Great news: the Libraries are opening on September 1. Yes, greet that news with enthusiasm! Gather your books to return, if you haven’t already, and head for the unlocked doors. Just read the article about reopening on this page, and you’ll be set to go.

More wonderful news: the Inter Library Loan program will be up and running soon. Fondly known as “ILL,” the program is already making headway. The van is zooming all over the Granite State, picking up boxes and boxes of books to return to the State Library in Concord, where they’ll be sorted and sent home. They should be available for requests and reassignments by early September. 

We all love our town libraries, but being able to access books from the entire state system is a tremendous bonus. Hurrah for ILL!

On Wednesday, September 16, the Book Club will meet via Zoom to discuss Cheryl Strayed’s Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail. The highs (14,000 feet) and lows (yes, the desert) parallel Strayed’s life up to that point, and it hasn’t been an easy one. 

She begins with the burden of an over-packed backpack and too many bad life choices. The relative benefit of hiking trails in the West — wide and ever so much smoother than the Whites — is offset by desert, snow, and wild beasts. 

Gradually, and with assistance from experienced hikers at supply junctions, she lessens the accumulated weight of unnecessary burdens, both mental and physical. I don’t want to give away any details, since I seemed to sit on her shoulder the entire journey, but I will mention one moment of seeming disaster. 

While airing out her tired feet, one hiking boot falls off a cliff, and it may as well have fallen overboard in the middle of the ocean. What to do?! 

Zoom in on September 16 and join us for this exciting read; just call ahead of time to receive the Zoom link via e-mail. And watch your step on those rocky New Hampshire trails!