CECILIA GALANTE
Author Meet & Greet

AUTHOR OF THE SWEETNESS OF SALT AND LITTLE WINGS

MONDAY, APRIL 9th
6:00 P.M. – 8:00 P.M.

The Sweetness of Salt

Julia just graduated as her high school valedictorian, has a full ride to college in the fall and a coveted summer internship clerking for a federal judge. But when her older sister, Sophie, shows up at the graduation determined to reveal some long buried secrets, Julia’s carefully constructed plans come to a halt. Instead of the summer she had painstakingly laid out, Julia follows Sophie back to Vermont, where Sophie is opening a bakery—and struggling with some secrets of her own. What follows is a summer of revelations—some heartwarming, some heartbreaking, and all slowly pointing Julia toward a new understanding of both herself and of the sister she never really knew. The Sweetness of Salt was nominated for the 2011 Best Fiction Award by the Young Adult Library Services Association.

Little Wings

Galante’s first foray into the chapter-book world with this Random House series about a feisty little cupid who continually finds herself in trouble.

Space is limited, so please call the Wyoming Free Library at 693-1364 to reserve your spot.

Movie viewing
Friday, March 23 – 6:00 p.m.

Book discussion
Friday, March 30 – 6:00 p.m.

The library has a limited number of books.

For more information or to register, please call the library at 693-1364.

Are you looking for ways to improve your health, attitude, creativity, and even productivity? Do you want to deepen your spiritual practice, but aren’t sure where to begin?

If the answer is “Yes” then meditation may be for you.

Meditation has been proven to increase brain activity associated with happiness, well-being, and creativity, leading to healthy, happier lives for those who meditate. For thousands of years, monks, nuns, and lay people have experienced deep spiritual insights as a result of their meditation practices. For every person, there is a need, and for every need, meditation can provide a way to its fulfillment.

This class will cover basic meditation theories and practices that will allow you to experience the benefits of meditation. If you have tried to meditate in the past but found it too difficult then this class is for you. Simple, effective, and proven methods of mediation that can be done anywhere, by anyone, at anytime will be taught.

Topics to be covered include:

Posture – Why You Don’t Need to Sit Like Pretzel to Meditate
Breathing – The Breath of Life
Using Symbols and Creative Visualization
Hebrew Letters, Gregorian Chants and Sanskrit Mantra – The Harmony of Sound
Meditation for Health and Wellness and as a Spiritual Tool

Mark Stavish, M.A., holds degrees with honors in Theology and Counseling, and is the author of five books on spirituality, including, Kabbalah for Health and Wellness, that have been published in seven languages. Mark has appeared in or has been consulted for numerous television and radio programs, including Coast 2 Coast (C2C), 21st Century Radio, X-Zone Radio, Animal Planet, History Channel, A&E, BBC, and The New York Times.

Death, Dying and Lucid Dreaming: A Glimpse of Things to Come
March 24, 11:00am – 4:00pm
No Charge
Registration Encouraged – send registration to info@hermeticinstitute.org

It is often said that we spend nearly a third of our life asleep. Neolithic cave dwellers to modern scientists have all sought to better understand what happens when we close our eyes at night, asking the questions: why do we dream, and what do dreams mean mean to us, our waking lives, and even can dreams give us a glimpse of our possibilities of survival after death?

How to:
          Remember your dreams
          Dreams, symbols, and how to interpret your dreams
          Induce dreaming and lucid dreaming
          What to do when dreaming lucidly
          Why lucid dreaming is important from the view of Eastern and Western mysticism

Mark Stavish, M.A. is the author of several non-fiction books including Between the Gates – Lucid Dreaming, Astral Projection and the Body of Light in Western Esotericism, wherein he examines the purpose and potential uses for lucid dreaming, including its role in how we die and what happens to us after according to Eastern and Western spiritual traditions. Mark has appeared in or has been consulted for numerous television and radio programs, including Coast 2 Coast (C2C), 21st Century Radio, X-Zone Radio, Animal Planet, History Channel, A&E, BBC, and The New York Times.

How to Write and Publish Your Non-Fiction Book
April 14th 11:00am – 4:00pm
No Charge
Registration Encouraged – send registration to info@hermeticinstitute.org

Have you ever wanted to write a book but have trouble finding the right topic, time to write, or simply aren’t sure how to approach it, or even what to do with it once it is written? Inside everyone is a book waiting to be written, from biographies and memoirs, to cook books, local histories, and how-to books of every sort, everyone has something they want to share with others and books are the way to do it.

