March 2003

Works by Billy Collins  @ GPL Nine Horses: Poems, 2002.  811.54/COL Sailing Alone Around the Room: New and Selected Poems, 2001. BRD/COLLINS,B. Picnic, Lightning, 1998. 811.54/COL The Best Cigarette, 1997. AUDIO/811.54/COL/CD The Art of Drowning, 1995. 811.54/COL Questions About Angels: Poems, 1991. 811.54/COL In This Issue: Books in My Life On Display in the Library Library Hosts Local Authors And the Oscar Went to. . .  Forthcoming Books Literary Events This Month

Featured Author: Billy Collins Billy Collins was born in New York City in 1941. The author of several books of poetry, he was appointed the Library of Congress's eleventh Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry in the fall of 2001. Upon his appointment the Librarian of Congress James H. Billington said, "Billy Collins' poetry is widely accessible. He writes in an original way about all manner of ordinary things and situations with both humor and a surprising contemplative twist…" Collins's poetry has appeared in anthologies, textbooks, and a variety of periodicals, including Poetry, American Poetry Review, American Scholar, Harper's, Paris Review, and The New Yorker. His work has been featured in the Pushcart Prize anthology and The Best American Poetry for 1992, 1993, and 1997. He has received fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Guggenheim Foundation. For several years he has conducted summer poetry workshops in Ireland at University College Galway. He is a professor of English at Lehman College, City University of New York. On March 10 at 7:30 pm the Monday Evening Book Group will discuss Billy Collins' latest book of poems Sailing Alone Around the Room . Collins will be the featured speaker at the Literary Circle March 31 at 7:30 pm in the auditorium at Glenbrook South High School. For ticket information call the Library Community Foundation at 847.353.7143. Billy Collins appointed poet laureate: http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/01078/poet.html Join the Billy Collins mailing list for news updates and one free poem every month or so: bcmail@bigsnap.com

On Display in the Library Look for these displays in the library in March: The Write Stuff On writers and writing Oscar and Friends Books about the Movies Librarians and Libraries Read 'em and Weep Tearjerkers Look for these author displays: Erica Jong Penelope Lively Nikolai Gogol Nelson Algren

Books in My Life by Vickie L. Novak, Executive Librarian, Glenview Public Library For pure "escapism" and enjoyment, one of the author's whose works I have enjoyed for many years is Robert Vavra. My interest in his works is two-fold  - as an equestrian with a lifelong love of horses, he captures the essence, the soul and the spirit of classical horses and horsemanship. His images seem to be alive, as they leap off the pages of his works and into the hearts and the imaginations of his readers; and, as an amateur photographer, I am in awe of his creative ability to portray his subject in a manner and style unequalled by any other equine photographer. Robert Vavra is considered to be the world's foremost photographer of horses. He served as the creative consultant to Robert Redford throughout the filming of "The Horse Whisperer," and is responsible for the photo which graces the cover of the novel by Nicholas Evans. I had the pleasure of meeting Robert Vavra at the Kentucky Horse Park a year ago, at which time he told me about his most recent work in progress. Upon publication, I eagerly added this volume to my personal library, to take a place alongside his previous twelve works. The newest is Stallions of the Quest. This premise for this photographic essay was suggested to Robert Vavra by his close friend, James Michener, more than twenty-five years earlier. Vavra tells the tale of the horse's return to America during the time of the Spanish conquistadors, after having left this continent more than 8,000 years earlier by crossing the Bering land bridge into Asia. This work is truly a sensory experience - a collection of dramatic photographs, using the Paso Fino horses of a noted southern California ranch and the native Mexican wilderness to portray, through Vavra's creative use of the lens, the return of these noble horses to a primitive and untamed North America. By capturing the mind and the imagination of the reader with his inspirational and artistic work, he transports the reader into a world that is five hundred years old. Each photo is accompanied by narrative, both poetry and prose, that is uniquely Vavra in style. He attempts to explain why the equine population left America and how their timely return indelibly shaped the outcome of the settlement of our nation.

Glenview Public Library Honors  Local Authors This community is so varied and so rich in stories, ideas, and energy. We have poets among us, and novelists, and scholars, and essayists. On Sunday afternoon, March 23, 2003, the Glenview Public Library is hosting a reception for this special group of people: authors who live and write in Glenview. Join us in the Maynard Room from 2 to 4 pm for the Glenview Author Reception to meet your neighbors, discuss their ideas with them and browse their books. Jack Mabley will be our Master of Ceremonies and refreshments will be served. The "Glenview Authors" notebooks have been revised to include as many present and past authors as we could find. The notebooks contain poems, web pages, biographies, reviews, awards and more. If you cannot make it to the reception, please browse the renewed "Glenview Authors Notebooks" available at the Information Desk after March 23, 2003. Finally, if you know of a writer (who has also published, please) in this community, please let us know. You can leave a message for Merry Weed at 847.729.7500, extension 112, or through email at weed@glenview.lib.il.us.

