Fall 2011 ABE Tutor Training Starts in September!

Literacy Volunteers of the Pollard Library has scheduled a training series for ABE (Adult Basic Education) Tutors. This 18 hour training is free for anyone who is interested in volunteering to work with native or near-native English speakers seeking to improve their reading and writing. For full details of this program including how to sign up please visit our webpage and check out our Fall Schedule. Please note: Attendance at the orientation and all training sessions is mandatory if you wish to become a tutor. We thank you in advance for your interest.

Labor Day Closure - end of Summer Hours

In observance of Labor Day, the library will be closed Monday, September 5th. Labor Day also marks the end of our Summer Hours. Meaning, the library will be open on Saturdays once again beginning Saturday, September 10th.

**ALSO, reminder the library will open late (11am) this Thursday, September 1st to accomidate our monthly staff meeting. We appreciate your understanding.**

Hurricane Overload

Don't forget our non-fiction book club meeting this Thursday, September 1st, at 6:30PM. Where we'll be discussing RA Scotti's book Sudden Sea: The Great Hurricane of 1938. The timing of this discussion couldn't be better (or worse! depending on how you fared through the winds and rain and constant media chatter about Hurricane Irene). Come on down! Free and open to the public. For more information contact Sean Thibodeau at sthibodeau@mvlc.org.

Independent Film Night Thursday, September 8th @ 6:30 - A Screaming Man -

Have you ever acted in a rash or spiteful manner and lived to regret your decision? Join us for our independent film night Thursday, September 8th at 6:30PM. We'll be showing the 2010 Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize Winner, A Screaming Man directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. The film is set in the African nation of Chad during its civil war though the film isn't about war, moreso the effect war has on people. The protagonist, a 60 year old pool attendent, is trying to affirm his place in the world whist being surrounded by tumolt and in a moment of weakness he makes a decison he will forever regret. This is the stuff of drama. Don't miss it.

The Pollard Library Independent Film night occurs the 2nd Thursday of every month! Please note: These Independent films are not rated by the MPAA and should be considered for mature audiences. Our Independent film nights are made possible by the Friends of the Library.

Open Forum with Lowell's Data Analyst - Tomorrow 7PM

Move Lowell Forward is hosting a forum here at the Pollard, tomorrow, August 17th @ 7pm with Michael Hebert, data analyst for the City of Lowell. Mr. Herbert is responsible for the LowellStat program, which is an implementation of Citistat, a data collection and monitoring package designed to help municipalities deliver services more efficiently and track responses to inquiries and problems. The event is free and open to the public.

Mr. Herbert will be talking about his role in city government, about CitiStat, and about the findings of the program so far, as well as how it's been used to help your local government make decisions. He'll also take questions from the audience. RSVPs requested but not requited. Email info@movelowellforward.com.

There's No Basement in the Alamo

Tomorrow is the 225th Birth Anniversary of one David (Davy) Crockett (born August 17, 1786). Crockett was a congressman as well as a frontiersman, hunter, and soldier. He moved to the colony of Texas after losing a Congressional reelection bid in Tennessee. In Texas, he helped the settlers with their bid for independence from Mexico. He died at the Alamo in 1836.

There's a new biography of the man that has been getting good reviews. The new book, David Crockett: Lion of the West by Michael Wallis unearths the fascinating story of the man behind his folk hero persona. A conflicted figure who stood up against President Jackson for his treatment of the American Indians after the Trail of Tears but was a slaveholder in Tennessee and fought to preserve slavery in Texas.

In his life, Crockett was famous for being famous—something that is commonplace with celebrities of today but his celebrity has stood the test of time, as Mr. Henry Allen says in his WSJ review:

He invented a kind of American manhood, too, one that depends on believing it can always survive walking alone down whatever mean streets—can pack up and head West as a last resort, like Huck Finn lighting out "for the Territory" or Jack Kerouac fleeing nothing and everything by heading west in "On the Road."

Lowell Quilt Festival & Merrimack Valley Jazz Festival

The Lowell Quilt Festival began today and runs through Saturday, August 13th at the Lowell Auditorium. Tomorrow night is Gallery Night, when all venues except the National Park are open for free from 5pm-8pm. After the festival wraps on Saturday there is a free Jazz Festival at the Sampas Pavilion 3pm-10pm put on by the Adaigo Big Band.