August is named after the very first Roman emperor (and grandnephew of Julius Caesar) Augustus Caesar (63BC – AD14). August’s birthstone is the peridot and the flower is the gladiolus. Some observances in August are: American Adventures Month, Back to School Month, National Dog Month, US Air Force Day: 1, Coast Guard Day: 4, National Night Out: 4, Smokey Bear’s Birthday: 9, National Hip Hop Day: 11, National Honey Bee Day: 15, National Radio Day: 20 , and International Whale Shark Day: 30  just to name a few.

The Jamerson Memorial Library would like to thank W.D. and Patty from Wilkins Myrick Frames & Fine Arts for the beautiful, framed print of children reading. This is a parting gift to the Library and the public as they goodbye after 35 years of service to Appomattox. They are turning the page in their life to the chapter known as retirement. W.D. looks forward to lots of fishing and hunting, and Patty looks forward to whatever adventures await her as they turn from a life of working and preserving memories in frames, to making their own memories with family and friends.

It was a hen party in the Library’s community room on Monday, June 20th, as the ladies from Sun Bonnet Sue met up for good conversation, and the click click of knitting needles as that seemed be to that everyone was working on knitting projects. If you are interested in joining them to learn, teach or share your interests in crocheting, knitting, quilting, embroidery or other busy hands work join them at their next meeting on Monday, August 3rd, from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm in the Library’s community room.

On Tuesday, July 21st, the Library Director headed up the Pamplin Story and Craft. She read a total of four books including “Oliver’s Lollipop”, and “Little Penguin and the Lollipop”. There was a lollipop craft project using glue, tissue paper, a paper plate, and a craft stick while enjoying snacks.

The rain and thunder held off just long enough for the Tuesday BAC (Book, Activity and Craft) to the Library event. Library Fairy MaKayla read the book “How Do Dinosaurs go to School?” by Jane Yolen & Mark Teague. The kids enjoyed snacks while making dinosaur tangrams, and dino mosaic patterns.

We had a small crowd of movie goers for the Wednesday, July 22nd’s Move Matinee with snacks. We were the cool spot-on Main Street with a movie about a futuristic team of unlikely superheroes who protected the galaxy from danger.

Parting is such sweet sorrow as we say goodbye to the kids of Methodist Day Care as Thursday, July 23rd, was their last day with us for dinosaur adventures at the Library. The kids worked on dino tangrams, dino designs, and several worksheets. The Library provided kids and workers alike with a dinosaur mystery bag filled with animal brick building miniatures, stickers, glow in the dark dinosaurs, and other fun trinkets.

Thursday was also the last BAC (Book, Activity, & Craft) to the Library Day as the Summer Reading Program comes to an end. Library Fairy MaKayla and volunteers read the book “The Lost Dinosaur Bone” by Mercy Mayer. The kids enjoyed snacks while creating multiple dino popup cards, using crayons, shapes, sequins, and other embellishments and imitating perceived dinosaur actions.

The Library wrapped the week up with a special Story & Craft Time on Friday, July 24th. Virginia authors, the mother and daughter duo Rachel and Jordan Arnette presented their book “Jojo’s Journey: Let’s go to Kindergarten”. Join Jojo as she begins her exciting Journey into Kindergarten! Jojo is both nervous and curious as she steps onto the school bus for the very first time. With the help of her loving parents and her teacher, Mrs. Wish, Jojo learns that being brave opens the door to fun, friendship, and new adventures. From classroom games to making her very first best friend, Jojo discovers that kindergarten is a place where everyone belongs and every day is filled with something new to learn and love. We will soon have a copy of the book available for checkout on our shelves.

There are only two day left to get put your entry in the free Shark Week Raffle. We will announce the winners on Wednesday, July 29th, so keep an eye out on our social media pages. You might see you name as one of the winners!

There are just a few more days to wrap up the Summer Reading Program, that ends on Friday, July 31st. You must have all your reading minutes logged on Beanstack by the end of business day. You will have until Saturday, August 8th, to spend the last of your tickets, no exceptions, the Library will not accept unspent tickets after the August 8th date.

It’s the Final SPLASHDOWN! On Friday, July 31st, the Library will host “Final Splashdown” as a goodbye to the Summer Reading Program! Dress to get wet and come to Abbitt Park between 10:00 am to 2:00 pm for a huge waterslide, reusable water balloons, vendors, games, glitter tattoos, bubbles, and more. Don’t forget to bring a t-shirt for tie dying! This program is free and open to everyone!

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.

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: