* * * *     MAY  2017    * * * * 
edgartownlibrary.org   * * *    508-627-4221  
Library Hours 
Monday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday & Wednesday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Thursday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday: Closed
May Closings:
Closing  Monday, May 29, for Memorial Day
Turning from April Into May
In April, The Yard brought African Dance to the Edgartown Library.
April was a busy month at the library, filled with well-attended public programs. Early in the month, we hosted a live performance of African dance and percussion presented by The Yard, Chilmark's famous center for the art of dance. We hosted an evening reading by Vineyard poets, and a weeklong festival of programs celebrating William Shakespeare that included a free concert. We celebrated the 40th anniversary of our beloved children's librarian, Deborah MacInnis, with a party and the reading of a proclamation from the library trustees. We screened an international film series, offered a public cooking class, and held an Easter egg hunt, a monthly book group and weekly meetings of our knitters.

Deb MacInnis at her anniversary celebration.
Foot traffic into the library in April, our first full month in the new building, numbered nearly 5,500 people -- up significantly from last year and more than double what we experienced in the busiest years at our previous site on North Water Street. But even more dramatic is the way people have been staying here for hours, finding comfortable reading nooks all over the building and settling into our quiet study and meeting rooms.

In Edgartown's annual elections on April 13, Christopher Scott and David Faber were elected to join the library's Board of Trustees. They'll join their colleagues in the Board's first formal gathering on Thursday, May 11, when officers will be chosen. David is a veteran science instructor at the Edgartown School, and Chris, who recently retired as director of the Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust, served on the new library's building committee. We welcome them to the Board and thank them for their service.

Lisa Sherman,
Director

Reading together in the Children's Room.

Two by Mel Brooks:
Mini Film Series Presents 7 p.m. Screenings 
On Two Wednesdays, May 3 & 10

It's time for a laugh! We'll screen two classic Mel Brooks films over the next two weeks.


First up on Wednesday, May 3 at 7 p.m. is Blazing Saddles, Brooks' spoof (some say mangling) of the American Western. Vulgar, provocative, and as politically incorrect as you can get, this 1974 film is also laugh out loud funny. Starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder.



At 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 10 we'll present Young Frankenstein, a hilarious spoof of Mary Shelley's Gothic tale of science gone mad. Also released in 1974, the cast includes Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Terry Garr and Marty Feldman (and the late Peter Boyle as the monster) -- a lineup of comedy all stars.
Opera Club Repeats Its Screening
Of Wagner Götterdämmerung
At Noon on Saturday,  May 13


At noon on Saturday, May 13, the library will repeat its final presentation in the winter-long series presenting the complete Ring of the Nibelung operas. The final opera is Götterdämmerung, in a splendid Robert Lapage production filmed live in 2012 with a cast worthy of Valhalla, including Jay Hunter Morris, Deborah Voigt, and Eric Owens. Maestro Fabio Luisi conducts the Metropolitan Orchestra. 

This opera runs five hours, including intermissions. Please note the noon start time. All adults are welcome.
Further Adventures in Slow Cooking:
Join Us Tuesday, May 9, at 1:30 p.m.

Adventures in Slow Cooking, the free winter instructional series with Virginia Munro, concludes another delicious season on Tuesday, May 9, at 1:30 p.m. 

May's recipe is for Pork Carnitas, a tasty and versatle dish.  You can dish up tacos, enchiladas, chili, and other pulled-pork delights this summer without heating up the kitchen by using our summer-friendly technique.

If you're interested in learning the easy way to prepare delicious world cuisine, this program will inspire you to dust off that crockpot. But space is limited, so please call the library in advance to register.
Danish Fairy Tales and the Art of Translation:
Free Program at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 30

Lise Kildegaard, a professor at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa (and sister of our reference librarian, Nis Kildegaard), will give an illustrated program at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 30, on her project for much of the past decade, translating the "Square Stories" of the celebrated Danish author Louis Jensen.

Lise Kildegaard and Louis Jensen.
Since 1992, Jensen has been engaged in an ambitious effort to write 1001 of the small, magical tales he calls firkantede historier, or "square stories" (you can read an example below). In 2010, he made the short list for the most prestigious international prize in children's literature, the H. C. Andersen Award.

Writes Professor Kildegaard: "As an English professor who teaches fiction and poetry, I was drawn to these stories by both their rich evocations of traditional fairy tales and their modernist simplicity. Jensen is calling upon the literary tradition of the fairy tale to bring his readers into a world that is at once deeply familiar and entirely strange. In my translations, I try to capture his simple, conversational style, while including some familiar set phrases from the fairy tale tradition, such as, "lived happily ever after."

All are invited to Lise's talk. Refreshments will be served.

 
Library Book Group Meets
Wednesday, May 17,  at 4 p.m.

The Edgartown Library book group, facilitated by author Jean Stone, will gather at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, May 17, to discuss The Book of Joy, Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, by the Dalai Lama and Bishop Desmond Tutu.

This book, writes the reviewer for Time Magazine, is " a weeklong conversation between the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, woven into a narrative by Douglas Abrams. As the two men reflect on their personal experiences, they impart advice for finding inner joy."

Ask us to reserve a book for you and join in the conversation. This is a drop-in group, and all are welcome.

May's gathering concludes another lively season for the book group, which takes the summer off and will resume in the fall.
Knitting Group w ith Donna Blackburn
Continues at 10:30 a.m.  Saturdays


Please join us weekly on Saturday mornings from 10:30 a.m. to noon for beginner's instructions, advanced knitting problem solving and, most importantly, good fellowship. 

This is a drop-in group, and all are welcome. We meet in the library's upstairs board room and look forward to seeing you.
May in  the Children's Room

Story Hour Programs in May:

Story Time with Elyce is presented each Monday and Tuesday morning this month at  10:30 -- activity to follow!

Deb MacInnis leads a Story Hour every Thursday at 10:30 a.m., and a Puppet Storytime every Saturday, also at 10:30 a.m.

-- Saturday Activities This Month --

Saturday, May 6, 2 p.m.
The Children's Room celebrates Cinco de Mayo today. Make fiesta stars, hear a Mexican folk tale, and enjoy refreshments.

Saturday, May 13, 2 p.m.
Our crafts project for Mother's Day is making decorated flower pots -- we'll even provide flowers for you to plant in them. 

Saturday, May 20, 2 p.m.
"Yuck to Yum" is this Saturday's program, a chance to sample new foods and decide if you like them.

Saturday, May 27, 2 p.m.
This afternoon we'll celebrate Backyard Games Week, with a variety of games for you to try. This program will move inside if the weather is bad.
Please Support the Library Friends,
Who Support Us

All our programs at the Edgartown Library are supported by the Friends of the Edgartown Library, who have their own page on our website. The Friends have recently sent out their annual appeal letter, which you can read here