Thanks!

We raised $2900 to help support the Bakerville Library.

There are many good pictures at NewHartfordPlus!

Bakerville Holiday Festival

Last I looked, we have about 85 auction items. Thank you to everyone who has donated, both the reliable givers whose donations we can look forward to every year, and donors who are just joining us for the first time. We all appreciate everyone who participates!

It’s coming up tonight, December 4th. Since there’s hardly any time (okay, no time) left, I’ll cut to the chase and give you the auction preview.

Late-breaking news: we have some last-minute donations, some repeats from last year—a load of crap (a pickup truck load of horse manure for your garden); a wine and cheese boat tour of West Hill Pond; ski passes to Otis Ridge; and two buckets of fresh-cut holly—and a basket of Dunkin’ Donuts goodies.

We have many bottles of wine. Let me just make that clear right now. They all look delicious. These alone are worth coming in for.

Then there are the things to do: tickets to the Warner Theatre, lift tickets to Ski Sundown and to Mohawk Mountain, passes to three different museums, passes to the steam train and boat ride in Essex, tickets to Better Connecticut with Scott Haney, Sunday night supper with the Auclairs, a half day of fishing on the Farmington with Farmington River Outfitters...

And gift baskets? We have pretty much whatever you could want, including movie nights, homework, dog toys and treats, homemade stationery, coffee with mugs and a French press, more wine with gift cards for books and coffee, lottery tickets, a scrapbook kit.

Speaking of gifts, we have a handmade bag, a world-famous ukulele made right here in New Hartford (we’ll show you how to play it, if you’d like), a therapeutic pillow, lots of cool Christmas decorations, a little something for horse lovers, a handmade Christmas pillowcase (with French seams--check them out), a homemade Queen of Sheba cake, a Santa tea tray, an angel candle holder, wreaths, small Christmas trees, dishes. I can’t even remember the rest.

People have been bidding all week. You can also bid any time today (Friday) during library hours (2–6 pm). Your last chance is this evening (Friday) from 7–9 pm.

We are also holding a drawing for a Nintendo DS Lite, with Super Mario Brothers. Tickets are $5 each, and the drawing will be held at 8:45 pm. All proceeds from the drawing and the auction benefit the Bakerville Library.

The Friends of the Bakerville Library have set up an innovative nook for Mrs. Claus at the firehouse next door, so kids can visit with her and give her letters for Santa. Remember to put a name and return address on your letters, so they can be answered. Anne Demichiel will be singing with kids, and crafts, cookies, and cider will be available.

We’ve heard that the library board is busy planning the tree lighting, bonfire, carol sing, and refreshments across the street from the library, also starting at 7 pm.

We’re all looking forward to having you join us!

You Thought I Was Going to Talk About the Murder Mystery, Didn’t You?

Well, no.

I recently listened to the Arkangel Romeo & Juliet performance on CD, from the Bakerville Library, without high hopes. I can happily say that I recommend it. If you’re reading it for school, or read it a long time ago in school, and want a refresher (that is, if you’re basically familiar with the plot), this is just the ticket.

The acting is quite good (Joseph Fiennes is Romeo), and the cast brings the story alive.

Acts of Faith

The third of Julia’s book reviews.

Acts of Faith by Philip Caputo

Caputo’s novel delves into the soul of Africa as his characters seek to know their inner selves and find their way in the turmoil of Sudan and the upheaval of civil war.

Ethics, faith, friendship, and humanity are tested time and time again as Caputo’s fast-paced novel traverses the continent and characters seek means to sustain themselves and create meaning in a world gone terribly awry.

The title Acts of Faith alludes to the unseen forces that compel characters to act; interestingly enough, some act in their own best interests while others are faithfully serving their God/Allah and acting altruistically.

The poverty, unsafe living conditions, the roles of missionaries, UN aidworkers, religious conflicts, slavery, civil war, racism, and other issues are clearly presented and stay with the reader long after s/he has finished. Descriptions of the land and the people, along with a rich cultural consciousness, make this novel particularly intriguing.

This book could be used for a variety of discussions addressing the conflicts in Africa and the impact of the wars on citizens of Sudan or Uganda. Again, the violence, deaths, and sexuality warrant a mature audience. For those interested in Africa, missionary work, the problems of war and human corruption, relationships, and love, this text has much to offer; it takes a commitment to see it through—but the conclusion is well worth the effort!

Book Club Update

The Book Club’s holiday party will be a brunch this year, coming up this Sunday (Dec. 14th) at noon. Call the library, 482-8806, for more information.

The next book, which we will discuss sometime in January, is Old School by Tobias Wolff. Copies are in at the library. I am listening to it now, and can recommend it.

