Manchester City Library

The Winter 2008-09 edition of MCL Notes is now online.  It has news, info on all our programs from now through February, and more.  (I won’t spoil it for you.)  You can also sign up to receive the newsletter by email.  It comes out quarterly.

Enjoy!

-Amy G.

Tomorrow and Wednesday morning, we are having the front foyer ceiling painted. They process requires a lift which will block all access to the Library through the front door. We will have the grates open but the doors locked with the stairs taped off. Please follow the signs to the Amherst street door or the children’s room door. When the painter finishes for the day we will reopen the front doors.

Many thanks for your patience.

I’m not a big reader - well, not books. I do follow a collection of blogs and news sites. This morning, though, I ran across a blog post that inspired me to reconsider. Apparently NPR ran a story this morning about author Stieg Larsson, whose first novel, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was published posthumously. Here’s what Denise at the Dover Public Library had to say about it:

…Stieg Larsson died in 2004. When Knopf picked up the rights for publishing it in the United States they needed to use some inventive marketing techniques since they had an unknown author who could not do book tours. First they starting giving out advance copies to booksellers, and basically to anyone who asked. They went so far as to take an ad out in the New York Times Book Review telling readers if they wrote asking for a copy they would get one in the mail. They also made use of bloggers. The books were already popular in Europe and so getting the book into the hands of some influential book bloggers was important. When the book was finally published it had glowing blurbs on the back from Michael Connelly, Lee Child and Harlan Coben, and debuted at #4 on the New York Times Best-Seller List.

The reviewers in our catalog have given it mixed reviews (”The first 200 pages of this novel was like watching grass grow….”) but it is currently #17 on the NY Times Best Seller list so I bet there’s something to it.

In honor of Veteran’s Day, Hippo Press and the New Hampshire Aviation Musuem are showing a silent film called Wings tonight in the library auditorium.

From the press release:

‘Wings’ which won the very first Academy Award for Best Picture, is generally recognized as one of the greatest achievements of the silent film era. This screening is free and open to the public. Donations will be encouraged, with all proceeds used to benefit the NH Aviation Historical Society’s activities. This movie is sponsored by the NH Aviation Historical Society and the Hippo Press.

The library is hosting the event, but not directly sponsoring it. The film begins at 5:30 p.m. Admission is free, but donations will go toward the aviation museum. For more information, please contact NH Aviation Historical Society at 669-4820.

         John Michael Crichton died unexpectedly on November 4th ”after a courageous and private battle against cancer”. Crichton was a well known novelist and filmmaker, famous for works like: “The Great Train Robbery”,  ”Coma”, “Jurassic Park”, “Lost World”, “Timeline”, “Congo” and the hit television series ER.  One of my fondest memories is one of those rare moments;  a sibling adventure whereby my brothers and I went to see Jurassic Park together in the new theatre multiplex in Concord.  Together we watched a furious and berserk Tyrannosaurus rex trash the museum and scientific laboratory that created it.  My younger brother watched in awe as the dinosaurs that he loved to study came to life in front of him–his bag of Reese’s Pieces forgotten in his tensly clutched hand.  One wonders how the Museum of Science in Boston or the Currier Museum would fare against such a T.rex onslaught???  Crichton excelled at weaving stories that melded futuristic science with fantasy, adventure and added a dash of thrill and horror that could leave readers on the edge of their seats or hiding under their beds. The worlds and scenarios that Michael Crichton brought to life on page and screen were rich and descriptive and his stories were engrossing, compelling and adventurous.  I hope that I am not alone in thinking that the world is a somewhat smaller and darker place without Michael Crichton and his creative talent in it. 

                                                                                        ~Yvonne~