Newsletter                                        May 2017
A Night of Chinese Music and Dance    

The Concord Free Public Library and Concord-Carlisle Chinese Club (C-4) present A Night of Chinese Music and Dance on Saturday, May 20, 2017 at 7:00-8:30 p.m. at the Umbrella Community Arts Center (40 Stow Street, Concord, MA), performed by the Greater Boston Chinese Cultural Association (GBCCA) Music Ensemble and Angel Performing Arts.  The evening ends with a Chinese fashion show demonstrated by Yuqing's Graceworks from C-4.

Established in 1984, the GBCCA Chinese Music Ensemble is considered as being one of the oldest Chinese Music Ensembles in New England.  They perform frequently around the New England area, and host annual concerts at places such as Paine Hall at Harvard University, Casey Theater at Regis College, Kresge Auditorium at MIT and Cohen Auditorium at Tufts University.    

Angel Performing Arts, Inc. (Angel Dance) is the premier Chinese dance school and dance performance company in Massachusetts. Angel Dance has been providing dance and music curriculum for children, teens, and, adults in the greater Boston Area since 2004.  Trained by professional dancers from China, their students have been invited to perform Chinese dances around the country and overseas.  They were invited to perform at the 2015 Umbrella Community Arts Center's Artrageous Gala. Their high level dances and colorful costumes wowed the audience.   

The event is generously sponsored by the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library.  In-kind donation by the Umbrella Community Arts Center.  Free admission.  Open to all.
Adult Book Groups
Tuesday Book Group
May 9, 9:30-11:15 a.m.
Trustees' Room
The Book Discussion group will partner with the Military Family Support Group of Concord this month to discuss Tribe, by Sebastian Junger and Hillbilly Elegy, by J.D. Vance. The discussion will be led by the Military Family Support Group of Concord. Copies of Tribe are available at the Main Library. All are welcome.

Cookbook Club 
Wednesday, May 10, 12:00-1:30 p.m.
Fowler Branch Library
This month's book title is Jerusalem, by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. Advance registrations are required. [ Sign Up]
 

Book-A-Mystery Discussion
Wednesday, May 17, 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Fowler Branch Library
Copies of this month's selection 
by Jussi Adler-Olsen, are available at the Fowler Branch.  All are welcome.

Poetry at the Library
On Mother's Day, Sunday, May 14, 3 p.m - 4:15 p.m., the Poetry at the Library Series hosts Eleanor Goodman, poet and translator of contemporary Chinese poetry who will read from both her own poems and the award-winning translation of Wang Xiaoni's poetry of the everyday and talk about her approach to the art of translation. Eleanor Goodman is a Research Associate at Harvard University's Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and spent a year at Peking University on a Fulbright Fellowship. She has been an artist in residence at the American Academy in Rome and was awarded a Henry Luce Translation Fellowship from the Vermont Studio Center. Her first book of translations, Something Crosses My Mind: Selected Poems of Wang Xiaoni (Zephyr Press, 2014) was the recipient of a 2013 PEN/Heim Translation Grant and winner of the 2015 Lucien Stryk Prize. The book was also shortlisted for the International Griffin Prize. The anthology Iron Moon, a translation of Chinese workers' poetry has just been released by White Pine Press. Her first poetry book, Nine Dragon Island (Enclave/Zephyr, 2016), was a finalist for the Drunken Boat First Book Prize. 

Join us for a memorable afternoon of poetry, tea, and conversation with one of America's finest poet-translators. The reading, to be held in the Main Library's Periodical Room, is a free event sponsored by the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library. 
Thursday Author Series
On Thursday, May 18 at 7:00 p.m., author Robin Hazard Ray will give a talk about her book The Strangers' Tomb in the Main Library's Periodical Room. The Strangers' Tomb is set in Cambridge's historic Mount Auburn Cemetery amid the changes sweeping New England during the tumultuous period before the Civil War.

A freelance writer and editor, Ray leads tours for the Friends of Mount Auburn Cemetery on themes ranging from glacial geology to gay Bostonians. She is currently writing her second book in the Murder in the Cemetery series. 

This free event is sponsored by the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library. Open to all. [Sign Up]
Concord Stone Walls and Barns
Concord Stone Walls & Barns: An Illustrated Talk by Pierce Browne will be held on Friday, May 19, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. in the Main Library Lobby. The event is free and open to the public.

 "As an 82 year resident of Concord, I've been riding around on the town's highways and byways for a long time. I rode the school bus twice a day for years when I attended the Peter Bulkeley School on Stow Street, and since there were a lot fewer students to pick up in those days, the route was a long one. I saw the same barns, houses and walls over and over again and by now, they seem like old friends, still in the same places and still looking pretty much the same. With age I've realized that the barns and stone walls remaining are a large part of our agricultural and rural legacy, and as time takes its inevitable toll, too many of the barns I remember are gone. Too many of the walls have been forgotten and let go.  The lessons of Robert Frost's poem, "Mending Wall" are no longer quite as applicable or necessary as in the past, causing the form and function of these treasures to deteriorate and be forgotten. I wanted to assemble a photographic anthology of what's left so there would be this record at least of what some of them looked like in the year 2016." ~ Pierce Browne
Kids and Family Events 
Tech Tuesday: Minecraft - Grades 4 - 6
Tuesday, May 2, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.
Fowler Branch
Kids in grades 4 - 6 are invited to grab a pickaxe and join your fellow  Minecraftians for a class in design challenges. You will learn key concepts in programming, architecture, and pixel art, all while using teamwork and social skills. It's the perfect blend of fun, learning, and creativity! The class will be taught by Empow Studios. Advance registrations are required.  [Register]

Toddler Storytimes - Ages 2 & 3 with caregivers
Every Thursday, 10:00 - 10:30 a.m.
Fowler Branch
Join us for stories, songs, rhymes, and play! This interactive storytime is designed for busy toddlers and their caregivers. No sign up required.

Lego Challenge - Grades K - 5
Tuesday, May 9, 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Fowler Branch
Kids in grades K through 5 are invited to come and build with Fowler's collection of Legos.  

Sing-a-long with Ed Morgan* 
Fridays, May 12 & 19, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Fowler Branch
Come sing and dance along with The Music Man, singer and musician Ed Morgan.
 
The Journey of a Bird's Tale: Publishing a Children's Picture Book*
Wednesday, May 31, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Fowler Branch
Join author Pamela Wight as she shares her unique story about writing a  children's book, discovering the perfect illustrator, and choosing a unique path to publishing. Q & A will be included in the hour. Wight has an M.A. in literature, teaches creative writing classes in the Boston area, and is also a published author of women's fiction.  [Sign Up]

(* = Sponsored by the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library.)
May Classes & Drop-In Tech Help
Computer Class: How to Buy and Sell on Craigslist 
Wednesday, May 10, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
Main Library 
In this one hour class we will demonstrate how to sign up for a Craigslist account and how to buy and sell on Craigslist.  Open to all. [ Sign Up]

Introduction to Library Digital Media  
Wednesday, May 24, 10:30-12:30 a.m.
Main Library 
In this class we will give a demo on all the digital media services the Library has to offer to Concord residents - OverDrive, Hoopla, Zinio and OneClick. Free and open to all. [ Sign Up]
 
Drop-In Tech Help at 10:30-11:30 a.m.
Mondays, May 8 & 22
Friday, May 19  
Main Library Lobby
Stop in with any questions you may have about your mobile devices,  laptops and/or Library's eBooks etc.  Open to all.
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