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Item Returns and Curbside Pickups: As of Tuesday, May 26 Westford residents wearing masks and gloves, may return library materials in the rear drive-through Book Drop. As of Monday June 1, patrons may order materials via our website for contact-free CURBSIDE PICKUP Monday through Friday. Pickups will be by appointment only. Please check our website for updates on our pop-up Fresh Air Library, Summer Reading Programs, virtual offerings and collections. Although the building is closed, we are still serving you.
Children’s Summer Reading Program: “Imagine Your Story” is the 2020 Children’s Summer Reading Program theme. Registration begins Monday, June 8 for this Friends’ funded Program. Because of the current national situation, all programs are free and do not require tickets. Some may have limited space due to virtual meeting space limitations, but we will let you know about that on the Calendar of Events on our website.
We will be using the READSquared program for Summer Reading registration and reading logging. You can download the READSquared app from your online App store, for free, to your remote device (phone or tablet) and you can also use this website: http://westfordmareads.readsquared.com/ to register and log reading.
Please call or email us with any questions and as always you can check out the Children’s Summer Reading Program page on our website for more information on this very different but exciting summer-long program.
“Imagine Your Story” 2020 Teen and Tween Summer Reading Program:
Registration for Teens and Tweens in grades 5 – 12 also begins Monday, June 6. All Teen and Tween events are FREE thanks to generous funding by the Friends of the J.V. Fletcher Library. Reading Logs, prizes, and raffles will be organized through READsquared. Download the app or go to http://westfordmareads.readsquared.com/
Nancy and Kate will be sending videos to the School librarians on June 1 who will distribute them to your students. These videos will also be on our website on the Children’s and the Young Adult summer reading pages.
Virtual Adult Non Fiction Book Group: Tuesday, June 2 at 7 p.m. Email Charles at cschweppe@westfordma.gov for Zoom details if you would like to attend. We’ll discuss “H is for Hawk” by Helen Macdonald. Download a copy from Hoopla or Overdrive.
Virtual Rock & Roll’s 65th Birthday Celebration with Craig Harris: Thursday, June 4 at 7 p.m. Enjoy the golden days of a groundbreaking music! Percussionist Craig Harris will take you through this fun, fast-paced, 90-minute-plus program of archival audio tracks, rare video clips, behind-the-scenes stories, singing and music-making. Relive the days of rockabilly rebellion and street corner harmony. This program will take place online. For details and registration, email Sarah Regan at sregan@westfordma.gov.
Middle School Book Clubs: The Book Clubs have moved to GoogleMeet! Stony Brook Book Club is meeting every Tuesday from 4-5 p.m. and Blanchard Book Club is meeting every Thursday from noon-1pm until the end of the school year. Email Kate at krose@westfordma.gov to join the next book club meeting.
Virtual Book Club Meeting: The Thursday night Adult Book Club will be meeting via Zoom on Thursday, June 11 to discuss “The Hidden Life of Trees” by Peter Wohlleben. If you would like to participate, email Kristina Leedberg. Download a copy of the book from Hoopla.
Entertaining Programs on the Youth Services Facebook Page: Some highlights of the week include “Making Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Mug” with Miss Kate, Storytime with Miss Ellen and Bernie (her adorable dog) – “Bulldozer’s Big Day”, Storytime with Miss Jennifer – “Hickory Dickory Dock,” Miss Jackie reads chapter 4 of “Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Raccoon”, and Miss Nancy and Miss Jackie continue with the Gerald and Piggy series with “I Will Surprise My Friend”. You will find many other stories and activities available to you each week. On Facebook – search for J. V. Fletcher Library Youth Services Department – and send us a request to become a member.
Job Seekers Virtual Meeting: Join us on May 27 from 3-4:30 p.m. for “It’s You they ‘Buy’ – How to Differentiate Yourself” with Mark Altman. Are you looking to stand out from your competition and increase your sphere of influence? Make an enduring and inspiring impression with clients and when you network? How to Differentiate Yourself is an interactive workshop where participants identify their assets, characteristics, strengths, and skills as an individual. It is a mix of how you present yourself and how others see you. A strong personal brand is what differentiates you from your competition and represents how you are seen, heard and understood. By learning how to stand out, participants will know how to articulate what makes themselves and their company unique. Virtual programs will take place via zoom. To attend a WJS Meeting, please email Dina Kanabar at dkanabar@westfordma.gov. Attendees will receive a link to access the Zoom Meeting via email. Weekly topics may be found on our job seekers web page.
