Babs and Chip in: "Blind Date of Doom!"

"Chip, Valentine's Day is next week."

"I know it's Valentine's Day, Babs.  In fact, I was just thinking about how we met.  Remember, Felicia and Rock set us up on a blind date. Boy, that was one for the books, wasn't it?"

"I'll say.  Wow, I haven't thought about that in ages.  Felicia invited me up from the Dells to help them decipher some ancient hieroglyphs they had found in a local cave."

"I remember it like it was yesterday.  I was living in the Yukon at the time, prospecting for gold...."

Chip swirled his pan of water.  The shallow river water swirled around his feet. His eyes scanned the lay of the land, looking for whoever had shot at him from the bushes yesterday.  Rumors about his stash of gold were a local legend  and there were those in town who would stop at nothing to get it. The horizon was clear.  He swirled the water around his pan, and picked out many bright nuggets.  At this rate, he would be set for the next 3 years or so of roaming the globe in search of adventures.  He packed his gear up, stowed it in the small shed he had built from sod and river rocks, set the booby trap, and started home. Felicia and Rock were throwing a party to celebrate the deciphering of some ancient hieroglyphs they had found in a local cave and they wanted him to meet the woman who had helped to finally break the code.

"Her name is Babs, and I think she's just your type.Felicia met her in a continuing ed course they took in college, How to Keep Multiple Cats Happy in Your One Room Apartment.  Extremely intelligent, pretty in a bookish sort of way.  She can speak Mandarin Chinese as well as Polish and makes a mean martini.  She rode her Honda PCX 150 up here from the Dells."

"Isn't that a scooter?"

"Yes, but it's an awesome piece of machinery."

 Rock greeted him as he came into the backyard.  It was deserted except for Felicia and another woman.

"Am I early?  Where is everybody? I thought you said to be here at 7:00."

"Everybody?  Umm, no, I guess it's just the four of us tonight."  He glanced at what was in Chip's hands. "Flowers and candy?  Really?"

"What?  What woman doesn't like flowers and candy?"

"Whatever you say.  Come on, I'll introduce you to Babs."

Chip was smitten. She was wearing a black evening gown and and carried a crossbow as an accessory. She was declaiming in some foreign language and seemed to be either reciting poetry or making a speech. She stopped short as they walked up, and stared at Chip.

 "Now, now ladies.  No more medieval Polish.  English, please. Babs, here's the guy I was telling you about.  Chip, meet Babs.  Babs, Chip."

"Hello", said Chip, handing her the flowers and candy.  She looked rather confused.  Were these gifts meant for her?  Surely they were for the hostess.  Who was this tall, dark and handsome stranger?

"Rock and I are heading out to the lecture on ancient Esquimaux written languages.  Why don't you two take a canoe ride? There's a great little restaurant about 3 clicks down the river, Salmon Sam's.  Just watch out for the class VI rapids, they can be a little dicey this time of year. Have fun!" And with that they made a beeline to their ancient Land Rover.

Babs turned to look up at Chip.  "Well, we might as well make the best of it.  I'm always up for a little adventure."

"My kind of gal.  Let us proceed on."

She gave him a quick look and smiled.  "I like Lewis and Clark too."

The first part of the trip was uneventful as they floated down the river.  The long Yukon twilight cast dappled shadows and an elk grazed on the shore. Then suddenly shots rang out.  The canoe was struck and took on water fast.  "They're after my gold!", Chip shouted. "Gold?", shouted Babs.  "Yeah, I have enough to keep me going for the next few years."

"You do?!" Babs quickly swung her crossbow around and with true aim, she sent a bolt into the bushes. The sniper was taken care of.  But the damage had been done.  The canoe was taking water on rapidly and would soon sink. "We have to swim it!" she shouted, and jumped into the rapids. Chip followed suit.  They swirled down the river, dodging rocks and getting turned around and disoriented.  When they came out the other side, they were holding hands.

"I guess this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship", Babs said, and smiled at Chip.

Babs and Chip ended up happily ever after.  You too can have a great blind date. Live dangerously and check out a book from our blind date with a book display during the month of February.  And be sure to bring that date to the Love Your Local Artist event on Friday Feb. 12 from 5:30-8:00. Meet local artists as you sample wine and refreshments, listen to music, and bid on items in the silent auction.

