A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam

Our Fall Book Discussion Series continues on Tuesday, October 13th at 7 p.m. with A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam. Set mainly in the 1970s against the backdrop of Bangladesh's Liberation War, A Golden Age is the story of one woman's experiences. Rehana ia a widowed mother of two almost-grown children with ties in both East and West Pakistan. The story is about her heartbreak, activism, resolve, risks, and choices. This is one that's destined to become a classic. Come and discuss it with us.

"Compelling…Anam is cracking open secrets, personal and political, to let the healing begin." -- O magazine 

"In this striking debut novel . . . Anam deftly weaves the personal and the political, giving the terrors of war spare, powerful treatment while lyrically depicting the way in which the struggle for freedom allows Rehana to discover both her strength and her heart." The New Yorker

Following the discussion of A Golden Age, the upcoming discussion books are:

Tuesday, November 3, 7 p.m.: The Painter from Shanghai by Jennifer Cody Epstein

Tuesday, November 17, 7 p.m.: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

On Tuesday, December 1 at 7 p.m., Dr. Mark Schenker, Associate Dean, Yale College, of Yale University will present the lecture: "Imagined Travels to Real Places: How Fiction Connects Us to Places We've Never Been."

For more information about the Series, click here.

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

Our Fall Book Discussion Series begins on September 29th at 7 with Little Bee by Chris Cleave. This popular novel has had the world abuzz with praise since its release in February. Here's a glimpse of what the press has been saying. 

"...[an] immensely readable and moving second novel... The character and voice of Little Bee reveal Cleave at his finest... An affecting story of human triumph."-- New York Times Book Review

"Little Bee will blow you away....In restrained, diamond-hard prose, Cleave alternates between these two characters' points of view as he pulls the threads of their dark -- but often funny -- story tight. What unfolds between them...is both surprising and inevitable, thoroughly satisfying if also heart-rending."-- Washington Post 

Please join us and share your thoughts.

For more information, click here.

This past Saturday, approximately 130,000 people attended the annual National Book Festival on The Mall in Washington D.C.(photo at left). Erica and I were thrilled to be there - swept up in all the wonderful book madness and swept away by some brief encounters.

Lee Child (pictured right) is one of our absolute favorite people and we were so happy to run into him on The Mall!

Want to know where Jack Reacher's next adventure will take him? How about his next TWO adventures???

Okay. I can tell you. According to Lee, the next book will take place in South Dakota. The one after that will be set in Nebraska.

Like I said...News from The Mall!

To my utter delight, I had a few minutes to sit and chat with Nicholas Sparks. The discussion at the table was about the in-general, too-early introduction to Shakespeare in schools. Nick's suggested reading is:

7th grade - The Notebook

8th grade - A Farewell to Arms

9th grade (high school) - Romeo and Juliet (or any Shakespeare), when students are mature enough to understand and appreciate Early Modern English and the themes. (What do you think?)

I also had a chance to catch up with our soon-to-be Darien Library guest, David Baldacci (he'll be here on Thursday, November 5th at 7 p.m.). We talked about the enormous crowds at the festival and the long (LONG)  lines for book sales and author signings...refreshing and heartening news amid the doom and gloom reports about the publishing industry and the future of books. 

We talked about his upcoming book True Blue, which publishes at the end of October. He'll be introducing a whole new character with this book - Mace Perry (do I detect another series???). He's looking forward to coming to Darien Library to tell us all about it...and we can't wait!

Our Fall Foreign Film Series Begins on October 23rd. Click here for all the details!

Meet A.J. Jacobs, the author of "The Guinea Pig Diaries"!

A. J. Jacobs, author of The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment, will be here at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 4th. For more information about our Fall Author Series, click here. For more information about A.J. Jacobs and his upcoming appearance at Darien Library, check back right here during the week. 

