What’s Happening at the Library? Book reading, signing among upcoming events
On Tuesday, two library-related book events will occur, one a reading and book signing that will be at Rose Mary C. Brooks Place, and the other a book discussion in the Clark County Public Library’s Rose Mary C. Brooks Community Room.
At 2 p.m. Tuesday, the library partners with Brooks Place, 200 Rosemary Drive, for a reading and book autograph session with Cynthiana author Marilynn T. Bell.
Bell is the author of three books, “Stories for Little Old Ladies,” “More Stories for Little Old Ladies (and Little Old Men)” — so titled because she received great responses about her first book from male readers — and “Look for the Beautiful.”
Bell began seriously writing after winning the Lane Award for the Most Outstanding Entry in a fiction contest by the Cynthiana Democrat.
The Democrat’s Bruce Florence said Bell’s stories are “page-turners” dealing with “heartache, abuse, grief, love, lust, greed and jealousy.”
Winchester resident Deborah Neil, a longtime library patron and eclectic reader, borrowed two of Bell’s books and said she found them “cute and enjoyable.”
Bell’s presentation in the dining room at Brooks Place is free and open to the public. She will read from her books and answer audience questions about her writing.
Books will be available for purchase and autographing. For more information, call 744-5661, ext. 110.
I want to thank Brooks Place Program Director Chelsea Ramey for working with the library to make this program possible.
At 6 p.m., Tuesday, Baker Street specialist Tim Janes presents the third of four library book discussion groups about the four Sherlock Holmes novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
The book under discussion this month is “The Valley of Fear.” Sherlock Holmes receives a coded message from a bribed associate of Professor Moriarity. Even without a key, Holmes and Watson decipher the message. A man named John Douglas residing at Birlstone Manor is in danger.
Inspector MacDonald of Scotland Yard calls upon Holmes and informs him someone murdered Douglas of Birlstone Manor House that morning.
Pinkerton Agent James McParland’s investigations of the Molly Maguires, a 19th-century Irish secret society active in Ireland, Liverpool and parts of the eastern United States that were best known for activism among Irish-American and Irish immigrant coal miners in Pennsylvania, is the loose basis for “The Valley of Fear.”
The first book edition of “The Valley of Fear” was published by George H. Doran Company in 1915, and was illustrated by Arthur I. Keller.
Two parts: “The Tragedy of Birlstone” and “The Scowrers” divide the book. For this reading group, the library acquired a paperback reprint of the original edition complete with Keller’s illustrations.
Copies are available at the circulation desk. If you have a favorite edition of your own, bring it along. Register to attend by calling the library or using the Evanced online registration system at www.clarkbooks.org.
Other programs this week include:
— Pageturners Book Group, 11 a.m. Monday. The group discusses “Three Things about Elsie” by Joanna Cannon. It’s the story of an injured woman who meditates on her complicated relationship with a best friend when a man, whom they thought died, joined her retirement community. Books are available at the circulation desk.
— Chair Yoga, at 2 p.m. Monday. Kathy Howard, a certified yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance, teaches the class. There is a $5 charge per class.
— Kentucky Picture Show, 2 p.m. Wednesday. Kentucky Picture Show presents a 2018 film. Against the backdrop of high school football and track, two brothers in a small Southern town face escalating problems with two different world views, straining — but ultimately strengthening — the bonds of brotherhood. Rated PG.
— Jeff Gurnee’s Trivia Challenge, 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Engine House Pizza Pub. Hotter than July … Who is the album artist?
— Gentle Yoga, 9:15 a.m. Thursday. Kathy Howard, a certified yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance, teaches the class. There is a $5 charge per class.
— Outside the Lines Adult Coloring, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 13.
The Dog Days of Summer begin Friday. Stay cool with a good book from the library.
John Maruskin is director of adult services at the Clark County Public Library. He can be reached at john.clarkbooks@gmail.com.