Library attendance surpasses 570,000, a new all-time high. The first Community Conversation is held. The subject is politics and the media. The first electronic newsletter is sent to subscribers and the first self-service check-out stations are installed. A graphic book collection is established. Movie director Martin Scorsese is honored with the 6th annual Westport Library Award at the Booked for the Evening event. A Bloomsday 100 Celebration in honor of the work of James Joyce includes films, lectures, and a Dublin dinner. The Malloy Lecture in the Arts features a conversation with artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude, preceding the opening of their Gates installation in Central Park. At the third WestportREADS, the community reads When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka. 1,822 children register for the summer reading program. The popular Reading to Rover reading program featuring beginning readers and dogs begins. Betty Lou Cummings receives the Friends of the Library Special Friend Award.