Book Clubs & More!

Borrow books from the checkout desk of the library hosting the group, or request to pick up a copy at your most convenient library location.

Computer Classes & Coaching @ Your Library

TECH HELP
Tuesdays, 5:30 to 7:30 PM
Wednesdays, 9:00 to 11:00 AM
Library: NORTHEAST COMPUTER LAB
A volunteer is in the lab to assist with computers at these times.

The Family War re-enacted @ Main Library, 2 pm on Saturday, Sept 6

The American War of Independence, like any war fought on home soil, pitted neighbor against neighbor.  Squabbling families, especially in the Southern colonies, sometimes used the excuse of war to continue feuds begun on the other side of the ocean. Territories changed hands often, leaving civilians loyal to both sides vulnerable to opposing military forces. As a result, wives left home and marched to the drum with their soldier husbands, bringing with them children and other household members.

Suzanne Adair, award-winning author of the Revolutionary War suspense novels Paper Woman and The Blacksmith’s Daughter, does a great deal of research for her writing by taking part in Revolutionary War reenactments with her husband and their two sons.  She portrays a camp follower of His Majesty's 33rd Light Company of Foot. Camp follower was the term for any non-combatant attending a military group: a soldier's wife, sibling, child, parent, servant, slave, artisan (blacksmith, wheelwright), merchant (stationer, green grocer), trader, or peddler, and it’s also the title of her third novel, due out this fall.

Suzanne Adair and her family will visit the Main Library at 2 PM on Saturday, September 6 to make a presentation about family life in the army during the American Revolution. In period clothing, they’ll discuss the place of non-combatant family members in the army and how family units coped in the military environment. Books will be available for sale following the free presentation. 

To learn more about the world of the American Revolution, see the American Library Association’s traveling exhibit honoring the tercentenary of Benjamin Franklin at UNCW’s Randall Library between August 22 and October 3.

The Lloyd Plantation Slave Cemetery @ Main Library, 1 pm, Sat, Sept 13

In the course of tracing her family history, Earnestine Keaton has reached back to slave ancestors who labored at Grange Farm for Revolutionary War General Robert Howe, and at Lloyd Plantation for State Senator Salter Lloyd.  Locating a slave cemetery on the old Lloyd Plantation was the defining moment in her search for a tangible place to visit those ancestors and honor their unmatched sacrifice. 

Earnestine Keaton has been researching the rich and interesting history of descendants of slaves residing along the Cape Fear River in lower Bladen and Columbus Counties, and their links to the Mississippi cotton lands, since 1995.  She and her sister Cecile Bryant have compiled more than 150 hours of oral history interviews on video and audio tape to date, and it was while conducting an interview that she learned of the Lloyd Plantation slave cemetery.

Ms. Keaton will speak about her research and findings at the Main Public Library at 1:00 PM on Saturday, September 13.  The free program is sponsored by the Library’s North Carolina Room and the Bellamy Mansion Museum.

Earnestine Keaton is the director of the Lower Bladen-Columbus Historical Society, which was formed to receive the results of her work in research, documentation and preservation. She has written numerous articles about Southeastern North Carolina’s African-American history for the Wilmington Star News, Columbus County News Reporter, Bladen Journal, Pender Chronicle and Wallace Enterprise. She is a passionate historian, declaring, “My mission is to convey some of the thoughts and feelings of the ancestors—the ones who left no written history but put it in the ears of their descendants, who kept it until I asked.”

Historian and writer Earnestine Keaton lives in Columbus County. A graduate of East Arcadia High School, she studied at St. Augustine College in Raleigh and later graduated from Long Island University in New York with a degree in political science.  Now retired after 26 years with Verizon Network Design Engineering, Ms. Keaton is a part-time instructor at Bladen Community College, East Arcadia Campus.

Reservations are not needed for this free program.  For further information please contact the Library’s North Carolina Room at 798-6305 or the Bellamy Mansion Museum at 251-3700, extension 104.

Books on the Big Screen @ Northeast Library, 2 pm, Saturday, Sept 13

Books have been adapted for the screen ever since the early days of motion pictures. And even though moviemakers have certainly worked their magic with classic novels and high-end literature, it’s genre fiction that really rocks the silver screen. Detective novels, westerns, romance, sci fi, sports, horror – you name it, it’s been filmed. Over and over.

With that in mind, the Northeast Regional Library presents a four-part book-to-film series featuring four novels from distinct genres and the films that followed. Read the book. See the movie. Discuss.

Films will be shown on the second Saturday of each month from 2 to 5 PM, beginning September 13. Books will be available at the library to borrow and read in advance or after the fact, and Lewis Beale will lead discussion after each film.  It’s all free!

Lewis Beale is a freelance writer who teaches journalism at UNCW. He’s been the film industry beat reporter for the New York Daily News and Los Angeles Daily News, and has worked as a feature writer for the Detroit Free Press. His freelance pieces have been published in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, and many other publications. He’s also appeared as a talking head on Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, NPR programming, and other radio and TV shows.

