Library Events for April 2011

Monday April 4th at 7:00 pm
Keeping Backyard Chickens with Lily Plasse

Learn more about Keeping Backyard Chickens. Join Lily Plasse and a few of her chickens to learn more about keeping your own flock for eggs, meat, pets and show. Discussion will include getting started with chickens, choosing breeds, housing, feeding, costs & care, as well as recommended websites and reading. Lily Plasse of Othala Acres Heritage Poultry has been raising rare chickens and turkeys for almost 10 years for preservation, show, eggs & meat. Lily is a member of several poultry clubs, as well as the New Hampshire Youth Leader for the APA-ABA Youth Poultry Club. This program is free and open to the public.

Tuesday April 5th at 7:00 pm
First Tuesday Book Club

Join us as we discuss A Homemade Life – Stories & Recipes From My Kitchen Table by Molly Wizenberg. All are welcome!

Thursday April 7th at 7:00 pm
A Night of Music with Two Old Friends
A NH Humanities Council Program

Over the centuries, immigrants from the British Isles have come to the Americas, bringing with them their musical styles, tastes, and instruments. Using the concertina, bodhran, mandolin, octave mandolin, guitar and banjo in their performances, Two Old Friends sing and play traditional Irish songs and tunes. They perform American country music the way it was conceived in the early 20th century and demonstrate how these tunes are often derived from the songs of the Irish, but have been influenced by other cultural and ethnic groups (particularly African American) to create an original American sound. Two Old Friends, Mac McHale and Emery Hutchins, are music preservationists and performers; founders of Irish folk band Northeast Winds; Mac later formed The Old Time Radio Gang and Emery was part of the Celtic group Angel Band. They have performed locally and internationally for 40 years. This program is free and open to the public and made possible by the NH Humanities Council. The NHHC nurtures the job of learning and inspires community engagement by bringing life-enhancing ideas from the humanities to the people of New Hampshire. This program is co-sponsored by the Hancock Historical Society.

Wednesday April 20th at 7:00 pm
Diving In –An In-Depth Peek into the Common Loon's Fascinating Behaviors

Learn about the life cycle of these magnificent waterbirds in this spectacular and entertaining multi-media nature slideshow. Featuring a very special and endearing young loon named GRAPENUT, who is the star of the show. John Rockwood, The Loon Man NH, is a Common Loon educator, author, naturalist, and professional nature photographer. He has been observing and studying loons for 26 years. Grapenut is a loon chick/juvenile who adopted John into his loon family and shared his growing stages for two seasons. Learning to fly, catching prey, playing hide and seek and riding on his parents’ backs are just some of the loon behaviors young Grapenut displayed to John from the time he was 4 days old until the time he fledged in late fall, as a juvenile. John Rockwood is dedicated to helping protect loons and collaborates closely with the staff at the Loon Preservation Committee as a volunteer to support their mission. Free and open to all.

Thursday April 28th at 7:00 pm
Twitter: What is it? Should you care?

Hancock's own social media expert, Christine Halvorson, will give an overview of how to use this social media tool that some people wish would just go away. It's often dismissed as a waste of time, yet "citizen journalists" are reporting breaking news on it and revolutions are being organized with it. Come find out if you can find something valuable in using this online tool that has some people all a-twitter. It's becoming today's version of the old news wire. Learn how it works, how to find people to "follow" and how to share your own news on it if you so choose. Free and open to all.

From the Children’s Room…

Tuesday April 5th from 3:15 – 4:00
LEGO CLUB!

Join us after school for some fun with LEGOs. This month we have a special presentation from a middle-school team who built a robot with LEGOs. Wapack Youth Robotics will demonstrate both LEGO robots and their mid size FTC robot. Wapack Youth Robotics is a local non-profit 4-H Club with a mission of making FIRST robotics more accessible to more area youth. FIRST 's mission is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership. All are welcome.


Tuesday April 12th from 3:15 – 4:00
Poetry Illustrations for Students in Grades 1-5

To celebrate National Poetry Month, we'll explore a variety of poems from the library's collection and choose one to illustrate and display in the Children's Room. Space is limited; please call the library to sign up. 525-4411