The Catalog is Here!

Have you received your District 833 Community Education catalog yet? (If not, a pdf version is available on the website www.cecool.com). It is chock-full of fun and interesting classes and programs for youth and adult enrichment.

Some of the classes, particularly in exercise and dance, are offered as a series of two to six sessions. But most of the offerings are from one to four hours of time! This is a great way to test the waters for developing a new hobby. Or, attend a seminar for inspiration on changing a lifetime habit.

Learn to make soap, bake a Shepherd's Pie, write your own will, or design a bonsai tree! There are so many things to pick from.

If you haven't tried it before, I would really like to direct your attention to the Laughter Workshop session. Who knew that so much fun could be so healthy? This is a class that no one should miss - no matter what kind of day you've been having, you will leave feeling great. Take a friend, a family member, or go by yourself, you won't regret it.

Find out more about laughter workshops (also known as laughter yoga), at the following websites:

• Laughter Yoga International - www.laughteryoga.org,
  
• Our local laughter professor - www.yogamn.com, and
  
• A Star Tribune article

Have fun!

Cold Snow and Frazzle

We greeted two new faces at our gathering Tuesday night, meeting to discuss Smilla's Sense of Snow, by Peter Hoeg. We relocated to an area behind the children's section in the back of the library for the night, and carried on in spirited and lively conversation. The book gave us much to talk about, even allowing us to venture into suggestions for casting a remake of the movie based on the book.

Our opinions of the book ran the full gamut, from those who loved the book, many who liked the book, and a few who hated the book. Most everyone agreed that it was a difficult read, for reasons of wordiness, confusing plot structure, and too much scientific detail.

The story seemed to stray from its plot so often that many of us could not follow its intent. One of our group admitted to falling asleep whenever she started reading the book. More than once we questioned whether part of the problem with understanding the story was due to the book being translated from the author's native Danish.

But, even with the difficulties, most of us felt that reading the book presented a worthy challenge, and all but one, (who happens to be me), finished reading it to the end. The story line twist at the book's conclusion caught most everyone off guard, resulting in reactions that a mystery thriller turned into a science fiction story.

Many positive comments were made on the value of learning so much about Greenland, Denmark, and the Inuit people of the Canadian Arctic.

If our reactions whet your appetite to know more, a comprehensive description of the book, more details, information, and other links can be found on Smilla's own page of wikipedia, just by clicking here.

Winter Jackets to Start Soon!

The transition to January is often a time for making New Year’s resolutions. While the snow piling up outside of our windows is a reminder that now might not be the best time to begin those outdoor exercises, we can always stay warm and cozy inside. This is a good time for reading!

Our book club has a great selection for this month, Smilla’s Sense of Snow, by Peter Hoeg. (Which we will meet to discuss on the 26th at the library.) But, don’t forget about the library’s Winter Jackets program. Find out more on the library’s web site, (link here).

And, best of all, each book review you submit is an entry for a possibility to win a prize!

In the Spirit of Christmas

Our annual Christmas meeting was held on what turned out to be the coldest night of the season. But inside of Kelly's home it was warm and cheerful as we gathered around her decorated tree, sipping at tea and munching on hors d'oeuvres both nutritious and sweet.

Eventually we got around to discussing this month's book selection, Dewey: a small-town cat who touched the world. Most of us enjoyed the book as an easy and light-hearted read for the busy month of December. A number of us commented favorably on the story and memoir combination, mixed with historical information about the small town of Spencer, Iowa. Only one of us put the book down after the first few chapters. She found the book to be 'too cheerful,' but may pick it up again at a future time.

The book sparked a lot of discussion between us about the cats in our lives, from rescued kitten stories to an anecdote about a dog who puts the cats to bed every night. And several people shared stories about the small towns where they grew up. We discovered, again, that the world is a small place, after all.

Mary did some research and located some video about the legendary Dewey. It can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jGpvvLmwbs. For anyone who is a cat lover, this book is highly recommended.

New Year's Reading

Diane has finished compiling the book list for the year ahead. For Deborah, who has asked, (and is welcome to meet with us), I am including the following list for the first four months of 2010:

• Jan: Smilla's Sense of Snow, by Peter Hoeg (fiction)
  
• Feb: Loving Frank, by Nancy Drew Horan (fiction/factual)
  
• Mar: Out Stealing Horses, by Per Petterson (fiction)
  
• Apr: Little Bee, by Chris Cleave (fiction)

We will be returning to our usual meeting schedule of the fourth Tuesday of the month, meeting at the library conference room at 6:30 p.m.

There will be more titles to come. We have a selection that also includes historical fiction and non-fiction books. Authors in the upcoming year's readings also include Geraldine Brooks, Barbara Ehrenreich, and Kathryn Stockett.

It's December!

The cold has arrived and the holidays are approaching. We are all set to meet on December 15th, (one week earlier than usual), at 6:30 p.m. for our Christmas party meeting. Kelly has graciously agreed to share her home with us for this gathering, a discussion of the book Dewey, the Small Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, by Vicki Myron.

We will be sharing treats, so please bring a tasty goodie, and also a book or two to exchange with others. For every book you bring to leave, you need to take one home with you. This year we should not have any books leftover.

Leftover treats? Is there such a thing?

November

We met on Tuesday with no specific book to discuss, so we spent our time talking about an assortment of novels.

Our meeting this month was held for planning our book list for the next year. Ten of us met, with everyone contributing suggestions of between two and five, (or six?), book titles. As we went around the table, each person explained why they were making their suggestions, and after they finished, everyone voted on which book to include on our list. It worked out very well. As a result we have a reading list for 2010 that even includes a Christmas selection!


A benefit to this process was that so many other books were researched and presented, we learned about some great reading resources for non-book club reading.

So, thank you, those who let me know you are reading this. And, to you, who are reading now, Have a Happy Thanksgiving!