GCL to Introduce Sleuther Mystery Book Club

Get out your magnifying glasses and deer stalkers because the Garland County Library is starting a new mystery  book club.  The Sleuthers will convene the third Saturday of each month at 10 a.m., beginning January 21st, to discuss classic and contemporary mysteries. Our first case is a classic: Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep, one of the finest detective novels ever and a masterpiece of hard boiled fiction.  We will sift the book for clues (or clews as I like to say, but I'm an unapologetic, dyed in the wool Anglophile) in our discussion, watch the 1948 film version with Bogey and Bacall, have a snack, and get to know our fellow detectives.  Space is limited.  To find out how you can be a Sleuther, call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483.

Bingo

       Versions of Bingo have been played around the world since the year 1530. The game was first recorded as an Italian gamed called “Lo Giuoco del Lotto d’Italia,” meaning an Italian lotto. France, in the eighteenth century, added playing cards, tokens and verbal commands to their version of the game. By the nineteenth century, Germany had taken the game to use as an educational tool to teach children to spell and use basic math. In the 1920’s Hugh J. Ward introduced modern bingo to America in the Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania areas through traveling carnivals. He later went on to copyright the word “bingo” and publish an official rule book in 1933. Around Atlanta in late 1929, Edwin Lowe took what he learned of the game to New York where he taught his friends to play. They used bean markers, rubber stamps and cardboard game pieces just has Ward had. Lowe later commercialized the game by selling two versions, a 12-card set for $1.00 and a 24-card set for $2.00. By the 1940’s Bingo was being played throughout America.


      Bingo is usually played on a 5x5 cardboard game piece with the letters BINGO printed across the five vertical columns. Each column spans a specific number of letters and the center space is usually marked “free.” The numbers called out are randomly drawn and a bean or similar marker is used to cover the corresponding number on the game board. A bingo happens in various ways depending on the individual game. Some games require only one number to be matched while others require an entire board to be covered.

      The Garland County Library offers its own version of bingo. “Bingo for Books” is hosted library employee Amber Thomas. Amber has her own set of rules and a variety of prizes. One round of bingo goes on until three different people have won a book from the prize cart or a $5 gift card to Books-A-Million. Special bingo is won when a specific pattern chosen by the caller is covered. The prize for a special bingo is a $25 gift card to Books-A-Million. Books from the prize card include new releases from authors such as: Danielle Steel, Tami Hoag, David Baldacci, Ken Follett, James Patterson, Jodi Picoult, Stephenie Meyer, Khaled Hosseini and many others.

Register now for Bingo for Books held January 9th, from 2:00 to 3:30.

Holiday Kindle Giveaway Sweepstakes

The Garland County Library will make the holiday season more cheery for five lucky readers.  At a Holiday Party at the library, 1427 Malvern Ave., on Wednesday, December 21^st from 9:30-11 am, random drawings will be held to give away five Amazon Kindle e-readers. 

            “Since we’ve started offering ebook downloads through our website, the questions we’ve fielded about ebook readers have increased tremendously,” Karen Covey of the library said.  “Since this is the season of giving, we thought Kindles would make great gifts for our patrons.”

            Drawing slips for the Kindle giveaway will be available at the library starting Wednesday, December 14^th.  “You can put in as many slips as you like,” Covey said, “but we’re limiting the winners to one per household in order to spread the holiday cheer around.  We hope that people will come to our party, have some cider and snacks, and possibly be a winner.  You don’t have to attend the party to win, however.”

            The party and prizes are both sponsored by the Friends of the Garland County Library.  For more information, call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483.

GCL Book Cart Drill Team Takes Home Trophy

The Garland County Library's book cart drill team, Santa's Little Shelvers, was awarded a trophy for their performance in Monday night's Downtown Christmas Parade.  The silver cup, for "Most Decorated Non-Float," was awarded at a ceremony at the Arlington Hotel Tuesday, December 6th.  Santa's Little Shelvers consist of Katie Allen, Brittany Chavez, Jill Henson, Tiffany Hough, Erin Louton, and Greg Wallace.  They are coached by Karen "Fancy Hands" Covey.  In addition to the team, the shelvers were accompanied by candy throwers Donna Rusher, Brook Olsen, Melissa Morgan, and John Wells.  Kim Hillison provided hay and transportation.  "It was cold and wet out there," Karen Covey said, "but we proved that Santa's Shelvers are the best book cart drill team in town."  Santa's Little Shelvers are sponsored by the Friends of the Garland County Library.

70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor

"December 7th 1941, a date which will live in infamy." -President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

70 years ago, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the US Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This event forced the United States, which had adopted a doctrine of isolationism, to declare war and thus enter into the fray of World War II. The United States Congress declared war against Japan the next day, changing the entire course of human history.

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a profound moment in American history, one that touched the lives of each and every American, and still does today. The library will host a discussion of these events and how they impacted the lives of the people of Garland County on December 7th at 12 noon. The discussion, titled "The Impact of World War II on Hot Springs" will be led by historian Liz Robbins of the Garland County Historical Society and will include a vintage home movie taken in downtown Hot Springs in 1944, offering a rare glimpse into what life was like then.

