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.

1000 Books Before Kindergarten

While visiting a public library in Fort Myers, Florida last week I learned of a reading challenge for new parents called “1000 Books Before Kindergarten”.
It’s a great way to encourage reading and create a foundation of knowledge before children begin school.  By reading just 3 stories a day you and your child will meet a goal of 1000 books in one year.
If you are interested in this idea, stop by the library and pick up a reading sheet to get started.
  Charlene Wagner, Children’s Librarian

Great Holiday Reads

Okay, let’s admit it, the holidays are very stressful.  Celebrants scramble through stores looking for the perfect gift knowing that as time gets closer to the holidays supplies dwindle and panic can set in!  The staff suggests taking some time for your self and yes, check out a good book to read.
As they say at all the retail spots, we have something for everyone but here, you can have it all for free!  Come on in and re-read a classic…when was the last time you read Gift of the Magi by O’Henry?  I know that we have all seen the great renditions of Dicken’s classic, A Christmas Carol but everyone should go back and read the original Charles Dickens tale; it is filled with wonderful characters and great ghosts using the backdrop of Victorian London.  After reading this story you KNOW what they mean when people say that a person is a great Dickensonian character.  You will also discover why Marley’s ghost had a handkerchief tied around his head and honestly, it is rather macabre!
Please, let’s not forget the great children’s classics.  Go now and read Dr Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas…he is truly a mean one that Mr. Grinch!  Sometimes crying is a great stress buster too.  We can help you tear up by suggesting Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Match Girl; the story of a young girl who clearly never caught a break over the holidays.  There are many different versions of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore and some have exquisite illustrations.  Come in and check them out (literally) and make that story part of your family’s tradition.
So, if reading does not defeat the panic that is building up all around you, you just may want to consider attending our Saturday workshop, Holistic Healing Energy with Jeannie Sullivan .  She can help you get your chakras aligned and your energy in balance and that will certainly alleviate your stress.
Whatever you do over the holidays please know that all of us at the Gardiner Public Library wish you great holidays to be spent with great friends and families and, when the year comes to an end, we will welcome in the New Year with some more great titles!
Anne Davis, Library Director

Non-Fiction for Children!

One of the unexpected advantages of incorporating books from the now closed satellite library at the Boys & Girls Club is the wonderful non-fiction titles that have moved over.  We had shared two major Scholastic collections, “A Wicked History” and “You Wouldn’t Want to Be . . .” These are both historical sets that have been extremely popular.

 

Non-fiction books for children have changed dramatically in the last few decades.  Many incorporate colorful illustrations and text that is not only very readable but fascinating as well – as in “hard to put down”

 

Come in and check out these two great series at the Gardiner Public Library!
 Charlene Wagner, Children’s Librarian