A Sweet Romance and a Lesson of Forgiveness

The Union of the North and the South by Ann Mock is a historical christian romance novel set in Vicksburg, Mississippi in 1875. This novel opens with Laura Malcolm reminiscing by the Mississippi River while the young Jenny plays nearby. Laura is Jenny's mother, but the child doesn't know that. Gerald Taylor, Jenny's father and Laura's husband died before the girl was born. Gerald's father, a powerful judge, did not want his son to marry Laura, so he had the couple's marriage annulled after the tragic accident that befell the young man. Laura decided that this betrayal was unforgivable so she conspired with her parents to have them pass Jenny off as their own daughter and her sister so that the senior Gerald Taylor would not try to take the child away. The bitterness and sorrow that grips Laura's heart and soul begins to fade, however slowly, and the truth comes out that Jenny is actually Laura's and Gerald's child. Judge Taylor's heart is also healed and he makes amends with Laura and her family. Laura learns to forgive and, eventually, to love again.
This is a very romantic and sweet historical novel about finding faith, learning to forgive, and having the strength to begin again. If you enjoy clean-cut stories about faith and the power it gives individuals to triumph in the face of adversity and sorrow, then I think you will love this novel. The author was inspired to write this book after taking a steamboat ride along the Mississippi River and touring the historic houses of towns such as Vicksburg, Natchez, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans. The library has one copy of this novel that you may request to be put on the hold list. If you prefer, you may search for the title or author on Goodreads.com or Amazon.com.

New Titles on the Civil Rights Movement

We have two titles in our Adult Non-Fiction section on landmarks of the Civil Rights Movement, both of them are Mississippi history as well.

The first is 'We Shall Not Be Moved : The Jackson Woolworth's Sit-In and the Movement It Inspired' by M. J. O'Brien with a foreword by Julian Bond.  The May 28, 1963 sit-in at the lunch counter at Woolworth's in Jackson, Mississippi is now recognized as one of the iconic moments of the Civil Rights Movement.  It came just after the Supreme Court passed their decision on the legality of sit-in demonstrations and two weeks before the June 12 murder of Medgar Evers.

The book offers an in depth behind the scene look at the people and situations that were behind the headlines.

'Count Them One By One : Black Mississippians Fighting For the Right to Vote' by Gordon A. Martin, Jr. covers the struggles met by volunteers, both black and white, who came together to register black citizens through Mississippi to vote despite threats of violence and even death.

The author was a young lawyer in 1962 and was sent to Mississippi as a member of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice to help find witnesses willing to testify in the case United States v. Theron Lynd (Lynd would become the first southern voter registrar to be held in violation of charges of discrimination under the Federal Civil Rights Act of 1957).

 A fascinating story told in the words of a man intimately involved in that piece of history.

New Art Instruction Books Donated to the Library!

We were fortunate this past year to have six beautifully illustrated art instruction books donated to us by The Shelby Ferris Art Study Group. The books were donated to us in memory of both Shelby Flowers Ferris and Elizabeth Montgomery Clarke.

First, we have Women Artists written by Margaret Barlow. This large, beautiful book covers the lives and work of female artists from the time of the Renaissance until present day. It includes well-known artists like Mary Cassatt, Georgia O'Keeffe, and Frida Kahlo, as well as, artists like Judith Leyster, Kathe Kollwitz, Dorothy Tanning, and Judy Chicago. This book highlights the artists accomplishments and their influence on art despite limited access to formal training and society's pressures for them to conform to what was considered to be "womanhood."
Next, there is William Newton's Complete Guide to Watercolour Painting by, you guessed it...William Newton. This instruction

guide has beautiful full color pictures as well as step-by-step guides to complete your own watercolor projects. You'll get an introduction to painting basics, materials you'll need, the use of color, and how to choose your subjects.

Two other books donated also cover watercolors. First, there is Painting Beautiful Watercolor Landscapes by Joyce Hicks.This author also gives a list of commonly used materials for watercolor painting and step-by-step guides for layering color and choosing your projects.

The other watercolor book is Painting Expressive Watercolor by Bridget Woods. This book, too, is richly illustrated with 259 color photographs. It also explains the importance of color, tone, shape, texture and scale through exercises and shared techniques. It encourages readers to explore the medium of watercolor to express sensations and ideas as well as to develop handling skills, confidence, and to find your own unique style as an artist.

The last two books to be donated are: Dramatic Color in the Landscape: Painting Land and Light in Oil and Pastel by Brian Keeler and AcrylicWorks: the Best of Acrylic Painting edited by Nancy Reyner. Like the other art instruction books, these two tomes have full color photographs and a variety of projects. Brian Keeler's book focuses on creating landscapes using oil and pastels. His book doesn't have the easy step-by-step guides of the others, but it illustrates each topic in depth so that the reader can see what is being taught. 

AcrylicWorks is less an instruction book and more of a collection of paintings done by artists who favor the acrylic medium. Each full color picture is accompanied by a paragraph or two about how/why the artist created the piece.


Again, we would like to thank The Shelby Ferris Art Study Group for their generous and beautiful donation to our library!

Cars and the Dogs That Love Them

 A new addition to our Adult Non-Fiction is 'Dogs in Cars' by Lara Jo Regan -  a collection of photographs of - what else - dogs in cars collected in a book celebrating the love affair dogs seem to have for riding in cars - especially when the weather is nice and the window is down.

From the front cover featuring a white Labrador named December hanging out in a 2012 Honda Accord to a trio of happy pugs named Napoleon, Lulu and Stitch enjoying the countryside, the book is filled with plenty of color shots of a wide variety of canines and the cars they allow their owners to borrow.

The book also features a section with tips on how to photograph your own dogs (along with warnings that the shots in this book were made with the knowledge and cooperation of professionals and should not be attempted to be duplicated by the home photographer).

Another section at the end is an index listing all of the dog models, their breeds and ages along with what the vehicle was that they were posing in.

A very enjoyable book for people that like to look at pictures of happy dogs.