Bring on the Books

I went for a run this evening and came across the public library and the primary school for the first time. Seeing the library, I recalled a conversation with Nelly that continues to stick with me. She told us that the local library doesn’t have a very good selection of books for kids.  They have a few of the classics but none of the books by authors that Brook loves, like Rick Riordan, or any books by the wonderful authors nominated for the Dorothy Canfield Fisher award.  I can’t imagine that they have an amazing children’s librarian like Beth Reynolds at the Norwich Public Library either. We told Nelly how we have been borrowing electronic books from our library in Norwich and purchasing them while we travel.  I can’t help but wonder how much it would cost to set up an electronic book-lending program in Tulum, similar to Listen Up Vermont. Purchasing electronic books seemed like a perfect way for Nelly’s son Max to better satisfy his reading appetite.  It would most certainly be quicker and simpler than setting up a library program.  The challenge is that Nelly and her family do not have a credit card. Apparently, they are difficult to obtain in Mexico.  Without a credit card, there is no such thing as one-click purchasing, which could be a blessing but also a curse.  Even with a credit card, if you are not a U.S. resident, it might not be feasible to buy ebooks online.  If Nelly can download the Kindle software then we can probably buy Max some books.  But does anyone have any better long-term solutions?  We’ve found free e-books online but we haven’t had any success downloading them.

We rode to Brook’s favorite restaurant, Ginger, for dinner and it was closed.  This was strange since we were pretty sure that we had been there on a Tuesday before.  Is it closed for low season?  No, phew!  Later we found out that it will only be closed for a couple of days. Javier, the owner and chef, and his wife had their first baby.  We ended up at El Quinto Sol.  It was a good find. Finally a Mexican restaurant that serves burritos!
- Eydie