the library or use your East Hampton library card to register from a remote computer.

About JobNow™
JobNow™ provides you with a host of services to help in every step of the job search process. Online job coaches are available to help you with job search related questions. In addition to helping beginning job seekers pinpoint their desired career field, coaches can also provide constructive suggestions on resumes, help write a professional cover letter, and give live interview practice and feedback.

If you do not have time for a live session, you may submit your resume at any time of day through the Resume Lab and a job coach will send it back to you generally within 1 business day with detailed feedback and suggestions for improvement. The JobNow™ service also comes with an extensive collection of resources, including:
  • resume/cover letter templates
  • interview tips
  • general sample interview questions
  • industry-specific sample interview questions, and
  • a diverse array of online resources and links.

About Brainfuse™
Founded in 1999, Brainfuse is one of the nation’s leading online tutoring providers, serving a diversified client base of libraries and school districts. For more information about Brainfuse services, please visit www.brainfuse.com.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Here Comes the Sun...

Clean Energy, Renewable Energy
Earlier today, workers were amazingly able to stroll across the library's pitched roof while laying rails needed to support a solar panel array. The Community Center, which houses your library and Senior Center, is the first public building in town to be outfitted with the panels.

The panels were installed owing to a partnership program forged by our town's Clean Energy Task Force and Glastonbury-based DCS Energy. DCS provides the solar technology to East Hampton at no cost; the town picks up the minor costs associated with installing the array's monitoring system.

Installing the array allows DCS to recoup money through state tax credits and rebates. The panels are expected to shave electricity bills and save East Hampton an estimated $75,000 over the 25 year life of solar system. Good deal!

About East Hampton's Clean Energy Task Force
Our town's Clean Energy Task Force is an all volunteer board composed of knowledgeable local citizens committed to promoting green energy efforts and quality of life in a go-green environment.

About DCS
DCS is a 4-year-old company and is a member of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association and ClubGreen, a subsidiary of buildingctgreen.com.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Eric Girardi "Bends Gravity" : Saturday, September 18, 2 p.m.

Magic or Science? We'll Find Out!
Join us @ your library and watch Eric Girardi perform his gravity bending show! In his own words, Girardi calls the show art in motion, as he manipulates objects in a performance choreographed to music.

Girardi is a world ranked yo-yo player and has performed at hundreds of special events hosted by colleges, cub scouts, schools, and YMCAs. Audience members have raved about Girardi's tricks, describing them as crazy and entertaining. For a sample of Eric's gravity-based wizardry, watch a quick video to see Eric demonstrate a Gyroscopic Flop...



Eric's performance promises to be both energetic and fast paced and is appropriate for kids age 8 and up. The event is also free and open to the public; however, registration is required. Click here to register or phone the library at 860-267-6621.

Thursday, September 09, 2010

On Poets and Poetry : September to April Series Returns

Donald Hall (1928-) was born in Hamden, Connecticut. He began writing in grammar school, and first published at 16. At the same age he attended Breadloaf where he met Robert Frost, among others. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Harvard, and a B.Litt from Oxford. He was a Writing Fellow at Stanford where he studied under Yvor Wintors.

While teaching at U. Michigan he met the poet Jane Kenyon. They married and the couple moved in 1975 to Wilmot, New Hampshire. Her death 20 years later of leukemia (after his own bouts with colon and liver cancer) cast a pall of grief over his work of that period which is best characterized by a line in the poem “Kill the Day”: ‘How many times will he die in his own lifetime?’

He has 20 collections of poetry, 11 children’s books, 3 dramas, and 2 volumes each of biography, short stories, and memoirs. His recognitions include U.S. Poet Laureate, N.H. State Laureate, the Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize for Lifetime Achievement, and numerous book awards and prizes.

Ox Cart Man
In October of the year,
he counts potatoes dug from the brown field,
counting the seed, counting
the cellar's portion out,
and bags the rest on the cart's floor.

He packs wool sheared in April, honey
in combs, linen, leather
tanned from deerhide,
and vinegar in a barrel
hooped by hand at the forge's fire.

He walks by his ox's head, ten days
to Portsmouth Market, and sells potatoes,
and the bag that carried potatoes,
flaxseed, birch brooms, maple sugar, goose
feathers, yarn.

When the cart is empty he sells the cart.
When the cart is sold he sells the ox,
harness and yoke, and walks
home, his pockets heavy
with the year's coin for salt and taxes,

and at home by fire's light in November cold
stitches new harness
for next year's ox in the barn,
and carves the yoke, and saws planks
building the cart again.

