This legal holiday is celebrated in the United States on the first Monday of every September. The first Labor Day celebration dates back to a parade in New York on Tuesday, September 5, 1882. More than half the states were celebrating Labor Day by 1893, but it wasn't made a national holiday until June 28, 1894, when President Grover Cleveland signed it into law.

If you missed Canton's fireworks during the Heritage Festival, have no fear! Local fireworks are scheduled in Dearborn, Plymouth, and Westland. Other Michigan communities are also having fireworks if you happen to be traveling this Holiday Weekend. Learn more about the history and celebration of the Fourth of July with several items here at the Canton Public Library. Happy 234th Birthday America!
[Photo courtesy AP Images]

The 4th of July is typically an outdoor extravaganza of parties, BBQ cookouts, fireworks and family fun. For a website that will help you decorate, bake or give you tips on entertaining, check out the Martha Stewart holiday website.

For information on the 4th of July; whether it be books concerning its history, DVDs on the holiday that are documentary or fiction, or novels with 4th of July as a theme, see our catalog under the subject 4th of July.

Did you know that June 24th is International Fairy Day? It's true! Celebrate by reading some books about your favorite fairies. We have the Rainbow Magic series , as well as other books about fairies in both the fiction and nonfiction sections of the Children's Department. Check some out and enjoy the magic and sparkles that fairies bring to you.

You'll love Talk Like Shakespeare Day! It's celebrated this Friday, April 23rd in honor of Shakespeare's 446th birthday. So brush up your "thee", "thou", and "Methinks". Practice your Shakespearean insults so you'll be ready when the time is right. Pull that Renaissance Ruff out of your closet! And check the official website for other fun Shakespeare activities. Here's a fun clip from Sesame Street to get you in the mood!

Easter in Art [DVD]: This three part program explores the history of Easter as depicted in art from the time of the early Christians to the present day.

Jacques Pepin’s Easter Celebration [DVD]: Jacques Pepin demonstrates easy techniques to make an Easter dinner.

The celebration of St. Patrick's Day outside of Ireland is a clear indication of the Irish influence throughout the world. In the United States many cities and towns recognize March 17th with parades and parties to mark the holiday of Ireland's patron saint. Ireland has made a significant contribution to literature and the arts. Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, Samuel Beckett, James Joyce and W.B. Yeats are amongst Ireland's most famous sons. More modern day writers include Roddy Doyle, Edna O'Brien and William Trevor. Irish musicians and filmmakers also abound.  Many of these Irish-themed books, films and CDs can be found in the library's Special Collection.

Books: Fiction

• Patrick: Son of Ireland by Stephen R.

Join us for a Chinese New Year celebration on February 25, from 7:00-8:00 p.m.  Students from Canton's Evola Music will usher in the Year of the Tiger with their musical performances. Enjoy this happy occasion and an early celebration of spring in our Community Room.

Photo courtesy of AP Images.

Hey Kids!
Somebody just told me about a super cool holiday to celebrate this weekend. The first Saturday in February is Ice Cream For Breakfast Day. I knew there was a reason I liked February! Apparently, this holiday began in the great state of New York by some creative parents who came up with the BRILLIANT idea of eating ice cream for breakfast to liven up some dreary winter days. So I'm celebrating! Now I just have to pick a flavor. I'm thinking Bear Claw! Yum!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Groundhog Day is rooted in a German superstition that if an animal casts its shadow on February 2nd, which is the Christian holiday of Candlemas, bad weather is coming. (Candlemas is the feast of the purification of Mary, Jesus' mother, in the Catholic Church, and is so called because mass is preceded by the distribution of candles.)

Groundhog Day was first celebrated in the U.S. as a Pennsylvania German (so called Pennsylvania Dutch) custom around the 17th and 18th century. This tradition goes back even further in time when the ancient Romans conquered the Teutons or Germanic peoples in the north and brought this custom with them. If the groundhog came out of its den and cast a shadow, 6 more weeks of winter were imminent.

