Library News

Jacob Edwards Library

May 2025

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 be closed on Monday, May 26th in observance of Memorial Day.

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 - or see the display on the main floor for monthly suggestions. NovelList Plus is a great resource to utilize, as well (library card required). 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!

hoopla Spotlight

Chess Club

Saturdays

9:30 - 11:00 am

Reading Room

Join instructor Ben Marinelli for this drop-in club. All skill levels welcome!

Mindfulness Meditation

Fridays, May 2nd, 9th, 23rd, & 30th

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.

Christina Cirillo Schmidt: Forest, Flame & Feminine

Artist Meet & Greet

Thursday, May 1st

6:30 - 7:30 pm

The Library is pleased to present the work of Christina Cirillo Schmidt.

Artist Bio:

"Christina Cirillo Schmidt is a versatile artist working primarily in linocut block prints, woodblock prints, painting, wood burning, and mixed media. She holds a BFA in Technical Theatre and Design from the University of Connecticut, a background that deeply influences her creative process. In addition to her art practice, Christina serves as the Market Co-Director at Hazelwood Markets, who host Art and Maker Markets at 12 Crane Street in Southbridge, MA. Christina is also the founder of Marigold Rose Art, a business named after her daughters, Morrison Rose and Margaret (Margie) Marigold. Through Marigold Rose Art, her prints are featured in local shops and at pop-up shows throughout the community. This summer, Christina will be teaching youth art classes at Block 134 in Putnam, CT, sharing her passion for art with the next generation. Currently based in Woodstock, Connecticut, Christina finds much of her inspiration in the woods and gardens surrounding her homestead - nature being a constant muse in her work."

Artist Statement:

"This exhibit features a selection of my most recent works, including a series of block prints, as well as 'sistering' pieces inspired by my fascination with the interconnectedness of femininity, color, and nature. Though I am primarily a self-taught block printer, my background in scenic and costume design has deeply shaped my approach to art. I’ve never had the traditional fine art studio experience; instead, I learned about art as an environment or emotive force through the lens of design. This background has allowed me to explore art in a unique way. I’ve always been drawn to groupings of things - whether it’s types, textures, moods, or complementary images. My work is heavily influenced by nature, folklore, old books and illustrations, and antiques. I find beauty in the small, often overlooked details of the world around us, which I aim to bring to life in my prints. My pieces celebrate the rhythms and patterns of the natural world, as well as the stories told through line, texture, and symbolism. I am available for custom orders and commissioned work."

Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Dances, Lullabies and Meditations

Thursday, May 8th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to welcome back Aaron Larget-Caplan, guitarist and composer for an exciting program exploring Spanish and flamenco music, a demonic waltz inspired by an Edgar Allan Poe story, two solos by the artist himself, and a world premiere for guitar and electronics that the composer Douglas Knehans writes, “seeks to marry the tears of clouds with those cloudy moments in our lives that likewise elicit tears.”

Acclaimed international recording and touring guitarist and composer Aaron Larget-Caplan is an exciting and innovative leader in classical music. Noted as a "master guitarist" by Fanfare and for his “astounding technical proficiency and artistic delicacy” by the Boston Musical Intelligencer, Larget-Caplan has performed throughout the USA Europe, Russia, and Taiwan, including El Palacio de Linares in Madrid, Spain, Sheremetev Palace in Russia, and Palazzo del Te & Ducale in Mantova, Italy.

Mr. Larget-Caplan has 11 critically acclaimed solo albums and over 10 million streams on Tiger Turn and Stone Records (UK). His first album of his own compositions, honey cadence, was released in April 2022 on Tiger Turn, featuring six meditative solos written in December 2021 and January 2022. A score collection is published by the American Comopsers Alliance. The album has become Aaron's most popular album with over 6 million streams.

