Storytime tomorrow

Wednesday 8 March
10am to 10.30am

It's storytime again!  Come and join us for stories, songs and craft for under fives in the library.

'Snowfed Waters' - author talk at the library

Tuesday 7 March, 7pm at Sawston Library

'Snowfed Waters' talk by local author, Jane Wilson-Howarth. Jane will lead discussions and give readings from her latest novel about Himalayas and Nepal. Entry £1. Refreshments available.

Jane describes the novel thus:

Snowfed Waters is a dramatic and moving story set in the shadow of the Himalayas. It is a tale of two cultures, of false assumptions, of courage in the face of disaster and of the gradual dawning of self awareness.

Sonia Swayne's life is in bits. Her husband has left her and she has been fired from her teaching job. With her self-esteem at rock bottom she decides to flee her old life in Cambridge and goes to work for a charity on Rajapur Island in Nepal.

On the surface, life in the Nepali village is unsophisticated and the people uneducated. Clumsily, Sonia tries to impose her own values on her values on her hosts but the more she learns about their customs and their faith, the more she questions her own values. She is particularly influenced by the spirituality and spontaneity of a quiet teenage girl, Moti.

And then there is Rekraj, a sensitive young high caste Nepali man with whom Sonia forms an attachment. She basks in the warmth of his admiration without analysing her feelings too deeply: she simply enjoys being wanted again.

There are clouds on the horizon though and there are ill omens in the form of earth tremors. Lord Shiva is angry and Rekraj regrets his impure thoughts.

The story reaches its climax when Sonia and Moti set out on a pilgrimage into the mountains. The two women race back - fearful of what will happen on the way and fearful of what they will find back on Rajapur Island.

Can Sonia summon her old inner strength and resourcefulness and revive her old self-respect?

Community Hub

The planning application for the new Sawston community hub has now been submitted. Comments are now closed, but you can view the application at http://planning.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/swift/apas/run/wphappcriteria.display

using planning reference S/0200/16/CC.

The community hub is to be built next to The Marven Centre in New Road. It will be a permanent home for Sawston’s public library.

As well as the library of 130 square metres, the building will provide meeting rooms, a flexible activity space for use by the Children's Centre, offices for Children's Centre staff and other County Council support staff, kitchen, toilets and an outdoor play area. Parking for 11 cars and 18 bicycles will be provided for staff and visitors.

The proposed building is designed to complement and respect the existing Marven Centre, both in its building line and construction materials. Modern building methods will minimise its environmental impact. Roof lights and large windows will provide good natural light.