Later that night at 6 pm, the library will host a USO Concert with Shirley Chauvin and her band. Chauvin will be playing popular music of the day including jazz and swing. Registration is required for both programs, so call or come by the library: 1427 Malvern Ave. Hot Springs, AR 71901 - (501)623-4161 or (501)922-4483.

GCL to Host Pre-Thanksgiving "Thank You" Party

The Garland County Library will host a patron appreciation get together Wednesday, November 23^rd from 9:30 until 11 am.

“This is our way of gearing up for Thanksgiving and saying thanks to our great patrons who have kept us busier than ever this year,” Karen Covey, Circulation Supervisor, said. “We will have hot cider, coffee, some pastries, and give away a few prizes. Even if you’re on your way out of town for the holiday, this will be a great chance to stop by and pick up an audio book for the drive, have a warm drink, and get in the holiday spirit.”

Tony Webb, a local musician and library employee, will serenade guests with his classical guitar. He will neither confirm nor deny whether "To Grandmother's House We Go" is part of his repertoire. The library is located at 1427 Malvern Ave. For more information, call 623-4161 or 922-4483.

Even More Exciting Changes!

Just when you thought things here at the Library couldn't get any more exciting....
You. Were. Wrong!

We have added some rad new movies to our collection. Ever heard of Trollhunter? Didn't think so, but you should check it out. This Norwegian mockumentary features shakey camera work, cool special effects, and an awesomely original plot. Reserve it right now!

Graphic novelist Sam Keith's 90's MTV animated miniseries, The Maxx, is also on order. For anyone who likes graphic novels, MTV, or the 90's, this DVD is a must watch.

Cannibal! The Musical! From Matt Stone and Trey Parker this musical paved the path of their groundbreaking careers.

So much for obscurity, here are some other big name movies the Library offers:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two
Horrible Bosses
The Help
Captain America: the First Avenger
Super 8
Bridesmaids
The People vs George Lucas
Beats, Rhymes, & Life: the Travels of a Tribe Called Quest
and the list just goes on and on and on.

Besides all the new movies, new fancy computer system, and new Overdrive features; the Library is improving its appearance. Our additional parking lot is looking good and is nearing completion, so no more parking in neighboring lots. And best of all, we are getting new carpet throughout the entire building. Starting around the 14th, we will be moving shelves and making a mess but the end result will be great: a pretty new floor!

"Fair is fair!" - Billie Jean Davy

Exciting changes at the Garland County Library

There are a few things different, or soon to be different, at the Garland County Library. First of all is that our ebook vendor, Overdrive, is now Amazon Kindle compatible! This opens our service to a large number of library patrons, given that the Kindle is the most popular e-reader on the market by a large margin. This deal between Overdrive and Amazon has increased the demand for ebooks at the libary, so we've been busy adding tons of new titles. Go to http://garland.lib.overdrive.com/ to check it out.

Also, the library is in the process of getting a new Integrated Library System, which is what we use to catalog books, check items in and out, and do all of our library business. All of the new systems that we looked at are capable of email notification, which is something that is often requested by patrons but is not an option with our current system. So, the library is currently asking patrons to let us know their email address. This will allow the library to more efficiently inform patrons of hold notifications, give courtesy reminders of items about to become due, and library program registration reminders as well, among other things. As always, library patron records are strictly confidential and the library will not share your information with anyone.

These are exciting times for the library and we're happy for the opportunity to serve you better.

Library Offers Murder, Most English

In honor of Halloween, we’re taking a look at some of the best and creepiest mystery series of the British TV invasion. Again, I need to thank our own Miss Marple, Karen Covey, for sleuthing out these great titles and adding her 2 pence about them.

“From Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie up to P.D. James and Ruth Rendell, the Brits have a knack for writing enthralling and complex mysteries,” Karen said. “These shows have the same level of ingenuity and atmosphere in addition to great acting. The library is a great way to get addicted to British mysteries.”

This is Karen’s list:

Inspector Morse: The great John Thaw in his best known role as cranky, opera loving Inspector Morse and Kevin Whatley as the much put upon Sergeant Lewis. With logic, dry wit and ale they solve an immeasurable number of murders that occur in Oxford, England

Prime Suspect: Award winning actress Helen Mirren potrays DCI Jane Tennyson. DCI Tennyson fights for a place in a male dominated profession as she faces many personal demons of her own while pursuing the scourge of London. Due to the disturbing story line, this gritty crime drama is not for the weak.

Cracker: Robbie Coletrane portrays criminal psychologist, Edward Fitzgerald, who by his own admission drinks and gambles to much. Fitz as he is known is able to alienate just about everyone he comes in contact with-criminal and detectives.

Dalziel and Pascoe: Detective Superintendent Andrew Dalziel is another robust, brash anti-hero crime solving genius. He partners with the well-educated but polar opposite Detective Sergeant Peter Pascoe to solve the crimes that plague Yorkshire, England.

Midsomer Murders is a favorite among British Mysteryophiles. DCI Tom Barnaby solves the grisly murders that overwhelm the fictional county of Midsomer. His clever and laidback manner in solving these crimes sometimes irks those who work under him.

