By Sue Hotz | Friends of the Public Library

Yes, we’re open

We thank our library staff for their diligence in restoring the branch’s collection following the RFID upgrade, and for all of their assistance throughout the year. They are: Branch Manager David Ege; Youth Services Librarian Erin Moore; Librarian Mary Brandt; Library Assistants Mimi Labrucherie and Sarah Hendy-Jackson; Library Clerks Tim, Zelia, Mekhaela, Stephanie, Renee, and Jon; Library Aides Megan, Sheila, Bonnie, Tiana, Jordan, and new to the staff are Brianna and Shawn.

Three cheers and a high five to all! Please know how much we daily appreciate all of you. We also thank our patrons for their patience during the two-week closure.

Summertime activities

The Fourth of July is over, along with half of the summer. It was wonderful having Lake Murray’s Fire Works back. Kudos to all who put the daylong event together, donated, attended, and enhanced our community’s spirit.

It’s not too late to sign up online and to win prizes during the library’s Summer Reading Program (SRP). We have multiple ways for you to find the titles on your reading lists. The San Carlos Branch has over 60,000 titles in its collection.

Our website, bit.ly/2eLaVZY, lists all of the new titles that have been purchased for our branch during the last two months. Learn also about our Express Collection, where you can find multiple copies of the latest best-sellers, and learn how to reserve books from other branches and libraries.

Peruse our First Saturday Used Book Sales — 50 percent of our paperback titles are new each month. After reading your purchases (paperbacks are three for $1), please re-donate them so we can sell them again! Our book sales and memberships create the library’s materials, programs, and equipment purchasing revenue.

Youth SRP special events

Every Wednesday from 2:30–3:15 p.m., enjoy SRP family-fun entertainment underwritten by SCFOL.

July 26, Fantasy in Magic: Prepare to be dazzled by Sandee Gee, the Magician; an experienced and seasoned professional entertainer with the enthusiasm of a child; brought to us by Full Spectrum Educational Services.

Aug. 2, Hullabaloo Concert: Come listen to quality music the whole family can enjoy! You’ll hear traces of twang, funk, rock, folk and blues in Hullabaloo’s songs. Kids will be inspired to laugh, think, sing, dance, clap and stomp their feet.

Aug. 9, The Science of Bubbles: Discover a world of bubbles you never knew existed! You will be amazed by the magic and science of bubbles, and you may even get put inside one.

Aug. 16, Wild Wonders: Explore the wonderful wild mysteries of the animal world through disruptive coloration, camouflage, and more! Meet exotic animals such as the rock hyrax and the binturong while learning about the importance of nature’s designers.

Youth weekly recurring programs include: yoga and storytime, chess, Process Art, pre-school storytime & art, and the new Canta y Baila Conmigo.

The Battle of the Book Characters is on. By summer’s end we will have narrowed a list of 16 book characters to one grand champion. Visit the library throughout the summer to check out books featuring these popular characters and then vote for your favorite. Watch the big board in the children’s area as 15 of the characters are eliminated.

Artists

The brilliantly colored alcohol ink abstracts created by Melanie Peterson will continue on display in the Winer Family Community Room & Art Gallery until Aug. 3. We thank our Art Director Barbara Stewart for bringing new artists and techniques to our attention.

Aug. 8–31, Christina Matchett exhibits a selection of her oils and Pastels. Matchett, a realist painter, uses California’s breath-taking scenery and her own garden to inspire her beautiful landscape, seascape, and floral paintings.

Joining Matchett is Luz Shepard, who returns to our art gallery with her relaxing pastels and Sumi-e Japanese Brush Paintings. Shepard has participated in art exhibitions at the Del Mar Fair, Balboa Park Japanese events, and the Foothills Art Gallery.

Enjoy the art and share refreshments with these ladies on Aug. 19, noon–2 p.m., at their Artist Reception. A portion of their sales will be donated to SCFOL.

Books and authors

July 21, 2–3:15 p.m.: Jim Bregante, helps us to “Step Back in Time: The San Diego Waterfront through the Eyes of a Child,” with his historical presentation of San Diego’s Waterfront and Little Italy. Bregante is a native San Diegan, docent at the Maritime Museum, and seasoned speaker.

July 28, 2–3 p.m., Bonita Chamberlin, Ph.D. co-authored “The Gems of Afghanistan,” with Gary Bowersox. Chamberlin spent more than 30 years in Afghanistan working under five regimes. This book is considered the original and most extensive study of Afghanistan’s gemstones and minerals. In 2002, Chamberlin purchased the equipment required for Nuristan villagers to mine gemstones and create jewelry; this industry has created the revenue to help improve their standard of living. Historians, geologists, gemologists, and lovers of fine jewelry will find this a very informative talk.

Aug. 10, 12:30-2 p.m., the Library Book Club is discussing Anthony Doerr’s, “All the Light We Cannot See.” This novel was an immediate New York Times Best-Seller and a Pulitzer Prize winner. It is the beautiful story of a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

Free OASIS programs

Aug. 11, 2–3 p.m.: In the last of his Healthy Habits series, Brandon Harding discusses, “How Sweet It Is: Limiting Sugar in Your Diet.” Learn how foods high in sugar sneak into our diet and effective ways to reduce them. Participants will enjoy a healthy snack and experience low-impact exercises to increase physical activity, an important component of weight management and health. Attendees will receive a free health guide with recipes and tips for healthy living.

Aug. 18, 2–3 p.m.: “Historical Novels: A Great History Lesson.” Blaine Davies leads a discussion of U.S. historical novels and how they can help us better understand what it was like to have experienced the dramatic events in our country’s history first hand. Imagine watershed moments as if you were there and how you would have viewed them, not knowing what you know now about how they affected our nation.

Dates to remember

Aug. 4, 1:30–3:30 p.m.: Friends of the Library only, Used-Book Pre-sale

Aug. 4, 6–8 p.m.: Allied Gardens’ First Friday Concerts in the Park

Aug. 5, 9:30 a.m.–3 p.m.: SCFOL Monthly Used Book Sale

Aug. 15: Summer Reading Program ends

—Sue Hotz is board member and publicity chair for the San Carlos Friends of the Library. Reach her at [email protected].