"Route 66, The People-The Places-The Dream"

Jay Leno with Sal Santoro and Bob Walton

Summer is the time for travel, and U.S. Highway 66, popularly known as Route 66 or the Mother Road, is a magnet for travelers wishing to explore America's heartland, from the shores of Lake Michigan to the Pacific Ocean in Santa Monica. Bob Walton and Sal Santoro felt the pull and took to the road in Bob's 1968 DeVille convertible. On Wednesday, July 16 at 7:00 pm, Mr. Walton will present a slide show and talk at Bernardsville Public Library on the trip and the resulting book which recounts their journey, "Route 66, The People-The Places-The Dream” (2012). The book became a Jay Leno Book Club selection.

Mr. Walton, a retired Bergenfield teacher who resides in Wyckoff, will chronicle the 38-day, coast-to-coast road trip--a round-trip odyssey that covered 7,292 miles including all of historic Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles. The two good friends had always had many things in common, not the least of which was a lifelong desire to travel Route 66, the legendary roadway. Mr. Walton says that both were admirers and collectors of classic Cadillacs, and they really wanted to make the trip in a vintage Caddy. We “talked about it for years, researched, prepared [my] red 1968 DeVille convertible, planned and then planned some more,” he says. When the time was right, they set off on their odyssey across America. "Route 66, The People-The Places-The Dream" tells the story of this once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Through their book, which contains over 500 color photographs, readers meet the many unique characters along Route 66 and enjoy the iconic sights of “The Mother Road” as well as the natural beauty of America. 

In 2012, Jay Leno invited the two authors to Burbank, California to visit his spectacular car collection and be interviewed about their book, which he then selected for his book club. Paul Taylor of “Route 66 Magazine” called it “a photojournalistic achievement,” and “MotorWeek Television” classified it a “must read.”

There is no charge to attend the library workshop, but advance registration is requested. Click here to sign up, or call the library at 908-766-0118 to sign up.

Saturday Samplers Book Group to Meet

Bernardsville Public Library’s book discussion group, Saturday Samplers, will meet on Saturday, July 12 at 3:30 pm to discuss “Methland: the Death and Life of an American Small Town” (2009) by Nick Reding.  [The author will not be present.]

A New York Times bestseller, the book tells the dramatic story of the methamphetamine epidemic that is sweeping the American heartland and of one community’s attempt to battle its way to a brighter future. It focuses on Oelwein, Iowa (pop. 6,159), which, like thousands of other small towns across the country, has suffered from the consolidation of the agricultural industry, a depressed local economy, and an out-migration of people. Over a period of four years, journalist Nick Reding traced the connections between the lives touched by the drug and the global forces that set the stage for this epidemic.

Nick Reding was born in Saint Louis, Missouri and earned an MFA in Creative Writing from N.Y.U., where he was a University Fellow from 1995 until 1997. He lived in New York City for thirteen years, where he worked as a magazine editor, a graduate school professor, and a freelance writer. His first book was “The Last Cowboys at the End of the World,” and “Methland” is his second.  He has written for Harper’s, Food and Wine, Outside, Fast Company, and Details. He lives in Saint Louis, where he is a Visiting Scholar at the Saint Louis University School of Law, and is working on his third book, “Heartland,” about what the Midwest will look like in fifty years.

Led by Evelyn Fischel, Saturday Samplers is a book discussion group dedicated to sampling various kinds of literature, including short stories, nonfiction, new and old novels, and even teen fiction.  Its goal is to search out interesting, noteworthy, and sometimes overlooked books.  Readers can find information about the group and about the books and authors on the reading list at http://saturdaysamplers.blogspot.com.  No sign-up is needed to join the discussion.  Call the library at 766-0118 for more information.

Tech Update: Instagram

When it’s time to share your vacation photos, think about Instagram, an online photo-sharing service that enables its users to take pictures and videos and share them on a variety of social networking services.  Find out all about it and the features which make it so popular at Bernardsville Public Library on Thursday, July 10 at 7:00 pm. The class will be taught by Programs Plus, a software training company.

There is no charge to attend the program, but advance sign-up is requested. Click here to sign up or call the library at 908-766-0118. 

