Books in Bloom 2025

Two days when the Saugus Public Library looks and smells like a glorious flower garden

By Laura Eisener

If you went into the Saugus Public Library last week, you would have seen a beehive of activity as the Saugus Garden Club and the New Friends of the Saugus Public Library created beautiful arrangements for this year’s “Books In Bloom.” The weather may have been cold and dreary outside but the library was bursting with color inside. This popular annual event has been going on for many years now, with a pause in 2020 for Covid, which left such a void that some members did their own designs at home anyway! The displays were shown all over the library, including the Reading Room and the Children’s Room, and some on the upper level.

Many participants brought in flowers or other design elements from home, while others made bouquets last Thursday afternoon from flowers donated by Trader Joe’s in Saugus. There was also a table of refreshments in the Community Room both Friday and Saturday – many of the treats homemade by the garden club and the library staff.

Garden Club co-president Donna Manoogian chose “For the Love of Plants” by Adam Frost, with a cat garden ornament that looks just like a real cat she has at home. The subjects of many of the nonfiction books chosen were crafts and hobbies, not surprisingly including gardening and flower arranging titles.

Ruth Berg’s display for “The Kitchen Table Book” included ornamental flowers in a teacup, which had a design of a formal vegetable garden, as well as pictures of garden tools. Since her chosen book was about interesting uses and benefits of fruits, vegetables and herbs, she appropriately included an apple and orange as well as cereals made from healthy oats and other edible plants.

Some of the participants were inspired by the recent historical anniversaries – Saugus Iron Works park ranger Paul Kenworthy picked one of the books he has been reading about a World War II bomber squad, “Blood and Tears,” and included a model plane with red and white identifying tail markings matching the bouquet of white carnations with bright red picotee petal edges. I used my copper topped lantern for a book in the Children’s Room that included a variety of stories featuring Massachusetts history. Other designs were inspired by fiction books and sometimes featured additional props that would give a hint to the plot of the story.

Many visitors enjoyed the displays, and while some might have been planning to visit the library anyway there were clearly many others who came specifically to see the event. I overheard one family with young children Saturday morning exclaiming over the books and flowers, especially those in the children’s section. Maybe the young people will be thinking about doing their own displays next year.