Furry Friends 

Anatole France: "Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."


Are you a cat or a dog person?

I'm one of those annoying people who claims to like cats more, always quickly adding that I also like dogs. Maybe a 60/40 split? Is that allowed? 

A dog is a great companion because they're goofy, patient, hardworking and kind. I love that about them. A cat is a fun addition to the household because they're demanding, clever, playful yet sometimes aloof. I love that about them.

If you live in the United States, odds are that you have at least one cat or dog. According to the American Pet Products Association, 65% of US households own a pet. It's estimated more than 85 million cats are pets; 77 million dogs are pets.

Do we love and pamper our pets? You bet we do. APPA estimates that $60 billion will be spent on American pets in 2015. Of that astounding total, $23 billion will be spent on food alone. That's a lot of kibble and tuna treats! Apparently we want our pets to look as adorable as possible - this year we'll spend upwards of $5 billion on grooming and boarding. 

Infoplease reports that the most popular dog names in 2014 were Bella, Bailey and Max. In the same year, we named our cats Bella, Max and Chloe. And, our birds were called Coco, Mango or Thumper(huh?).

Americans love Labrador retrievers, German shepherds and golden retrievers according to the American Kennel Club. The most sought after cat breeds are Persians, exotics, and Maine coons, said the Cat Fanciers' Association.

Apparently, time spent walking our pets, feeding and playing with them just isn't enough. We want to read about cats and dogs, too. In your library, check out 636.7 and 636.8 for books chock full of information on dog and cat breeds, how to choose a pet, and memoirs about traveling through life with a furry or feathered companion. Be prepared for an occasional lump in your throat, wild laughter or wrenching sobs.

        Terry Pratchett: "In ancient times, cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this."       


                                    Fiction

Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein. A sweet and poignant story told from the view of Enzo the dog. Keep the tissue box close by.

The Cat Who... (mystery series) - Lillian Jackson Braun. Jim, a human, and Koko, a cat, find themselves knee deep in mysteries throughout this series of more than 25 books. 

Old Yeller - Fred Gipson. A Newbery Honor classic...you've seen the movie, now read the book!

Where the Red Fern Grows - Wilson Rawls. Another classic that'll bring you back to the fourth grade when your teacher read it aloud (and wept along with the students).

101 Dalmatians - Dodie Smith. Yes, before it was a Disney movie, this tale was a novel.

Good Dog, Carl (series) - Alexandra Day. Wonderful picture books about a gentle Rottweiler. 

Pete the Cat - James Dean. As Pete saunters through each book, little ones will learn all about life, from strawberries to backhoes to making a mess!

If You Give a Cat a Cupcake - Laura Numeroff & Felicia Bond. Read it to find out what really happens...

The Cat in the Hat - Dr. Seuss. Beware of a large cat in a hat showing up at your door on a rainy day at home!

Have You Seen My Cat? - Eric Carle. Cats of all sizes help tell the story of a lost feline.


                                  Nonfiction

Amazing Gracie - Mark Beckloff & Dan Dye. Meet Gracie and learn about the start of the now famous Three Dog Bakery.

Marley and Me - John Grogan. Was Marley a stereotypical Lab? He certainly was the life of any and every party.

Travels with Charley - John Steinbeck. The book has come under scrutiny - is it fiction or nonfiction? Regardless, Steinbeck weaves a gentle tale of traveling with his poodle, Charley.

Dewey the Library Cat - Vicky Myron. A cat in the library...maybe not everyone's idea of fun, but Americans loved the idea enough to catapault this book to a bestseller.

Crazy Aunt Purl's Drunk, Divorced and Covered in Cat Hair - Laurie Perry. I laughed my way through this book with that aforementioned occasional lump in my throat. 

Rin Tin Tin - Susan Orlean. Yes, the hero has his own biography!

Good Dog. Stay. - Anna Quindlen. A love letter to a Lab named Beau. Read with tissues ready. 

Big New Yorker Book of Cats. The perfect gift for the cat lover...artwork, poems and cartoons, featuring writers such as T.C. Boyle, Margaret Atwood and James Thurber.

