Trivia of the Month (Answer)...

This month’s question was Benigno Cárdenas Hernández?  Hernández was the US Representative from New Mexico. He served from 1915-1917 and again from 1919-1921.  He was the first Hispanic American to serve New Mexico as a Representative.  

The question (& answer) were found on p. 236 of Hispanic Americans in Congress 18-22-2012.  The book was published by the US Government Printing Office in 2013. 

The September Meeting of the Arroyo Book Club

September is our anniversary.  This September is our 10 YEAR anniversary.  It is hard to believe we’ve been meeting that long --- check out the complete list of all the books we’ve read here: http://www.lapl.org/collections-resources/lapl-reads/book-lists/abc-arroyo-book-club-picks-updated.

To celebrate, September’s meeting will run a bit longer than usual and include a potluck.  So make your favorite dish and bring it to share.  You’ll want to bring your appetite too so you can sample all the delicious creations of your fellow book clubbers.

The book we’ll be discussing is The Ox Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark.  The book though grim sounding seems topical in many ways that will hopefully yield an invigorating discussion.  The book is described:

Set in 1885,The Ox-Bow Incident is a searing and realistic portrait of frontier life and mob violence in the American West. First published in 1940, it focuses on the lynching of three innocent men and the tragedy that ensues when law and order are abandoned. The result is an emotionally powerful, vivid, and unforgettable re-creation of the Western novel, which Clark transmuted into a universal story about good and evil, individual and community, justice and human nature. As Wallace Stegner writes, [Clark's] theme was civilization, and he recorded, indelibly, its first steps in a new country.

We’ll meet on September 24 at 3:00 and continue until the food and discussion wears out --- or the library closes.

Events for the Week of August 28….

Events going on at the library during the week include…

• Make it Monday features a building block challenge on Monday (8/29) at 4:00
• Toddler Storytime on Wednesday (8/31) at 10:30
• STAR Reader on Wednesday at 3:00
• Preschool Storytime also on Wednesday at 4:00
• Baby Storytime on Thursday (9/1) at 10:30
• STAR Reader on Thursday at 3:00
• LA OIC Boot Camp in Spanish on Friday (9/2) from 1:00-4:00
• Drop in Computer Lab on Friday at 3:30
• STAR Reader on Saturday (9/3) at 2:00

You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

Darwin’s Watch

Darwin’s Watch: The Science of Discworld III by Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart, and Jack Cohen principally explores what Darwin was on about and how he discovered it.  The book uses a framework of fiction to launch into the nonfiction parts.  Basically the wizards of Pratchett’s Discworld had accidentally created round world (aka Earth) and were consequently invested in its preservation.  Circumstances indicated that somehow Darwin wrote a book called Theology of the Species (or The Ology) instead of the expected The Origin of the Species.  In consequence the round worlders failed to develop enough to escape the planet before its next catastrophic ice age.  The wizards decided to put things right and set about making Darwin write the right book.

The book jumps between the fictional parts where the wizards are trying to fix things and the non-fictional parts which explore concepts of evolution, mathematics, and physics.  The authors did an excellent job of introducing and explaining these concepts and the book, both fiction & non-fiction was very interesting to read.  I would recommend this to anyone and was in fact inspired by the book to seek out volumes I and II.

The Making of Home

Judith Flanders takes a fascinating look at the history of the home in the cultures of Northern Europe & the United States in The Making of Home.  She picks those regions out for the focus of her study because the languages spoken there have words for both house & home and because those areas were instrumental in the industrial revolution and the rise of capitalism.  The author examines what dwellings looked like and how people used and related to them over the course of the past 500 years tracing changes in space & utilization as well as changes in the roles of the people living in them.

All in all this was an interesting book that I’d recommend to anyone with an interest in the day to day life in the past.

Events for the Week of August 21….

Events going on at the library during the week include…

• STAR Reader on Wednesday (8/24) at 3:00
• Preschool Storytime also on Wednesday at 4:00
• Baby Storytime on Thursday (8/25) at 10:30
• STAR Reader on Thursday at 3:00
• Drop in Computer Lab on Friday (8/26) at 3:30
• STAR Reader on Saturday (8/27) at 2:00
• Arroyo Book Club discusses Kolbert’s The Sixth Extinction on Saturday at 3:00

You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

History of Eagle Rock…

Here (http://dbase1.lapl.org/webpics/calindex/documents/10/520347.pdf) we have a 4-page history of Eagle Rock written by Betty Welcome, a member of the Eagle Rock Historical Society.  The fairly ambitious attempt begins with the Native American settlement in the area, proceeds through the Spanish-Mexican times, and continues through a period of small farming and self-rule before ending with its status as part of Los Angeles.  Take a look at it.

The Aeronaut’s Windlass

Jim Butcher starts a new series with The Aeronaut’s Windlass.  I’ve long been a fan of Butcher and he continues his tradition of good storytelling with this book.  In this world of what seem to be essentially floating city states we have likewise floating ships that make up state operated navies & privateers and include pirates.  As the book begins one of the rival city states attacks Albion.  A group including the captain (& crew) of a privateer, a trio of neophyte guards, an etheralist (essentially magician) and his apprentice, and a cat begin a quest to find the enemy.  Much adventure follows including some spectacularly described battles between air ships.  I am left looking forward to the next volume in the series.

If you enjoyed Butcher’s Codex Alera series then this will be just your cup of tea.   If you like trying to figure out what the possible backstory is for a world that seems to be a very different future Earth and you enjoy a good maritime adventure with a seasoning of the fantastical then you’ll enjoy this.  Recommended.

Trivia of the Month....

This month’s question is who was Benigno Cárdenas Hernández?

Events for the Week of August 14….

Events going on at the library during the week include…

• Toddler Storytime on Wednesday (8/17) at 10:30
• STAR Reader on Wednesday at 3:00
• Preschool Storytime also on Wednesday at 4:00
• Baby Storytime on Thursday (8/18) at 10:30
• STAR Reader on Thursday at 3:00
• Zumba with Marly also on Thursday at 6:00
• Drop in Computer Lab on Friday (8/19) at 3:30
• STAR Reader on Saturday (8/20) at 2:00

You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

The Flicker Men

The Flicker Men by Ted Kosmatka is another book that uses as part of its plot line points from quantum mechanics.  Eric Argus is a physicist, struggling with an alcohol problem, who is hired by an old friend.  Out of some sort of weird sense of boredom he decides to repeat the double-slit experiment.  He then introduces a new component and gets a telling result that soon has incredibly wide implications.  The book then devolves into what is essentially a thriller as our hero races around trying to find his missing colleague, piece together the larger implications of his discovery, and avoid being killed by what are essentially alien beings.

The book was not very satisfying on the whole. The narrator was not very relatable and the implications drawn by the characters from the science invoked was either just wrong or explained so badly that reasonable people found flaws in the logic chain and called it wrong.

Websites I Like….

I am a big fan of the LA County Law Library.  They are a library that, as their name suggests, specializes solely in law related books and other items.  They also offer numerous workshops and classes on the law and legal issues, many of which are actually free.  I’ve lately been pointing patrons at a particular thing they seem to offer twice a month --- “Talk to a Lawyer Online.”  They describe this with the following:

“The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) now offers a teleconferencing center right here at the Main branch of LA Law Library, where you can speak to a lawyer live, send them documents and get answers to important questions. They offer legal advice and guidance to eligible individuals on a variety of civil matters, including evictions, divorces, and child custody. They can also provide referrals to private attorneys, other legal services, and other resources as needed.”

Anyway if you’re involved in a legal issue or have law related questions check out the LA County Law Library.  They’re located downtown at 301 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.  Phone: 213-785-2529

Find their website here: http://www.lalawlibrary.org/
Find a list of their workshops & classes here: http://www.lalawlibrary.org/index.php/classes-events/current-classes.html 

Events for the Week of August 7….

Events going on at the library during the week include…

• Special Storytime with the Dodgers’ Manager on Monday (8/8) at 11:30
• STAR Reader on Wednesday (8/10) at 3:00
• STAR Reader on Thursday (8/11) at 3:00
• Drop in Computer Lab on Friday (8/12) at 3:30
• Family Fitness with the Seed Project on Saturday (8/13) at 11:00
• STAR Reader on Saturday at 2:00
• Classical Guitar with David Margolis also on Saturday at 2:00

You can always check the Branch Page (http://www.lapl.org/branches/arroyo-seco) on the LAPL website for upcoming events or check out the Master Calendar (http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/calendar) where you can search for something specific across multiple branches.

August’s eResource of the Month

The eResource of the Month for August is the New York Times Digital online resource.  The New York Times Digital resource provides you with full text access to all NY Times papers from 1981 to the present.  Article previews and brief citations are available for the period from 1885-1980.  So... whether you want to see what the NY Times had to say about something in the years since the 1980’s or you want to keep up to date on what they are saying now this is the tool for you.

The New York Times Digital online resource can be accessed from any computer with your library card # and PIN.  Begin from the library’s Research & Homework page (http://www.lapl.org/collections-resources/research-and-homework#N).  Once there you will need to create an account to access the paper… Do this by clicking on the log in button that appears at the upper right hand corner of the page and selecting sign up.  Once you’ve created an account you can access the service from any web enabled device. On subsequent visits you’ll want to use the log in button to log in.

Find a flyer with additional specific information here: http://www.lapl.org/sites/default/files/articles-and-information/pdfs/8-16-new-york-times-flyer0.pdf

The Shepherd’s Crown

The Shepherd’s Crown, the last book in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld Series, continues the adventures of Tiffany Aching.   A death means that Tiffany inherits another job, a job immediately made more complicated by the machinations of the Faeries.  With the help of the Feegles, her fellow witches, and a scrappy group of old men Tiffany must save the day.

Knowing this would be the last Pratchett book made the entire thing bittersweet however the book was just the engaging, entertaining story you expect from Pratchett.  Heartily recommended.