April 18, 2016

Good morning!   As I wind down in writing this column (next week is the last one), I would like to give you readers a big shout out and thank you for having read this column over the last several years!  Steele County is certainly not the largest county in North Dakota or the most populated, so I count us as being very lucky that we have a library with so many books of such a wide variety AND an amazingly gifted library board that cares about the library and the readers of the books in it.  Each generation since its inception in the 1940's has done its part in making the library what it is today.  Do you ever think about how lucky we are to have this library in Finley so we don't have to purchase every book we read (big $$$$) or make a trip to another town to get a book?  WE ARE LUCKY to have this library!  That said, it is a good part OUR RESPONSIBILITY to keep it going.  How can we do that?  ONE WAY IS TO USE IT.  There are still folks in the United States and many over the world that cannot read.  Take advantage of the fact that you can!  ANOTHER WAY IS TO BRING BACK THE BOOKS YOU BORROW!  Yes, we do have kind folks that donate books to the library, but we buy the large print books and they cost nearly $25 per book!  Walk around your house and look inside the books you have there.  If it says Finley Library on the front page, bring them back!  It is your responsibility.  Another way to support Finley Library is DONATE YOUR TIME AND YOUR MONEY TO THE CAUSE.  Some counties like Griggs to our west and Traill to our east have county libraries that are paid for by the citizens of the county through mil levy so the library has money to buy books and PAY the staff.  Here in Steele County we have volunteers that do the work, come up with fund-raising ideas and keep the library open.  As a citizen of the United States, of North Dakota, of Steele County, we are responsible for what we are lucky enough to have available to us.  Let's work together and do what we can to keep it going!  Be sure to come in and check us out--that is good support.  Thank you!

Here's a couple reviews

Alex and Me by Irene M. Pepperberg.  (How a scientist and an African Grey Parrot discovered a hidden world of animal intelligence--and formed a a deep bond in the process)  (HC/RP)  (NF)  (2008)  From her childhood, Pepperberg loved birds.  She had several parakeets that kept her company in a childhood that was not full of companionship.  In high school she had decided on chemistry as a major for college, but some time during college she realized biology would have been a better choice considering her love of birds.  She persevered, however, and received a degree she would never use because right out of college she bought Alex, an African Grey Parrot.  Her plan was to see what she could teach him, see how far he could go intellectually.  As many of  us know from TV and magazines, Alex went further than Pepperberg or anyone else thought he would!  This book gives interesting and enlightening information on a fun subject that broke all kinds of barriers as to animal intelligence.  This is not a text book.  It is the story of a woman and a bird she comes to love and respect.  I hardily recommend it!

The Coffin Dancer by Jeffrey Deaver.  (PB)  (Lincoln Rhyme series #2) (1998)  Every book I read read by Deaver seems to be as good or better than the last one!  If you are looking for a new mystery series/author to follow, I would certainly recommend this one!  Although I had read one of the books later in the series, I am now reading the series from the beginning.  One of the things I like about this series is that you learn how to "walk" a crime scene, but you also learn about some other subject.  This time it is planes and snipers.  The man the police call the coffin dancer (because of a tattoo he has with Death dancing with a woman on top of a coffin) has been hired by someone to kill three people who are witnesses for the prosecution.  So this is  a fight to the end between Rhyme and the coffin dancer--to save the witnesses or to kill them.  The planning of the hired killer and the "figuring out" by Rhyme is all very intense so something is always happening!  Trust me on this one, the end is very surprising to the characters and to the reader!  Check it out!