The Michigan Humanities Council announced the details for Bich Minh Nguyen, author of Stealing Buddha's Dinner, to tour Michigan as part of the Council's 2009-2010 Great Michigan Read. The Council will bring Nguyen to five Michigan cities - Grand Rapids, Traverse City, Midland, Lansing, and Plymouth - from October 13-17, 2009. The public is invited to each event, but seating is limited. All events are free except where noted. A book signing will be provided at each location. Those interested are encouraged to contact each of the sites for more information.

Vogue Knitting Beginner Basics

This small book is the perfect beginner guide. It's so compact that you can easily put it in your knitting bag with your project and take it wherever you're going. The instructions for learning how to knit are clear and the accompanying illustrations make things easy to understand. The basic projects range from very-first absolute beginner level to some items that are a little more involved for someone who has been knitting for a while.

Hey fans! A new season of breathtaking hockey is upon us! Our very own Detroit Red Wings have sped into their new season with renewed vim and vigor and some new players on top of that. How will the new young blood infuse our team? Will they bring home Lord Stanley? We've got miles to go as it's only just begun but my guess is this season will be anything but ordinary. So grab on to the roller coaster ride known as Hockey Season! During those lengthy commercial breaks, read one of our great books on hockey!

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It's been 25 years since the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month organization began promoting education and awareness for this disease. The library has a large collection of books regarding breast cancer including prevention, treatment and rehabilitation. If you or a loved one are faced with breast cancer, be sure to talk to your doctor regarding reading recommendations.

The wind turbine pictured here is one of 32 harnessing clean electricity on Harvest Wind Farm in Elkton, MI. (I took this photo during a summer trip to the Thumb Area.) Michigan Wind 1, with 46 turbines, is another wind farm located just north of Elkton in Ubly, MI. Major energy companies like DTE and Consumers Energy are tapping into these and other wind farms in Michigan to supply electric power to their customers. Combined, both wind farms generate about 122 megawatts of electricity — enough to power roughly 35,000 homes.

Wind, solar and geothermal are among the most promising methods to generate clean, renewable energy. You can learn more about a clean energy future by reading Hot, Flat and Crowded, by Thomas Friedman, best-selling author and Pulitzer-prize winning columnist from The New York Times.

I love New York. You see it everywhere from T shirts to key chains. For me it's true; I love New York City. If you've never been there you have to go. If it's been a while it's definitely time to go back. There is something for everyone in "The Big Apple". If you love shopping and night life there's the Garment District and Times Square. If smaller artsy boutiques and quaint sidewalk cafes are more your style try Greenwich Village or Little Italy. Whether it's uptown, downtown or midtown you're sure to have a wonderful time exploring one of the world's greatest cities. We have an excellent selection of travel guides for New York City in our collection. Come in and check them out.

The Alchemy of Color Knitting: The Art and Technique of Mastering Exquisite Palettes by Gina Wilde
There are so many beautiful fibers available for knitting in retail shops and online, but sometimes it can be challenging to combine colors for a pleasing finished product. This book includes a wide variety of projects with a wide variety of color combinations and offers tips on how to combine colors successfully. I've been wanting to learn how to embroider on my handknits, and I think that the Somewhere Over the Rainbow Gloves may be my first attempt.

Authors and publishers are trying new web gimmicks to gain readers:

• Author Shya Scanlon is serializing his new novel, Forecast, across 42 blogs in the coming weeks
• Concord Free Press gives away unique books, on the premise that the readers will donate to charity, then pass the book along
• Journalist and author Chris Anderson is giving away his latest book, Free, in multiple formats on the web. Of course, you can borrow it free here as well

If you're looking for classics and other books that you can read online, take a look at the following sites:

• Google Books offers millions of books and editions, many in full text. Additionally, Google Books has LIFE Magazine for many years. Protip: Use the advanced search to "Full view only"
• Read Print Library has far fewer books (around 8,000), but the interface for finding and reading books is very friendly
• Internet Archive stores Project Gutenberg as well as many other texts. The archive also has video, audio, and web categories

October is Polish American Heritage Month and your library can help you celebrate! Our International Language Collection features fiction and non-fiction materials written in Polish. Who wouldn't savor, Cooking the Polish Way by Zamojska-Hutchings. Children may enjoy I am Polish American by Samuel Kapowski, about a young boy who talks of his Polish heritage, including foods, customs and famous Poles. If music is more your style our CD collection features Homage to Polish Music and myriad polkas for all. For additional information on Polish Heritage Month visit the Polish American Center.

