2016 may have been a challenging year, but Christmas brought us nothing but peace, love, and thankfulness. Hope you all reveled in some joy and cheer, too!
My kiddo left this mug under the tree for me. Does he know his mother or what? Now if only I could use this at work–set it atop the circulation desk at the library…
For Immediate Release
Tue, 11/15/2016
CHICAGO – Today American Library Association President Julie Todaro released the following statement regarding the invaluable role libraries and librarians will play within their communities as many search for common ground after the election.
“After a contentious campaign season filled with divisive rhetoric, we are now hearing from our members and in the news media about incidents of bigotry and harassment within our communities. From children acting out in schools to adults participating in violent acts, it is clear that our nation is struggling in the wake of this election.
“During times like these, our nation’s 120,000 public, academic, school and special libraries are invaluable allies inspiring understanding and community healing. Libraries provide a safe place for individuals of all ages and backgrounds and for difficult discussions on social issues. Our nation’s libraries serve all community members, including people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities, and the most vulnerable in our communities, offering services and educational resources that transform communities, open minds and promote inclusion and diversity.
“As an association representing these libraries, librarians and library workers, ALA believes that the struggle against racism, prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination is central to our mission. As we have throughout our 140 year-long history, we will continue to support efforts to abolish intolerance and cultural invisibility, stand up for all the members of the communities we serve, and promote understanding and inclusion through our work.”
Pokémon Go is taking the world by storm, a cultural phenomenon that has won the hearts and imaginations of players of all ages. Chances are that if you’re here, you have a Pokémon-loving child in your life that you want to encourage to read. What better way to entice kids read than to give them a book related to the current new craze?
But Pokémon is far from new. Since 1995, fans of all ages have enjoyed the video games, trading card game, and animated series. Pokémon’s appeal comes from the exciting stories and dynamic personalities of Trainer Ash, his friends, loyal Pikachu, and the other Pokémon (short for Pocket Monsters).
The books and Manga listed below have always been popular items at my library, but now, we can’t keep them on the shelves. Countless times each day, excited kids come in begging for Pokémon books. Excited Kids + Books = Win for All
Check out these recommendations at your library or buy them for your Pokémon fan at your local bookstore, Amazon, or ebay. See for yourself what all the excitement is about!
These chapter books by Tracey West follow Ash as he sets off on his journey to collect all badges and become the World’s Greatest Pokémon Trainer. The series is loosely based on the television cartoon, so fans will find some familiar story lines. Each book is under 100 pages, and the recommended age range is 7–10. (Think equivalent of The Magic Treehouse series, therefore good for any young independent reader.) This series was introduced 15+ years ago, and my library’s copies are battered, worn, and very well loved. You can still find the books new and gently used via Amazon and Ebay.
I Choose You
Island of the Giant Pokemon
Attack of the Prehistoric Pokemon
Night in the Haunted Tower
Team Rocket Blasts Off!
Charizard, Go
Splashdown in Cerulean City
Return of the Squirtle Squad
Journey to the Orange Islands
The Secret of the Pink Pokemon
Race to Danger
Talent Showdown
Thundershock in Pummelo Stadium
Go West, Young Ash
Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Detective
Prepare for Trouble
Ash to the Rescue
Tough Enough
Winner Takes All
Get to know Ash Ketchum, his Pokemon, and his friends in this DK READERS series, part of a multilevel reading program aimed at capturing children’s interest while developing their reading skills and general knowledge. Lively illustrations combine with engaging age appropriate stories. According to DK, Level 2 is ages 6–8, Level 3 ages 7–10, but many younger readers would be encouraged to read by these easy, under 50-page books.
Meet the Pokemon (DK Reader – Level 2)
Meet Ash (Pokemon (DK Reader Level 2)
Pokemon: Meet Ash’s Pikachu! (DK Reader Level 2)
& many more
MANGA is a popular style of Japanese comic books and graphic novels that reads right to left. It sounds weird, but most readers have no problem adapting. Though geared towards children, it has garnered legions of tween, teen, and adult fans worldwide.
This is the most recent Pokémon Manga series (2014 – current). The awesome adventures are inspired by the best-selling Pokémon X and Y video games. All the favorite Pokémon game characters jump out of the screen into the pages of this action-packed manga!
