Norwood Reads Following Atticus

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the January 2, 2014 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

I met Atticus Finch in October 2011 in Burlington, Vermont.  No, not THAT Atticus Finch, the heroic attorney fictionalized by Harper Lee in the classic “To Kill a Mockingbird”.

The Atticus M. Finch I met on that lovely fall day in 2011 was a four-footed version.

The Gift of the Short Story

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the December 27, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

On December 19, six days before Christmas, Nancy Ling (Outreach Librarian) hosted a Reader’s Theater in the Cushing Reading Room.  Surrounded by the glow of Christmas tree lights and fresh poinsettia flowers, Beth Goldman (Norwood High School librarian) was accompanied by one of her students, Luke Andrews. They sat in front of our magnificent fireplace and treated an audience of several dozen to holiday stories, all read in dramatic voice. The well-known “The Gift of the Magi” was one of them.

Before she began reading, Ms. Goldman shared a bit about the most famous story of the evening, “The Gift of the Magi” written by O. Henry.

While some of us might think of O. Henry as a delicious chocolate candy bar (the Oh Henry! chocolate bar invented in Kansas in 1920 was reported to be in tribute to the author), others certainly know that O. Henry was the pen name of William Sydney Porter.  Porter was born in 1862 and had a rather interesting life that included careers as a bank teller, pharmacist, journalist and, of course, writer.

Eating Out of the Box

Read Diane Phillips' column in the December 20, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

As fall turns into winter and the crisp, bright days turn cold and grow shorter, many people find comfort and joy in the holidays by embracing traditions in their celebrations as well as in the food they share with their families.  I’m inclined to want to do the exact opposite.  For some reason, I think of this season as a time to break away from tradition and to try new things.  Not everyone is comfortable with this line of thinking, as I’m finding out, when I try to introduce such an idea to my family, particularly in the area of holiday meals.

The Best of Staff Reading 2013

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the December 13, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

At the close of each year, the media seems to report on the very best of everything every opportunity they get: 100 best books, 50 best movies, 25 significant events.

This week, the New York Times published their 100 Notable Books of 2013. The same day, National Public Radio announced their Book Concierge – or Your Guide to 2013’s Great Reads (an interactive online tool to finding the best book out of more than 200).  Huffington Post, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and Entertainment Weekly have their own lists as 2013 nears to a close.

Grandparenting: Sprinkling a Little Stardust

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the December 6, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

As a young child, I was blessed to have two grandmothers in my life. Although we moved to another coast when I was the tender age of six, my grandmothers' unconditional love followed me across the country.

A Picture Book Holiday

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the November 29th edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

In the summer of 2012, the Canelli family moved into a lovely 1870 home in Norwood. It is an interesting house with a magical mixture of eclectic modernism and Victorian embellishment. A long brick walkway leads from the sidewalk to wooden French doors and twin front porches and gingerbread trim add to its charm.  Warm Christmas tree light twinkles softly onto the snowy front lawn. The side porch is roomy enough for an extra Christmas tree to greet holiday guests.  It certainly conjures visions of sugarplums with white icing trim and at the time we bought it we felt that it was a perfect Christmas house.

A Day Never Forgotten

Read Jean Todesca's column in the November 22, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Jean is Children's Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library.

           November 22, 1963, I clearly remember how ecstatic my 3^rd grade classmates and I were when our teacher announced that class was dismissed.  Boy that dates me back to the era when children could just be released from school.

            As we skipped and cheered at our new found freedom, passing Debbie’s house, her mother scolded us, “You should be ashamed of yourselves on such a sad day!

What's In Name?

Read Marie Lydon's column in the November 15, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Marie is a Reference Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library.

When our daughter called and asked me to pick up some books on baby names, I was shocked at the weight and thickness of the newer ones.  Just out of curiosity, I checked to compare our oldest books on the subject, “What to Name the Baby (A Treasury of Names) 15,000 Names to Choose From” by Evelyn Wells (1953), at 326 pages and “Naming Your Baby: Rules to Follow When You Name Your Baby” by Elsdon C. Smith (1970), 94 pages. Compare these to “The Complete Book of Baby Names: The Most Names  (100,001+), Most Lists, Most Help to Find the Best Name” by Lesley Bolton, checking in at 675 pages and labeled “#1 Bestselling Baby Names Book!” or “60,001+ Best Baby Names” by Diane Stafford (2011) coming in at 588 pages. It’s hard enough to decide among the books, let alone deciding on a name.

