Cathy Schaber
Although both the DesertView and SaddleBrooke One libraries contain extensive holdings of fiction, nonfiction, and large print items, each library also has special collections unique to their location. The following book collections are found only at the SaddleBrooke One library:
The Pulitzer Prize winner in fiction is purchased each year, and the collection has titles from 1980 to the present. This collection is contained on a cart in the fiction room. If it has been one of your retirement goals to read these award winners, here is your opportunity. Awarded since 1917, the categories and criteria have changed over the years. The annual Fiction Pulitzer Prize winners are for distinguished literary fiction by an American author, usually dealing with American life.
The local author collection has books written by SaddleBrooke residents, both fiction and nonfiction. Almost exclusively, these items are donated to the library by the author. Not all submissions make the selection cut, but it is always self-affirming to find your literary efforts cataloged and available to your neighbors. SaddleBrooke resident authors can contact the manager at the SaddleBrooke One library to discuss offering their books for inclusion into this collection.
Also unique to the SaddleBrooke One library are some paperback book groupings. The Western paperbacks have been very popular over the approximately 30 years this collection has been maintained. Whenever possible, new paperbacks in this genre are added to the shelves. The romance paperbacks have been consolidated from the Cholla library at MountainView, and the DesertView libraries and are now kept on carts under the window at the SaddleBrooke One library. These light-reading novels are also very popular among patrons. Shelved within the general fiction paperbacks are what is called “cozy mysteries.” These are indicated with a yellow stripe on the spine label. A cozy mystery is just that: a mystery. Although less graphic, a “cozy” is fast paced and relies on plot twists and character development. For readers who enjoy the puzzle-solving of a good mystery, this genre is definitely worth a try.
Paperbacks are available to residents whenever the SaddleBrooke One clubhouse and the MountainView clubhouse are open and do not need to be checked out. Please return them to the library from which they were borrowed. Do not reshelve these items yourself, as they are stamped and counted and their condition is assessed by the library staff upon their return. The libraries rely on donations of current paperbacks in good condition to keep the shelves full. Only a very few are purchased new. Consider donating your gently read paperbacks to either the Cholla library at MountainView or the SaddleBrooke One library.
As a reminder, the Friends of SaddleBrooke Libraries (FSL) grant almost all of the funds to purchase new books, audios, and DVDs for the SaddleBrooke Community libraries. The two HOAs do not provide any money for new books. Your support of FSL is very important, through both membership dues and attendance at their many fundraising events. Be sure to visit their website www.sbfsl.org, as well the libraries’ website www.sblibraries.com for more information.