Book News
The Earth’s Best Story
Thursday, May 20, 6:30pm
View Flyer
Ellenville Public Library & Museum welcomes home Ron and Arnie Koss in celebration of their new book, “The Earth’s Best Story, A Bittersweet Tale of Twin Brothers Who Sparked an Organic Revolution!” Graduating from Ellenville High School in 1969, these two local boys went on to influence our nation while nourishing our children. Share in their amazing and inspiring journey that began right here. There will be a book signing following their presentation. Please call us at 647-5530 for more information.
Wawarsing, New York
(Postcard History Series)
Author - Pamela Kuhlmann
Book Synopsis
Established in 1806, the town of Wawarsing is located in the beautiful Shawangunk Mountains in Ulster County. The town is comprised of many small hamlets, as well as the village of Ellenville. The abundance of mountain streams provided electricity to run factories, and in the early 1900s, these communities were flourishing. The Delaware and Hudson Canal opened in 1828 and provided a venue for factories to transport goods. Following the close of the canal in 1898, the Ontario and Western Railroad took over, shuttling summer vacationers from New York City. The vintage postcards in Wawarsing provide views of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, the Ontario and Western Railroad, and a glimpse back to a quieter time when the mountain and valley landscape provided picturesque locations for lovely hotels and boardinghouses.
Author Biography
Pamela Kuhlmann, a postcard collector for many years, has an avid interest in local history. Born and raised in the town of Wawarsing, she has been employed by the Ellenville Central School District as an elementary school teacher for more than 20 years.
From the Publisher
Established in 1806, the town of Wawarsing is located in the beautiful Shawangunk Mountains in Ulster County. The town is comprised of many small hamlets, as well as the village of Ellenville. The abundance of mountain streams provided electricity to run factories, and in the early 1900s, these communities were flourishing. The Delaware and Hudson Canal opened in 1828 and provided a venue for factories to transport goods. Following the close of the canal in 1898, the Ontario and Western Railroad took over, shuttling summer vacationers from New York City. The vintage postcards in Wawarsing provide views of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, the Ontario and Western Railroad, and a glimpse back to a quieter time when the mountain and valley landscape provided picturesque locations for lovely hotels and boardinghouses.
Heather Rolland's ~ "Finders, Seekers, Losers, Keepers"
Find Yourself a Great Read; Local Author to Have Book Signing
By Brian Rubin - Shawangunk Journal
ELLENVILLE – Looking for a good summer read? Then look no further than
Finders, Seekers, Losers, Keepers, the new novel by Heather Rolland, who makes sure that when she’s called a “local author,” she proves it.
“It’s a real love song to the Hudson Valley,” she says of her novel, which is set primarily in Dutchess County, but whose action takes its protagonist through a Hudson Valley journey to untangle the mystery of her missing aunt. Among the many mentions of nearby locales, Rolland lists Nyack, Hudson, Beacon, New Paltz, Rosendale, and, of course, Ellenville.
“One of the recent reviews that I got on the book talked about how one of the strengths of the book is how much the Hudson Valley is a character unto itself,” says Rolland. “It’s a real vision of not only what the valley is, but what it could be.”
Rolland works as a psychotherapist in the family and child unit of the Ellenville clinic at Ulster County Mental Health. Because of her profession, she’s always been interested in interpersonal relationships and the way people grow up — as such, the novel looks into relationships between people and the distance that can separate them. Above all, Rolland describes the book as “a coming of age mystery of the heart.”
Part of her motivation to write the book came from time spent reading with her daughter, now a teenager, and from seeing that many young adult books and those geared towards young women had a tendency to kill off parental figures, or to find a mate for a solitary leading lady. With her own literary endeavor, Rolland set out to challenge those clichés by ensuring that they had no place in her book.
“I want to write a readable, compelling, fun, commercially viable novel that addresses both of these [issues].”
Finished in 2005 and published late last year, Finders, Seekers, Losers, Keepers is available online at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, along with Rolland’s personal website, HeatherRolland.com. Better yet, Rolland herself will be on hand for a book signing at the Inquiring Minds book store in New Paltz on August 1, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. With her will be another local author, Woodstock-based Marta Szabo, who will be signing and selling her own book, The Guru Looked Good.
Stop in, say hello to Heather, and pick up a copy, won’t you? The days of summer reading will soon be coming to an end…
