We are fortunate at the Delaware County District Library to have an amazing support group in our Friends of the Library. This energetic group volunteers their time and talents tirelessly to the benefit of raising funds and awareness about their library.
Last year, this group brought author of “Orange is the New Black,” Piper Kerman, to Delaware for an intimate speaking engagement about her life, her memoir, the television show based on her novel, and her new expedition into prison reform activism.
Earlier this spring, popular children’s author and illustrator Troy Cummings visited the Orange Branch Library with funding and volunteer support from the Friends of the Delaware County District Library.
Led by President Karen Cowan, this year the Friends group has a busy schedule. They’re holding regular “Coffee with George” programs for their membership. This is a great opportunity for members and interested potential members to have a one-on-one with DCDL Director George Needham and a behind the scenes tour of the branch.
Refreshments are provided and a lively conversation is guaranteed. The next one takes place on Wednesday, June 14 at 10 a.m. at the Ostrander Branch Library on North Fourth Street in downtown Ostrander.
The Friends are also a headlining sponsor at this summer’s City of Powell Lolli-Pops children’s concerts. Due to rain this past week, the June 5 concert was rescheduled to this Monday, June 12 and features music from The Marvelous Toy. Stop by the Friends table this Monday or on July 10 or Aug. 7 at 10:30 for information and a free gift.
Most people will know the Friends because of their highly popular Bargain Book Events. Now hosted at each branch, you won’t beat the bang for your buck that they offer for a boatload of books.
Learn more about the Friends at their website, www.delawarelibraryfriends.org, on Facebook or Twitter. While you’re there, wish them a happy 10th anniversary. This year is a big one for them, and they’ve certainly earned all the kudos they can get.
• Into the Water by Paula Hawkins. In this psychological thriller by the author of “The Girl on the Train,” women are found drowned in a river in an English town.
• Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton. A college student joins a fossil-hunting expedition in the 19th-century West and is caught up in the rivalry between two paleontologists. This is a recently discovered manuscript by Crichton, who died in 2008.
• Same Beach, Next Year by Dorothea Benton Frank. Two couples form a lifelong friendship during annual reunions on one of South Carolina’s barrier islands.
• The Frozen Hours: A Novel of the Korean War by Jeff Shaara. A fictional account of the Battle of Choisin Reservoir during the Korean War, where Americans battled Chinese forces and brutal temperatures.
• Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane. A woman struggles to understand who she really is, first searching for her father, then coping with a breakdown.
• A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. A Russian count undergoes 30 years of house arrest.
