Checking out what other people treasure in their own bookshelves will be unveiled in a unique and very bookish fund-raiser next month. The tour, Inside Private Libraries, is hosted by Ruth Keeler Memorial Library in North Salem.

The idea is to tour of six private libraries in North Salem from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16. For those that are attending there will be a cocktail reception the evening before.

Invitations will be sent out library supporters, but others who are interested should contact the library and inquire about how much it will cost to join in this special tour and fund-raiser event.

For information, contact Edris Scherer at edris@optonline.net

Another clever fund-raiser is designed to help defray the cost of new chairs for the library’s conference room. Twenty chairs were purchased to match the beautiful table from the Keeler homestead given to the library by the North Salem Historical Society. Local groups and library programs use this room. So far there are opportunities to fund the cost of 17 oak chairs that remain. Cost here is $170 each.

The North Salem Free Library, now called Ruth Keeler Memorial Library, was started in 1932.

Andrew Revkin, the environmental writer for The New York Times, and Putnam County resident, has been named as a winner of the 2008 John Chancellor Award for Excellence in Journalism from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.

Revkin won for his longtime coverage of environmental science, politics of climate change and weather changes. An awards ceremony will be Nov. 19 in New York City.

He writes a blog for the NYTimes called DotEarth: Nine billion people. One planet. In this online chat, he talks about balancing human needs with the earth’s restrictions.

In 1992 he wrote “Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast” (Abbeville Press).

He also wrote The Burning Season” (Houghton Mifflin, 1990; Plume 1994), about Chico Mendes, an Amazon rain forest activist who was killed. The book won a Robert F. Kennedy Book Award and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. It was made into an HBO film starring Raul Julia and directed by John Frankenheimer, which won two Golden Globes and two Emmys.

To read more about the award go to Columbia’s site from this link.

This week’s book suggestion comes from writer Elizabeth Alexander, who was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize. She is a featured speaker next month at Manhattanville College’s Master of Art in Writing Program’s Meet the Writers Literary Series, one of the most interesting writers conferences in the region that is in its 10th year.

“The book on my mind these days is ‘The Essential Gwendolyn Brooks.’ (Library of America, 2005). Brooks becomes more and more necessary to me each passing year. Her work continues to unfold for me,” writes Anderson, who edited the publication that traces Brooks’ poetry career “in all its ambitious scope and unexpected stylistic shifts.”

Alexander, in her own right, is a poet, essayist, playwright, and teacher. She has written four books of poems, “The Venus Hottentot,” ” Body of Life,” ” Antebellum Dream Book,” and “American Sublime,”  a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize. A scholar of African-American literature and culture, she has also published a collection of essays, “The Black Interior.” Anderson, as well, is a recipient of numerous awards and honors including the 2007 Jackson Prize for Poetry awarded by Poets & Writers.

You can hear Anderson at 7 p.m. Oct. 7 at Manhattanville College’s Reid Castle.

“Meet the Writers” reading series is housed in Reid Castle. The series includes selections of master classes, craft seminars, panel discussions (meet the agents and editors) and readings by prominent published poets and writers. The readings are free, open to the public and include a reception and a Q&A. Panel discussions with agents and editors Craft seminars are also open to the public. “Meet the Writers” master classes welcome the public as well as students at Manhattanville and require pre-registration and a fee.

For information or to reserve a place, call (914) 323-5300.

A new national poll touts that nearly 70 percent of Americans have library cards. This being September, otherwise known as Library Card Sign-Up Month, librarians are urging those in the roughly 30 percent category to come onboard.

Do you have one of these? If not, this month is the time to sign up. Having a card allows you to take out books and videos, reserve items, check things online, use computer terminals in the library, attend programs and lots of other services from your community library. These are just sample cards from Putnam, Westchester and Rockland county libraries. So, if something similar is not in your wallet, you are missing out on local services.

HarrisInteractive surveyed 2,710 U.S. adults online between August 11 and 17 and released these conclusion Monday:

•Certain groups are more likely to have a library card then others – Echo Boomers (those between 18-31) are more likely to have one over other age categories (70% versus 68-65%); women over men (73% versus 62%); Hispanics over African Americans and Whites (72% versus 67% and 66%); Midwesterners (72%) and Westerners (71%) over Easterners (65%) and Southerners (63%);

•Politically there is also a difference as Democrats are more likely to have a library card over Republicans and Independents (71% versus 67% and 61%); and,

•Over one-third (35%) of people with a library card have used the library 1 to 5 times in the past year and 15 percent have used it more than 25 times in the past year.

