Wallkill Public Library Newsletter

Love Your Library Month

In honor of February, which happens to be Love Your Library month, here are a few timeless love stories you might like. If you've never read these before, you have a lot to look forward to. If you have, they're always nice to revisit:

Gone with the Wind - Looked upon by many as the best love story ever written. If you've only seen the movie and figured there was no sense reading the book, you forget - the book is always better (with the possible exception of Jaws).

Jane Eyre - If anyone ever deserved to live happily ever after, it was poor Jane. What with losing her parents, spending eight torturous years in a dungeon-like school for orphans, and unknowingly competing with the crazy lady in the attic for Rochester's affections..but we don't want to give too much away.

Wuthering Heights - Hatred, jealousy, vengeance. this book has all the required ingredients for a great love story. Catherine and Heathcliff are unforgettable, the Scarlett and Rhett from across the pond.

Pride and Prejudice - How is it the unmarried women always seem to write the best love stories? Hmm. In this classic, three of the five Bennet sisters hook up, some with better luck than others. You might have guessed this was a pretty good love story, judging from the many knock-offs and sequels by other authors who have attempted to follow (and lost) Austen's lead.

Of Mice and Men - There are more types of love than romantic, and the friendship between the two main characters in Steinbeck's piece is touchingly real.

The Road - An incredibly disturbing book, but a brilliant read, and a powerful tale of the love of a father for his son.

Terms of Endearment - We can't forget the love between a mother and daughter.

So that's it. Not a comprehensive list by any means, but a little something for a lot of people. Remember to love your library this month and come see what's out in our latest book, DVD, and audio releases.

Contributed by Lisa Palmer, Wallkill Public Library staff

State budget targets libraries

An $18 million cut in library aid is being proposed for the 2009-2010 state budget. This comes on top of the 3 percent cut in funding that took place last year.

If this cut goes through, library aid would be slashed to a level not seen since 1993. The proposal comes at a time when the state is no longer mailing tax forms to individuals, but recommending that taxpayers go to their public libraries to pick up or download the forms on their own. "The state is literally passing the buck to libraries and taking it away at the same time," said Michael J. Borges, executive director of the New York Library Association.

The proposal also comes at a time when more and more people are losing their jobs and relying on the library to search for more work. This service is invaluable to these local patrons, especially to those who are not computer literate and need help navigating state Web sites that can be confusing for even the experienced Internet user.

You can help by letting your lawmakers know how important the library is to your community. Go to the New York Library Association's Web site (www.nyla.org), click on Advocacy, highlight the contact your elected officials option, and follow the provided instructions. In a couple of minutes you can send your concerns to Governor David Paterson as well as your local representatives.

You may also pick up a sample "letter to your legislator" or ask us to e-mail you one. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand needs to know libraries have great supporters like you!

Tax forms available

For those who relied on the state to mail out their tax forms, we can help. The Wallkill Public Library offers these forms as well as the instructions that go with them. Though we have a limited number of forms available, those we don't have can be downloaded and printed for you at no charge. If you need help with the computer, just ask the staff at the circulation desk.

You can also download forms yourself at home. Go to www.nystax.gov for state forms and www.irs.gov for federal.

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Got a great recipe?

The Wallkill Public Library is compiling a cookbook featuring local residents' favorite dishes. If you love cooking and have a recipe you'd like to share, or if you hate cooking and just happen to have your grandmother's recipe for a mouthwatering pot roast tucked away somewhere, we'd love to hear from you. Forms are available at the circulation desk for those who would like to contribute. All entries must be in by June.

The spiral-bound binder will be published during the 2009 holiday season, and would be a great way to pay tribute to a loved one. Proceeds will benefit the library.

Would you be our Valentine?

During the month of February, we're asking patrons to tell us why you love our library. Valentines and a special mailbox are on display at the circulation desk and in the children's room.

Calling all readers

The Wallkill Public Library would like to begin hosting a book club for fiction, which would meet one evening a month for about 90 minutes. Those interested can contact Lisa Palmer at Lpalmer@rcls.org or call the library at 895-3707 and ask for her.

A nonfiction club already meets once a month at the library. If you'd like to find out more about participating, contact Christopher Mooney at mooneycp@yahoo.com or call the library. The group is currently on hiatus but will meet again on April 14. The book selection is White Heat: The Friendship of Emily Dickinson and Thomas Wentworth Higginson by Brenda Wineapple.

Books Alive! children's theatre continues with season 4.and a record number of participants!

Play practices continue Tuesday afternoons for the 38 children who are acting in the Feb. 22 performance of The Secret Keeper.

Please note: venue has changed! The dress rehearsal and play performance will take place at the auditorium of the John G. Borden Middle School.

Call Mary Lou about tickets, as space is limited. You can reach her at 895-3707 or e-mail her at mcarolan@rcls.org.

Books Alive! proceeds go directly to fund the summer reading program.

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New Releases at the Library

Fiction

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein: Prodigal Son, Vol. 1, by Chuck Dixon (graphic novel)

Plum Spooky, by Janet Evanovich

Black Ops, by W.E.B. Griffin

Born to Run, by James Grippando

Under the Radar, by Fern Michaels

Run for Your Life, by James Patterson

One Day at a Time, by Danielle Steel

Mad Desire to Dance, by Elie Wiesel

Mounting Fears, by Stuart Woods

Nonfiction

New Codependency: Help and guidance for Today's generation, by Melody Beattie

No Angel: My Harrowing Undercover Journey to the Inner Circle of the Hells Angels, by Jay Dobyns

What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis

Audio Books

Plum Spooky, by Janet Evanovich

Black Ops, by W.E.B. Griffin

The Hour I First Believed, by Wally Lamb

Mounting Fears, by Stuart Woods

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Book of the month

Voted a Best Fiction Debut of 2008 by Barnes&Noble.com, Child 44 is loosely based on the crimes of one of history's most brutal serial killers.

Between 1978 and 1990, Andrei Chikatilo tortured, raped, and murdered at least 53 women and children in Russia. Some of them he cannibalized.

Tom Rob Smith's fictionalization of Chikatilo is made all the more riveting because the crimes of Child 44's killer take place in Stalinist Russia, where there's not supposed to be any crime, and where to suggest otherwise could banish even an investigator to the Gulags or worse.

Leo Demidov is the idealistic MGB officer hunting the vicious killer the State won't admit exists. As he fights to catch the criminal before he kills again, Leo's own personal and professional life unravel until he himself must fight to stay alive.

Child 44 is one of those books that's so good - from the gripping writing to the suspenseful plot - it stays with you long after the last page.

If you liked Twilight..