A book and a flower

Popular event returns to Saugus library

By Gabriella Galbadis

Spring is finally here and the Saugus Public Library has bloomed with creativity.

Flowers and plants of every sort – daisies, roses, and tulips – each bursting with a story to tell.

Each, also, is fashioned from a favorite book that chronicled, among other things, the secret codes of the Navajo Marines, the tall tales of Mary Poppins, and the sculpture of a cat.

This was the scene at the library’s annual “Books in Bloom” event on April 10 and 11 that was hosted by the Saugus Garden Club, in partnership with the New Friends of the Saugus Public Library.

The event, now in its 11th year, showcased an assortment of books paired with beautiful floral arrangements. People let their imagination flow.

“Anything goes,” said Donna Manoogian, co-president of the garden club for over a decade. “As long as there’s something fresh in the arrangements,” said Manoogian, who noted that there is something good and different offered in each of the pairings.

The library was flourishing with about 35 displayed arrangements made by members of the garden club, the New Friends of the Saugus Public Library and the general public. Children also participated.

“Anyone can enter, and we encourage that,” said Manoogian about the event that also featured treats and refreshments and the opportunity to enter a raffle.

Exhibitors chose a book and made floral arrangements that either resembled its cover or related to its main subjects. The possibilities were endless as long as each arrangement included a fresh plant.

Many exhibitors chose to place their arrangements beside other props that helped bring each book’s themes to life.

A single stroll around the library revealed the diverse book choices and creative touches.

Manoogian’s flowers were spray painted black and had googly eyes. The arrangement was based on the book, “Legacy of the Cat” by Gloria Stephens. Her flowers and book were accompanied by a black cat sculpture and more plants.

Myra Monto and her seventh-grade class at Saugus Middle School chose “Code Talker” by Joseph Bruchac to feature. The book tells the story of how Navajo Marines used their native language to create an unbreakable code during World War II. The class read the book, discussed its theme of identity and all contributed ideas for the arrangement, Monto said.

“It’s been a great unit to teach,” Monto said. “I think that they have a better understanding of what people have gone through and how they have persevered through it.”

The arrangement included cacti surrounded by one of the student’s projects; a poem and a posterboard full of images and quotes reflecting the story’s narrative.

Everything sat atop a homemade blanket woven together using one strip of fabric from each student. It was a metaphor for the fact that identity builds community. Myra said that the blanket was inspired by a quote from the book; “You cannot weave a rug before you set up the loom. So I will go back to the beginning, pound the posts in the ground, and build the frame. I will start where my own story of words and warriors begins.”

One student, Nicole Ferraz Andrade Lentez, showed her resonation with the unit’s lessons in a speech at a recent School Committee meeting.

“From this project, I learned that communication is powerful and that no one can take away who you are,’’ she said in the speech. “I personally relate to this as an immigrant. Even though I had to learn a new language, I never let go of my culture.”

Mary Robblee, a garden club member, chose “Mary Poppins” books that she has loved since fifth grade. She filled a vase with white daisies and pink butterflies that matched the book’s cover. She placed the vase beside a purse with an umbrella in it along with a small bird decoration and a picture frame of the series that Robblee received as a gift.

Other garden club members, Dottie Corbett and Lorraine Wilton, made their arrangements based on “The Tale of Peter Rabbit” by Beatrix Potter and “The New Yorkers” by Sam Roberts.

The two spoke fondly of the garden club and the sense of community it brings them.

Corbett said she feels grateful to be a part of the club. She described it as a nice way to get out of the house and connect with others.

The Saugus Garden Club, created in 1945, has 81 members and partners with many community groups in town on various events. That includes collaborating with the Saugus Historical Society for the annual strawberry festival and the Saugus Veterans of Foreign Wars for its annual Run to Home Base fundraiser for cancer research.

“Books in Bloom”  was originally inspired by the Art in Bloom event held every spring in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The art displays were paired with floral interpretations made by volunteers and members of the New England garden clubs.

Manoogian said that she pitched the idea to the Saugus New Friends of the Library, which agreed to partner with the garden club to host the event.

They don’t judge the arrangements and choose a winner at the event, said Manoogian, who sits on the board of Saugus New Friends of the Library.

Ruth Berg’s arrangement generated laughter at the event. It was based on the novel “Brush Back” by Sara Paretsky and included red and white flowers that sat beside a styrofoam head which had a hairbrush tangled in its black wig.

In the children’s room, where entries were based on youth books, one included clay, while another used real moss and sticks.

Manoogian said the event offers something for everyone.

“I hope it’s become something that people will look forward to,” she added.

Gabriella Galbadis is a student journalist in the Boston University Newsroom program. She is a student in Meghan Irons’ Reporting in Depth class. This story is part of a partnership between The Saugus Advocate and the Boston University Department of Journalism’s Newsroom program.