Here’s what’s playing at Northeast Library this fall:

September 13: The Detective Novel
Devil in a Blue Dress—book by Walter Moseley, film starring Denzel Washington

First published in 1990, Moseley’s book introduced black detective Easy Rawlins, a World War II vet trying to find his place in a corrupt and segregated society. The 1995 film, rated R for violence, language and sexuality, was a critical success but a commercial failure. It features a larger-than-life performance from Denzel Washington as Easy, and Don Cheadle’s startling turn as his homicidal friend Mouse.

Children under 17 must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian.

October 11: The Western
Shane—novel by Jack Schaefer; film starring Alan Ladd, Van Heflin, and Jean Arthur

November 8: Science Fiction
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?—novel by Philip K. Dick; film Blade Runner starring Harrison Ford and Edward James Olmos (R)

December 13: Sports
Fever Pitch—novel by Nick Hornby, film starring Colin Firth (R)

Memory Catchers start writing @ Northeast, 1 pm on Thursday, Sept 18

Are there stories in your family waiting to be told? Do you worry about what will be lost when you or your loved ones are gone? Do you wish you could preserve your own or your relatives’ thoughts for posterity?

Whether you have a few scribbles on slips of paper, recorded interviews, or computer files waiting for publication, come join us each month for Memory Catchers, a workshop about preserving the past through shared stories.

Under the guidance of Northeast Library’s manager, Paige Owens, participants will move forward with their projects through shared tips, brainstorming and hands-on exercises. Paige is a former writing instructor and has spent 30 years compiling her family stories.  She’s preparing the final manuscript for printing, living proof that if you stick with it long enough, it will happen!

It’s time to let go of wishing and thinking. It’s time to get those stories told. Join us!

Memory Catchers meets in the Northeast Library’s Watkins Room from 1:00 to 2:30 PM on the third Thursday of each month, beginning September 18.  Participation is free and no reservations are needed.

Public Library in Your Living Room @ Main, 12 noon to 4 pm, Sat, Sept 27

Did you know that the New Hanover County Public Library has a virtual library branch that's open twenty-four hours a day?  Learn how to access free library resources online 24/7 to help with homework and more!   

Students of all ages, parents, and teachers are invited to drop in at the 3rd floor of the Main Library anytime between 12 noon to 4 PM on Saturday, September 27, for a PowerPoint presentation about the online resources which are available to NHCPL users anytime from any Internet connection, tours, a scavenger hunt, refreshments, and prizes.

A brief PowerPoint presentation will provide a virtual tour of several online resources such as NC Live, NetLibrary, TumbleBooks, and Live Homework Help.   A scavenger hunt using the library’s online resources will follow the presentation.  Correctly completed scavenger hunts will be entered into the prize drawing for a gift card or a flashdrive.   Four lucky winners will receive a $25 gift card to one of the following places: Flaming Amy’s, Barnes & Noble, Learning Express, and Olive Garden.  We're also giving away a couple of really cool flashdrives embedded in rubber bracelets and advertising the Smartest Card!

Tours of the library will be offered at 1, 2, and 3 PM, starting on the first floor by the reference desk. While parents and older siblings are attending the program, story time and activities will be offered for preschoolers-2nd graders.

This program is free and no registration is required. Light refreshments will be served.  For more information contact Susan Wood at 798-6353, or the Children’s Department at 798-6303.

Join a One Book, One Community Discussion

An oddly-assorted quartet of students forms an ad hoc family at an enigmatic boarding school in a dystopian version of contemporary Great Britain.  Their struggles to decipher and steer their highly controlled lives form the plot of Never Let Me Go, a mainstream novel with a science fiction slant.

Never Let Me Go was named Time Magazine’s best fiction novel of 2005, among other honors.  Author Kazuo Ishiguro is a naturalized British citizen whose Japanese roots are evident in the tone of melancholy resignation that often surfaces in his highly regarded novels and screenplays.  His best-known work is The Remains of the Day, winner of the Booker Prize in 1989. 

Local librarians (public, university, community college, and public school) chose Never Let Me Go as the novel area residents will read and discuss together this fall for One Book One Community.  UNCW’s Synergy committee also decided to assign the book to the incoming freshman class.  Check out your opportunities to explore the novel and its ethical issues: 

·         Sept 11, 10:30 AM, Main Library, 201 Chestnut St:  Book Discussion

·         Sept 16, 6:30 PM,  Northeast Regional Library, 1241 Military Cutoff Rd: Book Discussion

·         Sept 23, 7 PM, Lumina Theatre, UNCW: UNCW Synergy Film Series (film titles listed at www.uncw.edu/commonreading/events.htm and www.uncw.edu/lumina)

·         Sept 25, 2 PM,             Myrtle Grove Public Library, 5155 S. College Road: Book discussion