Babs and Chip in "Terror on the Mountain!"

The following is based upon a true story.

They drove the truck up the last few miles of dirt road, the serpentine switchbacks taking them higher and higher until they were finally up above the treeline.  The drive up the mountain had taken them past little rivers and gentle waterfalls.  The sunshine had even peeked out a couple of times.  Now the mist shrouded everything. Earlier in the day Chip and Babs had spoken to an old timer that warned them of snow up on the mountain, but they were doubtful.  Snow in the middle of July?  Rain was much more likely.

Reaching a level spot at the end of the dirt road, they parked their sturdy 4-wheel drive and got out. The trail over the mountains was clearly laid out, a straight line traversing the side of the mountain just down from the top of the ridge until it bent out of sight around some boulders.

"Well, what do you think?  Still want to go on this adventure?" asked Babs, her eyes on the grey clouds looming.

"That's why we came all this way, isn't it?  We have no choice at this point.  If we wanted to back out we should have done it in Superior, or Denver even.  It's too late now.  We're here and we're going to proceed on."

"Proceed on?" she repeated with a smile.  "Those are the words Captain Clark used on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.  'We proceeded on'."

Chip smiled back.  "I knew that would get you motivated."

 Babs donned her foul weather gear-wool sweater, sweat pants, buff and scarf, and over all the thin green raincoat, As they headed down the trail all seemed well.  The wind blowing across the high moor was refreshing.  A family of marmots playing in the boulders drew her attention.  As they came to the bend in the path, they saw that it proceeded on ahead around another bend.  "We'll stop up there and see what there is to see", said Chip.

What there was to see was a steep  downward plunge into a deep chasm.  And more clouds.  Soon the wind began to whip up, the light faded, and the rain came lashing down.  Babs pulled up her hood and wished for warmer shoes.  Stopping to catch her breath she noticed the sky light up with a sharp fork of lightening.  The tremendous crash of thunder startled her so much she lost her footing on the now slippery slope and teetered on the edge of the chasm.  Chip, coming up from behind, grabbed her hand as she slipped over and pulled her back up.  But the rain was coming down so fast and hard that the path beneath their feet was beginning to wash down the mountainside.  If they didn't move fast, they would go with it.  Too late.  Even as the thought occurred, she felt the ground beneath her feet slip and slide.  Her tenners lost their grip.  "Chip!" she screamed, and she felt her hand slipping through his.

Well, that's how I like to tell the story.  It did rain while we were hiking.  Everyone needs a little adventure.

Want some adventure in your life?  A good start would be our display of Adventure books. And remember,

"It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage."
                                         

Beginner's Luck?

Last weekend I took the Basic Rider Course at WITC to get my class M Motorcycle Operator’s license.  I was somewhat nervous, having never been on a motorcycle before.  But I can ride a bike, so hey, it can’t be that different, right?  Within in my first half hour on the bike I fell over on it.  I now have the bruises and scuffed boots and a great story to tell about the time I wiped out on my cycle.

Perhaps I should have consulted the ‘Everything Motorcycle Book’, wherein I would have learned that you should not apply the brakes while making a sharp turn on your motorcycle.  Had I done some preliminary prep work, I may have earned my Class M Operator license.

How many times have you jumped into a project without the proper prep work?  Most of us find the preparatory work the boring part.  We want to get to it, make things happen, be finished, and succeed.  But a big part of success is being prepared for success.   

Being an absolute beginner at anything can be very intimidating.  You don’t know the terminology.  How should you hold the knitting needles, or the baseball, or the clutch?  What does knit 1 purl 2 really mean?  How much water is involved in painting with watercolors? Why is it called canning when I am using a jar?

Years ago, people often learned a skill from someone else in the home.  Maybe grandma taught you how to knit or crochet.  Dad threw the ball around with you after dinner, or Mom taught you how to back bread or can.  Today with two parents working and grandma and grandpa living in their own homes longer, many of these skills are no longer passed along and we are on our own if we want to learn them.

Before you go to a class, pick up the paint brush, or throw the ball, check out the library.  We have some great resources for absolute beginners.  The 'for Dummies' series is geared toward the absolute beginner, as are the 'Everything ________' books. The Children's Room is an often overlooked resource for the adult beginner.  You can find books in the Children's Room that explain things in a clear, concise manner.

