Library Events for December 2009

First Tuesday Book Club

There is no First Tuesday Book Club in December. We'll start up again
January 5th at 7:00 pm with the book Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. You can pick up the book at the front desk anytime after December 4th.

Wednesday December 2nd at 7:00 pm
Morsebag Pod!

Come join the Hancock Morsbags Pod! We make reusable, light weight & strong cotton bags to hand out to the unsuspecting public. These bags are an excellent alternative to the plastic or paper dilemma and they are a good way to keep fabric out of the waste stream. We meet in the Daniels Room of the Hancock Library on the first Wednesdays of the month at 7pm. For more information, you can check out www.morsbags.com or call Tracy Stevens at 525-3067. You don't even have to be able to sew!

Thursday December 3rd from 3:15 to 4:15
LEGO CLUB!

The library is accepting Lego donations because so many children are coming to Lego Club! If you have any Legos your family no longer uses, our club will happily put them to use! The kids have especially requested Lego people, wheels, and platforms. Thanks so much!

Also, please note that beginning in January 2010, Lego Club will take place on the FIRST TUESDAY of every month. We will no longer meet on Thursdays in 2010.

Thursday December 3rd at 7:00 pm
Living in Afghanistan

Ron Lucas of Greenfield, NH spent three years, from 1965 to 1968, living and working in Afghanistan as a Peace Corps volunteer. Ron will tell us what it was like and show slides of daily life. Come get another view of the Afghans, their culture, their way of life and how they positively affected Ron. Free and open to all.

Thursday December 10th from 3:15 - 4:15
Sugar Cube Castles

We'll build castles out of sugar cubes! Alas, this program is full right now. Please call the library at 525-4411 if your child is interested in attending a second session.

Friday December 11th at 7:00 pm
Family Film Night: The Polar Express

Great movie, free popcorn!

Saturday December 12th, 10:00 - 11:30 am
Second Saturday Arts - Elves Workshop

Come ~ be an elf for a day! Make gifts for friends and family with Melody Zahn Russell. We'll have a story and then 3 or 4 craft surprises to bring home. Suitable for children ages 5-10. There is a $10 materials fee for this class. The class is limited to 12 children and it's filling up quickly already so please drop by the library to sign up. Or call 525-4411.

Coming up in January...

Improv Games for kids in grades 5-8. Join us in the Daniels Room for some fun improv comedy games that will stretch your imagination, build acting skills, and help you learn to think on your feet. No experience necessary - just come have fun! Mondays from 6:00 - 7:00 - January 11, 18, 25, and February 1. Space is limited so call the library to sign up - 525-4411.

Shakespeare for Snowy Days returns in January!

Following last year's adventures with Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V, we will investigate the Wars of the Roses, reading Henry VI part I, Henry VI part II and Henry VI part III and end our adventure with Richard III. The adventures of the amazing Edward IV are well covered in the Henry VI books.

If you need books, please order them well in advance from the Toadstool and please purchase Folger editions.

Class begins on Thursday January 14th, 2010 from 2 - 4 pm. Class size is limited so please sign up at the library or call 525-4411. Thanks, as always, to Tibby Tobey for leading this program.

Library Trustee Minutes

Hancock Library Board of Trustees
Minutes November 13, 2009

Present: Laurie Bryan, Mary Garland, Amy Markus, Peter Ryner

The Board met to discuss a proposed reallocation of certain Library funds. The proposal, submitted by Bank of America in response to a previous meeting, would place those monies which are under the direct control of the Library Trustees into a portfolio comprised exclusively of equity-based mutual funds.

After discussing the recommendations at some length, a general consensus emerged that while the present portfolio is too conservative, the new proposal is too aggressive, creating a degree of risk and a need for close monitoring of performance that is inappropriate. It was agreed that Michael Wrenn and Danielle Ward of Bank of America should be asked to prepare a new proposal that would reflect a more conservative investment strategy, with equities making up no more than 50 or 60 percent. Amy agreed to communicate this request to Michael Wrenn.

Submitted by Peter Ryner

November Trustee Meeting

The Trustees of the Library meet the fourth Wednesday of the month at 11:00 am in the Daniels Room. We will not be meeting this month due to scheduling conflicts.

Earth Album is way cool

Earth album is a simpler, slicker Flickr mash-up that allows you to explore some of the most stunning photos in the world courtesy of Google maps and Flickr. To begin your journey, just click somewhere on the map, e.g. "India". Click here to get to Earth Album!

Sugar

This is a beautiful movie - just arrived at the library yesterday. Here's what A.O. Scott of the New York Times had to say about it: "There is something undeniably noble and beautiful about the love of sports: the appreciation of grace and excellence for their own sakes, the pleasure of competition, the discipline of training. But the practice of big-time sports is often cruel and corrupt, a business built on the exploitation of young people and the peddling of impossible dreams. This basic contradiction...is also, at least implicitly, a central concern in “Sugar,” a wise and lovely new film by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck."

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba

The library just purchased this book which tells the amazing story of a boy from Malawi who built a windmill based only on a book he took out from yes, you guessed it, his local library. Watch his story here, read his story at your local public library!