Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Lunar Landing with Forsyth Remembers

In 1969, half a century ago, we watched as humans stepped foot onto a celestial body other than the Earth for the first time. The tumultuous Space Race of the preceding decade challenged imaginations, rapidly advanced technologies, and captivated the world's attention.

Fast forward 50 years and the Moon is still the farthest our species has traveled, but not the farthest we've explored. Celebrate the amazing human achievement of space exploration with a series of events and guest lectures at the library:

To the Moon and Beyond with Dr. Lesley Simanton-Coogan

Lesley Simanton-Coogan, Ph.D. is the Director of the George E. Coleman, Sr. Planetarium at the University of North Georgia (UNG). Her research focuses on populations of star clusters and galaxy evolution and she is a Lecturer in UNG's Department of Physics.

Dr. Simanton-Coogan will highlight the history of exploration of our solar system and beyond in a special presentation on Sunday, July 14 at 2:00 p.m.at the Cumming Library.

To the Moon and Beyond is intended for adults and admission is free.

Space Race and Beyond: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11

John Indergaard, Lab Coordinator at the UNG Physics Department, explores the history of the Space Race leading up to the Apollo 11 mission to the moon and describes the most fascinating findings of more recent unmanned exploratory missions.

He will also explain the possibilities of human space travel to Mars and beyond in a guest lecture on Tuesday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m. at the Post Road Library.

Space Race and Beyond is intended for adults and admission is free.

It's Not Just Rocket Science: The Why and How of Space Exploration

Curt Godwin has been a fan of space exploration for as long as he can remember, keeping his eyes to the skies from an early age. Initially majoring in nuclear engineering, Curt later decided that computers might be a more interesting - and safer - career field.

He now represents NASA as a Solar System Ambassador and will speak at the Hampton Park Library on Thursday, July 18 at 6:30 p.m. to highlight NASA's past and future human space exploration efforts, including Space Launch System (SLS) scheduled to land on the moon by 2024 and the commercial partnerships required for success.

It's Not Just Rocket Science is intended for adults and admission is free.

Forsyth Remembers: Lunar Landing Memories

Where were you when the first humans landed on the moon? What do you remember most from that notable time in history?

FCPL's celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Lunar Landing culminates in the launch of its oral history project, Forsyth Remembers, on Saturday, July 20 at 2:00 p.m. at the Sharon Forks Library.

FCPL interviewed Forsyth County residents who remember where they were, what they were doing, and how they felt during this historic milestone. Hear some of their stories, enjoy video footage of Apollo 11, and learn about the history and future of Moon exploration and the impact it has had on our world with NASA Solar System Ambassador Curt Godwin and space scientist Laura Forczyk, owner of space consulting firm Astralytical and Executive Director of the Georgia Space Alliance.

Forsyth Remembers: Lunar Landing Memories is intended for adults and admission is free.

For more information on any of these events, or to search the catalog for books, videos, and materials about space exploration, please visit the library's website at www.forsythpl.org.

Staff Picks - Adult Fiction

Fans of surprise endings will enjoy these twisty books!

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

This twisty story about a psychotherapist obsessed with understanding why an artist murdered her husband will keep you guessing.  This title is available as an eBook and eAudiobook from our digital library. 

The Boy at the Keyhole by Stephen M. Giles

Fans of young adult fiction will enjoy this creepy tale about a boy who fears the worst when his mother takes a sudden and unexpected transatlantic trip, leaving him in the care of a spooky and stern housekeeper. This title is available as an eAudiobook from our digital library. 

The Night Market by Jonathan Moore

The Night Market is a mind-bending thriller set in a dystopian San Francisco with some striking similarities to present-day. 



Alicia Cavitt
Information Specialist

“Academic Performer” Brings Literature to Life for Book Lovers and Reluctant Readers

“Academic performer” might not be a term you’ve heard before; but, if you listen to one of Sloane Meyer’s lectures, you’re likely to agree that it’s exactly the proper term to describe how she brings literature to life for both book lovers and reluctant readers.

“My presentations are equal parts education and entertainment,” says Meyer of the teaching style she developed while working in public and homeschool environments, college campuses, museums, and libraries.

Meyer struggled with dyslexia as a child, but she found that having a personal connection to the topics she needed to learn about in school helped motivate her to keep reading.

“A bunch of dry facts in a textbook didn't mean anything to me. I have to have a personal connection in order to learn, to care about this mass of information being thrown at me. I need to know 'the story' behind the information,” explains Meyer.

She brought this approach to the Cumming Library last month when she gave intriguing guest lectures on two iconic books.

