Ranger's Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan--Jan. 20 Meeting

Choosing Day is the big day for 15 year-old Will and the rest of his fellow castle orphans. Will wants to be a knight and hopes to be chosen for the Kingdom's Battleschool but is deemed too small and is instead selected by a mysterious Ranger for training in an elite and secretive military organization. Will resists being pulled into the Rangers but soon finds his unusual natural talents transforming him into a Ranger Wunderkind. Just in time too because the evil, exiled Baron of Gorlan, Lord Morgarath, is amassing an army of hideous Warguls and Kalkara to again invade the Kingdom of Araluen.

This adventure story bristles with battles featuring savage wild boars and monsters showcasing characters' courage, friendship, loyalty, forgiveness and perseverance but also their struggles with weaknesses.

Showalter Descendants Honor Chess Club

Three generations of five-time U.S. chess champion Jackson W. Showalter's descendants witnessed at the November 25 meeting the official name change of the Scott County Chess Club to the Jackson W. Showalter Chess Club. Jackson Showalter was champion during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and traveled abroad to battle international chess giants. He lived in Georgetown until his death in 1935. His great-granddaughter, Georgetown resident Ginger Showalter Saker, displayed old pictures of her great-grandfather playing chess in places like Nuremburg, Germany. Ginger and her family, husband Ed, sons Jordan and Miles, and daughter Maggie enjoyed playing games of chess with club members.

Linda Showalter Lankford and Gervis Showalter share stories about Jackson W. Showalter.

Chess club founder, Jim Byrge, multi-tasks listening to stories and keeping the club on schedule.

Mom and son enjoying chess.

Call of the Wild To Be Discussed At Dec. 16 Meeting

Buck, a huge and powerful St. Bernard mix family dog from warm sunny California, is dognapped, humiliated, beaten physically and spiritually and thrust into the frozen frenzy of the late 19th century Klondike gold rush. Buck the sled dog learns the harsh "Law of Club and Fang" and transforms into the legendary Ghost Dog feared by Canada's Yeehat Indians. Join the Dec. 16 Pig Skull discussion of Jack London's The Call of the Wild

Chess Club Renamed Jackson Showalter Chess Club

Scott County Chess Club at it's Nov. 25 meeting will officially become the "Jackson Showalter Chess Club" in honor of Georgetown resident and U.S. Chess Champion Jackson Whipps Showalter. Known as the "Kentucky Lion" for his aggressive chess play and mane of thick hair, Showalter, 1860-1935, was five times U.S. Chess Champion. His great granddaughter and Georgetown resident, Ginger, will be at the Nov. 25, 3 PM meeting at Scott County Library to share stories and pictures of her great grandfather.

Chess Grandmaster At Dec.9 Club Meeting

Don't miss a very special two-hour Scott County Chess Club meeting featuring 9th American ranked Grandmaster Gregory Kaidanov. Originally from Russia but now living with his family in Lexington, Mr. Kaidanov will dazzle us with a Blitz Simul playing numerous players at the same time and will also while blindfolded battle another player. The special club meeting starts at a special time, 2 PM.

World's Hottest Chile Pepper--Can You Handle It?

It's official. India's "Ghost Chile" is now the world's hottest chile pepper knocking down a notch former melt-down champion Habanero. The Bhut Jolokia's blistering 1 million Scoville Units (SU) fire rating scorches Habanero's "cool" 580,000 SU. Local chile farmers in northeastern India eat these belly burners and survive...barely! One farmer says eating a Bhut Jolokia is like dying. He warns outsiders not to eat the chiles. According to an online article "The smallest morsels can flavor a sauce so intensely it’s barely edible. Eating a raw sliver causes watering eyes and a runny nose. An entire chili is an all-out assault on the senses, akin to swigging a cocktail of battery acid and glass shards."

Want to buy some Ghost chiles? Presently, India is not exporting fresh chiles but chile paste and powder are available. Fresh Ghost chiles, once available, will make wonderful Halloween treats, don't ya think?

Hatchet Discussion Around Campfire

Campfire, hot dogs, great fall weather, and a good book. What more could a pig want? Old and new Pig Skullers showed up for a discussion of Gary Paulsen's Hatchet. Our next club meeting is Sunday, Nov. 18, 2-3 PM in the library's conference room. We will discuss Will Hobbs' Wild Man Island. Pick up a copy at the library's circulation desk. Check out Hobbs' Wild Man website discussion about recent Alaskan and Canadian archaeological evidence weaved into his book that suggests prehistoric man might have migrated to North America in island-hopping boats.