Out of Hibernation

I have been in hibernation for about 7 months now. Family events, travel, you name it - it has been a very busy and a fairly difficult time for us. However, I have been reading as much as I can and hope to be back to blogging very soon. I have missed being part of this great community and really look forward to being back!

On Libraries

National Library Week is being observed April 11- April 17. Many of us book lovers also love libraries, and this is a great time to celebrate them. A visit to the library is such a sensory experience for me - the sights, sounds and smells all serve to give me instant pleasure!

Which is why, it is with sadness that I note that our county is seriously considering closing one or more branches of the public library system due to a budget shortfall. I hope to make my opinion on this matter heard by voting in the referendum May 4th.

I have fond memories of the various libraries that I have patronized since my childhood. However, one of my favorite libraries is a fictional one - the library in Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, a great must-read book. Without giving too much away, this library is part of a medieval abbey, architecturally an extremely complex structure, and is also central to the story. According to William of Baskerville, the leading monk-sleuth and his sidekick Adso,

"The library has fifty six rooms, four of them heptagonal, and fifty two more or less square, and of these, there are eight without windows, while twenty eight look outside and sixteen to the interior!

And the four towers each have five rooms with four walls and one with seven...The library is constructed according to a celestial harmony to which various and wonderful meanings can be attributed..."

Now, what I would give to visit that library! Well, at least one can dream of visiting one of the great libraries pictured here, I guess..

Curiouser and Curiouser

My 6-year old who is into reading these days is a big fan of Curious George, the mischievous simian, and his many exploits. So I was delighted to read that the Jewish Museum in New York is hosting an exhibit featuring some of the original artwork for the Curious George books from March 14 through August 1, 2010.

The creators of Curious George, H.A Rey and his wife Margret apparently fled Paris in 1940 when it was on the brink of being occupied by the Nazis. According to the Jewish Museum website, they carried a Curious George manuscript with them and this helped them in their flight. They eventually reached safety in the United States, but their narrow escape did have an impact on their writing, which is why Curious George has so many adventures in which he is on the run .

According to the museum, the exhibit features nearly 80 original drawings and will also be in San Francisco from November 2010 to March 2011. I doubt if I will be able to attend either in person, but the absolutely lovely artwork featured at the museum's website is indeed worth a virtual visit!