Ratby Library Community Group

from June 2023 Your Local Ratby, Kirby Muxloe & Leicester Forest East

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Ratby Parish Council

Article by Robin O’Brien

Charity Commission Number 1164252

Café Garden update

All the hardscaping has been completed and the planting is now ongoing. Joan and Mick Burton have generously donated perennials and spent an afternoon setting them in the pollination area. Thanks both! When this issue of the Local lands on your doormat, the wheelchair accessible garden will already be open and ready for our customers just in time for summer! Order at the counter and you can be sitting in the sunshine with a slice of our lemon drizzle cake and a cuppa brought to you in two minutes. Perfect!

Remember, our library is available to hire for meetings and family celebrations. The new garden is an addition that can only enhance the atmosphere of your party. Please contact us for more details.

The Little Shop

Are you stuck for ideas for a little birthday or thank you present for someone? Look no further than our Little Shop in the library for giftshandmade and donated - by our volunteers and friends. Jewellery, candles, dreamcatchers, travel cups and numerous other gifts at unbelievable bargain prices!

New Blinds

We have to say a massive thank you to Gary of Brookvale Blinds for generously replacing our broken blinds on the large picture windows at the front of the library free of charge. It has made such a difference to the look of the room.

Volunteer In The Spotlight

I'm Samantha, was born and raised in Hong Kong but moved to Ratby 1 year ago. Hong Kong is a beautiful city, it is most spectacular when the sun goes down, the skyscrapers begin to illuminate the harbour, absolutely breathtaking.

I'm a cellist, passionate about music. I love working with students and helping them reach their full potential and enjoy the music. I'm a tooter in Ratby Co-Operative Band and a soprano in Groby Sings. I spend time volunteering at the Ratby library, which is one of my life’s most rewarding experiences. There’s always something new to discover, beautiful and full of sparkle, friendly neighbourhoods and warm welcomes in Ratby. How wonderful my new chapter started in the UK.

I speak Cantonese and Mandarin and play mah-jong as well. Please head to library for a cuppa and catch up, and cultural exchanges.

(If on Friday board games morning, Samantha or her husband Martin happen to be in, ask if they could show you how to play mah-jong)

This Month’s New Books

We regularly receive new books from the library hub – if you can’t find what you’re looking for, place an order at the desk. Please come in and check them out; here are a small selection.

With the cost-of-living crisis still ongoing, many families are looking for ways to cut down on the cost of their summer holidays. A book for parents by Claire Balkind, ‘Great Family Days In’, has 75 ideas to entertain and keep your children occupied in the weeks ahead, using resources often already to hand. Homemade sports day requires eggs, spoons, a football, buckets, tin cans and sponges. Dandelion honey is a fun recipe the kids might like to make. Claire explains how the dandelion got its name (from the French ‘dent de lion’ meaning lion’s tooth). The ingredients are simple: dandelion, water, sugar, and lemon. There are lots of inventive ideas, easy to set up.

Jess Butterworth’s book ’Lost on Gibbon Island’ is written for children around 12 years old. Jess was inspired to write this book by a trip to Cambodia. The Guardian praises the book as ‘A story relevant to the world we live in today’. Told in diary form, a girl tells of her experiences of being shipwrecked and the friendship she forms with a baby gibbon. The book relates a bigger message about animal smuggling and pollution of our oceans. A five- star read.

Young nature-loving enthusiasts will enjoy this accessible introduction to the life of Sir David Attenborough for children aged 9 and over. Packed with numerous facts about his career and involvement with animals, climate change, and pollution, learn all about this national treasure!

Finally

Our regular dates are as follows: Ratby Craft club - Monday evenings, Chair yoga - Tuesday mornings, Wriggly Readers - Thursday mornings, Board games – Friday mornings. Our next quiz night will be June 16th.

Tuesday Chair yoga 2-4.30

Wednesday 10-12.30 2-5

Thursday Wriggly Readers 2-4.30

Friday 10-12.30

Boardgames 2-4.30

Saturday 10-12.30

Article by Penny Wright

Ready, Set, Read , this Summer’s Reading Challenge will once again be taking place in the library during the summer holiday starting on Saturday, July 1st. More information will be available soon via your Primary School and your local Library. Anyone aged 4-12 (as of the 31st August) can take part.

Holiday Reading

A good source of adult holiday reading is from our sale table of miscellaneous paperback fiction which is constantly topped up from new donations.

Lapsed and New Members Our library loans continue to rise as do the numbers of new members. If you’re not in the habit of visiting the library why not drop by and try us out. Many newly published books are available to borrow from the shelves for free or can be ordered in for just £1. And we are a very sociable meeting spot too, with a popular café.

Getting together at the library

We like to think of our library hub as a good village meeting spot. We have a Meeting Room (with a kettle and washing up facilities) available for a very reasonable £8 per hour.

LIBRARY GARDEN

Our tea garden is equipped with tables and chairs.

On the other side of the library we have another sizeable lawn and have recently installed a bench seat here. This space might be just what you need for a toddler tea party. No charge!

Both lawns are safe spaces for little ones to run about in while grown-ups can meet with friends in the sunshine and enjoy a coffee and snacks.