Diary of a Wimpy Kid Party

The Morristown Centennial Library recently held a Diary of a Wimpy Kid party, and it was a hit, drawing kids and families to the library on a Saturday morning.  Rachel Funk, the Youth Services Librarian, found good ideas at: 
htttp://www.wimpykid.com/Book4EventKitWeb.pdf.

The kit included on this site is for Dog Days, but can be applied to any Wimpy Kid party.  They played two games listed in the kit, read the first “diary entry” of The Ugly Truth, and had cake.  Rachel also created bookmark-shaped list of “If you like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, you might like…” and listed some of the books that are part of the library collection

Potluck Book Club and Library News

The Solomon Wright Library in Pownal held a potluck for its December meeting. Members discussed books they had read and would recommend to others for enjoyment and gifts. Good discussions and good company!

The Library benefits three ways– a feel good program without much work in December; a list they can post and distribute with community choices; an easy newsletter article featuring readers at the library.

Here is the list of books discussed:
Two books by Michael Cox, published in paperback in 2009 Gothic thrillers, a bit of Dickensian style:

Glass of Time and Meaning of Night

Saratoga Trunk- Edna Ferber( who won the Pulitzer Prize for “So Big”)…. romance and a look at nearby Saratoga in the 1800′s… Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman were in the movie. An oldie but a goodie read!

Last Lecture by Randy Pausch “We can not change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand…..”

Have a Little Faith -Mitch Albom –Inspirational read.

19 Minutes: Jodi Picoult–Again Picoult addresses a contemporary issue (bullying and school violence) and her readers can work on their views of the problem as they read her novel.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver–Eating food grown locally and seasonally…. inspirational gardening.

Wishing, Hoping: Christmas Story by Wally Lamb

Christmas Train ( 2004) by David Baldacci

Cellist of Sarajevo -Stephen Galloway Inspired by an actual event, Canadian author Galloway writes of how 4 people try to survive in war torn Sarajevo.

Half the Sky-Turning Oppression into Opportunities for Women worldwide: difficult read but awareness of these policies by governments and/or nationalities against women.

I remember nothing- Nora Ephron. Short read, humor and biographical., Harry meets Sally author.

At Home: Short History of Private life by Bill Bryson–Again you chuckle with this author as you learn these oddities that changed life at home… Bryson is fascinated with why….. and brings you along as one who wants to know also. All of his books are enjoyable nonfictions!

I Still Dream About You- Fannie Flagg Upbeat novel, happy ending, enjoyable and fast read

Small Island by Andrea Levy: won 3 prizes and deserves them! Great characters in England during and after WWII, characters from the “small” island of England and Jamaica. Author uses actual events to portray and propell the actions and illustrate the challenges in life at that time.

Sarah’s Key -Rosnay –novel about the fate of the French Jews in 1942 and how the story of one little girl affects a family 60 years later.

” We go as Captives: the Royalton Raid and the Shadow Ware on the Revolutionary Frontier ” by Neil Goodwin Learn a bit more about Vermont history, captive Zadock Steele, good research.. just published this fall.

You are welcome to come and read with us…. 7pm at the library 2nd Thursday of each month.

Bring your coffee, tea, and enjoy the informal discussions…

Linda Hall, Director
Solomon Wright Public Library
Serving the Community !

Mouseclicks 101

The Mark Skinner Library has started one to one basic computer literacy training, supported by library staff. Nice article from the Manchester Journal online.

MANCHESTER – For years, there had always been
someone else around to do the lifting when it came
to using a computer. But when the health and rehabilitation center she works for as a part-time nurse announced they would be moving to a more computer- based system for dispensing medication and other tasks that used to be handled by pen and paper, Helen Judd knew it was time to bite the bullet.

The Manchester resident signed up for a new one-on-
one computer literacy class being offered at the
Mark Skinner library. The main thing was getting
over some fears about the computer itself and
practice a few basic skills, she said. “I didn’t know anything about it and wasn’t interested,” she said. “Everyone around me did what I needed to get done.”

Outside of work, she wanted to learn how to send email
as well as surf the Web for information about
medicine and health care…