Alvin, Simon, and Theodore Are Back!

Join us this Saturday at 2:00pm in the Library Lecture Hall for our free Saturday Matinee: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. This is a great family comedy, and the film is rated PG. Here is the description:

America's favorite furry brothers Alvin, Simon and Theodore are back. Because of a freak accident involving Alvin and Dave Seville, they go to live with Dave's cool cousin, Toby and they have to enroll in school like every other kid. School presents new challenges to these rock stars like dealing with peer pressure, football and of course, girls. By "girls" we mean the Chipettes who are managed by Ian Hawke, the Chipmunks greedy former manager who wants to turn them into the next big thing. There is rivalry between the Chipettes and the Chipmunks at first, but in the end they realize that they make great friends and a great musical team.

Not Your Mother's Angel

Just finished reading Danielle Trussoni's Angelology. Who knew they had a dark side? Yes, I know English majors will bring up Paradise Lost-Satan and all his rabble rouser friends, but they are small potatoes compared to the new crowd Trussoni is introducing to us. The Watchers and their offspring the Nephilim have been living among us for thousands of years and believe it or not, they don't have our best interests at heart. Interesting parallels to the TV series V if you want to compare angels to aliens. Trussoni has an intriguing story that bogs down in the middle from a lot of backstory then picks up the pace again for a rousing finish. My only complaint with Angelology is that it actually did not finish. She left it wide open for another story. I can see her guiding Angelology into a multi-volume apocalyptic saga. You can visit her website at www.angelologist.com/ and sign up for angelological academy's amateur course of study, view photos, and consult books from the academy's archives.

Library Shanty

I was just reading in Library Journal magazine about The Art Shanty Project that is held every year in Minnesota. Temporary shelters are put up by artists for four winter weekends on Medicine Lake near Minneapolis. Some of this year's shanties include Art Swap Shanty, Dance Shanty, FantaShanty (puppetry & storytelling), and the Library Shanty. Here is a description of the Library Shanty:

Library Shanty - Medicine Lake BranchLauren Herzak-Bauman, Sarah Baker, Matt Maxx, Alex Schluender, Megan Wicker
The Library Shanty seeks to bring about interaction between art, the public, and the lake through sharing books and providing an environment in which to interact. The Medicine Lake Branch's collection will specifically deal in art and regional cultural activities. We seek to function in a number of ways: to document the exchange and history of objects and information; to serve as a gathering place and location for cultural exchange; and to exhibit notable subjects and ideas within the context of the library's holdings. Come hang out at the Medicine Lake Branch and create a library card, join a book clubs or enjoy the curated shelf-sized art exhibitions.

Do you think that they have wifi? Pretty cool.

Calling All Peeps!

Its time to start thinking about participating in the 2nd annual Peeps Show contest which starts April 5th at the Library. What you do is build a diorama using peeps of any color in a standard size shoe box. The theme is up to you; you can recreate a favorite scene from a movie or book, use your peeps for social commentary, or re-enact a current or historic event. On the back of your shoe box, please include your name, address, phone, age, and title of your Peeps Show.

There are four divisions of competition this year. The winner of each division will be awarded a $25.00 Target gift card.
Kids Division 4 - 7
Youth Division 8 - 12
Teens Division 13 - 18
Adult Division 19 and up

The Peeps displays can be dropped off at the Dover Public Library beginning Monday, April 5th, through Saturday, April 10th during operating hours. Peeps will be displayed during National Library Week, April 12th through April 17th. Peeps should be picked up Tuesday, April 20th. All Peeps not picked up by the deadline will be discarded or eaten.

Prizes will be awarded Friday, April 16.

Stop and Smell the Flowers

Flower & Garden shows, plants sales, seed catalogs, snowdrops in the front yard, tis the season. The beautiful weather we have had recently has me dreaming of my garden. I have already planted my peas--too early you say--pishaw! Anyhow, we have some lovely new gardening books here at the library, and here is a sampling of a few:

• The Everything Grow Your Own Vegetables Book: Your Complete Guide to Planting, Tending, and Harvesting Vegetables by Catherine Abbott


• Grow Great Grub: Organic Food From Small Spaces by Gayla Trail


• Small Plot High Yield Gardening: Grow Like a Pro, Save Money, and Eat Well...by Sal Gilbertie and Larry Sheehan


• The Vegetable Gardener's Bible by Edward C. Smith (This is an updated edition of one of my favorite gardening books--my copy is filthy from being used in the garden!)