Grumpy Cat - Grumpy Cat, author. I'll admit that I became hooked on this book after surgery this past year. Maybe it was the drugs (or not, since I'm still laughing six months later) but I am under the spell of this really grumpy cat. If you need to grumble after a tough day, this is the cat to join you on the couch.  

            Edith Wharton: "My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet."

                                    
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                       Random Word


Abigail Adams: "We have too many high sounding words and too few actions that correspond with them."


Ebullient -  eh-BULL-yuhnt \adjective\ (1599): feeling joy and positive emotions at an extreme level; the state of being wildly enthusiastic about something. Roget's Thesaurus of Words for Writers.

Synonyms - agitated, effervescent, vivacious, enthusiastic, excited. Webster's New World Thesaurus
                                      
"According to all of them, Heidi, fewer than twenty-four hours from being murdered in her home, had been her usual ebullient self." from The Stranger by Harlan Coben, 2015.

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                                May


Charlotte Bronte: "Spring drew on...and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which, freshening daily, suggested that Hope traversed them at night, and left each morning brighter traces of her steps." from Jane Eyre


Welcome to glorious, beautiful May. Suddenly the landscape is alive with a riot of pink, white, yellow and purple blooms. The sky is blue; grass is green. Enjoy the soft, fresh air as we ease into a new month that is filled with the promise of longer and brighter days.     

Look for new books by Nelson DeMille, Lincoln Child, Nancy Thayer, John Lescroat, Chuck Palahniuk, Linda Lael Miller, Kate Atkinson, Rita Mae Brown, Carolyn Hart, Terry Goodkind, Brian Jacques, Sarah Dessen, Steven Levitt, and James Patterson. 

May is Creative Beginnings Month, Get Caught Reading Month, National Bicycle Month, National Meditation Month, and National Pet Month. 




                                                         May Days


1         Batman Day; Mother Goose Day

2         National Scrapbooking Day

3         World Press Freedom Day; Hug Your Cat Day

3-9      National Post Card Week ** For just .35 postage, you can make someone smile with a silly post card.

4-10    Children's Book Week ** Enjoy a classic picture book by Eric Carle, Lois Ehlert, Shel Silverstein or Robert McCloskey.

5         Cartoonist Day; National Teacher Day

9         Mother Ocean Day

10       Mother's Day
  
10-16  Reading Is Fun Week

11-15  National Etiquette Week  

12        Limerick Day ** "There once was a poor boy named Sid, who thought he knew more than he did..." (thanks to limericks for children)

15       O. Henry Pun Off Day **  "To write with a broken pencil is pointless." (thanks to pun of the day)

16       Biographer's Day

Spring cleaning at Denver Art Museum

17-23  National New Friends, Old Friends Week 

19       National Museum Day 
                      >>>>>

25       Memorial Day









                                     



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                          Little but mighty



Q: What building has the most stories?

A: A library!


There are libraries that are magnificent and inspire wonder by their physical size alone. The New York City library and its branches offer residents more than 23,232,000 books, audio/visual items and e-books. Or, a branch library in Clinton Corners (Dutchess County, New York), has a mere 150 books and is housed in a refurbished English phone booth. Some of us desire our own home libraries and buy, collect and hoard books until movers grumble over heavy boxes and narrow staircases.

According to the American Library Association, there are at least 119,729 libraries of "all kinds" in the United States today.

If you're lucky, a twist on the library concept may already be found in your community. There's a movement afoot to get books, free books, in neighborhoods of all socio-economic levels.

Little Free Library in Kansas City

This movement started as a tribute to a mom who loved to read. Todd Bol of Hudson, Wisconsin built a model of a one room schoolhouse, called it the Little Free Library and a social/literary trend was born. The first official Little Free Library was placed next to a coffee shop in Madison, Wisconsin. According to the LFL website, there are now more than 25,000 of the tiny structures on front lawns, city sidewalks and even near a beach or two. Creativity is encouraged for the design - some of these tiny libraries look like log cabins, jewelry boxes or phone booths. Generally, they are 20"w/15"d/18"h.

Kansas City neighborhood 

And they aren't located just in the United States. You will find a Little Free Library in Ireland, Belarus, Germany, New Zealand and Australia.

