What We Did on Our Summer Vacation

(We read, of course!)
 
Now that the librarians have all had some time off we can report back to you that we have read some great books this summer.  From “bodice rippers” to biographies, here are just a few of the Librarians Choice:  Best Vacation Books.

If a romantic historical mystery is what you crave, then The Dark Enquiry, the sixth installment of the Miss Julia Grey series by Deanna Raybourn should satisfy.  If you haven't read any of this series be sure to begin at the beginning with Silent in the Grave.   

If you can’t get enough Tina Fey, Bossy Pants should  hold you over until a new season of 30 Rock.  Be sure to grab the book on CD, read by the author, if you have a long car ride, but do remember, if there are little ears in the car, this is Tina Fey uncensored! 
       
Fans of Jennifer Egan’s first novel, The Invisible Circus will enjoy Sister a first novel by Rosamund Lupton in which a young woman is compelled to unravel the mystery surrounding her sister’s death.
     
If you need a cure for yoga class performance anxiety check out Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses by Claire Dederer.  Dederer, a young mother with a bad back, breaks a long standing personal rule to never enter a room that has prayer flags hanging from the ceiling in a last ditch effort to solve her back problems and gets hooked on yoga.  This ridiculously funny book, about the perils of postures and parenting, will have you laughing even if you have not done either.
    
For a complete list of our Best Vacation Books stop by the Circulation Desk.

Can We Help You?

Libraries have many roles, but one of my favorites is solver of disputes. Sounds very official doesn't it? This is when we get people in who have been arguing over a fact-- a song lyric, how many RBIs so and so has, who was the 17th president (Andrew Johnson)--the list could go on and on. Recently I had a woman in looking to check out one of our Kill-A-Watt Energy Detectors--apparently there was some dispute in the household about exactly how much energy the air conditioner used. Of course, we don't like hearing about discord in a household or friendship, but we are happy we can be here to help. :)

One World, Many Games...

Keeping with the summer reading program's theme of "One World, Many Stories", Miss Amy has taught the children a couple of games played in different countries. Here, the children are learning to play Bocce (Italy). After the game, they were even given a special treat--gelato!

19th Wife

I was watching the Warren Jeffs trial on the news this morning when it reminded me of a superb novel I had read a few years ago. Jeffs is the leader of a breakaway sect of the Mormon Church known as the FLDS. You may remember seeing scenes of his ranch being raided by law enforcement, while hoards of women wearing identical styles of long dresses and elaborate coiffure milled about. Children were temporarily placed into protective custody due to possible charges of sexual assault on minors and bigamy. I had just read a fiction book around the time of this occurrence calledThe Nineteenth Wife by David Ebershoff. The Nineteenth Wife is actually two interwoven stories; one is the story of Mormon prophet Brigham Young's nineteenth wife, Ann Eliza, who spent her life revealing the truth about plural marriage in her memoirs and lecture tour. The second story is that of a present-day  nineteenth wife, BeckyLyn, who lives in a cult similar to the FLDS and stands accused of murdering her husband. BeckyLyn’s son Jordan, who was thrown out of the First Latter-day Saints compound as a boy returns to help her, putting his life at risk. Both stories were fascinating. This is one of those books that is difficult to put down.

To order or not to order?

Each year, the library receives a city appropriation of about $95,000 to spend on new materials for the library. I and my staff are trusted to make good decisions about how to spend this money. We read reviews, receive patrons' requests, watch for what's hot or popular in bookstores and the media, and in general try to meet the recreational and informational reading interests of the citizens of Dover.

Regardless of my own personal views and opinions, I attempt to purchase materials across the whole social, political, and economic sprectrums, fairly representing all sides of any issue. Several times a year, I grumble "waste of money" when having to order some book that I know is ephemeral, trashy, self-serving or which plays loose with the facts. But I do indeed order it if there are enough patron requests and I keep my opinions to myself.

I grumbled this year about "Where's the Birth Certificate?" by Jerome Corsi. It was heavily promoted in the spring and we had requests, so I ordered a copy ($26). On April 27, President Obama released the full copy of his Hawaiian birth certificate which made this issue moot and it fizzled away along with Donald Trump. The book arrived in mid-May and we filled all the patrons' requests. Now it's hibernated on the new non-fiction shelves, not moving since June 15. No one else has checked it out. No one is interested in the subject any longer.

