What's New

Within people’s souls I like to imagine there is a concrete path, a sidewalk, where you will find the indentations of little paws, pressed softly but confidently into the promenade. There must be some little gremlins, who could not read a word of English, who ignored all the “WET CONCRETE” signs and strolled right onto the not quite dry cement, leaving permanent reminders that they were once there. As I pass my first Fourth of July without our family dog, a massive boxer named Prince Charming (PC for short), I cherish these glimpses of my dearly departed friends. For PC, his paw prints would lie in a quiet space, away from all the noise, the terror of the loud booms, and screeches. For all my worry I have found three new books here at A.K. Smiley Public Library that walk through the love that we feel for our animal companions and that have been helpful with those complex feelings.

“The Best Dog in the World,” edited by Alice Hoffman, is an anthology by some of the best writers of our time about their canine companions. Written with the utmost reverence for their furry friends, each essay swells with adoration. If one is as sensitive as I am to the peculiarities of animals, then tears are sure to surge. For the soft hearted, fear not, not all stories amount to tragic goodbyes or heartbreak; some are funny; some are adventures; all stories are about a deep love for dogs. The various authors draw a smile, tears, a laugh all sickly and saccharine with affection. Each human-canine relationship is different, each dog their own unique being, yet in reading these stories one finds reverberations of their own furry friends, tales that are not all that different but not quite the same. If you have a dog, have ever had one, or plan to ever have one, I highly recommend this read.

With a similar note about animal companions, “Ulysses S. Cat: and Other Animals I Have Known,” by Scott Simon, chronicles anecdotes of animals and pets throughout his life. These companions are something between family and friends but never just pets. It seems that for every step of his life, an animal has been by Simon’s side to help him navigate the challenges of life, the joys, the pains. Animals aren’t just there in a scene, they’re not just another prop, they are integral to his story, to the lived experiences and memories he holds. Moments that seem like they flew by too fast but still left an impact. From Homer’s Odyssey, to a quiet home in the suburbs, to the chaos ridden streets of Sarajevo in the 90s, pets find their ways into every scene. A touching book about how for many, animals find their ways into our lives often at just the moment when we need them. I would highly recommend it to sensitive souls like myself who weep at the sight of an opossum mother and her joeys merely existing.

Not quite the best dog in the world but another world quite opposite and yet alike can be found in Susannah Fullerton’s “Great Writers and the Cats who Owned Them.” Fullerton writes of charming stories including some of the most impactful literary writers of history and the little moggies that accompanied them. More than just a list of their most impressive accomplishments, Fullerton offers stories of the writers, their journeys and how their little cats followed along the way. Affection for cats is nothing new, and this book makes that clear. Charming art work of the cats and an even more charming picture of all the different cats’ lives as they found their place. This book highlights the true companionship cats can offer through the lens of literary giants and their own personal felines, a great read for any true cat lover!

Perhaps reading some of these new books will remind one of the animal prints they may find within themselves, snakes slithers, rabbit paws, dog tracks, and so much more. This summer spend some time with your pet, if you have one, enjoy their company, and then stay cool by visiting A.K. Smiley Public Library while our furry friends recharge at home!

Ruth Aguilar is a library specialist at A.K. Smiley Public Library who has two cats (read Monarchs) who reign with an iron fist.

Summer is here! It’s our busiest time of the year here in the Young Readers’ Room, with our Summer Reading Program about halfway finished. We have programs and events for children every Tuesday and Thursday, and for teens every Wednesday throughout the summer. There’s still plenty of time to attend and sign up for our Summer Reading Bingo Challenge! Here are a few books on our new shelf that could check off a few of your bingo boxes.

Emily Winfield Martin is one of my favorite modern children’s book creators. Her stories are so whimsical and wonderful, often welcoming animals and elements of nature to bring magic into everyday life. The Wildest Thing is a story about inner peace and solitude, but it’s about community at the same time: the Wild is all at once a character, an environment, and the animal collective that brings Eleanor the space to become herself. It builds so wonderfully as Eleanor discovers the wild inside of her, gaining confidence and community in wild animal friends. It’s not until she’s fully embraced the wildness inside her that she’s able to find peace, relax, and fall asleep.

This Is Orange: A Field Trip Through Color by Rachel Poliquin is exactly that: a field trip! This book feels like you’re walking through a museum about the color orange, and it really did give me a new appreciation for (what used to be) my least favorite color! The illustrations are so rich and focused. You’ll learn everything from the birthplace of the fruit to the three shades of “International Orange,” which is used in the design of space suits. It’s interesting, beautiful, and teaches in a way that does not patronize, allowing children space to become curious.

