An illustrated presentation

Terrific turnout for Last Train to Paradise author Les Standiford, both on Sunday at Key West Island Books and on Monday at the Library. Thanks, folks! It's great to see so much interest in our community in books, in local history and in a Library program. And wait -- there's more!

On Thursday morning our Cafe Con Libros -- that's coffee with books -- series joins the One Island One Book train for a presentation from Tom Hambright, the Monroe County Library's historian. Tom, as many people know, is the pre-eminent local history expert on many topics, including the Over-Sea Railroad. He oversees the Library's collection of documents and artifacts and, in the last few years, has taken on the immense project of getting thousands of historic images online. That includes 700 just about the railroad, including all the images on this blog -- and many in the beautiful new illustrated edition of Last Train to Paradise.

The program starts when the library opens at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, with coffee and treats; the talk starts at 10 a.m. As always, all are welcome -- you don't need to be a Monroe County Library patron or even have read the book to attend.