What's New?

For seven weeks, beginning September 22
7:00 p.m.

Would you like to learn more about U.S. foreign policy in an engaging community forum?  The Library will host a Foreign Affairs series for seven consecutive weeks, beginning September 22.  This series will discuss many of the important foreign policy topics facing the United States.  The topics under discussion will be : Afghanistan/Pakistan; Israel/Palestine; Energy & the global economy; Global food supply; U.S. and rising powers; the Arctic; and Egypt in the 21st century.  Read more…

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Wednesday, September 1, 2010
7:00 – 8:30 p.m.

Does your stomach clench at the thought of entering a room full of people you do not know? Are you looking for the perfect conversational ice breaker? Do you need tips on interview and small talk strategies?
The Reading Public Library is pleased to offer “Making Small Talk is a Fine Art” presented by Judy Junker, Workshop Specialist at ValleyWorks Career Center in Lawrence, MA. This workshop is part of the Library’s ongoing Job Search Skills Series and will take place on Wednesday September 1, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.
Through this fun and informative  program you will learn how to: Read more…

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Meet Holly. Holly is the winner in the Unleashed Adult Summer Reading Program Photo Contest! Holly is a two-year-old Shih-poo (Poodle and a Shih Tzu mix) and is owned by Samantha.  Samantha has won a basket of doggie-related treats for Holly.

Photos are still on display on the main floor of the library.  Come to see these adorable, well-loved pets before the end of the month.

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(Senior Center, Lounge, 1:00 p.m.) Set in the high country of Colorado during the Depression, this is the story of an unforgettable friendship between two women–eighty-six-year-old Hennie Comfort and seventeen-year-old Nit Spindle–and the deepest hardships and darkest secrets they shared with each other. Copies of this book are available at the Library or at the Senior Center (ask at the front desk.)  Link to catalog.

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Tuesday, September 14
10:00 a.m. (Coffee & refreshments at 9:30 a.m.)

Turkey is unique in that it is an Eurasian country with a varied topography.  Join Dr. Craig Brandt, a Reading resident with lifelong experience in military, government, academic and diplomatic affairs as he presents a photo tour of this fascinating country.  Craig will take us to Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadocia and other areas of this culturally diverse nation that claims the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers within its borders.

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August  2010

This new Slacker title is the perfect book to wind down the summer on the beach with.  According to The Washington Post -  The book’s two-part structure is simple and elegant: two weddings, a year apart, the first on Cape Cod, the second in Maine. Russo’s focus in both parts is on Jack Griffin, a 57-year-old English professor who’s having a “middle-age meltdown.” Even while the wedding march plays for members of the younger generation, he’s busy fumbling his own 34-year marriage. Griffin loves his wife, but “his dissatisfaction had become palpable.” He’s bored with teaching, and he hankers after the excitement of his Hollywood writing days. His bigger problem, though, is that he still harbors enough “pathological resentment” toward his parents for a therapists’ convention. He’s been carting his father’s ashes around in the trunk of his car for nine months, waiting for just the right moment to let go of the mortal remains of the man who drove him crazy. And meanwhile, his 85-year-old mother keeps heckling him from her nursing home. It’s a sign of Russo’s comic genius that these two hilariously acerbic parents — one on the phone, the other in an urn — just about steal the show.  Richard Russo has written a novel for people who are terrified of becoming their parents, which is to say for everybody.

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September 14, 2010     Discussion led by Margaret Soli

If you have been meaning to join a book group, now is the time!  After taking the summer off, the Bibliobabblers return with a nonfiction title that is recommended for history buffs and for anyone who is concerned about the global food supply, their own included.  According to Kirkus Reviews, “This meaty little volume concentrates specifically on the intersections between food history and world history.” But history isn’t Standage’s only concern. He takes the long view to illuminate such contemporary issues as genetically modified foods, the complex relationship between food and poverty and the local food movement. Informative, insightful and timely. This is an enjoyable read that will make you think about food, the food chain, food supply and food production–A LOT!

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010
10-11 a.m. OR 11 a.m.-12 noon

Bring grandchildren, children and friends of all ages on a Reading walkabout.  Join librarians Rachel Baumgartner and Nancy Aberman as we take an easy nature hike to discover the flora and fauna of our community, with just a touch of history!

We will meet  for a guided walk at a location to be disclosed upon registration.   Registration is required (Reading residents are given preference).  Sign up by calling the library at 781-944-0840 or by registering online (click here).    Don’t forget comfortable shoes, sunscreen and bug spray!  (Children must be accompanied by an adult.)

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July 2010

Meredith Hall’s moving but unsentimental memoir begins in 1965, when she becomes pregnant at sixteen. Shunned by her insular New Hampshire community, she is then kicked out of the house by her mother. Her father and stepmother reluctantly take her in, hiding her before they finally banish her altogether. After giving her baby up for adoption, Hall wanders recklessly through the Middle East. She returns to New England and stitches together a life that encircles her silenced and invisible grief. When he is twenty-one, her lost son finds her. Hall learns that he grew up in gritty poverty with an abusive father—in her own father’s hometown. Their reunion is tender, turbulent, and ultimately redemptive. What sets Without a Map apart is the way in which loss and betrayal evolve into compassion, and compassion into wisdom.

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Wednesday, August 4, 2010
7:00-8:30 pm    Library Meeting Room

Professional Clothing Advice for Men and Women
with Fashion Consultant, Anna Keenan Dixon

Learn how to refine your professional image at work or for potential networking opportunities and job interviews.
Topics include:
•    Looking the Part – a Total Image
•    Strategies for the Professional Look
•    Ways to Achieve a Professional Wardrobe Plan
•    How to Determine Clothing Quality
•    Care of Clothing Investments

Registration is requested.  Please contact the Library Information Desk at 781-942-6703 or sign up online. Read more…

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