Step back in time with explorers’ journals from Sands and Drake“Egyptology: Search for the Tomb of Osiris†By Emily SandsPublisher: Candlewick Press; November 2004ISBN: 0-763-62638-4; hardcover, 32 pages; $19.99Appropriate for children ages 8 and older“Dr. Ernest Drake’s Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons†By Earnest DrakePublisher: Candlewick Press; November 2003ISBN: 0-763-62329-6; hardcover, 32 pages; $19.99Appropriate for children ages 8 and older
I’ve always loved reading travel journals, compilations of ship’s logs and adventure memoirs — learning of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated arctic expedition on the Endurance, Captain Cook’s ill-fated journeys in the South Pacific and Amelia Earhart’s ill-fated flight around the world.
These are merely some of the dramatic figures who risked life and limb for the sake of learning, sharing their knowledge and testing their strength, will and the world’s newest technologies against nature. Their journals and travel logs make for fascinating reading, give us insight into the spirit of an explorer and introduce us to a world less familiar.
Of course, many adventurers lived happily ever after and died well into their dotage. But who can resist a good mystery? Earhart remains as compelling a figure now as during her glory days in the 1930s, and nobody is really sure what prompted the Hawaiians to turn Cook into a nautical martyr … and such puzzles launch the imagination.
As a homage to the golden days of discovery, the fine folks at Candlewick Press have just released “Egyptology: Search for the Tomb of Osiris,†a new “discovery†in the vein of the company’s wildly popular, award-winning “Dragonology,†published last year.
In this lavishly-illustrated fictional adventure journal, children will learn of the vivacious Miss Emily Sands, who in 1926 — four years after the discovery of King Tut's tomb and during the height of Egyptomania — led an expedition up the Nile in search of the tomb of the god Osiris.
Alas, Miss Sands and her intrepid crew vanished into the desert, never to be seen again — but her keen observations live on in the form of a “newly recovered†descriptive journal of her travels and discoveries.
Sands’ scrapbook is chockfull of drawings, photographs, foldout maps, postcards, an ancient board game, a scrap of “mummy cloth,†an instructional booklet to deciphering hieroglyphs and an amulet. The book and its “artifacts†introduce children to the ways in which information was analyzed, classified and shared in the days before carbon dating, digital cameras and the Internet.
“Egyptology†is also rich in factual information about life in ancient Egypt and entertainingly peppered with Sands' lively, chatty narration. It concludes with a letter from the “former Keeper of Antiquities at the British Museum,†explaining which parts of this unique tale may be accepted as fact, which are guided by legend and which reflect the author's sense of fancy.
As with “Dragonology†— which shared the fictional “long-lost,†and quite eccentric, research journals of renowned 19th century dragonologist, Dr. Ernest Drake — “Egyptology†nourishes the imagination and encourages wonder and discovery. The books are also excellent examples for parents wanting to introduce children to the process of journal writing or keeping a scrapbook or travel log.
Lani Stack is a former preschool teacher and an avid reader who keeps meaning to begin her own journals, scrapbooks and travel logs.
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Lanesborough Officials Take Road District Dissolution Off Warrant
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Select Board has removed a town meeting warrant article regarding the dissolution of the Baker Hill Road District.
JMJ Holdings development consultant Tim Grogan spoke in public comment saying the Berkshire Mall owner is currently has purchase-and-sale agreement for the mall.
Back in February, the Select Board settled a tax dispute with JMJ Holdings by agreeing to move forward in dissolving the district if the company paid $1.1 million to the town. JMJ Holdings had to provide a signed development-and-purchase agreement 30 days before the town meeting.
JMJ holdings did not submit a payment to be made by May 9. Because of that, the Select Board voted to take the article of the warrant to be voted at the annual town meeting.
Meanwhile, the Baker Hill Road District presented a slideshow defending the district and explaining what it does.
The district currently provides a non-resident-funded revenue stream of around $500,000 per year. These funds help pay for police cars and officer salaries, dump trucks, fire trucks, and more for the town.
"Dissolution would mean the district's three commercial property owners would no longer have to pay for upkeep of the Route Seven/Eight connector road. As a result, the BHRD annual contribution of more than $500,000 to Lanesborough would disappear permanently, since the services and maintenance costs associated with the Route Seven and Eight connector road would still remain," said Tom Caraccioli, PR consultant with AH&M Inc. "Lanesborough would have to absorb these costs and continue to provide emergency services to the mall and Target. The financial burden for these remaining expenses would then fall on Lanesborough taxpayers through higher taxes or the reduction of other important town services."
The proposal with JMJ would affect the town in a negative way Caraccioli claimed.
"JMJ is proposing a one-time payment of $1.1 million to Lanesborough in exchange, JMJ would never pay BHRD taxes again. The decision to dissolve the BHRD by accepting this proposed $1.1 million would be a permanent choice that would have irreversible consequences," he said. "There will be no official system in place to cover recurring costs once the money from this single payment is spent. Therefore, the proposed one-time payment is not a long-term solution for the town of Lanesborough."
JMJ's dispute was that the Berkshire Mall no longer exists as a functioning entity and it should not be on the hook for protection and maintenance that had been based on the mall's operation in its heyday. The company is seeking to redevelop the site as senior housing and town officials were asking the state to take over the Connector Road.
District officials said it's not guaranteed that the state would take over the road linking Routes 7 and 8, built to service the mall back in the '80s, and that the state Department of Transportation had historically discouraged the town from asking. Even if it happened, it could take three to five years, during which no BHRD funds would be collected if the district is dissolved. The state would not replace the revenue they support, and they argued the state is facing its own budget issues making it unlikely they would want to take over.
The road district was created by an act of the Legislature and would require another act to dissolve it. The town meeting article asked for voter support for a home-rule petition to start that process.
After the presentation, it was asked what the current financial status of the BHRD, given that JMJ hasn’t paid in a long time and if the district actually has the money or if it is dependent on the mall sale.
Mark Siegars, attorney for BHRD, reminded the room that the mall is under a purchase and sale agreement and if the sale closes, the district expects to receive more than a million dollars because of the lawsuit and lien, but does not have that cash yet. If the sale does not go through, BHRD will take the mall and sell it. The district still gets payments from Target, which is separate from the mall.
There were also some questions on the district's history, with Select Board member Jason Breault asking if the mall did not have a high tax rate from the district, would it still be solvent. The exchange became heated between Siegars and BHRD Chair Bill Prendergast.
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
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Brady Auger Friday scored five goals to lead the Mount Greylock boys Lacrosse team to a 16-14 win over Hoosac Valley in the title game of the Western Massachusetts Class C Tournament. click for more
Brooke Harrington scored four goals, and Abigail Rodhouse had a hat trick as Wahconah won its second straight Western Mass title and the rubber match against the Mounties in the third one-goal game between the teams this spring. click for more