Age Range: 8 – 12 years
Grade Level: 3 – 7
Paperback: 96 pages each
Reads R to L (Japanese Style)
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 1
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 2
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 3
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 4
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 5
Pokémon X•Y, Vol. 6
Pokémon X•Y Vol. 7
This MANGA series follows the adventures of Red as he tries to defeat all eight Kanto Gyms and the Elite Four. It sticks more to the video game story lines instead of the TV series (which is why the main character’s name is Red and not Ash). Many enthusiasts consider this their favorite Manga series, but please note that it’s slightly more violent, as some Pokemon actually die instead of just fainting.
Available individual editions or 7-volume boxed set.
Age Range: 9 – 12 years
Grade Level: 4 – 7
Paperback: 208 pages each
Reads R to L (Japanese Style)
Meet Pokémon Trainers Black and White!
This Manga series, started in 2011, is very popular with kids at my library. His entire life, Black has dreamed of winning the Pokémon League! Now he embarks on a journey to explore the Unova region and fill a Pokédex for Professor Juniper. White has an exciting career as the Trainer of a talented troupe of performing Pokémon. She dreams of making her Tepig Gigi a star! Together, Black and White continue on their journey… What surprising new Pokémon—and people—will they meet next?!
Age Range: 9 – 12 years
Grade Level: 4 – 7
Paperback: 80 pages
Reads R to L (Japanese Style)
Available individually or in boxed sets:
Pokemon Black and White Box Set 1: Includes Volumes 1-8
Pokemon Black and White Box Set 2: Includes Volumes 9-14
Pokemon Black and White Box Set 3: Includes Volumes 15-20
This beginner’s guide to Pokemon Go goes over the essentials of the wildly popular game. Know why Razz Berries are important? How about Stardust? This guide features tutorials with pictures that explain everything from how to set up your Pokemon Go account to fighting gym battles and farming XP.
All ages.
Pokémon Origami: Fold Your Own Pokémon!
Turn your favorite Pokémon into folded art with the easy origami projects in Pokémon Origami: Fold Your Own Pokémon! 80 full color pages featuring 48 pages of instructions and all the special sheets of origami paper needed to complete 10 Pokémon!
Have an aspiring artist or Manga illustrator? Encourage them to grab a pencil. Pick up some paper. And get ready to draw the coolest, most action-packed Pokemon art ever. Catch step-by-step secret tips on drawing your favorite Pokemon, like Pikachu, Togepi, Chikorita, Meowth, Pichu, Houndour, Lugia, Cyndaquil, and more!
Pokémon Visual CompanionThis is truly a must-have reference for every Pokémon fan, and is the ultimate reference to key characters, famous battles, and important places. Every region has been revised and updated, including new events, people, and Pokémon from Unova. You also meet Ash, trace his journey, and get to know his Pokémon, friends, and travel companions, as well as villains and rivals throughout the Pokémon world. This is the ultimate guide to the Pokémon animated series, guaranteed to delight any Pokémon fan!
Today’s bookish find: library check out card stationary.
Now someone send me a gift so I can use one 🙂
Yeah, I’ve have been slacking with the blog lately. Too much going on with life, the family, the day job… Then there’s the recent horrible events here in Orlando which I still don’t have the strength to write about. In fact, I haven’t written much at all over the last month. Mea culpa.
I DID have a chance to meet sci-fi and urban fantasy author extraordinaire Chuck Wendig at the Orlando Book Festival at the Orlando Public Library. Chuck is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Aftermath, as well as the Miriam Black thrillers, the Atlanta Burns books, and the Heartland YA series, alongside other works across comics, games, film, and more.
But, many of us in the writing community know him best as our beloved foul-mouthed writing guru and author of the blog Terrible Minds. Seriously, he’s like our Yoda. Only taller. And I’m guessing minus the secret bad ass lightsaber skills. (Although he does write Star Wars books, so he may whip out some sabers as he plots in his writing shed.) His no-nonsense posts inspire legions of Penmonkies, driving us to sit our butts in the chair, keep on writing, and not stab our eyeballs out. And laugh. The man is funny.
And he is just as affable in person. Seriously.
Writer that I am (ahem), I had him sign The Kick Ass Writer. My hubby had him sign a couple of his favorite novels, then bought a stack more for Chuck to inscribe.
Chuck began his keynote speech by saying he’d considered starting with a moment of silence, but then he realized that writers and artists are not at their best when silent. Six days before, 49 people had been killed and 53 injured at the Pulse Nightclub, a few blocks away. (If you haven’t read his Recipe for a Shooting. Go ahead. I’ll wait.)
Some of the nuggets of wisdom he doled out to the audience of eager Padawans writers and readers:
Don’t bash the hair. The humidity hovered around 300% in downtown O-town that day. Between sessions, I’d made the pilgrimage to the makeshift memorial filling the grassy lawn of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts just blocks away.
