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Off the Shelf

I love reading, I am sure that comes as no surprise. You’d be hard pressed to find a librarian who dislikes reading. I love curling up with a book on a chilly morning. I love falling asleep with a book at night. I love stolen moments of the day reading, when I should really be doing something else. I read on planes, trains, and in the car as long as I’m not driving. I read in restaurants, coffee shops, and in waiting rooms. I read fiction and non-fiction from the adult shelves and the children’s room. I love young adult fiction and biographies about almost anyone. I must confess ...

When a Tiffany glass vase isn’t a Tiffany

Arthur J. Nash worked for the Thomas Webb & Sons art glass factory in his native England, but didn’t do his best, most innovative work until he came to America. His glassmaking expertise made him a perfect fit for the Tiffany Glass & Decorating Company, founded in 1892. Although Louis Comfort Tiffany achieved fame as a glass designer, he did not make his own glass. Nash established Tiffany Furnaces in Corona, New York, where he created the formula for the company’s famous Favrile iridescent glass. Like many glassmakers, Nash’s work was a family affair; his sons followed in his ...

National Honey Month

A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit the Minnesota State Fair for the first time in over a decade. It’s as crowded as I remember. There are plenty of distractions of food and fun, but there are also a lot of great exhibits about science, agriculture, conservation, and more. The hard work that many young people put into raising a diverse array of animals is on full display. The Agriculture Horticulture building sits on a hill overlooking the surrounding avenues and vendors on the state fairgrounds. Built like a many-spoked wheel, it has a variety of entrances and wings ...

An old fashioned app: Farm calculators

“But when are we going to use this in real life?” That question comes up in math classes, much to the chagrin of many teachers. It’s not just a classroom cliche to say that math is everywhere, from planning a budget to decorating a room. Even careers that aren’t directly connected to math require plenty of it. Take agriculture. Today, an online search can bring up farm calculator apps designed to help determine, for example, how much fertilizer a field requires, fuel efficiency of farm equipment, or predictions for product yields. Farm calculators have existed long before apps, ...

Best Nonfiction Books of 2025 (so Far)

There are many “Best Books of 2025 So Far” lists out right now, so I chose some of the top picks to share with you. Mark Twain by Ron Chernow (921 Twain) • Amazon’s Best Books of 2025 So Far Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (599.324 Dalton) • New York Times Best of the Year (So Far) • Spotify’s Best Biography & Memoir of the Year So Far There is No Place For Us: Working and Homeless in America by Brian Goldstone (362.592 Goldsto) • New York Times Best Books of the Year (So Far) Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston 1777-1780 by ...

Vlaminck brings new styles to vases, canvases

Maurice de Vlaminck (1876-1958), born in Paris, was one of the painters who exhibited at the 1905 Salon d’Automne, considered the beginning of the Fauvism art movement. The name “Fauvism” came from a critic’s negative reaction to the exhibition, insulting the paintings on display as the work of “wild beasts” (“fauves” in French). Fauvism was characterized by the use of highly saturated color, abstracted shapes, and loose brushwork, a marked departure from the naturalistic, representational styles that dominated the art world at the time. Although de Vlaminck’s fame ...