Storytimes near STONINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

Stonington Public Library, 64 Main Street, Stonington, ME, 04681

Come celebrate the Stonington Lobster Boat Races next weekend with a special guest author event at our next Second Saturday Story Time on July 11th at 10 AM. Local author Melissa Jones-Bayley, and illustrators Rosalie and Gavin Bayley, will join us to read and share all about their book The Friendly Maine Lobstermen: A voyage of the Kieran-Scott, and then lead us in a fun, art related project. We will learn all about cooperation, sharing and being good stewards through the example set by the kind, hardworking lobstermen in this charming tale. Melissa Jones-Bayley is a native of Stonington, on the island of Deer Isle, Maine, where she lives with her husband Chris and their two children, Rosalie, 17, and Gavin, 15. Fulfilling her dream of raising their two children on Deer Isle, immersed in the art community, is a crucial element of her inspiration. Influenced by the island’s stunning landscapes, the ever-changing Atlantic Ocean, the salty air, and the rugged island way of life, Melissa and her children embark on a creative journey, weaving tales that reflect Melissa’s family history, their shared experiences, memories, and talents. Together, they craft stories that celebrate their hardworking community and honor family and friends. Gavin’s intricate pencil sketches and precise ink lines and Rosalie’s vibrant and emotion-evoking watercolor palette result in captivating illustrations that bring their stories to life. Books and prints are currently for sale at the library and will also be available for purchase during the story time event. We hope you can join us!

Small Cove Park, 6 Atlantic Avenue, Stonington, ME, 04681

Martin Conte is the director of Flash! in the Pans, a locally renowned  community steel drum band, based in Blue Hill, ME. Conte will present a talk and demonstration about the history, construction, anatomy, and performance of steel drums, known as pans. Conte will have a variety of pans available for audience members to try out following the talk. You can learn more about Flash! in the Pans on their website. Since graduating from GSA, Conte’s topsy-turvy path always seemed to lead him back to Blue Hill, where he is part of the English faculty and  Director of Steel Pan Programs at George Stevens Academy. His path has led him around the globe, from visiting silverback gorillas in Uganda to playing music with the great steel bands of Trinidad. But not all of his paths have been physical. He has also been pursuing the uncharted territory of language, and has great of enthusiasm for how much discovery still awaits us in writing and reading. The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Stonington Public Library, 64 Main Street, Stonington, ME, 04681

Mary Seelhorst will present: The Platonic Ideal of a Sports Car: James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5. True crime, twisted provenance, pop culture, philosophy, folklore, museums, movie-making, mythbusting, and an unsolved mystery figure into this presentation by exhibit developer Mary Seelhorst. This fast-paced, heavily illustrated session explores the making of an automotive icon that’s endured and grown since the car was introduced in the 1964 James Bond film, Goldfinger. Seelhorst addresses the perceived authenticity and value of the original movie cars, their slippery provenance, and the DB5’s resurrection in movies, real life, and the collective imagination. In addition, she reveals previously unknown facts and fresh insights about the 1997 theft of the tricked-out movie car—still missing—uncovered by a documentary filmmaker working on a forthcoming series about the car’s disappearance. Mary Seelhorst is an award-winning independent exhibit developer and writer who played a personal role in the story of the stolen Goldfinger car, which will be revealed in the presentation. Her work focuses on the history of technology and popular culture. In the last 20 years, her museum work has increasingly centered on automotive exhibits, including projects for the NASCAR Hall of Fame, The Henry Ford, the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant Museum in Detroit, and the Brumos Collection in Jacksonville, Florida. This event will be held at SPL, 64 Main Street Stonington, ME.

Zoom, Virtual

Mudlark: In Search of London’s Past Along the River Thames by Lara Maiklem • Selected by Sue Stoessel Winner: Indie Book Award in Non-Fiction (2020) “Engrossing…evokes the subculture of the ‘mudlarks,’ who scour the banks for fragments of London’s past.” –The New Yorker Find Mudlark in MaineCat “The international bestseller that mesmerizingly charts quixotic journeys through London’s past, Mudlark thrills Anglophiles and history lovers alike. Long heralded as a city treasure herself, beloved ‘Mudlark’ Lara Maiklem tirelessly treks along the Thames’ muddy shores, unearthing a myriad of artifacts and their stories—from Roman hairpins and perfectly preserved Tudor shoes to the clay pipes that were smoked in riverside taverns. Seamlessly interweaving reflections from her own life with meditations on the art of wandering, Maiklem ultimately delivers a treatise ‘as deep and as rich as the Thames and its treasures’ (Stanley Tucci).” –From the publisher’s website Eleven readers chose 11 books, and they will lead 11 discussions in 2026. The SPL book club meets the fourth Monday of every month at 6:30pm on Zoom. There are two exceptions: there is no discussion in August when the book club takes a summer break, and the last meeting is bumped up to the second Monday, December 14, to minimize scheduling conflicts around the holidays. New readers—near and far—are always welcome. To sign up for the book club email list, please send a request to the email below.