Dressed in authentic Victorian costume, Meyer spoke about John Kesselring’s Arsenic and Old Lace, a story based on the 1917 conviction of boarding house serial killer Amy Archer-Gilligan. Meyer described how Archer-Gilligan sent out postcards advertising available rooms and used them to lure somewhere between 10 and 50 people to be poisoned.

While the dark nature of the original book was on-par with public preferences of the Victorian age, when it was turned into a film in 1944, producers decided it was too dark and Cary Grant’s performance brought physical comedy to make the film more appealing to viewers.

To reveal “the story behind the story,” Meyer also spoke about the historical narrative of the Archer-Gilligan case from the police inspector’s view in The Devil’s Rooming House by M. William Phelps, who, coincidentally, was on the writing team for the first season of Dexter, another dark comedy.

Meyer returned to the Cumming Library a few weeks later, this time dressed in Edwardian costume, to talk about the adventurous life of Nellie Bly, the first undercover journalist.

Bly’s book, Ten Days in a Mad-House, describes how she feigned insanity, was committed after a cursory medical examination, and the horrible conditions she and other inmates experienced at the Women's Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell's Island in New York.  Bly’s exposé about the experience instigated an inspection of the asylum and, based on their findings, new laws were passed to improve the mental health system.

Again, Meyer revealed a deeper examination of Bly’s life with the audience by sharing “Around the World in 72 Days,” a board game that gained popularity following Bly’s solo trip around the world in 72 days and 6 hours in a bid to beat the fictional record of Jules Verne’s character, Phileas Fogg.

Programming Manager Tracy Walker says library patrons enjoyed hearing Sloane share stories and interesting tidbits of history about books that they might not choose to read on their own.

“Some of the books we’ve invited her to discuss were likely on one of your required reading lists in school. While you might have avoided those assignments back then, Sloane’s sense of humor and her obvious enthusiasm for the history surrounding the books she’s discussing will make you want to read those stories with fresh eyes,” says Walker.

The series, Bringing Literature to Life, continues this summer and into the fall with five more events:

H.G. Wells
Explore science fiction scenes and stay for a screening of The War of the Worlds.
Sunday, June 9 at 2:00 p.m. at the Cumming Library

An Evening Experience with The Devil in the White City
Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America describes the intrigue surrounding Chicago's 1893 World's Fair and the serial killer who stalked its visitors.
Tuesday, June 11 at 7:00 p.m. at the Post Road Library

Ray Bradbury
Explore scenes from The Martian Chronicles, along with other works of dystopian and science fiction by Ray Bradbury.
Saturday, June 29 at 2:00 p.m. at the Cumming Library

The Edwardians: Down to the Abbey
Fans of Downton Abbey will enjoy this comparison of the show to the actual timeline of events surrounding Queen Victoria’s death in 1901 and King Edward VII’s ascension to the throne.
Thursday, September 19 at 7:00 p.m. at the Post Road Library

Lizzie Borden: The Cutting Edge
Explore the dark side of the Victorian era with Lizzie Borden, the main suspect in the 1892 axe murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts.
Tuesday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m. at the Sharon Forks Library

All events in the Bringing Literature to Life series are intended for adults and mature teens. Admission is free. For more information, please visit www.forsythpl.org.

Georgia's School Superintendent Gives Kids Free Books at Cumming Library

State School Superintendent Richard Woods visited the Cumming Library this morning as part of a special initiative between the Georgia Department of Education and Georgia Public Library Service to prevent the “summer slide” in students across Georgia.

“I’m grateful for the partnership of the Georgia Public Library Service and the Forsyth County Public Library as we work to distribute books to students all over the state this summer. For Georgia’s kids, summer is a time for fun and family – but it’s also a critical time to keep learning. Literacy plays such an important role in educational attainment that we can’t afford to hit the brakes on reading during the summer months. Georgia’s public libraries play an essential role as we work to provide summer learning opportunities to all of Georgia’s children,” explains Superintendent Woods.

In addition to providing hundreds of donated books for children to take home, Woods also talked with parents and caregivers about the importance of encouraging children to continue reading over the summer break and read a picture book to children and families gathering for a special ScienceTellers performance of Aliens: Escape from Earth.

State Librarian Julie Walker, Forsyth County Board of Education Chair Kristin Morrissey, and other school and library leaders were also present to support efforts to encourage Forsyth County students to choose books of their own and to keep reading this summer.

“Reading for pleasure over the summer is a simple way to make sure students retain the reading and literacy skills they’ve acquired over the last academic year and to reinforce the idea that reading is fun and entertaining,” says Programming Manager Tracy Walker.

Forsyth County Public Library offers a Summer Reading Fun program that supports Superintendent Woods’ initiative to keep kids reading. Special programs that encourage children, teens, and adults to read are planned all summer long at FCPL branches.

For more information, please visit www.forsythpl.org.