Mid-Year Report

We don't have an All-Star break. But, just like the baseball players, we like to check our stats.

Here are the highlights from the year to date:

·         We currently have 6.400 members. Last year, we had 6,256.

·         We have had more visits in the first sixth months (22,273) than all of last year (19,000).

·         More people have participated in our programs during the first sixth months of 2012 (1,798) than all of 2011 (1,705).

·         Circulation for all of 2011 was 22,000; we have already reached 14,337.

Go, Bradley Beach Library!

Gone Girl Review

Maureen Fitzsimmons on Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

"This is an incredibly interesting read. I found myself empathizing with wife and then with husband and back again to wife, etc. The ending was so realistic as people who are bound up in dysfunctional relationships often cannot find a way out! A real page turner!"

Thanks for your review, Maureen. Has anyone else read this book? What did you think?

Forever in Peace May It Wave!

Have you seen the big, beautiful flag outside the Library? We're so proud of it, especially because the last place it flew was over the US Capitol. On July 18. Congressman Pallone, Jr. arranged for the flag to be flown to honor the Library's 85th anniversary. Thank you, Congressman Pallone and Happy Anniversary, Bradley Beach Library!

Congratulations, Basket Winners!

Last night, we picked the winners of the three beautiful baskets that the Friends of the Bradley Beach Library have been raffling off since May. Drumroll please.... The winners are Shirley Bongiovanni, Tom McGrorry and Kathy McGrorry. Congratulations to the lucky winners and thanks to everyone who bought tickets to support the Library. We are so grateful to the people who contributed more than $900 worth of gifts and services for the baskets! Special thanks to our fabulous Friends who are always coming up with new ways to support the Library.

Keep Your Eye on the Birdseye

I just finished Birdseye: The Adventures of a Curious Man by Mark Kurlansky. It's a fascinating look at the life of a man who genuinely revolutionized food in America.


While he was, personally, what we would now call a localvore, he made processed food possible for millions. 


There are lots of adventures -- in the Arctic, Peru and NJ -- as this "can do" guy finds his inspiration. 

Besides, what's better for a hot summer day than a bio about the invention of frozen food?

Bradley Beach E-Book Top 10

Since we added e-books to our collection this Spring, we have nearly 40 titles that are available only to Bradley Beach library members.

So far, the most popular Bradley Beach titles are:

1. The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings
2. The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
3. Death of a Nag by MC Beaton
4. Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling

The most recently added books include:

• The Game of Thrones by George RR Martin
• The Affair by Lee Child
• Snatched by Karin Slaughter
• The Vow by Kim Carpenter
• Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich

Happy reading (e and otherwise) to all our members!

Louis L'Amour and the Large Print Ladies

My father-in-law was a Louis L'Amour fan so I've bought a few of his books. But I hadn't read any until the Large Print Book Club picked Comstock Lode for the June selection.

I really enjoyed reading about the adventures in the new West and mining that are covered so vividly in this book. I especially enjoyed that the bad guys were so rotten and the good people were so good. It was comforting to have some certainty in the world.

His life was just extraordinary: he worked on cattle ranches, saw mills, lumber camps and mines. He was a   professional boxer, merchant seaman and served in the Army during World War II. Once he settled to writing, he was incredibly productive. He still has 105 titles in print and remains one of the most populat American authors.

Thanks to the Large Print Book Club for opening my eyes to this American icon.

Any ideas for other books for the Large Print gang? Any other book clubs you'd like to see at your Library?