ME

Jeryl Schriever will present from her book, Driving the Vote For Women: An American Journey for Suffrage, published by Arcadia Publishing in September 2024, and her national tour promoting the Equal Rights Amendment in her 1914 Saxon Roadster.   About Driving the Vote For Women: An American Journey for Suffrage In 1916, Alice Burke and Nell Richardson embarked on a daring and unprecedented cross-country journey advocating for women’s suffrage. Before the nineteenth amendment enshrined American women’s right to vote in 1920, it was legal only in a few states. So trailblazing suffragists Alice and Nell loaded a Saxon automobile and embarked on a state-by-state campaign for women’s voting rights. Long before the modern highway system streamlined car travel, Alice and Nell drove a grueling 10,700 miles over twenty-six weeks, traversing some of the roughest roads in America. Backed by the Saxon Motor Car Company—one of the original Detroit automakers—and fueled by their own unwavering spirits, Alice and Nell advocated for women’s suffrage in every town along the way. Author Jeryl R. Schriever shares the remarkable story of the first women to ever drive across the country and back, paving the way for generations of women to follow. Author Bio Jeryl R. Schriever began her interest in Saxon Motor Cars in 2011 when touring in a 1914 Saxon roadster through the hills of eastern Pennsylvania. Combining her knowledge of automotive history and the suffrage movement, the fascination of the Alice and Nell story became compelling. As a member of the Society of Automotive Historians Jeryl has edited and written for several national automobile magazines. At present she serves as the president of the board of the Seal Cove Automobile Museum, a prominent collection of brass era motor cars on the coast of Maine. She received her degree in landscape architecture from SUNY at Syracuse University in 1969. Her career has included work in museum education, exhibit design, and historic restorations. The mother of two, she and her husband, Alex Huppé, live in Castine Maine and Sarasota Florida. They tour vintage cars year round. You can learn more about Schriever’s journey and the efforts of the Equal Rights Amendment, visit www.drivingthevote.org. The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Small Cove Park, 6 Atlantic Avenue, Stonington, ME, 04681

Kate Woodworth will present from her book Little Great Island, published by Sibylline Press in May 2025.   About Little Great Island On Little Great Island, climate change is disrupting both life and love. After offending the powerful pastor of the cult where she’s lived for a decade, Mari McGavin must flee with her six-year-old son. With no money and no place else to go, she returns to the tiny Maine island where she grew up—a place she swore she’d never see again. There Mari runs into her lifelong friend Harry Richardson, one of the island’s summer residents, now back himself to sell his family’s summer home. Mari and Harry’s lives intertwine once again, setting off a chain of events as unexpected and life altering as the shifts in climate affecting the whole ecosystem of the island…from generations of fishing families to the lobsters and the butterflies. Little Great Island  illustrates in microcosm the greatest changes of our time and the unyielding power of love. Author Bio Kate Woodworth is the award-winning author of the novels Little Great Island and Racing into the Dark and the creative force behind the grassroots climate change initiative, Be the Butterfly, that invites everyone to perform one small act or behavioral change to help mitigate climate change. A passionate lover of the natural world, Kate writes about the impact of climate change on our food supply on her Substack, “Food in the Time of Climate Change.” She has appeared on C-Span2 Book TV; Good Morning, Utah; NPR’s Maine Calling; and Good Day, Maine, and her essays on climate fiction and the role of fiction writers in the climate discourse have been published by the Climate Fiction Writers League. You can learn more about Kate Woodworth and her books on her website. The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Small Cove Park, 6 Atlantic Avenue, Stonington, ME, 04681

.  Bruce Robert Coffin will present from his latest book, Dark Harbor, published by Severn River Publishing in August 2026. About Dark Harbor Dark Harbor is the third book in Coffin’s Detective Justice series, featuring Detective Brock Justice investigating the deaths of a millionaire and a burglar in Bar Harbor, Maine, uncovering secrets of the wealthy elite while dealing with a suspicious new partner, Samantha Osborn. The mystery involves a mansion break-in, conflicting evidence pointing to the victim’s wife, and powerful figures trying to hide the truth.  Author Bio Bruce Robert Coffin is an international bestselling novelist and short story writer. A retired police detective sergeant with more than twenty-seven years in law enforcement, Bruce supervised all homicide and violent crime investigations for Maine’s largest city. Following the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, Bruce spent four years investigating counter-terrorism cases for the FBI, earning the Director’s Award, the highest award a non- agent can receive. He is the author of the Detective Byron Mysteries, co-author of The Turner and Mosley Files (along with bestselling author LynDee Walker), and author of the Detective Justice Mysteries. Bruce is a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Short Mystery Fiction Society, and the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. He lives and writes in Maine. You can learn more about Coffin and his writing on his website. The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Small Cove Park, 6 Atlantic Avenue, Stonington, ME, 04681