According to Regina A. Corso, Director of The Harris Poll, “Two-thirds of Americans are currently taking advantage of their library resources and among all Americans it is clear the educational aspect of libraries is recognized as such an important source in the community.”

The survey also notes that three quarters (76%) of those with a library card visited their libraries last year, while two in five (41%) visited their library online.

And, whether they use the library or not, all Americans have a point of view about their local library: Almost all Americans (92%) say they view their local library as an important education resource. Seven in ten agreed their local library is a pillar of the community (72%), a community center (71%), a family destination (70%), and a cultural center (69%).

In honor of the 20th anniversary celebration tonight for the Hudson Valley Writers’ Center, I ‘d like to acknowledge the writers and book lovers this group is featuring at its annual fall event.

The Sleepy Hollow-based writer’s group will honor writer Benjamin Cheever; writer/educator Brenda Connor-Bey who is Poet Laureate of Greenburgh; and co-founder Donald Stever, for their long-term contributions to the success of HVWC. The evening will feature a special reading by former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins of North Salem, who has been a supporter of the Center for many years. The Katonah Studio Jazz Band will play throughout the evening.

The Writers’ Center serves more than 6,000 people annually with a range of day and evening programs and workshops.

The honorees:

Benjamin Cheever:

Four novels—”The Plagarist,” (Atheneum, 1992) ” The Partisan,” (Atheneum, 1994) ” Famous After Death,” (Bloomsbury, 2000) and “The Good Nanny: A Novel” (Bloomsbury, 2004)—and two nonfiction works, “Selling Ben Cheever” (Bloomsbury, 2001) and “Strides: Running Through History With an Unlikely Athlete” (Rodale, 2007). He is also the editor of “The Letters of John Cheever” (Simon & Schuster, 1988).

Brenda Connor-Bey:

Author of “Tribute: A Rainbow of Praises”, co-author of the one-woman play, “The Head Lady: The Story of Madam C.J. Walker.” Her poems appear in numerous anthologies, “Confirmation: An Anthology of African American Women” (edited by Amina & Amiri Baraka, Wm. Morrow), “Working Classics: Poems on Industrial Life” (University of Pittsburgh), “Obsidian II: Black Literature in Review” (North Carolina State University), New Rain 7 (Blind Beggar Press), “The Writer in All of Us” (edited by June Gould, Ph.D., Dodd Mead).

Billy Collins:

“The Apple That Astonished Paris: Poems” (University of Arkansas Press, 2006) , “The Trouble with Poetry and Other Poems” (Random House, 2005), “Sailing Around the Room: New and Selected Poems” (Random House, 2001).

Donald Stever:

An environmental attorney who has worked alongside his wife Margo Stever, a poet, in establishing the HVWC .

Novelist Mercy Ama Anim will be featured Saturday at Origin Books, Art & Coffee  in Nanuet. A native of Ghana, she will discuss her journey as a writer and sign her books.

She has written two novels:

•“Mrs. Doctor” discusses a woman’s rise from humble beginnings to a position of status. •“Love is Not Enough” tells of a man no woman is able to hold and the ultimate price he has to pay for his sins.
Anim will be at Origin from 3 to 6 p.m. It’s in the Nanuet Mall, 75  West Route 59; 845-215-9482

And don’t rush away when that is done, because at 6 p.m. the store is hosting a Poet’s Cafe that continues until 9 p.m. 

The Iraq war comes front and center this weekend during two programs at the Chappaqua Library. These two events are sure to get you thinking and prompt some  interesting conversation.

Chappaqua Librarian, Shelby Monroe, convinced the 101st Airborne Division to allow her to work as an embedded reporter.  She joined the 1st Brigade on their 2005 and 2007 deployments. Shelby will share her experiences in a talk entitled, “From the Stacks to Iraqi: A Librarian’s Journey” at the Chappaqua Library at 7:30 p.m. Friday. It is free and open to the public. You can check out her blog  which has details and photos.

