Bethlehem Library Notes for Thursday, October 18, 2018
— Photo by Kristen Roberts
Assemblywoman Pat Fahy stopped by the Bethlehem Public Library on Thursday, Oct. 12, to get her Library Expedition passport stamped and learn more about the growing Library of Things collection.
Explore the vital role of popular magazines in the making of “The Great Gatsby” — its style, its text, its views on the intersection of love and money, and the arc of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s career. Dr. Brian Sweeney, associate professor of English at The College of Saint Rose and a Bethlehem library trustee, will address the subject in a talk at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 21.
A wildly popular author of magazine fiction in the 1920s, Fitzgerald made far more money from crowd-pleasing “slick” magazines like The Saturday Evening Post than he did from his novels, including his masterpiece, “The Great Gatsby.” In his letters to other writers, Fitzgerald was dismissive of his commercial success, disparaging his magazine fiction as hack-work, tailored to the demands of philistine editors, but the reality is much more complicated.
This talk is part of Bethlehem library’s PBS Great American Read programming. The Great American Read is an eight-part series on PBS that celebrates the power of reading through the prism of America’s 100 best-loved novels. Watch the episodes and browse the top-100 list at www.pbs.org/the-great-american-read.
Landing a Civil Service job
Are you aware of all the rewarding career opportunities available through the Civil Service process? No? You’re not alone.
Many of the vacancies in state government, school districts, towns, villages, and even libraries are considered “competitive class” titles and filled through Civil Service lists, meaning you likely won’t even get your foot in the door if your name’s not on one of those lists. Which naturally begs the question — how do you even get on a list in the first place?
On Tuesday, Oct. 23, from 7 to 8 p.m., the library will present an overview of how Civil Service works at the local, county, and state levels. It can be a confusing process, and the Bethlehem Public Library director, Geoff Kirkpatrick, and Hannah Black, senior personnel technician for Albany County Civil Service, will talk about the best ways to navigate this complicated maze.
Sign up online at www.bethlehempubliclibrary.org or call 518-439-9314 to register.
Survey says
Included in the November/December Footnotes, which was mailed this week, is a community survey about Bethlehem library services. We encourage you to take the time to fill it out and return your answers to us before Nov. 30.
An online version at www.bethlehempubliclibrary.org can be filled out and submitted electronically, and a large-print version can be picked up at the library’s Information Desk.
Take a library road trip
It’s not too late to take part in the 2018 Upper Hudson Library Expedition. Individuals or teams are invited to visit as many UHLS locations as possible from now through the end of November.
Expeditioners get to learn what makes each library in the Upper Hudson system unique as they work toward goal prizes. Maps are available at all of the libraries. Do you have what it takes to be a #Library36er? Details at uhls.org/expedition.