Shark Days, School Days, Dog Days, and Library Days.

Welcome to the “Dog Days of Summer”, the hot humid sultry weeks of the year that traditionally run through August 11th. The phrase comes from ancient astronomy and the star Sirius, known as the the “Dog Star” because it is the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (the Greater Dog). The ancient Greeks and Romans noticed that Sirius rose right alongside the Sun during midsummer. They mistakenly believed that the combined light and energy of the Sun and the bright star added extra heat to the Earth, causing the extreme weather, droughts, and fevers. The Library has a checkout-able telescope under our Special Checkout collection, for an up-close look at Sirius or other stars, plants and constellations.

Just a reminder that the Library’s August newsletter is ready! Patrons can get a copy at the circulation desk to take home. These monthly newsletters are filled with that month’s events and programs, informational articles, photos, coloring pages, and more.

The J. Robert R. Memorial Library is hosting a school supply drive through closing on Monday, August 31st. Donations support local organizations helping students in need. You can drop off items at the front desk or the donation box on the main floor.

There is a saying that goes “Tuesday is a good day to have a good day”. On Tuesday, July 28th, we started the day off with a Story & Craft Time at the Pamplin Depot as the Library Director read the books “Don’t Wake the Tiger”, “The Tiptoeing Tiger” and “The Little Tiger”. The kids had fun making hand-print tigers while enjoying snacks.

Meanwhile the Jameson Library went to the worms on Tuesday as Cindy returned from Pamplin Depot to welcome our host Kaitlin from the Robert E Lee Soil and Water Conservation District for an “Introduction to Worm Farming and Composting Basics”. This program was paid in full by the grants “Infinite Sums Rural and Small Libraries Grant” “Robert E Lee Water and Soil Conservation District Outdoor Class Grant” and “Let’s Go Composting Grant”.

Speaking of worms, don’t forget that the Library has “Squirm the Bookworm” outside along the edge of the Library in the lava garden facing the parking lot. We want to encourage you to paint rocks in patterns, and shapes to add to Squirm as he wiggles and wriggles his way across our lava bed. Add your art to this community project by participating. Don’t forget to take photos of your additions to Squirm and tag us in your social media.

On Wednesday, July 29th, the Library hosted a Summer Blockbuster about a massive great white shark terrorizes the summer resort town. The police chief, a marine biologist, and a grizzled shark hunter embark on a desperate quest to kill the beast before it strikes again.

Also on Wednesday it was the Jamerson Library’s Infinity Monsters Crafts for all ages in the Library’s community room. Patrons had the endless options of creating their own build-a-monster with patterns, eyes, bodies, horns, arms and legs to make their very own unique monsters while having snacks! This program was paid for by the Infinite Sums Grant.

Following Infinity Monsters was Infinity Flower Creative Class for Adults lead by Library Director, Mrs. Cindy Scheu. Turning the infinity symbol into fancy flower décor, using dried flowers and leaves, black card stock and photo frames for a forever, pun intended, work of art. This program was paid for by the Infinite Sums Grant.

On Thursday, July 30th, Library Fairy MaKayla hosted the Jamerson Library’s Infinity Kaleidoscope craft for patrons of all ages. The kids had fun making their own kaleidoscope, and free snacks! This program was paid for by the Infinite Sums Grant.

We wrapped up Thursday with the Creative Class for Adults, Clay Bowls part 1. It was a full class of crafty patrons making air dry clay bowls to be painted at the next class. This program was paid for by the Infinite Sums Grant.

Dun dun…… dun dun…… dun dun dun and the winners of this year’s Shark Week Raffle are Ruth, Joy, Emory and William, we would like to congratulate all our winners. There were over 330 entries into this free annual raffle. Everyone has been contacted and prizes have been picked up. We would like to thank Sue Hamlett for her annual donation of shark-related items for this raffle. We love patrons who support to this library as we support the community. Bruce, our annual great white shark that visits the Library during summer months has swam off for deeper waters, but has promised to return for next year’s Summer Reading and of course, Shark Week!

On Friday, July 31st, the 2026 Summer Reading “Unearth a Story” was officially over. You will no longer be able to submit reading logs for tickets, and tickets must be spent by closing on Saturday, August 8. The Library will no longer except unspent tickets after this date, no exceptions.

