Share with us – what makes a Book Club a great experience?

October is National Book Club month!  Book Clubs have become a national phenomenon.  There are book clubs for teens, women, seniors, cooking enthusiasts, etc.  The Fairfield Library has hosted the monthly Book and Sandwich for over a decade led by Fairfield resident Eileen Haas.  The Library offers two book clubs for teens. Book Worms is our popular children’s book discussion group. One of our  services is our Book Club room all set up with comfortable chairs, a window overlooking Post Road, multiple copies of works, and reading guides developed by Valerie Fredericks, the Head of Reference.

We would like to know what makes a Book Club a great experience? We know some of you love your book clubs. Why? The people who participate? Common reading interests? A chance to talk about reading? A social experience? An opportunity to share your passion for reading with like-minded people? Great food to enjoy?

One more question – would you be interested in joining a new Book Club? If yes, what would be your preference in terms of focus of the book club? Fiction? Bestsellers? Classics? Edgy new urban literature? Humorous? Non-fiction? Biography? Politics? History?  Let us know – perhaps we can help to start one.

If you are a member of a Book Club let us know you exist! Give us a contact email so we can pass ideas onto you. We would love to show you around our Book Club Room and other resources. For example, have you signed up for the BookNews service where you receive alerts about new books, a chapter-a-day, etc.?

 In short — we would love to share our passion for reading with you!

Good things do come in small packages!

In an multi-tasking effort to get some exercise, enjoy the outdoors, and catch up on some reading I have taken to a new format available from our library – the playaway. The playaway is the smallest of recorded books. All you need is a pair of earbuds and you are on you way to enjoying this convenient technology. It is a small device with the content of one book on it. It weighs very little and fits into a small purse, a pocket or can hang around your neck comfortably. One read of the instructions and you know how to turn it on, adjust the volume, speed up the pace of the speech, pause it, and stop it. When I do get the guilty urge to go for a jog and read something at the same time the playaway is perfect.  I have listened to Nathaniel Philbrick’s Mayflower in a week of jogs. I am now listening to James Joyce’s the Dubliners. Somehow I found being told these stories more palatable than slogging through the printed word. And I am starting to consider what great listen will accompany me on my late summer vacation.  New playaways are available right now for you. Here are the newest titles:  The Canon:  A Whirligig Tour of the Beautifiul Basics of Science (Angier); Dubliners (Joyce); First Things First (Covey); Founding Fathers: Architects of a Nation (Encyclopedia Britannica); Gone (Kellerman); Halsey’s Typhoon (Drury); Interpreter of Maladies (Lahiri); The Number (Eisenberg): Open House (Berg); The Photograph (Lively); Purpose Driven Life (Warren); Suite Francaise (Nemirovsky); and The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make a Difference (Gladwell). Just access the library’s online catalog here and select your next great listen.

Dog Days for Reading are Here!

OK I figure we only have one solid month of beach and fun fickle reading in earnest left before our minds turn to more “business-like” reading for work or school. So let’s get going and finish the Harry Potter (I hear most of you have already) and devour what we can in terms of playful reading. We have 24 copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows as Express books so you may borrow them for one week. We see people excited about the prospect of seeing one of these books become available and grab it.  For the dog days of summer reading people don’t necessarily want to be surprised by a change in the style or format of a favorite author’s work.  Readers are looking for the predictable thrill from a solid author.  People are fans of certain authors because they are somewhat predictable. In the summer you may not want to be challenged but entertained. Pick up the popular works of Michael Connolly, James Patterson, Karen Robards, Janet Dailey and James Lee Burke and revel in the expected – a good predictable read. Just click here to put a hold on books by these authors.

Teens continue to read up a storm.  Teen Librarian Nichole Scherer made good her promise to cut her beautiful auburn hair off when teens reached the 50,000+ page mark. 

And children have set a new record with over 1,000 young readers participating in the Summer Reading Game! Congratulations!

Summer reading is a hot activity!

We are fast approaching the dog days of summer and Fairfielders are reading up a storm! Over 909 children signed up for the Summer Reading Game!  Come in and sign up, read away and earn a ticket to a great mime show in August. Teen programs are popular!  Pleasure reading is so popular our teen librarian is busily shelving books daily. Our librarians applied temporary tatooes when the teen reading total reached 25,000. 

