Author Author!

Nancy Pickard is a librarian's dream! First of all, the woman can write. Boy, can she write. And oh my, she's nice...and witty...and easy to work with. And most importantly, she can get in front of a crowd and hold them spellbound for however long she wants to talk.

On Tuesday, February 17th, Nancy charmed a crowd of nearly 60 at the Pittsburg Public Library as she eloquently discussed The Virgin of Small Plains. If anyone showed up who wasn't already a fan, they certainly left as one. It's possible they were bribed into coming so they could enjoy a picnic dinner of southeast Kansas fried chicken but were swiftly under her spell once Nancy launched into her talk.

How popular is Nancy Pickard in Pittsburg? One attendee came in sporting eye protection because she had undergone cataract surgery that afternoon--but wasn't going to let that keep away! Just this afternoon a patron told me a story about Nancy stopping at Starbucks on her way out of town the next morning and how thrilled she was to get her own private audience with the award-winning author.

If Nancy has already visited your library, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If she's coming to your town, you have so much to look forward to! Our formal programming for Kansas Reads 2009 may be over but who knows, the establishment of a Nancy Pickard Fan Club may be on the horizon.

Carol Ann Robb

Reference & Adult Services

Large crowd attends tombstone talk

Fascination with cemeteries was evident at the Lawrence Public Library last night, as seventy-four people attended the very interesting Talking Tombstones: History in the Cemetery program presented by Dr. Al Hamscher, Kenneth S. Davis Professor of History at KSU. Dr. Hamscher discussed the changes in tombstone imagery and design that have taken place over the years as society's religious and cultural attitudes toward death have changed.

Many thanks to the Kansas Humanities Council for providing funding for this great program.

Maria Butler
Community Relations Coordinator
Lawrence Public Library

Flint Hills Images exhibit includes nod to VOSP

Flint Hills Images, an exhibit in the Gallery at the

Lawrence Public Library, was created to enhance the community's reading of The Virgin of Small Plains through visual depictions of the landscape that is so viscerally rendered in words by Nancy Pickard in her novel.

Supplication, shown here, is one of the images in the exhibit, a photograph by Dave Leiker, Emporia, that Dave says was directly inspired by the book. Thanks, Dave, for allowing me to share your work with the rest of the state. To see more of Dave's photos, go to http://www.flyoverpeople.net/.

The exhibit also includes beautiful images of the Flint Hills in all seasons, weather, light, times of day, circumstance, and detail, in the paintings of Louis Copt, Lecompton, and the photographs of Scott Bean, Manhattan; Ron Beeton, Marion; Dan Coburn, Topeka; D.W. Gates, Lawrence; Harland Schuster, Morrill, and Roger Spohn, Baldwin City.

If you are in Lawrence, please stop by and take a look.

Maria Butler
Community Relations Coordinator
Lawrence Public Library

Points to Ponder While Reading

What a marvelous time I had at the Pittsburg Public Library on Monday! They really know how to treat their guest speakers (which is why I always answer Carol Ann Robb's emails, take her calls, and say "Yes" whenever she give me an invitation to her Library). Nancy Pickard is in for a treat when she visits on February 17.



Over the lunch hour, I chatted with a roomful of people, most of whom had read The Virgin of Small Plains. I didn't want to give away any spoilers for those who hadn't had a chance to read this quickly paced bestseller, so we discussed the characteristics of mystery and suspense novels, the differences between the two genres, and how VOSP deftly melds the best of these characteristics into one book.

In addition to having readers consider which genre this book most closely resembles and where the elements of each are in the story, I asked readers to think about the theme of guilt and redemption while following the story. Every character in VOSP is suffering from some guilt, but some are more guilty than others. Are all the characters deserving of the guilt they harbor? Who finds redemption by the end of the book? What is it about this book that makes it a "Kansas" book? Could it have been set in any other small town in the midwest? These are just a couple of topics to consider discussing when the book group gathers. I included a little more information in a blog post over at Booklist Online's Book Group Buzz blog. You can read it here.

Incidentally, this isn't the US cover. I think it came from the UK or Canada, but I love it and wanted everyone to see it. The tag line on the bottom is "The truth did not die with her." Creepy, eh? And all those rose petals on a snowy grave. Wonderful use of imagery from the book.

Pittsburg Eats Up Kansas Reads

The Pittsburg Public Library kicked off its observance of “Kansas Reads The Virgin of Small Plains” on Monday, February 2nd. Nearly thirty attendees enjoyed a lunch of either vegetable beef or Mexican bean soups (or both!) before hearing from Kaite Stover, Head of Reader’s Services at KCPL, about the importance of reading Nancy Pickard’s award-winning book. Thanks to the extreme generosity of the local Friends group, complimentary copies of The Virgin of Small Plains are available to 125 lucky readers. Well, that number is much lower now, since those in attendance quickly snatched up their own copy after hearing Kaite talk up the book. Hopefully those copies will be passed around to friends and family.

And they’ll want to be prepared for our next event, Nancy Pickard’s visit on the 17th. A picnic supper—to pay homage to the Memorial Day events in VOSP—will be served before Nancy takes center stage. Those who have heard Nancy speak before at our library are eager to see her again and are promising to bring their friends. Let’s hope Nancy will be ready for their many questions.

Carol Ann Robb

Reference & Adult Services

Terry Evans Photography

I printed three of Terry Evans prairie photographs http://skyways.lib.ks.us/orgs/kcfb/vp/prairie_photos.htm from the KCFB website and displayed them as the centerpieces on our refreshment table at the book discussion last night. People were very interested in the pictures and it gave me another way to direct them to additional things of interest at the website.

Kinsley buzzing about ghosts

The Kinsley library kicked off Virgin of Small Plains last night with humanities discussion leader Jane Holwerda of Dodge City Com. College. Everyone is loving the book and discussion. But I have been really surprised to see the excitement building around our second event which was described this way in the local paper:
Because the cemetery and the virgin’s gravesite play a prominent role in the book, the second event will be “To the Cemetery and Beyond.”
The evening will begin with Ray Wetzel sharing (with pictures) interesting facts and lore about Hillside Cemetery, the Civil War Monument, tombstone symbolism, and funeral myths. Wetzel is North Edwards County District cemetery sexton and well known for his ability to “witch” graves.
His presentation will be followed by Lisa Sparke leading a discussion on Edwards County ghost stories.
“We hope everyone who has ever heard about a ghost residing in the county will come and share the story,” said Weaver.
I think the reason everyone seems so interested is because it is local lore and who doesn't like a good ghost story. I plan on recording the event for our archives.