Library Snapshot Day is Coming to Vineyard Haven!

On Wednesday, April 13, Massachusetts libraries will join libraries across the nation to provide a snapshot of what happens in the day in the life of libraries. How many books are checked out? How many people receive help finding a job? Doing their taxes? Doing their homework? During Snapshot Day libraries will collect data and photos that help demonstrate the value of libraries and raise public awareness that libraries are busier than ever.

Everyone can participate just by doing their regular library business, such as using the Internet, checking out books, doing research, or attending a program. Programs that day will include a movie for children ages 6 and up at 1 pm, Wii games for “Tweens” (ages 8-11) at 3 pm.

Patrons who sign a release to have their photo taken and submitted to be used in statewide publications will get a chance to win prizes sponsored by the Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library. Stop by and be counted!

Library Book Sales Held Third Saturday of Each Month

The Friends of the Library hold "mini" book sales at the library, from 1pm-3pm on the third Saturday of each month. The February sale will be held on Saturday, March 19th.

Proceeds from these sales benefit library programs for children, and other library services supported by the Friends. Sales are also planned for Saturday, April 16th, and Saturday, May 21st, from 1pm-3pm.

Federal Tax Forms Still Available at the Library

Many Federal tax forms, including the 1040, 1040EZ, 1040A, and associated schedules, are available at the library. If there’s a form we don’t have, the library can make a copy of the form at no charge (instruction books excluded).

This year, anyone, regardless of income, can e-file their extensions at no cost from a home computer using IRS traditional FreeFile or FreeFile Fillable Forms. For more information, visit IRS.gov.

Online Access to the Cape Cod Times

The Cape Cod Times has eliminated mail subscriptions in addition to home delivery to Martha's Vineyard, so the library will no longer provide print copies of the paper.

Library patrons can access full text articles (without photographs) for the Cape Cod Times from 1998 to the present through an online database. You will need to enter your library card number in order to access the database from your home computer. A link to the database appears on the library home page at www.vhlibrary.org.

Recent articles, including photographs, are available on the Cape Cod Times website at www.capecodonline.com (website users are limited to a monthly quota of articles unless they purchase an online subscription).

If you need help locating an article from the Cape Cod Times, please ask a library staff member for assistance.

Chinese Cooking Class - CLASS IS FULL

The Chinese cooking class scheduled for Wed. March 15th at the library is now full. If you are interested in being added to the waiting list, please contact the library.

If you have previously registered for the class and will not be able to come, please notify the Library so we may release your reservation.

Art in the Stacks: Inas Al-soqi and Marshall Pratt

The Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library are pleased to present an exhibit of photographs and collages by Vineyard Haven artists Marshall Pratt and Inas Al-soqi. The exhibit will be on display during regular library hours from March 6th through April 1.

"Art in the Stacks" is a new initiative of the Friends of the Library, to provide individual artists an opportunity to show their work, and for library patrons to enjoy art at the library throughout the year.

Artist Statement: Marshall Pratt

My work is about people. Further more it is about the moments in-between the self established “Moments” of a person’s life. That which are steeped in humanity, yet all but lost in the shuffle of everyday living. I capture these moments, magnify them and re contextualize them in order to evoke a feeling of ambient familiarity with the viewer. In essence these abstractions couldn’t be more familiar, due to their context, yet couldn’t be more novel due to their presentation. In order to attain these results I work in the vernacular of 35mm film and candid street photography. Although, one would assume that in public the individual is in their most guarded state, I find that the opposite is true. In these moments of public interaction, be it banal or chaotic, our focus is continually on the other, either human or inanimate. It is these moments of suspended self-awareness I attempt to immortalize on paper. I also print my photographs small scale, forcing the viewer into an intimate examination of the work. In this way the viewer is encouraged to stare at that which is usually “un-stare-at-able” due to social convention, or a fleeting nature. The combination of the before mentioned elements of my work make it a truly unique view of the world around me, as well as a deviation from many of the trends in contemporary photography.

Artist Statement: Inas Al-soqi

Inas is a recent graduate of Tufts University and The School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where she focused on painting, printmaking and collage. Her work is a translation of her cultural and political background, as she grew up in both Middle Eastern and East European cultures. Her work plays with this dichotomy between the sanctioned and the unsanctioned and that of folk and fine art. Through her collage work she integrates commonplace printed ephemera into the realm of Fine Art to explore the societal repercussions of both. She uses primarily images of World War II and violence against women to question the political norms of her utilitarian background.

The Friends are also accepting submissions for their annual group art show in June. The deadline for submissions for the June show is May 1, 2011. Submission guidelines are available at the library and online at www.vhlibrary.org.

Culture of China Celebrated in Library Programs and Displays

On Tuesday March 15th at 7pm the library will present a screening of a Chinese film (in Mandarin with subtitles). This 1999 film starring Zhang ZiYi (Crouching Tiger...) in a mesmerizing story of love and loss. A teacher wanting to give his knowledge to the next generation and a farm girl wanting to share her very soul with the man she loves. This is how in the winter of a a life, the summer is remembered.

On Wednesday, March 16th at 5:30pm Gloria Wong and some of her friends will give a demonstration of Chinese cooking. Audrey Leaf will make her delicious crab rangoon. Father Rob, rector at Grace Episcopal Church, always enjoys making hot and sour soup and will show us how to make his specialty. Beth LeBeau will be making chop suey and chow mein. Gloria will be teaching us the basics with her ingredients for stir fry. Our cooking classes are always popular, so be sure to sign up in advance.

On Tuesday, March 29th at 7pm, Hal Garneau will present the ancient Chinese game of Mahjong. Mahjong is played with a set of intricately decorated tiles traditionally made of carved bone backed with bamboo. Hal will describe all the fascinating nuances of the Chinese version of the game and will teach the rules of play in an easy-to-understand fashion. Everyone will then be able to watch or play a hand or two after the lecture. A selection from Hal's collection of Mahjong sets will be featured in the library display case throughout the month of March.

Calling Local Artists for June Exhibition

The Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library are looking for artists to participate in their second annual art show.

The show will be held on June 6-18th, with an evening reception on Tuesday June 7th.

The deadline for submissions will be May 1, 2011.

For more information, visit the library or view the Friends website: www.vhlibrary.org/artshow.shtml