Do you need another reason to go to the library in May?

Published 10:00 am Thursday, May 16, 2019

We are continuing to have a book sale running at the front of the library. The inventory changes daily and every two weeks we start all over again with all fresh books. There are some fantastic bargains to be had and all proceeds from the sale get plowed back into library operations.

Our summer reading programming will start at the end of the month. This year’s theme is A Universe of Stories. Look for a lot of rockets, stars, galaxies, aliens and spaceships in library land!

Registration for summer reading starts May 24, with the official kick-off events happening the next week. The library will participate in the summer feeding program again this year, with our first Lunch at the Library being on June 3 at 11:30 a.m. All children present between the ages of 1-18 will be provided a lunch to be consumed on site.

There is also a short program designed to encourage critical thinking and literacy skills – kids can lose a lot of the progress they have made during the school year in the summer if not regularly challenged.

Community Storytime every Thursdays at 10 a.m. for the younger people (from 2-5 years old) and their grownups. May’s themes are Mother’s Day on May 16, gardening on May 23 and we will finish off the month with Space on May 30.

Summer Reading starts! For the teens our kick-off party will be happening at the Tift County Bowling Lanes (105 Parkway Dr) on May 28 from 5–7 p.m. Teens attending this event will have to pay for their snacks, but the bowling will be free. For the younger set (ages 0-12) the blast-off party will be Friday, May 31 from 2-3 p.m. here at the library.

Can’t keep track of it all? It is especially difficult in the summer with all that we have going on. Friend us on Facebook, subscribe to the newsletter, or check our Google calendar attached to our webpage (tiftonlibrary.org). Or call the library at 386-7148 for more information. This is truly the best way to keep current with all our programming details.

What’s new to read?

If you are a dog lover and looking for a sweet, quick read, consider “A Dog Called Jack.” Ivy Pembroke (she is a lawyer by trade) tells the story of Jack, the abandoned dog that helps the neighbors of Christmas Street in London create the kind of connections that result in a richer and happier community.

Bonnie Kistler is another lawyer-turned-author. She has written “House on Fire,” which poses the question. Could you forgive your daughter’s killer – even if he was your son? Leigh and Peter blended their two families and had made a good life for themselves, until the night Peter’s son Kip crashed a truck coming home from a party and killed Leigh’s beautiful 14-year-old daughter. Kip is charged with manslaughter and the ensuing investigation and trial is likely to tear what is left of the family completely apart.

Erin Somers’ first novel is “Stay Up with Hugo Best.” Hugo Best is a 60-something, wildly popular, late night host who decides that he has had enough of the late night circuit and decides to quit. He throws a party for his now unemployed staff and meets June Bloom, a very smart woman half his age who has worked for him for years, but never spoken to her boss. They strike up a conversation and Hugo ends up inviting June to his Greenwich mansion for the Labor Day Weekend. June, in need of a job and hoping Hugo will further her career and with no delusions as to what this weekend probably will entail, agrees to come.

Book Two in the fantasy series The World of the Others is out! “Wild Country” introduces us to the ghost town of Bennett, one of the many towns where humans were totally wiped out in retaliation for murdering members of the tribe/race known as The Others. Now Bennett is being resettled by both humans and Others, in a kind of social experiment and a community is gradually coming to life. But, as is always the case, success draws the attention of factions eager to exploit good fortune. Will the arrival of these unwanted elements unite the fragile community or destroy it? “Lake Silence” is the first book in Anne Bishop’s series.

Franz de Waal has spent more than 40 years researching animal behavior and lives in Atlanta. His latest book is called “Mama’s Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us About Ourselves.” Dr. de Waal’s particular interest is the parallels between the emotions he observes in various species of primates and humans. This is more a collection of anecdotal observations of animals than a scientific study. If you enjoy reading Jane Goodall or Gerald Durrell, give this one a try.

Watching Rick Steves always makes me want to pack a suitcase. We have added a couple of his travel guides to the collection lately. Spain and Iceland guides provide suggestions for where to go, what to eat, museums that should not be missed and how to travel smart.

“Shoot for the Moon: The Space Race and the Extraordinary Voyage of Apollo 11” is James Donovan’s telling of the mission that put Americans on the moon. This is very well reviewed; Mr. Donovan is a bestselling history author with a number of successful titles to his name.

Another new historical addition is Lynne Olson’s “Madame Fourcade’s Secret War,” the little known story of Marie-Madeleine Fourcade, the woman who headed the largest spy network in occupied France during World War II.

Did you know?

We have a long standing computer class that meets every Friday morning at 10 a.m. This class is designed so that anyone who has any kind of question about an e-thing (that might be a computer, a tablet, a phone an e-reader, or some other gadget) can come in and ask a specific question about their device and get some help in making it do what it should.

Questions we have worked with in the past include queries about how to update GPSs, program phones, attach pictures to emails, set up email accounts, and install and use RB Digital to download and read e-books from out collection for free.