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I will be retaking that class M license test.  But first I will review all I learned and practice, practice, practice.  Maybe on a scooter.

March Madness

"O, that way madness lies; let me shun that;
no more of that."
                                         King Lear


March Madness starts this Sunday. If you want to know more about it, check out http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/march-madness.htm. 65 (or is it 64?-so confusing) teams vying for the National Championship? I'm with King Lear on this one. May the best team win.

Merriam-Webster defines madness as: the quality or state of being mad: as

                                                           a. rage;
                                                           b.insanity;
                                                           c.extreme folly;
                                                           d. ecstasy, enthusiasm

Talk about extremes-from ecstasy to rage. We have all felt these feelings at one time or another. They are part of being a human being, and because we can identify with them they can make for a great story. In William Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' all of the above named emotions show up.  No wonder it is the most produced of Shakespeare's plays.

  Talk to the skull 'cause the face ain't listening.





 Love and madness seem to go hand in hand (see d above).  One of my own personal favorite books about madness and love is Susan Fromberg Schaeffer's 'The Madness of a Seduced Woman'. The protagonist is Agnes Dempster, a high strung young girl in 1890's Vermont, who leaves her family home in the country to begin a new life in the city.  Here she meets and falls in love with a young man, becoming more and more emotionally attached to the point of obsession.

Another favorite by the same author with some of the same themes is  'Time in its Flight'. This novel also takes place in Vermont in the mid-1800s.  Although it is a touching story of a marriage, a big part of the story is how the family deals with the madness of a daughter after the death of her husband and baby girl in a diphtheria epidemic.  I find this story fascinating because people really did go through this-whole families did die in epidemics, and still do today in some parts of the world. How do families deal with such heartache and pain?

For a different take on the them of madness read Ken Kesey's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'. Or watch the movie. Jack Nicholson's portrayal of Randle McMurphy as the criminal who ends up in Nurse Ratched's psychiatric ward is a good example of be careful what you wish for. Also see Jack in 'The Shining' as he spirals out of control in that lodge in the mountains.  Here's Johnny!

The last on my short list of madness books is 'A Beautiful Mind'.  "The true story of John Nash, mathematical genius who was a legend by age thirty when he slipped into madness, and who-thanks to the selflessness of a beautiful woman and the loyalty of the mathematics community-emerged after decades of ghost-like existence to win a Nobel Prize and world acclaim."  (from the book jacket).  I confess, I didn't read the book, but I did watch the movie.  A really wonderful, inspiring story of this man's triumph over  mental illness.

For more on madness check out the back counter display at the library.  Now I have to go fill out my bracket sheet. Happy March everybody!

Celebrating the Season: Winter

This period before Christmas is the time of year when I most enjoy Winter.  The snow is still a wonder-so pretty to see everything covered in that blanket of white.  The air is crisp.  The frosty scent still feels new.  In a couple of months I will be tired of moving the snow, and  it will be dirty, and the cold will have gone on too long.  For now, though, the quietness of Winter is a blessing.

This year I am taking a step back from Christmas to enjoy the season.  Maybe you want to, too.  Perhaps you are just exhausted with the whole production and want to simplify matters.  Maybe you have suffered a loss.  Or are worried about finances, or family, or whatever.  Or just sick and tired of all the commercialism and expectations that swirl around Christmas.  Winter doesn't have any of that. It is a quiet time to enjoy indoor pursuits and outdoor activities.

What could be nicer than hitting the trails on a pair of snowshoes or skis?  Or just taking a walk in the woods?  Even your own neighborhood takes on a new look in Winter.  The bare trees are lovely in their shapes against the sky.  The usual noises are muffled by the snow, and just the fact that less people are out and about because of the cold.  Some brisk exercise can be just the thing.  So can contemplative strolling. Just dress warmly!

Enthusiasts of downhill skiing and snowboarding eagerly watch the hills of Duluth to see those runs covered in snow.  Fishermen and women are checking out the depth of ice on the bay or area lakes so they can get out there and hopefully land that big one.  I always enjoy seeing the little ice houses dotting the bay as I go over the High Bridge.