Have you ever had a stuffed cat that you cherish? Have you ever had a mess in your room that grew so much it ate the stuffed cat that you cherish? If so, you’re absolutely going to relate to Tulip of Tulip’s Mess by Anden Wilder. Mess is like a pet to Tulip, he follows at her ankles and even sleeps at the foot of her bed. He snacks on everything she drops, and becomes hungrier with each bite… Mess grows and grows, but isn’t a problem for Tulip until he gobbles up her stuffed cat! This is a very sweet story about being a messy person and keeping that mess reasonable and maintained. It doesn’t admonish Mess or require Tulip to change her tendencies, only how to understand and address the point at which a mess becomes overwhelming.

Yuki Ainoya’s Sato the Rabbit: Morning Light is absolutely magical. Sato is a boy who becomes a rabbit – no explanation needed, naturally. He appreciates everyday life, goes on adventures, and makes discoveries all on his own in ways that will inspire you to see extraordinary things in sights you’ve never considered extraordinary. This colorful world created by Ainoya is made up of four different volumes, Morning Light being the most recent. This particular volume is a collection of two stories, both of which focus on light and the power it holds. Consider stirring your coffee with a beam of light, or opening a shell to find a sky full of sunset emerging.

These are just a few of my current favorites from the new book shelf that I hope you will also enjoy! We always look forward to hearing about the books that you’ve read to complete your Summer Reading Challenge. You have until Thursday, August 6 to complete your Bingos — happy summer reading!

 

The Redlands Adult Literacy Program’s foremost goal is to teach adults reading and writing skills, but while learning these skills, adult learners build their confidence and discover new strengths. The supportive relationships with tutors, teachers, and peers open new doors to adult learners and a renewed sense of possibility.

Increased literacy leads to greater independence, stronger family relationships, improved employment opportunities, and healthier communities. For many adults, literacy represents a new beginning and a chance to overcome educational barriers that may have limited opportunities in the past.

Adult learner Brandi Halstead’s life has been transformed through the Redlands Adult Literacy Program. Brandi, who lives with multiple disabilities, is active in serving the disabled community. California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Brandi to serve on the Regional Advisory Committee for the Lived Experience Advisory Group. In that position, Brandi represents all areas serving the Inland Regional Center and advocates for people with developmental disabilities, bringing information and resources back to the people where they live. She also participates in California Self-Determination Program and is a member of the Safetypowers Workpower Advisory Council.

Despite her many accomplishments, a longtime goal of Brandi’s was to become a published writer. In May, she achieved that dream when her article, “When Home Stopped Being Home,” was accepted for publication in a national magazine.

Brandi started working on her article in the adult literacy writing class. In response to a magazine call for submissions about the theme of “home,” adult learners brainstormed ideas, developed personal narratives, strengthened vocabulary, and refined their writing through grammar and editing sessions. Participants learned how to tell their stories more clearly and effectively. Brandi shared, “In being part of the writing class, I am learning about the power of what each word does in a sentence and how to choose the right word for what I’m trying to say.”

Brandi credits the adult literacy program with providing the supportive learning community she had long sought: “I love everyone in the program and the classes,” she said. “There’s no other place like it. Everyone really cares about each other.”

That encouragement gave her the confidence to submit her work for publication. She described the moment she received the acceptance email. She reported, “The subject line was, ‘YES to Brandi Halstead!’ That was life-changing for me! I never thought that would happen!”

Today, Brandi continues to pursue her passion for writing on issues that support people like her who live with disabilities. She is working on a practical guide to help people with cognitive or physical challenges and is also writing a children’s book. She wants to encourage others with her writing, and said, “If there’s something hard to talk about, I’ll do it.”

Reflecting on how the Redlands Adult Literacy Program has changed her, Brandi added, “People always assumed incompetence in me.” She shared that those who need help with learning to read and write often face other people’s misperception and discouragement. “But in the Redlands Adult Literacy Program, concepts are explained in an approachable way that was not available to me in the group setting of my special needs classes. In the literacy program, my tutor and teachers help me learn in ways my brain understands. They have the attitude of ‘Let’s make sure Brandi is understanding this.’” Brandi will be able to apply her newfound writing skills in her work, thereby helping the clients she serves.

Whether adult learners are reading to their child, earning a diploma, passing a driver’s test, securing employment, or fulfilling a dream of becoming a published writer, each achievement builds confidence and reinforces the belief that learning is possible at any age. Literacy builds stronger readers, writers, and families, leading to a stronger community—one learner at a time.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer tutor, please contact the Redlands Adult Literacy Program at (909) 307-7377 or email literacy@akspl.org. Our next Volunteer Tutor Orientation will be held on August 19 at 6:00 p.m. at A.K. Smiley Public Library.

If you know someone who would benefit from improving their reading and writing skills, encourage them to take the first step—come to the library and ask for help. The Redlands Adult Literacy Program provides free services, free learning materials, and caring support to help adults reach their goals.

