Library Happenings December 2007

Saturday December 1st, 2:00 - 5:00 pm
Matryoshka ~ Russian Nested Doll Painting Class

Traditional Russian artist and lecturer, Marina Forbes, will offer a unique workshop on the rich Russian folk tradition of Matryoshka (wooden nested doll) painting. The workshop is open to adults and families with children age 6 and up. It is a great opportunity for adults and families to work together and learn about Russian crafts and culture. Participants will hear the story of the Matryoshka doll and will learn about her traditional Russian dress and customs. Traditional Russian painting techniques and floral and berry designs are also introduced. The goal is to produce a finished piece of Russian folk art on wood. They can work on 7-piece, 5-piece, 3-piece or 1-piece matryoshka sets which can be purchased at the workshop (call the library for pricing information). Throughout the workshop, students will be listening to traditional Russian music, and, during a brief break from the painting, there will be a demonstration of a few steps from a traditional Russian "matryoshka dance." For more information or to register, please contact the library at 525-4411.

Tuesday December 18th, 3:00 pm
Duct Tape Gifts for the Holidays aka Ductigami!

Do you need a last-minute gift for your family? Would you like it to be a creative and lovingly hand-made present? Then come to our Holiday Duct Tape workshop and learn to make handy items out of duct tape. For middle-school students and up. Please stop by or call the library (525-4411) to register as class size (but not duct tape) is limited. Refreshments will be served.


Note to book club members and Third Friday Film fans: Due to the holiday frenzy, we'll skip the First Tuesday Book Club and the Third Friday Film for the month of December.

Coming in January 2008...

First Tuesday Book Club
Tuesday January 8th at 7:00 pm (yes, it's the 2nd Tuesday this month!)

The book club book will be 1421: The Year China Discovered the World by Gavin Menzies with a guest speaker to guide us through this fascinating book. All are welcome. Copies of the book will be available at the front desk beginning December 1st. Please join us.

Third Friday Film: Paradise Now
Friday January 18th at 7:00 pm

Paradise Now is a "taut, ingeniously calculated thriller" according to the New York Times. We follow the main characters, Said and Khaled, childhood friends from the West Bank, over two days leading up to a suicide bombing mission they are to carry out. Written and directed by Hany Abu-Assad, an Israeli-born Palestinian, in 2005.

Thursday January 24th, 2 - 4 pm
Shakespeare for Snowy Days with Tibby Tobey

The snowy days are coming again, so it is time to think of Shakespeare! Read and be challenged by Midsummer Night's Dream, Winter's Tale, and Cymbaline. No prior experience is necessary. Just order any new titles you need from The Toadstool (Folger editions are preferred). Do this soon, please. Then join us on Thursday afternoons beginning January 24th from 2 pm to 4 pm in the Daniels Room. Sign up at the library (you can call us at 525-4411)as spaces are limited.

Display Case!

Come in to see this beautiful display of Native American baskets and bead work on loan from Don Briggs. And if you have a collection you would be willing to share for a month, please let us know.

Spooky Stories Night in Photos!

Michael Sullivan, our spooky storyteller, tells tall tales to the children of Hancock.

Library Events for November 2007

November is a busy month at the library ~ lots of programs coming up!

Thursday November 1st at 7:00 pm
Commemorate Krystallnacht: Songs from the Holocaust

Krystallnacht, also called Night of Broken Glass, refers to the night of November 9, 1938 when Austrian and German synagogues were burned and windows of businesses were smashed. That night about 30,000 Jews were arrested and deported, and around 100 were killed. This marked the beginning of the methodical persecution of the Jews by the Nazis.

In commemoration of Krystallnacht, the Hancock Town Library is sponsoring a program focusing on songs from the Holocaust presented by Stephanie Hurley. Stephanie presents a slide show outlining some facts about ghettos and concentration camps during the Holocaust. Interspersed throughout, Stephanie performs songs that were composed and sung by the people living under these conditions.

Singer Stephanie Hurley is an accomplished vocalist in many genres of music. She graduated with honors from Keene State College, receiving a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance and a Bachelor of Arts in Music History. This performance is an extension of her research conducted at the Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies at Keene State College. Stephanie developed a bibliography of all books, sheet music, and articles in the Cohen Center with information about music or musical activity related to the Holocaust. Inspired by this research, Stephanie resolved to bring the voices of the people who lived during the Holocaust back to life by performing their songs. Stephanie will be accompanied by Lisa Murray on piano. Lisa was trained in classical music and then delved into improvisation after college. She writes original jazz/pop/folk songs, has composed the background music to a guided meditation CD, teaches piano, and plays in many local venues.


Tuesday November 6th - December 11th, 2:00 - 4:00 pm
The Knit Lits Return!

Do you knit? Would you like to learn to knit? Beginners or experienced knitters are encouraged to come to our Knit Lits group at the library on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00 to 4:00 for six weeks. If you are experienced, bring a project you've been working on. If you are a beginner, bring some yarn if you can, though we'll have needles and a small selection of yarns for you. All ages are welcome! Jill Kuchinos is our teacher again this year. For more information, call the library at 525-4411.


