African Literatures Discussion Group
Led by Anne Serafin, this group explores the rich variety of writings from Africa. The group meets on the third Wednesday of the month at 7:30PM, in Meeting Room A. Meeting Date: May 16, The Cheapest Nights by Yusuf Idris. For further information, call 552-7145

Children's Book Writers Group
Meetings are now held on the first Monday or the fourth Wednesday of the month at 7:00PM in Meeting Room A. This group is for writers who have work in progress. Pre-registration required. Please call Ruth Glass at 332-0835 for more information. Meeting Date: May 7 or 23.

Current Fiction Discussion Group
Meetings are held the first Wednesday of the month, 7:30PM in Meeting Room B. Participants should read works in advance. Group coordinator: Alice Simons. For information, call the Library at 552-7159. Meeting Dates: May 2: Francine Prose, Blue Angel; June 6: Edna O’Brien, Wild Decembers

Great Books Discussion Group
Meetings are held on the second Tuesday of the month at 7:30PM in Meeting Room A. Members read books from the Great Books Foundation (available at the Library). Meeting Date: May 8: "Chelkash" by Maxim Gorky. For further information, call the Library at 552-7145.

Landscape of Aging
This group will resume meeting in the fall.

Newton Camera Club
Meetings are usually held at 7:15PM on the second and fourth Mondays of the month at the Nonantum Branch Library. Group coordinator: Mary Coyne: (781) 283-3066. Meeting Dates: May 3: Opening reception for members’ print exhibit at the Main Library. May 14: Banquet and Scavenger Hunt results.

Playreading
Meetings are held at Newton Corner on the first Tuesday of the month at 7:00PM. Preparation is not necessary. Meeting Date: May 1. For further information, please call the Library at 552-7145 or the branch at 552-7157.

Poetry Workshop
This workshop provides constructive criticism for experienced poets. The group meets every Saturday at 10:30AM in Meeting Room A. Participants should bring 10 copies of the poem they will present. For further information, please call 244-2353.

Sequences: Women Tell Our Stories
In this women's workshop, participants read, discuss and write about literature by women. The group meets the second Wednesday of each month from 10 - 11:30AM in Meeting Room A. Leader: Robin Mayer Stein. Meeting Date: May 9. For further information, call 552-7145.

Short Story Discussion Group
 Meetings are held on the second Monday of the month at 7:30PM in Meeting Room A. Group leader is Mary Lanigan. For further information, call 552-7145. Meeting Date: May 14: Sheila M. Schwartz, "Afterbirth," and T. Coraghessan Boyle, "Friendly Skies."

Sound and Sense Poetry Workshop
This new workshop for experienced poets concentrates on honing literary skills with a focus on publication. The group meets weekly on Sundays, Noon – 2:00PM, in Meeting Room A.

AUTHOR ALAN LIGHTMAN TO SPEAK ON "THE DIAGNOSIS" 

Best-selling author Alan Lightman, known for his beautifully-written, metaphysical novel Einstein’s Dreams, will speak on his recently published novel The Diagnosis at the Newton Free Library on Tuesday, May 15, 7:30PM. A booksale and signing will follow the talk with books provided by the New England Mobile Book Fair.

"Packed with dark power and awful humor," (Annie Proulx), this National Book Award Finalist is a brilliant and disturbing examination of our modern obsession with speed, information and money and what this obsession has done to our minds and our spirits.

While rushing to his office one summer morning, Bill Chalmers realizes that he cannot remember where he is going or even who he is. All he remembers is the motto of his company: "The maximum information in the minimum-time." When his memory returns, he is afflicted by a strange, gradual paralysis. As he attempts to find a diagnosis of his illness, he descends into a nightmare, enduring a blizzard of medical tests without conclusive results, the manic frenzy of his company and a desperate wife who thinks he must be imagining his deteriorating condition. Lightman intertwines Chalmers’ desperate search for a diagnosis with the ancient story of Socrates’ betrayal and ultimate poisoning, drawing unexpected parallels between the two.

This is "a work of vivid sensuousness, sparkling intelligence and poignant beauty. Lightman’s gripping tale contrasts the needs of the body and spirit with the acquisitiveness of the mind and ponders the potential lethality of ideologies, be they cultural or technological." (Booklist)

Lightman’s previous books include Good Benito and Dance for Two and he is the editor of The Best American Essays 2000. He is a professor of humanities and a lecturer in physics at MIT.

