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Morning Book Discussions
The Morning Book Discussion Group with Chris Caccamo will be held Friday, May 14 at 10:00 a.m. in the upstairs meeting room. The selection is Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman.

Summer Book Discussions
Stop in, beat the heat, meet new friends, have lively conversation and discuss some great books! All discussions are on Fridays at 10:00 a.m. Sign up is not required.

• June 11 - Luccia, Lucia by Adriana Trigianai
• July 9 - Cagney by John McCabe
• August 13 - Queenmaker: A Novel of King David's Queen by India Edghill

Books will be available at the library prior to discussion date. For more information, please contact Chris Caccamo at 330-688-3295.

Computer Training
The library offers classes for beginning computer users and more advanced users. They include Introduction to Computers, Introduction to the Internet, and training in Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel. Classes are offered both day and evening at no charge. The computer class schedule for June will be released Monday, May 24 at 9:00 a.m. The class calendar can be viewed at www.smfpl.org/calendar.htm. Please call 330-688-3295 if you have any questions.

Computer Volunteer
Computer volunteer Tom Labbe is available to help patrons with computer questions during the following hours: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 1:00 - 2:30.

Display
Stop in at the Local History Room to view the display honoring the half-century history of the Stow Police Department.

To learn more about the Local History Room go to www.smfpl.org/LH.htm.

Bean Bag Chairs
The Young Adult area now has two new bean bag chairs for teens to relax in. They are located near the videos. Here a young patron tries out one of the new chairs.

Online Book Discussion
Students ages 10 to 17 - Join our online book discusson group by going to the Online Book Discussion page at www.smfpl.org/bookdiscuss.htm. Each month a different teen or middle grade fiction book is featured. When you've read the book, stop by this page to post a comment about it, and see what other students have to say about it. You can even comment about another book you're reading. It's like having a book discussion group without having to leave your home. There is no registration necessary.

Yu-Gi-Oh
Saturday, May 8 at 2:00 p.m.

Chess Club
Tuesday, May 25 at 6:30 p.m.

For further information on Teen programs please go to the Teen Services web page at www.smfpl.org./TS.htm.

Mother's Day Craft
Friday, May 7 and Saturday, May 8 - all day.
Children, drop by the Children's Department and make a paper Mother's Day basket. Add some paper flowers, and you'll have a hand-made gift for Mom. No registration required.

The Stow-Munroe Falls Children's Department will be visiting local schools during May to encourage children to participate in the upcoming summer reading program "Dive Into Reading". Look for booktalks to be held at Lakeview Elementary during the first two weeks of May and at the other Stow-Munroe Falls elementary schools during the second two weeks of May.

Please call 330-688-3295 for further information or go to the Children's Department webpage at www.smfpl.org/CS.htm for a complete list of children's programming.

We hope you will join us in celebrating 80 years of service and visit the library to try YOUR luck each month!

Drive-Up Window
Don't forget about the Drive-Up Window service at Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library. This is an especially helpful service during inclement weather! The drive-up window is open during regular library hours and closes 15 minutes before library closing.

Pick 5 Bestsellers Club
How would you like to automatically be placed on the reserve list for five of your favorite popular authors? Join our Bestsellers Club and that's exactly what will happen! Just pick up a form at the Circulation Desk and join over 300 satisfied members. Are you already a member, but would like to change an author or two? Ask for an "add/delete" form at the circulation desk. It's just that easy!

Honorees
Arabica gift certificates have been awarded to the following patrons visiting the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library recently: Ed Groggs (200,000th check-out of 2004), Patricia Ruschak (7,500th window check-out), Greta Vizmeg (8,500th window check-out), Judy Hanson (9,000th window check-out) and Patricia Salo (2,000th registration of 2004). Congratulations!

Cardholders have their privileges at the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library!

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Stop by the Corner Gallery to view the works of Stow artist Lois Mullaly. Mullaly will be exhibiting "Seascapes in Oil" from May 12 through May 29.

Amy Jean Nichols of Bath, Ohio is displaying her work in the glass display case in the Corner Gallery area beside the Biographies. Nichols has been a glass enamelist since 1987. Works displayed during May include glass bowls with glass enamel and copper, and glass beads and marbles.

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The Friends, one of the largest organizations in Stow, is a citizen support group for Library services and activities. They sponsor booksales as well as the annual Needlework Show and other activities. Friends meet the third Tuesday of every month (except December and July) at 2:00 p.m. in the upstairs meeting room. Friends membership is currently at 420 members.