In addition to these murderously good titles, Karen recommends these series for those who enjoy the traditional Golden Age cozy mysteries: Agatha Christie, Herucle Poirot, Lord Peter Wimsey, Inspector Roderick Alleyn, Inspector Lynley.

And these are “good, gritty mysteries,” according to Karen: Wire in the Blood, Touch of Evil, Rebus, Vice.

Next month, we’ll take a look at some of the best British miniseries. Til then, we’ll see you Sherlocks at the library.

Documentary Madness

To celebrate its 20^th year, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival has scheduled an amazing line-up of documentaries from all over the world. The historic Malco theater in downtown Hot Springs provides a great atmosphere for the yearly festival. The festival kicked off on opening night with a performance from ‘The Foul Play Cabaret’-Hot Springs’ own relatively new burlesque troupe. There have been numerous workshops, including film making tips and graffiti art appreciation. Never does Central Avenue get more crowded than when the marquee lights come on signifying the beginning of this fantastic display of talent from places in the universe that many of us will never get to see with our own eyes. Directors fly in from all directions to speak of the films they have devoted so much of their lives and time to. Dan Anderson, the film fest director and Jim Miller, the assistant director have lost more sleep in the last month then anyone may ever know. They have been tirelessly viewing final cuts, reading artists’ bios, making international phone calls, and tying up every lose end in sight. The Malco volunteers have cancelled their plans and nixed their social calendars in order to ensure that concession stands are being manned, seats are being found in the darkness of the theaters, and filmmakers are being treated like the celebrities they’ve become if only for this moment. The dedicated screening committee volunteers watched hundreds of hours of films and sat through heated debates to pick only the very best for this year’s festival. One film everyone agreed on was “All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert,” about an artist who shapes and dyes intricate leather pictures of moments from his past. This film is showing Friday, October 21^st at 6:00 pm and his art will be on display at The Taylor Gallery in downtown Hot Springs. Another must see film is the Arkansas premier of “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory” about the recently freed West Memphis Three. This film will only be shown on Friday the 21^st at 8:35pm. And for a little comic relief, be sure to check out “The Vacuum Kid.”

The Garland County Library also has a huge selection of documentary films. Award winners like “The King of Kong,” biographical films like “Marwencol,” and just plain awesome documentaries like “Speedo: a Demolition Derby Love Story.” Come check out a film, take it home, and make your own popcorn.

Get more out of life… Go to a movie!

Library Staff Member Wins Video Award

Brook Olsen had the winning entry in the Arkansas Library Association's "Why I Love My Library" Video Contest. Congratulations to Brook! We can't wait for the sequel.

GCL Hosts Holdenathon in Honor of Banned Books Week

(Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

The Garland County Library will host a marathon reading of J.D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye” on Saturday, September 24^th, starting at 10 a.m. The event will celebrate both the 60^th anniversary of the publication of Salinger’s classic novel and Banned Books Week, the American Library Association’s annual event which highlights the threats to the freedom to read posed by the hundreds of challenges to books in schools and libraries every year.

“We wanted to do something different this year for Banned Books Week and reading ‘Catcher in the Rye’ aloud seemed like a fun way to celebrate the freedom to read,” Greg Wallace, organizer of the event, said. “Due to some curse words and themes some people may object to, ‘Catcher in the Rye’ is one of the most frequently challenged classics in the United States.”

When “The Catcher in the Rye” was published in July, 1951, Salinger’s tale of runaway preppy Holden Caulfield’s lost weekend in New York City not only became an immediate best seller and classic of teenaged alienation, but also a favorite target of censors, according to data compiled by the American Library Association and available at its website (www.ala.org).

In 1960, a teacher in Tulsa, OK was fired for assigning “The Catcher in the Rye” to an eleventh grade English class. The teacher appealed and was reinstated by the school board, but the book was removed from use in the school.

The book has been challenged dozens of times since, usually on grounds of containing obscenity and sexual references. As recently as 2009, “Catcher” was challenged in the Big Sky High School in Missoula, MT.

“If you’ve never read it, this is a great chance to find out what all the fuss is about,” Wallace said. “If you’ve read it before, then you know it’s a story that bears re-reading, especially for Salinger’s inventive use of the teenaged voice of Holden Caulfield, which is always amusing and sometimes heartbreaking.”

“We plan to read the entire book cover to cover,” Wallace continued, “even if we have to stay ‘til midnight to do it. We’re hoping that we’ll have plenty of volunteers to read. As an incentive, we’ve got a hunting cap like the one Holden wears in the book for the readers to wear while they read.

“Also, we’re giving away door prizes and we’ll serve plenty of snacks, so I hope lots of people will celebrate the freedom to read by joining us, whether they drop in for a chapter or two or stay from ‘if you really want to hear about it’ through ‘don’t ever tell anybody anything—if you do, you start missing everybody,’” Wallace said, referring to the iconic opening and closing lines of “Catcher.”

For more information about Banned Books Week or the “Catcher” marathon, call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483.