Saturday Matinee

Free screening of Fantastic Mr. Fox this Saturday, March 27 at 2:00pm in the Dover Public Library Lecture Hall. This movie is an animated adventured based on the book by Roald Dahl. Mr. and Mrs. Fox (voices by George Clooney and Meryl Streep) live a happy home life with their eccentric son Ash and visiting nephew Kristofferson. That is until Mr. Fox slips into his sneaky old ways and plots the greatest chicken heist the animal world has ever seen. Rated PG, this is a great family movie. BYOP!

The Teen Trend

I just heard that John Grisham is coming out with a teen book titled Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer. (Sorry John I don't like the title--I know this revelation will keep you up at night.) The novel is not coming out until May 25, but is part of a 2 book deal. There seems to be a trend of adult authors writing books for the teen market. Here are a few of the authors that come to mind: Adriana Trigiani, Walter Mosley, Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus (the Nanny Diaries gals), James Patterson, Isabel Allende, & Alice Hoffman. Ann Brashares has gone the opposite way and started writing some books for adults--Ann is the author of the very popular Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. Then there is Meg Cabot who will write anything for anyone at any time! We will see where this trend goes and who else joins the fray--come on Danielle Steel I know you want to.

STOP!

The vampire genre of books has gone too far! Is anything sacred? I just read on Roger Sutton's blog, Read Roger (he is the editor of Horn Book magazine), that there is a book titled Little Vampire Women. I was really hoping that he was kidding, but alas it is true as can be seen by the lovely cover to your right. When will it all end I ask? I really need some answers for Louisa May Alcott's sake.

Job Opening at the Dover Library

Morning Library Page: part-time, 15.5 hrs/week, M-F mornings.
Starts immediately. Hourly wage is $9.94 to start.

Energetic person to reshelve books, periodicals and A-V materials.
Successful applicant must possess superb attention to detail and a commitment to accuracy while maintaining a steady work pace.

Must be capable of standing and walking for long periods of time. Able to carry armloads of books for considerable distances. Able to bend to lowest shelves and also reach to top shelves.

Must be able to work independently and manage a busy workload.

Applicant must be at least 16 years of age. Position is open until filled.

Full job description available at City Hall in the City Manager's office and at the Adult Circulation Desk in the library. Completed applications http://bit.ly/bbggy1 must also be dropped off at the City Manager's office.

The Princess and the Frog

Our matinee this Saturday, March 20th will be Disney's The Princess and the Frog. Rated G, this will be a great movie for the whole family. So please join us at 2:00pm in the Library Lecture Hall. BYOP!

Farewell to Flavia, For Now

I just finished the latest Flavia de Luce mystery, The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag and I am very sad. It is one of those books that you don't want to finish because they are so good. Flavia is involved in an even more intricate mystery, with more tantalizing tidbits about poisons and poisoners, her sisters are even more horrible, and she has a awful aunt to deal with also. The classic English village with its eccentric characters feels at times like the work of Agatha Christie. Most of all, its the language of the book that makes it such a delight to read. The best passages are much too long to include here so I will include just a snippet to give you a taste. "Cynthia, the rodent-faced avenger! I should have known! Cynthia who doled out good works in the Parish of St. Tancred's with the hand of a Herod."

It is no mystery why Flavia de Luce books are best sellers. The mystery to me is how does a man do such a brilliant job of creating a believable 11 year old girl?

Confidential

I just finished Dark Mirror: A Brock and Kolla Mystery by Barry Maitland. I haven't read any other books in the series, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It takes place in modern times, but has an old-fashioned feel to it, complete with arsenic laced lunches. The main characters are students and Professors, and so much of the action takes place in reading rooms of the major London libraries (yes, action at the library). So far so good, but my one major complaint is that the librarians in this book are always bending over backwards to give out information about borrower records--what books they checked out or looked at, and for how long. Around these parts that is CONFIDENTIAL information! We would never dream of telling someone who checked a book out before them, or what books your neighbor has out, etc. I mean think about it, do you really want anyone knowing that you checked out a book about foot fungus or about how to fix your crumbling marriage? I think not. I tried to ignore these parts, and just enjoy a good mystery.

WATCH THE WINNERS

I was pleasantly surprised to find that we've had some of those oscar-winning or oscar-nominated movies in our DVD collection even before they became the latest topic of conversation. Already here for your viewing pleasure are: "The Hurt Locker", "Inglourious Basterds", "A Serious Man", "Up in the Air", Up, "Star Trek", "Julie & Julia","Coco before Chanel","Coraline", "Bright Star", "In the Loop", The Cove", "Transormers: Revenge of the Fallen", "District 9", "Il Divo", "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", "Food, Inc."
We will be adding more "Oscar" movies as soon as they are released on DVD: "Avatar", "The Blind Side", "Crazy Heart", "An Education", "El Secreteo de Sus Ojos", "Fantastic Mr. Fox", "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus", "Invictus", "Which Way Home" and "The Young Victoria". To keep tabs on our changing list over the next few months type "academy awards 2010" in the catalog's topic search box or simply bookmark this site.

