Rembrandt's paintings in Hartford

It took only 70 years, but starting Oct. 10, 2009 through January 24, 2010, you will be able to view authentic Rembrandt paintings at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, CT. The exhibition is titled "Rembrandt's People". Our library recently acquired the book "Rembrandt: the painter at work" by Ernst van de Wetering which closely examines Rembrandt's masterful painting technique. Check out our other books on Rembrandt. If you are a Hamden resident with a valid Hamden Library card, you can borrow our Wadsworth Atheneum museum pass which admits two adults and two children (through age 17) for free to America's oldest public art museum.

William Safire, 1929-2009

Pulitzer Prize winning columnist William Safire died on Sunday, September 27th, 2009, of pancreatic cancer. He was 79 years old.

Safire gained prominence as a speechwriter for Richard Nixon, but in 1973 left Washington to became columnist for the New York Times, where for many years he was the sole conservative voice in the paper's Op-Ed pages.

In addition to his award winning column, he also wrote the popular "On Language" column for the New York Times Magazine. Many of his essays were later republished in a collection of bestselling books examining etymology and the use and abuse of the English language. He was also the author of four novels.

Read Works by William Safire

New York Times Obituary

Celebrate Your Freedom to Read

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Held this year from September 26 - October 3, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

The 10 Most Challeged Books in the past year were:

And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell

His Dark Materials Trilogy, by Philip Pullman

TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series), by Lauren Myracle

Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz

Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky

Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar

Uncle Bobby's Wedding, by Sarah S. Brannen

The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

Flashcards of My Life, by Charise Mericle Harper

Visit our Banned Books display on the main floor of the Miller Library to see more challenged titles, or go to the American Library Association's website for more information on Banned Books Week.

"The Americans" 50th anniversary

2009 marks the 50th anniversary of the groundbreaking photography book "THE AMERICANS" by Robert Frank which was first published in the United States in 1959. A major exhibition is now on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York from September 22, 2009 to January 3, 2010. It features all 83 photographs from the original book. Robert Frank was born in Switzerland in 1924 and emigrated to the United States in 1947. In 1955 and in 1956 he traveled across the United States and took photographs which are now considered masterpieces. His book, THE AMERICANS is considered "a seminal work in American photography and art history". The New York Times has published an article on September 25, 2009 which was written by Holland Cotter: "America, Captured in a Flash".

Autumn

Autumn officially starts September 22. In celebration of the fall season we have put together a display of beautiful photography books and seasonal poetry! The featured books are: New England Icons and Inspirations by Tommy Hilfiger, Fallingwater, a Frank Lloyd Wright Country House by Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., Irish Country by Nicholas Mosse, The Private World of Tasha Tudor with photography by Richard Brown, Flavor of New England with food photography by Neil Sutherland and Peter Barry, A Passion for Flowers by Carolyne Roehm, Living with the Seasons by Bonnie Trust Dahan, The Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson, At Home with Carolyne Roehm, and America Wide panographs by Ken Duncan. William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) has called autumn the "year's last loveliest smile." The lithograph on the left titled "Autumn" is by Currier & Ives from 1871.

Jim Carroll, 1949-2009

Poet Jim Carroll died of a heart attack on Friday, September 11. He was 60 years old.

While he was widely respected as a poet, he is probably best known for his book The Basketball Diaries, which was made into a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

He was also the front man of the rock group The Jim Carroll Band. The group released three albums in the early 1980's, but eventually Carroll went back to writing full time.

Carroll was working on a novel, tentatively titled The Petting Zoo, at the time of his death.

Read the works of Jim Carroll.

Short List for Man Booker Prize

The short list for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, a British literary award, has been announced. The six finalists are: SUMMERTIME by J. M. Coetzee, THE CHILDREN's BOOK by A.S. Byatt, THE LITTLE STRANGER by Sarah Waters, THE QUICKENING MAZE by Adam Foulds, WOLF HALL by Hilary Mantel, and THE GLASS ROOM by Simon Mawer. The winner of the prize will be announced on Oct. 6.

Blog about the Nutmegs

4th, 5th & 6th Graders are invited to join us at

www.hamdennutmegreaders.blogspot.com .
Let your friends and classmates know what
you think about this year's Intermediate
Nutmeg Nominees.

And, if you want to talk to some real, live
readers, join us at Brundage Community
Branch for in-person discussions (with
refreshments) on October 15, November 5,
December 10, January 7 and January 28.

September Literary Birthdays

September was the birth month of many great witers, including Richard Wright, William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Agatha Christie.

September 1 - Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875 - 1950)
September 4 - Richard Wright (1908 - 1960)
September 9 - Leo Tolstoy (1828 - 1910)
September 11 - D. H. Lawrence (1885 - 1930)
September 12 - Michael Ondaatje (1943 - )
September 13 - Roald Dahl - (1916 - )
September 15 - Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976)
September 17 - Ken Kesey (1935 - 2001)
September 19 - William Golding (1911 - 1993)
September 20 - Upton Sinclair (1878 - 1968)
September 21 - Stephen King (1947 - )
September 21 - H. G. Wells (1866 - 1946)
September 21 - Fannie Flagg (1944 - )
September 23 - Euripides (480 BC - 406 BC)
September 24 - F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896 - 1940)
September 25 - William Faulkner (1897 - 1962)
September 26 - T. S. Eliot (1888 - 1965)
September 26 - Jane Smiley (1949 - )
September 29 - Miguel de Cervantes (1547 - 1616)
September 30 - Elie Wiesel (1928 - )

September 30 - Truman Capote (1924 -1984 )