.  .    Father and daughter team, Jim and Emma Krosschell, will present their poetry from their respective books, Man Afield, published by Prolific Pulse Press LLC in March 2026, and Hermitage published by Littoral Books in October 2024. About Man Afield Man Afield is a lyrical journey through the living world, guided by a backyard naturalist attuned to both wonder and warning. These poems chronicle spiritual and physical excursions into landscapes larger than any one mind or body — places where awe, joy, disorientation, and reckoning intertwine. Man Afield is at once a field journal, a meditation, and a love song — to earth, to home, and to the fragile bond between them. About Hermitage In Hermitage, Emma Krosschell inhabits a liminal space, somewhere between her mind and the living world of hemlock, crows, snow, wind, tides and stars. These are poems that begin in silence, and draw us into those moments when the world comes alive before her eyes. She is, above all, a witness, and we become witnesses along with her in this place where the finite, mortal self meets something greater. She is listening intently, seeing deeply, and her heart is wide open.  – Stuart Kestenbaum, Former Poet Laureate of Maine Author Bios Jim Krosschelll has published poems and essays in some 85 journals, plus three collections: One Man’s Maine, which won a Maine Literary Award, Owls Head Revisited, and Man Afield. He lives in Deer Isle, ME and Newton, MA, and volunteers on boards for Coastal Mountains Land Trust and the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance. Emma Krosschell lives in Brooksville, Maine, with her partner and their dog. She spends her time wandering in the woods and baking as much bread as she can. Hermitage is her first collection of poetry. The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Small Cove Park, 6 Atlantic Avenue, Stonington, ME, 04681

.    Join SPL as we close out our 2026 Seaside Series with a musical performance by Noah Fishman and Clara Rose. Noah Fishman is a performer, composer, and educator. Rooted in Maine, Noah ventures to make bold, playful statements by bending lines between genres. At home on a number of instruments, Noah strives for creativity and connection, spirited performance, and fluid improvisation. Noah has performed across the United States and Europe, and has degrees in music from Princeton University and the University of Michigan. In 2019, Noah was selected for the Betty Carter Jazz Ahead residency at The Kennedy Center. In addition to his work as a soloist and bandleader, Noah can be found touring with other artists, writing scores for film and television, and teaching at camps and workshops. Noah currently teaches mandolin and roots music courses at New England Conservatory, and is a returning faculty member at Acadia Trad Fest. Beyond music, Noah enjoys sailing, woodworking, gardening, and getting lost along the rocky coast of Maine. Clara Rose is an award-winning violinist and vocalist from Vancouver, Canada, and she grew up on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish People. With a background in Celtic, Balkan, Swedish, blues, bluegrass and jazz folk traditions, Rose effortlessly melds these disparate styles into her own passionate and groovy fiddle voice. A master improviser across many genres and disciplines, Rose’s joyous expression and skillful artistry has a transformative effect on all of her collaborations. Rose has studied with distinguished artists from across Canada and the United States, including Sara Caswell, Jason Anick, Darol Anger, Marc Destrubé and Moira Smiley. In 2025, Rose won the prestigious FreshGrass Fiddle Award for her performance at FreshGrass MassMoCA. She has a degree in violin performance from Berklee College of Music where she was also the recipient of the prestigious Fletcher Bright Scholarship Award, the Live Oak Fiddle Scholarship and the Berklee World Tour Scholarship. Rose performs with The Acoustic Nomads, Clara Rose & Raphaella Hero, a contemplative folk fiddle duo, and fronts the Clara Rose Band, performing her original compositions.   The rain venue for all Seaside Series programs is SPL, 64 Main Street.

Zoom, Virtual

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood • Selected by Laura Watson Winner: Giller Prize (1996) “Alias Grace has all the pacing of a commercial novel and all the resonance of a classic.” –The Washington Post Book World Find Alias Grace in MILS “It’s 1843, and Grace Marks has been convicted for her involvement in the vicious murders of her employer and his housekeeper and mistress. Some believe Grace is innocent; others think her evil or insane. Now serving a life sentence, Grace claims to have no memory of the murders. An up-and-coming expert in the burgeoning field of mental illness is engaged by a group of reformers and spiritualists who seek a pardon for Grace. He listens to her story while bringing her closer and closer to the day she cannot remember. What will he find in attempting to unlock her memories?” –From the publisher’s website Eleven readers chose 11 books, and they will lead 11 discussions in 2026. The SPL book club meets the fourth Monday of every month at 6:30pm on Zoom. There are two exceptions: there is no discussion in August when the book club takes a summer break, and the last meeting is bumped up to the second Monday, December 14, to minimize scheduling conflicts around the holidays. New readers—near and far—are always welcome. To sign up for the book club email list, please send a request to the email below.