It’s not just a minute to win it, you will have 24 hours donate online on May 5, 2015 for the Big Day of Giving.
Every $25 donation to WFoL within the 24 hour period at the Big Day of Giving donation portal earns a chance to win these wonderful treasures!
There are eleven books from local authors, a hand make mug from the Clayground and $50 of Winters Bucks which can be spent at your favorite downtown Winters Merchant if you are the lucky winner.
We have a wealth of amazing local talent. Many thanks to donors: Steve Ackley, Matt-Biers Ariel, Georgeanne Brennan, Diane Cary, Rebecca Bresnick Holmes, Ana Kormos, Catriona McPherson, Jan Schubert, Tamsen Schulz, and Dale J. Stephens!
We appreciate all of the generous donations, past and future, to ensure we have a strong and healthy library at the heart of our community.
Read on to learn more about the books you could win and the generous authors who love libraries.
“Why do I support/cherish libraries? I have two answers…
1. When I think of the great libraries of history … the Library of Alexandria, The Vatican Library, and all the monastic libraries that kept our written record alive and safe through the Middle Ages, I’m aware of their importance in preserving our legacy of thought and culture. Without them the world would indeed be a much darker place.
That’s my lofty answer.
2. On a more personal level, libraries have always been, for me, a place of quiet and dignified refuge. As a child, I remember going into the Woodland Public Library and seeing old men pouring over the daily newspapers in the front reading room … the day’s Daily Democrat and Bee, carefully placed in those old bamboo newspaper holders. They came, ostensibly, to read the paper, but I think the real reason was to have a place of gathering that wasn’t a bar, or a park bench, or a coffee shop. When I was a young man living, for a short time, out of my car in Monterey, I used to go to the Carmel Library — the coziest library I’ve ever been in — and sit by the fire and ponder the flames. It was a place where I could just sit, unharassed and comfortable — a way station for someone with no place else to go. And when I was a financially struggling young father with toddlers, I would go to the library in Campbell California and check out picture books and videos for my kids (our favorite were the Rabbit Ears videos — classic fables narrated by the day’s celebrities). Libraries are a place for reading, and research, and intellectual growth. But libraries are also simply a clean, quiet, and free place to go. Free of charge, but also free of commercial distraction and classism. Again, without them the world indeed be a much darker place.” Steve Ackley
Harry Steven (Steve) Ackley was born and raised in Woodland, California. He is a graduate of Cabrillo College, Bethany Bible College, and San Francisco State University, where he received a master’s degree in education.
After a short stint as a high school English teacher, Steve changed careers and went to work as a website designer.
Steve presently divides his time between San Jose and Winters, California. He enjoys spending time with his girlfriend Natasha, his three children, Cedric, Cleo, and Adrian, and his dog, Muddy Waters. Steve also plays string bass and bass guitar in various jazz and blues groups.
Book Donated: Our Lady of West 74th Street
Our Lady of West 74th Street follows the history of a miracle-working icon depicting the Virgin Mary and the seven archangels. The story tells of the lives the icon touches, and of the angels and devils who are alternately trying to protect and destroy it. The events go from 42 AD, to the early 1990s, to the present, back to 1941, with a few stops in between.
The novel begins when anthropology professor Emily Campbell investigates recent paranormal events at a New York City day care center. Her findings, along with developments in her own life, cause Emily to question long-held opinions and to see her past in a new light. But Emily is not the only one whose world is changing. She is only one player in a drama that has been unfolding for centuries — a spiritual tug-o-war surrounding an ancient object with the power to transform the hearts of humankind. As Emily tries to understand the signs around her, others are attempting to make sure she never does.
Find out more at:http://regardingarts.com/ourlady/index.html
“The Winters Library is my favorite place to take my students. It is warm, inviting, and the school librarian is the most helpful librarian I have ever met.” Matt Biers-Ariel
Matt Biers-Ariel is a Winters High School English teacher and the author of five books. He has put 90,000 miles on the bike he commutes from Davis to Winters on.