GCL to Honor "Our Heroes" with Display

Beginning September 11^th, 2011, the Garland County Library will offer a chance for local residents to honor armed service members, fire, police, and rescue responders of the past and present by adding personal messages to a display entitled “Our Heroes.”

“We want to do something to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks and also to recognize the 70^th anniversary of Pearl Harbor on December 7^th,” said Karen Covey, Circulation Supervisor at the library and organizer of the “Heroes” project. “So our display will run through early December to coincide with some other Pearl Harbor Day programming we have planned.”

Those interested in contributing to the display, which will form a U.S. flag-shaped mural, may obtain sheets from the library to fill out with information about their personal heroes.

“People may also want to attach a small picture to their submissions, or personalize it in other ways,” Covey said. “Unfortunately, to make sure as many people as possible get to honor their heroes, the submissions will be limited to armed service members and first responders, and to the size of the formatted sheets we offer. We can’t wait to watch the display grow and have a daily reminder of all the wonderful men and women who make sacrifices to make sure we’re all safe and secure.”

For more information, or to find out how you can contribute to the “Heroes” display, visit the library at 1427 Malvern Avenue or call 623-4161 or 922-4483.

Library award winners: past, present and future

From what we can glean from our patron comment slips, we run a pretty tight ship here at the Garland County Library. We receive feedback forms with comments such as,

"Best library in Arkansas!!!"
"a wonderful experience every time me and my family visit"
"Library staff is great! Always very helpful!"
"Miss Tiffany is the best!"

on a regular basis. This is truly one of the more rewarding aspects of our job: knowing that we are doing well by you, the patrons, but it is also very fulfilling to know that our work is being appreciated by the library community as a whole.

Recently two of our library staff have received awards for excellence in service. While they are too modest to go around telling everybody, I have no problem bragging for them. This year, the library has two award winners. Your library director, John Wells, has received the Distinguished Service Award from the Arkansas Library Association for his long and, well, distinguished career at the Garland County Library. Our second award winner is Kim Hillison who has won the Lorrie Shuff Paraprofessional Award for outstanding service. These two fine folks join past Garland County Library award winners Donna Rusher (also winner of the Lorrie Shuff Paraprofessional Award) and Tiffany Hough (winner of the Anne Lightsey Children's Librarian Award).

The library has another potential award winner in its midst. Brook Olsen, library clerk, has entered a video in the "Why I love my library" video contest through the Arkansas Library Association.



The winner of the video contest will be announced during this year's Arkansas Library Association conference in September. We think it is pretty great and we hope you (and the judges) do too!

Labor Day!

image courtesy wikicommons

On Monday, September 5th, the Garland County Library will be closed for Labor Day.

Embarrassingly enough, I was unaware, after all these years, the meaning behind Labor Day. As it turns out, the first Labor Day was celebrated on September 5th, 1882 by the Central Labor Union of New York, which was the first integrated major trade union (Labor Day is always celebrated on the first Monday of September).

Labor Day became a federal holiday under President Grover Cleveland in 1894 after the Pullman Strike.

What was the Pullman Strike? It was the bloodiest and most widely-known strike concerning the railroad. The "wildcat strike" (a strike not authorized by union superiors) originated in Pullman, Illinois after wages were reduced, and included some 3,000 workers, grinding the west side of Chicago to a halt. The number of strikers would grow to 250,000 spanning 27 states at its height.

The bloodbath began after tensions snapped like a rubber band. Companies began hiring strikebreakers, and black workers who feared for their jobs amidst the racial climate crossed the picket lines.

The Central Labor Union, whose leader, Eugene V. Debs (who sympathized and supported the strike), attempted a peaceful gathering in Blue Island, Illinois. Soon afterwards, strikers set fire to buildings and derailed a train. Throughout the United States, strikers and sympathizers began blocking trains, attacking workers, and walking off the job. It became out of hand and the country began asking for government assistance.

Because the strike caused disruptions with the U.S. Mail and threatened public safety, Grover Cleveland sent in 12,000 Army troops and an assortment of U.S. Marshals to take control of the increasingly wild strike.

After all was said and done, 13 strikers were dead and 57 were wounded. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage was caused by the strikers and sympathizers (nearly 9 billion dollars in today's economy).

Enjoy your Labor Day!

School Resources

As you know the school year has begun with students eager to resume their educational careers. The Garland County Library has many resources available to assist students in their learning endeavors. We offer literary classics, books and dvds for help in all subjects and several online databases for library cardholders to use.

The library also offers a large selection of homeschool resource books. If you need information on how to get started homeschooling or where to or how to find homeschool resources, check out our homeschool section. The Children’s library is offering many creative activities for homeschoolers this fall. Homeschool families may also want to check out our booksale room for resources.

GCL to Host Master Gardener Program

The Garland County Library will host a Kitchen and Herb Gardening brown bag lunch presentation by the Garland County Master Gardeners on Friday, August 12^th at 11:30 a.m.

“This will be a great chance to learn how to make sure you have fresh flavors all year round,” Diane Daniel of the Master Gardeners’ education committee said. “We’ll talk about how to choose what herbs to grow for cooking and seasoning and how to take care of them. We’ll also have an herb tasting table so that people can try some things they may not be familiar with.”

