Library Hours This Holiday Weekend

The library will be closed Saturday, July 2 and Monday, July 4 for Independence Day. Make sure to come in today and Friday to stock up for the long weekend!

When you visit the library, take the time to stroll by the garden on the front side of the building. The families served at Easter Seals--The Family Place (at the McConnell Center) have once again created a beautiful space. Walk through the garden's path and see the creatively placed rocks & plants. Beautiful! Thank you to all from The Family Place.

First Library Card

Here at DPL, children are able to get their own library card when they turn 5 years old. Some children are so excited about their first card that they come in on their birthdays! We are always excited for them, too, and delight in giving them their first card and special gift packets.

If your child is five years old, bring him/her in to the Children's Room to sign-up for their very first library card. The Summer Reading Program, One World, Many Stories, begins next week and all library card holders are eligible to join!

Another Source for Free eBooks

If you have an eReader and are looking for another source of eBooks other than NH Downloadable Books, try a blog called Books on the Knob. It lists Bargain reads, free ebooks, and book reviews for the Amazon Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Sony and other eReaders, as well as other items people with eReaders may find useful.

Cochecho Readers' Award Nominees 2011-12

The Cochecho Readers' Award, sponsored by the Children's Librarians of Dover, New Hampshire, is named after the Cochecho River which runs through the heart of Dover. It is given each year to an author whose book receives the most votes from third and fourth graders in Dover. Children are required to read or listen to at least three of the 20 titles on the list in order to vote for their favorite in the Spring.
The nominees for the Cochecho Readers' Award for 2011-12 have been chosen--just in time for summer reading!

Click here for the new 2011-12 nominees list and start reading!

Reading the Classics

Due to a space crunch here at the DPL we were forced to move classic works of literature to basement storage. The upside of this is that people ask us to get the books for them and we can see just how well loved they still are. I frequently  have to fetch works by the Brontes and Jane Austen. One man made me smile when he asked for anything by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he wanted lighter reading. Don't try to burst my bubble and tell me its just required reading for school; while some readers are students, others are clearly reading for the love of literature. Well done, Dover!

One World, Many Stories

We have some great Summer Reading Programs lined up for kids of all ages this summer. One World, Many Stories is the theme for ages 5-12, and You Are Here is for kids 12 and older. Registration begins July 5. There is so much going on in the Children's Room this summer besides the Summer Reading Program--movies, entertainers, crafts, games--that we had to create an entire newsletter dedicated to it. Read all about it here!

No need for "Juvenoia" at the Library

Every attempt is made at our library to ensure the safety of kids using the Internet on our public PCs. Frankly, whenever we've had a problem with "inappropriate" use of the web (which thankfully is rare), the culprit is usally a middle-aged male.

That's why it was reassuring to read this article http://www.netfamilynews.org/?p=30220 summarizing the findings of Director of UNH's Crimes Against Children Research Center, David Finkelhor. Dr. Finkelhor says that it’s one thing to say that the Internet has dangers on it; it’s a very different thing to say that the Internet increases dangers. This paranoia about kids' Internet safety is deemed "juvenoia".

He puts forth a very different hypothesis: that the Internet just might be protective. “Maybe, on balance, it’s deviance-dampening rather than deviance-amplifying,” Finkelhor said.
So how could the Net be protective?

Here are some features of the Net that could be antidotes to behavioral and social problems -----Reduction of boredom and alienation – the Internet is engaging to kids; it may help distract them from negative emotional states; those who don’t feel a sense of mastery in other environments may feel mastery online.

---Changing patterns of independence exploration – armchair adventuring; the actual risks/dangers may be less immediate online; on the Internet, a few more steps need to occur before things happen, “interactions are more drawn out, given to less impulsiveness”.
---Increased deviance detection – the offense, whatever it is, has a trail of evidence; bullying becomes not just a rumor or hearsay; maybe because of anxiety lots of parents are having more norms-improving discussions with kids than they’ve had before.
---Surveillance effect – we’ve all had to abdicate some degree of privacy, but that may not be all bad; the knowledge you can be tracked has discouraged deviance as well. It allows parents to be more in touch with children and children with one another, which might reduce some kinds of dangers.
“It’s very possible things got better for young people in spite of the Internet,” not because of it, Finkelhor said – “it’s all very speculative right now. But I like throwing these out to move the discussion forward.”

So why are we still so afraid for our children? Finkelhor answers that question too, in part two of the article here: http://www.netfamilynews.org/?p=30266.

Very interesting stuff...

