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New This Week

December 31, 1969

Column: At the Library
From: Cranbrook Public Library
By Mike Selby

After suffering from type 1 diabetes for over 30 years, Chuck Eichten�"director of Nike--came to understand that no matter what he did, he could not make it ever go away. In “The Book of Better,” Eichten describes how he was able to make his life with the disease drastically improved, and how others with the disease can do the same.

John Cleare’s “Epic Climbs” is aimed at young readers, illustrating the how and why people continue to tackle the world’s inhospitable and impossibly hard mountains.

Preschool Story Time this Wednesday at 11:00 am, 1:15 pm, & 6:30 pm, and Toddler Story this Friday at 10:30 am will be all about Trucks!

The Library is currently offering one on one computer training sessions for anyone who is interested in any aspect of computers and the internet. Training is available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Please contact the Library to book a session, or contact Jenna at 426-4063 for more information.

The ninth annual Friends of the Cranbrook Public Library Magazine Sale (and AV) is coming up soon. It’s two days only �" Friday, March 2 (10 am to 6 pm) and Saturday March 3 (10 am to 4 pm.) Donations will be accepted up to Thursday, March 1. Once the sale starts, we are unable to accept donations. Donations (gently used) dated current and 5 years (2007 �" 2012) accepted at the Cranbrook Public Library circulation desk during business hours.

\"And while you\'re looking for magazines to donate, please include any books, in good shape, which you no longer want. The Friends work year round sorting and packing for the Fall Book Sale so your donations are greatly appreciated.\"

This month’s display is a collection of beautiful watercolors by Mary Letcher--a self-taught artist, who has been painting for the past 15 years. Mary finds that painting energizes and frees her spirit, and she seldom begins with an end in mind. She enjoys learning new techniques, and will be incorporating encaustics into her future work.



ADULT NEWLY AQUIRED SHELF:

The Book of Better: A More Excellent Life with Diabetes (616.462)
The Age of Steam �" Thomas Crump (621.109)
Pitch Black �" Arthur Black (819.8)
A Season in Hell �" Robert R. Fowler (966.2605)
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals �" Maria Speck (641.591822)
A Treasury of Tom Thomsom �" Joan Murray (759.11)
Designing Bead & Wire Jewelry �" Renata Graham (745.5942)
Booze Cakes �" Krystina Castella (641.8653)
Cheat on Your Husband (With Your Husband �" Andrea Syrtash (j646.78)
The Compass of Pleasure �" David J. Linden (612.8)
The Ceramics Bible �" Louisa Taylor (738.14)
Creating Personal Presence �" Dianna Booher (658.4092)
The Rice Krispies Treats Cookbook (641.86)
Water in Canada �" Hanneke Brooymans (333.9100971)
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Changing Old Habits for Good (158.1)
Tales & Trails �" Lynn Martell (971.2332)
Full Voice �" Barbara McAfee (808.5)
Fodor’s Cancun and the Riviera Maya 2012 (917.26)
Oliver’s Twist �" Craig Oliver (bio)
The Doc’s Side: Tales of a Sunshine Coast Doctor �" Eric J. Paetkau (bio)
The Wandering Falcon �" Jamil Ahmad (fic)
Tuesday Night Miracles �" Kris Radish (fic)
The Wedding Quilt �" Jennifer Chiaverini (fic)
To Love and to Hold �" Tracie Peterson (fic)
The Queen �" Steven James (mys)
A Very Simple Crime �" Grant Jerkins (mys)




YOUNG ADULT & CHILDREN’S NEWLY ACQUIRED ITEMS:
Darker Still �" Leanna Renee Hieber (ya fic)
Winter’s Knight �" Richard Argent (ya fic)
Drummer Girl �" Karen Bass (ya fic)
The Daughters Take The Stage �" Joanna Philbin (ya fic)
Epic Climbs �" John Cleare (j 796.522)
How To Steal A Dragon’s Sword �" Cressida Cowell (j fic)
Catopia �" Anne Mortimer (j 636.8)
Fairyopolis �" Cicely Mary Barker (j 398.21)
Return to Fairyopolis �" Cicely Mary Barker (j 398.21)
Blizzard of Glass �" Sally M. Walker (j 971.622503)
Twist It Up �" Jack Witherspoon (j 641.5)
Experiments with Motion �" Susan H. Gray (j 531)
Experiments with Rocks and Minerals �" Carol Hand 9552)
Museum ABC �" The Metropolitan Museum of Art (j pic)
Museum 123 �" The Metropolitan Museum of Art (j pic)
Museum Colors �" The Metropolitan Museum of Art (j pic)

It was April of 2003 when the National Museum of Baghdad was looted amidst the chaos of the Iraq war. The theft and destruction of the world\'s largest collection of Mesopotamian antiquities was seen as one of the worst outcomes of the entire war. During this time, and less known, was the destruction of Iraq’s libraries. The National Library & Archives, the Al-Awqaf Relgious Library, The Library of Bayt al-Hikma, The Central Library of the University of Baghdad, and the Medical Library of the Al-Mustansiriya University were all either heavily damaged or completely destroyed. Much if not all of the blame somehow fell on the United States, as it appeared their soldiers did little to stop the looters and vandals (in their defense, the soldiers were entirely focused on the people being slaughtered). Some of this ire was felt at Al-Mustansiriya, where a medical student yelled at an American soldier, stating “someday someone will burn the Library of Congress!”

While the soldier’s reaction was never reported, he may have cracked a knowing smile. The Library of Congress has already been burned to the ground. Twice.

Shortly after the Revolutionary War, President John Adams moved his government to Washington D.C., and introduced a bill for a new reference library for “\"for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress.” By 1802 over 700 books had been purchased, and Thomas Jefferson appointed the first librarian. By 1812, the library’s collection had grown to 3000 books. And in that year, the United States did something they would later regret. They went to war with Canada. Hoping to annex Canada from the British, the U.S. invaded Canada, burning down government buildings in what is now Toronto. Big mistake. Canada retaliated by overtaking Washington, burning down the White House, and the Library of Congress.

The library was rebuilt, and Thomas Jefferson�"an avid book collector�"offered his personal library of well over 6,000 volumes to replace the burned ones. All was well until 1825, when someone left a candle burning, and a wall of books burned before they could be extinguished.
A larger disaster struck in 1851 when�"on Christmas Eve�"a chimney fire swept through the entire library. This time the loss was 35,000 books.

In 1882 Charles Cutter�"a pioneer of library classification systems�"was asked to evaluate the Library of Congress for possible expansion. He felt this was ridiculous, as the library itself was a firetrap. “The roof, rafters, flooring and timbers are of wood. The attic is filled with documents and papers on file. The Library of Congress has twice been burned, and it is a wonder it has not burned a third time.”

Fortunately it has not. Today it is the largest library in the world, with 144 million books in 460 languages, 63 million manuscripts, an operating budget of 600 million dollars, and 3,600 staff members. Don’t let all this modernization fool you. Just last year a power surge started an electrical fire in the library’s south wing. Thankfully no one was hurt, and no books were damaged.

Much like their American counterparts, the people of Iraq immediately began to rebuild their damaged libraries. With help from the Netherland’s Cultural Emergency Response, UNESCO, and other international aid, much needed funding and equipment was made available to the Iraqi people. The worst hit, The National Library & Archives, began its reconstruction with the help of a team…from the Library of Congress.