The Final Splashdown was on Friday as we said goodbye to Summer Reading with a tidal wave of fun. The Library would like to thank Holliday Lake State Park for being a part of it. We had craft projects, games, two water slides, squirt rods, reusable crocheted water balloons, t-shirt tie dying, sidewalk chalk, hula hoops and more!

The potential for bad weather didn’t stop the Library from showing up to the Appomattox Sheriff’s Department’s National Night Out as a vendor. There were 100s of local families who showed up for backpacks filled with school supplies, hot dogs, chips, and more. The Library did body glitter tattoos, passed out craft projects, small gift bags filled with an assortment of stickers, pencils, and other items, sewing kits, and other giveaways, while promoting Library services and August’s newsletter. We would like to thank Jennifer and the Sheriff’s Department for allowing us to be a vendor during this community outreach event while listening to Southland Band!

Thanks to a nice donation of bluebell bulbs from Dr. Pearson and Dr. Goade, we have added these bulbs to our Jamerson Seed Library. They should be planted in mid-September to mid-October. Bluebells bloom in early to mid-spring, in Virginia, typically late March through mid-April. They have a short blooming period before dying back to the ground by early summer. Supplies are limited and once they are gone, they are gone. We will soon add their donation of blue, purple and yellow irises to the seed library. You are allowed 3 items per week, per household for the seed library. If you have extra seeds/bulbs/bareroots or other items considering a donation to the Library for sharing with other patrons through this free seed library. The purpose of this seed library is to promote the propagation of native bees, butterflies and birds, beautification of Appomattox, to encourage families to garden together, and to help lower the stress of food insecurity.

We are expanding upon our Seed Library and Outdoor Classroom outreach by purchasing a small greenhouse. This greenhouse will be used to house the Library’s worm farm through the winter months, start seedlings, and be used for educational purposes for patrons through programs, and propagation for plant swaps, and more. This greenhouse was paid in part by the Robert E. Lee Soil and Water Outdoor Class Room Grant.

The start of a new school year for Appomattox is Thursday, August 6th, get ahead of the curve with some help from your local library when you visit our kids page at: https://www.jrjml.org/kids/. You will have free access to Gale In Context: Elementary meets the research needs of students in Kindergarten through grade 5, with age-appropriate content from magazines, newspapers, and reference materials, covering current events, the arts, science, health, people, government, history, and more. You will also have free access to HelpNow: Connect LIVE with a certified tutor, seven days a week, 24/7, for assistance with assignments and research, including math, reading, writing, science, social studies, and more! Submit your papers to a tutor in the Writing Lab for constructive feedback or take practice exams and create your own flashcards to prepare for tests. Tutoring is available in English and Spanish.

Coming in September, Jamerson Library’s Film Noir Club! It was a dark and stormy night ……… the perfect setting for sinister danger, sexy femme fatales, crime dramas, hard-boiled detectives, and fatalistic stories where heroes rarely get their happily ever-afters, mixed in with a touch of classic black and white films from the 1940s and 1950s. If you are interested in learning more about the genre, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) has a great YouTube video to explain the grittier details at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOrgAnJNoTA.

The Library offers Kanopy, a free, ad-free video streaming service. User can watch thousands of movies, including Film Noir, documentaries, foreign films, kids films, classic cinema and so much more. All you need is a valid Library card, visit our website, or go directly to the Library’s Kanopy account at: https://www.kanopy.com/en/jamerson. You can download the Kanopy app for apple or android for your mobile devices.

In observation of the Labor Day Holiday, the Library will be closed on Monday, September 7th. We will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday, September 8th, starting at 9:30 am. Our book depository, located at the back of the building will remain open.

If you have any questions or concerns about this article or other library-related topics, please feel free to call us during normal business hours.

The Library receives a steady supply of new and donated items and would like to highlight the following items:

DVDs

• GOAT
• Greenland 2: Migration
• She Dances
• The Jane Mysteries: A Deadly Prescription
• Protector
• Night of the Seven Kingdoms: The Complete First Season
• The Groomsmen 3-Movie Collection