The Brunswick Knitting Circle meets every Thursday from 10:30 to 12:00. Crocheters, cross stitchers, and other needle workers are welcome. We range in experience from beginner to expert, so don’t be shy. There is always tea and/or hot chocolate, and often a treat to go with it. Come join us!
There is now an electronic program guide available for the Empire State Book Festival, which will be held on Saturday, April 10th, at the Empire State Convention Center in Albany. They have a terrific slate slate of speakers, and fun programs for all ages, and admission is free.
As you know, the Governor proposed a $2.4 million cut in Library Aid in his 2010-11 Executive Budget. It would be the 5th cut in less than two years and would bring Library Aid down to $84.5 million and below 1998 levels.
Last week, the Assembly and Senate passed their Budget Proposals/Resolutions. The Senate proposal called for the full restoration of the $2.4 million cut and the Assembly proposal included a 40% or $960,000 restoration. The Legislature is on Passover/Easter Break until April 7th, but legislative staff are working to resolve the differences between the Assembly’s and Senate’s proposals to address the $9 billion state budget deficit.
So between now and when the Legislature returns, we need to fill their email boxes and fax machines with as many messages as possible. So please visit www.protectnylibraries.org and click on the Vote for Libraries button to send message.
It may be raining outside, but we have bright new lights in the children’s area.
I heard an author interviewed this morning on Radio Times, a public radio show on WHYY in Philadelphia. He is a first time novelist named Mahbod Seraji, and his book is Rooftops of Tehran. This book came out last year, and is in two libraries in our system. I had not heard of it before, but the reviews I looked up are very positive. Because it follows the coming of age of two boys, teenagers, in 1970’s Tehran, there are many comparisons to The Kite Runner.
The writer came to the United States as a teenager himself, unable to speak much English, so he subsisted for some time on “one Big Mac, small fries, small Coke”, which caused him to gain 17 lbs. He gradually learned to speak English, by making friends, and watching television. He returned to Iran for a visit twenty some years later, not having seen his father in the interim. Imagine saying goodbye to a parent who is in his forties, and returning unable to figure out which of the men in their 60’s gathered to greet you is your own father.
The Empire State Book Festival will take place on April 9-10, 2010. Programs on April 10 include readings, workshops, exhibits, panel discussions, book signings, and more! Featured authors include Gregory Maguire, Da Chen, Marion Roach Smith, Robert Caro, and many, many more. Click on the image below to go their website.