The month of October is truly a special one. Why, you ask? During October 1-31st, we are celebrating Squirrel Awareness Month. There are so many great ways you can be a part of Squirrel Awareness Month, including checking out some of our fabulous art books. You could make crocheted squirrels, paintings of squirrels, ceramic squirrels, or squirrel collages. So let your inner squirrel run wild and have fun being creative!

During the week of October 26, the Michigan Humanities Council will initiate an online dialogue with high school classrooms and residents across the state. The dialogue will focus on Stealing Buddha's Dinner, perspectives presented in Nguyen's author tour, and the themes of cultural understanding, immigration stories, and contemporary history. The public is invited to participate, at the Council's Facebook Discussion Forum.

One of my favorite things to do in October is curl up with a spooky story. That's why I'm really enjoying Gary Blackwood's Unsolved History series. These books feature true stories of mysterious deaths and unexplainable events throughout history. Full of possible conspiracies and fascinating characters, these books are sure to send a chill down your spine. Stop by the Children's Department's New Book shelf today to check out this series!

Browsing CPL's huge collection of audiobooks can be daunting. So many books to listen to, and so little time. Let us help narrow the search with some nonfiction titles--they were all up for awards, so you know they must be good!

Every Monday morning, my email contains a special book. The email book club sends out a few pages every day in email. By the end of the week, you have read two to three chapters of a new book. You can then decide whether you want to check it out at the library or purchase it. It's a great way to discover new authors and genres. There are twelve categories from which to choose - pick one or all of them, including fiction, audio, romance, teen, good news, thrillers, classics and more. Your only requirement is an email account. The next Monday, it starts all over again with new books. What a great idea! This service is sponsored by the Friends of the Canton Public Library and is free to our patrons. Just log onto our web site at www.cantonpl.org, go to the column on the left and click on services. Next, click on book clubs and scroll down to email book club.

Novelist Dean Koontz thought he achieved contentment in his life; happily married to his high-school sweetheart and a very successful writing career with more than 20 New York Times bestsellers so far. Then along came Trixie, a retired service dog from the Canine Companions for Independence. Koontz, who often features dogs in his books, never had owned one. In his memoir, A Big Little Life, he tells the story of falling in love at middle age with lovable Golden Retriever.

Fire safety week is Oct 4th through the 10th. This year the focus in on burn awareness and prevention. There are several web sites with crafts, games and activities for children and information for adults as well.

There are a number of books in the library about home and fire safety.  One of these is Fire safety,  a juvenile nonfiction by Lucia Raatma.

Attention quilters and wanna-be quilters…If you haven’t read the Elm Creek Quilts series, I highly recommend it. They are good stories, incorporating quilting lore, history and patterns. The series stars with The Quilter’s Apprentice. Also available on CD.

Also check out the Elm Creek quilts: quilt projects inspired by the Elm Creek quilt novels. This book contains patterns for quilts that are talked about in the first four books. Anyone who is interested in quilting would enjoy these books.

Knitting in Tuscany: Fabulous Design, Luscious Yarns, Shopping Secrets, Food & Wine, Travel Notes by Nicky Epstein
Knitting guru Epstein returns with a gorgeous book that is equal parts travel guide and pattern book. Filled with stunning photographs, it at times resembles a scrapbook of the author's experiences in this ever-inspiring corner of the world. The patterns range from elegant to rustic, but all evoke the beauty and old-world charm of Tuscany.

Do you like fruits and vegetables? Have you ever picked your own? There are many U-Pick farms opened from June through October.

Strawberry picking begins around the middle of June and lasts usually three weeks.

I picked strawberries at Rowe's in Ypsilant. Rowe's also has sugar peas and green beans for picking later in the summer. I began picking raspberries at Rowe's in late August. Raspberry picking is available usually from mid August through the second week of October. I make pies and jam with the raspberries each year.

Our family often take some grandchildren blueberry picking in July and August. We pick at Dexter Blueberry Farm in Dexter, MI. Blueberries are very easy to freeze and they stay firm when you thaw them later to put into muffins or on your cereal.

Hi friends! If you are looking for laughs that will shake your belly and tickle your toes, try our great selection of humorous poetry! We have gaggles of giggles from author Jeff Foxworthy, stacks of side splitting fun with Shel Silverstein, and barrels of buffoonery from Brod Bagert. Check out our charming selection by clicking here.