In this presentation Mark will show aspiring authors how to: 

          Find Your Topic, Your Voice, and Your Inner Passion All At Once
          Make It Interesting, or, Why What You Have to Say Really Matters to Others
          Use a Simple three-step formula that will help you complete a book in as little as three months
          Understand Publishing Options: Traditional, Self-Publishing, and Electronic formats
          Take it to the Next Step: It’s In Print, Now What?

If you are currently working on a book, have an idea for one, an outline, or sample chapters, bring them for discussion, and find out what the next step for you in your writing career should be.

Mark Stavish, M.A. is the author of five non-fiction books that have been published in seven languages, has taught writing and public speaking on the university level, and has been a consultant or guest for television and radio programs, including Coast 2 Coast (C2C), 21st Century Radio, X-Zone Radio, Animal Planet, History Channel, A&E, and the BBC. Mark has also appeared in The New York Times, and Publishers Weekly.

LUZERNE COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM  INTRODUCES 2012 BOARD

Wilkes-Barre, PA – The Luzerne County Library System (LCLS) is pleased to introduce its 2012 Board of Directors.  Founded in 1984, the LCLS is made up of ten libraries throughout Luzerne County that work cooperatively to provide the citizens of the county with recreational and educational materials and programs. 

Attached photo- First Row, L to R: Melissa Szafran, Hoyt Library; John Roberts, Wyoming Free Library; Viola Gommer, Back Mountain Memorial Library; Robert Robine, Plymouth Library; and Christine McLaughlin, Hoyt Library.

Second Row: Margaret Harris, Osterhout Free Library; Anne Hogya, Pittston Memorial Library; Suzanne Youngblood, Plymouth Library; Richard Miller, Osterhout Free Library; Mike Ostrowski, Pittston Memorial Library; Jeffrey Gicking, Hazleton Area Library; Jim Reinmiller, Hazleton Area Library; Dr. Marcia McGann, Marian Kirby Library; Shawn Murphy, Osterhout Free Library.

Agnes and Honey have always been best friends, but they haven’t always been so different. Agnes loves being a Believer.  She knows the rules at the Mount Blessing religious commune are there to make her a better person. Honey hates Mount Blessing and the control Emmanuel, their leader, has over her life.  The only bright spot is the butterfly garden she’s helping to build, and the journal of butterflies that she keeps.  When Agnes’s grandmother makes an unexpected visit to the commune, she discovers a violent secret that the Believers are desperate to keep quiet.  And when Agnes’s little brother is seriously injured and Emmanuel refuses to send him to a hospital, Nana Pete takes the three children and escapes the commune.  Their journey begins an exploration of faith, friendship, religion and family for the two girls, as Agnes clings to her familiar faith while Honey desperately wants a new future. 

Cecilia Galante received her MFA from Goddard College, Vermont. She is the author of five young adult novels, including The Patron Saint of Butterflies which received the NAIBA Best Book of the Year award, and was selected as one of Oprah’s Best Teen Selections, and Willowood, which was recently nominated for a Keystone Reading Award. Currently at work on a children’s series to be published by Random House in 2012, Galante also teaches creative writing at Wilkes University. She lives in Kingston, Pennsylvania with her husband, three children, and a very lazy cat named Julius. 

Space is limited, so please call the Wyoming Free Library
at (570) 693-1364 to reserve your spot!

We’ve got the world’s only collection of life-size cardboard cutout Presidents on display for 2 days only! Come catch a glimpse and learn some fun facts the whole family will enjoy.

Is your birthday the same as a President’s?
Which President got stuck in a bathtub?
Which President was the first to appear on TV?
Which President was left-handed when sitting but right-handed when standing?

Find out all this and more at our Presiential Cardboard Cut-Out Display!

See all 44 Presidents in interesting groups such as those who died in office or had scandalous presidencies as well as historically significant events like President Obama’s January 2009 Presidential Luncheon. All ages will enjoy this unicque collection; an interactive scavenger hunt worksheet will also be available for older kids.  For printable PDF version, click here.

Former American Legion
316 Linden St.
West Pittston
Saturday, Feb. 5th, 2 -6:pm
Saturday, Feb. 12th, 10-2:pm