GIRLS NIGHT OUT

JANUARY 30

The Visitor

Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman, Danai Gurira
Rated PG-13; 108 minutes; (2008)

Walter, a college professor, travels to New York to attend a conference and returns to find a Syrian man and his Senegalese girlfriend living in his apartment. The couple has nowhere to go and when Walter reluctantly allows them to stay with him, they return his kindness by teaching him the exuberant rhythms of the African drum and rekindling his passion for life.

FEBRUARY 6

The Express

Dennis Quaid, Charles Dutton, Rob Brown

Rated PG; 130 minutes; (2008)

Witness the inspirational true story of a real American hero. Rising from the humblest of beginnings, Ernie Davis overcame impossible odds to become the first African-American to win college football’s greatest honor, the Heisman Trophy. His fight for equality and respect forever changed the face of American sports and his story continues to inspire.

FEBRUARY 13

Ghost Town

Greg Kinnear, Ricky Gervais, Tea Leoni
Rated PG-13; 102 minutes; (2008) 

Bertram Pincus dies momentarily but is revived and finds that after his near death experience, he can now see ghosts. However, annoyingly, they all want something from him, particularly Frank Herlihy, who pesters him into breaking up the impending marriage of his widow Gwen. This puts Pincus squarely in the middle of an after-life love triangle in this romantic comedy.

FEBRUARY 20

The Secret Life of Bees

Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys

Rated PG-13; 110 minutes; (2008)

Set in South Carolina in 1964, this film is the moving tale of Lily Owens, a 14-year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother’s past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping, honey, and the Black Madonna.

FEBRUARY 27

Man on Wire

Documentary Feature
Rated PG-13; 90 minutes; (2008) (In English and French with English subtitles.)

This is the true story of Philippe Petit, who in 1974 committed the artistic crime of the century. He had done many illegal high wire walks before, including between the towers of Notre Dame and across the Sydney Harbor bridge, but it was his walk between the then-unfinished World Trade Center towers that brought him the most notoriety. He remembers the fateful day, along with the crew who helped him pull off this once-in-a- lifetime event.

MARCH 6

Friday Film Vote!

There are so many great new films from which to choose that we want you to have a chance to be heard! Twice during our weekly series, you’ll have the opportunity to vote for your favorite of three new films. Voters will be directed to the Darien Library website, where they will be able to read about the choices, watch film trailers, and vote for their selection. The films to be voted upon will be announced at least two weeks prior to showing. 

MARCH 13

Frozen River

Melissa Leo, Charlie McDermott, Michael O’Keefe

Rated R; 97 minutes; (2008) 

Set during the Christmas season, Frozen River is the story of a struggling mother in upstate New York who is lured into the world of illegal immigrant smuggling. She meets a Mohawk girl who lives on a reservation that straddles the U.S. - Canadian border and driven by financial hardship, they form a partnership to smuggle illegal aliens across the frozen St. Lawrence River.

MARCH 20

Mamma Mia!

Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth
Rated PG-13; 108 minutes; (2008) 

In this big screen version of the stage musical featuring the songs of ABBA, Donna is the mother to Sophie, who’s on a quest to discover the identity of her father on the eve of her wedding. Donna owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island and when three men from her past arrive unexpectedly, it is a trip down memory lane that no one will ever forget.

MARCH 27

Brick Lane

Tannishtha Chatterjee, Satish Kaushik

Rated PG-13; 102 minutes; (2007) 

After an arranged marriage, a young woman leaves her family in Bangladesh to live with her new husband in London. When she finds that life is not at all what she expected, she begins an affair that forces her to take control of her own life. Set against a backdrop of escalating racial tension, Brick Lane is a contemporary love story.

APRIL 3

The Duchess

Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Hayley Atwell
Rated PG-13; 110 minutes;(2008) 

A vibrant beauty and celebrity of her time, the extraordinary 18th-century aristocrat Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, was reviled for her extravagant political and personal lives. Stuck in an unhappy marriage, she fell in love with a young politician and the affair caused a bitter conflict with her husband and threatened to erupt into a scandal.