Tuesday November 6th, 7:00 pm
First Tuesday Book Club

We'll be discussing Kent Haruf's book Eventide. All are welcome!


Friday November 9th, 7:00 pm AT THE HARRIS CENTER
Beowulf: A Telling by Sebastian Lockwood
Introduced by Francelia Clark

Brave the frosty night and come gather together to hear the epic poem Beowulf. Francelia Clark, a Beowulf scholar, will begin the evening with an introduction to this ancient tale of heroic deeds. Sebastian Lockwood will then bring his powers as a story-teller to the formidable task of giving this legendary story the force it demands. The language of this epic is stone and rock, wood and gold - it speaks of the great Halls and mighty feats of heroic warriors tested by creatures from beyond, the dark forces of other worlds that threaten home and hearth. Not to be missed!

Francelia Clark, while a lifelong Hancock summer person, had a teaching career at the University of Michigan. Beowulf was the highlight of teaching, dissertation, and book. Francelia's special interest is oral composition and performance.

Sebastian Lockwood has been performing as a traveling bard for six years. He is a poet, teacher and storyteller. He studied classics, anthropology and education at Boston University and Cambridge University, UK. He is a member of the New Hampshire Artists Roster.

This program is co-sponsored by the Harris Center and made possible by the Friends of the Library.


Monday November 12th through December 17th, 7:00 pm
Meditation Class with Pamela Erdmann

Interesting research has been developed over the last ten years indicating that meditation may have many benefits for maintaining health and well-being. There is now solid evidence that a regular meditation practice can aid the immune system's functioning as well as break cycles of depression and OCD and possibly reverse age related changes in the brain. This four week course can be a beginning to establishing a regular practice or a "jump start" for folks who wish to restart their meditation practice. No experience is necessary, only a curiousity and desire to be active in maintaining one's health.

We will meet weekly for one hour for six weeks. It is asked that participants be willing to make the committment to practicing for a minimum of twenty minutes daily in between sessions. There is a $5.00 materials fee and you must register in advance as class size is limited. Please stop by or call the library (525-4411) to register.

Pamela Erdmann is a Senior Instructor at the Center for Mindfulness at the UMass Medical School.


Thursday November 15th, 7:00 pm
A NH Humanities Council Program!
The War at Home: World War II on the Homefront
with Lawrence Douglas
Co-sponsored with the Hancock Historical Society

More than 60 years later we can still witness the cultural effects of World War II. A one-hour video documentary takes a look at life in the Granite State during the 1940s and helps generate discussion of the War's impact on citizen's lives and actions, and how it redefined the way we work, live, and play.

This program is one of over 250 programs and exhibits available to organizations statewide, through the Humanities to Go! catalog.

Lawrence Douglas is a retired professor from Plymouth State University.


Friday November 16th, 7:00 pm
Third Friday Film: Children of Heaven

This 1997 Iranian film was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Foreign Language Film and has garnered high praise from reviewers. It is truly a family film, and though it does have subtitles, even young readers should be fine. It is the story of siblings Ali and Zahra who decide to share Ali's shoes to stay out of trouble after Ali loses Zahra's shoes. Roger Ebert ended his glowing review by saying, "Children of Heaven is about a home without unhappiness. About a brother and sister who love one another, instead of fighting. About situations any child can identify with. In this film from Iran, I found a sweetness and innocence that shames the land of Mutant Turtles, Power Rangers and violent video games." As always, free popcorn thanks to Friends of the Library.


Thursday November 29th, 7:00 pm
The Merry Wives of Windsor with The Hourglass Readers

The Hourglass Readers will present a dramatized reading of Shakespeare's "Merry Wives of Windsor" at the Hancock Library on Thursday evening, Nov. 29, at 7 PM. This is Shakespeare's farce about the famous character Falstaff in love (allegedly written at the request of Elizabeth 1). Falstaff, short of money, seeks to make love to two women at the same time, with an object of gaining access to their husbands' purses. The two wives find a way to revenge themselves on Falstaff, by luring him into traps that raise his hopes but defeat his intentions, in the process evoking their husbands' increased admiration. This shortened version runs about one and a half hours. The production is being directed by Wendy Almeida. In the cast are Lindsay Bartlett, Frank & Catherine Behrens, Sarah Ellsworth, Ariana Ellsworth, Heather Morrison, Margarete Pierce, Nancy Preus, Don Primrose, Ruth Siegel, Marilyn Simons, Don Wilmeth, and Ben Wise.

The Hourglass Readers was founded by Catherine Behrens in 2006 with the idea of bringing shortened versions of classical works to modern audiences. They are a group of men and women who love the classics and love to perform. Performances are always free and open to the public.


Friday November 30th, 7:00 pm
Snippets from Life in Greece with Becky Sakellariou

Becky Sakellariou will share with you her experiences and understanding of contemporary Greece where she has lived since 1965. Becky was born and raised in Massachusetts, went to Antioch College in Ohio, and on her way home from her year-abroad in Italy, got distracted in Greece and decided to stay. She raised two sons there, worked as an editor, a writer, a teacher and a counselor. She has stayed in Hancock over the past five years and now has a little home in Peterborough so that she can tap all the best from the New England that continues to inspire her.