Dear Reader,

On a recent Tuesday, the large glass doors of the library wooshed open to welcome my friend and I—along with nearly 90 others—into the much-anticipated annual Poet's Seat Poetry Contest celebration. Never having been to the GPL before, my friend fondly mused about the fact that he still carries with him the distinct smell of his childhood library in eastern Mass. He’ll be 40 in November. So many of us carry libraries with us, carry them across time and across place. It's therefore no wonder that we could fill many a vibrant shelf with books for all ages featuring libraries and librarians—and the scent of nostalgia so often associated with libraries and their books: from the children’s books Library Lion (Knudsen) and Waiting for the Biblioburro (Brown), to the novels The Midnight Library (Haig) and The Paris Library (Charles), and the poems “My First Memory (of Librarians)” (Giovanni) and “Prisoner AM-8335 and His Library of Lions” (Espada), libraries have a central place in our imaginations, our hearts, and our communities. 

Brain science tells us that scent travels directly to the amygdala and hippocampus, the brain's centers for emotion and memory. Therefore, smell, more than any other sense, is uniquely linked to memory, sometimes accompanied by deep feelings. The fact that libraries in general, and their olfactory offerings in particular, feature prominently in many works of literature and in my friend's childhood memories alike is perhaps unsurprising. It would seem that we are biologically predisposed to the gravity of the scent of paper in the stacks as we are to the lingering memory of Grandma’s lilac bushes.

In a 2007 interview, Michelle Knudsen, the author of the children’s book Library Lion, shared that “The [Cornell University] library—the building, the books, the sounds and the smells and, above all, the people—helped to inspire Library Lion,” a book which reviewers have deemed a love letter to the library. In it, readers follow the lion’s wanderings through the library, including when he stops to sniff the card catalogue.

Speaking to an expected adult audience in The Paris Library, the narrator swoons, “I loved Paris, a city with secrets. Like book covers, some leather, some cloth, each Parisian door led to an unexpected world. A courtyard could contain a knot of bicycles or a plump concierge armed with a broom. In the case of the Library, the massive wooden door opened to a secret garden. [...] Breathing in the best smell in the world—a mélange of the mossy scent of musty books and crisp newspaper pages—I felt as if I’d come home.”

“In the parking lot, I turn again towards the prison, / walls ribboned with jagged silver loops of wire, / and see a great library / with statues of lions at the gate.” Here, poet Martín Espada gives voice to literature as an emotional and intellectual home for Mumia Abu-Jamal, a death-row prisoner—and by extension other imprisoned folks—in his poem “Prisoner AM-8335 and His Library of Lions.” The grandeur, the validity, of Abu-Jamal’s library, “seventeen cartons” wrestled away by guards as he is forced to cull his library, is figured as “wrinkled paperbacks in pillars / toppling, history or law collected and studied / like the bones of a fossilized predator / a library beyond Carnegie's whitest visions of marble.” This poem was the result of a personal encounter between Espada and Abu-Jamal during which Abu-Jamal “discussed his possible execution very calmly; when he got to the subject of the books taken away from him, he cried.”

Espada’s poem, among other things, urges the reader to understand the potential for existential pain when access to books is limited, controlled, or denied. Relatedly, Monica Brown’s author’s note at the close of her children’s picture book, Waiting for the Biblioburro, implores the reader, “How far would you go for a book? How far would a librarian travel to bring a book to you?” Brown continues, explaining that “Around the world, there are many librarians, and libraries, that travel long distances, just like the Biblioburro. In Kenya, camel caravans deliver books to nomads in the desert. In Sweden, Stockholm’s ‘floating library’ delivers books to islanders on book boats. In Zimbabwe, there is a donkey-drawn mobile cart library. In the United States, bookmobiles started out as book wagons.” Waiting for the Biblioburro itself was inspired by Luis Soriano Bohorquez, a teacher and librarian near La Gloria, Colombia, who delivers books to children who live in remote villages with the help of his two donkeys, Alfa and Beto. 

