First time novelist Emily Mitchell in her book Last Summer of the World, presents a compelling portrait of photographer Edward Steichen. She focuses on the period in which Steichen was a photographer on airborne reconnaissance missions during World War I. His pictures presented the horrors of war and are described in detail. A major part of the story takes place in France including a visit to sculptor Auguste Rodin. Also described is his stormy marriage to Clara, rocked by an affair. In this powerful narrative, Mitchell skillfully combines fact and fiction to create a profile of a visionary whose ego complicated the lives of others.

On this Suday, June 10, Nobel Prize winning author Saul Bellow would have been 92. Born in Lachine, Canada, Bellow broke from the literati in writing picaresque novels like The Adventures of Augie Marsh in which the title character says about himself: "...I have taught myself, free-style, and will make the record in my own way: first to knock, first admitted; sometimes an innocent knock, sometimes a not so innocent." Bellow glorified the urban anti-hero who questioned the morals of his society but like Herzog, one of his most lovable characters, with a humorous deadpan look at his own foibles.

Mary Morris, author of another travel journal, Nothing to Declare takes a different kind of journey in The River Queen. The Mississippi River is her trail and a fixed up junker which she names the River Queen is her boat. With two eccentric but skilled boatman, Tom and Jerry, Morris makes the trip in tribute to her father, recently deceased, who grew up along the river in Illinois. Morris includes facts about the river and the personalities she encounters. She tries to come to terms with the difficult father she knew by visiting the run down towns and hot tourist spots he frequented. A good story for women who may be facing a similar passage as well as anyone who is fascinated by the lure of the great river,

Do you love birth stories? Come to the downtown branch on Monday, April 23rd from 7 to 8:30, for the opportunity for people in the community to come together to share their stories of giving birth. You are welcome if you want to tell your story, or just listen to the incredible diversity of birth experiences. Bring your daughter, your mother, or your grandmother!

If you are looking for clever ways to deal with uncertainty and conflict in this wild time, Dan Keding’s collection of folktales, Stories of Hope and Spirit; Folktales from Eastern Europe may give you resolution. From the Croatian version of Stone Soup, to the Slovakian Cinderella, these tales share the wit, wisdom and strength of the Slavic culture and fuel the human spirit. Keding is an award-winning storyteller and musician who grew up on tales from his Croatian grandmother.

The Senior Resource Alliance of Washtenaw has changed its name. It is now the SR Alliance of Washtenaw. This local organization is a member of the Society of Certified Seniors, a national group of accredited advisors to seniors.

This consortium of county service providers helps seniors in a variety of ways from estate planning to home remodeling. By their joining together seniors benefit from cross referrals to the right professional expert. And there is no charge for this help!

For more information call 1-800-385-1273.

What a treat! If you Listen to NPR and "American Roots" music program, enjoy a collaboration between the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum with the DVD series American Roots Music. You'll find a wonderful collage of regional "roots music" including historical clips and contemporary performance clips. This volume features Chicago Blues; Folk Music of the 60's counter culture; Gospel; Tejano; and Native American with Nakai & Mirabel.

Ann Arbor District Library subscribes to 680 periodicals for youth, teen, adult and staff, covering a variety of different interests. Folks 50+ will find many of them fascinating, but let's mention just a few. Cruising by Bust, do! Out and Ode, we come to Trailer Life, revved up for an RV journey. Each monthly issue contains ideas for enhancing your RV camper, along with articles and photos on great places to visit. Next choice is Where to Retire, a bimonthly full of photos and information on retirement housing in great locations.

If you want to learn about making a lighter footprint on the planet in retirement, try E: The Environmental Magazine for lots of intersting examples of places and projects you can get involved with. If you're a nostalgia buff, check out Reminisce, packed with high quality vintage photos and light hearted stories about life in the good old days.

Our two large print subcriptions are a special weekly edition of the New York Times, and the monthly Reader's Digest. Among many health related magazines is Arthritis Today, offering information about the condition, and how to live life to the fullest.

buck o'neil

John "Buck" O'Neil, age 94, passed away in a Kansas City hospital Friday night. A player and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues as well as the first black baseball coach when hired in 1962 by the Chicago Cubs, O'Neil was known not only for his love of baseball but also for life.

Buck was a fabulous storyteller and was "discovered" in his 80's when he appeared in Ken Burns series, Baseball. Read some of those stories like why baseball great, Satchel Paige called him "Nancy" in the Kansas City Star.

National Public Radio's Story Corps seeks oral histories from ordinary folks "as a record of the way we live today--and how we got here." In the case of Blanca Alvarez this is very literally a story of how she got here. In the Story Corps interview with her daughter, Connie, Alvarez describes crossing the border from Mexico to the United States over thirty years ago and the jobs she held to support her family in those difficult early years.