Saturday's the big day! And we mean big.

The Harvest Faire is set to run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Throughout the day, visitors will be able to:

Thanks to the much-appreciated help from Brenda Henry, you can like the Faire on Facebook on the Wallkill Public Library Harvest Faire page.

Looking ahead:

 Are you - or have you ever aspired to be - a coupon clipper?

Whether you're already obsessive about shaving your grocery bill with a scrapbook full of coupons or you've been enviously eyeing those efficient and organized couponers on the checkout line ahead of you, you can glean tips at 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 12!

Bring your coupons with you, if you have any - we'll be trading, as well as offering advice on collecting and using them.

 

October is National Pizza Month! Show your Wallkill Public Library card at Tosco's or Rob's any Friday during the month and get 10 percent off your pie! Benissimo!

Bring your own project and whatever equipment you need (sewing machine, iron, etc.) - there are enough tables and outlets for all! Come and go as you please and enjoy finishing your projects in the company of like-minded hobbyists!

The Quilters' Circle will have their next meeting at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 24. Call the library at 895-3707 for more information.

Matt is also in the process of taking the Barberie patent - the town's birth certificate, of sorts, which was found rolled up in a barn on the Borden property - and preparing it to be preserved and stored in the town's archives. Eventually a copy of the patent will be available online, as well.

Thank you, Matt, for all your hard work, and for proving a library is much more than a place where you check out books!

 

This year Banned Books Week, which runs from Sept. 30 to Oct. 6, is celebrating its 30th anniversary. If you'd like to mark the occasion, you can choose from a selection of  banned and challenged classics or come in and pick out a more recent eyebrow raiser (we have all three of the Fifty Shades of Grey installments!).

For more information on Banned Books Week, check out the ALA's website.

The new book catches up with The Shining's Danny Torrance, now a middle-aged man still haunted by the demons of The Overlook, who is working in a nursing home when he meets a 12-year-old girl who shares his power. The girl is being attacked by paranormals who prey on children with the shining, and Danny must help the girl confront the

quasi-immortals before they destroy her soul. 

If you're notified by our automated phone system that you have material waiting for you, you'll notice you're told you have four days in which to pick up your order. This is because these automated calls go out a day after the items are processed and placed on the hold shelf.

This system has been in place for months, but because some patrons still express surprise at the quicker pickup deadline, we thought we'd send  out a friendly reminder. In the long run we hope this works to your benefit (especially the next time you're number 456 in the hold queue for the next Patterson!).

 

J.K. Rowling's first adult novel hit the shelves (including Wallkill Public Library's) this week, and the reviews are in: a mixed bag of mediocrity. Readers shouldn't let that deter them from picking up the book, though - once Rowling created Harry Potter, she doomed herself to writing future works that would dim in comparison (and no critic out there seems to be avoiding such comparisons).

Vacancy has been described as a "traditional English novel":

When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early forties, the little town of Pagford is left in shock.

Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.

Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils...Pagford is not what it first seems.

And the empty seat left by Barry on the town's council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?

Readers can come in and judge for themselves how well Rowling measures up to her most threatening predecessor....herself.

Several Saturday mornings this summer, I was fortunate to go downtown to visit the businesses at the end of Park Avenue. I would get such a kick out of witnessing this little bustling hub of activity from the steady stream of customers going in and out of the Chocolate Dreams Coffee Bar, to folks perusing the vegetables, sunflowers,  Miss Marla's homemade hummus, and fresh bread at the Community Farm Market; and then to see teens, moms with kids in tow, and senior citizens cruising into the Friends' Used Book Shop for great finds at low prices who then would go find some more deals next door at the Golden Rule Thrift Shop. The sense of community, of neighbors visiting with each other as they shopped, of the camaraderie shared among strangers, possibly soon to be friends, is the kind of magic that happens in downtowns that create gathering places. Adding sidewalks and signage, creating pedestrian-friendly destinations, and outdoor seating for people to gather or just sit and relax, all add to this experience as well.

This Saturday, as we launch our third annual Harvest Faire, the library has invited all of the downtown businesses to get in on the act by spilling out onto the sidewalks in front of their stores so that Faire visitors are encouraged to walk down the main street and see what our hamlet has to offer. One of the easiest and most impactful things any of us can do is to shop local more often. Take a stroll down the main drag and visit the hardware store, or the country gift shop that also sells fresh flowers and greeting cards, the soft serve ice cream store that features a Christian bookshop, a well-stocked liquor store and soda shop, Chinese, Italian and Mexican restaurants, a grocery store, barber shop and hair salon...and all of the wonderful places on Park Avenue. Shopping local builds a sense of community, commitment, and pride and strengthens the local economy. Best of all, it encourages you to be part of something bigger - creating a little bustling hub of activity every weekend of the year. If you don't think anything is ever going on in the hamlet of Wallkill, I invite you to come down this weekend and be pleasantly surprised.

 

Mary Lou Carolan

Director