Here in Greenfield, we don’t need to wait for the Biblioburro to access “The welcoming smile of my librarian / The anticipation in my heart / All those books—another world—just waiting / At my fingertips” (from “My First Memory (of Librarians)” by Nikki Giovanni). Rather, the GPL is open every day other than Sunday, and materials can be ordered, put on hold, and accessed digitally any time, day or night. What a wonder! Furthermore, we are welcomed by the weekly Wednesday Writer’s Workshop to craft our own tomes; we are prodded toward the pen by the excitement of the packed celebration of poets aged 12 to 102, by an audience attentive to each word shared by the 20 finalists in the Poet’s Seat Poetry Contest. 

We read, we write, we listen. We are illuminated like the mystical, though rather stoic, librarian, Mrs. Elm, caretaker of the narrator’s bespoke, liminal-space-library (a book-rich purgatory?) in the novel The Midnight Library: “As she spoke, Mrs. Elm’s eyes came alive, twinkling like puddles in moonlight. ‘Between life and death there is a library,’ she said. ‘And within that library, the shelves go on forever. Every book provides a chance to try another life you could have lived.’ ”  

Many thanks to all of the writers who submitted to the Poet’s Seat Poetry Contest, for the carefully-wrought poems touching on life, death, and all that grows in between. An uncanny, beautiful dialogue arises between the poem “What the Stone Knows” by Chenyu Wu (Youth Poet Winner, Age 12-14 category) and the winning poem “Gardening” by C. Desirée Finley (Adult Grand Prize), decades Wu’s senior. Wu describes death as “the patient gardener, / turning the compost of days / to the palette of beginnings,” a moment of possibility in which we “return [our] color to the rain, / so the world may go on painting / with every possible variation of light.” Meanwhile, Finley describes gardening as a profound dance between hope, optimism, and the tempering of expectations, an exercise engaging both life and death: despite “ground bouquets” reduced to nothing more than remnants “like rust” by a solid battering of rain and heat, she continues planting, giving bushes, perennials, and finally geraniums a shot—the last long after the her gardening partner, the “you” to whom the poem is addressed, has left (relocated or returned to the soil, we are left to wonder). 

This generative, productive, intergenerational dialogue was made possible by the triangulation, the alchemy, of a nurturing library community; the support of the Friends of the GPL; and the grace, generosity, and vulnerability of the individual writers who shared their work. Paul and I, on behalf of the Friends, want to share our deep gratitude to every one of you who supports the library as a patron, as a volunteer, and/or as a donor. Moments like Tuesday’s celebration of local poets and writing itself are a bright microcosm of the way in which the GPL and its staff are the heartbeat of the city, giving us the opportunity to engage with the pithy stuff of life on an ongoing basis. 

You may have been one of the nearly 15,000 patrons who walked through the library’s doors last month to access any number of materials and resources, or a community member who attended a library event like the Winter Farmer’s Market, Soil Testing With Master Gardeners, Conversations About Grief, or the recent Author Talk with Maureen Groden titled, “When a Loved One Is Dying: Conversations About Care, Connection, and Coping.” Perhaps you’ve put pen to paper on a Tuesday evening with FreeWrite: Women’s Writing in Recovery Group, or attended the open-to-all Wednesday Night Writers Workshop. However you engage the Library, even simply by casting a ray of appreciation toward its wide, welcoming glass doors as you ride or walk past, we are so grateful that you are part of the GPL and the important work—and play—being done there.

FRIENDS OF THE GPL

EVENTS

Adult Programs and Events

ART AT THE LIBRARY, IN THE GALLERIES

Vintage Vistas: Abstract Landscape Paintings

by E. Joseph McCarthy 

RECEPTION: Monday, May 4, 6-7:45pm

Community Room 

Portals & Portmanteaux: Travel Collages by Daniel Hales

RECEPTION: Tuesday, May 5, 5:30-7:30

WORKSHOP: Saturday, May 16, 10:30-1:30

Conference Room

Friendly Fae and Fantastical Creatures:

Illustrations by Amber Akin

Children's Room

ONGOING MONTHLY PROGRAMS

GPL Library Chess Club 

Monday, May 4, 11, 18, 5:30 - 7:30pm, 2nd Floor

Conversational Italian with Monica

Monday, May 11, 6:30 pm, Local History Room

Spice Club Kit: Tarragon 

Available Tuesday, May 3 - while supplies last

Drop in Scrabble Night 

Tuesday, May 5, 19, 4:30 - 6:30 pm

FreeWrite: Women’s Writing in Recovery Group

Tuesdays, 6:30pm, Local History Room

Choose Your Own Adventure:

