The next episode of “Library Tales” will take place at the Downieville Library on Thursday, July 11, 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Library Tales is a program of stories, crafts and/or activities for children of all ages. (I recently had someone close to my age say that they thought they still qualified as a child. I told them, come on and join us!) This next episode will feature Caity and Peggy Daigle presenting “Cave Paintings”. But, I think that, even if you don’t have a cave, you will probably take something with you to decorate your home. See you there!

Library@Nite

The next occurrence of the evening opening at the Downieville will also take place on Thursday, July 11, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. This new time of opening is in addition to the library’s regular daytime hours on Tuesdays (10:00 AM to 2:00 p.m. and Thursdays (12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m.). Everything that is available at the library during those daytime hours is also available during the evening hours. So, come out of the heat, find some books to read, friends to visit, an internet to use, and a staff ready to help.

What’s New on the Shelves

Thanks to some recent donations, there are several new-to-the-library books on our shelves. And, some of them are actually not just new-to-the-library — but new books, themselves. Here’s what we have:

Fiction

Deenie, by Judy Blume (juvenile)

Forever, by Judy Blume (juvenile)

Tiger Eyes, by Judy Blume (juvenile)

People of the Book, by Geraldine Brooks

Mama in the Moon, by Doreen Cronin & Brian Cronin (easy reader)

James, by Percival Everett

Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid

I’ll Be You and You Be Me, by Ruth Krauss (easy reader)

The Storyteller, by Mario Vargas Llosa

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Horton Hears a Who, by Dr. Seuss (juvenile)

Jules vs. the Ocean, by Jessie Sima (easy reader)

The Keeper of the Wild Words, by Brooke Smith (easy reader)

Shadow Show: All-new Stores in Celebration of Ray Bradbury, edited by Sam Weller & Mort Castle

Non-fiction

Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius

Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience, by William Blake (poetry)

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, by Charles Duhigg

Advocatus Diaboli, by D. Charles Morgan (poetry)

Oxford English Reference Dictionary, by Oxford University Press (reference)

Galen Rowell’s Vision: The Art of Adventure Photography, by Galen Rowell

Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, by Salman Rushdie

Maus: A Survivor’s Tale - Book 1: My Father Bleeds History, by Art Spiegelman (juvenile graphic memoir)

One of Those “Actually” New Books

I’m guessing that most of us are somewhat familiar with Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain. And, as such, we are somewhat familiar with the character of Jim, the escaped black slave, in the story. Percival Everett, professor at USC, has written a novel of the same episode that Twain describes, but does it from the viewpoint of Jim — thus, the book title, James. And, in doing so, Everett gives the reader a whole different perspective on just who that escaped slave really might have been: not the illiterate and somewhat backward person from Twain’s novel; but, a literate, intelligent, compassionate man who is determined to obtain freedom and a future for himself and his family. This book is definitely worth a read!