Some wonderful new books have come in this month. Of all the sights that warm a librarian’s heart, the best is watching a patron patiently and thoughtfully browse through new books and the stacks before returning to the circulation desk with an armful of reading material.

Here are some of the fine new books the library has received.

Some Internet sites and print magazines have been publicizing a dialog between Microsoft founder Bill Gates and neuroscientist Steven Pinker concerning Pinker’s new Book “Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress” (New Books Section, call # 303.44 Pink).

In “Enlightenment Now,” Pinker questions lurid headlines and prophecies of doom that appeal to cynical psychological biases by showing life, health, prosperity, safety, peace, knowledge and happiness are on the rise across the world. He argues Enlightenment ideals of reason, science and humanism are needed to confront the challenges facing liberal democracy and global cooperation.

If global goals seem a bit too abstract, check out”The One-Straw Revolution,” by Masanobu Fukuoka (New Books Section, call # 631.584 Fuku). This gardening classic will contradict most things you have learned about gardening.

Fukuoka’s system is akin to permaculture methods of gardening. It is based on the recognition that complex living organisms shape an ecosystem. Fukuoka saw farming as a means of producing food and an aesthetic and spiritual approach to life.

His five principles of natural farming are human cultivation of soil, plowing or tilling are unnecessary, as is the use of powered machines; prepared fertilizers are unnecessary, as is the process of preparing compost; weeding, either by cultivation or by herbicides, is unnecessary; instead, only minimal weed suppression with minimal disturbance should be used applications of pesticides or herbicides are unnecessary; pruning of fruit trees is unnecessary.

Read “The One-Straw Revolution” along with Ruth Stout’s Gardening Without Work (call # 635 Stou), and you will save yourself a lot of unnecessary back-breaking labor this summer.

Finally, for all you Sherlock Holmes fans, there’s a new history of the many manifestations of the world’s greatest and most famous consulting detective, “From Holmes to Sherlock: The Story of the Men and Women Who Created an Icon,” by Mattias Bostrom (New Books Section, call# 823.8 Bost.)

This book traces the development of the Sherlock Holmes saga from Conan Doyle’s days as a student taking notes about medical professor Joseph Bell’s extraordinary powers of observation to the modern fans who brainstormed the TV sensation Sherlock.

There is a boatload of other titles just waiting to be scooped up and enjoyed, perhaps with a little music from the library’s marvelous CD collection. Come in and take a look.

Programs this week?

— Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., Meeting of Minds, the library’s discussion group thinks about the 2nd amendment right of gun ownership. All perspectives are welcome.

— Wednesday at 2 p.m., Kentucky Picture Show presents a 2017 film about a young woman named Reese Donahue who leads a seemingly ideal life with a bright future ahead of her. When she discovers her mother has left her enough money to choose her path, she’s faced with a dilemma. Rated PG 13

— Wednesday at 7 p.m., Trivia Challenge at the Engine House Pizza Pub.

— Friday at 10 a.m., Write Local. End the month beginning a new story. Bring your work in progress to Write Local.

Come to the library for all your reading. If the exact title you want is not here, we can suggest a similar title until yours is ordered or received through inter-library loan.

John Maruskin is director of adult services at the Clark County Public Library. He can be reached at john.clarkbooks@gmail.com.