Tag Archives: Maine

Libraries

Quilt exhibits in libraries

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There seems to be a plethora of quilts being exhibited in libraries this month. What a wonderful way to brighten up winter in Maine! I stumbled on the first one at the Falmouth Public Library – such beautiful quilts, including one made with old handkerchiefs. These quilts were made by the Cobblestone Quilters, a group of over 85 members who are interested in quilting, fabric art, and sewing.  Cobblestone quilters are active in the community donating quilts to Maine veterans, Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, the neonatal unit at Maine Medical Center, and Meals on Wheels.  They make raffle quilts to support Habitat for Humanity, Multiple Sclerosis Society, and the Boys and Girls Club. Over 25 quilts by Cobblestone Quilters are on display during the month of February.  These quilts represent a variety of quilting styles, techniques, and fabric choices.

Then I read about an exhibit being held at the Portland Public Library downtown branch:

http://www.portlandlibrary.com/events/words-art-quilts-maine/

This is a traveling exhibit: Members of Art Quilts Maine, a statewide guild chapter dedicated to the exploration of contemporary quilt art, respond to an annual challenge with diverse and colorful results. This year’s challenge, issued in October 2013, is titled, “By These Words . . .” Quilts were to be inspired by Words—poetry, quote, idiom, saying. Eight members met the challenge, and the collection went on view in July at Maine Quilts 2013. Since then they have been on exhibit in Farmington and Skowhegan, and will travel to Waterville when they leave Portland.

Finally, I just came across this exhibit, held at the Wells Public Library, of quilts by Ernest Nason, a local artist who worked as a carpenter for many years. When an injury took him off his feet for a while, he decided to take up quilting.

I leave you with a picture of one of our island quilts, exhibited this summer at the Long Island Historical Society space:Quilt at the Long Island Historical Society

Books

Winter Harbor

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Pemaquid LighthouseI tend to gravitate towards books written in the 1940s and 1950s, such as Daphne Du Maurier’s books, and the Bennett Island Trilogy by Maine author Elisabeth Ogilvie. I recently read another book from this period, a non-fiction book by another Maine author, Bernice “Bunny” Richmond: “Winter Harbor.” This book has been on my bookshelf at home for many years before we bought the house in 1996, as evidenced by the silverfish eaten cover. Published in 1943 the book tells the tale of Bernice and her husband Reg buying a lighthouse from the U.S. government, and then enjoying their summers on the island where it is located, Mark Island. Bunny starts the book:

“Reg and I are little people. No one ever heard of us, we have no names, we have no wealth, yet something wonderful, exciting and full of adventure happened to us.” Reg inherited $1500 and said to his wife, “Well, Bunny, what would you like to do with fifteen hundred dollars?” Her answer? “I want a lighthouse on the Maine coast.”

Throughout the book you can feel Bunny’s complete joy of exploring Mark Island, where the lighthouse is located, near Schoodic Peninsula down east. So, if you’ve ever dreamt of living in a lighthouse, this is the book for you! (and you can find the book in our very own island library)

[Photo not of Winter Harbor Lighthouse, but of Pemaquid Lighthouse]

Books

Maine Readers’ Choice Award

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The Maine Readers’ Choice Award Committee is pleased to announce the winner for the inaugural Maine Readers’ Choice Award. The 2013 Award recipient is Wiley Cash for his debut novel, A Land More Kind Than Home. The other finalists were Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl and The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powershomeslide3-wiley

The award is for the best in adult fiction published in the United States – the finalists were voted on by Maine readers.

Our wonderful island library has all three of these books, so come on down to see if you agree with your fellow Mainers.

For more information on the award see:

http://mainereaderschoiceaward.org/

 

Books, Libraries

Libraries on the Diamond Islands

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Next, we head to the Diamond Islands to see what they offer their communities as far as libraries. On Great Diamond Island, Elwell Hall, in the village, has a small library, created by Jane Laughlin. It’s seasonal, open in the summer to Diamond Island Association members and their guests, when the hall, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, is open. It’s mostly items donated, including cookbooks, fiction, and children’s books.Diamond Island Rose

On the fort side, there is a small library in the Diamond Cove Association building. Both of these libraries are informal, without a checking out system. Mostly a book swap of sorts. On Little Diamond, there is no physical place for a library, but people do read a lot in the summer, and have an informal book swap.

So, if there is a need for a good book to read, after the ferry leaves, there are opportunities available on Little and Great Diamond Islands.

Books, Libraries

Cliff Island’s library: The Stone Library

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Cliff Island’s library is probably the only official library in Casco Bay that is housed in a classic turn-of-the-century cottage, built in 1907. Perched on a hillside, just beyond the community hall, which houses the post office and historical society, this beautiful library was named after Floraetta Stone (The Stone Library), a co-founder of the library (1907) and the Cliff Island Library Club which still operates the library. The library offers services in the summer only (although has been known to be open in the winter in the past). The paid librarian, Amy Lent, is also the postmaster (a true Mainer!). Although the library is technically a membership library, it balances being a public library by offering services to anyone who needs it. Books, books-on-tape, CDs, DVDs are offered, as well as classic Maine books – all of which can be accessed through the Cliff Island Stone Librarylibrary’s automated catalog. There is even a teen room. Best of all is a wonderful porch where one can sit and enjoy reading, while gazing between the trees at the water. What more could one want!