After your exertions outside, a warm cup of cocoa and something hot to eat from the Crock Pot are perfect.  One of the best feelings we get, living in the Northland, is that transition from a cold outside to a warm inside.  Every room seems cozier, and home feels like a refuge.

If you can't or don't want to be outside, there are many meditative indoor pursuits.  Knitting or crocheting a warm scarf or socks is both productive and relaxing.  Google 'volunteer knitting' and you can find a home for those warm items. Of course, I always recommend reading.  And I have recently re-discovered the fun and challenge of a jigsaw puzzle.

Check out the Library's display of Winter themed books at the Blog display in the Library for more ideas and meditations on the season.  Wishing you all a peaceful, short Winter.

Star Wars! Halloween!

Do you remember when you first saw those words crawling across the screen and into outer space?  I was at Cinema 5 (?)  in Duluth with a girlfriend.  I was hooked-immediately and forever.

The library's annual Halloween Party theme this year is Star Wars. I can tell you, lots of people are really excited about this, from young children to hipsters to those of us who first lined up outside a movie theater to see Star Wars on the big screen that summer of 1977.  What is it about these films that, 37 years later, adults and children alike get excited at the prospect of trick-or-treating in that galaxy far, far away?

Google cultural impact of Star Wars and you will get lots of answers. There are scores of scholarly papers on Star Wars and the heroic archetype. Some mention the general climate of the 70's, as a factor in Star Wars' success.  As a country we were reeling from the effects of Watergate and the outcome of the Vietnam War. Other movies of the same time period echo that feeling.  Chinatown,  Serpico.  The Godfather.  These are gritty, tough movies.  Are there heroes here?  I suppose so, but they are drawn in grey.  Star Wars has black and white, good and evil, and a hero all in white.  Star Wars made us feel good about ourselves again.  No ambiguity here.

Some compare Star Wars' themes to those in other classic stories.  Star Wars and Shakespeare, with it's overtones of Hamlet.  Star Wars and Casablanca, with Han Solo filling the role of Rick and Mos Eisley standing in for the city of Casablanca.

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Some mention how Star Wars changed movies in their technical aspects and pacing. Watch any of the aforementioned films, or really anything pre-Star Wars.  I recently re-watched 'Rocky'. The pacing is S...L...O....W. Enter Star Wars.  Lucas discovered that the human eye could take in twice as many images as was the standard for films up to that time, and you can see it in the pacing.  Images fly across the screen, adding to the exhilarating experience of these films. The dialogue is fast too, almost a throwback to the 30's.

  Of course, being only 13 when the movie came out, none of that really mattered to me.  The images!  The special effects!  The story!  Han Solo!

Whatever the reasons, the Star Wars movies are now a fixture of American culture, and close to many peoples hearts.  I hope you all enjoy the party this Halloween.  It runs from 10:00-12:00 and again 2:00-4:00 on October 31.  Come as a Jedi, a Storm Trooper, or yourself. And may the Force be with you, always.

Of Blanket Forts and Books

It's official.  The kids went back to school this week.  The air has that crispness in the mornings that we love, but also secretly kind of dread, because we know what's just around the calendar corner.  I won't go into it here.

Even though I am long out of school, this time of year always brings me back to those first days before the start of a new academic year.  The anxiety dreams before school started-I can't find my locker ANYWHERE!  I am late for ALL my classes!  My alarm never went off, I am LATE FOR SCHOOL!  I didn't sign up for any of these classes, WHERE IS MY SCHEDULE?!  Lots of variations on the panic dream. And of course, just lots of stress in general, from "Who will I be sitting next to?"  to "I hope everyone likes this John Travolta folder." I think that sense of anticipation which gets so ingrained in you as a child that you can't  help but feel it still as an adult when September rolls around.

For myself, and many of my colleagues here at the library, reading was (and is) a great escape from a stressful world.  We all have that one favorite book memory, the one that can take us back in time to lying on the bed reading late at night, or making a fort out of blankets, with a glass of milk and some cookies, and a good book.  Someplace to hide from the world and enter a new one.  I asked some of the staff here what their favorite childhood book memories are, and the answers follow.

