Library Director's Message

Hello,
Here at the library, we are busy gearing up for summer reading...and anxiously awaiting our new carpet! The library will be getting some much-needed updates in the month of May that will limit the number of programs we are able to provide to our community. We are looking forward to new paint, carpet, and other renovations to better serve our patrons! Thank you for your patience and understanding as our calendar this month looks different than usual. We will be back to regularly scheduled programming by mid-June.

The library will be out in the community at the Kensington Garden Club Plant Sale on Saturday May 6 from 9AM-1PM. Our seed “librarian” will be there with seeds and to answer your garden questions.   Did you know that the Kensington Garden Club provides the floral arrangement at the library's circulation desk each month? We are grateful for this touch of beauty in our building, and we’re excited to partner with them to get your garden going this year!  

Library eBooks have been in the news in Connecticut. Have you heard about the prices that libraries pay for eBooks? If you haven’t, here’s the short story: libraries pay almost 4 times as much for eBooks as you pay as a consumer. To make matters worse, after two years we lose access to the book and must buy it again! The Connecticut Library Consortium’s Executive Director, Ellen Paul, wrote an excellent piece in the CT Mirror explaining how library eBook pricing plans differ from those that you pay. Despite these terms, Berlin-Peck Library continues to make eBooks available to our patrons on two platforms – Hoopla and Libby! We have limited copies of eBooks through Libby (see above) which may mean you have to place a hold, but Hoopla has NO HOLDS and NO WAITING. You can check out up to 5 eBooks, audiobooks, movies, tv shows, or music each month through Hoopla.  

Do you have thoughts about how we can better serve you? Send me an email at [email protected]  and let me know. I hope to see you at the library soon!

Warmly,
Kim McNally
Library Director

Library Holidays in May

The library will be CLOSED Monday, May 29, for Memorial Day.

Friday Movies On Pause

Our Friday Movie Matinees are on pause this month, to make room for the installation of new carpet throughout the library. We're hoping to resume movies in June, barring any unexpected delays.

April Showers Bring May Flowers: Fiction With Flowers on the Cover!

Memorial Day 2023 Booklist: Celebrate with a book!

Mothers Day 20233 Booklist: Celebrate with a book!

POPSUGAR Year-Long Adult Reading Challenge

See more booklists at berlinpeck.org/booklists.

Estate Planning Documents: Overview and Recent Law Changes
Tuesday, May 2, 6:30 pm

Join us to learn about wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives. You’ll walk away understanding what these documents are for, and what you need to do to create yours.

Register

Make and Take: Watercolor Pet Paint Night
Thursday, May 4, 5:30 pm
REGISTRATION REQUIRED—PROGRAM IS FULL
JOIN THE WAITLIST FOR UPDATES

Create a portrait of your family pet with watercolor artist Nancy Roman. No experience necessary!

Join Waitlist

Sit & Knit
Thursday, May 4, 18, 6:00 pm
Thursday, May 11, 25, 1:00 pm

Join us for a relaxing session of knitting and good company.

The Menopause Transition
Tuesday, May 9, 6:30 pm

Join Dr. Lenora S. Williams to learn about the menopause transition, with an overview of available menopause/perimenopause management strategies.

Register

Intro To Artificial Intelligence: ChatGPT
Thursday, May 11, 6:30 pm
ONLINE PROGRAM

Have you seen ChatGPT in the news recently? Learn about the technology behind this cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) model and discover the many ways it can be used in everyday life. Everyone will come away with a personalized poem or limerick!

Presented by Cora J. Belden Library in Rocky Hill.

Register

Dementia Caregiver Support Group
Monday, May 15, 1:00 pm

A safe place for caregivers, family and friends of persons with dementia. Join us to share practical information, feelings, needs and concerns. Sponsored and hosted by Hartford HealthCare Center for Healthy Aging and Alzheimer’s Association.

This group will meet in person, with the option for participants to join us on video chat using Zoom. RSVP to Patty O’Brian: 203-859-1992.

Event may take place online this month.
We’re getting new carpet in May! Depending on the installation schedule, this month’s support group may need to take place online only. If that happens, Patty will contact you to let you know.

Learn More

Saturday Book Club
Saturday, May 20, 10:30

Join us for a discussion of True Biz by Sara Novic. Contact the library for a copy of the book.

Register

Senior Center Book Club
Wednesday, May 24, 1:30 pm

Join us at the Senior Center for a discussion of West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge. Contact the library for a copy of the book.

Register

Over a Wyoming Campfire: The Beginnings of the National Park Service
Tuesday, June 13, 6:30 pm

Join Professor Hamish Lutris to learn about the creation of the National Park Service in 1916, a radical move for its time, to intervene in the health of the nation’s lands. We’ll discuss the history of conservation and how the American wilderness plays an important role in the identity of the American people, as well as outlining the personalities and events that created this, one of the most successful and popular government agencies ever conceived.

Register