With any luck, we have made it through the worst of the weather. For those of us who say we like snow, no complaints allowed. The cold weather has not deterred our patrons, and we are busy with programs for all tastes and new materials for your enjoyment. Thank you for your support at our winter book and bake sale. Without your participation, we could not succeed.

I hope you were able to come to one of our February programs: between the Chelsea Garden Show and square-foot gardening, we had "food for thought," no pun intended. Coming up are a variety of programs. We have music in March: a Celtic music celebration with Denya LeVine. We have history as well: author Edie Clarke discusses those who fought in World War II but never talked about their war experiences. Later in the spring we will have nature programs presented by Long Pasture Audubon Sanctuary staff, thanks to a grant from the Mid-Cape Cultural Council. If you know of a program we should have, please let us know.

Our list of new books appears elsewhere in the Yardarm. Be aware that each month we list books we have ordered near the new book shelves, and post the most recent list of best-sellers from the NY Times, highlighting the items we own. In the media area we have a sign noting what new items have appeared or are on the way.

Thanks to donations in memory of a long-time patron, we can buy more new Large Print books. We continue to do our best to make your library experience pleasant and rewarding. Please let us know what else we can do for you. We are always happy to request a book for you if it is not on the shelf.

With "warm" wishes to you all...

Leslie Altman

Winter is finally drawing to a close! Bet you thought it would never end, right? I know I've had my doubts.   

Lapsit Story Time has been attracting a great group of Littles and their caregivers. We've been ignoring the cold and singing, creating, and listening to stories all season. If this is the sort of thing you think you and your child m

The first Friday of every month is Generations! Music and Movement for Children and Seniors together with Denya LeVine. This program is funded through a generous grant from the Education Foundation for Dennis and Yarmouth. If you are under 5 or over 55, join us at the Congregational Church!

When there is no school there is no story time. (You are welcome to come hang-out but we don't close off access to the Children's Room during school breaks.)

Parents: Is there a program you have been to or heard about that you would like us to bring to YPL? Nature? Music? Yoga? Programs for older children? Would you please  stop in and talk to me. We're always looking for ideas.    

Lego enthusiasts:

We would love to host an after-school Lego club but we need help getting the materials to get started.  If you have some unused Lego building blocks lying around, would you, please consider donating them to the library?  Please call or email me. I would greatly appreciate it.

Looking forward to warmer times!

I would like to thank all of the folks who helped make the Christmas Stroll at the Yarmouth Port Library such a great event. As usual we had fantastic homemade sandwiches and desserts to feed the hungry visitors who came in out of the cold. It is always nice to hear the positive comments about our charming facility from out-of-towners who have never been to our building. People always ask about our history and we are proud to share our heritage.

This year was the first time we also hosted a fund raiser at the stroll. Many visitors purchased the wonderful hand knitted hats, mittens, ear warmers, socks and scarves that we offered for sale at ridiculously affordable prices. I want to thank the talented knitters who worked so hard to provide us with the garments to sell. We would like to continue this tradition next year so get those needles out on these cold winter evenings and make us a cozy pair of mittens or a warm hat for next year. Items can be dropped off all year and will be stored for the December 2014 Stroll. We will be expanding the sale at the Stroll-more to come on that.

February was cruel to us again this year. For the second year in a row we had to cancel the Sunday hours of our book sale because of weather related problems. This year we had no power and I can tell you that the building was frigid when I stopped by to check the status. In addition to books this year we also had homemade baked goods-tasty quick breads, fudgy brownies, golden artisan bread and many more delicious items for sale.   Of course I have to thank the volunteers who baked as well as those who worked so hard to make the sale come to fruition. We are so lucky to have a corps of hard workers. Without them the Yarmouth Port Library would not exist.

We are looking forward to the warmer weather and our July Book Sale which will be on the 19th. It will involve a bigger and better plant sale and perhaps some other surprises. Look for details in upcoming issues of the Yardarm and at the Library.

Stay safe and warm! 

The 2014 membership campaign had raised $37,000 toward its goal of $40,000 as of February 15th, according to Les Peat, Chairman of the Yarmouth Port Library Membership Committee. Over 300 memberships have been recorded, with some decline in the dollars contributed at the highest levels of membership largely offset by increases in support at the lower levels. The number of Individual and Family members stepping up to the $100.00 Patron level has been particularly encouraging. We also have 58 new members, more than offsetting normal attrition. "All of this is very encouraging for the long term," said Peat. "We need to have a solid base of support from large numbers of individuals, couples, and families. As grateful as we are to our major supporters - and we will always be reliant on them to some extent - it would not be healthy for us to become overly dependent on large contributions."

If you have not yet joined or have not renewed your membership, please fill out the coupon below and send it with a check payable to the Yarmouth Library Association at 297 Main Street, Yarmouth Port, MA 02675. You will be helping the Library to remain the vibrant and contemporary institution it has become.

Here is a complete list of those who have renewed their support  

of the Library and all new members since February 8, 2014:

2014 Library Sponsors and members 

Geraldine Brooks in The Boston Globe

MAGIC OF LIBRARIES: The wonderful thing about libraries and why I'll never stop going [in spite of] the wonders of JSTOR and all the other online resources you can use now is the serendipitous encounters that can happen in the stacks of a great library. I was doing my research on Hebrew book censorship [for "People of the Book"] in Widener [library at Harvard]. . . and I found the autobiography of a 17th century Venetian rabbi that I didn't even know existed that took the narrative in a completely different direction. You couldn't have that kind of serendipitous encounter online. It's kind of magical.

AROUND THE CORNER BOOKSHOP

Looking for a new title or a favorite author?

Visit the book sale nook "Around the Corner" in the Reading Room.

Many 2011-2013 hardcovers, paperbacks and trade fiction at

BARGAIN PRICES - $1.00 - $3.00

Stock up for cold, winter days or your trip South.

Support the Yarmouth Port Library!

BOOK DONATIONS = $ FOR THE LIBRARY

Please DONATE your used books to the library for our next annual July book sale and our ongoing book sale shelf. Some new titles can also go into our library collection. We accept fiction and nonfiction, children's books, cookbooks, travel guides, etc. We also resell CD's and DVD's. We can not accept textbooks, encyclopedias or videotapes.   Please drop off any items in good, clean, resalable condition during regular library hours.