·         Oct. 1, 6:30 PM, Dobo Hall, Room 134, UNCW:  UNCW Synergy Lecture “Consequences of the Genetic Revolution” with faculty from UNCW’s College of Arts and Sciences

·         Oct 6, two Readers Theatre performances of “Follow Your Heart,” a short story about organ transplantation by Richard Selzer.  Readers will represent the perspective of the donor’s family, the organ recipient, and the transplant physician.  Dr. Todd Savitt from ECU School of Medicine will introduce the program and facilitate the post performance discussion. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library and CFCC Library. 

o   Oct 6, 3 PM, L-107, Cape Fear Community College

o   Oct 6, 6 PM, Main Library 3rd Floor, 201 Chestnut Street

·         Oct 8, 7 PM, Lumina Theatre, UNCW:  UNCW Synergy Film Series  (film titles listed at www.uncw.edu/commonreading/events.htm and www.uncw.edu/lumina) 

·         Oct 20, 7 PM, Randall Library Auditorium: “Frankenstein: A Cultural History” What does the modern myth of Frankenstein and his monster tell us about human aspirations and reservations? Author Susan Taylor Hitchcock lectures on Frankenstein’s evolution from the antihero of a gothic romance to a loaded reference in the public debate over genetic engineering. Sponsored by Randall Library.

·         Oct 13 – Nov 7, Boseman Gallery, Fisher University Union, UNCW:  Madame’s Gallery: Student Art Exhibit. UNCW student interpretations of identical paint-by-number paintings express their own creativity and individuality through choice of color alone. Sponsored by UNCW Presents.

Copies of Never Let Me Go are available at all New Hanover County Public Libraries.  To borrow copies for a group discussion please schedule with Jimi Rider at the Northeast Regional Library, 798-6371 or jrider@nhcgov.com.

Get Your Used Books Here!

The Friends of the Library invite you to their fall used book sale, Friday, October 3 to Thursday, October 9 at the Northeast Regional Library, 1241 Military Cutoff Road.  You’ll find unbeatable buys on all kinds of books and audiovisual items!  Don’t miss the "Rare and Collectible" table, where real gems will be sold for less than the average collectors’ prices listed online at www.ABEbooks.com.

The Friends of the Library manage used book sales every spring and fall, and have added $536,536 to the Library’s always challenged book budget over the past 25 years. It’s a great recycling project from start to finish! Inventory comes from two sources: people like you clean out your shelves and bring in more books than the Library can use, and the Library itself weeds outdated, damaged, and duplicate materials. Leftover books are often donated to another charity—this past spring Home of Hope India picked up what didn’t sell.

The Members’ Preview is Friday evening, October 3.  Friends of the Library whose dues are paid through 2008 may browse and buy from 6 to 9 PM, after the Library closes at 5 PM.  If you’re not already a member we’d be delighted for you to join at the door for $15.

Beginning Saturday, October 4, the sale is open to all comers.  Prices plummet as the days roll by, until by the last day’s Yard Sale you can pick up a book for a dime or a stack of books a yard high for $1.50!

Post this schedule where you can’t miss the Friends of the Library Used Book Sale:

·         Friday, Oct 3, 6 to 9 PM:  Members Preview

·         Saturday, Oct 4, 9 AM to 3 PM

·         Sunday, Oct 5, 11 AM to 5 PM

·         Monday, Oct 6, 9 AM to 6 PM

·         Tuesday, Oct 7, 9 AM to 6 PM

·         Wednesday, Oct 8, 9 AM to 6 PM

·         Thursday, Oct 9, 9 AM to 3 PM:  Yard Sale

A Report from the Reading Bug

1579 readers of all ages caught the Reading Bug during our library’s first ever online Summer Reading Club. Between June 6 and August 22 club members logged 11,787 hours of reading and posted 911 reviews. Here’s how it broke down by age group:

This year’s Summer Reading Club is different from any we’ve hosted before in several respects. Signup and reporting were all done online, adults were finally allowed to join, prizes were scaled down considerably, and teens and adults had to post brief reviews in order for their reading time to count.  

Staff librarians were impressed by the books you picked and the thoughtfulness of the reviews you posted, and readers loved reading each others’ reviews. We think asking for reviews and offering fewer sugary treats for prizes puts the emphasis of the program where it belongs, on reading. We’re eco-friendly and short-staffed enough to love reducing the amount of paper and staff assistance the program needs by having you keep your logs online.

On the other hand, fewer people signed up than last year and we wonder why that is. We hope they don’t all require sugary treat bribes to read. We know a lot more reading went on than was reported—we loaned 127,706 items during July alone, a jump of almost 7% over July 2007, and 85,000 people visited our four library locations.

Was Summer Reading Club 2008 a success? You tell us. Watch for a survey early this fall, or go ahead and drop comments in the suggestion box at your closest library. Tell us how to trap more Reading Bugs next summer!