ARCHAEOLOGIST NICHOLAS CLAPP TO GIVE SLIDE SHOW ON "SHEBA" 

From Los Angeles, archaeologist Nicholas Clapp will visit the Newton Free Library to present a slide show and lecture on his captivating new book Sheba: Through the Desert in Search of the Legendary Queen. The talk will take place on Tuesday, May 22, 7:30PM and will be followed by a booksigning and sale with books provided by the New England Mobile Book Fair.

Was the mysterious Queen of Sheba a flesh-and-blood monarch or merely a myth? Few know more about her than that she journeyed to see wise King Solomon in the Bible.

As in his search for the lost city of Ubar, Clapp uses satellite images to track Sheba on ancient caravan routes and at archaeological sites. His search leads him to Israel, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Yemen. On his travels he is threatened by kidnappers, finds what may be the queen’s tomb as described in the Arabian Nights and investigates a shrine where Sheba’s – and Solomon’s – son may have hidden the Ark of the Covenant. The quest is bolstered by new carbon-14 datings and by the discovery of a 5,000 year old Arabian Stonehenge. Finally, at the romantic ruins of Sirwah, the pieces of the puzzle fall into place as evidence reveals the queen as an actual monarch whose power likely outshone that of Solomon.

Clapp’s earlier work earned this praise from the Los Angeles Times: "His contagious enthusiasm blazes through his prose…a masterful storyteller."

The author is both an award-winning filmmaker and a noted lecturer on archaeology. His first book, The Road to Ubar, was a New York Public Library "Book to Remember" for 1999.

FATHER ROBERT DRINAN TO SPEAK ON NEW BOOK ON HUMAN RIGHTS 

International human rights advocate Father Robert F. Drinan will speak at the Newton Free Library on his new book, The Mobilization of Shame: A World View of Human Rights on Tuesday, May 29, 7:30PM. A booksigning and sale will follow the talk, with books provided by the New England Mobile Book Fair. Seating is limited.

Global consciousness of human rights grew dramatically during the second half of the 20^th century. Today many more human rights are recognized by international law and far more people are involved and interested in the subject. This book tells the amazing history of this revolution in global thinking and discusses all the critical issues now facing the human rights movement.

Drinan discusses the development of a consensus to establish the U.N. in the 1940s and follows the human rights movement through to such recent events as the indictment of Milosevic and the ad hoc tribunals relating to the Balkans and Rwanda. Among the topics considered are: women’s worldwide struggle for equality, the performance of the U.S. in adhering to customary international law, the declarations and covenants on human rights issued by the U.N. and much more.

As a priest, lawyer and a former U.S. Congressman, Drinan provides a unique perspective on – and unflinching appraisal of – the human rights movement today and its prospects for the future.

An ordained Jesuit priest, Drinan is professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center and a former dean of Boston College Law School. He has authored nine previous books and is a regular contributor to the Boston Globe, London Tablet, America and Christian Century. From 1971 – 1981, he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Newton and the rest of Massachusetts’ 4^th Congresssional District.

GREEN DECADE TALK AT LIBRARY ON ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS INDUSTRY

The Green Decade Coalition/Newton will present a talk by Scott Cassel, Director of the Product Stewardship Institute, on a national effort to engage industry in developing environmentally safe consumer products. The talk will take place at the Newton Free Library on Monday, May 21, 7:00PM.

The Product Stewardship Institute at UMass/Lowell, created this past December, researches and promotes efforts to manufacture products that are easier to recycle and toxin-free. Current efforts focus on electronics, paint, carpet, pesticides and products containing mercury.

Cassel states: "The economic prosperity of the last 10 years has dramatically increased the amount and toxicity of waste as well as the associated costs of recycling and disposal. With government budgets unable to meet this growing financial burden, state and local officials are now asking product manufacturers to participate in the waste management solution."

Cassel is also the former Director of Waste Policy and Planning for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs.

Those attending the talk are asked to bring a mercury fever thermometer to be exchanged for a free digital one.