A “Pick Your Own Book” Club

Wednesday, May 6, 6:30 pm, Conference Rm

May’s Theme: a book set in a hotel or motel

Wednesday Night Writers Workshop

Wednesdays, 6pm, Local History Rm 

Drop-In Tech Help 

Thursdays, 1-3pm, Local History Rm 

Greenfield Ukulele Players 

Friday, May 1, 15, 1:00 - 2:30 pm, Conference Rm

Exploring Non-Fiction: Abundance

Tuesday, May 19, 6:30 pm, Conference Rm

Conversational French 

Tuesday, May 26, 5:30 - 6:30 pm

Community Mtg Rm

MAKERSPACE PROGRAMS:

*If required pre-registration is indicated, please visit the GPL calendar, or call (413) 772-1544 to do so.

MAKERSPACE PROGRAMS: Drop-In Knit & Crochet 

Tuesdays, 5:30-7:30pm 

Gelli Plate Printing

Wednesday, May 6, 5:30 to 7:00 pm

Pre-registration required*

Drop In Needle Felting 

Thursday, May 7, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Thursday, May 21, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Paper Orbs: a papercraft class

Friday, May 8, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Needleworkers Guild: An Embroidery Group for All 

Embroidered Seed Packets

Monday, May 11, 6:00 - 7:30 pm

Collage Workshop with Artist Daniel Hales

Saturday, May 16, 10:30 am - 1:30 pm

Conference Room

Pre-registration Preferred*

Hot Glue Crew: Paper Flowers

Monday, May 18, 6:00 - 7:30 pm

Drop In Mending Clinic 

Tuesday, May 19, 2:00 - 3:30 pm

Pre-registration Preferred*

GPL Zine Club Presents: Comics Workshop with Jared Sarnie

Wednesday, May 27, 6:00 pm

Pre-registration Preferred*

*for workshops requesting pre-registration go to:

greenfieldpl.libcal.com/event or contact Francesca at

(413) 772-1544 x5120

FEATURED ADULT PROGRAMS

*If required pre-registration is indicated, please visit the GPL calendar, or call (413) 772-1544 to register.

New! Greenfield Public Library’s Seed Library

Home gardeners are invited to visit the Seed Library,

located on the 2nd floor at the Information Services

Desk, to choose up to five packets of seeds for their

gardens. We offer a wide variety of vegetable seeds

(Arugula to Zucchini), as well as herb and flower

seeds (Amaranth to Zinnia). Borrowing guidelines will

be provided, and gardeners are encouraged to return

seeds after the harvest season ends.

The Dangerous Art of Chainsaw Sculpture

with Jesse Green

Saturday, May 2, at 11am, Community Mtg Rm

Jesse Green, Star of “American Chainsaw” on the National Geographic Channel will talk about his 20+ years of creating large-scale sculptures.

Talking With Loved Ones About End-of-Life Decisions

Tuesday, May 5, 12:00 pm, Conference Rm

Conversations about end-of-life wishes can feel uncomfortable — but they are one of the most meaningful gifts we can give our families. In this upcoming library session, Dr. Dhaliwal (a family medicine resident at Baystate Franklin) will discuss how to start and navigate conversations about healthcare preferences, serious illness, and end-of- life decision-making.

Light refreshments will be served.

Friends of the Greenfield Public Library BOOK SALE

Saturday, May 9, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm

Come join us for great prices on high quality books:

Hardcovers: $2, Paperbacks: $1, and Children’s books: Priceless!

Cash or check only, please. All proceeds support programming at Greenfield Public Library.

Western Massachusetts Master Gardeners Association Information Session & Soil Testing

Saturday, May 9, 10am-12pm, Front Patio

Bring a sample of soil to learn what your garden needs to flourish! For information on collecting soil samples, see “How to Test Your Soil” on their homepage at https://wmmga.org/

Creating the Intercultural Field:

Local Author talk with Daniel Yalowitz

Tuesday, May 12, 6:30pm, Community Mtg Rm

Yalowitz will discuss his book, Creating the Intercultural Field: Legacies from the Pioneers.

Pop-Up Library at the Greenfield Farmers Market

Saturday, May 16, 9:00 am - 1:30 pm

Stop by to get or renew your library card, get some quick tech help, find out what’s new with the library, and make a button, all while supporting our local farmers and artisans!