From One Fundraiser to the Next

Photos from the 2008 Bakerville Holiday Festival are up at the library’s website. If you were able to attend, thank you! If you were not able to, we missed you, but don’t worry—we still had a good time. And we raised almost $2900 for the library.

Easy Way Out

Since I have not gathered all the Marketplace photos yet, I’m taking the lazy woman’s route and posting the second of Julia’s book reviews (see the first review in the post below). Thanks, Julia!

Same Kind of Different as Me

The amazing true story Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore tells of their unusual friendship as a result of Deborah Hall’s grace and vision. This memoir is told alternately from Ron’s perspective and from Denver’s vantage point.

Ron, a wealthy international art dealer, first meets Denver while serving dinner to the homeless. Encouraged by his wife Deborah, Ron makes a concerted outreach to connect and forge a relationship with the standoffish recluse. This nonfiction account of both men’s lives and how they become irrevocably intertwined delves into the harsh realities of twentieth century slavery or indentured work of the Louisiana sharecropping system, the injustices of prejudiced Southern legal practices, the pain of cancer and terminal illness, the misery of poverty, the power of faith, and the grace within each individual.

Faith motivates the Halls to act, and the divine visions Denver experiences are a significant part of the memoir as well. The clear promotion of born again religion might turn less zealous readers off (or, conversely, it could inspire them). Central topics such as homelessness, poverty, servitude, injustice, etc. make this a significant read in terms of human and twentieth century issues.

Basking in Book Reviews

While I go through more photos of the Bakerville Marketplace and Used Book Sale, and collect lists of people to thank, let’s enjoy the first of many book reviews sent in by book club member Julia Cowans-Wilhelm. She has graciously shared her thoughts on, count ’em, seven of her recent reads. Good job, Julia! (Both the reading and the writing.) I’ve chosen the following to begin with because we just discussed it at the last book club meeting. You may remember the discussion, or you may remember swimming in the pool beforehand, or sampling Torch Lighters, or watching the muted Olympic opening ceremony in the background.

[And a pause to plug the next book club meeting: We’ll be discussing Alice in Wonderland on Friday, September 19th.]


The Memory of Running

John McLarty’s novel is a particularly disturbing exploration of mental illness and the misfortune that befalls his benevolent, but overwhelmed, protagonist Smithy Ide. While the plot focuses on the loss of his parents and the transcontinental bike trek he undertakes, the book seems to be more an unraveling of the twisted family history—especially the mental illness of his beautiful exhibitionist sister Bethany Ide.

McLarty evokes the reader’s pity for the now overweight brother Smithson who has spent much of his life in the shadows of his needy, but beloved sister. To me, the series of problems he fails to confront are problematic; I question what his actual emotional and intellectual intelligence/ability is and whether the entire family had needs that went unrecognized or diagnosed, causing them all to be somewhat debilitated or limited. Smithy’s “love” for his childhood friend, who is handicapped and lives “independently” with her parents next door, seems more of a crutch than a real bond. Having been raised in a relatively normal (if such a thing really exists) family, this story seemed both improbable and unconvincing to me.

The symbolic quest/trek Smithy takes to retrieve Bethany and put to rest the pain she has caused him enables him to better see her for who she is, but most importantly, it allows him to begin to find himself after the recent death of his parents. Smithy in his “simple” way sees the good in humanity and exposes the prejudice, the violence, and the inhumanity of the species as well.

Key topics for discussion relating to mental illness are death and depression, multiple personalities and exhibitionism, suicide, alcoholism, obesity, or familial effects/roles when mental illness exists.

We’ve Dried Off

Thanks to everyone who participated, the Bakerville Marketplace and Used Book Sale raised upwards of $3500.

Here are some preliminary pictures (more to come, as well as a long list of people we are thankful to have on our side).

On Friday evening, we put up the auction tent (thanks to the Grange for lending it out to us again). While the guys worked,


the girls plotted.













Jumping ahead to the Marketplace itself, some trends in facepainting:



































And the kids had fun outside at the used book sale (grown-ups stayed cool and dry inside):

Bakerville Marketplace and Used Book Sale—This Saturday

Bring your used books to the Bakerville Library this week!

Bring your auction donations this week!

Bring your baked goods this Friday or very early Saturday!

Bring yourself to the library at 8:30 am this Saturday for the early bird opening of the Used Book Sale ($7).

Or wait until 9:00 for everything else—Used Book Sale (free admission), Teacup Auction, Bake Sale (all those benefit the library), and booth after booth of crafts, food, flowers, plants, and facepainting.

Click here for more information.

OMG! Our Second Guest Post Ever!

From book club member extraordinaire,
Mary Lee Dunn:

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton, 2006 ATRIA Books

The trick to enjoying a good read is in finding the right book. How lucky we are to have Julie LaSata as our shepherd to guide us to a book that will make you put everything else on hold until the book is finished. Once you become a Bakerville Library regular, and you let her know what you’re looking for, she’s so good at keeping her eye out for you and keeping you in literary heaven.

