Reminiscing at the Library

The Farmerettes, the opera house, Saturday night concerts - all these and more were remembered when this lively group came together at the Library. Town Historian Sandy Hopkins and Library volunteer Shirley Patchett arranged the gathering in the hopes that we can preserve these memories for future generations. (Shirley even baked an apple pie and some of her delicious cookies!) Watch this blog and Shirley's "Shhh" column for an announcement of the next time this group will meet.

Story Hour Celebration

Wow - You never know what or whom you might see at the Library!

Please Share With Us

Our Library is conducting a community survey. I hope you'll take time to share your opinions with us, either by filling out the orange survey in today's issue of the Sodus-Williamson Pennysaver, or by clicking on the survey link in this blog's right column.

There are only 7 questions to answer, so we're asking for just a minute or two of your time. Additional comments are also welcome, and boxes are provided for those. Thanks for your help as we plan our future services; your feedback is valuable to us.

Halloween Story Hour

Preschoolers and their parents are invited to a Halloween Story Hour at 10:45 a.m. on Monday, October 27th. Costumes are optional, but fun is guaranteed!

Book Club Meeting

The Friends of the Sodus Free Library are ready to start a new book club session. Come to the Library at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 23rd, to help plan for some great Fall reading. The first title will be The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick, this year's Writers & Books "Big Read" choice; book discussion on Ozick's book is scheduled for 7 p.m. on November 20th. Everyone is welcome.

2008 Pioneer Award

Each October, people from throughout our Pioneer Library System gather for an annual meeting and banquet, an inspiring program, and the presentation of County awards and a Pioneer Award. This year, I was extremely honored to receive the latter, which is an award for library advocacy and support. Joined last Wednesday evening by my family, staff, and Trustees, I was (and still am!) totally overwhelmed by this recognition.


Thank you to those who nominated me, those who made the award decision, and those who have been so generous with their congratulations, including the Williamson Public Library's Board, Director, and staff for this beautiful white and green floral and gourd arrangement, and the trio of gentlemen who sent me Candy Kitchen chocolates. The biggest "Thank You!" goes to my staff and Trustees for their day-to-day support as we work together to continually improve our Library in its mission to meet the needs of our community.

And now, Mom, Jeff, Carol, Pauline, and Christina, I have blogged about the award!

Are You Overdue?

The Friends of the Sodus Free Library will be meeting at 1:30 this Tuesday, October 21st, following the Books-Sandwiched-In luncheon. Come join us - it's National Friends of Libraries Week!

Books-Sandwiched-In

Have you signed up for next week's Books-Sandwiched-In? Everyone's favorite book reviewer, Jean Seymour, will be reviewing Patriot Hearts: A Novel of the Founding Mothers by Barbara Hambly. The luncheon, sponsored by the Friends of the Sodus Free Library, will start at noon on Tuesday, October 21st. A great time, the book review, plus a sandwich, beverage, and dessert are all covered by your $3 donation. I hope to see you there!

Happy Birthday, Paddington Bear!

Time to have a marmalade sandwich and a hot cocoa in honor of Paddington Bear's 50th birthday. This bronze statue is found at Paddington Station in London.

Holiday Closing

The Library will be closed Monday, October 13th, for Columbus Day, and will reopen at noon on Tuesday, October 14th.

Voter Registration

The deadline for voter registration is tomorrow, Saturday, October 11th. Kass Vande, the president of our Friends group, is helping people fill out their forms today at the Library. If you haven't yet registered, stop in before 5 p.m. to make sure you're eligible to exercise your right to vote in this year's election.

HAPLR Ratings Announced

HAPLR 8, the 2008 Hennen's American Public Library Ratings, has been published, and your community library has once again placed #1 among U. S. libraries chartered to serve a population between 1,000 and 2,499! Hennen's study compared 15 input and output measures, using the 2005 Federal data submitted to their states by all American libraries. For a copy of the final report, which will be published in the November edition of American Libraries, click here or stop by the Library.

Thanks to our staff, Board, and patrons for making this recognition possible!

Confused?

He said, she said, they said. Want to know the facts? Visit FactCheck.org

Library Board Meeting

The October meeting of the Library's Board of Trustees will be held at 4 p.m. on Thursday, October 9th, in our meeting room. All Board meetings are open to the public.

It's Time for the SAT

Get your pencils sharpened - this Saturday is SAT day.


Don't panic - be prepared! Take a free full-length practice test by clicking on the Learning Express link in the right-hand "Links" column. Through this site, generously funded by our Central Library in Geneva, you can also practice writing those essays.

Good luck!

Books Can Help

Trying to understand the financial crisis that is the topic of all conversations this week? Click here to see a list of some of the titles in OWWL that might help.

This Is Banned Books Week

"Not every book will be right for every person, but the right to choose what we read is a freedom we cannot afford to take for granted."
~ Judith Platt, Director, Association of American Publishers’ Freedom to Read program


Imagine visiting the Library, finding that book you've been dying to read, handing me your library card and the book, only to have me say, "Sorry, I don't think that book is appropriate for you, and I'm not going to let you check it out." Thanks to the First Amendment, that won't happen. We all have the right to choose what we will or will not read.

In celebration of that freedom to read, September 27th-October 4th has been designated as the 27th annual Banned Books Week. Click here for more information, and here for a list of the most frequently banned and challenged books of 2007. Stop by the Library this week to pick up a Banned Books Week bookmark. While you're here, why not exercise your right to choose, and pick up a couple of titles on the list!

Banned Books Week is sponsored jointly by the American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, American Library Association, American Society of Journalists and and Authors, Association of American Publishers, and the National Association of College Stores.

Time for Book Club

Our Friends-sponsored book club is ready to get underway, and will meet at 7 p.m. on Thursday, September 25th, to discuss possible titles and to set up their schedule. I hope you can join us!

Problem with Video

The picture of the video on the U. S. election process seems to be causing problems when loading our page, so the link is no longer embedded in the screen shot. The video is definitely worth watching, so I've linked the video title; click on that, and you'll go directly to Electing a U. S. President in Plain English. Sorry about the confusion!