I had to see it with my own eyes. I had to honor those we’d lost. I had to let my heart bleed.
You see, even as I watched the coverage on TV, it didn’t feel real. The 24-hour news feed running “Orlando Massacre” and “America’s Deadliest Mass Shooting” played like a reality show. How could this happen here? We’re the land of fucking Mickey Mouse, fairy dust, and overpriced Harry Potter wands. Not mass shootings. Until now.
I’m going to get off this tangent. I don’t want to write about it. The wounds are too fresh.
Now back to good stuff.
My husband joined me for the Chuck meet & greet keynote speech. He has a thing for signed books (and comics, and photos…you get the drift). He brought along a handful of books, then had to buy a few more because the temptation was just. too. great.
Back at home, our 12-year-old eyeballed the hubby’s loot, and thought Under the Empyrean Sky (The Heartland Trilogy Book 1) looked like a good read. Kiddo is pretty bright and an avid reader. But ready for his first “adult” book? And that book be one of Chuck’s? (As I mentioned, the man is infamous for his potty mouth.)
Then I realized that age 12 I was about to start on my Stephen King kick. That shut me up.
Kiddo ended up reading Chuck’s Star Wars: Aftermath first.
Read whatever you want, my child. If books are the most corrupting element in your tween life, we’re doing okay.
Last spring I wrote about how I was dying to watch LOVE BETWEEN THE COVERS, a feature-length indie documentary film that explores the little-known, surprisingly powerful world of women who write and read romance? I finally attended a screening thanks to the fine folks at the Orlando Public Library. I left inspired, enlightened, and I may have had a watery eye from time to time.
Love Between the Covers is the fascinating story of the vast, funny, and savvy female community that has built a powerhouse industry sharing love stories. Romance fiction is sold in 34 languages on six continents, and the genre grosses more than a billion dollars a year–outselling mystery, sci-fi, and fantasy combined. Yet the millions of voracious women (and sometimes men) who read, write, and love romance novels have remained oddly invisible. Until now. For three years, the film follows the lives of five very diverse published romance authors and a unpublished newbie as they build their businesses, find and lose loved ones, cope with a tsunami of change in publishing, and earn a living doing what they love—while empowering others to do the same.
During the three years the filmmakers shot the documentary, they witnessed the largest power shift in the publishing industry in the last 200 years. And it’s the romance authors who are on the front lines, pioneering new ways to survive and thrive in the rapidly shifting environment.
Many aspects of the film had me in awe. Bella Andre writes 25 pages a day?!!
The segments following the video diary of aspiring romance author Joanne Lockyer had me feeling all swishy inside. I found myself discretely dabbing the corners of my eyes after she saw her book, her quest, her baby in print for the first time in all its tangible beauty.
There were so many more nuggets of goodness, conversations about diversity, desire, power shifts, and how to write a damn good book.
I tried to jot down a few of my favorite quotes as I watched, but alas, as I read over my chicken scratch, I’ve realized that these should more be considered paraphrases. My profound apologies if any of these are too far off. (Feel free to kill me off in your next book if I offend.)
Beverly Jenkins
Eloisa James
Len Barot/Radclyffe
Beverly Jenkins
Sarah Wendell
But one of the main themes of the movie was the camaraderie. Through RWA (Romance Writers of America), these women, be them multi-millionaire business builders or publishing-shy newbies, shared a refreshing desire to share what they know to help others succeed. (I also see this in the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, but this wasn’t their movie. Go WFWA!) They stress that there’s no finite number of readers, so we can publish an infinite number of stories.
After the movie screening, the Orlando Public Library hosted romance panel discussions about Tropes We Love and Hate and Vampires and Angels and Weres, Oh My!, followed by a book signing featuring local romance writers.
And…
I’m offically a PRO member of Romance Writers of America.
Come on in. There’s room for you here too.
Minecraft + Christmas. An odd combination, right? With so many Minecraft programs at my library, I’ve been trying to come up with a little something different for each one. Since my next one is the Saturday before Christmas, I needed something…festive.
How about some Minecraft snowflakes?
Have yourself a creeperish little Christmas just doesn’t sound quite right, but it works for kids.
If you do an internet search, Star Wars snowflakes abound. But Minecraft? I found one. And it was challenging for me to cut it out, so leading 50+ five to twelve-year-olds through the tricky cuts wouldn’t be feasible.
So I designed my own.
I think they turned out pretty cool!
