December...it's going to get loud in here*

"...all the Who girls and boys, would wake bright and early. They'd rush for their toys! And then! Oh, the noise! Oh, the Noise! Noise! Noise! Noise! That's one thing he hated! The Noise! Noise! Noise! Noise! >>Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas



It's not every day that you attend a tuba concert at a library. But if you're lucky enough to be in the vicinity of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Dec. 2, stop in to the library and be cheered by tubas.

As in years past, it is expected to be loud and merry with dozens of tubas playing holiday music. People will be sitting everywhere - stairs, benches, display areas. They'll be clapping and singing, surrounded by music.

I've discovered that it's not just books that create a library. It's a cup of coffee with The New York Times. It's a rooftop garden hosting a bridal shower. It's a little boy sporting an elf hat eating a cookie declaring that "this is the best day of my life." It's high school students playing violins in the lobby. It's genealogy classes. It's Story Time for excited preschoolers. It's a live reindeer snorting (and prancing?) on the sidewalk. 



It's my library.


It's my community. 









After a lively holiday concert, find a comfortable chair or sofa and read one of these new December books.

Fiction:
Elmot - Fiona Mozley
Three Daughters of Eve - Elif Shafak
Spy of the First Person - Sam Shephard (his final novel)
Enchantress of Numbers - Jennifer Chiaverini
The Demon Crown - James Rollins
The Boy - Tami Hoag
Year One - Nora Roberts
Death at Nuremberg - W.E.B. Griffin
The Wanted - Robert Crais
One Station Away - Olaf Olafsson

Nonfiction:
No Time to Spare - Ursula LeGuin (essays)
Global Discontents - Noam Chomsky
Waking Up in Winter - Cheryl Richardson

Children:
Paddington's Finest Hour - Michael Bond
Love From Peter Rabbit - Beatrix Potter
Dog Man and Cat Kid - Dav Pilkey



                                December Days

1     - Basketball Day (Yay to UConn women's team!!)

4     - National Cookie Day (Read America's Test Kitchen's The Perfect Cookie)

5     - Rosa Parks arrested, 1955. Boycott of bus system in Montgomery, Alabama began. (Learn more in Rosa Parks: My Story)

6     - St. Nicholas Day

7     - Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

8     - Pretend to be a Time Traveler Day (Read the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon or The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger)

10    - Dewey Decimal System Day 

11    - UNICEF Day

12    - National Hot Cocoa Day (try a new recipe with Michael Turback's Hot Chocolate)

13    - Hanukkah begins (All About Hanukkah by Madeline Wikler)

14-28- Halcyon Days (Joy, felicity, jubilation,mirth)

15     - Bill of Rights Day

17     - Wright Brothers Day (Read David McCullough's The Wright Brothers)

21     - Celebrate Short Fiction Day
         - World Peace Day (Read Malala Yousafzai's memoir I am Malala)

24     - Egg Nog Day (Read Christmas Cookbook by Daniel Humpheys

25     - Christmas Day
         - Jimmy Buffett's 71st birthday. (Sing along with his book A Pirate Looks at Fifty) 

29     - No Interruptions Day

31     - Make Up Your Mind Day
        - Leap Second Adjustment Time 

                                     * * * * * 

If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow-up email to activate your subscription. Thanks!

**Poster from a previous year...
it's tuba time at the library!