Page Turners: Evening Book Group

Bernardsville Public Library’s evening book discussion group, Page Turners, will hold its second meeting on Tuesday, July 8 at 6:30 pm in the library’s small meeting room.  Library Director April Judge will lead the discussion of “The Book Thief" (2005) by Markus Zusak.  [The author will not be present.]

The book, which was a New York Times bestseller and has been made into a major motion picture, is set in 1939 in Nazi Germany and tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich, who discovers books, learns to read with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.  The New York Times book reviewer called the book, "Brilliant and hugely ambitious…It's the kind of book that can be life changing."

Markus Zusak is an Australian writer and the author of five books, including "The Book Thief," which has been translated into more than forty languages.  His first three books, "The Underdog," "Fighting Ruben Wolfe" and "When Dogs Cry," released between 1999 and 2001, were all published internationally and garnered a number of awards and honors in his native Australia, and the United States.

There is no charge to attend and no registration is needed to join the discussion.  Call the library at 766-0118 for more information.

Hillsborough Digital Photographic Society

The July exhibition at Bernardsville Public Library will feature images by members of the Hillsborough Digital Photographic Society, a show which will illustrate the diverse interests and styles of the club’s members. The photographers will host an opening reception for the public on Saturday, July 12 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.  

The members of Hillsborough Digital Photographic Society concentrate on learning the art and science of digital photography in a supportive environment. The club’s goal is to provide a forum where photographers of all skill levels meet to share their experience, knowledge, and passion for photography. Through monthly meetings, field trips, educational workshops, portfolio reviews, image critiques, and exhibits at local venues, members enhance their photographic skills.

Jim Roselli, Master Printer and Jim LaSala, Master Photographer of XACT Studios have mentored the forty-member club since its inception. Interested photographers are welcome to attend their meetings which are held at 7:00 pm on the fourth Wednesday of the month at XACT Studios, Fine Art Photography and Gallery, Town Center Drive, 411 Route 206 South, Suite 5, Hillsborough, NJ.
   
The library show will be on display from July 1 through July 29, 2014.  Images will be available for purchase. For further information, call the Library at 908-766-0118. 

Announcing "One Book Bernardsville"

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson has been selected as the featured book for Bernardsville Public Library’s first "One Book Bernardsville." This shared community reading experience will take place during October this year, and there will be a month of book discussions and thematically related programs on conservation, hiking, and the Appalachian Trail itself. The events also coincide with National Reading Group Month which is sponsored by the Women’s National Book Association.

A committee composed of library staff and community members was formed in February to identify a book that everyone would enjoy. After reading a good number of possible books and much discussion, the group decided on this humorous, popular memoir. In the book, Bryson depicts the sometimes laugh-out-loud and unusual adventures he had with his out-of-shape friend Stephen Katz as they attempted to hike the entire 2,100-mile trail from Maine to Georgia. Bryson had been living in Britain for twenty years when he returned to the United States and decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the Appalachian Trail. The trail, which offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes, also provides the writer endless opportunities to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings.

“This book has broad appeal making it the perfect choice for our first 'One Book' selection,” said April L. Judge, Library Director. “The committee hopes that women and men alike as well as high school and middle school students will join them and the library staff in this shared community reading experience. We hope that local book groups will join us too."

If a book club is interested in participating, a discussion leader from the library staff will be assigned to the group to lead the discussion at a mutually convenient time. The library staff will have books for individual participants or members of local book clubs to borrow. Books will also be available to purchase from The Bookworm.

For further information about One Book Bernardsville and to register your reading group, please contact April L. Judge at 908-766-0118. More information will be available on the library website, www.bernardsvillelibrary.org, in the near future.

Tech Update: Skype

What is Skype? Millions use it every day to stay in touch with those special people who are important to them. Find out how to use Skype at Bernardsville Public Library on Thursday, June 26 at 7:00 pm. This program will provide a demonstration of how to download the Skype app and make free video calls over the Internet, from computer to computer, or using cell phones. It’s great for summer vacations, when your children are at college, or for relatives who live far away. The class will be taught by Programs Plus, a software training company.

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.