National Reading Group Month

Are you part of a book club? Do you want to be? The library offers many different reading groups that you can join to share camaraderie and a love of books.

The Dupont Classics Adult Book Group will meet Tuesday, October 24, at 7 PM at the Dupont Branch. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is the book selection up for discussion.

Grabill Branch's Book Discussion Group meets Monday, October 2, at 7 PM. They will discuss The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd. The Lunch and Lit Book Club meets Wednesday, October 18 at 1 PM. Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking will be the book discussed over your brown-bagged lunch.

New Haven Branch's Book Discussion will be Tuesday, October 17, at 6:30 PM. October's book is The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.

The Tecumseh Branch's Based on the Book club meets Tuesday, October 17 at 7 PM. Read The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean then come to the discussion and view a portion of the film.

Letters About Literature

Letters About Literature is a national reading/writing contest for students in grades 4-12, sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress in partnership with Target stores. To enter, readers write a personal letter to an author, explaining how his or her work changed their view of the world or themselves. The deadline for entries is December 8, 2006.

The Indiana Center for the Book, a program of the Indiana State Library and an affiliate of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress, will provide cash awards to state winners and will sponsor an awards ceremony for the winners and semifinalists at the State Library in April 2007. Winners will also receive Target gift cards and advance to the national level competition in Washington, D.C.

So pick a book that changed you and write your letter today. Click here for the rules and the 2007 entry coupon.

going antiquing?

As we move into autumn, many of us will hit the flea markets and auctions with more gusto! Did you know that as an ACPL library cardholder you have access to helpful antiques and collectibles pricing information?

PriceIt! offers a way to search online auction results for various items sold over the internet within the past few years. With eBay and many other auction sites, you can only look to see what is currently being bid on and where the bidding currently stands. With PriceIt, you can find out for how much the item actually sold. It just gives a bigger and more complete snapshot of the market for specific collectibles.

Other helpful antiques web sites and information can be found on our Antiques Links. And as always, we have books. Whether you need the value of a doll, a plate, a lamp, a typewriter, or countless other collectibles, the library is the first place to look.