by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian
It’s Watercade week in Litchfield, and that means a couple
of things for the library this year. One
is true every year: on Saturday we have the Watercade book sale. The special thing this year is that we have artist
Art Norby giving a presentation at the library on Wednesday afternoon.
On Wednesday, July 10, at 2 p.m. in the meeting room, artist
and Litchfield High School alum Arthur Norby will give a presentation about his
latest novel and autobiography. Norby is
well known as a sculptor and painter. He
has been sculpting for 40 years, creating over 600 sculptures which include
more than 15 large-scale public bronzes.
He designed the Minnesota Korean War Veterans Memorial, as well as
public sculptures in Spicer, in Willmar, in the International Peace Garden, and
all over the country. Art operated the
Norby Gallery in Arizona for a decade starting in the mid-90s. He still paints and sells his artwork. He will have copies of his books available to
purchase at the program. The program is
funded in part by Minnesota’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
The Watercade book sale is the largest sale the library has
each year. Many people are familiar with
this one because some of the book racks and tables are set up in front of the
library, and you can see it from Art in the Park. Half of the sale is set up inside the meeting
room, so plan to come inside to browse even more; cashiers will be inside, too.
Saturday’s sale will run from 10 a.m. to
4 p.m.
The Watercade sale has the biggest selection of all of the
Friends of the Litchfield Library’s book sales.
What many people don’t realize is that the Watercade book sale is only
one of six book sales at the Litchfield Library every year. The Friends hold a sale in the library
meeting room every other month on the third Saturday of the month, from 10 a.m.
to 2 p.m. The upcoming dates are
September 21, November 16, and January 18.
On every sale, you’ll find things for kids and adults, with generally
much more selection for adults. Most items
are donated by members of our community.
Some are things that have been withdrawn from the library collection
because they haven’t been checked out in a long time, and we’ve needed to make
space for new things. The book sale is
mostly that – print books – but you’ll also find some books on CD, music CDs,
and movies on DVD.
Other than the book sale and Art Norby’s book talk, regular
library programs continue this week.
Storytimes happen on Wednesday and Friday morning. Brickheads will build with Legos on Thursday
night. And on Saturday afternoon at
1:30, the teen program will be experimenting with green screen special effects
using masks.
The summer reading program continues until the end of
August, so you can stop by with the kids anytime to turn in their reading logs
and claim their prizes. We’ve gotten
some great donations from KLFD, Family Fare, Casey’s, Pizza Ranch, McDonald’s,
and the Friends of the Library, so there are many nice prizes to choose from,
and more will be coming. By the time the
parade passes by on Saturday evening, though, the library will be closed, so
stop in before 5:00, or during the week.
Have a wonderful Watercade!