The Red-Tail: Local Author talk with Adam Sarlan

Monday, May 18, 6:00 pm, Community Mtg Rm

Poetry lovers and birdwatchers unite for this evening of poetry reading!

Where Have all the Hippies Gone:

Local Author talk with Nina Keller

Tuesday, May 26 6:00 pm, Conference Room

Dinosaur Footprint Fossil Show and Tell with Willis McCumber

Saturday, May 30, 11am, Community Mtg Rm

An all-ages presentation of dinosaur tracks, as well as related trace fossils and sedimentary structures.

INFORMATION SESSIONS IN THE MAIN LOBBY

Greenfield Community College 

Tuesday, May 5, 4:00 - 6:00 pm 

Tuesday, May 19, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm 

Behavioral Health Network 

Wednesday, May 6, 1:30 - 3:30 pm 

MassAbility 

Thursday, May 7, 2:00 - 4:00 pm 

Community Health Center of Franklin County 

Friday, May 8, 1:00 - 3:00 pm 

MassHire Franklin Hampshire Employer Spotlight: Covestro 

Monday, May 11, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm 

Hart Farm: Neighborhood Hub CSA program

Tuesday, May 12, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm 

Community Legal Aid: Fair Housing

Tuesday, May 12, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm 

Stavros Center for Independent Living

Friday, May 22, 10:00 - 12:00 am 

Homeworks Energy 

Tuesday, May 26, 10:00 am - 4:00 pm

A FEW HIGHLIGHTS:

PROGRAMING FOR ADULTS, TEENS, TWEENS & CHILDREN

Join Willis McCumber for an all-ages presentation of dinosaur tracks, as well as related trace fossils and sedimentary structures, from the CT River Valley.

Willis will show specimens that range from the dramatic and striking to the subtle and cryptic; other samples include armored mud balls, ripple marks, raindrop impressions, mud cracks, and slime. Some specimens can even be held and touched! His presentation will include a slide show with

photographs of local rock outcrops, maps and diagrams showing the ancient tectonic setting and paleo-environment

information about dinosaur evolution, images of contemporary avian dinosaurs and their tracks. 

A Q&A will follow the presentation.

Willis McCumber is a geology and paleontology enthusiast living in Turners Falls, MA. For the last three years he has been exploring dinosaur tracks and other fossils in the field. He holds a PhD in American Literature from SUNY Buffalo.

This free program is open to all ages and is sponsored by the Friends of the Greenfield Public Library.

The Dangerous Art of Chainsaw Sculpture with Jesse Green

Saturday, May 2, 11am

Community Meeting Room 

Join Jesse Green, star of American Chainsaw on the National Geographic Channel at the Greenfield Public Library for The Dangerous Art of Chainsaw Sculpture on Saturday, May 2, at 11:00 am.

Over the course of the last 20+ years doing this, Jesse has been commissioned to create large-scale sculptures for celebrities, foreign royalty, rock stars, corporations, networks, the military, cities, towns, universities, art collectors and so much more. Online his work has gone viral several times over, repeatedly being a top trend on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and viewed and shared by millions around the world. He is the official chainsaw sculptor of Husqvarna USA, and author of the book series Chainsaws, Cheeseburgers and Rock n' Roll!

Jesse has a degree in Fine Arts, Sculpture/ 3-D Studies from The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, once spent an entire summer living on the beach in Hawaii, crossed the entire country up, down, over and back in a van, has played with over 100 different bands and other musical acts across The U.S.A., and was born with sunglasses on and wears them 24/7. 

This free event is sponsored by the Friends of the Greenfield Public Library.

LIBRARY

GENERAL INFO

&

GREAT RESOURCES

Click for lots more about the Greenfield Public Library!

Select Library Services, with links:

• GPL Notary Services
• Meeting Room Policy/Request Form
• Mobile Hotspots
• Program Proposal Form (for presenting programs at the library)
• Study Rooms (one reservation/day; up to 3 reservations/week)

Quick Links to More GPL Resources:

• Consumer Reports (GPL cardholders)
• Craftsy (Greenfield residents only)
• Greenfield Recorder archives
• Hoopla (GPL cardholders)
• Libby/Overdrive (All CW MARS cardholders)
• New York Times subscription (GPL cardholders)
• Museum Passes

Volunteer at the GPL