And the Oscar® Went to... The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Oscar this year. The Glenview Public Library owns almost every film that has received the Best Picture award over the years. While you are waiting to find out what the Best Picture of 2002 is, check out one of these award winners you may have forgotten about. 2001 A Beautiful Mind* 2000 Gladiator* 1999 American Beauty* 1998 Shakespeare in Love* 1997 Titanic (1997)* 1996 The English Patient* 1995 Braveheart* 1994 Forrest Gump* 1993 Schindler's List* 1992 Unforgiven* 1991 The Silence of the Lambs* 1990 Dances With Wolves* 1989 Driving Miss Daisy* 1988 Rain Man* 1987 The Last Emperor* 1986 Platoon* 1985 Out of Africa* 1984 Amadeus* 1983 Terms of Endearment* 1982 Gandhi* 1981 Chariots of Fire* 1980 Ordinary People* 1979 Kramer vs. Kramer* 1978 The Deer Hunter* 1977 Annie Hall* 1976 Rocky* 1975 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest* 1974 The Godfather Part II* 1973 The Sting* 1972 The Godfather* 1971 The French Connection* 1970 Patton* 1969 Midnight Cowboy* 1968 Oliver!* 1967 In the Heat of the Night* 1966 A Man for All Seasons* 1965 The Sound of Music* 1964 My Fair Lady* 1963 Tom Jones* 1962 Lawrence of Arabia* 1960 The Apartment* 1959 Ben-Hur* 1958 Gigi* 1957 The Bridge on the River Kwai* 1956 Around the World in 80 Days* 1955 Marty* 1954 On the Waterfront* 1953 From Here to Eternity* 1952 The Greatest Show on Earth* 1951 An American in Paris* 1950 All About Eve* 1949 All the King's Men* 1948 Hamlet (1948)* 1947 Gentleman's Agreement* 1946 The Best Years of Our Lives* 1945 The Lost Weekend* 1944 Going My Way* 1943 Casablanca* 1942 Mrs. Miniver* 1941 How Green Was My Valley* 1940 Rebecca* 1939 Gone with the Wind* 1938 You Can't Take It with You* 1937 The Life of Emile Zola 1936 The Great Ziegfeld* 1935 Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)* 1934 It Happened One Night* 1932/33 Cavalcade 1931/32 Grand Hotel* 1930/31 Cimarron (1930/31)* 1929/30 All Quiet on the Western Front* 1928/29 The Broadway Melody* 1927/28 Wings* * Indicates owned by Glenview Public Library. Some titles may also be on DVD.

Forthcoming Books Look for these titles due to be published in March: FICTION Ties That Bind by Philip Margolin The author draws on his own experience as a criminal defense attorney in this legal thriller set in Portland, Oregon. The Story of My Father: A Memoir by Sue Miller Best known for her best-selling fiction, Miller describes her experience in caring for her father who has Alzheimer's disease in this memoir. Office of Innocence by Thomas Keneally A moving novel about a young priest's crisis of faith during WWII, from the author of Schindler's List. Lost Light by Michael Connelly Harry Bosch has retired, but he can't keep from taking on one last case.   NON-FICTION Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and its Lessons for Global Power by Niall Ferguson The British Empire provides the model for the key features of the twenty-first century world.  The United States can learn from the successes and failures of the British, Ferguson argues. Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 by Simon Winchester Everyone's favorite geologist takes on a volcanic eruption that killed nearly 40,000 people and changed the climate for years. Jarhead: A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles by Anthony Swofford A gripping account of the fear and boredom experienced by a front line soldier in the Gulf War.

Literary Happenings @ the Library Monday March 10 GPL Conference Room, 7:30 pm Monday Night Book Discussion Sailing Alone Around the Room by Billy Collins Tuesday March 11 Maynard Room,  7:00 pm The History of the Academy Awards  Join movie gossip columnist Leon Michelson for his show about the glamour days of Hollywood and the history of the Awards. He has the scoop from the past with facts about Pickford, Chaplin, Fairbanks, Garbo, Gable, Grabel, Monroe and more. He'll tell tales about early Academy winners and comment on this year's nominees. Bring your questions. He'll entertain you with answers. Sunday March 23 Maynard Room, 2:00 pm Glenview Authors Reception  Our community is so varied and so rich in stories, ideas and energy. Come join this special group of people who live and write in Glenview. There are poets, novelists, scholars and essayists. Newspaper columnist Jack Mabley will serve as Master of Ceremonies for the event. Refreshments will be served. Come one and all! Monday April 7 GPL Conference Room, 1:00 pm Senior Book Discussion Your Oasis on Flame Lake by Lorna Landvik Around Chicagoland Wednesday March 12 Book Stall, 811 Elm St., Winnetka, 7:00 pm David P. Bridges, Wilmette native, signs his "The Best Coal Company in All Chicago and How It Got that Way" and "the Bridges of Washington County Spanning Working Nature."  Call (847) 446-8880.  Wednesday March 12 Lovell's of Lake Forest, 915 S. Waukegan Road, noon Lake Forest Book Store hosts an author luncheon with Louise Erdrich ("The Master Butchers Singing Club")  $29 per person. Call for reservations, (847) 234-4420. Saturday March 15 Barnes & Noble, 1701 Sherman Ave., Evanston,  3:00 pm Jay Amberg reads from his new thriller, "Doubloom;" Call (847) 328-0883.  Thursday March 20 Mitchell Museum of the American Indian, Kendall College, Evanston, 2:00 pm Book club discussion of The Scalpel and the Silver Bear by Lori Arviso Alvord (847) 475-1030 or http://www.mitchellmuseum.org Saturday March 22 Barnes & Noble, 1701 Sherman Ave., Evanston,  3:00 pm Sheila Seclearr tells the story of her "A Tree On Turtle Island."  Call: (847) 328-0883.  Sunday March 23 Museum of Contemporary Art, 3:00 pm WBEZ Stories on Stage: It's Only a Game  This afternoon of stories examines the American obsession with winning — on the field, in a game, in the boardroom or in the bedroom. http://www.wbez.org/storiesonstage or (312) 948-4704 Monday March 31 Glenbrook South High School, 4000 W. Lake Avenue, Glenview, 7:30 pm NSLS Literary Circle Billy Collins, Poetry Reading with Commentary by the US Poet Laureate. Call: (847) 353-7143

"Read All About It" was created by the Reader's Advisory staff of the Glenview Public Library.