Stephen Puleo: A City So Grand!

On Tuesday, March 20, 2012, from 7-8pm, author Stephen Puleo will be our guest for our 2012 Author Series.

Stephen Puleo is an author, historian, university teacher, public speaker, and communications professional. His books include A City So Grand: The Rise of an American Metropolis, Boston 1850-1900; The Boston Italians: A Story of Pride, Perseverance and Paesani, from the Years of the Great Immigration to the Present Day; Due to Enemy Action: The True World War II Story of the USS Eagle 56; and Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919.

In 2008, Steve was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award, presented by the Appian Club, an Italian-American organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Italian culture in Massachusetts. In 2007, he received the prestigious i migliori award, presented by the Pirandello Lyceum to Italian-Americans who have excelled in their fields of endeavor and made important contributions to society.

A former award-winning newspaper reporter and contributor of feature stories and book reviews to American History magazine and the Boston Globe, Puleo holds a master’s degree in history (From Italy to Boston’s North End: Italian Immigration and Settlement, 1890-1910, UMass-Boston, 1994), for which he received the Dean’s Award for Academic Achievement, and was the Graduate Convocation keynote speaker. He teaches at Suffolk University in Boston.

To register for the program, please call 978-454-5474 ext. 6 or click here to register online.

Family Movie Night – TONIGHT!

It’s free! It’s fun! It’s Family Movie Night! Tonight our feature film is Mr. Popper’s Penguins. So waddle on in with your parents and pillows to watch as Jim Carrey takes on 6 inherited penguins! The movie is tonight, Thursday, February 23th at 6pm! We’ll have the popcorn waiting for you!

Family Movie Night is supported through the generosity of the Friends of Dracut Library

Family Movie Night – Mr. Popper’s Penguins

We know you read the Newbery Award winning book by Richard and Florence Atwater, so now it’s time to see the story come to life on our big screen! On Thursday, February 23th at 6pm,  join us for Family Movie Night at the Library, when we feature Mr. Popper’s Penguins. What?! You didn’t read the book?! Okay then we’ll tell you a little something about the plotline:

Tom Popper grew up having very little interaction with his father who was off exploring the world. When he grows up he spends most of time on his work and ignores his children. One day his father sends him an unusual gift: six penguins. Popper can’t help but wonder why his father would send him penguins. He tries to get rid of them. But when his children and ex-wife show up to celebrate his son’s birthday, the kids are taken with the penguins.

We hope to see you on Thursday, February 23th, 6pm! As always: you bring the parents and pillows and we’ll bring the popcorn!

Family Movie Night is supported through the generosity of the Friends of Dracut Library.

Andre Dubus III – Townie!

On Tuesday, February 21, 2012 from 7-8pm, Andre Dubus III will be at our library speaking about his memoir “Townie”.

Andre Dubus III grew up in mill towns on the Merrimack River along the Massachusetts-New Hampshire border. He is the author of a collection of short fiction, The Cage Keeper and Other Stories, and the novels Bluesman, House of Sand and Fog and The Garden of Last Days, a New York Times bestseller. His memoir, Townie, was released in early 2011. Andre has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, The National Magazine Award for fiction, The Pushcart Prize, and was a Finalist for the Rome Prize Fellowship from the Academy of Arts and Letters.

An Academy Award-nominated motion picture and published in twenty languages, his novel House of Sand and Fog was a fiction finalist for the National Book Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Booksense Book of the Year, and was an Oprah Book Club Selection and #1 New York Times bestseller. A member of PEN American Center, Andre Dubus III has served as a panelist for The National Book Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts, and has taught writing at Harvard University, Tufts University, Emerson College, and the University of Massachusetts at Lowell where he is a full-time faculty member.

Join us for this wonderful evening! Register by calling 978-454-5474 ext. 6 or online here.