Book Donated: Bar Mitzvah and The Beast: One Family’s Cross-Country Ride of Passage by Bike
Find out more at mattbiers-ariel.com
“My town library was the cornerstone of my young life, providing access to the world through reading. It was a place where I was assured solitude to dream. Through college, graduate school, and my professional life, libraries played an equally important role, and continue to do so today. Public libraries are the backbone of a free, educated society and must be supported.” Georgeanne Brennan
Georgeanne Brennan is the author of more than 30 cookbooks and garden books, including The Food and Flavors of Haute Provence which won a James Beard award, and Aperitif, which won a Julia Child/International Association of Culinary Professionals award. She and her work were recently featured in the Wall Street Journal, and her acclaimed food memoir, A Pig in Provence, was on the Wall Street Journal’s best seller list in its e-book version. She is a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier.
Book donated: Salads 365 Days, Weldon-Owen/Williams-Sonoma
Salads of every kind, one for every day of the year, using fresh, seasonal ingredients, and lavishly illustrated with gorgeous photos.
Find out more at http://georgeannebrennan.com/
“Reading for me is silent, solitary immersion in an unfamiliar world. What a thrill to discover a new book with a quirky sensibility or beautiful prose! The library is my gateway to that thrill, and I love the idea of supporting the library to safeguard the gateway for other readers.” Diane Cary
Diane Cary, has been a WFoL volunteer and supporter of our library for many years. Winters Tales was written as a project of the Winters Friends of the Library.
Book Donated: Winters Tales
Winters Tales is a collection of stories, poems, and recollections about life in Winters, California Edited by Diane Cary, Photographs by Jamie Chomas
“The library provides an equal opportunity for everyone to be inspired, explore, dream, achieve and contribute.” Ana Kormos
Ana Kormos is the Director of Operations and Outreach at the Winters Healthcare Foundation. She is passionate about food, health and wellness.
Book Donated: The Cookbook – basic, everyday recipes from the nutrition education program.
This cookbook is a sampling of recipes that she created for the weekly nutrition classes that Winters Healthcare offers for its patients and members of the community.
Find out more at:
http://www.wintershealth.org/community-corner/si-se-puede-nutrition-and-exercise-education-program/
“Yolo County libraries are dear to my heart, because when I moved here on a “spouse” visa in 2010, I had no SSN, no credit card of my own, no bank account of own . . . While I waited, like a non-person, for my greencard to come through all I had was my precious library card. I was pretty much invisible to the USA, but to Yolo County libraries I existed. Thank you! “ Catriona McPherson
Catriona McPherson writes the Agatha, Macavity and Bruce winning Dandy Gilver series, set in her native Scotland in the 1920s. A DEADLY MEASURE OF BRIMSTONE won a third Bruce at Left Coast Crime in Portland this year. In 2013 she started a strand of darker (not difficult) standalones. The first, AS SHE LEFT IT, won an Anthony award at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in 2014 and the IndieFab Gold for Mystery. THE DAY SHE DIED is currently on the shortlist for an Edgar. Since 2010 Catriona has lived near Davis with a black cat and a scientist and is proud to be the 2015 president of Sisters in Crime. www.catrionamcpherson.com
Books Donated:
A DEADLY MEASURE OF BRIMSTONE is set in a swanky Scottish spa in 1929, where Dandy Gilver, intrepid detective, is on the trail of a guest who checked in and then “checked out” Dandy Gilver, not-so-hot wife and mother, takes her ailing husband and children to act as her cover story. This darkly comic mystery just won Catriona her third consecutive Bruce Alexander award at Left Coast Crime 2015.
THE DAY SHE DIED is the story of Jessie Constable, a troubled young woman constrained by an unusual phobia, whose careful life is overturned by meeting a father and his children on the day their mother commits suicide. “All of a sudden, I grew a family like I’d planted magic beans” Jessie says, but that dark day is just the beginning.” This gripping psychological suspense is currently on the shortlist for an Edgar award.