Now Hear This

I read Vanity Fair's interview with Rob Lowe and it piqued my interest.The article revealed him to be an intelligent man who knew many interesting people so I picked up his audiobook, Stories I Only Tell My Friends. I like the way Lowe tells stories; describing the person and what happened with them, then revealing who they were. That awkward blind date- Sarah Jessica Parker, the talented kid with soulful eyes- John Cusack, the intense young actor Lowe punches in the face-Tom Cruise. Rob Lowe does a terrific job narrating his book. It's getting hard to get out of the car-the audiobook is so interesting I don't want to shut it off!

History for the Ages

With all focus on new-fangled technology in libraries these days, sometimes it’s easy to forget that a library is still a unique repository, a place where the collective memory of a community can reside in perpetuity, and where researchers can explore the records of our past. During the past two weeks, this fact was reinforced with me when I participated in four different projects which delved into Dover history. Over the course of my many years at the library, I have learned a lot about our city’s evolution since its founding in 1623 and am often asked historical questions about Dover. Most of these inquiries can be solved by books in our Historical Room, but these events were a bit different.
· Last Tuesday I was filmed for a Dover High School AP History class documentary. I was interviewed about Dover history by one student while a second student ran the video camera. Lots of fun and the kids had good questions and were very engaging.
· On Wednesday, I visited with about two dozen residents at Maple Suites, a nearby senior living community. Most of them are not from Dover originally, so I brought along a Show ‘N Tell style exhibit of old Dover photographs and told them exciting (I hope!) stories about the events portrayed. They seemed to enjoy it and at least no one fell asleep!
· On Thursday, I conducted two walking tours of downtown Dover for about 80 Woodman Park 3rd graders (2 groups of 40). The kids loved hearing about various fires, floods, hangings, and other disasters that had happened in Dover. We had beautiful weather for the tours and I got my exercise walking around Dover twice before noon!
· This Wednesday I participated in a soon-to-be-shown segment about Dover for WMUR Channel 9’s “NH Chronicle” television show. The Chamber of Commerce got me involved in this one and we filmed in the Cocheco Courtyard, talking about the history of the mills and why they’ve been influential in making Dover into the community it is today. Did you know that the first strike by women in the US happened right there in December 1828? You go, Dover mill girls!
While I talked about a lot of similar topics during each instance, what intrigued me the most was how I had to tailor my message to four different age groups (8 to 88 years old) and to fit four different settings (my office, a community room, on the streets with a big group, and facing a large camera while speaking off the cuff because I didn’t know the questions in advance!) The stories which intrigued the kids were not necessarily the ones which the seniors enjoyed; and talking to a camera, you don’t really know who your audience will be on the other end! Regardless, the point of all these outreach efforts is to promote the plethora of local historical information at the library and make people aware that while we have mobile apps, online databases, eBooks and Wi-Fi, we also still concentrate on our important role as a valuable historical repository for our city.

Edgar-nominated Mystery Author at DPL June 27!

Mystery novelist and editor-in-chief of Down East magazine, Paul Doiron, will visit the Dover Public Library on Monday, June 27 at 7pm for a book signing and a reading from his second “Mike Bowditch” novel, Trespasser, which will be published June 21 by Minotaur Books.
Trespasser is the riveting follow-up to Doiron’s Edgar Award–nominated first novel, The Poacher's Son. Maine Game Warden Bowditch is back on the job, and once again he's tripping over bodies. He’s called to an accident scene in which a car hit a deer, but when he arrives neither the deer nor the driver are there. Though instructed to leave the matter to the state police, the situation continues to haunt Bowditch. Where would a young woman go on a cold, snowy Maine night? Devastated when the truth is revealed, Bowditch risks all to finally bring a killer to justice.
Paul Doiron leapt from the editorship of Down East magazine to the big leagues of crime writing with his soulful debut novel, The Poacher’s Son, which was nominated for an Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Strand Critics Award, International Thriller Writers Award, a Barry Award, and Kirkus’ Best Mysteries of 2010 list.

Now in Trespasser, Mike must reopen old wounds in order to catch a killer with friends in high places. Reviewers of Doiron’s second novel have called it “altogether impressive”, “perfectly plotted” and “incredibly evocative” of the Maine landscape.
Paul Doiron is a Maine native. He attended Yale University, where he graduated with a
degree in English, and he holds an MFA in creative writing from Emerson College. Paul is a
Registered Maine Guide specializing in fly fishing and outdoor recreation and lives on a trout
stream in coastal Maine.
This is a free author event at the Dover Public Library and everyone is welcome to attend.
For more information, call 516-6050.

Quiz Time!

