By Samantha Stryker, Community & Adult Services Librarian
The fall series of Books Sandwiched In will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 2 at Richmond Memorial Library and will run each Wednesday through Oct. 30.
All sessions begin at 12:10 and run until 1 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring their lunch; coffee and cookies will be served.
You do not need to read the book to attend these sessions! A gift card to a local lunch establishment will be given at each session as a door prize!
A longstanding program at the library, Books Sandwiched In invites community members to share reviews of books, often works of nonfiction. As always, this fall’s series will present a wide array of topics from presenters with a variety of backgrounds.
First up on Oct. 2, Millie Tomidy-Pepper will present Melinda Gates’ "The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World" (2019). Tomidy-Pepper is the executive director of the YWCA of Genesee County and was previously the executive director for the Mental Health Association in Genesee County.
Gates’ debut work rests on the theory that, “if you want to lift a society up, invest in women,” and has been called “a timely and necessary call to action for women's empowerment.”
On Wednesday, Oct. 9, Scott Herring will discuss "The Pioneers: The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West" by David McCullough (2019). A native of Otego, Herring worked with the Farm Credit System throughout the Northeast until his retirement in 2015.
The newest book from popular historian McCullough uses the experience of five pioneers to explore the settlement of the Northwest Territories of the United States.
Greg Van Dussen, Ph.D., will join us on Wednesday, Oct. 6 to review "Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World" by Cal Newport (2019). Van Dussen is a resident of Batavia and an adjunct professor at Northeastern Seminary in Rochester, having also retired from the United Methodist Church as a pastor.
In Digital Minimalism, Newport applies the theory of minimalism (“the art of knowing how much is just enough”) to our use of technology. Van Dussen says that Newport “sees clearly the price our society is paying for constant connectedness and offers a workable plan for using technology wisely.”
On Wednesday, Oct. 23, Peggy Grayson will examine Jeff Dondero’s "Throwaway Nation: The Ugly Truth about American Garbage" (2019). A resident of Stafford, Grayson is the recycling administrator for GLOW Region Solid Waste Management Committee.
This book examines the problem of waste in the United States, examining the environmental impact and “not just how we got here and where we're headed, but ways in which we might be able to curb the tide.”
Lastly, on Wednesday, Oct. 30, Jim Lewis will present "More Deadly Than the Male: Masterpieces from the Queens of Horror" (2019), our only fiction selection for this series.
Edited by Graeme Davis, this anthology of classic and “unexpected” horror stories includes tales from authors such as Louisa May Alcott and Harriet Beecher Stowe.
A Navy veteran and retired Batavia City Schools Social Studies teacher, Lewis is active in the community with organizations such as the Friends of Richmond Memorial Library and the Batavia Players.
For more information about the Books Sandwiched In titles and presenters, visit our website at batavialibary.org/events.
For more information about these or other events, visit us online at batavialibrary.org, at the library, or call the library at 585-343-9550.
Richmond Memorial Library, located at 19 Ross St. in the City of Batavia, continually provides access to physical and virtual resources and services that meet the educational, informational and recreational needs of its diverse community in a safe and comfortable environment.