On Saturday is a continuation of a program, “Israel and the Arabs: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.” It begins with a lecture, “When Israel and the Arabs Were Allies” by Dr. Peter Feinman. This will be followed by the film “Can You Hear Me? Israeli and Palestinian Women Fight for Peace,” narrated by Debra Winger. The producer of the film, Lilly Rivlin, will add her commentary after the film. This program is cosponsored with The Institute of History, Archaeology and Education. It begins at 10 a.m. and is also free and open to the public.

The library is at 195 South Greeley Ave.

It’s taken very little time at all to put together a biography of the newest sensation in politics, Republican V.P. Candidate Sarah Palin. And it will be out in stores next month giving the public nearly four weeks to read it before Election Day.

The book, “Sarah Palin: A New Kind of Leader” by Joe Hilley comes on Oct. 10 from Zondervan Books, an Evangelical publisher of Bibles and Christian books for children and adults. It is a HarperCollins Company.

Here’s how the book was explained on Zondervan’s Web site:

”(Hilley) will explore themes from her career in politics, her life as a hockey mom, and her strongly held Christian faith, explaining how they influence her new style of leadership and align with our changing economy in the information age.”

The author is a lawyer, who has written Christian-based novels.

I for one, will be curious to how it sells and at which stores. And which libraries get the first copies…. Anyone for adding your name to a waiting list?

West Harrison author Dave Donelson released his latest novel this week.

He describes Heart of Diamonds “as a romantic thriller about love, scandal, and death in the Congo, draws heavily on Donelson’s travels in Africa and extensive research of events in the war-ravaged land at the center of the continent.”

The book’s plot includes diamond smuggling, civil war in the Congo, intrigue in the White House, as well as a magnificent chase along crocodile-infested rivers, overland through raging gun battles, and into the sky in armed helicopters. One Amazon reviewer said, “There’s enough sometimes-bloody action and intense suspense to please the most demanding thriller addict.”

“There’s a big romantic love triangle in the plot, too,” Donelson adds. “The heroine, Valerie Grey, is a TV reporter who receives a marriage proposal from her long-time lover just before she leaves for the Congo on assignment. But then she meets an altruistic doctor in Africa, Jaime Talon, and the sparks fly. I think the romance adds depth to the book.”

Donelson is a freelance writer and photographer whose byline has appeared in The Christian Science Monitor, Westchester Magazine, and Disney’s FamilyFun. He is also a trustee of the Westchester Library System and assures us that the book is available in local libraries as well as bookstores.

“Heart of Diamonds” is his third book, but he says it is his first foray into the thriller genre. “I wanted to write something that captures the vibrancy and complexity of Africa, and a suspenseful adventure with overtures of romance seemed like the perfect approach,” he says.

The novel also addresses the major issues facing the Congo and much of Africa. “The people of the Democratic Republic of Congo face so many human challenges that they just had to have a big place in the book,” Donelson says. “More than five million people have died there since 1998—making what’s known as the Second Congo War the deadliest conflict since World War II. And it’s still going on!” Donelson writes about rape as a weapon of terror, child soldiers, widespread corruption at all levels of government, and the very sad plight of the hundreds of thousands of refugees from the violence that continues to wrack the nation.

“My wife, Nora, and I traveled to Africa twice to research the book,” Donelson explains. “As a journalist, I’m a stickler for detail. Seeing the landscape and meeting the people face-to-face was the only way to achieve the level of authenticity I want.” He adds that he took thousands of photographs in Uganda and Zambia, many of which are used as graphic chapter headings in the book.

Heart of Diamonds is published by Kunati Books and was named Independent Publisher of the Year at the 2008 Book Expo America.

Graymoor Spiritual Life Center in Garrison hosts The Journal News/LoHud.com religion writer Gary Stern tonight in what is sure to be a thought-provoking program. He will be speaking about Christian-Muslim Relations: Where are we? Where do we go from here? And how do we get there?

Stern is the author of the well-received book “Can God Intervene?: How Religion Explains Natural Disasters” (Praeger Publishers, 2007). In it he explored what various religions teach and how each guides people to understand natural and personal tragedies.

This evening’s informal discussion will be at 7:30pm in John XXIII Parlor. All are welcome to attend.

The Graymoor Spiritual Life Center is on Route 9 in Garrison, five miles north of Peekskill and 13 miles south of Interstate 84. For infomation, call 845-424-3671, ext 2111.