The 'Golden Stallion' series by Rutherford Montgomery. "I had a Breyer horse collection lead by my own Golden Stallion, a dashing palomino, and his mare buddy, Trey Spot, an appaloosa also from the
series. I spent many hours in horse fantasy with my pal who had her own favorite Breyer, Black Stallion. Golden and Black had many adventures together."

 'Daughter of the Mountains' by Louise Rankin.  Momo's treasured Lhasa Apso Pempa is stolen by traders travelling the Silk Road into India.  Momo follows them, trekking through Tibet, Nepal,
Bhutan, and India to find her beloved dog.  "I was absolutely fascinated by the exotice locale.  And I also wanted very badly to drink some butter tea, and acquire a golden Lhasa Apso for myself. I'm still on the lookout for a prayer wheel."

'Black Beauty' by Anna Sewell.  "Not only did I love the book, but my grandmother would tell my sisters and me stories from the book if she was babysitting for the evening. I still remember  listening to Grandma as she regaled us with Black Beauty's adventures."

"Here is my favorite book when I was very young (Rabbit Hill).  I loved animals for as long as I can remember (like a lot of people; nothing special there).  I remember little Georgie rabbit getting hit by a car, but recovers, and the book has a happy ending for all the animals.  Just resonated with me."

Other staffers mention 'A Wrinkle in Time' by Madeleine L'Engle, the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Nancy Drew Mysteries, and the Happy Hollisters.

And finally, here is a story that a staffer related to me.  The other evening, 2 staff members were talking about how their absolute favorite childhood book was "Anne of Green Gables."  A child came up to the desk with some books to check out, and one was "Anne of Green Gables."   When she was asked if she wanted to check it out she replied,http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/5-steps-to-building-your-own-epic-blanket-fort#4j501y0 "No, this is my own personal copy."  So good to know that another generation is discovering these wonderful books, and making their own memories about them.  I hope she went home and built a fort to read it in.

Click here for ideas for your own blanket fort! http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/5-steps-to-building-your-own-epic-blanket-fort#4j501y0

The Great American Road Trip

The romance of the open road is mythic in America. Just get in the car and drive.  Pack a cooler, stop at the wayside for lunch, and let the road take you wherever. North, South, East, West-the destination is not as important as the road to it.

Growing up, the Road Trip was eagerly looked forward to in my family.  At first they were short trips-camping in the Black Hills of South Dakota or Glacier National Park in Montana.  Then my older sister moved to the West Coast, and our Road Trips became much longer. Planning was almost as fun as going.  We would haul out the Rand McNally road atlas and plan our route. The drive itself was enforced down time, at least for us kids-no cell phones then, no CD or DVD players, no Sirius XM radio. Only the view out the window, whatever was on the local AM station, and some books.  Lots of napping. The afternoon ritual of finding a motel that my mother approved of.  Later on I made the same trips with my own kids.  A little more stressful than I remembered, what with having to be in charge of packing, but I had a great time.  And still, no entertainment other than the talking robot 2XL that my son had, and lots of books and napping. The Great American Road Trip is quantity time, but it somehow morphs into being quality time, too.

The Lewis and Clarke Expedition has to be the first Great American Road Trip.  They set off with the purpose of finding and easy water route to the Pacific and came upon many unforeseen obstacles and fortuitous meetings. 'Undaunted Courage' by Stephen Ambrose is a riveting account of their journey, and the inspiration for many a road trip following in their steps.

'Travels with Charley in Search of America' by John Steinbeck is another great Road Trip book.  Steinbeck took his dog Charley and drove across the US in a camper in 1960.  For a different take on roughly the same time period, try the classic 'On the Road' by Jack Kerouac.

The Road Trip has been used as the basis for lots of movies.  Here's just a few:

• Little Miss Sunshine
• Paper Moon
• It Happened One Night
• The Road movies of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope

If you want to plan your own Road Trip, I recommend 'Let's Go Roadtripping USA.' It covers every region of the country and parts of Canada, too.  Reader's Digest's 'Off the Beaten Path' will guide you to our country's hidden gems. And I still use the Rand McNally Road Atlas.  The Internet is great for researching specifics, but an atlas is full of possibilities.

 And as usual, your library has everything you need to plan and carry out your own Road Trip.  But I wouldn't recommend planning too much. Let the road be your guide.  Drive Safely!