 

Nearly 50,000 pages have been read! We bought 50 copies of the new Harry Potter book in advance and we have over 50 holds! Hint – we may have a few more copies shortly!   Multiple copies of adult books are flying off the shelves.  Library volunteers Mary Jo Cornell and Judy Fox have delivered fun reads to Penfield Pavilion and the Fairfield train station. Volunteer Dorothy Cheney will be delivering books to Lake Mohegan this week. Thanks to the Friends of the Library these books are available on brand new shiny blue spinners. Grab a book, read it, and return it or replace it with something you liked!

Summer is a busy time for Fairfield librarians too! We are helping you to make your library experience the best it can be and we are planning wonderful programs and services for you for the fall season. The next Newsletter will be published in August and a new program calendar outlining adult and teen programs will be available in September. Look for the new Children’s program calendar in September too! Please share your ideas and opinions by making a comment using this blog. It is easy and helps us to make the library even better for you!

BookNews – stay informed about new books and events at the Library!

Too busy to sit down and read a newsletter at leisure? Looking for ideas for your next great book to read? Want to find a fun program for your teen to attend? Would like a reminder about programs this week? Then consider this – BookNews – a new service we launched this week.

You provide us with your email address and choose among a selection of great electronic newsletters and you will soon receive news about new books and other materials and events at the Library. This is a great way to stay informed about what new items are available for your enjoyment and what events are being offered to the community by simply accessing your email account. 

You can receive the bi-monthly Library newsletter and the Teen newsletter via email. Each week you can receive This Week at Fairfield Public Library and Teen Blast This Week.  The seasonal “Children’s Program Calendar of Events” will now be available via email. Branch users can find out about events at that library when they sign up for the Fairfield Woods Branch Library Events electronic newsletter. For book enthusiasts you can choose among a variety of other newsletters focusing on new books with links to our catalog where you can place a hold on that item.  Book lovers who can’t find the time to read can choose to subscribe to “Chapter A Day” and receive an audio recording of a book chapter every day in their email box!  Book Club members can discover a new book when subscribing to Book Club Choices.

We hope BookNews will be another way we can reach out to you! Let us know what you think of this new service the next time you are in the library.  Just click here to access the Library website and sign up today!

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions by calling 256-3155.

Good News Abounds!

The Friends of the Fairfield Library have helped the Library tremendously.  When we needed extra funds for the main library renovation the Friends stepped up and provided support. Now we are in the new building and we have a sense of renewal and excitement. We are thrilled to announce the Friends will provide funding for the Second Annual Soundwaves Concert Series starting this fall.  You will have the chance to enjoy five world class concerts this fall and winter.  We will also be introducing a Museum Pass program for adults. Our museum pass program for children (available at the Main and Branch) have been very popular. The Children’s Library will be starting two new programs:  Getting ready for kindergarten and Little Learners Circle Time Totes in Fairfield.  We will continue to place fun beach books at Penfield Pavilion and Lake Mohegan in attractive new spinners.  Library programs will be enhanced with  portable stage and a portable lectern at Fairfield Woods Branch.  The support of the Friends will help make your library experience that much more special! 

More news - join us in welcoming our new Branch Librarian - Nancy Coriaty! She returns to Connecticut after a wonderfully successful career working in Cape Cod and West Palm Beach. Nancy was instrumental in intiating teen services, enhancing the children’s department, and planning new space at the West Palm Beach Library.  Stop by and say hello and let her know what you would like to see at Fairfield Woods. 

More good news? Well we are in the midst of the great summer read for children, teens and adults. We have purchased multiple copies of great books to make your summer special. Check out our revamped non-fiction collections with new books about computers, house renovation, fine arts, how to do math and science.

Now we are planning for fall and winter programming. Look for exciting new offerings in September!

Summer Reading begins with a vengeance!

