March 1999
What’s New?
Whoever said that libraries were silent, gloomy
temples of knowledge had it ALL wrong! If you haven't been to the Library for a while,
stop by and take a look.
Although you will still find quiet reading rooms here, the first thing
you will notice is the buzz of activity around the circulation desk. Members are pouring
in all day long. They are thrilled to find that most of the latest books they have read
about are already on our New Books shelf.
Students are pleased to note that our collection includes hundreds of
required texts that are impossible to find elsewhere. First-time visitors are amazed that
such a vast and broad collection can be found right here in Montpellier.
The French-English conversation groups (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday
5 - 6:30 PM) are filled with enthusiastic participants.
Our Internet computers are constantly busy with students sending e-mail
to family and friends, consulting their home University course schedules or just surfing
the web. We are planning on adding additional machines in the near future.
Our Web site is busy and we are receiving messages from all over the
globe (so many that Kevin has a hard time responding to all of them).
Folks, this is the American Library that Françoise and Kevin have been
dreaming about for these many years. Not only are we fulfilling our mission, but we are
having a great time doing it! That fact that we can usually find long sought books or
articles for patrons and the fact that we can count on our volunteers, members and the
Friends of the American Library for support gives us an immense feeling of satisfaction.
Many thanks to all of you.
CHILDREN'S STORY TIME
With Heather Young
One of our American members, has
graciously offered her time and talent for the benefit of our youngest
"readers". Starting on Wednesday, March 10th, at 4:00 p.m., Heather
will be in charge of Children's Story Time in the Children's Room. Heather will be reading
selected stories for 2-4 year olds every two weeks on Wednesday.
ASSEMBLEE GENERALE
The Annual Meeting (Assemblée Générale) of the
Friends of the American Library was held on Monday, February 8 at 12 noon at the
Library.
We were pleased that many members of our Association were able to
attend this meeting.
If you were not able to join us at the meeting, you may consult the
Annual Report at the Library.
Since our Association is increasingly responsible for financing the
Library's operating costs, we are pleased to announce that our finances are in excellent
shape. Membership is growing and our special events such as the book sales are bringing in
much-needed funds.
Once again, we thank all of you for your dedication. Your time, energy
and generous gifts are what keep our Library growing and improving.
Kevin Lightner - Secretary
COMING UP
WORD for WORD
March 20, 1999
at 5 pm
Maison Pour Tous Marie Curie in Celleneuve
Admission - Free
The San Francisco-based theater troupe, Word
for Word will be back in Montpellier on Saturday, March 20th.
Word for Word stages literary works, using the author's texts verbatim
(including "he says" and "she says") thereby preserving the author's
original intent.
This year's story is the excellent "Rose-Johnny" by Barbara
Kingsolver. The Library has a copy of the story for those of you who would like to read it
before the performance.
This program is made possible by a grant from the Florence Gould
Foundation and support from Air France.