Larget-Caplan is the founder of numerous commissioning and performance endeavors, including the New Lullaby Project, which bridges the chasm of fear audiences towards contemporary music and composers to writing for guitar, for who's afraid of a lullaby?! Since 2007 Aaron has premiered 77 new lullabies by 72 different composers from eleven countries. In January 2021, Mr. Larget-Caplan in partnership with the American Composers Alliance began publishing the award winning multi-volume anthology collection of scores of the New Lullaby Project: volume 1 'Nights Transfigured' and volume 2 'Hushed' features 16. Three albums have been recorded: New Lullaby, Nights Transfigured, and Drifting.

Mr. Larget-Caplan is currently collaborating with composer Vineet Shende of Bowdoin College for his multi-movement choir & guitar work Pravasa (migration in Sanskrit) and his 12 Carnatic Preludes, After J.S. Bach, a re-imagining of Bach preludes from the Well-Tempered Clavier as if Bach were from South India (Carnatic music). Each prelude is paired with an Aaron's arrangement of Bach's keyboard prelude.

Mr. Larget-Caplan is the founder of the ensemble ¡Con Fuego! (With Fire!), a passionate cross-fertilization of flamenco dance and Spanish classical music featuring acclaimed dancer La Conja and guest cellists.

Larget-Caplan is the director and curator of Now Musique, which explores the new and neglected in the recital format. After a successful debut in 2019, it has since held over a dozen performances and received multiple grants. From 2010-2014 Aaron directed Greater Boston House Concerts presenting 23 international artists.

Sponsored by the Southbridge Cultural Council. The Southbridge Cultural Council is a local agency funded by Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

Ezekiel's Wheels Klezmer Band

Thursday, May 15th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to host Ezekiel's Wheels Klezmer Band.

Members of the band include Abigale Reisman (violinist, composer, improviser, and educator), Kirsten Lamb (double bassist and vocalist), Nat Seelen (clarinetist, composer, and writer), and Pete Fanelli (trombonist, teacher, and jazz improviser).

Internationally-acclaimed Ezekiel’s Wheels Klezmer Band brings passion, virtuosity, and contagious energy to every performance. The Wheels improvise with the intimacy of chamber music and the intensity of a rowdy dance band. Their engaging contemporary interpretation of Jewish music is irresistible to audiences ranging from elementary school students to the judges at the International Jewish Music Festival, who heralded them as “a true musical democracy.”

The Wheels’ unique style was forged in the subway stations and farmers’ markets of Boston, where the informal setting and ever-changing audience created an ideal environment for musical experimentation. They honed their craft with bulgars and 90’s pop covers for the morning rush hour and mixed doinas and zhoks with fresh produce on the weekends, building a community of fans and friends across the city. As their tightly coordinated but playful style matured, they moved on to larger and more discerning audiences, and in 2012 they won both the jury-awarded City Winery Prize for best klezmer ensemble and the Audience Pick Award at the third biennial International Jewish Music Festival in Amsterdam. This success opened a new chapter in the band’s ongoing saga that included high-profile performances at the Kennedy Center, the Shalin Liu Performance Center, and Yidstock. Over time, their repertoire grew to incorporate original as well as traditional instrumental tunes, and in 2017 it further expanded to include songs in Yiddish and English.

Sponsored by the Southbridge Cultural Council. The Southbridge Cultural Council is a local agency funded by Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

In May, we will be discussing Kantika by Elizabeth Graver, winner of the 2024 Mass Book Award for fiction, in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month.

From the publisher:

"A kaleidoscopic portrait of one family’s displacement across four countries, Kantika - "son"' in Ladino - follows the joys and losses of Rebecca Cohen, feisty daughter of the Sephardic elite of early 20th-century Istanbul. When the Cohens lose their wealth and are forced to move to Barcelona and start anew, Rebecca fashions a life and self from what comes her way - a failed marriage, the need to earn a living, but also passion, pleasure and motherhood. Moving from Spain to Cuba to New York for an arranged second marriage, she faces her greatest challenge - her disabled stepdaughter, Luna, whose feistiness equals her own and whose challenges pit new family against old. Exploring identity, place and exile, Kantika also reveals how the female body - in work, art and love - serves as a site of both suffering and joy. A haunting, inspiring meditation on the tenacity of women, this lush, lyrical novel from Elizabeth Graver celebrates the insistence on seizing beauty and grabbing hold of one’s one and only life."