Further Reading
Old and New Poems
Ox-cart Man

Content developed by local resident and poet Leland Jamieson, author of:

Sunday, September 05, 2010

Happy Labor Day!

"If all the cars in the United States were placed end to end, it would probably be Labor Day Weekend." ~ Doug Larson

Though originally associated with the American labor movement, today's Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of summer and for sure, the beginning of fair season.

Check out the Library of Congress's website to learn more about Labor Day's historical roots. America's first Labor Day parade was held in 1882 in New York City; Congress made Labor Day a national holiday twelve years later.

Books and Reading
Though likely to inspire spirited debate, here's a short list of well-written books about the early origins and mid-20th century outcomes of the U.S. labor movement.

From the Folks Who Brought You the Weekend : a Short, Illustrated History of Labor in the United States by Priscilla Murolo and A.B. Chitty ; illustrations by Joe Sacco

A Brief History of the Connecticut Labor Movement by Marta Moret

The Woman Behind the New Deal : the Life of Frances Perkins, FDR's Secretary of Labor and His Moral Conscience by Kirstin Downey

For Kids
The Unions ; written and illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher

The Factories ; written and illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher
Labor Day by Carmen Bredeson

Header cartoon by Clay Bennett,
editorial cartoonist for the Christian Science Monitor from 1997-2007

Saturday, September 04, 2010

Into the Wild...

Back to Nature...
Owing to local interest, the library recently updated its book collection on the topic of edible wild plants. The following guides may help readers identify wild plants that may be used for food. As aways, we don't endorse the content and recommend caution and additional research before making your choices.

Complete Guide to Edible Wild Plants, Mushrooms, Fruits, and Nuts : How to Find, Identify, and Cook Them by Katie Letcher Lyle is from Falcon Guides, a publisher of outdoor recreation guides.

Edible Wild Plants : Wild Foods from Dirt to Plate is authored by John Kallas, who hosts the Wild Food Adventures website.

Edible Wild Plants : a North American Field Guide to Over 200 Natural Foods by Thomas S. Elias & Peter Dykeman is latest edition of book originally published in 1982 by Outdoor Life, a publisher imprint and magazine now owned by the Bonnier Group, which also publishes Field & Stream.

Surf's Up
Wild Food Adventures
American Herb Association
American Horticultural Society
Wilderness Survival: Edible and Medicinal Plants
Wild Ones: Native Plants, Natural Landscapes

Friday, September 03, 2010

September is National Cholesterol Education Month

It's All In the Numbers
Are you trying to figure out what all of those numbers and acronyms on your cholesterol test mean? You're not alone. The American Heart Association can help you sort it out with these recommendations for the average person's cholesterol levels. Check with your doctor to determine your target ranges.

Total Cholesterol : less than 200HDL
Cholesterol (good cholesterol...think "H" for happy) : more than 60
LDL Cholesterol (bad cholesterol...think "L" for lousy) : less than 100
Triglycerides (most common type of fat in the body) : less than 150

Once you know whether or not you need to improve your levels, check out the following books and websites to get started on heart healthy cooking and lifestyle changes. Collectively, these resources offer advice on changing your cholesterol for the better.

Books & Reading
The library has a wide range of cookbooks that feature low cholesterol recipes. Also find a variety of titles if you prefer vegetarian and/or vegan recipes. For general readers (and diners!), we'll mention a few titles that may be of interest.

Olive Oil Baking: Heart-Healthy Recipes that Increase Good Cholesterol...
American Heart Association Cookbook
Beyond Cholesterol
Cholesterol Cures
Love in the Time of Cholesterol : a Memoir with Recipes
Engine 2 Diet

Surf's Up

American Heart Association
National Institutes of Health
or get involved on Go Red for Women

Thursday, September 02, 2010

See You After School!!

FriBrary Time and Footprint Friday Programs
The library offers year-round programs for fourth and fifth graders (FriBrary) and for second and third graders (Footprint Friday). We recently announced our series of fall programs, held after school on Fridays from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., in the library community room.

FriBrary Time Goes Green
Owing to a grant from and ongoing cooperation with the Rockfall Foundation, we'll continue with our year-long series of go green programs this fall. Programs seek to educate 4th and 5th graders on ways to preserve and protect our environment.

Check out our online events calendar and register today for FriBrary programs on September 17, October 1, October 15, and November 5.

Footprint Fridays : Meet Your Favorite Characters
This series is all about adventure, playing games, and getting to know some really cool characters in way cool books. Register today to bring your problem-solving skills and funny bones to the library on September 24, October 8, and November 12.