The Bookmark: March Literary Happenings in Coweta
By NANCY CAROL SANKER, Special to The Paper
Found any four-leaf clovers lately? Me neither! Seriously – have you ever found one? Same here. Nope.
But here we are, heading into the month that encircles St. Patrick’s Day and I am feeling so lucky to live in a community bursting with literary riches. I know that other towns are green with envy at the resources we have, including a growing network of talented writers, a vibrant library system, the Carnegie Library and one dog who listens to stories while another one tells them!
Let’s not forget our Little Free Libraries and book clubs that are part of the spreading grassroots reading movement. Coweta County may not have a wide river that runs green, but aren’t we lucky in literature?
Coweta Public Library System (CPLS)
National Library Week is April 4-10. The theme this year is “Welcome to Your Library” so the welcome mats are out and they’re waiting to greet YOU. Come on in – bet you’ll be lucky enough to find the perfect book!
Current hours are:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday – 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. • Tuesday & Thursday – 1 – 6 p.m. • Saturday – 10 a.m.- 2 p.m.
Curbside Pick-up:
M-F – 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. • Saturday – 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Using any one of the four Coweta County Libraries is easy. The ecard provides access to all digital resources including GALILEO (Georgia’s Virtual Library), eRead Kids, Mango Languages (over 70 languages taught at your own pace), Testing Prep Courses and more. And it’s all available for my favorite four-letter word, FREE! You can even receive reserve notifications for your favorite books via text. Check the CPLS website and Facebook page for new virtual programming (cowetapubliclibrary.org).
Recently I met Libby, an easier-to-use electronic daughter of Overdrive. She makes receiving even the most popular titles a snap. All you need is a library card and you, too, will experience an uptick in your pleas for, “Just one more chapter before I sleep, unload the dishwasher, cook dinner, etc.”
Hot Titles at the CPLS as reported by Director of CPLS, Jimmy Bass include:
The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah – A family struggles in the Dust Bowl, Great Depression era.
Serpentine by Jonathan Kellerman – Psychological thriller about the search for answers to a decades-old crime.
The Survivors by Jane Harper – Set in Australia, witness a web of family secrets involving a horrific accident come to light.
Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner – A thriller featuring an ordinary woman who will stop at nothing to find missing people.
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman – An ingeniously constructed story about the enduring power of friendship, forgiveness and hope.
The Newnan Carnegie Library
1 Lagrange Street (www.newnancarnegie.com) – 770-683-1347. Masks and social distancing are a must. Register for events on Eventbrite.
Lady Luck shone on Newnan in 1901 when a young man named Charles Thompson wrote to Andrew Carnegie requesting $10,000 to start a community library. Thankfully, our forefathers decided to donate the land, as well as $1,000 per year to support the library. Discover more fascinating information on the new “Throwback Thursday” on the Carnegie’s website, via YouTube.
Wednesday, March 10 – 3:15 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. – Book Club with Lola, a registered therapy dog, and her handler, Ms. Pam, provide a free fifteen-minute, private reading experience for elementary and middle school aged students. Register via Eventbrite for your child to have this special opportunity to read a story to Lola via a virtual Zoom call. Lola has an amazing attention span!
Thursday, March 18 – 6:30 p.m. – Hometown Novel Nights (HNN)– You’re in for a great evening as The Carnegie and HNN present another not-to-be-missed event, thanks to Zoom. Host Scott Ludwig will welcome three of his columnist cohorts, Toby Nix, Lynn Horton and Clay Neeley as they discuss their adventures in writing. For details on all HNN events visit [email protected].
Monday, March 8 – 6:30 p.m. – HNN Writers Virtual Writer’s Group – Write. Share. Repeat. Join this group of local and regional writers as they reach out to each other offering growth through critique and collaboration. On the second Monday of each month.
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• Saturday, March 20 – 11 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. – Writers Helping Writers at Corner Arts Gallery, Studio & Gift Shop, 30 S. Court Square on every third Saturday. Do you have a book burbling up inside of you? This is the gathering for you to exchange advice and encouragement with fellow writers. Contact [email protected].
• Wednesday, March 10 – 11 a.m. – Peachtree City Library – Join Obie, the multi-talented canine, in his usual second Wednesday time slot as he reads Goldilocks and the Three Bears to a virtual audience. That pooch is fortunate to have a talented wardrobe consultant!
• Everyone has a story! Have you heard about Resilience Through Hardship – Seniors Oral History Project for Coweta County? If you are 70 or older you can sign up to share your story. Your experiences and the wisdom you have accumulated are important to document.
If you would like to help by recording these stories you will receive online training from the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society. For more information contact: Summit Family YMCA Togetherhood, 770-254.5920 or email [email protected]
• Book clubs – Are you lucky to be in a book club? Our Cottages Wine & Words is on sabbatical, but we’re looking forward to reconvening in April. Thanks to club members who keep the Little Free Library clean and straightened.
– Happy 2nd Anniversary to Read Between the Wines, started by Arielle Doheny in SummerGrove. Their 2021 selections include The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab and The Midnight Library by Matt Haig.
– Brigette Omerod Kemink leads the newly formed Ladies of SummerGrove Book Club. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones was the club’s first selection. One of the basic tenents of book clubs was again clear to me. An American Marriage wasn’t a book I would have chosen, but one that I will remember. * What’s your book club reading?
There’s so much more to good fortune than simple luck. Blessings abound!
This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson struck home with me. “Sorrow looks back. Worry looks around. Faith looks up.”
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Nancy Carol Sanker landed in Newnan via Ohio, Colorado and California. The constants in her life are her love of family, friends, fundraising and books. Nine years ago, she created Lights for Linda to raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in memory of her sister. Now she looks forward to illuminating the literary opportunities and fundraisers our community offers readers of all ages. Nancy’s 11-year-old book club provides fresh, new titles while her two and eight-year-old grandchildren keep her aware of books for “littles.” Who knew a cow could type? Your contributions about book clubs, Little Free Libraries, events and fundraisers will lead The Bookmark to success! To reach Nancy, email: [email protected].
