Calendar of Events

JANUARY 2010
Please join the library staff in a discussion of The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. Barry’s modern-day story set in Salem, Ma., tells the tale of Towner Whitney, who has the psychic gift to read the future in lace patterns, as did generations of Whitney women before her. Readers will draw comparisons to such Gothic novels as Rebecca and The Thirteenth Tale but this story is darker in subject matter…Repressed memories emerge. Violent confrontations, reminiscent of the hysteria of the witch trials, explode in this complex novel…The novel’s gripping and shocking conclusion is a testament to Barry’s creativity. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, January 19 at 6:30 PM
Seed Propagation of Native Perennials : a Lecture and Demonstration with Marty Fisher from the Rhode Island Wild Plant Society. This lecture and demonstration will cover ways to prepare seeds, the soils to use, and the care and transplanting of the delicate seedlings.	Saturday, January 23 At 2 PM
The Big Sleep with Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. 1946 thriller features private detective Philip Marlowe in the movie adaptation from Raymond Chandler's popular novel. This is film noir at its best.	Sunday, January 31 at 2 PM
FEBRUARY 2010
Celebrate Valentine's Day all month long with our Romance Book Sale. Paperbacks are 25¢ each or 5 for $1.00.	All month long
NeighborhoodEnergyChallenge.org is hosting a workshop with guest speaker Chris Gorham, Director of Residential Programs for RISE Engineering, the company that performs free home energy audits for National Grid. Chris will brief us on National Grid rebates, government incentives and financing. NeighborhoodEnergyChallenge.org will also offer an exhibit of easy-to-do, inexpensive measures to make our homes more efficient, and will show a tour of the project's web site.	Tuesday, February 9 at 6:30 PM
Beekeeping with Sanne Kure-Jensen, URI Master Gardener. Join us for an overview on beekeeping in RI. Learn how to build equipment (woodenware), install bees, check on the colony and harvest honey. This session will also briefly review candles and other products like salves and cosmetics made with beeswax, honey or propolis. Sanne will stress organics and their importance in the home garden and lawn. Attendees will learn where to get more information including the RI Beekeepers Association spring Bee School: a 5-week course run each spring.	Thursday February 11 at 6:30 PM
Library Book Group Meeting. Please join the library staff in a discussion of Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns. This novel is full of warm humor and honesty, as told by Willy Tweedy, a fourteen-year-old boy living in a small, turn-of-the-century Georgia town. Will's hero is his Grandpa Rucker, who runs the town's general store, carrying all the power and privilege thereof. When Grandpa Rucker suddenly marries his store's young milliner barely three weeks after his wife's death, the town is set on its ear. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, February 23 at 6:30 PM
Shade Gardens with Dave Hughes, URI Master Gardener. How do you know which plants will do well in shade gardens? One way is to attend the next in our series of garden talks presented by URI Master Gardeners. Dave Hughes (class of 2002) will discuss the many types of “shade” and will show you plants that will do well in each type. (Did you know that you can plant tulips under a maple tree? The tulips will flower before the maple spreads its leaves!) Dave’s talk is heavily illustrated with photos from both the URI Botanical Gardens and his own home in Portsmouth. Find out why so many gardeners are taking up the challenge of shade gardening.	Thursday, February 25 at 6:30 PM
MARCH 2010
"Celtic Music, Stories and Dancing" with storyteller Marilyn Murphy Meardon, Celtic harpist & vocalist Mary King, and Phil Edmonds playing the tin whistle & button accordion. Any Irish step dancers in the audience are invited to join in the fun in this program celebrating Ireland.	Tuesday, March 9 at 7 PM
Library Book Group Meeting. Please join the library staff in a discussion of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. Berlin 1942 When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move from their home to a new house far far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence running alongside stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the strange people he can see in the distance. But Bruno longs to be an explorer and decides that there must be more to this desolate new place than meets the eye. While exploring his new environment, he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different to his own, and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, March 16 at 6:30 PM
Fertilizers for the Home Garden with URI Master Gardener Dave Hughes. Have you ever wondered how much fertilizer your garden needs? When is the best time to apply fertilizer? Do you need a special fertilizer for your roses? For your rhododendrons? Should you use organic fertilizers? What is the safest way to use fertilizers? Dave Hughes, a Master Gardener since 2002 and a Portsmouth resident since 1997 will help you understand the variety of products available on the market and the best times for their application.	Thursday, March 25 At 6:30 PM
This Gun for Hire is a 1942 American crime drama film noir, directed by Frank Tuttle and based on the novel A Gun for Sale by Graham Greene. The drama featuresVeronica Lake, Robert Preston, Laird Cregar, Alan Ladd, among others. A hit man, called Raven, is double-crossed by a nightclub owner who acts as a middleman for a traitorous industrialist. *	Saturday, March 27 At 2 PM
APRIL 2010
“Are Your Books Valuable?” with Ray Rickman, long time book dealer and former host of Bestsellers on Rhode Island Public Television. Ray will provide information and insights about what makes a book valuable. It is a fun session with questions and answers about books that come from your personal library and attic. At a recent session a man pulled a book worth $5,000 out of a plastic bag. Audience members are encouraged to bring up to three books for a free appraisal. *	Thursday, April 8 At 6:30 PM
Composting: Mother Nature's Version of Recycling with Dave Hughes, a Master Gardener since 2002, and a Portsmouth resident since 1997. Many of us remember the "old days" when composting meant that smelly pile of decaying kitchen scraps moldering in the backyard - but it does not have to be that way! Come find out about the modern practice of composting and how it can benefit both your garden and your community. Dave will discuss how to turn common yard waste (leaves and grass clippings, along with garden refuse) into a safe, nutritious soil amendment for your garden. Along the way he will point out how composting can reduce the tipping fees Portsmouth (and other Rhode Island communities) pay for use of the State Landfill.	Tuesday, April 13 At 6:30 PM.
Concerned about your health? Who isn’t? Have your blood pressure, bone density and blood glucose checked as a public service with Kateri Chappell. Brochures available.	Friday, April 16 From 1 to 3 PM
Library Book Group Meeting. Please join the library staff in a discussion of One Thousand White Women : the Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus. Based on actual historical events, this poignant story is about May Dodd's journey west. Committed to an insane asylum by her blueblood family for an affair with a man beneath her station, May finds that her only hope of freedom is to participate in a secret government program whereby women from the "civilized" world become the brides of Cheyenne warriors. She soon falls in love with John Bourke, a gallant young army captain, even though she is married to the great chief Little Wolf. Caught between two worlds and two men, Dodd is forced to make tough decisions that will change her life forever. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, April 20 At 6:30 PM
Join Two Old Friends Mac McHale and Emery Hutchins, affectionately known as Mac & Hutch for an evening of songs from Ireland, the mountains and the sea. Mac and Hutch were the original founders of Northeast Winds and traveled and recorded with The Winds for nearly 15 years. For the last 15 years Mac has headed up a very successful group, Mac McHale & the Old-Time Radio Gang. Hutch has been a very important part of the Angel Band, a world famous Irish music group. *	Thursday, April 22 At 7 PM
Job Transition program with Heather Kendra, Certified Financial Planner.	Thursday, April 29 At 6:30 PM
MAY 2010
Touch-a-Truck - Get up close & personal with BIG TRUCKS at Glen Park. Giant trucks and equipment volunteered by municipal and commercial organizations will be on display. Refreshments available. Proceeds to benefit programs at the Library. $3.00 per person (infants free).	Saturday, May 1 from 10 AM to 2 PM
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, May 18 at 6:30 PM
JUNE 2010

Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Monday, June 15 at 6:30 PM
JULY 2010
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, July 20 at 6:30 PM
SEPTEMBER 2010
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, September 15 At 6:30 PM
OCTOBER 2010
Tasting in Portsmouth – Come join your friends and neighbors at Portsmouth Free Public Library at the 11^th annual “Tasting in Portsmouth” fundraiser. A variety of local restaurants, wineries and breweries will bring samples of a favorite or specialty item to showcase their establishment. It’s a real taste treat! Library Association members $15 per person or $20 per person for non-members.	Friday, October 15 from 7 PM to 9 PM
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, October 19 At 6:30 PM
NOVEMBER 2010
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, November 15 At 6:30 PM
The Portsmouth Free Public Library will hold its Fall Used Book Sale on Saturday, November 20 from 10 AM to noon. A preview sale will be held from 9 AM to 10 AM for members of the Library Association who have paid this year’s dues. Hundreds of titles of adult hard cover books and paperbacks will be available. There are also children’s books as well as some used videos, music CDs, and books on cassette and CD.	Saturday, November 20 from 10 AM to noon
DECEMBER 2010
Library Book Group Meeting. Readers may bring their own copy or place a hold on a library item. Refreshments will be served.	Tuesday, December 14 At 6:30 PM

All events will be held at the Portsmouth Free Public Library. Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. Please call the library at 683-9457 for more information or to register for any of the programs.