“From a small spark kindled in America, a flame has arisen not to be extinguished.” — Thomas Paine

This year on the Fourth of July, we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress adopting the Declaration of Independence and its powerful line:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

If you are in need of some fresh historical perspective on our founding, and maybe a bit of a democracy-booster, try perusing these newer books at Smiley Library marking the anniversary.

Bestselling biographer Walter Isaacson describes the heralded statement as America’s mission statement, with the title of his latest work, “The Greatest Sentence Ever Written.” Within his word-by-word analysis he surmises how the sentence, revolutionary for its time, could, and should, now shape our polarized politics of today. Kirkus Reviews observes that Isaacson’s book is, “A short, smart analysis of perhaps the most famous passage in American history reveal(ing) its potency and unfulfilled promise.”

Historian and legal scholar Edward J. Larson chronicles the events of the year encompassing the document in “Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Matters.” As the year begins, most colonists show little interest in national independence, but by the end, the need becomes undeniable. In between the introduction early in 1776 of the ideals Thomas Paine puts forth in his pamphlet, “Common Sense,” to the new American army’s hard-won victory at Trenton at year’s end, the Declaration of Independence becomes the standard to which we swear to adhere, though we seemingly are not yet mature enough to embrace all of Paine’s teachings, or to recognize the irony present in the Declaration’s words. It was not yet evident for swaths of colonial populations: indigenous, African, and others, as well as women, that the word, “all,” was a misnomer: all were not yet included in the soon-to-be new American standard of equality.

Fortunately, though, and intentionally, we followed our Declaration with the living, amendable document of our Constitution, allowing for blind spots like these to be righted, and allowing for change without violence. In “We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution,” historian Jill Lepore reminds us that for the last 80 years or so the use of the amendment has become slogged. She says we are still adjusting our system, but lately only via judicial decisions that are influenced by a select few elites in government and industry, endangering the civility of our process. She believes the framers expected that “future generations would be forever tinkering with it, hoping to mend America by amending its Constitution through an orderly deliberative and democratic process.”

Finally, the dichotomies move closer together with “The American Revolution: An Intimate History” by Geoffrey C. Ward, in collaboration with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, who tells our founding story by revealing it not from the top down but from the bottom up–through the eyes of those of ordinary soldiers and underrepresented populations. As Burns puts it, ‘the revolution is often seen “in gallant, bloodless terms,” whereas the achievement of this volume is to be forthright and occasionally critical, but still grand and stirring.’

 

Here’s to an America of 250 more years always striving toward that more perfect union.

Pride month continues on in full swing! Pride started as a riot, as those who were oppressed rose up to demand the respect and freedoms our constitution promised. Many of those rights and freedoms are still in conflict today. These books help to highlight the path so many had to walk before and also those whose current paths are currently being made.

The Queer Thing About Sin by Harry Tanner tries to answer how we got here in terms of perception and prejudices against those who are part of the LGBTQ community. Beginning in ancient Greece, Tanner looks at a time when it was seemingly acceptable to be queer, as shown through plays and works of art. But as time passes, arguments and prejudices begin to pop up that sound very similar to modern ideas. Tanner suggests that this is not a coincidence, that similar downturns in society leads it to turn on it’s most vulnerable. He shows how philosophical ideas were adopted into religious concepts and how the consequences of that are still being felt today. The work is a great read that gives us not only a perspective on how we got here, but ideas on how to change our path.

Another book that shows how we got here but centers itself on the Black queer community is A Black Queer History of the United States by C. Riley Snorton and Darius Bost. Since the very concept of the United States, we have had residents who do not fall into the binary of male or female. Instead of just adhering pronouns or sexualities, the authors are very cognizant of not labeling individuals of the past with modern day terms or sensibilities. The authors show how many historical contributions from slavery uprisings, to fighting in the civil war, through Jim Crow and the Civil Rights Movement, queer people have played an integral part in the history of the United States. It even highlights that during the Civil Rights Movement, queer people were marginalized because the leaders believed that heteronormativity was the only way to gain equality. Snorton and Bost allow us to see how queer, trans, and gender non-conforming individuals have always fought for a place at the table, even if they were not the ones who ultimately benefitted from it.

Ace of Hearts: Lessons in Love from an Asexual Girl by Cooklin is a graphic novel in which the main character struggles when society’s norms are counter to who she feels she is as a person. Caitlin looked to discover the formula for happiness, how walking down the prescribed conventional path would automatically lead to comfort and belonging. But that isn’t what happened. Caitlin finds that closeness with another person is wonderful but physical intimacy is not as it was touted. Every step of the way, from Evangelical pastors, to friends, and even college counselors, she never really finds someone who gave a perspective close to how she felt. Throughout her journey and her relationships, she seeks out her own answers on what love means to her.

Enjoy these books and more at your local library! Happy Pride!

–Ciara Lightner is a library specialist at A.K. Smiley Public Library who believes the library is for everybody. Just don’t arrive all at once…. limited parking.