“John W Nelson aka Black Jack Nelson”

FROM The Special Collection of the Newton Library
Contrary to popular belief Newton’s famous bandit “John W Nelson aka Black Jack Nelson” was still living in Newton with his 6th spouse in 1920. To read of his escapades and alleged escapades come to the library and check out our collection of stories about him and his family. Once again Larry D Christiansen has done a masterful job of putting Black Jacks past in perspective.
We also have the 1870 and 1880 census of Newton and Clarkston (which were transcribed by Larry) at the library. All of the above can be checked out at the library.

Cleo Griffin needs your help, we are trying to identify where each household lived in the 1870 per the census records. If you have pictures, histories of the following people please let us borrow them. Cleo will scan them and return them to you with a copy for you also.
Joseph or Joe Wilson , Cyrus Clark, Samuel Worthington, Arthur Goody, Godlip Surivel, James Johnson, Peter Anderson, Fredrick Busler, John Suter, Leland Whitaker, Elizabeth Loosli , Ann Eckerman, Ole Anderson, William Sparks, Alva Cummings, Willam Ricks, Paul Larson, . The spelling could be wrong as the census taker may not have known the correct spelling. Please call her @ 563-6540 or email her @ cleo144@ gmail.

NEWTON FIRE DEPARTMENT

Change Your Clocks, Change Your Batteries

Posted by Greg F on Thursday, March 04, 2010 / Labels: Fire /
The Newton Fire Department encourages everyone to change the batteries in their smoke detectors over the weekend of March 14th when Daylight Savings Time begins.

A free-burning fire in your home can double in size every minute. If a fire occurs while family members are sleeping and is not discovered, the chance of safely exiting the home is greatly diminished. It is extremely important to use smoke detectors as an early warning device that will allow your family members to escape before fire conditions make it impossible to exit your home.

Please review this US Fire Administration information page on smoke detectors, as a guide to the types of detectors available and how to install and maintain smoke detectors in your home.

THREE CUPS OF TEA

Starred Review. Some failures lead to phenomenal successes, and this American nurse's unsuccessful attempt to climb K2, the world's second tallest mountain, is one of them. Dangerously ill when he finished his climb in 1993, Mortenson was sheltered for seven weeks by the small Pakistani village of Korphe; in return, he promised to build the impoverished town's first school, a project that grew into the Central Asia Institute, which has since constructed more than 50 schools across rural Pakistan and Afghanistan. Coauthor Relin recounts Mortenson's efforts in fascinating detail, presenting compelling portraits of the village elders, con artists, philanthropists, mujahideen, Taliban officials, ambitious school girls and upright Muslims Mortenson met along the way. As the book moves into the post-9/11 world, Mortenson and Relin argue that the United States must fight Islamic extremism in the region through collaborative efforts to alleviate poverty and improve access to education, especially for girls. Captivating and suspenseful, with engrossing accounts of both hostilities and unlikely friendships, this book will win many readers' hearts. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child by Francisco Jiménez

01/31 K. Elliott gave 5 stars to: The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child by Francisco Jiménez
status: Read in January, 2010

Picked this up from the library on a whim. On the back cover, one reviewer says: "A jewel of a book. The writing is full of sentiment, but not sentimentality. ...A must for the general reader, students, and professors alike. In brief, a joy to read."

Well, I have to disagree about the "joy" for the most part, some of it was very hard. But it was worth the glimpse into the life of an illegal-immigrant-migrant-worker family. The author really knew how to put it on to paper.

Some of it was agonizing, some sweet, some just made me cry in pity. He didn't describe much of their life in Mexico, but I had to wonder if it really was any better here. Perhaps it was since they stayed. ?

The ending was horrible, just too abrupt. Obviously things worked out as the author is a professor in California now, but it just felt...well, I suppose it felt a lot like the characters felt--uprooted again right at the beginning of something good.

Master Skylark: A Story of Shakespeare's Time by John Bennett

01/31 K. Elliott gave 5 stars to: Master Skylark: A Story of Shakespeare's Time by John Bennett
recommended for: History and adventure lovers
status: Read in January, 2010 — I own a copy

Picked this up a long time ago at DI, just felt like reading it--so glad I did!

This was a fabulous book! I think I'll read it aloud to my kids sometime. Young Nick is endearing for many reasons, but most of all for the love he has for his mother.

The author dedicates the book this way:

"All that Nicholas Attwood's was to him, and more, my own mother has been to me. And to her here I inscribe this book with a never failing love."

Isn't that sweet? It sets the whole tone for the book.

An adventure tale set in Shakespeare's time, it was a great and detailed story of life in that time. I love the descriptions and the characters are interesting and compelling. One think I appreciated was that the author didn't see fit to make the characters speak in Elizabethan English :) I loved the descriptions of Shakespeare and others.

Goodreads members have spoken!

Goodreads members have spoken! Thousands of votes were cast in the first-ever Goodreads Choice Awards. A few books dominated their categories, such as The Girl Who Played with Fire in the Mysteries/Thrillers genre. But many races came down to a photo finish. Catching Fire narrowly edged out The Help to become the all-time favorite book of 2009. The zombies of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies put up a good fight, but were bitten back in the final days of voting by the vampires of Dead and Gone. Here are the winners in each category! See the full results »

Disagree with these popular picks? Make your voice heard by voting for your favorite books of 2009 on our Listopia list, The Best Books of 2009! You can nominate and vote for any book published last year. Vote now »


Goodreads Favorite of 2009
Catching Fire
by Suzanne Collins

Fiction
The Help
by Kathryn Stockett
(Goodreads Author)

Nonfiction
Columbine
by Dave Cullen
(Goodreads Author)

Mystery/Thriller
The Girl Who Played with Fire
by Stieg Larsson

Fantasy
Dead and Gone
by Charlaine Harris


Science Fiction
Leviathan
by Scott Westerfeld

Chick Lit
The Last Song
by Nicholas Sparks

Romance
An Echo in the Bone
by Diana Gabaldon

Graphic Novel
Batman
by Neil Gaiman
(Goodreads Author)


Young Adult Fiction
Along for the Ride
by Sarah Dessen
(Goodreads Author)

Young Adult Series
Catching Fire
by Suzanne Collins

Children's
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
by Jeff Kinney

Picture Book
Blueberry Girl
by Neil Gaiman
(Goodreads Author)
illustrated by Charles Vess

INSPIRING BOOKS AT THE LIBRARY

INSPIRING BOOKS AT THE LIBRARY
Literacy
Once you learn to read, you will be forever free."
Frederick Douglass

Inspiring books I have read lately
"The Great Serum Race" by Debbie S Miller
A children’s book about the Iditarod Trail
The Iditarod Race in March is in commemoration
of the race in 1925 to carry Diphtheria vaccine to Nome Alaska to save children’s lives. Beautiful pictures by Jon Van Zyle a musher himself. Now at the library..
Also:"Secret Believers: What Happens When Muslims Believe in Christ" by Brother Andrew ( recommenced by an institute teacher)
Posted by CLEO & MIKE at 3:27 PM 0 comments