I was complaining to another librarian about spending the $26 (less our jobber discount of course) on Corsi's book, when she gave me a good reason not to feel wasteful. Isn't it better, she mused, to have spent money for one copy at the library that many people will read than to have those many people each purchase their own copy at $26 per and put even more money into the author's pocket? I had to agree!

So sometimes, we make a less-than-worthy choice in acquiring a book simply to fill public demand. But public demand does count. If those people were happy to get Corsi's book at their public library, then I guess I'm doing my job!

By the way, we have a policy that if a book doesn't circulate for four years, it is withdrawn from the collection and sold at the booksale. Here's looking forward to 2015!

Worst Opening Lines!!

The winners of the annual Bulwer-Lytton Contest were just announced. Entrants competed to compose the very worst opening sentence for an imaginary novel. Its name comes from Victorian novelist Edward George Bulwer-Lytton who wrote "It was a dark and stormy night" as the first line of one of his books.

See http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/2011.htm for all the winners, but here are some of my favorites this year:

"Wearily approaching the murder scene of Jeannie and Quentin Rose and needing to determine if this was the handiwork of the Scented Strangler--who had a twisted affinity for spraying his victims with his signature raspberry cologne--or that of a copycat, burnt-out insomniac Sonny Kirkland was sure of one thing: he'd have to stop and smell the Roses."

"Within the smoking ruins of Keister Castle, Princess Gwendolyn stared in horror at the limp form of the loyal Centaur who died defending her very honor: "You may force me to wed," she cried at the leering and victorious Goblin King, "but you'll never be half the man he was."

"Detective Kodiak plucked a single hair from the bearskin rug and at once understood the grisly nature of the crime: it had been a ferocious act, a real honey, the sort of thing that could polarize a community, so he padded quietly out the back to avoid a cub reporter waiting in the den."

Groan loudly and enjoy!

Space Age Technology

I heard an NPR news report recently about how car manufacturers are looking towards young kids, as young as 6, to find out what they look for in cars. An analyst for Edmonds.com says "...kids as young kindergarten are already having an impact on the kind of cars they'll end up driving. She says in recent years, carmakers have realized the importance of knowing what the buyers of the future want. All they have to do is ask them." I know that I am not a marketing or advertising person but I was thinking---really? My son is a bit younger but when I asked what he would want in a car he came up with some ideas from Chris Van Dusen's book "If I Built a Car". In the book a little boy imagines all the things that he would incorporate into his car if he built one such as an instant snack bar, pool, robot to help with the driving, and of course the car could drive on water, under the water and in the sky. Sounds a bit pricey, but looks for it in showrooms near you in about 10 years!

Animals of the World @ DPL

Miss Kimberly held another fabulous drop in story hour this morning with the theme of Animals of the World.The Library echoed with young voices singing about crocodiles and monkeys. It sure sounded like a lot of fun. I can't wait to see her next drop in story hour on August 3. The theme is Folklore & Fairytales. Children are encouraged to dress up as their favorite story time character for this story hour- princess, dragon, knight, pirate, etc. Don't miss it!

Greetings

Bluebeary loves the "One World, Many Stories" theme of the Children's Summer Reading Program. Namaste from Bluebeary.

In Search of Thrillers

Looking for some thrilling summer reading? The International Thriller Writers held a meeting this month in which they announced the winners of the 2011 Thriller Awards. The winners are:

Best Hard Cover Novel:
Bad Blood by John Sandford

Best First Novel:
Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

R.L. Stine, ThrillerMaster
in recognition of his legendary career and outstanding contributions to the thriller genre

Joe McGinniss, True Thriller Award

Karin Slaughter, Silver Bullet Award

What comes next?

Just came across an interesting article about "10 Fantasy Book Series That Could Replace Harry Potter at the Movies." I haven't read all 10 of the series listed, but I for one think that Artemis Fowl would make a wonderful movies series. What do you think?

Coming Attractions

Hey, only 248 days until The Hunger Games movie arrives. Fans will be whipped into a frenzy by then. Until then, read the books....

Mancala?

Do you know how to play mancala? Me either but Miss Amy taught some lucky kids how to play today in the Children's Room. If you missed this event we have others planned for the kids this summer:
***Thurs., July 28: Craft class with Miss Karin @ 2pm (ages 7-12)
***Tues., Aug. 2: Learn to play bocce with Miss Amy @ 2pm (ages 7-12)
Sign-up for these programs in the Children's Room--we would love to have you join us.

