kmerwin

Garden Allies

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The Insects, Birds, and Other Animals That Keep Your Garden Beautiful and Thriving

In spring, our thoughts turn to unfurling fiddleheads and sprouting seeds!  Whether your yard or fields tend toward fragile flowers or the robust returns from a Victory garden, we have the ground-turning books for every green thumb in the 635-639 range in the stacks.  Protect those pollinators!  Don’t forget your natural partners in creating a sustainable green and healthy habitat.  Garden Allies:  the insects, birds, & other animals that keep your garden beautiful and thriving by Frédérique Lavoipierre with illustrations by Craig Latker. 

Find it in NONFICTION 639.92 LAV.

Lost in Language & Sound, or, How I Found My Way to the Arts: Essays

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By Ntozake Shange

A vibrant and vital collection that celebrates the three most important muses in the life and work of Ntozake Shange–language, music, and dance.

In this deeply personal book, the celebrated writer reflects on what it means to be an artist, a woman,and a woman of color through a beautiful combination of memoir and essay. She describes where her love for creative forces began–in her childhood home, a place where imagination reigned and boredom wasn’t allowed. The essays tell stories ranging from the poignant origin of her celebrated play “for colored girls” to why Shange needed to deconstruct the English language to make that production work, from the intensity of the female experience and the black experience as separate entities to the difficulty of living both lives simultaneously; from the intense love of jazz bestowed on her by her father to a similar obsession with dance, which came from her mother. With deep sincerity, attention, and her legendary candor, Shange’s collection progresses from the public arena to the private, gathering along the way the passions and insights of an author who writes with “such exquisite care and beauty that anybody can relate to her message” (Clive Barnes,The New York Times)

Find it in NONFICTION 812.54 SHA.

Book Review: “Living on Vacation”

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Systems Librarian, Susie Bille, recommends Living on Vacation: Contemporary Houses for Tranquil Living by Rachel Giles.

The world has been watching a war unfold through horrifying images and stories.

My heart breaks to see people running for their lives, terrified and disoriented, their homes reduced to rubble. We’ve also lost cherished people here recently through illness, and I reflect every day on the importance of feeling safe.

Where we are heavily influences who we are able to be. Our identities are connected to where we live. We are so lucky to be able to define our community with orderly streets, buildings, mountains, trails, and desert, surrounded by decent people. We aren’t confronted with man-made chaos; we are safe, and we perch on the edge of wilderness.

Sanctuary for us, here in the Wood River Valley, is within walking distance, and this knowledge influences how we can choose to live. I use those words deliberately, as most of us have this distinction in common—we made a conscious choice to live here, leaving other places behind.

Living on Vacation takes a close look at some spectacular homes located on islands and mountains, in forests and deserts, overlooking lakes and the sea. The concept is tranquil living, an ideal for all people. Many of us came here for the same reason.

Happiness and misery, security, peace, and restlessness are all influenced by the walls and community surrounding us. Good design stands to remind people of their full potential. It can prod and push, be uncomfortable and unsettling. Perfect spaces can help you pause and reflect, frame vistas to give hope, and help the ones you love find comfort.

A private sanctuary may not be within your personal grasp, but the idea and the dream to create one is worth nurturing. Walk through the pages of this book, and consider the beauty surrounding us. We’ve spent the past couple of years celebrating people’s differences. Let’s also focus on how we are all the same. Nurture the dream of sanctuary and security for all people.

Find in here, in nonfiction 728.72 GIL.

“I Have a Dream” Foundation Alumna Stephanie Andujar

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Friday, April 1 at 5 p.m. in The Community Library Lecture Hall

The Community Library, in collaboration with the “I Have a Dream” Foundation – Idaho (IHDF), welcomes New York Dream Scholar alumna Stephanie Andujar, who will be IHDF’s special guest at a spring event celebrating graduating seniors and new young Dream Scholars in the Wood River Valley. She will share with us how her experience with the “I Have a Dream” Foundation impacted her life and about her love for libraries.

Born and raised in New York City, Stephanie Andujar, nicknamed StephA, is an actress, director, producer, writer, singer, dancer, and songwriter. Known as a comedic and dramatic actress, her versatility goes far. She has starred in films such as Academy Award-winning Precious, A Walk Among the Tombstones, and Marjorie Prime. Her television career includes CBS’s Blue Bloods, NBC’s Law & Order: SVU, nurse drama Mercy, and Blindspot. She received praise for her performance in Netflix’s Orange is the New Black Season 2 as young Miss Rosa. Stephanie also starred in theatre performances from The Wiz, to The Crucible and The Good Woman of Setzuan.

While embarking on her acting career, Stephanie also obtained her Business Degree at Pace University in New York City. She formed Andujar Productions with her family and has since produced and starred in a comedy series, “StephA: One Woman Show,” along with musical performances, “Me Encanta,” “Thinkin’ Bout You,” and “Be the One for Me.” Stephanie’s authenticity shines with each performance given.

Space is limited, so register to save your seat. The program will also stream on the Library’s Vimeo and be available to watch live or later. Watch here on Vimeo.

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