Looking for a good book?  Here are some that JEL staff have recently enjoyed!  Clicking on the title will take you right to the library's catalog, where you can check to see if it's available, and put a hold on popular titles!

• Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
• Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult
• Home Building by Mark Wagner
• The New Face of Jazz by Cicily Janus
• One Rough Man by Brad Taylor
• When Tito Loved Clara by Jon Michaud
• Arabella by Georgette Heyer

The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to present a monthly Mystery Book Club! The group is informal and friendly and new participants are welcome!

For March's meeting, the group will discuss The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill. Group participants can pick up their copy of next months title at the circulation desk following the meeting.

The staff at the library will assist in obtaining copies of the title for discussion, in advance of the event.

For more information, or to reserve your copy of an upcoming title, stop by the library or call 508-764-5426.

This month's featured artist is Lynne Kokotiuk, joined by fellow artist Julie Caprera.

The reception for the artists will be held on Thursday, April 7th at 6:30 p.m. - all are welcome, and refreshments will be provided by the Friends of the Library. 

The reception will also feature a performance by the Southbridge High School Jazz Ensemble, in celebration of Jazz History Month! The combo will be conducted by Justin Smalley, Band Director.  Please stop by for an evening of art and music.

Lynne says: "I have been painting for 35 years.   I also stencil and decorate ornate trays, Hitchcock style chairs, cupboards, walls and a variety of other mediums.   I learned the art of Rosemaling-traditional folk painting which has its origins in Norway.  I began rural scenery painting about 10 years ago, and have found that to be a most rewarding experience.  I've painted on canvases, milk cans, cheese boxes, tabletops, and trays. I love the rural life, and painting scenes that depict a simpler and slower way of life is a way for me to relax and express myself.  I think cows are one of the most content and peaceful animals that God created.  They are my favorite subject."

Julie has always had an interest in art, but only began pursuing it fairly recently: "While there has always been an interest in art, painting, and color, my understanding of careers in art was limited to "painting fine paintings". I didn't think I could even draw well, and didn't know anyone involved full time in art. It was only in the last few years, while trying to help my youngest son improve his eye-hand coordination that the latent interest in art was rekindled. This has seemed to be the time, and slowly a career has been developing with many parties contributing. It's been a blast, and the adventure has taken on a new life of it's own."

The Friends of the Jacob Edwards Library present Only When I Dance, which will begin at 6:00 p.m. in the Pioppi Room, lower level.  Candy will be available for purchase.

We have plenty for teens to do during April Vacation week! 

Wednesday, April 20th, from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., Learn to Play Chess!  Adam and Ben Piche are champion chess players from CT, and will be in the Pioppi Room to help both beginners and experienced players!

On Thursday, April 21st at 3:00 p.m., learn about the History of Hip Hop!  Rondae Drafts, an adjunct professor at UMASS, is a Ph.D. candidate studying urban education, with a focus on hip-hop's cultural impact.  Drafts believes there is a message in the art of hip-hop.  It is a way to express how urban students view their place in the world.  This program is sponsored by the Southbridge Cultural Council.

Friday, April 22nd, is also Earth Day.  We will be screening the movie Hoot at 10:30 a.m., and will also have a Wii Gaming session for teens and tweens at 2:00 p.m. 

Gary Greenberg, author of Manufacturing Depression, will be at JEL to discuss his book and will be available to sign books afterwards.

"Am I happy enough?

This has been a pivotal question since America's inception.  Am I not happy enough because I am depressed? is a more recent version.  In the past twenty years, as antidepressants have become staples of our medicine chests - upward of thirty million Americans are taking them at an annual cost of more than ten billion dollars - more people have begun to ask themselves if their unhappiness is a disease that can, and should, be treated by medication.  Part memoir, part intellectual history, part expose, Manufacturing Depression reveals how this question has come to dominate our understanding of our suffering.

Gary Greenberg is a practicing psychotherapist in CT and author of The Noble Lie.  He has written about the intersection of science, politics, and ethics for many publications, including Harper's, The New Yorker, Wired, Discover, Rolling Stone, and Mother Jones, where he's a contributing writer." 

10,000 people will read 7 poems in April. Will you be one of them?

National Poetry Month is celebrated in April, and Mass Poetry has an ambitious program for the state that perhaps has produced more poets than any other in the nation. During April, in libraries, schools, colleges, book clubs, senior groups, and bookstores the organization hopes to have 10,000 Massachusetts citizens reading seven poems by seven poets who work currently or have worked in Massachusetts. Jacob Edwards Library will participate in this state-wide poetry event.

The poems include:

In the Waiting Room by Elizabeth Bishop
The Lost Pilot by James Tate
Occupation by Suji Kwock Kim
Vita Nova by Louise Glück
New England Ode by Kevin Young
Samurai Song by Robert Pinsky
Love Song: I and Thou by Alan Dugan

Recurring Events