A Backhoe, a Jackhammer, and a Good Book

During the next couple of weeks, Library Society patrons will be greeted by the presence of a large backhoe in front of our main building. They also will be forced to endure a cacophony of jackhammering. City workers have begun the Library Society's portion of the King Street repair and beautification program. We hope that you will not be dissuaded from visiting by the machinery, noise, or orange cones. You will still be able to park behind the building, and the sidewalk is not blocked, so you may use the front or back entrance. We apologize for any inconvenience that the construction may cause.

July has been a fairly busy month for the staff. We have rearranged the Children's Room to create more flexible space, and we continue to relabel special collections materials. We also are inventorying our collection of videotapes and DVDs to remove duplicates, with the goal of generating extra shelf space in the Barnwell Building for additional DVDs.

If you are a military history buff, I urge you to stop by and check out Rick Atkinson's The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-44. It is the second in a planned three-volume history of the U.S. Army in North Africa and Europe during World War II. The first volume, An Army at Dawn, earned a well-deserved Pulitzer Prize for Atkinson, and The Day of Battle is every bit as good. Atkinson is a wonderful writer, and though his work is very detailed, it is compelling enough to hold the attention of most readers.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

Read a book!
W.G. Hinson

Summertime

Carolina Day has come and gone, and once again it was a great success. The weather at the Battery was beautiful, cool (low 90's), and breezy, and the Library Society again fielded a large contingent of marchers. Amid a sea of seersucker, Library Society members cast disparaging glances rearward to those johnny-come-lately organizations founded in the late eighteenth century. Upon arrival at the Sergeant Jasper monument, we spread out under the beautiful live oaks, which to our chagrin, were filled with Yellow Night Herons that attempted a bombardment of their own. The service concluded with what seemed like an endless cannonade by a battery of Confederate reenactors. Adults winced, children cried, and dogs barked with each shot. This year the cannon was pointed at the Fort Sumter House instead of out over the harbor, and those in attendance were left with the impression that a company of Yankees had purchased a two bedroom, two bath condo, and the Winyah Light Artillery were trying to drive them back north of the Mason-Dixon. All in all, it was a remarkable day.

The Library Society was closed on July 4 and 5, but we opened again on July 7 for those patrons who are looking for a cool and quiet refuge from the heat. Summers are our quietest season, as members leave for cooler climates. If you are in town for a "staycation," stop by and take a look at the newest issues of Country Life. Yes, these issues have all that you've come to expect from our most popular periodical: horsey debutantes who are spending their gap year in Santorini; multi-million pound country estates; and commentary on the oh-so-troublesome and invasive American Grey Squirrel. Throw in a photographic spread from Lord Smith-Smythe-Smith's birthday party, and you have something for the whole family.

Seriously, we hope that you will stop by, if for no other reason than to say hello. Read a book!

Carolina Day is coming, the goose is getting fat...

Just a few more days 'till Carolina Day! Join us as we celebrate South Carolina history: our crude palmetto fort absorbing British shot; the heroism of Sergeant Jasper, leaping into the crossfire to raise high our flag; the Redcoated blockhead who thought wading troops across Breach Inlet (while under fire) would be a simple endeavour...

Join us Saturday in commemorating South Carolina's own independence day. The Library will march near the head of the parade (so feel free to act sniffy to friends near the tail). We'll see you underneath our green and gold banner at Washington Park between 10:30 and 11:00!

If you can't make it out Saturday (and don't use some excuse about heat or humidity- just remember What Would Colonel Moultrie Do?), stop by the Library and check out some movies that you can watch in air-conditioned comfort. We're in the middle of receiving and cataloguing a big batch, so look for new titles on the shelf soon.

Good News and Sundry Postings

The good news just keeps coming! The South Carolina State Historical Records Advisory Board (SC SHRAB) has awarded a $4,850 grant to the Library Society to process and re-house its manuscript collections. These grant funds will be used to purchase acid-free folders and boxes and to process our manuscript collections. Soon, scores of researchers will flock to the Library Society to immerse themselves in the treasure trove that is our archives. Heck, we might even hire ushers for crowd control (On second thought, maybe not).