Once again, she’s done it for me with The House at Riverton. (Just happens the author is working on her PHD at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia where my daughter just spent the past semester.) It combines a fictional tale with an historical setting that is so ably described, you are transported back in time. Told through flashback, it is the story of a young serving girl, now a 98-year-old woman, and her relationship with the aristocratic family she served. It is set in England in the years around the time of World War I. As she recalls and retells her story you grow attached to her as an old woman and intrigued by the life and times when she lived. Throw in a mystery, deep secrets that never come together until the end, characters that you genuinely grow to care about, and you won’t be getting any chores done until you finish reflecting on the final outcome. If you liked Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen, or Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell, this is a MUST read for you.

Tasha Tudor, Children’s Book Illustrator, Dies at 92

This is one of those obituaries that’s interesting not only because I didn’t realize she was still alive until now, but also because she had a very unusual life. To say the least. A link to the New York Times article:

Tasha Tudor, Children’s Book Illustrator, Dies at 92

And a link to the Concord Monitor, in New Hampshire:

Illustrator Tudor dies at age 92

Next Book Club Meeting

Friday, August 8th.

NOTE: We will be meeting early, starting at 6:30 pm, to enjoy the summer evening. Call the library at 482-8806 for more information.

We will be discussing The Memory of Running, by Ron McLarty.

End of an era

Another good friend of the Bakerville Library has passed away. Bud Sedgwick (right), who with Bill Stafford made it an annual event to tell second graders what it was like when the library building was a schoolhouse, died on Thursday, May 22nd. He will be missed at the library and around Bakerville. Following is his obituary from the Register Citizen.


Posted on Fri, May 23, 2008
Malcolm Sedgwick, 82, on May 22, 2008. Montano-Shea Funeral Home.

BAKERSVILLE — Malcolm “Bud” Sedgwick, 82, passed away on Thursday, May 22, 2008, after a nine-month battle with cancer.

He was the loving husband of Dorothy Sedgwick, who passed away in Sept. 2005. Born Nov. 12, 1925, in New Hartford, the son of the late Ralph Sedgwick and Ethel (Jones) Bartholomew, he was a life long Bakersville resident. He was a World War II veteran, having served in Hawaii as a tank and artillery mechanic. He later worked on the early NASA space suits used during the first moon landing at Hamilton Standard. He spent over 20 years at the Torrington Company in the Broad Street and Standard plants as a machinist. His hobbies included gardening, fishing, and antique cars. He was a member of the Litchfield Hills Antique Auto Club for over 30 years. He was also a volunteer fireman with the South End Volunteer Fire Department for most of his adult life. An avid walker, he would walk for miles every morning before breakfast.

In addition to his brother, Allyn, he is survived by two sons, Wayne R. Sedgwick and his wife Wendy of New Hartford and Terry L. Sedgwick and his wife Andrea of Barkhamsted; a daughter, Renae J. Ferguson and her husband Ray of New Hartford; and four grandchildren, Corey, Kate, Sara and Josh. He was predeceased by his brother, Upton.

Funeral services will be held on Thursday, May 29, 2008, at Bakersville United Methodist Church, Bakersville at 11 a.m. Burial will be held at Bakersville Cemetery, Bakersville. Friends may call on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 at Montano-Shea Funeral Home, 5 Steele Road, New Hartford, from 6 to 8 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to South End Vol. Fire Department New Hartford, Conn. 06057 or the Litchfield Hills Antique Auto Club c/o Royal’s Garage in Torrington, Conn. Visit an online guestbook at www.montano-shea.com.

The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club

June’s book club meeting will be about The Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens. I was one who voted for it, and some people are blaming me. Okay, I stand by my vote. It’s a very funny book.

Also, I have to present Dickens’s bio. (As part of my punishment.) So come back and visit this post in the next few days—I’ll try out some ideas here.

First, the basic facts.

Born: 1812.

Died: 1870.

_________________________

Well. Book club has come and gone. I ended up printing out some Wikipedia pages and reading from them. Not very serious, but entertaining. I discovered that Dickens actually lived through a lot of the things he wrote about, including working in a factory at a very young age because his family were confined to a debtors’ prison.

I listened (am still listening, in fact), to the book on tape (21 tapes), with Patrick Hull as the narrator. He does a really good, funny job with all the voices. Some other people listened to Walter Zimmerman, and they raved about him, too.

I think Dickens would have appreciated our meeting. It was warm enough to meet outside, so we did, accompanied by (1) gin and tonics, (2) drinks with vodka, cucumbers, lime, and mint, (3) assorted wines, and (4) plenty of lovely hors d’oeuvres. Don’t you wish you had been there?