The Harry Potter Generation

I was watching news coverage of the record breaking opening of the last Harry Potter movie this morning. Many teens who were interviewed who commented on how they grew  up with Harry Potter. They started reading the series in elementary school and are graduating High School as the series and movies are finishing. Many said they feel like seeing the movie was like having their childhood end. I think it is remarkable and wonderful that a generation can be defined by a book.

One World, Many Stories

"Bluebeary" is really getting into the Summer Reading Program theme, "One World, Many Stories". What will he be wearing next week?

Parking Changes

The City of Dover has established a 3 hour parking limit in the parking lot behind the Library. If you need to be here at the Library for more than three hours please tell a librarian and we can give you a special pass.

Guard Your Privacy

If you are concerned about maintaining your privacy on your Facebook account, you should take it look at this article on what settings you need to look at on Facebook. It has a handy slideshow that explains the settings and shows you what you will see on your computer screen. I hope you find it helpful.

Woof!

Jane Kennedy and her dog, Sasha, from the Cocheco Valley Humane Society will visit the library to talk about pets and pet care on Thursday, July 14 @ 10:30a.m. Pets as ―Purrr-fect friends, the ―ABC’s of Pets and Pet Care, choosing the pet that’s right for you, and safety around animals will be discussed. Please join us and discover the valuable work that is being done at CVHS and how this work serves the animals in our community.

Summer Reading Program Fun!

We had a great time last week watching Lindsay & Her Puppet Pals tell adapted fairy tales from around the world! This week, the Summer Reading Program fun continues with a movie today @ 2pm (The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules), a drop-in story time on Wednesday @ 10:30am, a make-it, take-it "tissue paper flower" from Central America at the craft table, and a special presentation (Purrr-fect Pets) by Jane & her dog Sasha from the Cocheco Valley Humane Society on Thursday @ 10:30am.
And, don't forget, even though 328 children signed up for the program last week, there are still plenty of reading logs and folders to be given out. Don't miss out on all the prizes, the raffles, and the fun!

Around the World in 80 (Recent) Books

Our summer reading programs, "One World, Many Stories" for children and "You are Here!" for teens have 294 registered participants after only 3 days of sign-ups! Hurrah!!

In order for our adult patrons not to feel left out, we've compiled a list of 80 recent titles (both fiction and nonfiction) that also promote the theme of travel. If your summer plans can't take you to exotic places this year, try one of these books which span the globe. Follow this link to get to the list:

http://www.dover.lib.nh.us/AroundtheWorld.pdf

Monday Movie Madness

Next Monday, July 11th begins our Monday Movie Madness series. Here is the line up of movies we will be showing:

**Monday, July 11 @ 2:00pm: Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2: Roderick Rules, rated PG.
**Monday, July 18 @ 2:00pm: Gnomeo & Juliet, rated G.
**Monday, July 25 @ 2:00pm: Rango, rated PG.
**Monday, August 1 @ 2:00pm: Despicable Me, rated PG.
**Monday, August 8 @ 2:00pm: Yogi Bear, rated PG.

All movies are shown in the Library Lecture Hall.
BYOP: Bring your own popcorn! All are welcome.

A Summer Full of Fun

This morning Miss Kimberly entertained a roomful of our littlest (and cutest) patrons with stories, songs, and dancing. The Children's Room staff has many events planned throughout the summer to keep the little ones entertained so please take a look at their newsletter so you won't miss out on any of the fun.

NH Downloadable Book Tips & Tutorials

We have had lots of people in looking for help with their eReaders, even a teen who came in to sign up for the Summer Reading Program. I love how excited people are about being able to load up their devices with eBooks, and audiobooks. There is a great resource you should know about if you are interesting in downloading books, put together by one of the Librarians at the NH State Library, called the NH Downloadable Books Blog. It has many easy to follow tutorials with screenshots to help you through the process of downloading, as well as hints and tips to handle common problems. I highly recommend it, it will save you some frustration. Here are just a few of the topics covered:

Getting Started with eBooks has separate tutorials for  PC users with a Nook, Kobo, or other compatible reader that requires eBooks be transferred with Adobe Digital Editions, PC users with a Sony Reader, Mac users with a Nook, Kobo or any other compatible reader that needs Adobe Digital Editions to load the eBooks; Mac users with a Sony Reader; iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch Users; and Android Phone Users.

There is another whole section on getting started with audiobooks which has separate tutorials for Mac and PC users. Don't forget to check out the How To Tips!

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!