Tom MacDonald Author Talk
On Thursday, June 9, Charlestown's own award-winning murder mystery author, educator and director of Harvest on the Vine Tom MacDonald joined us for a thrilling evening with tales of sleuth and Boston native Dermot Sparhawk’s third outing, The Revenge of Liam McGrew.
An assassin is waiting around every corner, and Sparhawk doesn’t know why. To save his own life, he works the streets of Boston, visiting waterfront gin mills and basement AA halls, searching for the truth. And the truth takes him from his native Charlestown to Belfast, Northern Ireland, where he faces an inevitable showdown with the man attempting to kill him.
Attendees enjoyed a reading and lively discussion with Tom, accompanied by a wine and cheese reception. Tom presented Friends President Christine Amisano with a signed copy of his book for the library shelves.
Don't Miss Melody For Murder - February 25, 2016 7:30 PM
a murder mystery jazz concert
with
author & jazz musician
Carolyn Wilkins
accompanied by the
Bon Voyage Jazz Quartet
with
Carolyn Wilkins (piano, vocals),
Phil Neighbors (drums),
Skip Smith (bass),
Diane Wernick (sax)
and special guest
John Voigt
(reading passages from the book)
free and open to all
with a reception following
Thursday, February 25, 7:30 pm
Charlestown Branch Library
(Charlestown, MA 02129) Melody For Murder : a book jazz concert with author/jazz musician Carolyn Wilkins accompanied by the Bon Voyage Jazz Quartet, and special guest reader John Voigt. Presented by the Friends of the Charlestown Branch of the Boston Public Library. Thursday, February 25, 7:30 pm. Free and open to all, with a reception following. Wheelchair accessible; conveniently located to the Orange Line and bus connections. Charlestown Branch Library, 179 Main Street, Charlestown.
Murder mystery author Carolyn Wilkins ... considered by many in the literary world as a quintuple threat, since she is also an accomplished music educator, jazz pianist, composer, and vocalist ... comes to Charlestown to reveal her recent "Bertie Bigelow" mystery entitled Melody For Murder. Wilkins will be presenting her new book in the style of a "book jazz concert," with the tone for the evening set by the Bon Voyage Jazz Quartet, accompanied by spoken word artist John Voigt, who will recite passages from the book.
Carolyn Wilkins, a Professor of Ensembles at Berklee College of Music, was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. Her Melody For Murder is placed on that very South Side, where "one sour note can lead to murder." Her heroine Bertie Bigelow, a recently-widowed college choir director, suspects that someone in her tight-knit social circle is the killer.
For the moment, let us suffice to say that Carolyn Wilkins knows whereof she writes!
Further background on the participants:
Carolyn Wilkins (www.carolynwilkins.com) is a Professor of Ensembles at Berklee College of Music and the author of They Raised Me Up: A Black Single Mother and the Women Who Inspired Her and Damn Near White: An African American Family’s Rise from Slavery to Bittersweet Success. Both books are available from the University of Missouri Press.
In addition, Wilkins is an accomplished jazz pianist, composer and vocalist whose performance experience includes radio and television appearances with her group SpiritJazz, a concert tour of South America as a Jazz Ambassador for the US State Department, performances with the Pittsburgh Symphony as a percussionist under Andre Previn, and shows featuring Melba Moore, Nancy Wilson and the Fifth Dimension. Wilkins has performed locally at Regattabar, Scullers, the Globe Jazz Festival, and the Many Colors of a Woman Jazz Festival. She has appeared in concert at Harvard, Brandeis and Boston Universities, and has also been featured four times as a part of Boston's annual First Night Celebration.
A Cambridge resident, Wilkins is also the author Tips for Singers: Performing, Auditioning and Rehearsing (Hal Leonard Publications), and has released four critically acclaimed CD's of her original compositions on Tiphereth Records: SpiritJazz I, SpiritJazz II, Healin' Time, and Praise Song. She has composed music for The Search Goes On, an original musical which was performed at First Night 2000, for the NPR adaptation of Langston Hughes' Tell Your Mama, poet Phil Bryant's Southside Suite, and for Return, a Meditational Journey of Self Discovery for Black Women. The Wright College Choir, the Mt. St. Joseph Chorale, the Emmanuel College Singers, and the Shiloh Gospel Choir have also performed her compositions.
The Bon Voyage Jazz Quartet features Carolyn Wilkins on piano and vocals, along with Phil Neighbors on drums (www.jpmc.us/neighbors.html), Skip Smith on bass (www.berklee.edu/people/skip-smith), and Diane Wernick on sax (www.berklee.edu/people/diane-wernick). The quartet performs regularly at Ryles Jazz Club in Cambridge.
Spoken word artist John Voigt (www.art-energy.org/johnmusician.html) is also an accomplished jazz bass player and performance artist.
Further background on the Friends:
The Friends of the Charlestown Branch of the Boston Public Library was formed in 1953, becoming the second Friends group to organize within the Boston Public Library system. The Friends schedule four to six evening programs a year, support the Reading is FUNdamental programs for children, and maintain the library’s landscaping. The mission of the Friends remains today what it was in 1953: to serve as an advocacy and support group for the needs of the Charlestown Branch Library, its staff and users. Visit www.friendsofcharlestownlib.org, www.facebook.com/FriendsCharlestownBranchLibrary, and www.bpl.org/branches/charlestown.htm.
"Master Thieves" Author Talk
The following appeared in the November 25, 2015 edition of the Charlestown Patriot-Bridge. Hope you were one of the many who enjoyed the event and the Wine & Cheese Reception, and got a chance to meet and talk with Stephen Kurkjian.
Our Book Sale Was a Huge Success!
Many thanks to everyone who participated in the Annual Book Sale - those who donated, sorted, arranged, worked at the sale, and of course, those who came out and purchased the books. A special thanks to our branch librarians for all of their help. We received lots of positive comments from those attending.
There was something for everyone. The fiction tables were so full that many of the books had to be displayed in boxes just under the tables. There was a broad selection of topics, and people were buying books by the bagful.
We signed up many new members, and everyone enjoyed the Members-Only Preview and Reception held on Friday night, ahead of the regular sale. By popular demand, the sale was held over for an additional week into the next weekend. We finally had to give in and pack up the remaining books to free the meeting room for other events.
We are already planning next year's Book Sale, with some exciting additions. Stay tuned.
Our Annual Book Sale is Right Around the Corner
Donations have been pouring in for the Annual Book Sale by the Friends of the Charlestown Branch Library, and sorting and categorizing of the books is underway. But there is still time to get your donations in. Bring your books to the Charlestown Branch Library and they will be used to help fund the programming and events brought to you throughout the year by the Friends.
Don’t forget to mark your calendar for Saturday, June 13 when the Book Sale will start bright and early at 9am and continue until 3pm. And there is still time to purchase your membership to garner an invitation to the Members-only Reception and Pre-sale to be held on Friday, June 12 from 5:30pm until 8pm. Children of Members are invited to a special Children’s Reception and Pre-sale earlier on Friday from 3pm until 5pm.
Your tax-deductible membership donation is less than $2 per month! Join us today so you don’t miss out.
Welcome to Our Website
Welcome to the website of the Friends of the Charlestown Branch Library. On our website you will find information about the Charlestown Branch of the Boston Public Library - location, hours, history, and an ever-changing list of past and upcoming events offered at our branch.
The Annual Book Sale is always a popular event. This year it will be held on Saturday, June 13 in conjunction with the Charlestown Open Market Day. There is a special Members Only Preview Event on Friday evening, June 12 from 5:30pm until 8:00pm.
It’s not too late to become a Member. We hope to see you there.