...and speaking of that Fall Author Series, please note:

Thursday, October 22, 7 p.m. - Lucinda Scala Quinn, author of Mad Hungry: Feeding Men & Boys

Sunday, November 1, 5:30 p.m. - Michael Mauboussin, author of Think Twice: Harnessing the Power of Counterintuition

Thursday, November 5, 7 p.m. - David Baldacci, author of True Blue

Sunday, November 15, 5:30 p.m. - Chris Welles Feder, author of In My Father's Shadow: A Daughter Remembers Orson Welles

We hope that we're on your calendars!  

Our Fall Author Series begins next Sunday, October 4th at 5:30 p.m. when our first featured author will be A.J. Jacobs (pictured below), who'll be talking about his newest book, The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment. Also this fall, we'll be welcoming Lucinda Scala Quinn, Michael Mauboussin, David Baldacci, and Chris Welles Feder. All the details are right here!

I think that you'll agree - this is a FABULOUS series! Despite my excitement about the fall events, I, for one, cannot help but think about the author programs that we've already had this year! We all have special memories from each and every program -- and that serves as a reminder for us again to say thank you for the continuous and generous support from our members  (all of our programs are funded solely by contributions to the Annual Campaign. (Pretty amazing, isn't it? Thank you!)).

We are overjoyed to be bringing you another season of excellent author programs however, as we take a deep breath before the fall plunge, excuse us while we stand still for a few moments and look back at the author events from earlier this year...and look forward to our upcoming author visits!

Stand still with us, enjoy our animoto short video, and, as the song says, "enjoy the view"!

I hope that this brought back some great memories...I also hope that you've got us on your fall calendar with plans to come to the Library and enjoy another outstanding author series! 

The Foreign Film Series begins on Friday, October 23rd at 7:30, with THE CLASS.

Welcome back to the movies! Welcome to our 2009 Foreign Film Series!

Hooray! We are back with our films! We'll begin the Foreign Film Series on Friday, October 23rd and will continue for seven consecutive weeks. All films begin at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

October 23 - The Class (pictured left) -- France (2009) Rated PG-13; In French with English subtitles; 130 minutes

Francois and his fellow teachers prepare for a new year at a high school in a tough neighborhood. Armed with the best intentions, they brace themselves to not let discouragement stop them from trying to give the best education to their students. Cultures and attitudes often clash in the classroom, a microcosm of contemporary France. Francois insists on an atmosphere of respect and diligence. Neither stuffy nor severe, his extravagant frankness often takes the students by surprise. But his classroom ethics are put to the test when his students begin to challenge his methods.

 Please click on the images to view trailers from the upcoming films.

 October 30 - Sin Nombre -- Mexico (2009) Rated R, In Spanish with English subtitles; 96 minutes

 Seeking the promise of America, a beautiful young Honduran woman, Sayra, joins her father and uncle on an odyssey to the United States. Along the way she crosses paths with a Mexican gang member who is trying to outrun his violent past and elude his former associates. Together they must rely on faith, trust, and street smarts if they are to survive their perilous journey towards the hope of new lives.

November 6 - Somers Town -- United Kingdom (2008) Not rated; In English; 71 minutes

Two teenagers, both newcomers to London, forge an unlikely friendship over the course of a hot summer. Tomo is a runaway from Nottingham; Marek, a Polish immigrant lives in the district of Somers Town, where his father is working on a new rail link. When Marek agrees to let homeless Tomo move into his room (unbeknownst to his father), the pair forms a strong bond as they work odd jobs for an eccentric neighbor and become infatuated with and compete for the attention of Maria, a beautiful young French waitress.

November 13 - Everlasting Moments -- Sweden (2009) Not rated; In Swedish and Finnish with English subtitles; 131 minutes

Sweden in the early 1900s was a time of social change and unrest, war and poverty. A young working class woman, Maria, wins a camera in a lottery and the decision to keep it alters her whole life. The camera grants Maria new eyes with which to see the world, and brings the charming photographer "Piff Paff Puff" into her life. Trouble ensues when Maria's alcoholic, womanizing husband feels threatened by the young man and his wife's newfound outlook on life.

