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Storytelling Event "Love & Romance in 45 Minutes" featuring Janice Del Negro Wednesday, November 19th, 7:00-8:00 Drop-in, Adult audience only

Janice Del Negro, PHD., is a professor of Dominican University's Graduate School of Library & Information Science, the author of two children's books entitled Willa In The Wind and Lucy Dove, and an accomplished oral storyteller. Beloved by her students and audiences alike, Janice is sure to captivate with her dramatic, beautiful tales. Don't miss this special performance!Please note, this is an adults-only event. Light refreshments will be served after the show.

Thomas Ford Closed for Carpeting
Monday, October 27 through Friday, October 31

The Thomas Ford Library will be closed the week of October 27-31 for the installation of new carpeting. We regret the inconvenience and look forward to reopening with a fresh new look on Saturday, November 1.

All programs scheduled for the week of October 27-31 will held downstairs. Adult programs will be held in the meeting room. Children's story hours will be held in the Children's department.

No items will come due during the week we are closed.

We will stop placing reserves for our patrons on October 14 and will resume placing reserves on November 3. In the interim, the LaGrange Library will be placing reserves for Thomas Ford patrons. All items reserved through LaGrange will need to be picked up there.

Patrons will still be able to place reserves online from home but need to be aware that they will not be able to pick the items up until after November 3.

The bookdrop will remain open and staff will be in periodically to empty it. However, please don't return any books unless absolutely necessary as we don't have a lot of storage space downstairs and will not have access to the upstairs.

Library Arrearage Tax

Dear Neighbors,

You may have recently received a certified letter from the Cook County Clerk's Office notifying you that additional taxes need to be collected for the Thomas Ford Memorial Library in 2009. Everyone who pays property taxes in Western Springs received the same letter. The letter was sent because the Assessor's Office failed to assess all the taxes that were due to the Library in 2007. Because of the County's error, the Library's revenue was short by nearly $30,000.00. When the Library's Board of Trustees learned of the mistake, they promptly requested that the County remedy their error. The Library did not have any control over how the County chose to notify Western Springs residents of the problem in terms of either the wording or the type of mailing used. We regret if the means the County chose has caused our neighbors undue concern, frustration, or worry.

In any event, in 2009, Western Springs residents will receive two extra tax bills to collect the shortfall in two installments (Spring and Fall). Please be sure that you pay these installments separately from your principal tax bill so that you are properly credited for the payments. Again, we apologize for any confusion that the County's letter has caused our neighbors. We look forward to continuing to provide a high level of library service to our patrons.

The Thomas Ford Memorial Library Board of Trustees

Cooking With The Friends!

Thursday, November 20th, 6:30 p.m.

Fuller's Second Floor (Hinsdale)

Join the Western Springs Library Friends for a cooking class at Fuller's Second Floor in Hinsdale. The class will be on Fall side dishes. The fee for Friends members is $45; for non-Friends members $55. Payment is due at time of signup; please register at the Checkout Desk. If you are wondering about your membership, contact Friends president Linda McGuire.

Playaway AudioBooks

The next generation of audiobooks has arrived at Thomas Ford! We are excited to offer Playaways, which are small devices similar to an MP3 player and very user-friendly. With Playaway, there is no downloading, tapes, or CDs to handle, just a story pre-loaded and ready to go! We have a variety of titles available in both the Adult and Children's audio-visual areas of the Library. Headphones do not come with the Playaway but can be purchased at the Checkout Desk while supplies last, for $3.00 (nonrefundable).

Special Encyclopedias on Our Website

If you enjoy online encyclopedias or need good homework help, we have news for you! Thomas Ford wants to make using its web site like a visit to the library. We have taken a big step forward with the addition of hundreds of online encyclopedias and reference books from Gale Virtual Reference. Gale Virtual Reference includes over 300 titles, many of which are several volumes long in their print editions. Click on the link in this paragraph to enter using your Thomas Ford library card number. You may search the whole collection at once or titles such as the Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine or the Encyclopedia of World Biography individually. Just log in and enjoy a world full of information. For more information, call or ask at the Reference Desk about Gale Virtual Reference.

Don't Forget!

Anyone looking for a great mystery or sci-fi/fantasy novel should be sure to visit the Reading Room, where these exciting titles can be found! If you need help selecting one, just drop by the Reference Desk.

Sneak Preview: Books for November 2008

Watch for these books by popular authors:

• Arctic Drift by Dirk Cussler
• Cross Country by James Patterson
• Dashing Through the Snow by Mary Higgins Clark
• Just Past Sunset by Stephen King
• Man Who Invented Christmas : How Charles Dickens's a Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits by Les Standiford
• Mercy by Toni Morrison
• Now the Drum of War: Walt Whitman and His Brothers in the Civil War by Robert Roper
• Private Patient by P. D. James
• Promised Land : Thirteen Books That Changed America
• Sea Is So Wide and My Boat Is So Small : Charting a Course for the Next Generation by Marion Wright Edelman
• Your Heart Belongs to Me by Dean R. Koontz