Registration is required for the event. Call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483 to reserve a seat. Participants are encouraged to bring a brown bag lunch. Some beverages will be provided.

The End of the Summer Reading Program

The Summer Reading Program Ended Today

Thank you to all who submitted their reviews for the 2011 Summer Reading Program! We had over 530 Adult entries, over 380 Teen entries, and 1067 Children's entries. This year has been the most successful to date.

Lots of work went into reviewing nearly 1,000 library items in at least 50 words. Oftentimes, patrons could be seen accessing the review binders, perhaps to see what others' opinions were on certain books or items, or just for curiosity's sake. Either way, interactive programs such as the Summer Reading Program are very beneficial and exciting for both the Library and the patron and we hope you had as much fun as we did working this program.

The adults chose from audio books, fiction, mystery, non-fiction, and dealer's choice (we pick it - you review it). Each winner, who was called today (7/29) around noon, will receive a Nook e-reader.

Teens must have chosen from the following: young adult fiction, young adult non-fiction, music, video, DVD, or audio book. There were two grand prizes: a Nook e-reader and a Nintendo 3DS. These winners were also informed.

The Children's Summer Reading Program was a little different: The children, aged 12 and under, logged hours of reading or being read to in order to enter for a weekly drawing. The reader (or parent) must create a set goal for a weekly number of hours of reading. Once this goal was met, a book was given away. Over 14,000 hours of reading were logged, which is very inspiring and very cool!

Thanks again to all who participated in this program. Congratulations to all the winners. We'll see you next summer, if you haven't melted by then.

Up, up and away !!!

Adam Webb, our coordinator for young adult programming, conducted a series of programs this summer focused on space exploration and aerodynamics. Using a tactile approach, Adam guided young patrons through the process of constructing paper airplanes, kites and finally a weather balloon. Yesterday afternoon (Tuesday, July 19), Adam launched the 1000 gram weather balloon for a short exploratory mission. Carrying its 2 ½ pound payload: an i-phone 3G, a tracking phone and a few hand-warmers to keep the electronics warm and functional in the -60 degree temperatures at the 100,000 foot apex, the balloon careened spaceward at an estimated 900 feet per second. Mr. Webb tracked the balloon's progress throughout the afternoon. It left Hot Springs heading toward the Ouachita National Forest. Though Mr. Webb lost the initial signal at around 18,000 feet on ascent, the balloon’s signal reappeared briefly at around 20,000 feet and then steadily near 5,000 feet on its descending path. Adam and a small band of amateur outdoorsmen: Chris Hough, Butch Smith and Scott Lewis set out to recover the balloon at 8:30. They were physically able to reach the vessel’s last coordinates, but have not yet been able to locate and retrieve its payload. Still, it was hardly a wasted trip. On the fringes on the Ouachita National Forest away from the pollution of city lights, the Milky Way spills into puddles of light across the apparently diamond studded sky-scape. That sight alone was well worth a couple of tick bites, a few hours on the road and the occasional spider web across the face. Meanwhile, Adam plans to head back to the probe's last known location on Thursday morning to continue the search, which he hopes will yield some equally magnificent pictures (the probe was set to capture 9,000 images).

Revisit Orsini/McArthur Murder Case with Gene Lyons

The Garland County Library’s Murder of the Month Club will present an appearance by author and columnist Gene Lyons on July 17^th at 3 pm. The focus of his talk will be the Orsini/McArthur murders which made headlines in Arkansas thirty years ago.

“The Mary Lee Orsini case is probably the most fascinating crime to have happened in Arkansas,” Karen Covey, Circulation Supervisor at the library, said. “It had so many bizarre elements and odd characters. Even though there were other accounts of the case, Gene Lyons wrote the best one.”

In March, 1981, Little Rock newspapers reported that North Little Rock resident Ron Orsini had been found dead in his bed, victim of a gunshot to the head. Orsini’s wife, Mary Lee, offered inconsistent statements to the North Little Rock Police, who subsequently found that the Orsinis were experiencing financial problems due to Mary Lee’s lavish spending, of which her husband was not aware.

As investigators grew more wary of Mrs. Orsini’s often far-fetched explanations, she hired Bill McArthur, an eminent Little Rock defense attorney, to protect her interests in an upcoming grand jury investigation into Orsini’s murder.

According to Lyons’ book, Mary Lee Orsini quickly became enamored with her attorney, who was married and the father of two children.

On May 21, 1982, McArthur’s wife, Alice, suffered minor injuries when a bomb, which did not fully detonate, exploded in her car near the McArthur’s Pleasant Valley home. Rumors linked the bombing and other suspicious activities to “organized crime.”

On July 2, 1982, while Alice was packing for a family July 4^th trip to Hot Springs, she was fatally shot in her home after she answered her front door for what was apparently a flower delivery. Her body was discovered later the same day by McArthur and a neighbor.

Alice McArthur’s murder ignited jurisdictional debates between the various law enforcement agencies involved in the different facets of the Orsini case and generated headline news throughout the state.

Mary Lee Orsini was eventually arrested for conspiracy to commit murder, after being implicated in the confession of Eugene “Yankee” Hall, who claimed that he and Larry McClendon had committed the McArthur murder.

In October 1982, Orsini was convicted of hiring Hall and McClendon to kill Alice McArthur. She was again tried in 1983 and convicted of the murder of Ron Orsini, though this conviction was later overturned by the Arkansas Supreme Court. She died in prison of an apparent heart attack on August 11, 2003. Bill McArthur died in Little Rock of natural causes on October 4, 2009.

“A synopsis of the case hardly does it justice,” Covey said. “There are so many twists and turns and larger than life characters involved that it takes a great book like Widow’s Web to really bring them all to life.”

Gene Lyons, National Magazine Award winner and columnist for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, writes a weekly column for Newspaper Enterprise Association. A Southerner

with a liberal viewpoint, Lyons comments on politics and national issues with a distinct voice

and a no-nonsense approach. A prolific author, Lyons has written hundreds of articles, essays and reviews for such magazines as Harper’s, The New York Times Magazine, The New York Review of Books, Entertainment Weekly, Washington Monthly, The Nation, Esquire, Slate and Salon. His books include The Higher Illiteracy (University of Arkansas, 1988), Widow’s Web (Simon & Schuster, 1993), Fools for Scandal (Franklin Square, 1996) and, with Joe Conason, The Hunting of the President: The Ten Year Campaign to Destroy Bill and Hillary Clinton (St. Martin’s, 2000). In 2004, Mozark Productions released a movie version of “The Hunting of the President.”
Lyons graduated from Rutgers University in 1965, and earned a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia in 1969. He taught at the Universities of Massachusetts, Arkansas and Texas before becoming a full-time writer in 1976. A native of New Jersey, Lyons has lived in Arkansas with his wife Diane since 1972. Diane, an Arkansas native, recently retired as from her position as Vice President for Board Relations at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Their two adult sons live in the Little Rock area. The Lyons live on a cattle farm near Houston, Ark., with a half-dozen dogs, three horses, and a growing herd of Fleckvieh Simmental cows.

The A&E “City Confidential” documentary on the Orsini case, “Little Rock: The Politics of Murder,” will be screened at 1:30 pm, prior to Lyons’ presentation.

Door prizes will be awarded. Registration is required for the event. Call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483 to reserve a seat.

Sandworms

Beetlejuice, Dune, and Tremors. What do these movies have in common? They are totally awesome? They are highly imaginative? Cult Classics? Well, yes to all those, but most importantly-- Sandworms. Although the sandworms from these amazing films vary greatly in habitat, appearance and diet, they are all fictional desert-dwelling subterranean beasts of mammoth proportions.

Sandworms are as diverse in appearance as they are in habitat. The worms of Tremors dubbed “Graboids” reside in the American West where they terrorize and destroy the small town of Perfection, Nevada. The ‘Shai-Hulud’ of Dune inhabit their own desert planet called ‘Arrakis.’ The Fremen of Dune worship these worms as gods because of their near indestructibility and indefinite lifespans. Consequently, they are also referred to as “old man of the desert,” “old father eternity,” and “grandfather of the desert.” Much less is known about the Beetlejuice worms, simply referred to as “sandworms,” besides that they dwell in an alternate world called ‘Saturn.’ To Adam and Barbara Maitland Saturn is the realm they enter when they leave their house, which is the physical boundary they cannot cross since the time of their death. These three very different behemoths can detect the slightest movement on the sands surface and can attack at lightning speed.

Both the Shai-Hulud and the Graboids have long tubular armored bodies of a muddy brown color, much like the hue of wet sand. Though both are eyeless, their head and mouth features set the two species apart. Based loosely on the Mongolian Death Worm, Graboids head’s have a large trout-like hooked nozzle that opens like a hideous three pedaled flower. It’s multiple tongues are long fleshy snake-like slimy sensors that flop around feeling for food. Though very comical, they are no joke. Perhaps the most grotesque sandworm is the Shai-Hulud. It’s body is similar to a Graboid but instead of a funny looking trout snout its head ends in a mouth like a giant sea lamprey with rows and rows of sharp circular grinding crystal teeth. On the other hand, Beetlejuice’s sandworm has a black and white striped body with a single shark-like dorsal fin protruding halfway down his back. His outer head with blazing red eyes, green snarling lips, and a row of striped teeth peels back to reveal an inner fleshy colored head with rows of jagged fangs and a striped snake shaped tongue. It is absolutely horrifying and definitely the most dazzling of the sandworm species.

Only the Graboids of Tremors have a known taste for blood. They begin terrorizing the small town by maiming sheep, cattle, and horses, but they quickly develop a taste for humans. In Dune, it is said the Shai-Hulud can devour anything with their powerful mouths, yet they prefer to dine on sand plankton. The Shai-Hulud are even credited for creating the sand on the surface of Arrakis by crushing large rocks into tiny dusty sand. It is unknown whether the sandworms of the Saturn realm actually prefer to eat people or if they are provoked by the dead souls wandering from their physical boundaries, though one worm does seem to develop a taste for Betelgeuse at the climax of the film.