I love quizzes and I love books(of course...)so when I read that Marie Claire's website had a quiz that would find the best summer beach read for your personality, I had to take it. FYI-this is a gals only quiz unless you enjoy wearing tinted moisturizers and black eyeliner(one of the questions). I also asked several co-workers take the quiz so we could compare results. The first question kind of stumped me as we had to choose which beachy type vacation would best suit us and none of them appealed to me. I finally decided on laying on the beach at a friend's house in the Hamptons. I figured I could always ditch the friends if I wanted to be alone. I went on answering questions nonchalantly and finally received the results. I read "trendsetter" Fiction. Really? Hmmm. Well I have read Stieg Larsson's "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" which was one of the suggested titles but as for the others...not so much. My coworkers results were hit or miss. Two were satisfied with their fantasy recommendations and the other with her nonfiction personality. However one, who shall remain nameless, was most offended by her chic lit designation. Try it and see if you like your personality.

Why DO people litter?

I love being a Reference Librarian. I love hearing the questions and having access to so much information in order to find the answer. It used to be that I came to work answered lots of questions and went home to rest and relax to prepare for another day. Ahhh... those were the days. Now I go home to more questions that I ever get in a day at the library! The real problem is that as the little question asker is getting older the questions are getting harder--I mean should I know off the top of my head at what mach speed the Concorde used to travel? Which part of the truffala tree was used to make the thneed? (I am assuming it was the top but it's Dr. Seuss for goodness sake!) Why do people litter? (I'd like the answer to that one) Questions, questions, and more questions.

A Mysterious Gift

This seems to be our week to receive gifts of old and rare Dover historical items. Yesterday, someone put a very carefully packaged laserdisc copy of The McConnell Story starring Alan Ladd and June Allyson in our book drop. The film is a biography of Joseph McConnell, Korean War Flying Ace, who was from Dover. He was credited with shooting down 16 Russian MiG-15s.The McConnell Center is named for him. Thank you, mysterious donor!

A Glimpse into the Past

We received an interesting donation today from the Rumney, NH library. It is a printed catalog of all the books owned by the Dover Public Library in 1891. Instead of looking in a computer or card catalog, you would look up the book you wanted in this book. Anybody interested in reading "Ninevah & its remains; with an account of a visit to the Chaldean Christians of Kurdistan, & the Yezidis, or devil worshipers; & an enquiry into the manners and arts of the Ancient Assyrians"? Other page-turners include "Tobacco. Its history and associations", and "Bird-nesting. A handbook of instruction in gathering and preserving the nests and eggs of birds for the purposes of study". I wonder if those books were as popular as the John Grisham and Jodi Piccoult books we carry now.

I also enjoyed looking at the stilted, formal rules of the Library. " Any resident of Dover, and those residing out of Dover who are by law entitled to the benefits of the Library, having signed a promise to obey the rules established by the Trustees, and having given satisfactory references as to his good character and responsibility, may take books from the Library and occupy the Reading Room." Look below to read up on the other rules you would have had to obey in 1891.

A Hanging in Dover

This day in Dover history, June 3, 1788, is the anniversary of the first hanging in Dover. Elisha Thomas was executed for the murder of Captain Peter Drown. "In February of the year 1788 , at the tavern of Mr. Randall in New Durham, Elisha Thomas, a veteran of the Revolutionary War, got into an altercation with another man, both were badly under the influence of old New England rum. Captain Peter Drown of New Durham, a fine Revolutionary officer, tried to separate them; in so endeavoring he was stabbed by the knife of Thomas and he died a few hours later. Thomas expressed his regret and deep grief at the death of this friend whom he had not intended to wound but he was arrested, brought to old Dover jail,  leaving a wife and six children at home. Some little time later, she came to Dover with the youngest child being left at a neighbor’s house, and stayed over night at the jail. In the night the house in New Durham, with the five other children in it asleep; caught fire, and four were burned to death, the oldest one alone escaping." Check the online history section of our website for the rest of this tragic story.

Read All About It

The Dover Public Library eNewsletters for the month of June are now available! Follow the links below to find out about our June author visit, Summer Reading Programs, museum passes, art exhibits, and much more.

***Children's Room Newsletter
***Dover Public Library Newsletter

Want to receive our eNewsletters delivered to you via email? Easy peasy just click here to sign up.

A Library Through Other Eyes

Currently I am reading Among Others by Jo Walton. I am really enjoying the story of a young Welsh girl, Morwenna, who finds herself in an English boarding school after a mysterious incident which killed her twin sister and left her estranged from her mother. Morwenna is an avid reader and finds solace particularly in Science Fiction stories. She spends a great deal of time in her school library as well as her public library looking for new things to read. Readers of SF will enjoy all the allusions to famous authors of Science Fiction. I loved the following quote, and wanted to share it with you.

Interlibrary loans are a wonder of the world and a glory of civilization.

Libraries are really wonderful. They're better than bookshops, even. I mean bookshops make a profit on selling you books, but libraries just sit there lending you books quietly out of the goodness of their hearts.

I think I am really going to like this book!