I Love Books

Shelby Warner is a Reference Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read Shelby's column in the November 8th edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

My husband and I were talking about my next article for this column when he started reminding me of his own “reading  journey”.

Red Sox Nation Revisited!

Gerry Canelli kindly pointed out my error in this week's column! Unfortunately, I think it went to press with the mistake.

The Red Sox have won seven World Series – unfortunately none of them in the last 72 years of the 20th century. They won in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916 and 1918 before breaking the “curse” and triumphing once again in 2004 and 2007.

Only a rookie baseball fan would have made that error!

Red Sox Nation

Read the published version of Library Director Charlotte Canelli's column in the November 1, 2013 edition of The Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Note: There is a typo in this column that has been corrected. The Red Sox won the 2007 World Series, not the 2008 World Series.

Comedian Jimmy Fallon is credited with having said this of fans of the Red Sox: “If you root for something that loses for 86 years, you’re a pretty good fan. You don’t have to win everything to be a fan of something.”

This seems to be at the heart of Red Sox fan devotion. New Englanders adore their sports teams, notably their Sox. And they don’t always have to win. By the time you read this on Friday, November 1, the Red Sox will have won or lost the 2013 World Series contest against the St. Louis Cardinals. Whether the Sox win or lose, most of their fans will remain just that. Loyal fans.

Yes, No, Maybe

Read Shelby Warner's column in the October 25 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

So, here’s my story.  I am sentimental.  I keep things.  My closets, drawers, and cellar shelves are filled with stuff  I can’t part with.  What kind of stuff you may ask?? 

Well, I have the dresses I wore to the weddings of my four children.  They don’t fit any more, they’re out of style, I will never wear them again, but when I try to put them in the donation bag, I just can’t.  I also have every greeting card ever given me by my children and a few that amused me from friends.  My grandmother kept all her cards, too, but was smart enough to neatly organize them in scrapbooks.  Then there are the four bins of piano music, two bins of fabric which are for the quilts I intend to make someday and have intended for the last 20 years.  Oh, yes there is one bin, about 8 small containers, and 3 scrapbooks of baseball cards I once collected.  Are you getting the picture??  I have the blouse I wore on my first date with my husband which he especially liked and a cummerbund that once fit around my waist and now I might be able to wear around my thigh.

The Secret Garden

Read Marie Lydon's column in the October 18, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

I generally like to confine my amateur gardening to the backyard, assuming that no one can see me there to judge the fruits of my labor. I know this isn’t really true because, in spite of a stockade fence, any of the neighbors can look from upstairs windows and see my disorganized way of doing things: smelling the lilacs, taking pictures of the butterflies, pouncing on every dandelion I see to wrestle it out, and smelling the lilies of the valley that don’t quite smell like my favorite colognes of yesteryear.

Breaking New Ground on Television

Read the published version of Library Director Charlotte Canelli's column in the October 11, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Note: Spoiler Alert. If you don't haven't watched the last episode of Breaking Bad, don't read any further.



Last week the Albuquerque Journal published the obituary of Walter White who died “after a long battle with cancer.” And, of course, “a gunshot wound.”

Many of us knew Walter White quite well. In fact, over 10.3 million people knew Walter White so well that they began mourning him months ago, knowing for certain that the AMC television show (Breaking Bad) that made him a household name would not end well. At least not for Walter.

Landscape of Industry: The Blackstone Valley

Read the published version of Library Director Charlotte Canelli's column in the October 4, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Part of the wonder of living in New England is the history that surrounds our everyday life. At times we take it for granted.  Often it becomes a critical a piece of our family lore, but we forget to step back and examine it closely.

My family story was woven with the threads of the history of the Blackstone River Valley. Most of my extensive family members (with surnames of Taft, Bruce, Allen, and Higgins) were born only steps and miles from the actual banks of the Blackstone River that winds from Worcester to Providence and into the Narragansett Bay.