So which is the superior sandworm film? Tremors and its Graboid antagonists, starring the Reba McEntire and Kevin Bacon? Dune? A David Lynch cult film based on a science fiction classic series by the legendary author Frank Herbert? Or Beetlejuice with its wonderfully imaginative and colorful worlds created by mastermind director Tim Burton?

Why don’t you decide? Check out Beetlejuice on DVD and read the classic Dune novels by Frank Herbert. Also coming soon, Tremors!! Get your name on the waiting list now!

Gardening Brown Bag Lunch This Friday

The Garland County Library will host a brown bag lunch presentation by Garland County Master Gardener Diane Daniel Friday, June 17th at 11:30 am. The focus of the talk will be on composting and container gardening.

Daniel is a member of the Master Gardeners’ External Education committee, which educates community groups and individuals on gardening topics.

“We had another presentation that Diane gave a couple of months ago and it was a great program,” Karen Covey of the library said. “ She really knows her gardening and presents the information in an entertaining manner. We’re all looking forward to finding out more about container gardening and composting.”

For more information on the Garland County Master Gardeners, email Diane Daniel at arhogfans@hotmail.com or call 501-922-1656. Registration is required for this event. Attendees are encouraged to bring a brown bag lunch. Coffee and water will be provided. Call the library at 623-4161 or 922-4483 to reserve a seat.

Summer Reading Programs are here again

The mercury has hit triple digits, which means that the Garland County Library summer reading programs are starting up. Each and every summer, the library offers reading programs for children, young adults, and adults that encourage readers to read diligently during the dog days of summer by offering fabulous prizes for reading and writing reviews. While the rules for each program vary slightly, the spirit is the same.

For children, the program goes like this: starting June 13th, the children's library will have their big kick-off. At the kick-off, participants ages 12 and under will be given a reading log. For every hour that they read, are read to, or listen to an audiobook, they'll be entered into a weekly drawing for awesome prizes. When you register, you will also set a reading goal for total hours read. When you reach that goal, you win a free book. How cool is that!

The young adult and adult reading programs have already started. The set-up is a little different: in addition to reading, you'll have to write a review. The review must be 50 words or more, so you can't just say "I really, really, really, really, (etc) liked it." For every review you return, your name will be put in for a prize drawing. For the adult department, the prizes are e-book readers! They will be giving away 5 ebook readers, one for each category, to five lucky people. The young adult department's program is the same, except there will be prize packs awarded to a winner from each category (YA fiction, YA non-fiction, music, video game, DVD, and audiobook) and two grand prizes out of the remaining entries. The grand prizes are a NookColor and a Nintendo 3DS. It should go without saying that the more entries you do, the better your chances of winning are, but I'm going to say it anyway.

So, get your card, come down to the library, and get started. As you are reading this, others are hard at work reading and writing reviews, so time's a wastin'!

Andrew Jackson vs. Charles Dickinson

Andrew Jackson’s face adorns the $20 bill.

The grave of Charles Dickinson is unknown.

Charles Dickinson is remembered, if at all, as “That guy Andrew Jackson killed in a duel.” The proper way to word that phrase is:

“He’s one of the guys Andrew Jackson killed in a duel.”

They used to say when he walked, he rattled like a jar of marbles due to the fact that he was so full of bullets from his many duels, which have been numbered at 13 (the “official count”) to well into the hundreds. Despite a life saturated with savage violence and heartbreak, Andrew Jackson is frequently placed in “top ten” lists of best U.S. Presidents of all time.

Jackson was adoringly and reverently referred to as “Old Hickory.” He wasn’t feared as a particularly unscrupulous politician, but feared more as a lunatic who would knock on your door at two in the morning and kill you. While this was only partially true, his reputation as a man best left alone amidst personal confrontation was cemented after many repeated attempts on his life were averted, both in and out of office.

Jackson was the first sitting President whose life was put in danger. A seaman named Robert B. Randolph was discharged from the Navy by Andrew Jackson for embezzlement. On May 6^th, 1833, in Alexandria, Virginia, Randolph threw a punch at the President and ran like a coward, and a mob which included author Washington Irving chased him down. Jackson brushed his shoulder off and declined pressing charges. No big deal. He’d seen much, much worse.

He fought in the Revolutionary War at age 13, for instance, and was taken prisoner by the British along with his brother, Robert. After refusing to polish a British officer’s boots, young Andrew was beaten and slashed with a sword, leaving permanent scars on his head, hands, and body. While his father died three months before he was born, every other member of his immediate family (including his mother) died as direct result of the Revolutionary War. Andrew Jackson developed an intense hatred for the British because of this, and blamed them for causing him to be an orphan at the brittle age of 14.

At the age of 35, he was a colonel during the War of 1812. After 400 settlers were massacred by Red Stick Crick Indians in the Fort Mims Massacre, Jackson was put in charge of the Creek War and killed 800 of his enemy.

At the Battle of New Orleans in 1815, Jackson amassed an army of 5,000 soldiers to face down 7,500 British troops. Driven no doubt by his hatred, he annihilated his more numerous foes. He lost 71 men. The British lost 2,037. Old Hickory became a National Hero.

