Photographs by teen members of the Winteringham Village Girls Forum are on display through the month of November in the Toms River Teen Zone. The girls were joined by parents, friends, and members of the Toms River area Soroptimists for an opening reception on the evening of November 10. The girls took the photographs after learning basic composition techniques. Taken with disposable cameras, the photos of nearby landscapes and family members show a high degree of sensitivity to light and color.

People sitting on tables, in the lobby, on bookcarts, on the floor…Standing room only was at its best for the Johnny Cash Tribute event atthe Upper Shores Branch on Nov. 10th. The band Basement Musicians (Tony Pileggi, Rick Hohowski and Tom Rutt) mesmerized our largest audience ever when more than 275 people crammed into the little library in Lavallette to celebrate the amazing repertoire of beloved American, the legendary “Man in Black”, Johnny Cash.

Nearly 200 people gathered at the Manchester branch Nov. 7 to celebrate all things Bronx.

Dave Greco, owner of Mike’s Deli on Arthur Avenue, was there sharing his memories, cooking tips and samples that he cooked up.

Antonio Sergio Bessa, director of programming at The Bronx Museum of the Arts and editor of “Intersections at 100 – The Grand Concourse,” spoke about the history of the borough.  H e was joined by Griffith Morris, the great grandson of Louis Aloys Risse, who designed The Grand Concourse.

We have a video of the photos from the event.

The Friends of the Manchester branch were busy Saturday with a book sale and an art reception and auction.

The reception started off with a live auction on 10 pieces. It then kicked off a silent auction that will continue until Nov. 20th.

Those artwork pieces in the silent auction (which include photographs, paintings, drawings and decoupage) will remain on display until the end of November. Minimum bid on those pieces is $10.

Bidding and viewing of the artwork is open to the public.

The Chess Club and introductory classes were in full motion on Saturday, November 7th at the Little Egg Harbor Branch. The classes and club are open to youth ages 7 and older. Stephen Nuttall is the adult volunteer that runs the monthly chess club at the branch from 11 am – 1pm. Youth play chess and observe games to learn various chess strategies. Everyone had a good time and shakes hands at the end of the games!

We set the TR Halloween photos to music and created a video.  Not quite MTV material but close!

Here is the link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rp_CVxP8Po

Check out the Toms River branch’s Halloween celebration for kids.

On October 30, the Barnegat Branch hosted its annual Halloween Story time and Parade. Costumed preschoolers and their parents showed up for the morning story time followed by a parade through the library. Penguins, princesses, bees, and dinosaurs happily joined in the Halloween fun. Juice and snacks were generously donated by The Friends of the Barnegat Branch.

The Waretown branch hosted a Felting program and Christina Estlow and Sabina La Spata kept all hands busy with felting needles and piles of wool. Participants crafted Pumpkins, lady bugs, and even a stray lamb or two and left with a finished felt project and a new-found talent.

OCL’s “Good for the Soul” committee presented New York Times best selling author Connie Briscoe Saturday Oct. 24 at the Jackson branch.

Her debut novel, “Sisters & Lovers” sold over 750,000 copies  Her latest novel, “Sisters & Husbands” was just released and has received strong reviews from the media.

We have a 3 minute video with Connie offering her hints for how to become a writer.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFNv0xA0O5Q  (And yes, I know there are two spots where you hear the rumble of a cart.)