And soon, perhaps, in a neighborhood near you. Check out the LFL website: http://littlefreelibrary.org/

                      
               

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Take some time this week, April 12-19 to visit your local
library and help celebrate National Library Week. A big
thank you to all librarians who serve their communities.

                          



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                       Random Word

Vivienne Westwood: "Every time I have to look up a word in the dictionary, I'm delighted."
                                                                                              

One of my mother's most faithful reading companions has been a dictionary. In a flashback to childhood, I remember seeing her pause, halfway down a page in her novel, to look up a word. She'd nod at the definition and return to reading. From watching her, I learned that words are powerful and sometimes perplexing. I was happy to discover a dictionary app for my phone. Now I never have to wait to get home to my own dictionary to check on spelling or pronunciation. 

In (ongoing) honor of Dictionary Day (April 14), I'll occasionally post a Random Word. The words won't be common or archaic. They're just words that aren't heard too often. If we all use them a time or two, maybe their popularity will rebound.

insipid - in-'si-pid\adjective (1609). 1. Lacking taste. 2. Lacking in qualities that interest, stimulate or challenge. Synonyms - vapid, flat, jejune, banal, inane. 
                                        (Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary)

Example: Calling the phrases insipid, Mr. Fiske wants us to avoid using as honest as the day is long and know her like a book. 


For browsing:        

The Wrong Word Dictionary - Dave Dowling. Find out the difference between dank and damp; hue or shade or tint, and picaresque or picturesque. 

The Dictionary of Worthless Words (30,000 words to stop using now) - Dave Dowling. I held my breath as I opened this book - what words would be banned? Dowling believes our vocabularies would be stronger without absolutely, very, and unique. And forget about using obligated, manipulate and indeterminate!

Roget's Thesaurus of Words for Writers - Olsen/Bevilacqua/Hayes/Bly.  If you're stuck after reading the Dowling book, this collection will help. Conflict will become contravention or melee or discord.

Grammar Girl's 101 Words to Sound Smart - Mignon Fogarty. At the next after-work gathering, throw gossamer or languid into the conversation. 

Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson. Foreign phrases (cri de coeur), official names of countries (Republic of Ireland), notable people (Emmeline Pankhurst), or whether to use inveigh or inveigle are all found in this packed-full 398 page book.

The Devil's Dictionary - Ambrose Bierce. Witty and cutting, this dictionary will provide laughs and information. Mr. Bierce clearly didn't suffer any fools gladly.

Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable - Camilla Rockwood, editor. Perfect for browsing. This tome covers all the bases from the Erymanthian boar to the Oregon Trail to the definition of clerihew.   

Dictionaries - A Very Short Introduction - Lynda Mugglestone. Just as advertised, a tidy history of a very big book.

Reading the OED - Ammon Shea. Read along with Shea as he discovers words such as garbist (noun), mediocrist (noun) and tripudiate (verb).

The Highly Selective Dictionary for the Extraordinarily Literate - Eugene Ehrlich. What words will we find in this highbrow list? Disconsolate. Lachrymose. Officious.

Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever - Richard Scarry. For preschoolers and up to primary age, Mr. Scarry introduces fuselage and bonfire.     

Insult Dictionary - Julie Tibbott. How many ways can I say I LOVED this book? I'll start using churl to describe anyone deemed stingy or morose; a crowd may become a boodle; and an admired person will be a brick.

The Big Book of Words You Should Know - Olsen/ Bevilacqua/Hayes. The authors ask us to start using patois, vapid and docile.

The Forgotten Founding Father - Joshua Kendall. A tip of the hat and a big thank you to Noah Webster.

The Man Who Made Lists - Love, Death, Madness and the Creation of Roget's Thesaurus - Joshua Kendall. Peter Mark Roget loved words. His lists of synonyms were almost endless. There's even a bit of political intrigue involving Napoleon in this biography. Reviews of the book have been mixed, but readers will have a better understanding of the creator of the thesaurus.     

The Dimwit's Dictionary - Robert Hartwell Fiske. My sister had a neighbor who would sit on his lovely front porch and, in a biting tone of voice, share with passersby his acidic view on what was happening in the neighborhood e.g. tag sales. Mr. Fiske (even his trio name is perfect) is the razor sharp literary embodiment of that former neighbor. You will find, no doubt, any number of words or phrases that you often use listed as moribund metaphors, a wretched redundancy or a torpid term. Be prepared to laugh and cringe.



