Local Treats at Library Conference by Janice Clauser

           

            “A good time was had by all” (learning and pleasure) when the Crawfordsville Library staff hosted the annual Conference of Indiana District 2 Libraries. Our circulation department’s Katy Myers, head of Adult Programs, reports on the inspiring day: “One hundred of us gathered last Friday morning with great anticipation, for 20 programs in five sessions to enhance our abilities to be more effective, efficient, and open to new ideas. Lali Hess of The Juniper Spoon catered our delicious lunch. She is featured in “Food for Thought: An Indiana Harvest” the book (reviewed in this column and available in the CDPL) promoted by the day’s keynote speakers, David Hoppe and Kristen Hess, who described farms, stores, and businesses with “making life better” offerings ranging from bison farms and organic caterers to homemade candy stores and award-winning grappa-brandy made from grape skins.” 

             

            New research on Crawfordsville shelves opens our eyes to contemporary views. In “The New Mind of the South” Tracy Thompson honors a book of 1941 by Wilbur Cash called “The Mind of the South” by being its sequel. She praises the South for its ability to adapt and transform itself. She finds African Americans now returning, drawn back by a mix of ambition, family ties, and cultural memory. The new South is ahead of other places in absorbing waves of Latino immigrants, and rediscovering its agrarian traditions. The author still thinks the region is misunderstood by outsiders and even by its own people. 

           

            “The Secretary” by Kim Ghattas is a journey with Hillary Clinton from Beirut to the heart of American power. With compelling detail she tells how Clinton transformed from popular but polarizing politician to America’s envoy to the world with its tensions and high-stakes diplomacy. “Lee Kuan Yew” profiles the founding father of modern Singapore and prime minister from 1959 to 1990, moving his country into a Western-style economic success. The book contains interviews and selections by Graham Allison and Robert Blackwill. 

 Tom Daschle and Charles Robbins’ “The U.S. Senate”, second in the Fundamentals of American Government series, explores the inner workings of this part of the legislative branch, showing exactly how the Senate really operates. ”The Good Rich and What They Cost Us” by Robert Dalzell, Jr. addresses a great historical paradox, a passionate belief in the principles of democracy combined with an equally passionate celebration of wealth. “The Battle of Bretton Woods” by Benn Steil tells of John Maynard Keynes, Harry Dexter White, and the making of a new world order at the New Hampshire town when representatives of 44 nations gathered in July, 1944. Michael Dobbs’ “Six Months in 1945” spans some dramatic moments of the 20^th century: the end of WW II, the dawn of the nuclear age, and the beginning of the Cold War.  

             

            Here are two new requested novels. Elizabeth Berg’s “Tapestry of Fortunes” illustrates two ideas: how women grow through their relationships that define them, and the power of female friendship. “Bristol House” by Beverly Swerling “blends a haunting supernatural thriller with vivid history of Tudor London where monks are being executed, Jews banished, and the power of Henry VIII and Thomas Cromwell reach every corner of the kingdom.”