Free Programs for Kids and Families

Summer reading is wrapping up in Oak Harbor and around the country. Among other highlights, Dino O'Dell helped kids burn off a little steam through fun stories and antics, Mayor Slowik read stories and celebrated with families, and the Oak Harbor Fire Department demonstrated how a real fire hose works. There are still a few weeks left: every child who meets his or her reading goal for the summer gets to choose a free book donated by the Friends of the Oak Harbor Library. Each reader can also cast a vote to select which animal to sponsor at Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo: owl, tiger, penguin or otter. Stop in, pick up your prize and vote for your favorite animal. This Friday and Saturday are great times to come, as the Friends of the Library are also holding their fabulous Fall Book Sale, 9am-5pm both days. Mary

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Frommer's Take on Arizona

News images of 12 men who openly carried guns at protests during President Obama's visit to Phoenix earlier this week have prompted travel writer Arthur Frommer to take Arizona off his personal travel list. In in August 19 blog posting Frommer asks, "Do Guns at Political Events Disturb You?" He goes on to say that while he is not yet advocating a travel boycott of the state of Arizona, he was "shocked beyond measure" by reports that a dozen armed men, including one with an assault rifle, were "openly congregating outside a hall at which President Obama was speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars."
"I will not personally travel in a state where civilians carry loaded weapons onto the sidewalks and as a means of political protest. I not only believe such practices are a threat to the future of our democracy, but I am firmly convinced that they would also endanger my own personal safety there. And therefore I will cancel any plans to vacation or otherwise visit in Arizona until I learn more. And I will begin thinking about whether tourists should safeguard themselves by avoiding stays in Arizona," says Frommer.
The library carries Frommer's guides to every state in its travel collections. Just type Frommer and the name of the state you want in the Sno-Isle Libraries online catalog. Mary C

Free Book Group for Oak Harbor

Join the book discussion group at the library each month on Thursdays at 5:30 PM. On September 10 the group will discuss Astrid and Veronika by Linda Olsson. The book was first published in New Zealand under the title Let me sing you gentle songs. Olsson, a Swedish novelist who now lives in New Zealand, "has a clear feel for the emotional wellsprings of (her) characters" (Publisher Weekly).
Here's what Booklist had to say about the novel: "Veronika, a 30-year-old Swedish writer, rents a home in a remote village to finish work on her second novel. Her only neighbor for miles is Astrid, a reclusive octogenarian who has earned a reputation (perhaps undeserved) as the village witch. Veronika and Astrid gradually become friends, taking long walks and sipping wine made from the wild strawberries in Astrid's garden. Each shares painful secrets along the way. Veronika abandoned a devoted boyfriend to take up with a bartender from New Zealand. They fell passionately in love, then tragedy befell him, leaving Veronika incapacitated by grief. Astrid endured sexual abuse from her father and a long loveless marriage to a man chosen by him. Until now, she has never told anyone the truth about her infant daughter's death. Readers of Anne Tyler and Jodi Picoult will appreciate the lyrical prose and expert rendering of the themes of heartbreak and loss."
Don't want to discuss the book in person? Leave a comment here to share with the group. Happy reading - books are available at the library. Mary
Click here for information on the 11/03/09 Library Levy Election

Free Celebration for Kids and Families

On Thursday August 13, beginning at 10am, Mayor Jim Slowik and Oak Harbor firefighters will be on hand to congratulate children for reading all summer long. More than 1000 children joined the library's summer reading program this year. Friends and book lovers of all ages are welcome at this free program for children and families - prizes, food, stories and more, funded by the Friends of the Oak Harbor Library.

New Resources for Veterans

Two new service centers for Island County veterans have recently opened:

First, the newly established Veterans Resource Center (VRC) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote community-based efforts to heal the effects of war on veterans, their families and communities. The organization involves many diverse and skilled artists, educators, musicians, writers and healers who make Whidbey Island home. As a community supported veterans' service organization the VRC provides advocacy, outreach, resource development, social networking, facilitated peer groups, mentoring, experiential learning, collaborative community connections, liaison, emotional and social support, and public education to heal the invisible effects of war.

Second, the new community-based outpatient clinic (CBOC), located near Skagit Valley Hospital at 307 South 13th Street in Mount Vernon, will bring health care closer to home for Skagit, North Snohomish, Whatcom, Island and San Juan county veterans. In addition to offering primary care services, the new veterans’ clinic will provide mental health, social work, pharmacy, eye, ear, x-ray and dental care. According to the VA, the clinic could eventually serve more than 6,500 local veterans.

Try these titles from the Sno-Isle Libraries collection:
War and the Soul: Healing our Nation's Veterans from Post-traumatic Stress
After the war zone : a practical guide for returning troops and their families
Moving a nation to care : post-traumatic stress disorder and America's returning troops