The first weekend of this year’s Friends Book Sale brought fun for hardworking volunteers, bargains for buyers and financial benefit to the Library. It’s not too late to join in:

• Huge selection of books and recordings from $1 and up every day
• Special sale prices kick in October 7 -10: $5/box!
• Sale ends October 10

At this very moment, the Waltham Public Library Lecture Hall is in the midst of a magical transformation: gone are the tidy rows of seats; the stage is buried. A steady stream of volunteers arrives daily to sift and sort through mountains of books, smiling and exclaiming as they uncover old familiars and astonishing, unheard-of titles.

The Friends Annual Book Sale begins in less than a week!

If you are a member of the Friends of the Waltham Public Library, you’re invited to attend the Preview on Friday night, September 25th at 6:30 PM. If you’re not a member — well, it’s time to join! Just $5 for an individual membership, $10 for a family, to show your support for the Library and to join the Friends in the extraordinary partnership they have with this unique City institution. AND membership gets you into Preview night at the book sale.

After Preview night, the sale continues for two weeks, from Saturday, September 26th through Saturday, October 10th. The sale is open during regular library hours, closing 30 minutes before the library building.

Great deals: most items are between 1 and 3 dollars!

Not just books: you’ll find books on CD and cassette, movies on VHS and DVD, magazines and music CDs.

Material on every topic for all ages: select from books for children, teens and adults including textbooks, how-to references, volumes on art, computer software, history, biography, health, cooking, and recent bestsellers in hardcover and paperback.

Come: enjoy a good bargain, support the Friends.

Regardless of your political point of view, there is no denying that Massachusetts has lost one of its enduring political icons, when Senator Edward Kennedy died late last night (Tuesday, August 25). Senator Kennedy was extremely vocal about the issues in which he believed and was respected by his fellow senators on both sides of the aisle. He also represented a family who met tragedy and was considered by some to be America’s royal family. Boston.com has an extensive section regarding the life and death of Ted Kennedy. There is also a repeat of the Globe series, “Ted Kennedy: His Fall and Rise”.

The library, of course, has several materials regarding Ted Kennedy as well as the entire Kennedy family. The three latest are: Ted Kennedy: The Dream that Never Died, Ted Kennedy: Scenes from an Epic Life, and Last Lion: The Fall and Rise of Ted Kennedy. Out of the three, Last Lion, based on the earlier referenced Boston Globe series is probably the most extensive portrait of the senator. It details his accomplishments, as well as past scandals.

If you wanted to find out more about Ted Kennedy, you can also do so by visiting the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Reserve a pass for the museum through our library. You can either do that online or by contacting our children’s room at 781-314-3425 X4.

posted by Laura

Are you understanding all of the talk regarding the proposed health care bill? If so, can you explain it to me?
In all seriousness, there has been a lot of information coming from both sides of the aisle regarding the best health care plan for this country. Proponents and opponents of the bill have very strong opinions and it can be difficult to navigate or figure out where the truth lies. Luckily, there are many resources out there which will help you formulate your opinion more easily.

• Politifact.Com
  Politifact is a non-partisan site from Florida’s St. Petersburg Times that sorts out the real facts behind politicians’ and pundits’ statements. (They even rank the legitimacy of chain e-mails regarding various political issues) The truth-o-meter rates statements and political rumors on scale ranging from True, Mostly True, Half True, Barely True, False, and (my personal favorite) Pants on Fire. While the site looks at all topics, there is a link for health care reform. Even though I put this first, read this site after reading everything else.
• Health Care Bill from the U.S. House of Representatives
  This is the text of the house version of the health care bill. It includes names of the co-sponsors and the cost estimates (as provided by the Congressional Budget Office, if you can get through the lengthy document). Remember, if you visit the website of the U.S. House of Representatives, the heath care bill is under the jurisdiction of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
• Senate Finance Committee Page on Health Reform
  The Senate’s page regarding its version of the health care bill. Remember if you visit the website of the U.S. Senate, the health care bill is under the Committee on Finance.
• Health Reform.Gov
  Health Reform website from the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The site supports Obama’s health plan, so it’s not without bias, however it does contain a lot of information.
• Boston Globe Health News
  The Boston Globe’s Health Section contains many articles about the health care debate.
• The New York Times Health News
  The New York Times Health section contains many articles and opinion pieces on the health care debate.
• AARP Fact Page on Health Reform
  This contains a lot of information regarding the health reform bill, and provides several helpful links.
• Health Care Around the World
  This slide show, from CNN, details how other countries handle health care coverage.
• Your United States Legislators’ Stances on Health Care Reform
  • Senator Kennedy
  • Senator Kerry
  • Representative Markey

