To the Library and Beyond Another week has passed, and we’ve been busy at the library, despite the colder weather! On Tuesday February 17, we had guest speaker and children’s author/artist Laura Beth Shurtliff presenting and reading her debut children’s book “The Little Hummingbird” at our kids’ story hour at 10am. This is a very nice story, with beautiful illustrations by the author. She gave a great rendition of her book and brought several copies of it for purchase by library patrons. The story hour was well-attended by 9 adults and 15 kids. As Tuesdays are the library’s busiest day, we had 55 patrons that day, and 51 books/items were loaned. Joan’s book review for this week is a nonfiction work titled “The Zookeeper’s Wife”, by Diane Ackerman and published in 2007. This is the true story of the Warsaw, Poland zoo and how it fared during the German occupation of Warsaw during World War II. The zookeepers were Jan and Antonina Zabinski. The book describes the zoo, its animals and habitats before the war began and then what happened to the animals during the war. It also describes the Jewish Warsaw ghetto and some of the atrocities committed by the Nazis. And it tells the story of the zoo’s house that was lived in by the zookeepers and how they sheltered many Warsaw citizens and hid them from the Nazis. The book is writtenfrom the perspective of the zookeepers and how they struggled with everyday life, as well as Jan’s work with the Polish Resistance movement called the Warsaw Underground. For people not familiar with the conditions in Poland during the Nazi occupation, this is a very enlightening book. Just a reminder that our library gratefully accepts any book donations from our area residents when they are seeking a place to donate them! Last year in 2025, the library received many book donations and we really appreciate them! The donations, in additions to any books we purchase, help to keep our library updated and appealing to lots of folks. We also appreciate our volunteers who donate their time and efforts to helping the library function and adding our new books to the shelves. If you would like to volunteer at the library, just come on in and see us! | COTTONWOOD
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