The annual meeting of the Friends of the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library will be held Tuesday, May 18 at 2:00 p.m. in the upstairs meeting room. Election and installation of officers will take place. Refreshments will be served. Reservations are appreciated, but not required.

The special program for this annual meeting is "Lucretia Garfield". The wife of President John Garfield will portray her life in the White House.

If you are interested in joining the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library Friends of the Library you may call the library at 330-688-3295 for further information, or you may go to The Friends page on the library website (www.smfpl.org/friends.htm) for an online application.

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"Home Improvements" are featured at the Questions and Directions Desk near the front door. This time of year is a popular time for home improvement, and Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library has many books, magazines, and videos to assist with home improvement projects. Some newer titles on this subject include The Homeowner's Ultimate Tool Guide: Choosing the Right Tool for Every Home Improvement Job by Sandor Nagyszalanczy, The Complete Photo Guide to Outdoor Home Improvement: 1500 Color Photos; More Than 200 Projects by Black & Decker, and Ask Norm : 250 Answers to Questions About Your Home From Television's Foremost Home Improvement Expert by Norm Abram. Try www.doityourself.com and www.hometime.com for more home improvement ideas.

A collection of books celebrating "National Book Month", is on display near the Information Desk. National Book Month invites you to take time out to treat yourself to a unique pleasure: reading a good book. See what Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library has to offer!

Items on display are available for check-out. Please help yourself.

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    Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library has a unique collection of books on trains and interurbans, located outside the Local History Room. The core of the collection is 144 books and videos donated by library patron Albert R. Snellgrove. This special collection is available for check-out. Books and videos in the library's collection cover the history of railroading from steam engines and bullet trains to streetcars, trolleys, and interurbans. The American Heritage History of Railroads in America by Oliver Jensen and The Encyclopedia of Trains & Locomotives by C. J. Riley are two general books to start with. If you are more interested in specific railroad lines, try The Pennsylvania Railroad by Edwin P. Alexander. Rails Across the Land, Freight and Passenger Trains of the 40's and 50's by Kenody J. Charlton and the video America's Historic Steam Engines are also available.

    Many of the books and videos in the collection are about interurbans. According to Traction Classics: The Interurbans by William D. Middleton, interurbans were electric railways conceived as a new form of short-haul passenger transportation in a time before the automobile came into everyday use. They brought a new mobility to rural and small town America before World War I. Days of the North Shore Line by George V. Campbell, Cincinnati & Lake Erie Railroad by Jack Keenan, and Toledo, Port Clinton & Lakeside Railway by George W. Hilton are titles about interurbans. Remember When - Trolley Wires Spanned the Country by Norman Carlson and Arthur Peterson commemorates with photos and descriptions the contribution these railways made to our society.

     If you are interested in learning about the construction of the railroads, try Nothing Like It in the World by Stephen E. Ambrose (also available on book-on-tape and book-on-CD) and Last Train to Paradise, Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad That Crossed an Ocean. Books on model railroading, such as Model Railroads by Brian Hollingsworth and Model Railroading With Lionel Trains by John Kouba, are also included in the collection. Train books for children are located in the 385 section of the Children's Department.

     Fans of railroading may wish to go to the Rail Fan website at www.railfanclub.org, sponsored by the Association of American Railroads.

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May's staff pick is The Rope, a classic film on video, recommended by library shelver Anne Fiordalisi. The Rope (1948), was directed by Alfred Hitchcock who introduced many "firsts" in this film. The film was shot as though it happened in one long, uninterrupted shot. Since cameras in the 1940's only held 10 minute reels at one time, Hitchcock had to be creative when it came time to change reels. See if you can spot these changes! The film was also shot entirely in-studio, a first for film-makers. The Rope was also Hitchcock's first in color and the first of his many collaborations with his favorite leading actor, James Stewart. The plot is simple, based loosely on the real life murders committed by University of Chicago students Leopold and Leop. There are a lot of twists and turns to keep the audience in suspense.

A perfect complement to this and his other films is Alfred Hitchcock: a Life in Darkness and Light by Patrick McGilligan, found in the biography section.

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May's Website of the Month is the online version of Blood-Horse Magazine at www.bloodhorse.com. With the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes in May, this is the perfect website for information about the first two legs of the Triple Crown. The sport and industry of thoroughbred racing and breeding is covered in this informative and entertaining website.

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