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A Note from the Director

January is named for Janus, the Roman deity often represented with two faces: One, symbolically, looking back at the days that have passed while the other is facing forward into the new year ahead. January is a good time for reflection about where we have been and anticipation as to where we would like to go.


This past year in the library has been trying, for both library staff and patrons. But great strides have been made as well. We were able to repair and reopen the Children’s Room and it looks wonderful. When I spend time in the room, I am so inspired to see how much the children, and their caregivers, engage with the room, the resources, and the staff. The Teen Room is also thriving – once school lets out for the day, we start to see the arrival of teens. We offer activities, crafts, movies, or just a place to ‘hang out’ for a while. Adults haven’t been forgotten either for we are offering a variety of new programs for adults. Whether it be Cribbage nights or belly dancing lessons, we have a little of something for everyone.


Over the past year, we have been busy at the library - checking out over 100,000 items, adding over 7,000 new resources, and welcoming over 800 new patrons. These numbers represent not just what we are doing, but also the ongoing support that you, the library community, provide.


Looking ahead to the new year, we will be making friends in other Graftons (in Ohio, West Virginia, and Wisconsin) through our Pen Pal program and adding more programs (beginners' knitting and Zumba), and watching Saturday Morning Cartoons for grades K-5. If you have ideas as to a program that you would like to see us offer, I would love to hear about it.


You may also be looking ahead and making some New Year’s resolutions. If you would like to learn about some new subject or take up a new hobby, we might be able to help you. We have recently added several Great Courses DVDs, which are series of lectures on a particular topic. It is much like taking a college course, but without the tests and grades. Whether you are interested in Practicing Mindfulness or Tai Chi, learning about the Great Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt, or taking up Bird Watching, we have all of these topics covered – as well as many more. What better time is there to immerse ourselves in learning something new than during a (sometimes) bleak mid-winter.


Tom O'Connell, Library Director

Building Update

The Cupola Project has finally been completed. While you likely have noticed that the cupola itself on top of the library has been repaired, some work needed to be done in our Historic Reading Room. This is now complete and the cupola looks great, inside and out. If you have been in the Historic Reading Room lately, you may have noticed that the temperatures were quite chilly. There had been an issue with one of our HVAC units, but this has now been repaired and the room should now be the cozy, welcoming place it is intended to be.

Holiday & Operating Hours

Holiday Hours


Wednesday, January 1 - CLOSED - New Year's Day

Thursday, January 16 - CLOSED - Professional Development Day

Monday, January 20 - CLOSED - Martin Luther King Jr. Day


Operating Hours


Monday - Thursday: 9 AM - 8 PM

Friday: 9 AM - 6 PM

Saturday: 9 AM - 2 PM

Spotlight

A Week in Winter

By Maeve Binchy

Stoneybridge is a small town on the west coast of Ireland where all the families know one another. When Chicky Starr decides to take an old, decaying mansion set high on the cliffs overlooking the windswept Atlantic Ocean and turn it into a restful place for a holiday by the sea, everyone thinks she is crazy. Helped by Rigger (a bad boy turned good who is handy around the house) and Orla, her niece (a whiz at business), Chicky is finally ready to welcome the first guests to Stone House’s big warm kitchen, log fires, and understated elegant bedrooms. John, the American movie star, thinks he has arrived incognito; Winnie and Lillian are forced into taking a holiday together; Nicola and Henry, husband and wife,

have been shaken by seeing too much death practicing medicine; Anders hates his father’s business, but has a real talent for music; Miss Nell Howe, a retired schoolteacher, criticizes everything and leaves a day early, much to everyone’s relief; the Walls are disappointed to have won this second-prize holiday in a contest where first prize was Paris; and Freda, the librarian, is afraid of her own psychic visions.

      

Sharing a week with these characters is pure joy, full of Maeve’s trademark warmth and humor. Once again, she embraces us with her grand storytelling. (from Penguin Random House)


Request a book, a large print book, a CD Audiobook, an e-book, or an e-audiobook.