June Book Sale Canceled: Due to the current situation, the Friends of the Library June Book Sale is canceled. We are looking forward to the October Book Sale. Currently, we are still unable to accept Book Sale donations. Stay tuned!
Staff Recommendations: Many of our patrons rely on our staff members, to make personalized reading recommendations for them. Each week we will highlight some of our digital titles available for downloading through Hoopla or Overdrive.
Deborah’s Pick: The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern (Read or listen to it on Overdrive.) Opening line: There is a pirate in the basement. This is the 2nd novel published by Erin Morgenstern, author of The Night Circus. In this sprawling epic of stories within stories, Zachary Ezra Rawlins is quietly earning a master’s degree in Emerging Media Studies, which has a lot to do with game design, when he finds a mysterious book in the fiction section of his campus library. The book leads him on a wild journey into an underground world in which all the stories run together, and there needs to be an ending before there can be a new beginning. Featuring a gay protagonist, a woman with pink hair who may or may not be Fate, a man lost in time and his lady love who found this place by falling through a crumbling door as a young girl (tale within a tale: The Ballad of Simon and Eleanor), Erin Morgenstern’s masterful organization and gorgeous phrasing helps us keep track of it all (and mesmerized even when we’re a bit lost in the strands of time) and brings all the threads to a satisfying conclusion by tale’s end. The audio version is read clearly by a full cast of talented readers.
Ginny’s Pick: Massacre on the Merrimack by Jay Atkinson (Read or listen to it on Overdrive. Listen to it on Hoopla.)I have lived in the Merrimack Valley for fifty-one years and had heard mentions of Hannah Duston being captured by Native Americans and escaping. This is a fast paced, well researched book which reads as part mystery and part biography. The reader finds themself rooting for Hannah’s escape as well as feeling sympathy for the captors and their plight. The book presents historic information about treaties, politics and treaties during the 1600’s in Colonial America as well as the daily struggles that the settlers endured.
Looking for more recommendations? Reach out to us at westfordlibrary@westfordma.gov or check out our Staff Recommendations page.
Kanopy Streaming Films with Carol: Have you tried Kanopy yet? Are you looking for recommendations of what to watch? If you visit our Fine Arts Desk, you have probably met Carol who is our go to for film recommendations. Below is one of her latest picks from the Kanopy collection.
EveryThree Seconds: There is a large global movement to eradicate hunger by this century and it’s being implemented at a grassroots level. Filmmaker Daniel Karslake introduces five individuals who are making a difference in Every Three Seconds (referring to how often someone dies of hunger in the world). One of the activists is Gloria Henderson, a North Carolina senior citizen who organizes a large community of “gleaners” who collect leftover crops after farmer’s have commercially harvested. They provide soup kitchens/food pantries feeding hundreds. Ingrid Munro is another one interviewed. She founded the Jamii Bora Microfinance Bank in Nairobi, Kenya which helps fund small businesses in poverty stricken areas in Africa. The most heart wrenching story is from Lisa Shannon who was inspired to start an organization “Run for Congo Women.” After watching a touching episode of Oprah featuring reporter Lisa Ling documenting the plight of women impacted by poverty and war, Shannon began her aggressive fundraising campaign. Horrible stories of rape and mutilation are highlighted in this segment. “If you don’t stop injustice, it only spreads,” Shannon says. “Now that you know, you can’t pretend not to.” “Did you know that hunger and extreme poverty are totally solvable?” one interviewee asks. I recommend this film.
Still Serving You: The best way to reach staff is through email at westfordlibrary@westfordma.gov. Reach out to us if you need your card number or a new card to access our downloadable collections and services. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
The J.V. Fletcher Library is located at 50 Main St., Westford. For more information, visit http://www.westfordlibrary.org or email us at westfordlibrary@westfordma.gov.