BACKYARD COMPOSTING WORKSHOP

Ann McGovern, Composting Outreach Specialist for the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, will lead a workshop on Backyard Composting and Organic Yard Care at the Newton Free Library, Tuesday, May 8, 7:00PM. This event is sponsored by the City of Newton Composting Committee and the Green Decade Coalition/Newton.

Participants will learn why compost has a miraculous effect on plant health and why chemical fertilizers and pesticides are not as successful or cost effective. McGovern will demonstrate how easy it is to make high quality compost using household waste. Information on resources such as low-cost compost bins, videos and printed information will be available.

DR. WILLIAM SMITH TO SPEAK ON THE EXPERIENCE OF AFRICAN AMERICANS SERVING IN WORLD WAR II, SPONSORED BY THE BAHA’I COMMUNITY

The Newton Baha’i Community will present Dr. William Smith with his video/lecture program "We Stand on Their Shoulders: African Americans in World War II," on Thursday, May 17, 7:00PM at the Newton Free Library.

This inspiring presentation documents the contributions and sacrifices of African American soldiers who served in World War II, whose story has not been shown in mainstream media. Smith’s talk will incorporate clips from his film "The Invisible Soldiers: Unheard Voices," broadcast on PBS in November, 2000. Using rare footage and riveting interviews, the film is "a sterling testimony to the invincible courage and towering moral stature of African Americans as they fought two wars, one against the Axis Powers, the other against racism at home." (Cornel West, Harvard University) This is also the story of the roots of the civil rights movement that grew from the dashed hopes of returning soldiers who found little acknowledgement of their sacrifice once at home. An outspoken advocate of race unity in America, Smith looks at the visionary spirit of those who started down the path of racial justice 50 years ago and argues for an end to prejudice and a beginning to healing.

Smith has worked in many capacities, as a school principal, community activist and filmmaker. He serves on numerous boards including the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans and the National Race Unity Committee of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is. He was organizer, coordinator and contributing writer for The Power of Race Unity: Handbook for Neighborhood Race Unity Dialogue, used in neighborhood dialogues nationwide and developed the Armed Forces Facilitators/Host Guide for Race Unity Dialogues. He co-produced the nationally distributed television program, "The Power of Race Unity." He has received many professional and service awards including three silver and four bronze Telly Awards, the National Education Association’s Outstanding Television Broadcast Award for "The Teller and the Tale," the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame Documentary Award as producer of "African Americans in World War II: A Legacy of Patriotism and Valor" and the AFTRA/SAG American Scene Award for Diversity. Smith, with the assistance of Senator Kennedy’s office, was responsible for initiating the historic Joint Congressional Resolution for The Day of Honor 2000 project, which honored and recognized the service of minority veterans in the Armed Forces in WWII. "Invisible Soldiers" was shown in many U.S. cities in conjunction with the national Day of Honor events. Currently, Smith serves as President/CEO of PEVUE, Inc., a nonprofit media services company which focuses on producing educational mediaware for preschoolers.

Attorney David R. Bikofsky will speak on "Holocaust Survivors: Restitution and Remedies" at the next session of the Newton Free Library Legal Series on Wednesday, May 16, 7:15PM.

Bikofsky will provide a brief introduction to historical developments leading to the creation of German Restitution Laws, followed by an in-depth discussion of important new legal remedies available to Holocaust survivors and their heirs seeking compensation for internment, slave labor and expropriation of property by the Nazi government during World War II.

Bikofsky is a partner in the Newton firm of Gillis & Bikofsky where he specializes in German Restitution and other areas.

JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY TALK

Annette M. LeClair will speak on "Proper Admiration: Jane Austen’s Encounters with her Readers" at the next meeting of the Jane Austen Society at the Newton Free Library, Sunday, May 13, 2:00PM. LeClair is Head of Technical Services at Union College’s library in Schnectady, NY.

This project is funded through the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners with funds from Library Services and Technology Act, a federal source of library funding.

VOLUNTEER DRIVER WANTED!

The Social Services Department needs a volunteer on Friday afternoons to deliver books to the homebound. A familiarity with Newton streets would be helpful. If interested, please contact Volunteer Coordinator Margaret Sudbey at 552-7151 or email her at msudbey@mln.lib.ma.us.