By David W. Keeber |
Sedona Public Library
Sedona, AZ - As part of our 50th
Anniversary celebrations here at Sedona Public
Library, we are presenting a weekly program
called Reading on the Red Rocks. These are Meet
the Author programs presented every Friday,
either in the evening, or during the Noon hour
as a Brown Bag Lunch series. The presenters will
be local, regional, national, and children's
authors. The programs are free, but as the ads
on television say, "priceless."
This past week, Tucson author Nancy Turner who
wrote These Is My Words, The Star
Garden and other titles gave the kickoff
program for the series and she was absolutely
charming and entertaining. During her program,
she made an intriguing statement that caught my
attention. She said, "Stories bear the truth we
really want to tell." Her point, it seemed, was
that often we tell stories that bear out
experiences we have had without having to tell
the more difficult first hand story. The story
in its "fictional" guise allows the writer to
speak to their own life or that of another they
know by keeping at something of an arm's length.
Ms. Turner read from her latest novel, The
Star Garden, with passages that truly came
alive both from her skilled reading, but from
having recently made that point above. While the
tale is that of her great grandmother,
fictionalized, Turner made the point that many
of the things in the tale we either her
experiences or her hoped-for experiences.
Additionally, Turner spoke to details of how she
writes that was very informative, as well as
entertaining. It was a great evening and one
that bodes well for the entire series.
It is the success of that first evening that
really prompts me to encourage you to attend
future programs. Friday, February 8th is a Noon
hour presentation by James Endredy about his
book Beyond 2012, and the following week is
local author Mary Ross Smith with her personal
memoir, Soul Survivor. Throughout our series,
you can learn in advance who will be presenting
by picking up a free bookmark at the Circulation
desk, checking our events calendar or picking up
a paper copy of that calendar here at the
Library. Don't miss one of these programs as I
am sure they will all be fascinating.
One another note, entirely, the Friends of the
Library on-line sales project needs more
volunteers, now that there are two computers
available for listing books. This new aspect of
the Friends' book sales has grown in its success
over the past months. Essentially, books of
considerable value that would not otherwise sell
for high dollars in the monthly or twice-yearly
sales are offered online to special collectors.
The returns from these sales have been
significant and offer the Friends a wonderful
new avenue for obtaining the funds that support
this Library. With nearly two pickup trucks full
of books being donated weekly, the number of
exceptional books grows and grows. More hands
are needed and the work is really pretty
interesting.
Requirements are enthusiasm for on-line sales,
minimal level of computer literacy (e.g.
experience with e-mail or surfing the web), and
love of books. Previous on-line selling
experience is wonderful, but not necessary. If
you are interested and will to help out, email
the Friends of Sedona Library Online Book Sales
at sedonafossilz@yahoo.com. We really can use
your help.
Over the past few months, a group has met weekly
on Fridays to discuss personal investing. While
not the Beardstown Women sort of thing, the
group gathers to discuss their investing
strategies, ideas, successes and failures. There
is no fee to join and there is no need to attend
every meeting. But, if you would like to
participate in this informal gathering, the
Investment Strategy group meets Fridays at 11 AM
in the Quiet Study room. Come try it out.
There is so much going on here at Sedona Public
Library. Be sure to check out our online
Calendar of Events or pick up a copy of the
calendar when you visit us next.
Past Library News issues:
Sedona Library Archive
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