Why Local Food Matters

Thursday, May 22nd

6:30 - 7:30 pm

The Jacob Edwards Library is pleased to welcome David Reed, Executive Director of Central Mass Grown.

Do you know where your food comes from? Have you met the farmers that grow your food? Is local food really healthier? Come learn about local food, the farmers that grow it, and how to support farms here in Central Massachusetts. See how eating local benefits you, helps your neighbors, and is good for the planet!

Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Michelle Willson Band

Thursday, May 29th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

Known to blues lovers the around the world as "Evil Gal" and acknowledged by aficionados of Jazz and Blues as a passionate and gifted performer, bandleader and songwriter, Michelle Willson has recorded and released 4 critically acclaimed albums for Rounder/Bullseye Records, as well as a live album recorded at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston, MA. She is featured on two recordings with Anthony Geraci and the Boston Blues All Stars and has toured Europe and Canada with the group. Michelle has also appeared on two recent Duke Robillard recordings.

Before signing with Rounder, Michelle's group won a prestigious W.C. Handy award for best unsigned blues act as a result of their win at the Blues Foundation's International Blues competition and Michelle was later nominated for a (best female blues vocal) Handy alongside Etta James and Koko Taylor.

Michelle's music is regularly played on blues radio and internet programs all around the globe and her original music has been featured in the HBO series "Mind of the Married Man", as well as on the 2008 House of Blues compilation album "Essential Women in the Blues."

Michelle's performances and recordings have received rave reviews from such respected sources as The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Downbeat, The Japan Times, GQ, Jazz Times and Living Blues, in addition to various other publications from many different countries.

For over 3 years, Michelle hosted 2 weekly programs, "Voices of Jazz" and "Jazz n' Blue" on one of the few remaining NPR music stations, WICN, in Worcester, MA. She currently hosts "Morning Vibe Time", weekdays 6-9am and is also WICN's production manager.

Michelle wrote and produced: "Destination Moon - a tribute to Dinah Washington" which debuted to a packed house at the Beehive in Boston and then sold out a repeat performance at Chan's in Woonsocket, RI.

Michelle's amazing voice, intense, engaging style, her vast knowledge of and passion for Jazz and Rhythm & Blues music combined with the rock solid support provided by her talented and tight backup band add up to a unique and unforgettable show!

Sponsored by the Southbridge Cultural Council. The Southbridge Cultural Council is a local agency funded by Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

The Frozen River

Ariel Lawhon

"A gripping historical mystery based on the real-life diary entries of Martha Ballard, an 18th-century midwife who defied the legal system and wrote herself into American history. Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town's most respected gentlemen - one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own. Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie"" - from publisher

Tween Central

Hey tweens! Explore thrilling junior high books and movies on Hoopla for hours of adventure and fun!

Start streaming here!

Mass Center for the Book

Student Reading Challenge

June 2025 - May 2026

The Jacob Edwards Library is thrilled to be partnering with Mass Center for the Book to promote their Student Reading Challenge. Pick up your passport at the Reference or Circulation Desk and participate by following the steps below:

• Choose a book that fits the monthly challenge prompt. Library staff will happily help you find a book that fits the monthly theme - or see the display in the Teen area for monthly suggestions.
• Once you have read your book, bring your Passport to the Reference or Circulation Desk and tell them what you read. They will give you a sticker for that month.
• Each month, the student (and a parent/guardian if the student is under 13) can fill out a short form to tell us about the book and enter into a raffle. Mass Center for the Book will run drawings for prizes. Monthly participation determines eligibility.

Have fun and happy reading!

Celebrate Star Wars Day

Sat May 3, 2025 at 10:30 am



Board of Trustees Meeting

The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is on May 27th at 12 pm.

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 next meeting of the Friends is on May 19th at 1 pm.

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!

See you at the library! Summer Reading is coming soon! Lots of fun activities planned....

Jacob Edwards Library

508.764.5426

jelibrary@cwmars.org