Of Gods and Men

On Thursday, February 16th @ 7pm, the Dracut Library Foreign Film Series continues with Of Gods and Men. Winner of the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Of Gods and Men, centers on the monastery of Tibhirine, where nine Trappist monks lived in harmony with the largely Muslim population of Algeria, until seven of them were kidnapped and assassinated in 1996 during the Algerian Civil War. It is a story of Christians & Muslims, threats & theology, and the choices we are sometimes faced with in life. This is a highly acclaimed film, given 3 1/2 stars by Boston.com and 4 stars by the Washington Post (a Critic’s Pick) – a must see!  As always, the Film Series is free and open to the public.

The Foreign Film Series is supported through the generosity of the Friends of Dracut Library

Take Your Child to the Library Day!

Today is National Take Your Child to The Library Day! Come in and explore the library – take out a movie, video game or audio book. Make today a day you choose to spend some quality time together in a place that you can enjoy for a lifetime!

Storybook Apps

When the Academy Awards were announced in January, our attention was drawn to Moonbot, a software developer and creator of The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, an iPad app that doubles as a book (or maybe it’s a book that doubles as an iPad app), which was nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Short.  Children’s apps for the iPhone & iPad are not new,  and yes, Storybook apps – interactive children’s books for your iPad, have been around. For example, these were the Top Ten Storybook apps according to Kirkus Reviews for 2010. Storybook apps are what’s happening now and probably will be the future of children’s publishing (in some shape or form).  If there were doubts, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore may have changed a few minds.

For those parents who feel left behind in the digital age, we  introduce you to Apps for Homeschooling an app reviewing website that is for homeschoolers by homeschoolers. There are some great children’s apps reviewed here and you don’t need to homeschool to take advantage!  If you’re in shock that a library is promoting Storybook and iPad apps, my humble opinion is if an iPad app is the best way to educate and inform then, YES, do it! With Apple selling 15.4 million iPads last quarter, the digital world will only continue to grow. We know that – but our mission to direct you to helpful resources and information will not change – even if it means pointing you in a digital direction.

Thursday Night – Joyeux Noel!

Please join us, Thursday, January 26th at 7pm as we kick off the 2012 Foreign Film series with  Joyeux Noel.  Nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and BAFTA Film Award for best foreign film, as well as being the winner of the Leeds International Film Festival and Valladolid International Film Festival Joyeux Noel tells the story of Christmas Eve humanity in the face of a brutal war. It’s a must see!

The Foreign Film series is supported through the continued generosity of the Friends of the Dracut Library.

Andre Dubus III – Townie

On Tuesday, February 21, 2012 from 7-8pm, Andre Dubus III will be at our library speaking about his memoir “Townie”.

Andre Dubus III grew up in mill towns on the Merrimack River along the Massachusetts-New Hampshire border. He is the author of a collection of short fiction, The Cage Keeper and Other Stories, and the novels Bluesman, House of Sand and Fog and The Garden of Last Days, a New York Times bestseller. His memoir, Townie, was released in early 2011. Andre has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, The National Magazine Award for fiction, The Pushcart Prize, and was a Finalist for the Rome Prize Fellowship from the Academy of Arts and Letters.

An Academy Award-nominated motion picture and published in twenty languages, his novel House of Sand and Fog was a fiction finalist for the National Book Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Booksense Book of the Year, and was an Oprah Book Club Selection and #1 New York Times bestseller. A member of PEN American Center, Andre Dubus III has served as a panelist for The National Book Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts, and has taught writing at Harvard University, Tufts University, Emerson College, and the University of Massachusetts at Lowell where he is a full-time faculty member.

Join us for this wonderful evening! Register by calling 978-454-5474 ext. 6 or online here.

Coat Drop Off

Did you get a new coat or jacket for Christmas? Have you considered donating your older coat or jacket to those in our community who are in need? We are collecting coats in our lobby for the Lowell Transitional Living Center in Lowell. They provide vital services to the vulnerable in our community who are in need of food, shelter and support. No one asks to be homeless, but we can help those we are in a small way. Drop off your coats or jackets (hats, mittens & gloves are welcome too!) in the giant gift box in our lobby now through the end of January (last year you helped us fill the box 7 times!)  On behalf of those who need our help to stay warm this winter, THANK YOU!