November 20 - The Trap -- Serbia, Germany, & Hungary (2007) Not rated; In Serbo-Croatian with English subtitles; 112 minutes

A modern film noir reflecting the true face of Serbian "society in transition." It's a story that could happen to anyone. Mladen, an ordinary man, is forced to choose between the life and death of his young son. When the boy develops a serious heart condition, the doctors urge an expensive operation abroad. Just when the boy's parents give up hope of raising the money, a man contacts Mladen and offers to pay the whole amount; in exchange, Mladen must kill the man's business rival. The proposal repulses Mladen, but as his son's condition suddenly deteriorates, he begins to seriously consider the offer. If he accepts, he saves his boy's life but loses his soul; if he refuses, he will grieve as a righteous man until the end of his life. The trap is set...

PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF FILM: INSTEAD OF SHOWING Rudo y Cursi, WE WILL BE SHOWING FOR MY FATHER. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Friday, November 27th at 7:30, we will be showing For My Father -- (2008) Israel; Not rated; In Hebrew with English subtitles; 96 minutes.

Terek, a Palestinian forced on a suicide mission in Tel Aviv to redeem his father's honor, is given a second chance when the fuse on his explosive vest fails to detonate.  Forced to spend the weekend in Tel Aviv awaiting its repair, Terek must live amongst the people he was planning to kill.  To his surprise he connects with several Israelis on the outskirts of society, including the beautiful Keren, who has cut off contact with her Orthodox family and upbringing.  With nothing to lose, Terek and Keren open up to one another, and an unlikely love blooms between two isolated and damaged individuals, raised to be enemies.

December 4 - A Christmas Tale -- France (2008) Not rated; In French with English subtitles; 152 minutes

A dysfunctional family's matriarch (played by Catherine Deneuve) brings everyone together at Christmas to inform them she needs a bone marrow transplant from a blood relative in order to survive. The family's shared history of physical and mental illness, estrangement, self harm, and loss doesn't lend itself to the idea of a cheerful holiday season. But can a Christmastime reunion, a scheme concocted by three of the youngest family members, finally bring peace to their clan?

Meet Us on Main Street!

Every Wednesday morning during September and October at 11 a.m., we go LIVE with our Staff Recommends! We can tell you about what's just out, the timely and the timeless, and what's coming soon. In case you haven't noticed, we love talking about books...and movies, authors and actors. We have our own favorites and opinions, of course, but we are awfully good at keeping our finger on the pulse of the community. Whether we clue you in on the newest voices and trends from publishers, or refresh your reading list with the tried and true, we promise you will not want to leave empty-handed. 

One of the best things about Meet Us on Main Street is hearing about what you're reading. This is a fun and informal gathering and we look forward to having you join us!

In case you must miss this "must" event, here's what we're doing -- we're tagging the books and movies that are discussed on Wednesday mornings in our catalog with the Meet Us on Main Street tag. 

See you on Main Street!

Madge McKeithen

Please join us this Wednesday, September 23rd at 7 PM for our first One Page Poetry Circle of the Fall! Don't miss this wonderful and unique opportunity to read, appreciate, and discuss poetry. Madge McKeithen, faculty member of The Writing Program at The New School, will lead the discussions. Our theme for Wednesday's program will be Poetry & Beginnings.

Bring a single page of published poetry to read aloud that relates in some way to Beginnings. 

Or come and read one from the stacks others have pulled from among their favorites (there tends to be a reliable “extras” pile.) The reading aloud and the brief discussions are other sizeable portions of the pleasure.

And mark your calendars for the additional One Page Poetry Circle programs we have scheduled for later this Fall:

October 21 at 7 PM - Poetry & Masks

November 18 at 7 PM - Poetry & Family

December 16 at 7 PM - Poetry & Light

Last night, we had a our 2nd Adult Storytelling Circle here at the Library. It was fun and friendly and it was especially wonderful to spend a chilly September evening in the company of such warm people. 

Watch our slideshow for a few images from last night. (Click here to see more photos from last night.)

Watch our website for news of future adult storytelling events at the Library.