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                               April


Mark Twain: "The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year."


With April upon us already, the year is speeding by. Memories of snow and biting wind are fading fast...well, maybe not fast enough for Bostonians! There are buds on trees and more smiles from passersby. April has two faces with softer air but strong thunderstorms, flowers popping up despite still chilly temperatures at night, and a desire to get out and hit the road but plenty of potholes to avoid!

Books will keep us busy as we begin the second quarter of year. Watch for new books by David Balducci, John Sandford, Nora Roberts, Greg Iles, Donna Leon, Karen Kingsbury, Lisa Scottoline, Toni Morrison, Jane Smiley, Elizabeth Berg, Ann Packer, Susanna Kearsley, Susan Wittig Albert. 


April is Month of the Young Child, Library Snap Shot Month, Amateur Radio Month, Global Child Nutrition Month, National Humor Month, National Poetry Month, and School Library Month.  


                                                        April Days

My library!

1 --- Library Snap Shot Day >>> 

1 --- Reading Is Funny Day

12 -- Drop Everything and Read Day

12 -- National Library Week, 12-18

14 -- Dictionary Day

15 -- National Bookmobile Day (Do you have favorite memories of the bookmobile?)

18 -- National Columnists' Day (Whether we agree or not, a well-written column can open our minds)

April 22 is Earth Day

19 -- Bicycle Day (Read a Bike Snob book) 

23 -- Talk like Shakespeare Day ("Better a witty fool, than a foolish wit")

26 -- Intellectual Property Day 


                                        



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                  A League of Our Own


Billie Jean King: "Champions keep playing until they get it right."



As March winds down and basketball madness ramps up, it occurs to me that this month is a perfect blend of celebrating women's roles in history and sports.

For most of the year, my interest is focused largely on books - definitely not watching or attending any sporting events. Any excitement I have for Super Bowl Sunday is centered on the commercials and food. I can't say with certainty who won the World Series in 2014. But for a few weeks each year, I become a rabid fan of the University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team. My vocabulary now (briefly) includes double double, traveling, bank shot, and transition offense. In my mind, I'm on a first name basis with the student athletes. Sitting on my couch, hundreds of miles away from the game, I'm suddenly an expert on each players' strengths and weaknesses. My interest in the Huskies was first sparked when I lived in Connecticut in the 1990s. Coworkers' enthusiasm became my enthusiasm. It's still just plain fun to watch the team, with its ever-changing names and faces, continue to play hard. 

Tonight the UConn women, now an Elite Eight team, face University of Dayton. We'll know soon if the Huskies will continue the quest to return home as national champs for the third year.

I'll put away my UConn flag and return to being oblivious to the sporting world...until next March. 

Celebrate female athletes' achievements by reading their stories. 

Katie Hnida - Still Kicking, college football
Jan Reynolds - High Altitude Woman, skiing
Billie Jean King - Pressure is a Privilege, tennis
Laura Baugh - Out of the Rough, golf
Pat Summit - Sum It Up, college basketball
Peggy Fleming - The Long Program, figure skating
Serena Williams - My Life: Queen of the Court, tennis
Mia Hamm - Go for the Goal, soccer
Babe Didrikson Zaharias - This Life I've Led, golf
Martina Navratilova - Martina, tennis
Rebecca Lobo - The Home Team, college basketball (UConn)
Brittney Griner - In My Skin, college basketball
Olga Korbut - My Story, gymnast
Patricia Brown - A League of My Own, baseball
Althea Gibson - I Always Wanted to be Somebody, tennis
Wilma Rudolph - Wilma, track
Dorothy Hamill - A Skating Life, skating
Mary Lou Retton - Creating an Olympic Champion, gymnastics
Diana Nyad - Find a Way, swimming (released October 2015)
Dana O'Neil - How to be like Women Athletics of Influence
David Halberstam & Daniel J. Boyne - Red Rose Crew, crew
Geno Auriemma - In Pursuit of Perfection, college basketball (UConn)


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