And Tango Makes Three is one of my favorite banned books. It is based on a true story of 2 male penguins at the Central Park Zoo in NYC, who raise an egg together. It provides a great example for kids about families which come in all variations. Based on an actual event, it allows the reader to explore his/her own observations about how adults take care of their young. An especially important message of tolerance can only be a positive in a world much to ready to judge and hate on sight.
Blog
Most memorable banned book by Mariah
While it is not my favorite banned book, one of the top 100 banned books really jumped out at me as one of the most memorable: Bridge to Terabithia. There are many reasons why Bridge to Terabithia is challenged, but one of them is that death is central to the plot. I read Bridge to Terabithia when I was around 9 or 10 and I remember being horrified. I remember liking it, liking it, and then – BAM! Death! I was shocked – books were supposed to be happy! But after I finished, I read it again. Over the years, I read that book many more times, even though it always upset me. Now that I’m older, I recognize the allure: kids need the option to read books that are scary, or sad. Life can be scary. Life can be sad. But in a book, that scary or sad (or both) is contained. It’s a safe space to explore those feelings, without actually having to experience a traumatic event. And when a traumatic event does come along, that story is still there to provide comfort, to assure you that you are not alone.
Banned Books Week is here!
All this week we will be celebrating Banned Books week here at the library. There will be a special display at the library, a dedicated pinterest board (join us here) and TPL staff will share some of their favorite banned books here on the blog. Do you have a favorite banned or challenged book? Let us know here in the comments, or on facebook or twitter. Here’s some links with more information about Banned Book Week:
http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/
http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/classics
http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10
http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top100
http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/challengedauthors
INVASIVES AT TPL
This past Saturday, Bernardo and I spent more time trying to distinguish between American and Oriental Bittersweet than actually ridding the garden of it. Needless to say, we left most of it in place but pulled some down off of of a small tree to prevent any future harm, and to provide an up-close photo for you viewers to help us identify.
Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) is an aggressive and invasive climbing deciduous woody vine. The leaves are difficult to identify because they are extremely variable, so should not be relied upon for identification. The leaves can be round to oblong in shape and appear as alternate, simple with bluntly toothed margins. Oriental Bittersweet propagates by seed and produces greenish white flowers in the spring. In the autumn, red berries are enclosed in yellow capsules. Oriental Bittersweet grows in thickets and can strangle trees and shrubs by entangling their stems.
American Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens L.) is native to Maine. It is also a climbing deciduous woody vine but is not nearly as aggressive as Oriental Bittersweet. American Bittersweet produces red berries but they are enclosed in orange capsules and appear only at the terminal ends of the stems, whereas on Oriental Bittersweet, berries and flowers can be found all along the stem at leaf axils.
Horseweed
HORSEWEED
I spent a little over an hour on Saturday pulling just one type of weed from the birdsong garden. The weather was beautiful and there was a pleasant wind which made weeding less a chore. This is a common weed known as Horseweed and can grow in almost any area of your garden. The weed can grow as tall as 2 meters, well taller than myself, and reproduces by seed. The seeds germinate in late summer or early spring.
The good thing about these weeds is that they have extremely shallow root systems
and you can pull them out quite easily.
Below, find additional photos of the Garden
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| The Birdsong Garden |
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| The new Teepee |
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| A view from the new Teepee |
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| Ornamental Grasses flowing in the wind |
Resources for Seniors
Are you a senior living in Topsham? Here are some online resources that could be helpful to you.
AARP www.aarp.org
Aging in Place www.aginginplace.org
Benefits Check Up www.benefitscheckup.org
Eldercare Locator www.eldercare.gov
Family Caregiver Alliance www.caregiver.org
Meals on Wheels www.mowaa.org
Medicare www.medicare.gov
National Council on the Aging www.ncoa.org
Senior Living Map www.seniorlivingmap.org
SeniorNet www.seniornet.org
Thanks to Charles Findlay for compiling this list.
Murder Mystery Dinner 2013
We had a great time this weekend at our annual Murder Mystery Dinner. A glamorous group from the 1920’s landed in a modern day
London flat courtesy of H.G. Wells’ time machine! The only thing is, someone murdered Wells and the time machine was broken! Whodunnit? There were many suspects: Dame Agatha Christie, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, William Yeats, Mae West, T.S. Eliot, Isadora Duncan, Dorothy Parker, Ezra Pound, Sarah Bernhardt, W.C. Fields, Georgia O’Keefe, Rudolph Valentino, Amelia Earhart, Bessie Smith, Charlie Chaplin and Lily Pad, the hapless owner of the London flat.
In typical English style, we ate roast beef and drank tea, before voting for the best costume and unveiling the murderer. The award for best costume was awarded to Grace Anderson (for the second year running!) as Rudolph Valentino with the runner-up awarded to Beverly Fox Martin as W.C. Fields. So whodunnit? Mae West (as played by Marjorie Whipple) in the bathroom with the rubber duckie!
A great time was had by all, and we can’t wait to do it again next year. As with all programs at TPL, the dinner was free and open to the public. Many thanks to the Friends of the Topsham Public Library, who raise funds so that programs like this are possible. Sounds like your cup of tea? Be sure to sign up next year!
More photos can be seen on our Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Topsham-Public-Library/215631671809. If you were a guest at the dinner and took some photos, please share them with us! Email emma@topshamlibrary.org.
Patron Review: Exile (Garnethill Trilogy) by Denise Mina
Definitely NOT a Cozy!
By Beverly A. Martin
I am hooked on Denise Mina’s writing. This, the second novel in her Garnethill trilogy, is meant to drag you, shake you, expose you, cause you thrills and anguish. Along with her Scottish wit which pokes itself through the muck and mire to greatly relieve you. This is gritty lit and not for the weak spirited. If you want to keep your brain engaged, but not keep your hands too clean, then dive in!!!
Exile by Denise Mina can be ordered through our inter-library loan system.
Would you like to write a patron review for the blog? Email emma@topshamlibrary.org with your review!
New York Times Best Sellers
Here are the New York Times latest best Sellers: fiction and nonfiction.
Secret Life of Insects
See what’s buzzing at the Topsham Public Library
Click the images to see closeups.
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| Butterfly on purple liatris |
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| Bumblebee on white liatris |
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| Moth hiding in a yellow lily |
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| Great Golden Digger Wasps and a Japanese Beetle share a Purple Globe Thistle |
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| Japanese Beetle on purple coneflower (Echinacea) |
The white dot that appears on the back of the beetle is where a Tachinid Fly glued its eggs to the beetle’s thorax. Later the larva will hatch and bore into the beetle, which is a healthy and natural way to keep the beetle’s population at bay.
Bumblebees on purple coneflowers (Echinacea)
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| Tandem Thread Waisted Wasps |
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| These two were very camera shy! |
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| Bumblebee and Great Golden Digger Wasp |
The black ant in the left photo is eating the sugary coating that surrounds the bud. The bud will eventually bloom to the flower in the right photo.
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| The Twice Stabbed Stink Bug on lamb’s ear is about to make the leap! |