Libraries

Chebeague Island Library

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Chebeague Island library heartMany years ago, on a cold winter’s day, a group of us from Long Island visited the Chebeague Island Library. Why? We were visiting various libraries to get ideas for our new library, which we were in the process of planning to build. Then librarian Martha Hamilton was our gracious host, showing us their beautiful library. It was warm and bright and colorful with various areas perfect for curling up with books, and a cozy and cheerful children’s area. It was definitely a delightful visit, which gave us much inspiration for planning our own library.

Today the library continues to be a bright spot for Chebeague residents – the current librarian, Deb Bowman, says…” We try to provide what the community needs or wants. … We have done so much here, dancing, drumming, movies, poetry (lots of poetry), art displays, music, and so much more. Book group, iPad classes, prayer book making,
and it goes on and on.” One clever idea was to dress up the front display table with bedclothes and invite patrons to fill out a card which asked “What do you read in bed?”

Deb says their mission statement drives her vision for the library: “The Chebeague Island Library provides a welcoming center to foster the learning of the entire Island Community. The Library cultivates knowledge and enjoyment and brings enrichment and stimulus to Chebeague through diverse collections, innovative technology, research and educational resources, programs and services in response to Island interests.”

For more information on the Chebeague Island Library see: http://chebeague.chebeague.lib.me.us/

and www.chebeague.org

 

Libraries

Happy New Year from the Long Island Community Library!

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And as you start thinking about doing taxes for the past year, here’s a wonderful way to help out all public libraries in Maine:

Maine Public Library Fund State Income Tax Check-off

Support  Maine Public Libraries by donating via your Maine Income Tax form using Schedule CP. Donating $5 or more is this easy.

Here’s how to find out more:

http://www.maine.gov/msl/tax/index.shtml

All proceeds help Maine’s Public Libraries whether it’s …

  • Purchasing new eBook content
  • Expanding interlibrary loan support
  • Creating programs that all can attend
  • Supporting special consultant services from which all can benefit
  • And so much more!
Books

The Maine Garden Journal

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For those of you who missed the talk at the beginning of this summer’s Long Island garden tour by Lisa Colburn, you will have another opportunity upcoming, at Portland Public Library’s Local Author’s Lecture Series on Friday, August 31st, at noon. Lisa’s book is subtitled: Insider  secrets  from  Maine  people  who  love  to  put  their  hands  in  the  dirt.

For more information on Lisa and her book, check out her website: http://www.mainegardenjournal.com/

 

Libraries

Maine Irish Heritage Center library

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Another great Portland special library to visit is the Maine Irish Heritage Center library, on the corner of Gray and State Streets. Housed in the old St. Dominic’s Catholic Church, the library just opened in May of 2009. Under the tutelage and guidance of volunteer librarian Susan Flaherty, this library has grown into a wonderful resource of Irish literature, and boasts subjects such as religion, travel, history, and language. They even have Irish music cassettes, movies, knitting patterns, and just about anything else Irish you can imagine. Members are allowed to check out items, for a period of one month. Often on the Tuesday afternoons that the library is open, you can enter in through the front door of the church, which allows you to wander in through the beautiful sanctuary before entering into the library itself, which also has wonderful atmosphere, with high ceilings and a large wooden sacramental dresser now used for storing library materials.

This summer there is also, at the center, an exhibit of the photographs of our fellow Casco Bay Islander – Bill Finney of Great Diamond Island. His images, often of landscapes, are breathtaking.

For more information:

Maine Irish Heritage Center Library, 34 Gray Street (corner of State), www.maineirish.com, 207-780-0118, Tuesdays 4-6

Libraries

Special libraries in Portland – Maine Charitable Mechanics Association Library

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High above the din of Congress Street in Portland, is a hidden treasure: the Maine Charitable Mechanic Association’s library, a private library which dates back to the 19th century. Although created as a library for apprentices in 1815, today it boasts an outstanding collection of fiction and non-fiction, as well as Maine books. Just heading up the stairs puts you into a different world. You enter into through double doors, into a large room with high ceilings, with portraits of “mechanics” lining two sides of the room, and exhibits in glass cases to show off the Association’s treasures. Mostly, though, you will see wonderful books right at your fingertips. Pat Larrabee, the librarian, says that the collection is a great resource for book clubs, who often read the classics. (In fact, the first Tuesday of each month a book club meets, enjoying tea and pastries, conversation and laughter). They don’t usually weed at the Maine Charitable Mechanic, so you will often find well loved copies of old books, that are usually tossed onto the booksale cart at most libraries if they haven’t been checked out in the past decade. The Library also has art exhibits, and is open, outside of their usual hours, on First Fridays.  Highlights for me of this collection are the travel videos and DVDS – many of which are products of the travelogue series that the Association sponsors. Books and videos aside, it’s worth a visit just to enjoy the ambience. (And one of the things I love most about visiting this library is the chocolates and cookies often lying around).

The Maine Charitable library, located at 519 Congress St., is open Tuesday through Thursday, 10-3, and First Fridays. Membership is $25 a year, but anyone is welcome to take a look around and enjoy the exhibits. For more information: www.mainecharitablemechanicassociation.com or call 207-773-8396