We all know about the school summer reading lists for students. The Library buys multiple copies so as many students as possible can get their hands on them and enjoy a good read.  Teens have their own special reading lists for middle- and high schoolers all ready and waiting in the Teen Services areas at the Main and Branch libraries.  And what about the adults? One of our very own voracious readers creates a list each month of great reads. Click here to see the list. But what if that is not enough? We can peruse bestseller lists and watch TV talk shows. However I find the very best endorsement of a good book is made by a friend or family member who enjoys the same great read as you do.  For those people who like thrillers, are fascinated by political figures or just love reveling in the quirkiness of other peoples’ lives you might find these books interesting. Summer reading has begun for me! Now the real escapist adventures begin – Jonathan Kellerman’s Obsession was my best friend this weekend. Then onto more gossip from Tina Brown about Lady Diana’s foibles in The Diana chronicles. What next? Well what about A woman in charge: the life of Hilary Rodham Clinton by Watergate raconteur Carl Bernstein. Then back to pure fluff: The sleeping dolly by Jeffrey Deaver. And then some more fascinating biographical reading:  Fathers and sons:  the autobiography of a family by Alexander Waugh. Click here to go to the library website and place a hold on these fun reads!

Book and author appetite whetted!

Last weekend Book Expo took place at the Javits Center in New York.  Thousands of people attended including 4,400 librarians from across the country. For newbies Book Expo can be overwhelming until you embrace the frenetic pace and dive right in. Just imagine rubbing shoulders with acclaimed authors who you have worshipped from afar. What about getting your hands on many of the 175,000 books published each year?  You can get a firsthand look at the forthcoming titles and discuss publishing trends with representatives from big name publishing houses. You can revel in the love of books with all the other book lovers. You can chat up authors to see if they would be interested in visiting your hometown library.  You can stare at those more interesting characters dressed in suits with maps of highway I-95 painted on them or people dressed up as storybook characters.  This fabulous annual trade show brings together all kinds across America celebrating that sumptious feeling - the love of books!

Share with us – - What makes a good book a great book?

My family is a reading family. I just spent a week with my parents lately and we resumed our lifelong rhythm of reading whenever we can “steal” a chance. Some days it felt we are doing things in between reading bouts. We start our day reading the paper, we read in lines while waiting at the grocery store, we read in cars as passengers, we read to relax before sleeping, we read sublime passages to each other across international time zones, and there is no better valued gift than a “good book.”

But what makes a good book a great book? In my opinion, different books provide different experiences. Some books inform the reader about the world. Some are less concrete and provide fodder for musing about life. Others connect us to other people through biography, history, etc. What about the book that makes you laugh out loud? Books can stimulate development of ideas and understanding. Books can bond you to others by sharing a reading experience. Books are marvelous companions for so many different life experiences. A question for you — in your opinion, what makes a good book a great book?

Thank you to Volunteers!

On Tuesday April 24 the Library hosted a lunch for all of our volunteers who have been helping us with many jobs over the past year.  We invited over 170 people to join us to  have a nice meal and conversation with library board members and staff. As you may know we have many people helping us apply RFID tags to the collections at the Main Library. We are so grateful to everyone who has helped with this project. Now we do see a light at the end of the tunnel and hope to be finished in August.  Many people have adopted a shelf at the Main and Branch Libraries. Every person is responsible for keeping a shelf in order and letting us know if there are books in need of repair or replacement. Other people have helped us with special projects in children’s services. Students needing community service have helped us with short-term projects. 

Currently we are developing new volunteer opportunities.  Teen librarian Nicole Scherer may be setting aside certain days where students can help us tidy up the shelves, collections, etc. Very shortly we are going to ask people who are really tech-savvy to become computer lab assistants.  We will ask them to help computer users in the lab to be as productive as possible. They will help people to troubleshoot those pesky problems that arise such as sending emails, printing documents, and saving documents. 

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer please contact the Library and come in and ask for a volunteer application. Alternatively you can download the application from our website by going to: www.fairfieldpubliclibrary.org/friends-volunteerap.pdf . Maureen O’Rourke, our  crack “Volunteer” Volunteer Coordinator will review your application and then give you a call to set up a meeting. During the meeting you can  discuss what you are interested in doing and how that might fit the needs of the library. For more information, please contact Maureen V. O’Rourke at mvor@optonline.net.