posted by Laura

Happy Historic Waltham Month! The Library joined in the celebration with an Ice Cream Social on the lawn last Wednesday sponsored by the Friends.

The crowd was treated to good-time music from the Squirrel Hill Olde Tyme Jazz Band, Lizzy’s ice cream, and the most beautiful day of the summer so far. Members of the Library Friends were on hand to share information about the wonderful variety of free programs and extras they provide to support our City Library.

We were delighted to be outside the library on that beautiful evening! But please remember you’re always welcome inside: the library is open 7 days a week, 4 nights a week, and you can visit us online any time you like.

If you or someone you know is looking for a job, you have a powerful array of tools available to you at the Waltham Public Library:

• Free computer use, with word processing and Internet access:
• Type & print resumes and cover letters (printing just 10 cents/page)
• Network and search job ads online
• Fill out online job applications

• Free computer classes
Offered by Saheli; currently Monday evenings through August 3rd.

• Free access to online subscriptions, including:
• Learning Express Library: Prepare for standard exams, take online courses in job search and workplace skills
• Reference USA and General Business File: Research companies for job search and interview preparation

• Programs and workshops for job searchers – please register online, by phone or in person
• Dealing with Job Loss, July 21st at 6:30 PM
• Resume Writing, August 4th at 6:00 PM
• Networking, August 11th at 7:00 PM
• Job Hunting, August 20th at 7:00 PM
• Interviewing, September 3rd at 6:00 PM

• Career Collection
Borrow books and recordings on resumes, cover letters, interviews and career guidance – located in the 1st floor Reference Room

• Helpful Reference Librarians
Ask at the 1st floor reference desk for assistance with any of the resources above

I’m a very picky reader so when someone asks for a book recommendation, I really hope that he/she either is a fan of at least one of my favorite authors, is interested in topics that I like to read about, or is open to checking out new authors.  However, this isn’t always the case.

When I don’t know what to recommend, I visit Novelist. Once I’m there, I simply enter an author’s name, click on Author Read-alikes or Recommended Reads, and then I’m presented with many possible books.

If you want to check out Novelist, you can access it at home or in the library from our Electronic Database page.

Besides recommendations for all ages, Novelist also gives detailed information about authors and works, book club discussion guides and questions, and curriculum outlines for teachers.

posted by Todd

Dear Readers,

Location, location, location!  We have moved our Graphic novels to the AV Annex on the Ground Floor.  They are in Aisle 14 and they are looking good!  There is alot more room for them and they are ready and waiting for you to start browsing!
(Please note: Young Adult and Children’s Graphic Novels have not been affected. They are still in the Young Adult and Children’s rooms for your reading pleasure.)

graphic novels are in the AV Annex!

In the fiction room on the first floor, you will see that the large print and the science fiction have been ‘switched’ to allow more room for our collections to grow.   There are clear signs on the end of each aisle and our Reference Staff are ready and waiting to help you find what you are looking for!

large print has moved!

science fiction has moved!

posted by Louise

June is Audio Book Month! So many books, so little time. From books on tape, to books on CD, to the latest format Play-away…

I love to read and have enjoyed the activity – or is it inactivity – my whole life. As my life has become more hectic, whenever I sit down to read I fall asleep, making it hard to keep up with all the interesting books I’d like to read. So I was happy to discover audio books: they allow me to “read” without having to sit down. I can “read” while doing boring housework and when working in the yard. Some people listen to audio books when commuting or traveling.

I recently enjoyed listening to an old favorite, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.  The audio book experience was just as intense as reading the print version and seeing it as a movie.