Main Display

The Borrower Services and Reference staff invite you to

check out an item from our curated staircase displays in

Room 201 - Large Print/New Books.

Holiday Giving Tree

We appreciate all the items that we have received for the Holiday Giving Tree. Help us to decorate our Holiday Giving Tree by donating new or gently-used hats, mittens, gloves, or socks between December 2, 2024 and January 31, 2025. All items will be donated to The Mustard Seed in Worcester, MA. Our tree will be situated in the Large Print and New Releases Room on the second floor.


For more information about The Mustard Seed, please visit their website and Facebook pages.

Seeds Needed for Our Seed Library

We hope that you enjoyed

your gardens this summer!


Please donate leftover seeds to a staff member in the Lobby or at Borrower Services on the second level. Seeds should be labeled and placed in a plastic ziploc bag.

Upcoming Events

See all of our upcoming events, including Children & Teens:

See what is happening

around town:

Learn to Knit a Winter Hat

Thursdays

Jan 2, Jan 9, Jan 23, Jan 30, Feb 6

5:30 - 7 PM

More Info

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Saturday Afternoon Knitting, etc.

Sat, Jan 4

11:30 AM - 1:30 PM

More info

Zumba

Wednesdays

Jan 8, Jan 15, Jan 22, Jan 29

6:30 - 7:30 PM

More info

DIY Yarn Gnomes

Monday, Jan 13

6 - 7:30 PM

More info

Unplug With Art

Tues, Jan 14

9:30 - 11 AM

More info

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Book Discussion:

Not Just for Young Adults Book Group

Tuesday, Jan 14

6:30 - 7:30 PM

More info

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Book Discussion:

Daytimers' Book Group

Tuesday, Jan 21

1:30 - 2:30 PM

More info

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Book Discussion: Mystery Book Group

Tuesday, Jan 21

6:30 - 7:30 PM

More Info

January-25-2025-Saturday-Afternoon-etc image

Saturday Afternoon Knitting, etc.

Saturday, Jan 25

11:30 - 1:30 PM

More info

January-2025-RWO-Book-Group-300x170 image

Book Discussion:

Reads Well With Others Group

Monday, Jan 27

6:30 - 7:30 PM

More info

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Book Discussion: Inspirational Book Group & Guided Meditation

Monday, Jan 28

6:30 - 7:30 PM

More info

High Demand Holds

Top 10 Books Requested in CW MARS


  1. The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny
  2. The Waiting by Michael Connelly
  3. James by Everett Percival
  4. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
  5. Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout
  6. To Die For by David Baldacci
  7. Intermezzo by Sally Rooney
  8. Time of the Child by Niall Williams
  9. The Wedding People by Alison Espach
  10. The House of Cross by James Patterson

Top 10 Movies Requested in

CW MARS


  1. Conclave
  2. The Wild Robot
  3. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
  4. Outlander: Season 7
  5. Alien: Romulus
  6. Cabrini
  7. White Bird
  8. Joker: Folie à Deux
  9. Blink Twice
  10. Strange Darling

Board of Library Trustees

Trustees Update

The next scheduled Board of Library Trustees meeting is Wednesday, December 22th from 7-9 p.m. in Meeting Room A at the Grafton Municipal Center. The agenda will be posted on the Town of Grafton website: 

https://www.grafton-ma.gov/AgendaCenter/Board-of-Library-Trustees-Grafton-Public-9

Friends Update

Friends will be taking donations on the first Friday and Saturday of the month. Friends will be setting tables in the Friends Corner for people to leave the books on.  January's donation days are Friday, January 3 and Saturday, January 4.


Friends' gifts are available for purchase at the library.


Members can check the Friend's Facebook page for scheduled meetings.

https://www.facebook.com/GPLFriends


Join or renew your membership at www.friendsgpl.org/join. Questions? Please contact info@friendsgpl.org.

Have recommendations of ebooks the Library should purchase?


Need reference, research, reader's advisory or information

and referral help?


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