Giving Thanks

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” -John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States

Thanksgiving through the years: The holiday feast that we know as Thanksgiving dates back to November, 1621, in Plymouth, Massachusetts, when the newly arrived Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians gathered together for an autumn harvest celebration. This event is popularly regarded as America’s “First Thanksgiving.” George Washington, our Nation’s first President, recognized the importance of setting aside a time each year to give thanks for our blessings. His proclamation recognizing that first Thanksgiving was made in New York City on October 3, 1789. Some 74 years later, it was President Abraham Lincoln who first set a date for the celebration of Thanksgiving.

In 1863, in Washington, D.C., before Congress, Lincoln declared that “the last Thursday of November be set aside as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficient Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” Some 76 years later than that, in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Congress finalized the commemoration of Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday in November. As Americans, we can be proud that from the very beginning of our Nation’s history, Thanksgiving, our most American of holidays, has had a singular importance in the cultural and spiritual life of the United States. Every Thanksgiving, we are all truly “One Nation under God.” On behalf of the Trustees of the Public Library of Catasauqua and the Library Staff, you are wished a very Happy Thanksgiving and a Blessed Holiday Season.

As we anticipate the joys of the season, please be sure to come to the Library to see our very special Christmas Tree that the Catasauqua Garden Club members will decorate on December 5th with lovely hand-made ornaments. Our Library Holiday festivities continue on Monday, December 10th at 6pm with Rebecca Zukowski-Gillespie’s “Cupcake Decorating” program for children at no charge for the event. Yes! Catasauqua’s own “Blondie” will teach us of the magic of her creations. And, on Monday, December 17th at 6pm, 15 lucky children will get to make a Noah’s Art Animal Workshop stuffed toy reindeer of their very own for only $5.00 each reindeer, the Library assuming the balance of the cost. Registration for these two Holiday programs for children is required. Please call the Library at 610-264-4151 to register your children for one or both of these events. With the hope that the Holidays are happy for everyone, all through the Holiday Season, donations of canned goods for the Catasauqua Food Bank will be gratefully accepted.

NEW BOOKS:

FICTION
“Night of Miracles,” Elizabeth Berg
“The Noel Stranger,” Richard Paul Evans
“Christmas Cake Murder,” Joanne Fluke
“Unsheltered,” Barbara Kingsolver
“Robert B. Parker’s Blood Feud,” Mike Lupica
“Fire & Blood: 300 Years Before a Game of Thrones,” George R.R. Martin
“The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” Heather Morris
“Where the Crawdads Sing,” Delia Owens
“Kingdom of the Blind, “ Louise Penny
“Of Blood and Bone,” Nora Roberts
“Dracul,” Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker

NON-FICTION
“Presidents of War,” Michael Beschloss
“The Forgotten: How the People of One Pennsylvania County Elected Donald Trump and Changed America,” Ben Bradlee, Jr
“Black Flags, Blue Waters: The Epic history of America’s Most Notorious Pirates,” Eric Jay Dolin
“Trump’s Enemies: How the Deep State Is Undermining the Presidency,” Corey R. Lewandowski and David N. Bossie
“Impeachment: An American History,” Jon Meacham, Timothy Naftali, Peter Baker, Jeffrey A. Engel
“Back In The Game: One Gunman, Countless Heroes, and the Fight for My Life, “ Steve Scalise with Jeffrey E. Stern