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Do you ever wonder about the birds in your backyard? Now you can get acquainted with many of our local, common backyard birds when Naturalist Christa Wood, from the Somerset County Park Commission, speaks at Bernardsville Public Library on Wednesday, January 21 at 7:00 pm.
During this program, listeners will learn the essentials of backyard bird watching, basic identification skills, what to feed backyard birds, as well as when and where to place feeders in their yards. Armed with this information, they will then be able to participate in the annual Backyard Bird Count, an international Citizen Science project, which will be held February 13-16, 2015. Ms. Wood will explain how to join in this count.
There is no charge to attend the program, but advance sign-up is requested. Register online at www.bernardsvillelibrary.org and follow the link from Adult Programs, or call the library at 908-766-0118 to sign up.
Reading fifty books in fifty-two weeks may seem daunting, but share the goal with a supportive group and it can be a lot of fun. Community members are invited to come to the first meeting of this year's 50 Book Challenge on Saturday, January 17 at 3:00 pm in the library’s Community Room. There will be animated discussion, reading suggestions and snacks, and our readers will trade notes on books they have enjoyed and books they didn't. New members are welcome at any time during the year and can prorate their goal till the end of the year if they join later. The group meets quarterly.
The fifty books in fifty-two weeks are suggested, not required, for participation in the program. Each reader will choose which reading “counts” as part of the total. There are no limitations as to which formats can be read: downloaded books, audio books, e-books and graphic novels are all acceptable.
For more resources and for email updates for the 50 Book Challenge, go to the library's webpage, www.bernardsvillelibrary.org /50_book/. There is no charge to attend the meeting, and no sign-up is needed. For further information, call the library at 908-766-0118.
Bernardsville Public Library’s next session of English-As-A-Second-Language (ESL) classes will begin on Monday, January 19. Classes will be offered on Mondays and Thursdays at both 3:00 pm and 7:15 pm and will run for twelve sessions (through April 16). There is no charge to attend and students may attend classes in more than one timeslot if they wish.
At the first session, students will be divided into small groups based on their native language and their facility with English. The classes will follow a variety of formats including lessons and practice, and conversation and role playing daily tasks that have to be executed in English. Trained volunteers teach the classes. Community members who would like to volunteer as teachers are encouraged to call the library at 908-766-0118.
There is no charge to attend the program, and advance registration is optional. Just come to the first class. Registration can be accomplished online at www.bernardsvillelibrary.org; follow the link under Adult Programs, or call the library at 908-766-0118 to sign up or for more information.
Come meditate in a circle of consciousness at Bernardsville Public Library on Friday, January 9 at 10:00 am. Bernardsville resident Gail Mardfin will lead a new series of monthly guided meditation sessions in which different types of meditation will be explored with a time of sharing to follow for those who are so inclined. First timers and those with any meditation experience are welcome.
There is no charge to attend the program, and no sign-up is required. For further information, call the library at 908-766-0118.
Bernardsville Public Library is pleased to present a free Trilogy Repertory production of "A Tale of Sleeping Beauty" on Saturday, January 10 at 1:00 pm. The play, written by Steve and Kathy Hotchner, is directed by Jaye Barre.
Children in the audience will participate in the production: the townspeople have deserted the Castle in the middle of the night…The curse of the evil fairy is about to come to pass…Today, the Kingdom will fall asleep forever. Who will save the Kingdom? Who will save Beauty? How can the curse be avoided? It’s up to the audience to help the Royal Family see that Beauty and the Prince find a happily ever after.
There is no charge to attend this family program, and no registration is needed. Please call the library at 908-766-0118 for further information.
Finding the right pre-school for your child can be daunting, and taking the time to schedule and visit multiple schools can be time-consuming and exhausting. To make the task a little easier, Bernardsville Public Library will host its fifth Pre-School Fair on Tuesday, January 13 from 4:00 to 8:00 pm (snow date: February 24) to allow parents and caregivers of young children to gather information about dozens of local pre-schools in one convenient location. Visitors will be able to move at their own pace with ample time to explore each school, talk with school representatives, and collect brochures and other information. Whether they are interested in quickly picking up brochures or having more in-depth conversations with school representatives, the Preschool Fair is designed to provide vital information and help ease the process of selecting a pre-school that is the best match for the child.
To accommodate a range of family schedules, the Preschool Fair is a drop-in program that is open to the public from 4:00-8:00 pm. There is no charge to attend and no registration is required. Please call the library at 908-766-0118 for further information.
Bernardsville Public Library will host a poetry and prose reading by Marcia Ivans, Nancy Gerber, and Judith Hugg on Wednesday, January 14 at 7:00 pm. Ms. Ivans is a Chatham-based poet who wrote a collection of poetry called “Darkness on Sunny Days”; Nancy Gerber, a writer who lives in Montclair, will read from her new book, “Fire and Ice”; Ms. Hugg, a resident of Morristown, will read from “To See the Sky: Vignettes of Grace,” a humorous yet poignant memoir.
Marcia Ivans's "Darkness on Sunny Days" mines a dark part of her life. Yet in the works that are included, she's programmed contrasts of light and dark, much as the sun plays hide and seek on partly cloudy days. The message of the book is that even within the days that seem most dark, there is still a glimmer of light. “Darkness on Sunny Days” is her third book of poetry. Ms. Ivans has been a member of Women Who Write for eight years, serving on the board for seven years. Her work has been published in literary journals such as Goldfinch, Morning Light, Raritan Valley Poetry Anthology and M Magazine. She has lectured and given workshops at College of St. Elizabeth, Caldwell College, and others.
Nancy Gerber’s "Fire and Ice" is a collection of poetry and prose that explores a mother’s dementia, coming of age, and the search for identity. The poems and vignettes explore the pain and beauty in our most significant relationships. Ms. Gerber received her doctorate in English from Rutgers University. Her writing has been published in Mom Egg Review and Adanna, as well as scholarly journals. She is an advanced clinical candidate at the Academy of Clinical and Applied Psychoanalysis in Livingston.
Judith Hugg published "To See the Sky" in 2011. It is a memoir which recalls emotional moments from her less-than-ideal childhood and also ponders the approaching unknowns of aging. Ms. Hugg calls herself a "child of the 1950s." Her first poem was published in The Sunday School times at seventeen. "To See the Sky" is her first book.
There is no charge to attend the program, but advance sign-up is requested. Register online at www.bernardsvillelibrary.org and follow the link from Adult Programs, or call the library at 908-766-0118 to sign up.
