Southport library gets ready for spring

Fri, 04/17/2015 - 2:30pm

The witch hazel is blooming outside the window of the Southport Memorial Library, and we’re busy doing spring cleaning inside.

Librarian Linda Brewer has weeded out all the old cassettes from the audio section, making it much easier to find books on CD to listen to in the car. And thanks to the Squirrel Island Library that gave us a lovely wooden bookshelf, Linda has expanded the large print section (more and more of us need it).

Upstairs, library aides Jean Hawley and Sandra Seifert have been busy rearranging the used book section so that now, when you come to shop, you will be able to scan the shelves alphabetically to find a book. That was a huge job, but one that needed to be done and will make it much easier to find your favorite author.

The bookstore is always open during library hours (Tuesday, Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4p.m.). Hard backs are $3, paperbacks are $1, and there are always bargain books for $1 as well.

The shelves are divided fiction, mystery and non-fiction, and we even have lots of puzzles, old records, DVDs, music CDs, and a special section for Christmas books. Come on out and have a look. Oh, and by the way, all those old audio cassettes that Linda cleaned out are on a shelf by the front door — free for the taking. If you still have a cassette player, you might want to stock up.

Thanks to the Friends of the Southport Memorial Library, and the library trustees, work is underway to remodel the old furnace room into a new kitchen. With so many events held at the library, and coffee hour every Tuesday and Thursday, we are in need of a separate room for food preparation. Work should be finished in June, just in time for summer events.

Those coffee hours have become quite popular lately, with 10 or 12 regulars attending most Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9-11 a.m. Discussion is lively (sometimes quite raucous), centering on news, politics, local and world history. All are welcome, so join us at the round table any Tuesday or Thursday. It could be addictive.

Tuesdays are also the day for children’s story hour at 10 a.m. with Kathy Barter. All preschool children are invited. Kids can listen to Kathy read a story, do creative projects with paper and crayons, and pick out a book to take home. Just come when you can, and moms will have a little spare time to find a book or DVD for themselves.

Speaking of DVDs, Southport library has a large collection of movies on DVD, and of course they are free to all cardholders. You don’t have to be a resident of Southport to get a library card; we welcome all area residents and visitors. If you come, you will discover the happiest place on Southport — a welcome smile at the door, a helpful librarian, a collection of 38,000 books, movies and audio, a coffee hour, a children’s hour, and lots of special events.

Take a ride to the end of Southport and enjoy our local library. You may never want to leave.

New books in April: "We Were Pirates," Daniel Handler; "God Help the Child," Toni Morrison; "Hot Pursuit," Stuart Woods; "Miracle at Augusta," James Patterson; "Falling in Love," Donna Leon; "Every 15 Minutes," Lisa Scottolini; "One Mile Under," Andrew Gross; "Dead Wake," Eric Larson; "The Assassin," Clive Cussler; "The Buried Giant," Kazuo Ishiguro; "Common Core Math for Parents for Dummies," Christopher Daniels.