Technology on the move…

Just like videocassettes, audio cassettes are being phased out; but we do still have many audio books available in this format. Our collection of books on CD continues to grow and we have started getting books on Play-away. A Play-away is an audio book on a small MP3 player. They’re great: you don’t need to have your own player to listen; all you need is a set of earphones, or ear buds, to plug into the device and you can play-away…(there are ear buds available for sale at the AV and reference desks).

You can also download audio books, come in and talk to the AV department or give them a call, at 781-314-3425 X5, for specifics. If you’re a resident of Waltham and want to start downloading right away, you can do that from home.

Thanks to audio books, where reading used to be a solo activity it can now be one of many activities.   Of course I do, on occasion, still sit down to read, being sure to set my alarm first…just in case…zzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz !!!

posted by Jeanette

Those of you who read my posts  know that I’m a baseball fan, and love to read anything to do with the sport. (I have the book, Catcher at home and can’t wait to start it.) With the recent news regarding the suspension of Boston’s erstwhile left fielder, Manny Ramirez, I figured it would be a good time to highlight some of the titles on the history of performance enhancing drugs in baseball.

• Juiced by Jose Canseco.
  Okay, so Mr. Canseco won’t be winning a Pulitzer Prize for his writing, anytime soon. And, he most likely had an agenda when he wrote this book. But, you have to give him credit for calling attention to the steroid issue in baseball. He’s been pretty right on with most of the names. (He pointed the finger at Alex Rodriguez in his second book, Vindicated well before Selena Roberts’s story was released. And, I have to give kudos to any celebrity who writes two books without the use of a ghostwriter.
• Juicing the Game by Howard Bryant
  Those of you who became acquainted with Bryant through his writings in the Boston Herald or his excellent book, Shut Out, detailing the racial history of the Boston Red Sox, will find another gem, here. Unlike Canseco’s opus, there’s no agenda, here, but rather a very detailed history of what’s been going on in baseball the last several years.  Bryant delves into deeper topics, here, such as the 1994 Major League Baseball strike, and the rise of Commissioner, Bud Selig. Bryant also spreads the responsibility of the problem to a variety of areas, including Selig, himself. If you read one book on the topic, this would be a good bet.
• Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams
  You can’t have a discussion about steroids in the modern game without mentioning either the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) or Barry Bonds. BALCO was involved in a scandal when it was discovered that they allegedly supplied performance enhancing drugs to athletes such as Bonds and Olympic track star, Marion Jones. San Francisco Chronicle reporters, Fainaru-Wada and Williams, conducted investigative journalism on the company, as well as the man chasing Hank Aaron’s cherished lifetime home run record. Bonds, possibly unfairly, became the poster child for the steroid era and this book does nothing to dissuade the belief that the superstar was juicing, even though he was an exceptional player before the drugs.
• The Mitchell Report
  While this may be a little dry compared to the others mentioned in this posting, the Michell Report is an important read on the subject. It’s the summary of the research done by former U.S. Senator, George Mitchell regarding the use of performance drugs in baseball. Mitchell conducted the research at the bequest of Bud Selig and took just a few months shy of two years to finish. Yes, Mitchell relied predominantly on two sources, Brian McNamee and Kirk Radomski. And, yes, the fact that Mitchell is involved with the front office of the Boston Red Sox may make it seem weird that no current Red Sox players were on the list. However, this was the report that first pointed the finger at Roger Clemens as a user, taking the spotlight away from Barry Bonds. Clemens, once a shoo in for baseball’s Hall of Fame, has seen his legacy tarnish. Two biographies, in the last few months alone, have been published detailing the dark side of the All Star pitcher. (For my part, I will always associate the release of this with that awful snow storm in December 2006 when it took everyone several hours to drive a few miles. I listed to the coverage on WEEI while I sat in my car without moving). You can also read the report online.
• Ball Four by Jim Bouton
  Surprised this is on the list? This season long diary from 1969 by pitcher, Jim Bouton, is more relevant than one would think. In short, it shows that drug use in baseball is not a recent occurrence. Bouton talks about the frequent use of “greenies” (amphetamines) in clubhouses, as well as non-performance enhancers such as marijuana. Although it was greeted with scorn by other major league players and was denounced by the then baseball commissioner, Ball Four is now considered to be among the classics of baseball non-fiction.

posted by Laura