June Update
Hay: A wonderful day was had by all. A few members of the group had booked ahead for festival events, but the others enjoyed looking around the festival stalls before enjoying a beautiful day shopping in Hay and nipping into a tavern or two for refreshments. Everyone agreed that this has to be an annual event.
Sat July 13th Cheddar Gorge (see advert page 11) and Sat Nov 30th London Trip. £22. Book your seats early to avoid disappointment.
The Village Show is organised by the library and all proceeds from the show will go to its upkeep. It’s going to be a fun event with lots of fun activities. More details to follow. You’ll find a copy of the schedule and the rules in the library so start making, cooking and growing.
Sharing experiences: Each month we’ll be inviting people to share memorable experiences of places they have visited. Your contributions are welcome.
Hay: We arrived in time for a coffee before listening to Rosie Goldsmith’s interview with Victoria Hislop on the launch of her new novel ‘Those that are Loved’. This is set against the backdrop of the German occupation of Greece, the subsequent civil war and a military dictatorship. We were intrigued by the amount of research Hislop puts into each of her novels and will be ordering her new book from the library.
A quick lunch before our next event: Inside Brexit – The Story, The News, The Spin. Three journalists Katya Adler, BBC’s Europe Editor, John Crace, The Guardian’s parliamentary sketch writer and Simon Jenkins, former editor of The Times, and now a columnist gave us insight on the coverage of Brexit. They gave a candid and fascinating discussion on Who said what, what they meant, what they didn’t say, and why it might not matter for another 50 years. Or how it might bring down reputations, governments and economies.
Our final event was an interview with Ian McEwan on his new novel Machines Like Me, which takes place in an alternative 1980s London. Marcus du Sautoy, author of The Creativity Code: How AI is learning to write, paint and think questioned McEwan on how artificial intelligence will confront us with the fundamental question: what makes us human? Another two books to order from the library. Can’t wait for next year.
The Marianne North Gallery, Kew Gardens. Marianne North travelled solo to some of the world’s most remote jungles and forests. On her return from these travels she produced more than 800 botanical painting which are housed in her gallery at Kew. The gallery was completed in 1892.
One of our ‘Page Turners’ visited recently and was totally fascinated by the floor to ceiling exhibits. Well worth a visit.
Annual ECALM initiative: The ‘Every Child a Library Member’ project aims to introduce library membership at key stages throughout the early years. On 11th June we invited 27 year 4 pupils from Wenvoe School for a talk by ex-teacher and volunteer Alina Trigger. The session included a brief introduction to the Dewey system, a quiz, and a goodie bag for each child.
Did you know that everyone in the UK is entitled to join their local library at birth? If you live in Wenvoe and have a child who is not yet a member, don’t miss out. Just call in to see us during open hours, bring proof of your address and your child’s details. Online registration is quick and easy, and you can walk away with up to 10 books which your child can borrow for three weeks.
Readers’ recommendations: We are asking readers to let us know whether they have particularly enjoyed a book that they can recommend to other readers. We are putting these recommended books on a separate shelf in the library for the attention of other borrowers. This initiative is really popular so please let us have your suggestions.
Pop-up Book Stalls: We continue to hold our successful pop-ups. Look out for us outside the Village Stores over the next few months with a selection of good-quality donated books at reasonable prices. All proceeds go to keeping your library open.
Book donations: Many thanks to those who have donated books. We are grateful to receive good quality books. We can always collect your books if you find it difficult to drop them off at the library.
Book Bags: We have some lovely grey canvas book/shopping bags for sale in the library at £5 each.
Clwb Clonc – Our Welsh conversation group continues to go from strength to strength. Learners and first language Welsh speakers who want to practise their conversational skills can join us for an informal chat. Weekly meetings are held on Mondays in the café at Pugh’s Garden Centre at 11 am, and at 7pm on the second Thursday of the month in the bar of the Wenvoe Arms. Croeso i bawb