The ancient Celtic pagan festival of Imbolc, celebrated this same day, is traditionally a time of weather prediction, and the old tradition of watching to see if serpents or badgers came from their winter dens is perhaps a precursor to Groundhog Day. Fire and purification are important aspects of this festival. The lighting of candles and burning of bonfires in the snow represented the return of warmth and increasing power of the Sun over the coming months.

For more information on this holiday, see the book Groundhog Day in our collection. For more on Candlemas, see Celebrations of Light, also in our library collection.

Valentine's Day is celebrated on February 14, traditionally in honor of a saint killed on that day in Roman times. Because he was caught marrying Christian couples, he was arrested, imprisoned and sentenced to death under Emperor Claudius in 269 A.D. He is the Patron Saint of engaged couples, bee keepers, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travellers, and young people. The casket with his remains, located in Dublin Ireland, is shown here. For more information on this saint, see the Saints and Angels website.

Celebrate the January 13th birthday of the author who brought us Paddington Bear! Check out one of Michael Bond's books about Paddington, and be sure to watch our website for another very special bear-related birthday this week!

Have you ever tried to stay up until midnight on New Year's Eve so you could ring in the new year with everyone? For some people, that's easy! But some need to practice staying up so they don't fall asleep. Read Just In Time For New Year's to find out how kittycats Harry and Emily do just that. Maybe you can even try their idea and see if it works for you! Happy New Year!

Well, if you are reading this, then it means we have both survived the holidays once again. However, sometimes we just aren't ready to put holidays like Christmas away quite yet, so in the spirit of the day after Christmas, check out some of our poetry books and CDs that sing the songs and praises of Christmastime. Enjoy and be sure to pair it with a tall, steaming mug of hot cocoa, marshmallows a must!

To all who celebrate, Merry Christmas. Check out the PowerPoint presentation.

Well, maybe the weather isn't too frightful... yet, but it is getting there. The temps are dropping and the skies are looking more foreboding as the days progress. Will we get snow today? Tomorrow? Next week? As we sit and wonder, take advantage of the snowless days while you still can and get out to the DIA. The Avedon photos are running until January and you don't want to miss out on them. While there, be sure to spend time taking in the other collections. While I love the Renaissance Art, my favorite area isn't actually a collection. It's the room on the lower floor that looks like a magically lit castle yard. It has brick walls and twinkly Christmas lights adorning the trees. I love to stop there and just be in the quiet atmosphere. See you there.

Celebrate Jane Austen's birthday on December 16. You might think that there's nothing new with Austen, since she's been dead for almost 200 years, and sure enough, her collection of classics hasn't grown much lately. But there have been a slew of spin-offs, add-ons, continuations and re-tellings, and you can explore some of them on the shelves at CPL. Keep an eye out for a new version of Emma coming to Masterpiece in January, and while you wait, check our shelves for other Austen movies!

Time certainly is flying by and with the holidays so close, be sure to spend some time in our craft collection, specifically with the holiday craft books! Hunker down in the kitchen with some hot cocoa (piled high with marshmallows...yummy) and get out your favorite glue stick. There are so many different handmade items you can make, days will pass without you every leaving the house, which is not such a bad idea considering the shmucky weather we've been having. Happy Crafting!

Starting your holiday baking? You'll find some excellent books under Christmas cookery. But so many are already checked out! Try Joy of Cooking. It has one of the two recipes I am asked for every year — Angel Slices. The other recipe is for Double Chocolate Walnut Biscotti, which you can find on epicurious. An extra bonus: both recipes are incredibly easy.

Welcome to December everyone and for that matter, welcome to National Tie Month! In honor of the gift that we all love to give fathers and grandfathers for most holidays of gift giving significance, let's celebrate the tie with joy and creativity. There is so much you can do with a tie, for example, you could put your picture on it, tie-dye it, paint it, iron on a patch or decal, attach festive jewels, or go crazy with some craft glue and glitter. Whatever you decide to do with your tie, have fun and know that the beloved tie will be even more well loved because you decorated it. Good luck!