Our community book club is back! Come and have a lively discussion as we share our thoughts on these books! 

OCT Session: Come join us for our first meeting in October! The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is a psychological thriller to get us in the spooky mood for the season. About a woman named Alicia Berenson, a painter who murders her husband, Gabriel, then never speaks another word. Theo Faber, a forensic psychotherapist is obsessed with her case, becomes her therapist to uncover her motive, only for the narrative to reveal that the storylines are not occurring simultaneously, leading to a shocking twist regarding their connection.

NOV Session: We are going to put a spin on November's book selection. For November you will be challenged to read a book of your choice in a genre that you have never/very rarely read. Let's have a thoughtful conversation on the book and genre you chose and why. Was this an eye opener for you? Will you read more books of that genre in the future? Come and let us know! Speaking of the future, The Merrymeeting Adult Ed Center will be putting its Spring/Summer catalog together soon! We will take some time during this meeting to discuss the future of our club, anything you would like to add/subtract? We will also choose future selections and possible locations. Please bring with you at least 2 book titles and a small summary that you would like the club to discuss and we will vote on the top titles!

DEC Session: Home for the holidays? Not so much for the characters in our December book pick! We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer is about a queer couple, Charlie and Eve, who buy a house to flip, only for their lives to unravel after they let a family of former residents tour the home, leading to supernatural events, disappearances, and a breakdown of reality. Originally a viral short story on Reddit. Would you have let the former family in? Let's talk about what you would have done! 

JAN Session: Happy New Year! Lets start the new year off with a great read from Fredrik Backman, the author of the bestselling book "A Man Called Ove." My Friends by Fredrick Backman is about the enduring power of friendship, art, and human connection. Follow an aspiring artist named Louisa as she uncovers the story behind a famous painting of four teenagers from a transformative summer 25 years prior, weaving together past and present narratives of trauma, hope, and healing. Come join us for a great conversation! 

FEB Session: [Wayward] - Unruly, unpredictable or difficult to control. This month we will be reading a book with that very title! Weyward by Emilia Hart is a debut novel that weaves together the stories of three women from different centuries—Altha (1619), Violet (1942), and Kate (present day)—who are connected by a shared legacy of female power, intuition, and a deep bond with nature, often labeled as witchcraft. The book explores themes of resilience, and the struggle of each woman as she confronts abuse and societal constraints, finding strength in their "weyward" spirit and connection to the natural world. Let's talk about the lives of these 3 women and what they taught us. 

MAR Session: We’d love to have you join us for a book to movie discussion. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is a science fiction novel following Ryland Grace, a junior high science teacher turned astronaut who wakes up with amnesia on a spaceship. He discovers he is on a desperate, one-way mission to save Earth from a solar-dimming microorganism. Was the book or movie better? Let's find out together! 

Learn proper punches, kicks, and combinations with a NASM Certified Personal Trainer! This fun, high-energy series combines bag training, 1:1 mitt work, and adjustable cardio conditioning for all levels. Free glove and wrap rentals included. Sweat, learn, and crush your goals in a supportive environment! Led by Meagan Rudge of DöRū Fitness, NASM Certified Personal Trainer & Head Trainer.

Enjoy a relaxing evening sipping hot chocolate or tea while carving thoughtful designs into pre-made pottery by Janna and Zachary. Learn the sgraffito technique—scratching through colored slip to reveal the clay beneath—and leave your piece for firing. Finished work ready for pickup two weeks later. All tools and materials provided. *A $20 materials fee is payable to the instructor. No experience needed.

Tis the spooky season and time to build a monster of a story for chills and thrills. Learn how to stitch the parts of a plot, setting, and character together into hair-raising tales of things that go bump in the night. Class takes place on Zoom. Students must have reliable internet, and an audio and video enable computer, tablet, or smartphone to participate.

Interested in the night sky? Join us for an enchanted evening of star-gazing! Hosted by members of Southern Maine Astronomers (SMA), these ‘star parties’ include naked eye, binocular, telescopic, or electronically-aided telescopic viewing with the support of trained volunteers, as well as brief talks or demonstrations focused on the how-to's of observing. SMA is a community of folks interested in astronomy, a few of us even do that as a job. We learn and exchange ideas at meetings that include an astronomy talk and open mic discussions of recent observing experiences or other astro-bites. The tone is light, we're in this for fun. We look at (or photograph) stuff in the sky at our star parties, talk about the objects we see, share views and information about our gear. *Rain/Cloud Date: 10/17.

Get your artificial intelligence crash course in one day, all from the comfort of your couch! Fun, easy to follow. Enjoy intro AI classes and classes that teach you how AI can bring you side income, how to find grants and scholarships for college, growing your small business with AI tools, and more. Ideal for small business owners, retirees, seniors, managers, stay at home folks, parents, and anyone who is curious about what AI can do. You can join all the classes or sit in only on the ones you like. Topics covered will include: 1. How to Use Chat GPT; 2. How to Use Google Gemini; 3. AI Tools for Small Business Owners; 4. Side Hustle with Chat GPT: 20+ Ways to Make an Income with Chat GPT; 5. AI for Retirees; 6. How to Grow your Small Business with AI; 7. Save Big! Discount Airline Tickets, Hotels, Groceries, Using Chat GPT and AI; 8. Find the Money for College Financial Aid, Grants, and Scholarships, Using Chat GPT + AI.

This fundamental course covers Adobe Photoshop CC most commonly used tools, menus and panels. You’ll learn all the basics of Photoshop to effectively work with selection and editing tools, layers, and masks to edit, retouch and enhance existing images or create your own composite digital art work. Impress your business organization, friends and family by enhancing their photos and create magazine cover quality enhanced images. Access to Adobe Photoshop required. For all online Adobe classes, students are responsible for purchasing their own software for their course. Trial versions of Adobe software are sometimes available on the Adobe company website.

Acquire the basic skills to boost your web site traffic, including how to analyze your visitor traffic, how to use search engine optimization to get greater visibility and exposure in Google searches, and how to redesign your web site copy to increase your visitors and results. No experience necessary, but if you are at an advanced level, your instructor is an SEO expert and can answer your toughest questions as well.