Oyster River Community Read, a grassroots collaboration aimed at using books as tools to help foster connections and build common understandings among community members, will run Sept.13 through Nov. 13, reading Eric Klinenberg’s book "Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and The Decline of Civic Life," which explores the ways in which accessible public spaces help foster critical connections among diverse individuals and increase community resilience. Copies of the book will be available through the Durham, Madbury, Lee, Newmarket, and Newfields libraries and/or can be purchased through local booksellers or online.
The kick-off event will feature a trivia night hosted by New Hampshire Public Radio's "Civics 101" podcast held at The Barn at Powder Major’s Farm in Madbury on Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 6:30 p.m. Trivia will include questions on public spaces and will feature a book giveaway and refreshments. To RSVP and see the full calendar of events, visit orcread.org.
The Seabreeze Quilt Guild will meet Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. in the Senior Center, Court Street, Exeter. Member demonstrations will take place at several tables with time for all to watch each demo. Susan Webster, Flange binding; Lauren Spofford, Hand Binding; Terri Gelinas, How to measure bindings; and Janice Kraus, Needle Turn Applique.
Members are reminded to sign up for the Quilt Retreat at the end of September and also upcoming workshop Nov. 9 on “Maintaining Your Singer Featherweight.” Cost is $40 and will be held at the Portsmouth Senior Center from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Seabreeze logo merchandise will be available for order at meetings. Refreshments and door prizes with be provided Guests are welcome.
The 2022 Granite State Fair opens Thursday, Sept. 15 at the fairgrounds at 72 Lafayette St. in Rochester. The fair will operate Thursday to Sunday, Sept. 15 to 18, and Thursday to Sunday, Sept. 22 to 25.
On Thursdays and Fridays, the fair and midway will open at 4 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays, the fair opens 10 a.m. and the midway at noon.
Tickets to the fair and to events can be purchased at granitestatefair.com or at the fairgrounds. General admission to the fairgrounds will be $10 online until Sept. 14 at 11:59 p.m., and will be $12 on site. Parking is $5 online and $7 on site.
There are additional charges for all grandstand events, such as the motocross, enduro and derby shows. See pricing and details at granitestatefair.com/grandstand-events.
Megapass tickets are $39 pre-sale and $49 after. The ticket covers entrance to the fair and a wristband for rides all day. Wristbands alone can be purchased for $25.
More:Granite State Fair 2022 in Rochester: Here's details on tickets, motocross show and more
Long Story Short: NSFW will take place Thursday, Sept.15 at 7 p.m. at 3S Artspace in Portsmouth. The theme is NSFW (Not Safe For Work). In this era of the Great Resignation, people are taking a step back and looking at work in all new ways. This show is an opportunity to hear and share stories about nightmare customers, toxic bosses, and jobs we should have given up on long ago. It's also a place to hear about meaningful work.
Doors open at 6 p.m. for this all ages, seated show. Admission is pay-what-you-choose starting at $10.
Featured storytellers are Matt Kanner, Mark Michael Adams, Richard DiPippo, Brooke Williams, Gail Knowles, John Breneman and Daniel Thomas Moran. Learn about them and the stories they're planning to tell at 3Sarts.org.
BERWICK, Maine — A new documentary film, “News Desert in a Small Town,” will be shown at the Berwick Public Library on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m.
As local newspaper coverage disappears, where do residents get their information? How does the loss affect a small town? Produced by the Berwick Public Library and Berwick Community Media, the film features interviews with former reporters, town officials and people in the Berwick Community.
On Thursday, Sept. 15 at 6:30 p.m., the Dover Public Library will present "Botticelli: Beauty, Virtue and the Bonfire of the Vanities" virtually. Sandro Botticelli was a leading artist of the early Italian Renaissance with a distinctive linear style. This program will focus on how Botticelli’s explorations of beauty and myth dramatically shift after the rise of the religious leader Savonarola and his Bonfire of the Vanities, the burning of objects condemned as occasions of sin. Sign up needed to get a link to the virtual presentation. Visit library.dover.nh.gov or call 603-516-6050.
On Friday, Sept. 16, the York Public Library will unveil a quilt made by local quilters to commemorate the library’s Centennial. The library has already enjoyed several events to mark its 100th anniversary, but this project will carry the celebration into the future with a permanent installation of the quilt above the Wheeler Room in the main lobby.
All are invited to the unveiling of the quilt at 4 p.m. following by a reception and refreshments. The York Public Library is located at 15 Long Sands Road in York.
Hand sewing enthusiasts and fans of colonial fashions are invited to “Tea and Stitchery” on Saturday, Sept. 17 at Rollinsford’s historic Colonel Paul Wentworth House. Between 1 and 4 p.m., the Wentworth ladies will gather in the parlor to drink tea, sew, and discuss the latest fashions of the 1700s. Costumed in period attire, the ladies will demonstrate the tools and techniques involved in hand sewing 18th century clothing. Both completed garments and some in process will be on display.
Admission is $5 for adults; free for ARCH members and children. For more information, send an email to paulwentworthhouse@gmail.com. Visit paulwentworthhouse.org.
Nothing says New England like a Ham and Bean Supper. Madbury United Church of Christ will hold one on Saturday, Sept. 17 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Madbury Town Hall, 13 Town Hall Road. Menu is baked ham from George Calef’s Fine Foods in Barrington, a variety of homemade baked beans, hot dogs, coleslaw, potato salad, assorted breads, a 21-item salad bar, and beverages. A highlight is delicious handcrafted fruit and cream pies for dessert. $12 for adults and children age 12 and older. Kids under 12 are $6 and families are $28.