Summer's Guilty Pleasures: in Praise of the Gothic Novel

Lying out on a blanket in the backyard, a Shasta pop near at hand. The scent of Johnson's baby oil (for getting a tan-no sunscreen in those days).  A good friend to share the blanket with.  And a book, most likely some gothic romance. These are the things that marked summer days when I was growing up.

With the warmer weather of summer beckoning,  many of us turn to lighter reading.  Beach lit.  Chick lit.  The romance novel.  Fantasy. We all have our guilty pleasures and summer is the best time to indulge in them.  One of mine is the gothic novel.

What is a gothic novel?  They have a few characteristics.  They generally have a real sense of place-most often a house-the more run down the better.  The protagonist is isolated, physically or metaphorically. There is a sense of decay, either in location (the aforementioned house) or circumstance (a family that has come down in the world).' Wuthering Heights' is a classic gothic novel.  Other, newer examples include:

     'Rustication' by Charles Palliser.  The protagonist is a young man who has returned home after being kicked out of Oxford for mysterious reasons, only to find murder and suspicion rife among the village's inhabitants.

 'The Witching Hour' by Anne Rice.  If you've been reading this blog awhile you will know that his is one of my favorite books.The story takes place in modern day New Orleans The heroine is a brilliant young doctor who returns home after the death of her mother and learns about her family and the strange hauntings of their decrepit Garden District home.

     The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters.  Set in post war Warwickshire, England , not only is the family house, Hundreds Hall, in decline, but a whole way of life for the upper classes of England is on the brink.

But I have to admit that my favorite guilty pleasure is still the gothic romance novel. I was first introduced to this genre with the book 'My Brother Michael' by Mary Stewart. It has all the hallmarks of the.gothic romance:

 the Young Heroine-Camilla Haven, British subject;
 the Exotic Locale-Delphi, Greece;
 the Handsome Stranger-Simon Lester, searching for his brother who has gone missing;
 and, of course, a mystery to be solved by our heroine.

To a 12 year old this was all pretty sophisticated stuff. Romance, mystery, British dialogue. Like Nancy Drew, but all grown up. I wanted more. I devoured Ms. Stewart's other novels: Nine Coaches Waiting, Touch Not the Cat, This Rough Magic and more.  I also discovered M.M. Kaye and her 'Death in' series: Death in Zanzibar, in Kashmir, in Kenya, in Cyprus.  Today when I see a battered paperback with a fuzzy drawing of a young woman sneaking around I am invariably drawn to read it.  I stash these away for vacations or long twilight evenings on the porch.

 

Whatever your guilty reading pleasure, get out a blanket, pour yourself a beverage, and settle down for a good read. And don't forget the sunscreen.

A Trip Back in Time....

May 1, 1888.

Picture a bright, clear Spring day.  Mr. John Doe is in his dining room, enjoying his breakfast and reading the two local papers, the Superior Inter-Ocean and the Superior Times. Mrs. Jane Doe is nearby, pouring coffee and going over her morning's correspondence.

"John", she says, "when you go to the polls this morning, don't forget to vote 'Yes' on the library ballot."

John nods his assent.  As though he could forget!  She has been badgering him about this topic for weeks.

"I know, Dear.  I believe as strongly as you that Superior needs a library.  The city is growing.  Someday we will be as big as Chicago.  All great cities need a library."

John Doe pecks his wife on the cheek and heads out the door.  He has several errands to do before he gets to his office today.  He has noticed an ad in the paper for a new barber.  Mr. Joseph Hinds, formerly of Duluth, has set up shop in rooms at McCormack's Saloon. Mr. Doe could use a haircut.  This week is his 2nd Anniversary.  He has plans to surprise Jane with tickets on the train to St. Paul.  And he must stop at Mrs. Dink's today.  She has a new shipment of millinery, and Jane was going on about a pretty blue hat she was admiring in the window. The hat will make a perfect anniversary gift.

But before anything else, Mr. Doe does the most important thing that he will do today. He stops at the polling place to cast his vote in favor of establishing a library in Superior, Wisconsin.

April 24, 1889

Jane sweeps into the house late on a blustery April afternoon. The sky is spitting snow, but inside it is warm and cozy. John is near the fire, buried in his paper as usual.

