Cathy recommends: Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming
Genre: Fact-based fiction
Reading Level: Picture book
Summary: One well-meaning child benefits an entire town in a foreign country.
Cathy says: This book left me with a smile on my face. A child who joined USA’s Children’s Aid Society after WWII devastated parts of Europe sends a bar of soap, a pair of socks, and a bar of chocolate to a child in a small town in Holland. As the needs of these townspeople become known to the Indiana town, the generosity blossoms, as does the Dutch child and her community. How can a poor town repay such kindness? They do so in a clever way. The author’s mother is the little girl from Indiana.
We have a new monthly all-levels sewing group at Tyler Free Library! This group meets on the second Monday of the month at 5pm. Please bring your machine if you have one. We will have others to share if you need. Please mail info@fosterlibraries.org to join the email list and find out what we’re making next.
Classic coffee filter snowflakes with a colorful twist! We will use markers to create a watercolor effect on these stunning winter decorations.
This workshop takes place on Friday, January 19 at 1pm, right after our weekly storytime at Tyler Free Library. Registration is required due to limited materials. To register, you can sign up in person, call either library, email ofriederich@fosterlibraries.org, or submit our online form.
*NOTE: This event is postponed due to weather. Stay tuned to our website and newsletter for the new date.*
Join us for a night of space exploration! Robert Horton, manager of Astronomical Labs and Ladd Observatory at Brown University, will be giving a short stargazing presentation. Then we will use telescopes and binoculars to identify constellations, planets, nebulae and star clusters. The moon will be reaching its first quarter phase, which will create ideal viewing conditions. Telescopes will be available to share, but if you have your own, please feel free to bring it. Flashlights and headlamps are also recommended.
We will meet at Tyler Free Library on Friday, January 12 at 6:30pm. In case of rain or snow, the rain date will be January 19. Children are welcome to attend. Please register online or email ofriederich@fosterlibraries.org to sign up.
*NOTE: The time of this event has changed from 6:30 to 6:00.*
Join us as we welcome Police Chief Lindell to the library for a night of stories! All ages welcome at Foster Public Library on Tuesday, January 23 at 6:00pm. You can register using our online form or email ofriederich@fosterlibraries.org.
Let your creativity shine and join us for a night of winter snow globe creations! We will have a variety of woodland figurines and evergreen plants to make the perfect winter scene.
*Note: Due to weather, this craft will take place on Wednesday, January 17, at the same time and place.*
Make a traditional Polish pajaki to cheer up your January interior and bring you luck for the new year! These ornamental paper chandeliers are the perfect antidote to gray days, and were historically used to brighten up homes during the dark winter months.
This event will be held at Foster Public Library on Wednesday, January 10, 6pm. Please register with our online form or email info@fosterlibraries.org. This program is recommended for adults and teens.
Audrey recommends:The Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner
Genre: Fantasy
Reading Level: Adult
Summary: The eccentric Mad Duke of Tremontaine decides to teach his niece, Katherine, how to become a swordmaster rather than marry her off to an eligible nobleman.
Audrey says: Ellen Kushner describes her Riverside series as “a melodrama of manners”: Jane-Austen-style social commentary in a bloody, high-stakes action-adventure. The ladies in town gossip about the latest slaughter as if it were a fashionable dress. Literary opinions are settled by a duel to first blood. “Melodrama of manners” is now my new favorite genre of all time.
Leaving aside the environment, this novel is, at its core, about breaking boundaries. Marriage or death seem to be the only option for a young lady, but the Mad Duke encourages her to take a third option: true independence.
At first, Katherine resists: if she walks around in boy’s clothes, folks will think she’s clinically insane, or worse, an actress. Katherine herself has no issue wearing breeches; she limits herself purely on the perceptions of others. The pressure to marry young, to appear chaste, to rely on men, to avoid making a scene… The societal norms of class and gender completely unravel once she realizes that they’re all illusions.
This brief summary can’t do justice to the detail of Kushner’s world nor the rich interiority of her characters. I’m surprised this cult classic isn’t more well-known; I recommend you read the book for yourself, not least so I have someone to talk to about it.
Kylie recommends:A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Genre: Dystopian
Reading Level: YA
Summary: This is a prequel to The Hunger Games following President’s Snow origin story and the 10th Hunger Games.
Kylie says: This was a really interesting read. It was quite long and I was not really sure were it was going even though you know that Snow ends up as President Snow. I liked to see Snow’s backstory and how the war lead to the creation of the Hunger Games.
Snow throughout the book but especially at the end gave me psychopath, anti-hero, and vibes of Joe from You by Caroline Kepnes and June from Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. These stories are very deep to me and I like to see how their minds work even though they do terrible things, and you know as the reader that they are wrong but how they rationalize their perspective.
The ending was so good, I could not stop reading for the last like 20% of the book!
Summary: If you’re like me and think Bella chose the wrong one in Twilight…
Cathy says: Concise story about an independent student with overly preoccupied parents; all too often the case in recent times. She has to find her own way, with the help of a few good friends. Some say she has an obsession with wolves, but there’s a reason. Plenty of interesting action which quickly moves the plot along. Read it in a day.
