Jami Attenberg, Rosie Schaap, and Meg Wolitzer

Tuesday, July 2 at 7 p.m.

Jami Attenberg, author of The Middlesteins
After two kids and more than 30 years, Edie and Richard Middlestein’s solid family life together is disintegrating due to Edie’s lifelong obsession with food—she eats, sleeps, and dreams about her local Chinese restaurant. When Richard jumps ship, it’s up to the next generation to take charge. Robin, the schoolteacher daughter, is determined that her father pay for leaving Edie. Benny, an easy-going, pot-smoking family guy, just wants things to be copacetic. His uptight wife Rachelle, who obsesses about being uber-thin, is intent on saving her mother-in-law’s life, but this task proves more complicated and a lot more emotionally draining than planning her twins’ extravagant b’nai mitzvah party.

Rosie Schaap, author of Drinking with Men
Starting with her misspent youth in the bar car of a regional railroad, where at 15 she told commuters’ fortunes in exchange for beer, and continuing today as she slings cocktails at a neighborhood joint in Brooklyn, Schaap has learned her way around both sides of a bar and come to realize how powerful the fellowship among bar patrons can be. Now in a poignant and deeply funny memoir told from a distinctively female perspective, Rosie celebrates the camaraderie and community one can only find at her local haunt.

Meg Wolitzer, author of The Interestings
The summer that Nixon resigns, six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable. Decades later the bond remains powerful, but so much else has changed. The novel follows these characters from the height of youth through middle age, as their talents, fortunes, and degrees of satisfaction diverge.

A book signing will follow the authors’ presentations. Books will be available for purchase at the event. Refreshments will be served.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

Image courtesy flickr user NatalieMaynor

Wednesdays in July and August, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

The great harvest is upon us. Stop by Darien Library's booth at the market every Wednesday this August to renew a book, find a delicious recipe, obtain a library card, trace the provenance of an exotic vegetable, or check out a popular cookbook. Our librarians will be on-hand to answer your most pressing produce-related questions.

We will be there rain or shine! The Darien Farmers Market is located in the Goodwives Shopping Center, 25 Old Kings Highway North.

image courtesy flickr user epSos.de

Wednesday, July 10 at 10 a.m.

In this hands-on workshop, baristas from NEAT will walk participants through the fundamentals of selecting, storing, grinding, and brewing coffee at home. Please register for this workshop online.

image courtesy flickr user thalita-carvalho

Thursday, July 11 at 10 a.m.

Did you know that you can download works that are in the public domain onto your eReader device? There are a ton of classic works of literature available because their intellectual property rights have expired. We’ll walk you through the process of downloading these ebooks so they are yours to keep.

Sunday, July 14 at 5 p.m.

World-class harmonica virtuoso Jia-Yi He plays different kinds of harmonicas: Chromatic, Diatonic, Tremolo, and Bass, as well as the largest harmonica and the smallest harmonica in the world. For this performance, he will be accompanied by a string quartet.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

image courtesy flickr user Lotzman Katzman

Wednesday, July 17 at 10 a.m.

Have you ever noticed the variety of brewing devices on the market? Are you curious about expanding your coffee brewing arsenal? Representatives from NEAT will teach you the differences between the methods and help you brew the best coffee no matter the occasion and device. Please register for this workshop online.

image courtesy flick user Josh Bancroft

Thursday, July 18 at 6:30 p.m.

With so many apps on the market, it can be difficult to know which ones are best. Luckily, our tech experts have sifted through them to bring you the best apps this summer. We’ll present a curated list of apps designed to help you de-clutter your home, body, mind, and spirit.

Refreshments will be served.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

We will screen HAPPY Friday, July 19.

Friday, July 19 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. - Happy (2011) Documentary Feature ; Not rated; 78 minutes.

Does money make you happy? Kids and family? Your work? Do you live in a world that values and promotes happiness and well-being? Are we in the midst of a happiness revolution? This film sets out to answer these questions and more. Taking us from the bayous of Louisiana to the deserts of Namibia, from the beaches of Brazil to the villages of Okinawa, Happy explores the secrets behind our most valued emotion.

"A pleasant if lightweight plea for folks to quit the rat race and stop and smell the roses." -- Dennis Harvey, Variety

For more information, please watch the film's trailer.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

Meditation Mondays

Mondays at 7:30 p.m., July 22 to August 5

Bring a little quiet meditative space into your daily life with this contemplative start to the week. Participants are encouraged to bring a throw pillow for their own comfort but no special dress is required for this beginner class.

The program will be led by Julie Punishill, a graduate of the two-year intensive training program at the Institute for Conscious Counseling and Coaching in Essex, MA.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

Dagmara Dominczyk [photo credit Patrick Wilson]

Thursday, July 25 at 7 p.m.

Dagmara Dominczyk, author of The Lullaby of Polish Girls, will be our featured speaker.

The Lullaby of Polish Girls follows three best friends from their early teenage years on the lookout for boys in Kielce—a town so rough its citizens are called “the switchblades”—to the loss of innocence that wrecks them, and the stunning murder that reaches across oceans to bring them back together after they’ve grown and long since left home.

Praise for The Lullaby of Polish Girls

“In this arresting debut novel, Polish American film and TV actress Dagmara Dominczyk pays homage to her native city of Kielce while capturing the joys, insecurities, and struggles of three girlfriends coming-of-age. Spanning 13 years, Dominczyk’s absorbing story is a triptych of tęsknota (Polish for a kind of yearning) and a profound desire for acceptance, freedom, and home.” — Booklist (starred review)

“This gossipy, feisty debut . . . follows a trio of friends across decades and the Iron Curtain, from Communist Poland to adulthood in the U.S. . . . Fresh and revelatory.” — Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Dagmara Dominczyk was born in Poland and immigrated to New York City at the age of seven. She has acted in numerous films, TV series, and plays. Most recently she appeared in the motion picture Higher Ground and on Broadway in Golden Boy. She is married to the actor Patrick Wilson, with whom she has two sons. She lives in New Jersey.

Books will be available for purchase at this event. Refreshments will be served.

First Look Darien is our debut author series designed to spotlight first novels handpicked by our staff.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).