If you’d like to make these, the pdf templates are below:
Tips:
-You don’t have to cut it all out in one continuous cut. You’ll get much cleaner outlines if you cut straight lines, bit by bit.
-The mouth is right along the fold, so it’s pretty easy (especially when you heed above advice). The eye is attached to the nose/mouth, so make a straight cut from the nose to get into that square eye.
Have fun, impress you kids/students/patrons with your knowledge of Minecraft, and get your craft on!
Writers are my rock stars. I am not afraid to admit I am an unabashed Rainbow Rowel fangirl. And when the Orange County Public Library hosted An Evening with Rainbow Rowell and David Levithan, over four hundred writer-groupies drove from across the state to get up close and personal with two of the hottest names in YA fiction.
Rainbow is on tour for her latest release, Carry On, a Potter-eque/Twilight mashup story that delves into the fanfic world Cath created in the novel Fangirl. (Read both. Love both. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READS.) David is promoting Another Day, a retelling of his previous bestseller Every Day told from Rhainnon’s point of view. Both novels are considered “companion” stories opposed to sequels, made to stand alone (though I recommend reading Fangirl before Carry On).
The dynamic duo entertained the crowd of booksworms with an hour of engaging conversation and readings from their new releases, followed an hour of Q&A.
Then came the book signings. Previously, the longest line I’d ever seen for a book singing had been for Queen of Romance Nora Roberts at the RWA Literacy Signing. This one beat it by a mile, but Rainbow and David stayed as long as it took to sign every books. (One public school librarian hauled a bag filled with every book by Rainbow and David in her school’s collection to autograph!)
This fuzzy pic shows the people ahead of me when I finally made it to the line. There were just as many people behind me. And they’d been signing for at least 45 minutes.
1. Rainbow’s voice in real life is as funny, quirky, and accessible as her voice is in her books. Seriously. I wanted to beg her to move next door so we could sip wine after a day of writing and I could stealthily siphon some of her literary juju. Rainbow and David bantered like best friends hanging out, who just happened to have an audience of hundreds hanging on their every word. Oh, and neither mind swearing.
2. Fangirl was a NANO book. Rainbow wrote the first chunk of that favorite during November’s National Novel Writing Month. She still uses daily word counts to get her shit done. She and David disagreed on this one. He’s all quality, not quantity.
3. Rainbow is a semi-plotter. She starts with a basic 1 1/2 page outline, whereas David is a total panster, letting the characters lead him where they want to go.
4. Eleanor & Park
5. Rainbow, admittedly, writes better than she reads aloud. (Don’t we all?) The pair funked things up by switching gender rolls when reading from David’s Another Day. Rainbow read as Soul A (a boy), while David read as Rhiannon. This gender-bending was deliberate, not just for laughs. Both authors write gay characters indiscriminately, reflecting a fresh perspective for teens and adults alike. The laughs came when they read from Rainbow’s Carry On. David read chosen-boy Simon’s role and Rainbow voiced brooding possible-vampire Gaz. Sound effects and flubbed lines ensued. The selected passage contained an actual sword.Yet when read aloud, both authors and audience picked up on some “swordplay” of another variety as the characters attempted to outsmart each other with witty remarks and counter-moves, while fighting their growing romantic feelings for each other. Everyone laughed, and Rainbow swore that Simon’s sheathing and unsheathing of his blade had not been written with ulterior motives.
.
#1 New York Times best seller!
Simon Snow is the worst Chosen One who’s ever been chosen.
That’s what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he’s probably right.
Half the time, Simon can’t even make his wand work, and the other half, he starts something on fire. His mentor’s avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there’s a magic-eating monster running around, wearing Simon’s face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here–it’s their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon’s infuriating nemesis didn’t even bother to show up.
Carry On – The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow is a ghost story, a love story and a mystery. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story – but far, far more monsters.
Another Day
The eagerly anticipated companion to David Levithan’s New York Times bestseller Every Day
In this enthralling companion to his New York Times bestseller Every Day, David Levithan (co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson with John Green) tells Rhiannon’s side of the story as she seeks to discover the truth about love and how it can change you.
Every day is the same for Rhiannon. She has accepted her life, convinced herself that she deserves her distant, temperamental boyfriend, Justin, even established guidelines by which to live: Don’t be too needy. Avoid upsetting him. Never get your hopes up.
