Let’s read, talk and grow together by collectively reading this year’s Whitehall Reads choice, Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. A luminous novel about a widow’s unlikely friendship and the truths she finally uncovers about her son’s disappearance 30 years ago. Irresistibly wonderful, funny, and heartbreaking, this debut novel is full of gentle people (and one octopus), bravely powering through their individual scars left by lives that have beaten them up but not brought them down. A special movie screening will be a companion piece to the book.
Special Movie Screening: My Octopus Teacher
Wednesday, July 26 @ 11:00AM – Dive into the Second Chapter Café for a companion movie to our Whitehall Reads selection, Remarkably Bright Creatures! This incredible true story is about the unlikely friendship between a filmmaker who begins diving in a kelp forest off the coast of South Africa and the female octopus who shares the secrets of her world with him.
We’ll have popcorn and snacks for you to enjoy – and maybe even an octopus treat!
Run time: 85 minutes
The Underwater Life: A Visit from a Pittsburgh Aquarist
Thursday August 3 @ 11:00AM – The library is proud to welcome Jessica Ries, a tropical marine aquarist at the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium. She’ll talk about the daily workings of a city aquarium and what makes living an underwater life so appealing for so many kinds of creatures.
This program coincides with the library’s official Whitehall Reads selection, Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. In this hopeful novel, a widow begins working at a local aquarium where she finds connection with a most unlikely ally – a giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus!
Oceans of Cash: Lottery Raffle in August!
August 1 – 31, 2023: Win “oceans of money” this August. The Friends of the Whitehall Library are sponsoring a Lottery Ticket Raffle, only $5.00 for ten chances to win!
Stop by the library or enter online at https://wpl.rallyup.com/oceansofcash/
Service Projects
Donate to Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh! As a community service project that ties into our love of creatures both great and small, the library will collect donated items for our community’s lonely animals.
Donations will be given to Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh. HAR’s wish list:
- CANNED WET FOOD – pate preferred. Dog, cat, and kitten formulas
- UNOPENED TREATS – for dogs, cats, and rabbits
- NEW OR WASHABLE TOYS – for dogs, cats, and rabbits
- ESSENTIAL OILS – sandalwood, lavender, eucalyptus, vanilla, peppermint
- CLEANING SUPPLIES – gloves, paper towels, trash bags, Dawn dish soap, bath/hand towels (gently used or new)
- GENERAL OFFICE SUPPLIES – pens, post-its, binder clips, copier paper
- PUPPY TRAINING PADS
- GIFT CARDS – pet stores, grocery stores