Exhibits
The Individuality of Color: Watercolor Paintings by John David Macdonald
Wednesday September 2, 2015: 9:00am to
Thursday October 15, 2015
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room Exhibit
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #550
by muffy
An international bestseller, first published in German in March 2012, Death in Brittany * * by Jean-Luc Bannalec (a pseudonym) introduces the first case of Commissaire Georges Dupin.
At the height of the tourist season, Commissaire Georges Dupin, the cantankerous Parisian transplant to the coastal town of Concarneau, is dragged from his morning croissant and coffee to the village of Pont-Aven, where the 91-year-old hotelier Pierre-Louis Pennec has been found murdered in his restaurant.
Dupin and his team identify five principal suspects, amony them a rising political star, a longtime friend of the victim, and a well-respected art historian. The case is further complicated when a second death occurs and a painting (perhaps a genuine second version of Gauguin's famous Vision After the Sermon) disappears from Pennec's hotel. As Dupin delves further into the lives of the victims and the suspects, he uncovers a web of secrecy and silence in this picture-perfect seaside village that once played host to Paul Gauguin and other post-Impressionist painters in the 19th century, members of the loosely connected Pont-Aven School.
"Dupin is fascinating to watch - he's both cranky and enthusiastic... The star of the mystery, though, is Brittany. Bannalec feeds the reader with intriguing bits of history (for example, Bretons are descended from the Celts, who fled Britain during the Anglo-Saxon invasions) and culture, along with bracing glimpses of centuries-old stone buildings, river banks, and the sea."
For mystery fans who enjoyed the Commissaire Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg series by Fred Vargas; the Chief Magistrate Antoine Verlaque series by M.L. Longworth, set in charming and historic Aix-en-Provence; and Martin Walker's delightful Bruno Courreges series set in the fictional town of St Denis, in the picturesque Perigord region of rural France - featuring the consummate cook and locavore who happens to be the Chief of Police.
* * = 2 starred review
Writing & Publishing
Comic-Drawing with Ruth McNally Barshaw
Thursday February 18, 2016: 2:00pm to
3:00pm
Pittsfield Branch: Program Room
Grades K-5
Exhibits
Totems, Trees, and Birds
Tuesday August 4, 2015: 9:00am to
Thursday September 10, 2015
Malletts Creek Branch: Exhibits
Exhibits
The Pleasure of Portraits: Paintings by Bertie Bonnell
Friday July 17, 2015: 9:00am to
Sunday August 30, 2015
Downtown Library: 3rd Floor Exhibit
Blog Post
Notable New Memoir: Sally Mann's Hold Still
by eapearce
Renowned photographer Sally Mann’s new memoir, Hold Still, is a breath of fresh, Southern air. Stories of her family—past and present—as well as anecdotes about her deep love of the southern United States and her photography sojourns are interspersed with her beautiful photographs.
Mann generated controversy in the 1990s for her photo collection “Immediate Family,” which featured many pictures of her children, some in the nude. No matter how you feel about these photographs, its undeniable that they are striking, and the work of someone deeply talented. Her other work is equally breathtaking, particularly her haunting landscapes, many of which are taken at and near the farm where she was raised and continues to live, in Virginia.
Hold Still is written at an almost soothing pace. Mann spins out stories of generations of family troubles, and analyzes deeply who she is today. Excerpts from years of letters and diary entries compliment her stories, and add unique details and perspectives to situations whose outcomes have been altered by the passing of time. She writes at length about her beloved South and the deep-seated sense of place that she has found during her lifetime there. I loved becoming more familiar with Mann’s work while also reading this fascinating account of a memorable life.
For more of Mann’s photography, check out Deep South and What Remains.
Crafts
Young Rembrandts: Power of Drawing - Halloween - NEW LOCATION
Saturday October 24, 2015: 1:00pm to
2:00pm
Downtown Library: 4th Floor Meeting Room
Grades 1–5
Crafts
Young Rembrandts: Power of Drawing - Pastel Landscape
Saturday October 17, 2015: 1:00pm to
2:00pm
Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Grades 1–5
Crafts
Young Rembrandts: Power of Drawing - Fish
Saturday October 10, 2015: 1:00pm to
2:00pm
Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Grades 1–5
Crafts
Young Rembrandts: Power of Drawing - Horses
Saturday October 3, 2015: 1:00pm to
2:00pm
Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Grades 1–5