OUR "LIBRARY ROCKS" SUMMER READING PROGRAM made for a busy summer at the Library with around 492 people, kids through adults, participating in the reading program. We enjoyed seeing so many of our library friends showing up for books and conversation!

SEPTEMBER 17-23 IS CONSTITUTION WEEK. 

WHAT'S THAT, YOU ASK?

It’s your country’s foundation! It’s a week of celebration for the freedoms this country was founded on.  

The “first” Constitution, known as The Articles of Confederation, was ratified  in 1781, but through the years it was failing to accomplish it’s purpose. So, in 1787 The Confederation Congress, as the government was known, called a convention of state delegates to Philadelphia to propose a plan of government for revising the Articles of Confederation. 

It took  months, but finally on Sept 17, 1787 the draft constitution received unanimous approval and  was signed by the delegates. During this period of time in our country’s history, the populace was composed of the Federalists who wanted a strong central government, and the Anti-Federalists who wanted more power in the states and not in the central government. Needless to say, there was a lot of heated debate. By June, 1788 the constitution was ratified by the states and the new government along with its first president began. What a time that must have been! Maybe the discourse in politics today isn’t so new after all. 

I can’t say enough about the books we have here at the library concerning our nation’s history. There is so much history I really doubt many of us know about. I know I have been enlightened by just researching the information for this blog! There’s stuff I never knew had happened. 

Constitution Week is a good time to review our country's history and contemplate on how our freedoms came to be in the first place  - the sacrifices and lives that were given, the debates and compromises that occurred. In this current time of so much bickering and name-calling, it would do one well to read up on their history and remember what it actually took to become the United States of America.

COME SEE THE CONSTITUTION DISPLAY that the local DAR Chapter (Daughters of the American Revolution) has put together here at the library and learn something new about your American heritage.

CELEBRATE A SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAY by checking out a book by an author born in September. Of course there are many more September author birthdays to choose from, but here's just a quick list on a few of  the classics. (info from wikipedia.org)

September 15 (1890) is mystery writer Agatha Christie’s birthday. Born in Torquay, Devon in the southwest part of England, Agatha Christie is known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections. Her books have sold over a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. She is best known for her creation of the fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. Notable works include Murder on the Orient Express, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Death on the Nile, The Murder at the Vicarage, Partners In Crime, The ABC Murders, And Then There Were None,  and The Mousetrap  the world’s longest running play.

September 21 (1947) is American author Stephen King’s birthday. His books  of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, science fiction and fantasy have sold more than 350 million copies, many of which have been adapted into feature films, miniseries, television series, and comic books. King has published 58 novels, including seven under the pen name Richard Bachman, and six non-fiction books. He has written around 200 short stories, most of which have been published in book collections.

21 September (1866) is English writer H. G. Wells’ birthday. He was prolific in many genres, writing dozens of novels, short stories, and works of social commentary, satire, biography, and autobiography, including even two books on war games. He is best remembered for his science fiction novels. His most notable science fiction works include The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897),The War of the Worlds (1898) and The War in the Air (1907). He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature four times.

September 24 (1896) American author F. Scott Fitzgerald is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the “Lost Generation” of the 1920s. He finished four novels: This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned, The Great Gatsby, and Tender Is the Night. A fifth, unfinished novel, The Love of the Last Tycoon, was published posthumously. Fitzgerald also wrote many short stories that treat themes of youth and promise along with age and despair.