Find out more at http://catrionamcpherson.com/
“Having grown up in the Pacific Northwest countryside where the winter days were short and our family had no television, my siblings and I spent each evening immersed in a book. A daily trip to the school library was an essential part of our lives: check a book out in the morning, read it in the evening and repeat the process the following day. As an adult, the first thing I would do upon moving to a new place was to acquire a library card and a food coop membership. Pretty basic!” Jan Schubert
Jan Schubert has a B.A. in early childhood education. She moved to Winters in 1987 to help found the Davis Waldorf School. She is a graduate of the Juniper School of Story and Puppetry Arts, a fiber artist, an author, and a candle maker. Jan currently spends her days in her Bee Happy Candles studio creating what she likes to think of as “gifts of light.”
Book Donated: The Sun Seed
A little Sun Seed follows the cycle of the seasons as she grows from seedling to golden flower.
The illustrations were created with naturally-dyed wool fibers, felted in layers to create depth and details to tell this charming and simple story for the young child.
Find out more at BeeHappyCandles.net
“When you’re in a library you can travel just about anywhere in time or place, spend hours with people like Sherlock Holmes and Eleanor Roosevelt, and learn the meaning of the word “pusillanimous” all in an afternoon. Libraries are more than just repositories of books – they’re a little glimpse of magic.” Tamsen Schultz
Tamsen Schultz is the author of several romantic suspense novels and American Kin (a short story published in Line Zero Magazine). In addition to being a writer, she has a background in the field of international conflict resolution, has co-founded a non-profit, and currently works in corporate America. Like most lawyers, she spends a disproportionate amount of time thinking (and writing) about what it might be like to do something else. She lives in Northern California in a house full of males including her husband, two sons, four cats, a dog, and a gender-neutral, but well-stocked, wine rack.
Books Donated:
There’s a killer in Windsor intent on making Jesse Baker burn for the sins of others. But arson investigator David Hathaway isn’t about to let that happen. As the past echoes through their lives, will they remember that history, like fire, can give life just as easily as it can destroy it?
Keeping secrets and hiding her past is something that’s become second nature to Kit Forrester – until a hunt for a killer brings Garret Cantona into her life. But when Garret’s left with no choice but to throw her back into her broken and damaged past, even his unshakable faith in what they have together might not be enough to keep it from shattering into a million pieces.
Find out more about Tamsen and her other books at: www.tamsenschultz.com
“I prized libraries as a child and spent much of my teenage years helping to build a new one in Winters. I’m excited to see how libraries grow and change as they enter the 21st century in the coming years
I first fell in love with the library at Story Time. I was instantly hooked: I could have as many books as I wanted for free! I started volunteering with the Friends of the Library because I saw the library as an incredibly valuable resource, both for myself and members of the community. The library is one of the best places to pursue lifelong learning and no one needs permission to use it.” Dale Stephens
Dale Stephens is the founder of UnCollege.org. UnCollege provides gap year programs, workshops, and community resources to self-directed learners.
Dale wrote Hacking Your Education. because of his unique perspective on the future of education: he left school at age twelve. He speaks around the world on the changing landscape of post-secondary education. He has appeared on CNN.com, NPR, Fox, and TechCrunch. His work has been covered by the New York Times, New York Magazine, and Fast Company. He is a Thiel Fellow, one of the Forbes 30 Under 30 for Education and has spoken at TED and TEDx events.
Book Donated: Hacking Your Education
Did you know that student loan debt recently eclipsed credit card debt for the first time in history and now tops one trillion dollars? It’s true and it’s causing parents and students to question if attending university is the right decision. Are there other paths to achieve the benefits and job prospects associated with a college degree?
There is – and Dale Stephens is proof of that. In Hacking Your Education, Stephens speaks to a new culture of “hackademics” who think college diplomas come second to an impressive portfolio and hard skills in our competitive job market. Stephens shows how he and dozens of others have hacked their education, and how you can, too. You don’t need to be a genius or especially motivated to succeed outside school. The real requirements are much simpler: curiosity, confidence, and grit.
Hacking Your Education offers valuable advice to current students as well as those who decided to skip college. Stephens teaches you to create opportunities for yourself and design your curriculum – inside or outside the classroom. Whether your dream is to travel the world, build a startup, or climb the corporate ladder, Stephens proves you can do it now, rather than waiting for life to start after “graduation” day.
Find out more at UnCollege.org
Save the date on May 5, 2015 to donate to support wonder, possibility and future authors.
