Library News

Jacob Edwards Library

December 2024

Library Hours


Monday & Thursday 9 am - 8 pm

Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday 9 am - 5 pm

Saturday 9am - 1 pm


Curbside pickup is available during library hours!


Please note: the Library will close at 1 pm on Tuesday, December 24th and reopen at 9 am on Thursday, December 26th.

Digital Equity Survey


There is still time to let The Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) hear about your experiences with internet service! Your feedback is vital to understand barriers to internet access, affordability, and adoption to help close the digital divide.


Take the survey here:

https://mbicx.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bxTlMGFVF8KjigC

Mass Center for the Book 2025 Reading Challenge


The Jacob Edwards Library is thrilled to be partnering with Mass Center for the Book to promote their 2025 Reading Challenge. Pick up cards and bookmarks at the Circulation Desk and participate by following the steps below. Library staff will happily help you find a book that fits the monthly theme - happy reading!


How it works:

  • Choose a book that fits the monthly challenge.
  • After you read, fill out this form to tell them about the book. 
  • Using the submission manager, you will be able to log in and access the entries you’ve logged throughout the year.
  • Dedicated readers will be invited to a year-end celebration hosted by Mass Center for the Book.
  • If you read a book in each of the 12 months, you will be entered in a drawing to win 1 of 2 totes filled with books. Additionally, they will be drawing two names on the last day of each month to win a free book!

Check out the year's favorites with hoopla's Most Borrowed Titles of 2024 collection. What was your top pick of the year?


Start streaming here!

Programming

JEL programs are always free and all are welcome!


Knitting with Sonya


Tuesday mornings

10:30 am - 12:30 pm

Reading Room


For all handcrafters!



Mindfulness Meditation with Iris

Fridays, December 6th & 20th

2:00 - 3:00 pm


The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to host Iris Vega, certified Mindfulness Meditation teacher and mentor, to present a series of sessions.


Inviting Mindfulness Meditation into your daily routine is an opportunity to cultivate awareness and presence.


You may bring your Yoga mat if you prefer doing the practice lying down.


Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

During the month of December, stop by when the Library is open to view art submissions by local students on the main floor!


Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Duo Alterity


Thursday, December 12th

6:30 - 7:30 pm


The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to host Duo Alterity. It has been many years since their music graced the halls of the library and we are delighted to welcome them back!


The program will feature Macedonian folk songs and Sephardic influences alongside tangos and a piece showcasing the crystal flute. The musicians are Allison Hughes on flute with Joseph Van Doran on guitar.


Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

In December, the group will discuss The Ethical Assassin by David Liss.


"Edgar award-winning author of the popular historical novels A Conspiracy of Paper and A Spectacle of Corruption, David Liss showcases his amazing versatility with this brilliant new tale of contemporary suspense: a literary thriller set in Florida, where killing is a matter of conscience.


No one is more surprised than Lem Altick when it turns out he’s actually good at peddling encyclopedias door to door. He hates the predatory world of sales, but he needs the money to pay for college. Then things go horribly wrong. In a sweltering trailer in rural Florida, a couple whom Lem has spent hours pitching is shot dead before his eyes, and the unassuming young man is suddenly pulled into the dark world of conspiracy and murder. Not just murder: assassination– or so claims the killer, the mysterious and strangely charismatic Melford Kean, who has struck without remorse and with remarkable good cheer. But the self-styled ethical assassin hadn’t planned on a witness, and so he makes Lem a deal: Stay quiet and there will be no problems. Go to the police and take the fall.


Before Lem can decide, he is drawn against his will into the realm of the assassin, a post-Marxist intellectual with whom he forms an unlikely (and perhaps unwise) friendship. The ethical assassin could be a charming sociopath, eco-activist, or vigilante for social justice. To unravel the mystery and save himself, Lem must descend deep into a bizarre world he never knew existed, where a group of desperate–and genuinely deranged–schemers have hatched a plan that will very likely keep Lem from leaving town alive.


David Liss skillfully interweaves a gallery of eccentric characters with a multilayered plot characterized by its unpredictable twists and turns. The Ethical Assassin is a brilliant, darkly comic novel that will leave readers in suspense until the very last page." - From the Hardcover edition.

Kyle & Lisa Brodeur


Thursday, December 19th

6:00 - 7:30 pm


The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to host Kyle and Lisa Brodeur to present their new book, If I Can Smile, I Can Live.


This is the story of Kyle Brodeur, a young man whose life was forever changed. He is a survivor of being hit head-on by an impaired driver at the young age of ten years old.


Kyle believes that giving up is not an option and is an inspiration to live life to the fullest the best he can. This story will inspire you to keep going, no matter what your challenges are.


Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Staff Pick


Winter Solstice: An Essay

Nina MacLaughlin


"A celebration and meditation on the season for drinking hot chocolate, spotting a wreath on a neighbor's door, experiencing the change in light of shorter days. All aspects of Winter, from the meteorological to the mythological, are captured in this masterful essay, told in wise and luminous prose that pushes back the dark.


If Winter is a time you love for its memories and traditions, if you love writing that takes your breath away with lyrical leaps across time and space, Winter Solstice is an unforgettable book you'll cherish." - From publisher

Teen Corner

Teen Advisory Group


Wednesday, December 11th

3:00 - 4:00 pm


Open to Southbridge students/residents ages 12-18.


Join our Teen Advisory Group (TAG) and help us improve our library services for teens. At monthly TAG meetings, you will weigh in on library programs, services, and materials, earn volunteer hours, make new friends, and build your leadership skills.

December 2024


tree_ornaments.jpg

Santa and Mrs. Claus will be returning to the

JEL Children's Room

December 16 at 6:30pm

for Storytime and craft.

Bring your camera / phones for some photos!



Welcome to the Children's Page

December

2024


Join us during school vacation for some great programs including LEGOS, Magic and Juggling! Fun for the entire family!


















Board of Trustees Meeting


There will be no meeting of the Board of Trustees in December.


Details will be available on the Town of Southbridge website, under Public Meetings Calendar, for all public meetings.


All meetings are open to the public.

The mission of the Friends of the Jacob Edwards Library is to be the advocacy and fundraising arm of the Library. We raise money for items such as library programs, books, subscriptions, museum pass memberships, and other materials, as needed. 


New members are always welcome! Our membership dues go directly toward supporting the Jacob Edwards Library.


Wishing all our patrons and friends Happy Holidays!



See you at the library!


Jacob Edwards Library

508.764.5426

jelibrary@cwmars.org

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