Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.   I hope everyone had a great Christmas! The library will be closed the 31st and January 1st for the New Year holiday.  We reopen at our regular time on Friday the 2nd of January.

New Year’s Day is a holiday for many families, and if you’d like a good family show to curl up with for most of the day, try Emily of New Moon. The original book that this show is based on is by L. M. Montgomery, the same author of the Anne of Green Gables series. Indeed, this series, set in Victorian era Prince Edward Island, Canada, features the same theme of a free-spirited adopted girl who’s vivid imagination and romantic nature clash with her new adoptive family. The main character Emily Starr, comes to the island to live with distant relatives after her father dies of tuberculosis. Once in her new home, Emily makes friends and finds some allies in her new family. The series was produced for, and aired on Canadian television from 1998 to 2001. The first season follows the original book, but subsequent episodes are original story lines. While the book series allows Emily to age, the television series stays within the time frame of the original book. The complete series may be checked out at one time, although it will most likely take more than one day to watch all 48 episodes on seven discs! If you like this series, you can also check out the DVD versions of Anne of Green Gables at the Port Library as well.

You can get the DVD reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit.  This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”


Emily of New Moon (DVD)
UPC: 096009720193, 36 1/2 hrs. on 7 discs
DVDs

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit. On Monday the 22nd, the library is having another video game night from 7-8 pm. This time we’ll be using the Kinect motion capture camera to play competitive games that move your whole body! Also, the library will be closed the 24th and 25th for Christmas. We reopen on Friday the 26th at our regular time.

Are you in need of a short break from all your Christmas activities this week? If so, come into the library Monday or Tuesday, and check out our selection of Christmas books.  They’ll all have stickers of little Christmas Trees on the spines.  Many of them are shorter novels published by well-known authors. One addition this year is Nancy Thayer’s An Island Christmas. Nancy writes mostly about Nantucket, and this novel is not her first holiday themed romance set on the east coast. Felicia, an adventurous young lady, returns to her childhood Nantucket home at Christmastime to be married to her equally adventurous fiancé Archie. Archie is not at all who Felicia’s mother, Jilly, envisioned for her daughter. Soon Archie has Felicia’s retired accountant father off on adventures, while Felicia’s sister Lauren and her rambunctious family keep everyone busy at home. Straight laced and proper Jilly even has plans to make Felicia reconsider a calmer fiancé, but through family mayhem and adventure, Jilly learns that Felicia’s choice is the perfect one, and everyone is able to enjoy their picturesque Christmas wedding.

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit.  This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

An Island Christmas by Nancy Thayer
ISBN: 9780553393873, 224 pages

Adult Fiction

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.  If you have any last minute gifts to make, be sure to plan on coming to the library next Thursday at 7 pm.  The library will have a program for adults and teens on homemade sugar scrubs – good for softening dry winter skin.  All attendees will be able to make a small jar to take for themselves or as a gift. Call the library by Tuesday to sign up.

Christmas is two weeks away and if you want to get in the holiday mood with a good book, try this week’s Port Pick. A Prairie Christmas Collection by Tracie Peterson and others is not a recently published book, but it is new to the library’s shelves. Nine authors have worked together on this collection of historical Christian romances, all set in the prairie Midwest. Tracie Peterson’s story God Jul (Swedish for Merry Christmas) is set in Lindsborg Kansas and tells the story of Sigrid Larsson, a spinster who finds more than one beau come Christmastime! Deborah Raney, an award winning author from Kansas has penned Circle of Blessings, the tale of Stella Bradford, who is in love with her university professor. But Stella’s beau seems to be hiding something, and Stella isn’t sure if her father will approve of the match. In One Wintry Night by Pamela Griffin, Ivy Leander resents the move from Boston to a rural Nebraska town when her father remarries. Ivy would do anything to be able to move back into society and resents those who try to make friends with her. But Craig Watson sees through Ivy’s frosty exterior and tries his best to teach her about the true meaning of Christmas. Six other equally entertaining and heartwarming stories fill out this seasonal collection.

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit.  This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

A Prairie Christmas Collection by Tracie Peterson and others
ISBN: 9781616260040, 445 pages
Adult Christian Fiction

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.  This week’s review is of a recently donated book.

In recent years the terms introvert and extrovert have come into common use to broadly describe two different personality types. I’m sure you can deduce what kind of personality each describes, but for those unfamiliar with the term an extrovert is a person who likes to be social, work with others frequently, and who gains momentum in personal and professional life from constant contact and cooperation with others. By contrast, in introvert is a person who more prefers the solitary life, and finds innovations in home and work come after a period of quiet isolation. Published in 2012, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain explores the oft-overlooked quiet contributor to society. She starts by carefully describing the classic extrovert personality and its rise in popular culture beginning over 100 years ago and how that personality is perceived in business today. The second part explores the biological and cultural reasons for introvertedness and extrovertedness, and part three looks at how introverts can lead a society. Finally, the last part of the book speaks directly to those introverts trying to fit in in business, society and family life. Although this is a balanced look at the two broad types in society, this book is primarily to introduce the introverted personality as valuable in work and social situations. If you are the quiet type, or know several reserved people in your life, this book may be just the guide you’re looking for.

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit. This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
ISBN: 9780307352149, 333 pages
Adult Non-Fiction, psychology section

Hi!  This is Rachel Malay, director at the Port Library in Beloit.   
Now that Thanksgiving has passed, many people are looking forward to Christmas.  If your gift list needs a few fresh do-it-yourself ideas and you’re of a crafty nature, why not try a few of the ideas in Beaded Bracelets: 25 Dazzling Handcrafted Projects by Claudine McCormack Jalajas. Although probably not intended for the crafting novice, nevertheless, each project is clearly explained step-by-step with plenty of pictures and graphics so that a little patience and the right materials will yield beautiful results. The author credits a background in cross stitch, although skills in knitting, crocheting, or quilting may help if you wish to take on this new hobby. Each of the 25 bracelet designs is modeled in photographs after the introduction at the beginning of the book in lieu of a table of contents or chapter list. The author lists the exact manufacturer and identifying number in case you want to make an exact replica of the bracelet pictured, but as long as the beads are of a good quality and the same size as the ones listed, creativity is encouraged. An extended introduction lists essential tools and materials and explains the necessity and reason for each one. And although most instructions are included with each project, a short section afterwards explains important skills like adding new thread and knotting the end of a project. With such a pretty and helpful guide, I have no doubt anyone interested in picking up a new hobby will have success with this book!

You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit.  This is director Rachel Malay, saying “Thanks for checking us out!”

Beaded Bracelets: 25 Dazzling Handcrafted Projects by Claudine McCormack Jalajas
ISBN: 9780762453160, 152 pages, fully illustrated
Adult Non-Fiction, crafting