"I'm sorry to be so late, John," she says as she removes her cape and hat. " I stopped by the new library rooms to take a look around.  I met the librarian-Mrs. Delia Freestone.  She seems like a very nice lady, but she has her work cut out for her.  All those books to prepare!And  I heard that her wages are $35 a month.  She will definitely be working hard for them."

Library in upper right building

John nods and keeps reading.  "What's for dinner?", he asks.

March 1901

"Well, I see Mr. Carnegie is going to help Superior with the building of a library.  I suppose the city will have to cough up some money for that too. What's wrong with the one we have?"  John throws down the paper.

"But Dear,  it's such a small amount for such a good cause.  Little Billy only had that tiny library to use, but Little Sally will grow up having a proper library to go to.  The rooms they are using now are crammed to the ceiling.  This will be bright and airy, and so centrally located."

"You're right, darling. You usually are.  Now what are we having for dinner?"

June 1902

Jane and Little Billy walk happily through the doors, bringing the scent of lilacs into the house. Their arms are full of books. Even Little Sally has one.  All three are chatting happily about the new library.

"John, you missed the Grand Opening!  There were so many people there.  I think all 4 cars in the city showed up!  And the building is just gorgeous.  It looks so dignified."

John smiles at his happy wife.  When she's happy, he's happy.  But it's past time for dinner.

                                                             

September 1918

"Darling, I see in the paper that the East End library is finally opening.  Too bad it was delayed by that coal shortage last year."  John turns a page in his morning paper.

"Yes, now Billy's family will have a library much closer to their house.  It will be very nice for them-Little Billy Jr will be able to walk there. Who would have thought 30 years ago that Superior would end up with two libraries?  John, I never thanked you for your vote that day. You spoke for me, too, when you cast your ballot in favor of the library. And now not only our family, but many families to come, will enjoy the fruits of that decision. Thank you."

Thank you, indeed.

We're Gonna Party Like It's...1939

Did you know that this year the Superior Public Library is celebrating its 125th anniversary with a video contest?  Perhaps you wonder what libraries and movies have in common?  Well.....

Browsing the new book section recently, I noticed a new filmography-"Majestic Hollywood: The Greatest Films of 1939" by Mark A Vieria.

Films of 1939" by Mark A Vieria.  Well here is a coincidence! I had just watched "1939-A TCM Original Documentary" on Turner Classic Movies. Apparently 1939 was the pinnacle of Hollywood movie making. Why? I decided to dig a little bit deeper.

Of the ten movies nominated for Best Picture that year, over half have novels as their source material. They are:
 "Gone With the Wind" by Margaret Mitchell
 "The Wizard of Oz" by Frank L. Baum
 "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" by Victor Hugo
 "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck
" Goodbye, Mr. Chips" by James Hilton
 "Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte.
 And according to TCM.com, the source material for "Stagecoach" was a short story written by Ernest  Haycox and published by Collier's magazine in 1937. (By the way, if you're interested in reading any of these and then watching the movie, we can help you with that-the library has most of these titles in both formats.)

There has been a long association between movies and books. The 1902 French film "A Trip to the Moon" is loosely based upon Jules Verne's novels "From the Earth to the Moon" and "Around the Moon." 0watch it here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNLZntSdyKE

 More recently, of  the 2014 Academy Award nominees 4 of the 9 are based on novels or memoirs:
Captain Phillips-"A Captain's Duty:Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea" by Richard Phillips
Philomena-"The Lost Child of Philomena Lee" by Martin Sixsmith
12 Years a Slave-"12 Years a Slave" by Solomon Northup
The Wolf of Wall Street-"The Wolf of Wall Street" by Jordan Belfort

So to embrace the long historical link between the written word and film, as well as to celebrate our quasquicentennial, the Superior Public Library is proud to announce our 125th Anniversary Video Contest!

A Grand Prize of $250 is in the offing, as well as $150 for 2nd place and $100 for 3rd. The deadline to enter is August 31, 2014. Complete rules can be found atsuperiorlibrary.org Choose any genre you like-the only criteria is that it showcase one of Superior's public libraries, old or new.  Maybe you have some fond memories of the library-put them on film! (Well, actually digital.  Film has come a long way since 1939).