On January 30^th, 1835, a mentally ill house painter from England named Robert Lawrence, who claimed to be King Richard III and was owed money by Andrew Jackson appeared from behind a column at the U.S. Capitol as the President and his entourage left a funeral. Lawrence produced a pistol and fired. He then drew a second pistol and fired again, a mere three paces away from Jackson. Neither weapon discharged. Without hesitation, the President of the United States beat Lawrence half to death with his cane in front of a large audience. Instead of protecting Jackson, his friends, such as Davy Crockett, jumped in to protect the would-be assassin.

From an article in the historical periodical American Heritage:

So when the house painter’s pistols failed, Lawrence found himself dangerously within range of a formidable opponent. Years earlier Jackson had advised a young man on how to wield a cane in combat. He warned that a cane swung at head level was easy to deflect; rather one should “take the stick so [held like a spear] and punch him in the stomach.” He described having once fought a man that way in Tennessee: “Sir, it doubled him up. He fell at my feet, and I stamped on him.” Richard Lawrence later told investigators that he only felt genuine fear when he saw the 67-year-old President charge.

Many claimed that the pistols’ misfiring was the work of divine intervention. American Heritage:

While Washington’s finest doctors listened to Lawrence claim to be the king of England, the police were testing his majesty’s misfired pistols. They worked perfectly. After watching them drive bullets through an inch-thick wood plank at 30 feet, many shuddered to think what they could have done to Old Hickory. Sen. Thomas Hart Benton, who had also once shot at Jackson, reflected that “two pistols—so well loaded, so coolly handled, and which afterward fired with such readiness, force, and precision—missing fire, each in its turn, when leveled eight feet at the President’s heart . . . made a deep impression upon the public feeling, and irresistibly carried many minds to the belief in a superintending Providence.” To his friends, Jackson’s survival could be nothing but the work of a higher power.

In 1806, well before he would be elected President, Andrew Jackson had a disagreement with a rival lawyer, horse breeder, and plantation owner named Charles Dickinson. Dickinson’s father-in-law, Captain Joseph Ervin, mishandled a horse racing bet with Jackson and this caused a friend of Jackson’s to protest. Dickinson came to the Captain’s rescue, verbally attacking Jackson’s friend. Jackson intervened, which enraged Dickinson. In the newspaper Nashville Review, Dickinson, known as the top duelist in the south at the time, referred to Jackson as a “worthless scoundrel... a poltroon and a coward.” He also publicly called Jackson’s wife, Rachel, a bigamist since her divorce was not final before she married Hickory.

Jackson, knowing Dickinson’s reputation as a top gunfighter, bravely challenged the man to a duel to protect his and Rachel’s honor. Since dueling was illegal in Tennessee, they agreed to meet in Kentucky at the Red River on May 30^th, 1806, 305 years ago at the time of this writing.

So bold was Andrew Jackson that he gave Charles Dickinson the first shot. Jackson took a bullet two inches from the heart, breaking ribs. He held his wound, and fighting the urge to slump, aimed his weapon but misfired. He fired a second time and dropped Dickinson to the ground, who died of his injuries later that evening. Jackson carried the bullet in his chest until he died at the age of 78.

This second shot was the subject of some controversy, as it went against the code of dueling as presented in The Code of Honor, or Rules for the Government of Principals and Seconds in Dueling, which was written by a former South Carolina governor named John Lyde Wilson. Technically, Jackson should have raised his pistol and shot into the air after the malfunction, not fired the second bullet. But taken into consideration that Jackson not only let the “fabled duelist” take the first shot, was bleeding from a chest wound, and misfired, history has more or less overlooked this detail and simply added this victory as more superhero Old Hickory lore.

The bottom line? It feels good to have a wallet full of Andrew Jacksons. And the country felt safe with him as president for eight years.

Want to learn more about Old Hickory? The Garland County Library owns a wealth of information on Andrew Jackson, from biographies and other books of non-fiction for both adults and children alike, (a personal recommendation would be American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House), to DVDs, audiobooks and historical fiction.

GCL to Host Screenwriting Seminar

Do you have a story you’d like to see on the silver screen? Do you watch movies and think “I could have written this better”? The Garland County Library will help aspiring Charlie Kaufmanns and Billy Bob Thorntons achieve their goals with a Screenwriting Fundamentals Seminar conducted by Ben Fry on Saturday, May 28th from 10 am til noon.

Ben Fry is the General Manager of KLRE/KUAR Public Radio in Little Rock, Ark. He also serves as the coordinator of the film minor for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s School of Mass Communication. He has taught film courses at UALR since 1999, including a course in screenwriting, which he introduced in 2003. In 2007, Fry received a grant to develop an online film minor at UALR.

“This session will be an overview of the screenwriting process, examining the similarities and differences in writing for the screen and other types of creative writing,” Fry said. “Screen writing is more difficult than a lot of people think. Even great writers of other types of material have problems with writing for the screen. Hopefully, I can give some tips to help people get started.”

Event is free, but registration is required. Call 623-4161 or 922-4483 to reserve a seat.