Bring Us Your Old Junk for the Take Apart Program

We are still looking for items for our Take-Apart Program to be held on Saturday, February 3 at 2pm. Do you have old junk laying around? This is your chance to unload it--appliances, computers (no moniters) printers, keyboards, DVD players, VCRs, vacuum cleaners, and old office phones. Basically any appliance that doesn't have glass or sharp edges. Any questions call the Library at 516-6050.

Introduction to Acupuncture

On Wednesday, January 24 at 7pm, licensed acupuncturist Julie Condon, of Dover Community Acupuncture, will talk about the benefits of acupuncture and about the community model of treatment. 
What is Acupuncture? How can it help you?  Come learn about how acupuncture works and how it can help improve your health and wellness.  For those interested in experiencing acupuncture, Julie will offer a free 20-minute session focused on relaxation and stress reduction.  Free!  For more information visit www.doveracu.com

The Library will be Closed Monday

The Library will be closed on Monday, January 15 in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

"A Search for Justice" performance at Library April 9, 7pm

The Friends of the Dover Public Library are delighted to present a one-man show, “A Search for Justice”, featuring actor Stephen Collins, on Monday evening April 9, 2018 at 7pm.

In this performance piece, the audience will hear the words of Abolitionist editor William Lloyd Garrison, and John Brown will tell you why he resorted to violence. Abraham Lincoln will deliver his oration at Gettysburg, and Thomas Hardy and other writers will comment on war and religion.

These historical figures will examine timely issues of social, political, and religious justice. Can justice ever be defined or is it just an abstract concept? What is Truth? How do leaders, both political and religious, use language to motivate or dissuade people? Is violent action ever justified when all else fails? Is there ever be a “just war” or is conflict inherently unjust?

Stephen Collins currently performs eight one-man shows. Receiving rave reviews for over a decade, Mr. Collins’s shows deliver not just the poetry and plays, but bring poets and playwrights to life on the stage. His shows also convey an understanding of the impact and the reactions of the characters to their respective times, giving the audience not just a performance, but an experience. This is the first of three shows Stephen Collins will present at the Dover Public Library: in May 2018 he will perform as the poet Walt Whitman and in November as the renowned American artist James McNeill Whistler.

This program is free and open to all. It was rescheduled from two earlier snowed-out dates. For more information, please call the Dover Public Library at 603-516-6050.

Learn About Our New 3D Printer and How You Might Use It!

The Dover Public Library has recently purchased an “Ultimaker 2+” 3D printer.  Now library visitors can come see a 3D printer in action near the front desk daily. There’s always something interesting being built inside its case! 

Patrons may also request that an object (customer’s choice!) be printed for them, and pay only for the materials used in their object, usually less than $2.00. We recommend checking out Thingiverse.com for ideas. Of course, you may create your own object then send us an .stl file: we have just printed a prototype cooking tool that one of our patrons designed! 

This exciting technology is quickly becoming mainstream.  On Tuesday, January 16, at 3pm and Wednesday, January 17 at 7pm our Systems and Technology Librarian, Peggy Thrasher, will explain how the 3D printer works.  At this program, she will talk about why this printer is important for the library and how our patrons can make use of it.  She will explain some of the characteristics of 3D models that make successful prints.  3D printing is solving real world problems: find out how at this program.  The Dover Public Library will help you understand how this technology can fit into your life.

Both 3D programs are free and open to all ages. No pre-registration is required. For more information, call the Dover Public Library at (603) 516-6050.

National Recognition Award for the DPL!

Maybe you've heard? Our library started accepting Passport Applications in January 2017, the first public library in NH to do so! After much training (and an exam!) 15 of our staff were certified as Passport Acceptance Agents by the Department of State. By the end of the year, we'd processed over 350 passports and received a 100% rating during an annual inspection. We helped to encourage two other libraries (Bow and Milford) to join the program also.

Unbeknownst to us, our colleagues at the National Passport Center at Pease (the folks who'd recruited us in the first place) nominated the Dover Public Library for a Special Recognition Award. Given by the Bureau of Consular Affairs at the Department of State, these national awards recognize "facilities and agents who have gone above and beyond in offering superior customer service or implemented innovations that streamline processes and enhance the customer experience.

We are honored to be attending the official Ceremony in Washington DC on January 29 to accept our award! See the announcement here:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/passports/recipients-of-the-2017-national-awards-for-passport-acceptance.html

Please call the library 603-516-6050 to make a passport appointment if you're a new applicant. (Note: renewals must be done online.)

White Chrysanthemum review

I try not to judge books by their cover, but sometimes I pick up one to read based on it.

This was certainly the case with White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht.

The photo of the woman with her feet dipped into the water, goggles on her head and net flung over her shoulder caught my attention. She looked strong, important, like she had a purpose. I immediately knew I wanted to read about whoever this was. Besides, I was really curious what any of this had to do with chrysanthemums. If you want someone to pick up your book then having a cover like this is definitely the way to go.

I wasn’t disappointed with the story, but it was far different than what I expected from such a beautiful cover. The story itself was not as beautiful.

White Chrysanthemum tells the heartbreaking story of a sister’s sacrifice and the horrors the people of Korea faced during WWII under the Japanese occupation. Split between two narratives and time periods, the plot follows sisters Hana and Emi who were torn from each other when Hana sacrifices herself to save her younger sister from a horrible fate.

Set shortly after her abduction by a Japanese soldier, Hana’s narrative follows her horrific journey as she is forced to become a “comfort woman” in a Japanese military brothel. Meanwhile, Emi’s storyline follows her present-day search for answers on what happened to her older sister after that fateful day.

Due to the sensitive nature of the plot, this book is not meant for everyone. Some sections can be downright disturbing at times and hard to swallow. Bracht has done an amazing job tackling such a difficult story. She has a beautiful style of writing that flows easily and this helps when she writes about particularly gruesome scenes. Her descriptions are done in such a careful way, giving the reader insight into the situation without being graphic.

Those who enjoyed Memoirs of a Geisha will most likely be fans of this book as they have similar writing styles and plot lines. In fact, that seemed to be my main problem with the story: it felt too unoriginal. Some people may like this about the story. Instead, I felt like I was having déjà vu as I read. I’ve also become bored of the split narrative that takes place over two time periods. I understand why Bracht did it, but I would have much rather followed only Hana’s story. Emi’s was a bit lackluster.

Despite my own personal objections, I did still managed to enjoy the story – not necessarily for the storyline, but for the history behind it.

I am grateful that Bracht chose to write this story because it is a subject that is not written about in fiction a lot. When I picked up the book I was fairly unfamiliar with the Korean comfort women. I didn’t even realize that it was still a sore subject between Japan and Korea to this day. The protest Emi goes to every year in the story is actually a real protest. For the past 25 years, Koreans have gathered every Wednesday in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul demanding that the Japanese government apologize and compensate the women (an estimated 200,000) who were forced into prostitution. It is the world’s longest-running protest. Right beside these protesters is the same bronze statue Bracht writes about in her story – the small barefooted Korean girl with the shoulder-length hair. It is called the “Statue of Peace” and has become a symbol of the protest and an object of remembrance of these girls.