APRIL 10

Encounters at the End of the World

 Documentary Feature
Rated G; 99 minutes; (2008) 

Director Werner Herzog becomes the first director to film on all seven continents as he takes his camera to the Antarctic community of McMurdo Station, where a hearty crew of eleven hundred people spends the austral summer. This group of researchers, scientists, and assorted adventurers shows us life at the bottom of the world, as we see that we are not as invincible or as dominant as we like to believe.

APRIL 17

Friday Film Vote!

There are so many great new films from which to choose that we want you to have a chance to be heard! Twice during our weekly series, you’ll have the opportunity to vote for your favorite of three new films. Voters will be directed to the Darien Library website, where they will be able to read about the choices, watch film trailers, and vote for their selection. The films to be voted upon will be announced at least two weeks prior to showing.

We are so happy to be back and right on schedule with our annual Friday Film Series! We'll meet in our beautiful new Community Room...and, yes, Jane will be here with cookies!

All movies begin at 7:30 p.m. Doors will open at 7. Admission is free!

A little icy rain on Sunday morning made us remember to be wary on the roads but the colder temps also reminded us that we've got 99 hats and scarves on their way to the Domestic Violence Crisis Center. Our shout-out for helping hands for our 3rd annual knit-a-thon, brought the community together -- teens, adults, and children -- and their needles together, resulting in 52 hats and 47 scarves, which will be delivered to the shelters run by the Crisis Center. We put our hands together for you! Thank you so much! We look forward to offerering more opportunites to serve the community. Read about the enthusiasm that's already building for our new teen space!

There. I said it out loud. This Friday, the 21st, will be our final film of our final film series on our final Friday in this building. We are in such a whirlwind of preparation for the move right now, we're wondering when the reality of it is going to hit us.

Let's enjoy our last Friday together with good friends, the best cookies (ever), and an uplifting and spirited film. We'll be showing Hula Girls, a truly enjoyable film. Hula Girls has won several awards, including five major awards at the 2007 Japan Academy Awards -- Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress, and Most Popular Film. I screened this film last year and was determined to secure the showing rights for our series this year. It's such a charmer about change and trying new things (and it's based on a true story!), I thought it the perfect fit for our final film before we embark on an exciting future together.

Showtime is at 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 7.

Admission is free.

Stocking up takes on a whole new meaning here during the month of November. We close the doors at Leroy Avenue for good at 6 p.m. on November 26th (that's the day before Thanksgiving)*, so it's time to start thinking about the books, audiobooks, movies, music, electronics, etc., that will get you through the holidays, the cold days, and the too-much-food daze ahead.

Photo at left by Flickr user John P.

Any move usually makes those involved take stock...reflect, reminisce, hope, and dream. It's certainly been the case for us; it's been bittersweet and very exciting, but we know that we're taking with us the best of the best... the best collection, the best technology, the best ideas, and the best staff...in the best community anywhere. (For information about A Fond Farewell, a gathering to say goodbye to our beloved building, click here.)

We know you have questions about the move and what to expect (we feel your pain)...so, we've put together a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and we'll be adding to it as necessary. Click here to get to the page. We've also been putting lots of thought into trying to anticipate what questions you might have. Recently, Jen wrote from the front lines of the Circulation Desk about what to expect, and Kate took us on a sneak peek of the new Reference/Non-Fiction area of the New Building in her new post. Gretchen reports great news from the Children's Room, including more drop-in storytimes, two dedicated programming spaces, pre-literacy programs, a "Tot Spot," a "Creation Station," and much more!

Sounds great, right? Factor in our GREEN-ness, better parking, abundant natural light, more study rooms, specialty areas, more programs, and the familiar faces of our staff, and it is a recipe for success. There's still plenty going on throughout November right here. Do stop by to say hello (and goodbye...perhaps hum a bar or two of Auld Land Syne?), and enjoy all there is to do at the Library.

*The Grand Opening of the New Library is January 10, 2009.