Thomaston Library Events

Renny A. Stackpole Author Event

On Wednesday, October 23, at 7 PM, Nantucket native & maritime historian Renny Stackpole, a resident of Thomaston, will appear at the Thomaston Public Library for an illustrated talk about his new book, Sea Letters: Letter and Journals of the Captain Andrew Pinkham Family.

In SEA LETTERS, Mr. Stackpole uses the journals and letters of his collateral ancestors to reveal the poignant lives and exciting adventures -- all over the watery world -- of Captain Andrew Pinkham of Nantucket and Ohio, and his sons Alexander and Reuben, who earned distinction as members of the United States Navy in the period 1814-1842.

Best selling author Nathaniel Philbrick writes: “Renny Stackpole has made a lasting contribution to the scholarship of Nantucket and the early United States. The collection of correspondence recounts the often-harrowing tales of life at sea both in times of war and peace. It also tells the just-as-captivating story of an island community making a new life for itself in that other frontier - the American West.”

The fact that the Pinkham family papers survived is a testament to those who worked so hard to collect them. A major archive of them, now a valuable part of New England history in the days of the early Republic, was donated to the Nantucket Historical Association by the Stackpole family.

For more information, see Mr. Stackpole's website: www.rennystackpole.com

QI GONG on Saturday Mornings

Tim English is back at the Thomaston Public Library for his second year leading a free class in Qi Gong. Qi Gong is a traditional Chinese exercise with roots in traditional Chinese medicine, martial arts, and philosophy. The practice of Qi Gong aligns breath, movement, and awareness and calms the mind. It is said to strengthen the immune system as well as help with balance and flexibility.

Class is held Saturdays from 11:30 A.M. -12:30 P.M. in the Thomaston Academy's gym. Qi Gong is beneficial to people of all ages, and no experience is required to attend. Comfortable clothing should be worn for the gentle, graceful practice of Qi Gong.

October Sale on Children's Items in Hallway Bookshop

The Friends of the Thomaston Public Library's Hallway Bookshop will continue its special two-for-one sale on children's books and VHS tapes through October. We have a lot of great reading material for kids big and small, so we'll keep replenishing the sale table for a few more weeks. Materials range from itty bitty board books, picture books, and early-reader chapter books to fiction and nonfiction for high-school age kids.

The Hallway Bookshop is located in the Thomaston Academy building at 60 Main Street. Items will be available for purchase during all open library hours.

An Evening of Chinese and Japanese Ghost Stories
On Wednesday, October 30^th, at 7:00 P.M., the Thomaston Public Library will present “An Evening of Chinese and Japanese Ghost Stories” with Erika Pfander. Ms. Pfander, the Artistic Director of the Chamber Theater of Maine, and moderator of The Friends of the Thomaston Public Library Friday Night Film Series, will read tales taken primarily from Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things by Lafcadio Hearn.

Lafcadio Hearn, a journalist, went to Japan in 1891 and lived there until his death in 1904. Absolutely intoxicated by Japanese culture and ideas, particularly Japanese legends and myths, Hearn married a Japanese wife and adopted the Buddhist religion. He wrote many books during his life in Japan, among them Kotto and Kwaidan.

Ms. Pfander's dramatic readings, befitting the eve of Halloween, will feature Mr. Hearn's ghost tales.

 

Cottonwood Bark Carvings on Display

A whimsical collection of cottonwood-bark carvings by Wayne Keiderling of Warren is currently on display at the Thomaston Public Library. No two of these hand-carved items are alike. The collection includes hobbit houses – designed, Mr. Keiderling reports, to help with the current shortage of hobbit housing – as well as other small buildings and structures, carved seabirds and ducks, an elephant, and tiny owl carvings that fit in the palm of your hand.

 

 

Mr. Keiderling uses bark taken only from dead trees found in various locations throughout the United States and Canada, including Maine. He has been carving in wood for approximately four years and is a member of the Penobscot Bay Carvers and Artists Association and the Maine Wood Carvers Association. Mr. Keiderling is an avid musician as well. His wood-carvings will be on display at the Thomaston Public Library through the month of November.