pele of polynesia at fpl

A wonderful program by dance group Pele of Polynesia had the library audience on their feet and moving to the Polynesian rhythms!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

check this out: fpl staff picks

Mary Keever, Circulation Manager

The Black Country by Alex Grecian

 

It's called the "Black Country" for a reason. Bad things happen there. When members of a prominent family disappear from a coal-mining village--and a human eyeball is discovered in a bird's nest--the local constable sends for help from Scotland Yard's new Murder Squad. Fresh off the grisly 1889 murders of The Yard, Inspector Walter Day and Sergeant Nevil Hammersmith respond, but they have no idea what they're about to get into. The villagers have intense, intertwined histories. Everybody bears a secret. Superstitions abound. And the village itself is slowly sinking into the mines beneath it. . .  from Amazon

 

 

Keith Rogers, Cataloging Librarian

Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham

I was pleased to discover that Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls, Parenthood) can write! She definitely followed the writing axiom: "write what you know" because the story tells the tale of a young actress finding her way in New York City, something we know Graham is familiar with. This lends credibility to her story, and explains why you can really feel the nervousness and pressure of an audition and can agonize with her character as she tries to decide if she can justify going for her dream any longer when life just keeps putting up obstacles. ---Keith Rogers

 

Karen Hart, Assistant to the Director

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Marriage can be a real killer. One of the most critically acclaimed suspense writers of our time, New York Times bestseller Gillian Flynn takes that statement to its darkest place in this unputdownable masterpiece about a marriage gone terribly, terribly wrong.  from Amazon

 

 

 

 

Cliff Duncan, Circulation Staff

The Hobbit by J. R.R. Tolkien

A great modern classic and the prelude to THE LORD OF THE RINGS 

Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.    from Amazon

 

 

Donald LeBlanc, Reference Librarian

The Things They Cannot Say by Kevin Sites

In The Things They Cannot Say, award-winning journalist and author Kevin Sites asks difficult questions of eleven soldiers and marines, who—by sharing the truth about their wars—display a rare courage that transcends battlefield heroics.  from Amazon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Second Wind by Terry Jude Miller

 

Second Wind
by Terry Jude Miller

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1

I went fifteen years
without breathing:

oh, I did inhale--
took everything in--
in a one-way fluster

I let the world enter me,
gave liberty to tides
and gravity, which tossed me
from job to job, from one

calamity to the next without
grasping at the sides for a moment
to repair my substratum

I fell face up,
at the end of my intake capacity

I caught my second wind
a first day in January
when my full and heavy heart
picked up a pen


and exhaled

 

Letters To The Dead 

I am east and you are as west as the sun will go. It is April, the

month of your birth. The mornings have learned to sing again

with the trembling voice of first light. I find it easier to talk to

you when I write down what I have to say. There are volumes on

my bookshelf gathering dust and sadness. Reflection is thin stem

ware that breaks at the least provocation; but if I fill it just right

and stroke it lightly with my tear-moistened finger, it sings just

what I desire to hear. Much forgiveness rolled between us in your

final years, followed by acceptance of never being able to change

what sets fast in early days. I imagine standing in your shadow,

then you stepping aside to let the sun reach me, as it does this

April morning when I wish you were here to share one more day's

unfolding.

 

~Terry Jude Miller

Terry Jude Miller is a published and award winning poet from Fort Bend County, Texas.  A Juried Poet of the 2011 Houston Poetry Festival, his work has been published in dozens of print and online publications.  His poem, "The Diagnosis", appeared in the Birmingham Arts Journal. He has read his poetry at venues throughout the United States and the United Kingdom.  Miller has just published his third book titled "The Butterfly Canonical." His two previous books of poetry are titled "The Day I Killed Superman" and "What If I Find Only Moonlight?" He is a member of the Academy of American Poets, the Poetry Society of Texas, and the Gulf Coast Poets Society. Terry is a retired professor of eMarketing and held an Innovation Fellowship at Kaplan University.

 

Terry Miller, John Gorman, and Vanessa Zimmer-Powell will read their work at the Friendswood Public Library on Wednesday, November 6 at 7pm.

mark your calendars: Summer and Fall programs

 

Monday, August 19th at 7:00pm

 Pele of Polynesia Dance Group will perform traditional dances from Tahiti, Samoa, New Zealand, Fiji and, of course, Hawai'i. They incorporate traditional and modern dances into their shows set to beautiful, fun, tropical music.

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, August 21st at 7:00pm

 The Dangers of Manned Spaceflight: Sy Liebergot, Apollo era former EECOM Flight Controller speaks about the dangers of manned spaceflight. He relates the circumstances of the fatal near miss of Apollo 13 and the three tragedies of the U.S. space program: the Apollo 1 pad fire, the in-flight destruction of Shuttle Orbiters Challenger and Columbia.

 

Thursday, September 5th at 7:00pm

Dr. Mark Crawford will present information on End of Life Directives, and Medical Power of Attorney. Mark Crawford serves as Staff Chaplain at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. He was educated at SMU, Dallas and Oxford University before completing his Doctor of Ministry Degree at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

 

 

  

Wednesday, September 18th at 7:00pm

Understanding your Medicare Benefit presented by local pharmacist Vince Anselmo Jr., Doctor of Pharmacy. 

 

  

 

Wednesday, September 25th at 7:00pm

Divas of the Written Word: A Literary Evening with authors Barbara Carle, Kay Cox, Nanci Engle, and Diana Dettling Buckley. A  police woman, a family therapist, an artist, and a nurse offer you an evening of wonderful stories.

 

Wednesday, October 9th at 7:00pm

Mark Twain; Samuel Clemens: a discussion of Mark Twain's contribution to literature and the differences between Mark Twain the author and Samuel Clemens the man. Presented by UH philosophy professor, Dr. Robert Craig, and past president of the Pearland Adult Reading Center, Tom Woods.

 

Thursday, October 17^th at 7:00pm

Cherokee History, Culture and Language: Larry Pearl, a resident of League City, was born in Oklahoma and is a descendant of the Cherokee people. He will be giving a presentation that will cover many aspects of early Cherokee life. He will share his knowledge about this important part of our American history and demonstrate how European and Cherokee cultures were influenced and developed over centuries of contact. This will be a fun and entertaining evening for all.  

 

 

Wednesday, November 6th at 7pm 

FPL's Off the Page Poetry Series presents a poetry reading with award-winning poets Terry Jude Miller, Vanessa Zimmer-Powell, and Dr. John Gorman.

 

Thursday, November 14th at 7pm

How to Care for Orchids presented by Friendswood Heritage Gardeners member and former Master Gardener Cindy McReynolds.