The Library's newly formed Hot Topics Discussion Group discussed Domestic Violence with Lynn Kelly of Women Aware. For further information about the Discussion Group, contact: Ellen at the Adult & Information Services Desk at: 732-721-5600, ext. 5033 for more details.

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Talk and Discussion: History of Baseball in NJ on May 30 at 1:30 p.m.

Bob Golon, author of No Minor Accomplishment: The Revival of New Jersey Professional Baseball is a Baseball Historian as well as the Assistant Director of the Plainfield Public Library. Come join him for a lively talk about the history of baseball in NJ. No registration required -- light refreshments will be served.

These programs are made possible under contract with the INFOLINK Regional Library Cooperative and a grant from the NJState Library Please visit seniorspaces.blogspot.com, and infolink.org/seniorspaces for the latest information for Seniors!

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Librarian Lynn demonstrates excellent form while bowling on the Nintendo Wii. The Wii will be available for public play regularly. Check the Calendar of Events for dates.

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Librarian Tim recommends: Flood by Andrew Vachss (this book is available through interlibrary loan)

Burke is a detective and con-artist working in New York City. A foster child and ex-con, he has a special feeling for cases involving abused children. When a mysterious woman named Flood arrives, Burke is hired to find a child killer so she can take revenge. I read about this series when it was name-checked by the great Irish crime writer Ken Bruen, and I was very impressed. Vachss writes in the hard-boiled American detective story tradition, and Burke walks the mean streets of New York City filled with prostitutes, street corner prophets and runaways. The characters in particular are memorable, with Burke coming off as an updated Philip Marlowe, and his colleagues like the technology expert The Mole are drawn with subtlety and care. This was a very well written and consistently engaging story, and I look forward to checking out the rest of the series. Fans of dark crime fiction will find much to enjoy here.

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The Friends of the Old Bridge Public Library will be hosting their annual Books and More Sale to benefit the programs and services of the Library. There will be a preview sale for member for the Friends at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, May 30th, and the public sale will take place during the following hours:

Saturday, May 31: 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 1: 12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Monday, June 2: 9:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, June 3: 9:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, June 4: 9:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Thursday, June 5: 9:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.

To wrap things up, there will be a Bag Day Special Sale on Friday, June 6 from 9:30 a.m. until everything is gone.

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Librarian Tim recommends: A Downhill Lie by Carl Hiaasen (796.352 HIA, New books)

Novelist and newspaper columnist Carl Hiaasen stopped playing golf in his youth, only to return to it in middle age, thirty plus years later. This book chronicles his return as part diary and part memoir. Anyone familiar with his novels probably knows whats coming: caustic humor with the occasional screed against developers and politicians. Although this book is something of a one-trick pony, he keeps it light and occasionally touching, especially when talking about his father's affection for the game and his own son's growing love for it. His sarcastic e-mail exchanges with sportswriter Mike Lipica among others are fun, as are his encounters on the course with monkeys, alligators and other wildlife including fellow golfers. Oh yes, he also manages to drive a golf cart into a lake... While fans of his fiction will no doubt find a lot to enjoy here, this book will be best appreciated by those who play the game. They will enjoy the company of a fellow traveler.

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The Old Bridge Library hosted a Make-It-Take-It program about the wonderful things that can be created with duct tape!

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Tonight at 7:00 p.m., the Central Library will be hosting a program on panic and anxiety, presented by stress management expert Rosemary Conte. She will talk about ways to deal with panic and anxiety naturally.

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Librarian Tim recommends:

Ken Bruen - The White Trilogy (this book is available through inter-library loan)

Collecting A White Arrest, Taming the Alien and The McDead, this introduces two of Irish noir writer Ken Bruen's finest creations, the unlikely duo of Chief Inspector Roberts and Detective Sergeant Brant. While Roberts isn't exactly a do-gooder, he's positively a saint compared to the amoral and brutal Brant. This dichotomy makes them such a fascinating pair to follow as the cover London (and New York in one memorable story) in search of the legendary "white arrest", putting the collar on a criminal so dangerous that it makes their career and puts them on the fast track for glory. To that end they track seedy London vigilantes, cricket team murderers, and a wicked thug who is stalking Brant from the depths of London's vile underworld. Bruen is one of my favorites, and his short, curt writing style does take a bit of getting used to. But once you grow accustomed to the short blasts of staccato dialogue (think David Mamet or James Ellroy) you realize how wonderfully expressive his storytelling style is. These certainly aren't cozies, they are nasty, brutish and violent; but if you enjoy police procedurals that are thoughtfully and uniquely written, Bruen is a writer not to miss.

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Jean Klerman made a presentation for Senior Friday on the history of Jews in Central New Jersey.

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Dr. Joan George presents a description of her world travels during a recent meeting of the Savvy Seniors. For more information on Senior and Boomer programming at the Library, please contact Allan.

Ellen says: "The Librarian Is In"

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A new shipment of graphic novels has arrived!

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Tim finds out that W.C. Fields was right on when he said "never work with children or animals."

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Michelle Ruggiero from the New Jersey Department of Fish and Wildlife presented Know the Bear Facts at the Central Library.

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A member of the Alborada Spanish Dance Theatre performs during the First Friday program. For more information on First Friday programs, please e-mail Darren.

Selections from students at Middlesex County Arts High are on display at the Central Library through the ens of May.

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Justin cuts the cake during his going away party. After seven and a half years of faithful service to the Library and the community, he is leaving to be a full time high school history teacher. We wish him well.

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