Monday, October 7, 2013

Let Loose in the Library!

Sisters in Crime Barb Goffman, Sherry Harris, Shari Randall, Ellen Crosby, and Donna Andrews.
As someone who loves libraries, I think they are pretty wonderful places, but I've often wondered how they could be made even more wonderful. Perhaps add music? A bountiful buffet of gourmet treats? A dessert table? A bar? How about inviting authors to hang out, so readers have a chance to chat with the creators of their favorite books?
All of these elements became reality Saturday night as the Fairfax Library Foundation hosted its Let Loose In the Library fundraiser at the Burke Center Library in Burke, Virginia. Guests enjoyed all of the above and at the same time raised funds to support library initiatives such as the Summer Reading Program for children, ebooks, Fall for the Book's Fairfax Prize, and the Changing Lives Through Literature book discussion program, an alternative to formal court action for juvenile offenders.
The Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime was well represented. Ellen Crosby signed copies of her exciting new thriller, Multiple Exposure; Donna Andrews showcased her new Meg Langslow mystery, Duck the Halls; Sherry Harris enticed us with news of her upcoming Yard Sale series; and Barb Goffman had the perfect reading for the upcoming Halloween holiday: her Don't Get Mad, Get Even collection and the new anthology, All Hallow's Evil. I got in on the action, signing the Chesapeake Crimes: This Job Is Murder anthology.
A wonderful time thanks to these lovely ladies who love libraries, too. 

16 comments:

  1. Looks like fun! I love libraries, too.

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  2. It sounds like a wonderful event, Shari. I wish I could have attended, but I live too far away. I love libraries, too, but except for special events like these, don't add music to the library experience. I love music, but everyone has different tastes in music and I prefer the relative quiet for browsing.

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  3. Hi Gayle - thanks for stopping by!

    Gloria - I know what you mean - the quiet you can find in a library is a rare thing. For the party, the string quartet was just the right touch.

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  4. Hi Warren - Sure are! Let's just hope they survive this time of tight budgets.

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  5. Shari, terrific post! I'm excited to read about the Changing Lives Through Literature Program. Wounds like a great concept.

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  6. Excuse me, that should have been "Sounds like a great concept" instead of "Wounds"!

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  7. Looks like it was a wonderful event, Shari. I hope it was a wildly successful fundraiser.

    I'd like to learn more about the Changing Lives Through Literature program too.

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  8. Thanks for inviting me, Shari! What a fun evening!! Lovely to see you and meet your charming husband. You'll have to let us know about that wine-tasting you two won. :)

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  9. I love this idea, Shari! I may have to see if our local chapter of SinC, Border Crimes, can do something like this with one of our local libraries. I'm another who'd like info on the Changing Lives Through Literature program. Maybe another blog post there?

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  10. Hi Paula, Kara, Ellen and Linda - Changing Lives through Literature is a fantastic program. I will definitely blog about that in the future....and about the wine tasting!

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  11. That looks like a great time, Shari! Thanks for sharing!

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  12. Libraries are a tremendous benefit to all our communities, and deserve all the support we can give them. They are one of the few resources that are available to all of us on an equal footing.

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  13. Thanks for stopping by, KM. I think libraries are one of the things that make communities, well, communities.

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  14. Thanks for stopping by, KM. I think libraries are one of the things that make communities, well, communities.

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  15. I'm sorry that I missed the event, Shari. I'm on the road a lot this fall. The event must have been very successful with all of those authors. So glad you had a great time!

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