Last Thursday best-selling author Cassandra King gave a fascinating presentation. With great charm, she described how she became a writer and how her personal experiences shaped her novels. She also signed copies of her books. If you stayed home to watch "Survivor: Micronesia", you really missed out. (Come to think of it, if that's the case, you probably need more than one night out a week).

Under the "More Good News" category, when you grow tired of looking at other people's amusing (and sometimes disturbing) Facebook pages, you can look at the Library Society's new page. Soon, you will be able to view images of Library Society events (or anything mildly entertaining that occurs at 164 King Street).

A number of our members only read non-fiction and aren't terribly interested in books that involve a cat that solves murder mysteries (not that there is anything wrong with that). Those members will be thrilled to listen to a first-rate historian on May 22. Clemson professor Rod Andrew will travel to Charleston to discuss and sign his newest book, Wade Hampton: Confederate Warrior to Southern Redeemer (UNC Press). Andrew's book is the best Hampton biography to date (my opinion is as good as any). Arrive a little early (before 7:00 p.m.), because this lecture will draw many members and visitors, who never grow tired of books about "The War."

If you are a fan of the Library Society's speakers' series (and have $15), you will love the Southern Literary Festival, which the Library Society is sponsoring as part of Piccolo Spoleto from May 29-31. This year's festival will feature six sessions of prominent Southern writers over the course of three days. Sue Monk Kidd, author of the New York Times bestseller The Secret Life of Bees, will headline this year's events. You can get tickets and information at www.piccolospoleto.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 888-374-2656.

Read a Book!

W.G. Hinson

Spring Book Sale and other happenings

This is a busy weekend in Charleston, but of all the events, the Library Society's Annual Spring Book Sale is the most important (but of course I am biased). Do yourself a favor. Disregard the Bridge Run (too crowded, too long, and you can run the bridge anytime by using the handy pedestrian walkway). Ignore the Flowertown Festival (again, too crowded, and who can afford to drive to Summerville to see azaleas, when you can find them in any neighborhood in the lowcountry). Forget about the Cajun Festival (not as crowded, but no Dixie Beer). Instead of wasting time, energy, fossil fuels, eating crawfish and listening to Zydeco, come to the best little used book sale in the lowcountry. The doors of the historic Barnwell Building at 160 King Street open at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday and don't close until 5:00 p.m. (book dealers can purchase books after noon). On Sunday the doors open at 1:30 p.m. for our famous "fill-a-box-with-books for $10.00 day." The sale ends at 5:00 p.m. This year's selection is the best that I have seen, so get here early.

We have great news for researchers. The CLS online catalog is up and running and can be accessed from our website. Researchers now can view records for our manuscripts, pamphlets, and rare books prior to visiting.

On the good news/bad news front, our new HVAC unit is installed in the main library building and is working well, but the elevator in that building now needs to be replaced. We have started a fund-raising campaign to pay for the new elevator, and, as always, your gifts are both needed and appreciated.

Read a book (and buy one this weekend)!

W.G. Hinson

Welcome to Shh!

This is the Charleston Library Society's inaugural blog, and we would like to welcome those members and interested parties, who, after this initial posting, will be thrilled that our organization is rapidly distancing itself from the nineteenth century. For the rest of our members, we apologize deeply for the introduction of technology into the life of the Library Society. We hope (fingers crossed) that the experience will not be too traumatic. If it is, this blog is actually the work of hackers intent on slandering the reputation of the South's oldest cultural institution.

Big events (other than this blog) are at hand! On April 5-6, 2008 the Library Society will hold its Annual Spring Book Sale. The doors of the Barnwell Building will open at 9:30 a.m., and book dealers are welcome after noon on Saturday. On Sunday, April 6, the doors will open at 1:30 p.m. for "Fill a Box with Books for $10 Day." All items will be half price, or customers can pay $10 for the books that they can fit into one of our boxes.

The Library Society recently received a significant grant ($25,000) from the Post and Courier Foundation. With contributions to the Annual Appeal Campaign, this grant will help the Library Society pay for a new HVAC system for the main Library building. The Library Society will be closed from April 17-April 22 to complete the installation of the new unit, and we hope to be up and running again by April 24 (again, fingers crossed).

I appreciate your tolerance of my ramblings, and I hope that you will join us again in the future.

Read a book!

W.G. Hinson