Events
Dishing Up Dirt With Our Mystery Writers!
Wednesday evening marked the first "Meet the Authors" event of our Adult Summer Reading program, and we were truly delighted that Jane Cleland and Rosemary Harris visited Darien Library for a chat about their respective new mystery novels Antiques to Die For and Pushing Up Daisies.
Barbara, our mini-moderator, interviewed the authors as they dished up the dirt on the inspirations for their novels. Now, talk about real life mysteries translating to the page! For Jane, it was a chance encounter she had with a stolen Rembrandt etching and for Rosemary, it was reading about a body found buried in an unassuming suburban Connecticut home. The audience was served a real treat when both authors candidly shared their experiences as first-time writers, as well, and gave us the insider's view on getting published, working with editors, and marketing their books.
I hope you've decided to add these fun 'n fabulous cozy mysteries to your list of beach reads this summer! Also, check out what our visiting authors have on their nightstands. Rosemary recommends I Shall Not Want by Julia Spencer-Fleming, and Jane recommends The Fiddlers: A Novel of the 87th Precinct by Ed McBain.
Click the arrow below to see photos from the event. Antiques, daisies, fabulous conversation, "dirt" dessert. It was one fabulously dishy night!
Everything's Coming Up...Daisies
(l-r) Barbara Thomas, Rosemary Harris,
Jennifer Dayton, and Erica Bess
A few of us from Darien Library recently gathered with others from other area libraries and attended a Programming
Roundtable discussion at Fairfield Library. We love the comfortable back-and-forth of the Roundtable and the sharing of ideas; it's such a valuable experience. One of the panelists, coincidentally, was Rosemary Harris, who will be one of the speakers here on July 9th at 7 p.m. It'll be the first of our "Meet the Author" special events -- part of our Adult Summer Reading Program.
Rosemary talked about her personal efforts in promoting her well-received book, Pushing Up Daisies (now in its second printing(!)), her advertising background, and her foray into writing. So, since we were already excited about the upcoming program, now after meeting Rosemary and hearing her speak, we really can't wait! (Remember...it's Wednesday, July 9th at 7 p.m.)
The "Meet the Author" event will also feature fellow mystery writer Jane Cleland. This is going to be such fun! It's on my calendar -- you'll want to put it on yours.
Storm Warnings -- So what?
Despite the extreme heat and the threat of severe thunderstorms, there was quite a crowd here on Sunday to hear Bob Patton speak about his new book, Patriot Pirates: The Privateer War for Freedom and Fortune in the American Revolution.
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Robert H. (Bob) Patton
Bob gave an interesting and enlightening presentation, answered questions from the audience and later, mingled at the reception and book signing.
Patton, Impending
On Sunday, June 8th, at 5:30 p.m., we continue our "Meet the Author" series. Robert H. (Bob)Patton will be here to discuss his new book, Patriot Pirates: The Privateer War for Freedom and Fortune in the American Revolution.
The book came out on May 20th and Bob came into the library that morning for a brief interview. He's got a great way of humanizing his historical subjects, and given the topic, the book is quite an adventure.
Please join us for what's certain to be a great presentation. There will also be a reception and book signing.
Refreshments will be served.
(Copies of Patriot Pirates will be available for purchase.)
"Patriot Pirates" and Patton and Podcasts
Lately, we've been getting some great mileage (so to speak) out of our MP3 recorder! Over the course of the last four weeks, Janet and I have done one interview per week and it's been incredibly exciting and gratifying to be able to have those interviews available to you to listen to as podcasts.
This morning, Robert H. (Bob) Patton came in to chat with us about his new book, Patriot Pirates: The Privateer War for Freedom and Fortune in the American Revolution, which hits the shelves today.
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Bob Patton
Bob will be our featured speaker on Sunday, June 8th at 5:30 p.m. as part of our Meet the Author Series. The book is great; Bob does a terrific job of humanizing his Revolutionary subjects. The timing couldn't be better -- coming after so many of us have already been swept away by the excellent John Adams series on HBO, it is more than welcome to those of us ready for more. The book is getting great reviews and Bob is such an enthusiastic and engaging speaker...if it's not already on your calendar, be sure to add it now. You won't want to miss it!
In the meantime, click here to listen to the interview.
We REALLY Like Him, Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Bob Spitz (yesterday at the Library)
When Bob Spitz got divorced, had his heart broken, was nearly destitute, and turned 50, what did he do? He fled to Europe and embarked on a culinary adventure. Hmmm. Let's see. I had my heart broken, got divorced, was nearly destitute, and turned 50...what did I do? I bought a practical car and got my ears pierced. Bob's is definitely the better story, and he tells it in his new book The Saucier's Apprentice: One Long Strange Trip through the Great Cooking Schools of Europe. It's a wonderful book and he was here yesterday afternoon to talk about it.
The book really is a great read...fantastic stories, recipes, and laughs. He's got a wonderful way with words and tells a great story -- we'd be happy for him to come speak here anytime, but given that we were the first stop on his book tour, we were thrilled!
What's Cooking?
Lots! These last few months, we have been at a constant simmer with some great Meet the Author programs at the Library. This Sunday, we heat things up a bit with Bob Spitz, who'll be here to talk about his new book, The Saucier's Apprentice: One Long Strange Trip through the Great Cooking Schools of Europe. It's a culinary memoir and it's a great and fun read (it even has recipes!). It also just came out this week and we will be the first stop on Bob's book tour at 5:30 p.m. this Sunday, May18th.
Bob stopped in this morning to chat with me and Janet and it was, as usual, a delightful experience. The link to the podcast of that interview is right here.
From here, he heads out to California (the same night!) to begin his tour.
The Norwalk Hour had a great story about Bob and the book in yesterday's edition. And(!) we must make sure to be on the alert for the August issue of Oprah magazine where a story about Bob cooking with his daughter will be featured. We can't wait!
...and we can't wait for Sunday to hear more from Bob. Please join us!
Promises of twists and turns, AND a fog warning
Sounds like a scary night on the road, right? Actually, it's an invitation to a scary night at the Library. 
The spotlight's on us! We'll be showing the independent film "Fog Warning" at 7:30 p.m. this Friday, May 9th. Written and directed by local resident Chris Ward, Chris will be here that night for this special screening and will stay after the movie to answer questions. Some members of the cast and crew will be here as well, and it's doubly exciting for us because the Library is featured in the film!
Chris stopped by the library today to chat with me and Janet and we've got that interview available right here as a podcast.
Come by the Library Friday night if you're up for some twists and turns, suspense and thrills, and the very real possibility of being (shudder, shudder) "creeped out."
Showtime is 7:30 p.m.
Doors open at 7.
Admission is free.
Please note -- according to Chris, "Fog Warning" requires some forewarning -- "The audience should be forewarned that this is an adult suspense-thriller. Although Fog Warning has not been rated, the producers expect it to receive an R rating for language, violence and brief nudity."
One Fein Day
Okay. I know...enough already with the fine/Fein puns. I'm sorry; I can't help it. And besides, it's not entirely true anyway. John Feinstein's appearance here on Sunday was actually so much better than fine. Five minutes in this man's presence and it's easy to see why he is considered one of the best and most-respected in the broadcasting business. He is, also, by the way, a bestselling author. He was extremely entertaining...sharing wonderful anecdotes and stories - some factual, some poignant, and some hilarious. We were in his spell and to those of us who were here on Sunday, we KNOW we witnessed an extraordinary event. We expect to have the webcast up anyminutenow, but, in the meantime, check out our video short from this memorable program.
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