Until the morning everything changes. Justin seems to see her, to want to be with her for the first time, and they share a perfect day—a perfect day Justin doesn’t remember the next morning. Confused, depressed, and desperate for another day as great as that one, Rhiannon starts questioning everything. Then, one day, a stranger tells her that the Justin she spent that day with, the one who made her feel like a real person . . . wasn’t Justin at all
Thanks to the Orange County Public Library for a delightful evening!
Give thanks.
A simple sentiment so many of us forget to practice now that Thanksgiving has become lost in the shuffle of modern life.
The holiday was once a time for communities to unite, sharing tales of strength, hope, and gratitude among the generations while humbly reflecting upon the abundance in their lives.
For many of us, Thanksgiving had become a day of manic shopping, football, and family drama.
How about we put a little “thanks” back in Thanksgiving?
The table had been covered in colorful fall leaves. This was after all my leaves and most of the display books had been taken. (Nice back-lighting and fluorescent lighting, right?)
I’d found these Thankful Trees via Better Homes and Gardens a few years back.
It would be easy enough to set up our own library Thankful Tree, right?
If patrons took part, it could be considered a passive program, bringing the community together and sharing in the reason for the oft neglected season. (And we could gauge which resources our patrons valued. Win-win, right?)
Using an old McCoy jug, a few branches snipped from my yard, and colored printer paper leaves, I set up a Grateful Tree on the library’s main display table last year. I didn’t have high hopes. Even fellow staffers rolled their eyes when I asked them to share the love on their own leaves.
And then something beautiful happened.
One leaf…
led to another…
and another…
And within days the bare branches displayed a bounty
of thanks and gratitude that made our hearts swell.
This library display/passive program was a win for all. It would also work in a classroom
or as a centerpiece for a holiday gathering.
We all need to express the gratitude in our hearts.
Let your patrons, students, or family “leaf” a note to express what really matters in their lives.
Minecraft parties are all the rage now. From toddlers to tweens, just say the word “Minecraft” and you are bound to have a houseful of party-goers or a library program with sky-high attendance numbers.
I’ve hosted several Minecraft library programs and birthday parties over the last few years, and these crafts and activities have all been hits! With proper prep work, you can run your event with one or all of these actives simultaneously. I break it down into craft tables/stations, each with a (printable) instruction sign, so kids can craft with minimal assistance.
Right click on the signs and templates (if applicable) to save and print them out for your own party or event.
This is E.A.S.Y. and appropriate for any age group. All you need are Glass Gems
(about 3/4-1 inch glass marbles that are flat on one side & found in the floral section of the Dollar Tree or any craft store), small magnets (I used a roll of adhesive backed Magnet Tape
, but you can use small round magnets also), good old Elmer’s glue, and the faces printed out from the template below. Note: the template is black ink only.
Prep work: Print template on whatever colored printer paper you like. (I find colored paper far cheaper than colored ink!) Cut into squares, then have kids cut to fit their clear gem marble. It doesn’t have to be perfect. If you’re using magnetic tape, cut into marble-sized pieces.
I found this idea on Frugal Family TImes. There you can find the printable templates for grass blocks, trees (trunks and leaves), stone, TNT, and iron/clouds.
If this is enough variety for you—awsomesauce. But I wanted more. Inspired by my resident Minecraft expert, I created more block templates to give my crafters more building choices.
Printable Minecraft stickers – LIBRARY AND CROPS
Printable Minecraft stickers – STONE AND ORE
Printable Minecraft stickers – LAVA and WATER
Prep Work:
But unless all the kids are neat freaks, you’re still going to end up with somewhat of a mess.
And some really cool pics.
Prep:
Cut 1×1 inch construction paper squares. Use a paper cutter to cut the long strips if you have one, then scissors and a ruler/guide to make the final short square snips. Depending on the size of your group, you’ll need dozens of papers sliced into squares. (I lost count how many I used, but I had hundreds of kids!) Start prepping this activity well ahead of time–days, even weeks if you have the time. Or even better: enlist volunteers!
Next, print out the grid templates:
Tips:
Suggest kids lay out the page first, then go back and glue down their design. Elmer’s or craft glue applied to the paper works best. Provide them with some template ideas like these:
Look—it’s me!
Using this same idea, you can have kids make Minecraft Mob Masks!
Print the grid paper on card stock instead of regular printer paper. (Or you can just glue the regular paper printed grids to a sturdy construction paper baking ahead of time.) Trim the card stock grid to 8 squares by 8 squares. Cut out 2-block eye holes. Have kids design masks as described above. When finished, glue a Jumbo Popsicle stick (tongue depressor) to the back, and voila, you have a Mob Mask!
Do you have any favorite Minecraft crafts? Share or link below!
