Learn more about the fun holiday happenings in the coming months and discover books to help you celebrate.
By Rabinder Singh, Adult Programming Assistant
National Quilting Day - March 16
First celebrated in March 1992, National Quilting Day was founded by the National Quilt Association and is now coordinated by the Quilt Alliance and the National Quilting Museum. Celebrated on the third Saturday of March, honor the day by checking out these books all about quilting:
- The Quilted Home Handbook by Wendy Chow
- Perfect for beginners and experienced quilters alike, this book features simple illustrations and easy-to-follow steps that teach you how to make 15+ beautiful quilt projects for around your home.
- Confessions From The Quilting Circle by Maisey Yates
When Lark Ashwood's beloved grandmother dies, she and her sisters discover an unfinished quilt. During the subsequent summer, the Ashwood women must lean on each other like never before to stitch their family back together, one truth at a time.
International Haiku Poetry Day - April 17
The haiku is a Japanese form of unrhymed poetry composed of 17 syllables total that are arranged in three lines of five, seven and five syllables. Learn more about haiku with these reads:
- A Beginner's Guide to Japanese Haiku: Major Works by Japan's Best-Loved Poets by William Scott Wilson
This collection is the perfect introduction to Japanese haiku. It contains works by the well-known Basho, Shiki, Buson and Issa as well as many other haiku poets. - The Haiku Handbook: How to Write, Teach, and Appreciate Haiku by William J. Higginson and Penny Harter
This handbook is about how we can indulge in the creative process of appreciating, writing or even teaching haiku.
Earth Day - April 22
Beginning in April 1970, this annual event celebrates the planet Earth and raises awareness about environmental issues. Discover more about the holiday with these books about gardening, nature and more:
- A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
Bryson hikes the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail and explores the history of the trail, noticing an astonishing landscape of silent forests, sparkling lakes and other national treasures that are often ignored or endangered. - Second Nature: A Gardener’s Education by Michael Pollan
A memoir paired with a philosophical meditation on gardening, Pollan deliberates the moral imperatives of compost, the absurdity of America’s obsession with the perfect lawn and the disconnect between the garden of his suburban childhood.
Mother’s Day - May 12
Observed on the second Sunday of May, Mother’s Day began in 1907 and is dedicated to the mother figures in all our lives. Make this holiday even more meaningful with these reads all featuring relationships between mothers and daughters:
- Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou
The book focuses on the author’s fractured relationship with her mother who abandoned her as a small child then came back into her life a decade later. - Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama by Alison Bechdel
A graphic memoir exploring the relationship between the artist and her complicated, creative mother.