The library is currently open Monday through Friday from 10:00am-5:30pm and Saturday 9:30am-12:30pm. The Children's Room and Archives are open by appointment. Please call for details: 207-582-3312.

Month: July 2013

8 Places I like to read or listen to a book!

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1.  Public parks are great for reading. The Waterfront Park near our library has benches, a view of the river and a statue, or, The Common at the top of the hill in Gardiner, are great little places to escape with a book. I feel parks have plenty of open places to spread out a blanket in the shade. You can sit back and feel like you are playing like a child, again.

 

2.  Any comfortable chair cries out for a book. I picture an old high wing chair that you can feel the softness of the upholstery, one like my grandmother had. If this comfortable chair was next to a fire outside or inside this would make it a very extra-special spot. I would be reading a popular book like The Kite Runner.
3.  Listening to a book in the car on a long ride to visit family makes the trip go faster or you feel like you have answered the thirst to hear a new book while riding. I enjoy listening to non-fiction in the car. The last book I listened to was The Power of Habit.

 

4.  Any local library. I love to scan the books on display, every library displays books differently, which means I might find something new. I enjoy seeing the different buildings and visiting with the librarians.
5.  Any porch with a hammock or back porch swing. Porches are built for reading and relaxing. But a porch or deck overlooking a beach, garden or forest is a good place, especially when reading a book that a friend has recommended just for you.
6.  Sometimes if I’m reading a book I cannot put down, I read through breakfast. It means that I’m so engrossed in the book I was reading when I went to sleep that I can’t wait to get back to it. I like this to happen, like anyone else!
7.  At camp. This is a special place to read with the sound of the water, if there is water along with the warmth and scent that cabin gives you. I would be reading the works of Jodi Picoult.
8.  Bed. This is where I do much of my reading. This is where I read myself to sleep. I remember reading Suddenly, The Cider Didn’t Taste So Good in this spot.
 

 

I look forward to reading some new books on my list This Cider Still Tastes Funny and Blue Lights In The Night in these spots.

 

I’m sure you have your own perfect places to read in any season.
Ginni Nichols, Young Adult Librarian

Summer Reading!

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As of today, July 18th, we have 101 readers & listeners taking part in “Dig Into Reading” the statewide 2013 summer reading program.  Thousands of books have been checked out and read since we began on June 17th.
Congratulations to all and thanks to the many parents who encourage reading.
Two upcoming events are scheduled: August 6th from 6-7 PM Carroll Chapman will present one of his amazing magic shows. (tickets required)
On August 20th from 6-7 PM our local author, Sandra Palmer Fish, will demonstrate her book-making process and conduct a hands-on workshop.  She’ll be selling her newest book “Peace by Piece” for $20.00 with proceeds donated to the Gardiner Public Library.

Boys & Girls Club

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As we may all recall from our high school physics classes, every action has a reaction.  The action began as Governor LePage proposed suspension of revenue sharing to municipalities in his state budget.  Many of our legislators tried their best to fund this very important revenue source, but in the end, municipalities grappled with less money to fund services.  Towns began to weigh the importance of public safety versus public roads; support for cultural services versus city services.  All the cuts seemed drastic, but decisions had to be made as communities dealt with this fiscal blow.
Gardiner City Councilors weighed many options before reacting.  Budget cuts were made throughout all city departments so that local residents would not have to bear the brunt of increased property taxes.  Many city services are intact because councilors thoughtfully pared back on upcoming projects and potential purchases.
Unfortunately, cuts needed to be made; it was the only reaction Gardiner City Council could make in order to keep a tax increase at bay.  Councilors were forced to vote in a budget that included zero funding for the satellite library at our local Boys and Girls Club.  For more than a decade staff at the Gardiner Public Library and the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Gardiner worked in partnership to bring kids and books together.  The library hummed with activity as professional library staff hooked kids into reading and teens anxiously awaited a new shipment of books to their very special library.  That library will soon be empty and the books will be integrated into the public library as much as possible.  There will be no special place for our community’s teenagers to create a habit of lifelong learning in a space that is warm and inviting.  Throughout the state these difficult choices are being made because state government failed to fully fund revenue sharing.  These Solomon choices will only get worse next year.
At a time when our children are falling behind on reading skills, it is a very bad day when a library closes.   Actions do lead to reactions though I wish that the outcome could have been different.
Anne Davis, Library Director