Calling All Peeps

I was surprised and very pleased when one of our patrons told me that her sister was trying to arrange her visit from out west to coincide with the Library's Peeps Show contest which will begin April 5th.

The Peeps are beginning to show up in local stores so now is the time to go out and capture some so you can enter our Peeps Show Contest. What you do is build a diorama using peeps of any color in a standard size shoe box. The theme is up to you; recreate a favorite scene from a movie or book, use your peeps as social commentary, or re-enact a current or historic event.

Anyone 18 or older is invited to compete in the Adult Division, while peeps, er, people 13- 18 may enter the Teen division. Children ages 4 – 7 are invited to enter the Kids Division, and ages 8 – 12 may enter in the Youth Division.

All Peeps displays may be dropped off at the Dover Public Library beginning Monday, April 5th, through Saturday, April 10th during operating hours. The Peeps will be displayed in the library throughout National Library Week for all to enjoy. Prizes will be awarded on Friday afternoon, April 16^th. Peeps should be picked up Tuesday, April 20th. All Peeps not picked up by the deadline will be discarded or eaten.

For more information, call 516-6082.

Gotta Keep Reading!

Take a look at this YouTube video, “Gotta Keep Reading” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6D9jiEYxzs and have your children watch it too! It’s an amazing plug for reading, and it’s fantastic!
A large group of Ocoee, Florida students rocked a flash mob performance (with books!) which has attracted over 100,000 YouTube hits and the attention of a very big star, Oprah Winfrey! With the help of Full Sail University, students at Ocoee Middle School tweaked the popular Black Eyed Peas song, “I Gotta Feeling” with new lyrics and choreography and recorded the video.
Oprah interviewed the students on her show and told them that she and Target were going to give their library a complete facelift, with 2,000 new books and brand new computers. Take a look!

Strange Crowd at the Library

If you visit the library in the month of March you will see some new faces around. Feel free to introduce yourself, though I must say they don't talk much. These wonderful puppets are the creations of Dover High School art students. The display also includes photographs, drawings, paintings, jewelry, sculptures, and pottery. Please come in and take a look.

New Train Set in Children's Room

Thanks to the generosity of Jason and Kerry Wood, owners of Noggin Factory at 330 Central Avenue in Dover, NH, the Children's Room has a new train set--table and all!

Jason had recently visited the library with his little one and saw that our well-loved set was in need of major repair. He stepped up to the desk and offered to help by replacing it with a brand new one from his store. Of course we said, "Yes, yes, thank-you" (and did a little dance when he left).

Here are "Miss Sarah" and friends opening the packages and setting up the train tracks.

Noggin Factory sells quality educational toys "designed to inspire imagination, creativity, exploration, cooperation, thinking, growth, play and fun". The next time you visit the Children's Room, be sure to try out the train set for all of that.

"Tarot As An Art Form" Program March 16

On Tuesday, March 16 at 7pm, the Friends of the Dover Public Library will present Kitty Spitzer in a fascinating program which will explore the artwork and images on tarot cards. From early Italian specimens, to Salvador Dali’s versions, to contemporary interpretations illustrating and symbolizing the Fool’s Journey across centuries, Kitty will explain the imagery and symbolism on these cards which have been used by mystics and occultists in efforts at divination or as a map of mental and spiritual pathways. since the mid-15th century.
Spitzer is an experienced teacher, lecturer, and workshop leader. She has led classes in the study of herbal healing, mystical traditions and women’s mysteries. She has taught beginner and advanced astrology and tarot classes at N.H. Technical College, Seacoast Astrological Association, Portsmouth Adult Education and Misty Meadows Herbal Center. She is an accomplished astrologer, counseling in the challenges of change, growth and self-healing and has had articles in many publications, including “Mountain Astrologer” and “Dell’s Horoscope.” This program is free and open to all. Please call the Library, 516-6050, for more information.

Busy Day at the Takotna Library

The Iditarod Trail Invitational just wrapped up--this is the bike and run version of the famous sled dog race. The race is billed as "The World's Longest Winter Ultra Race Across Frozen Alaska." Racers can choose the measley 350 mile version or the insane 1100 mile version. Here is the link in case anyone wants to sign up for next year! Above you will find a photo of the Takotna Library in Takotna, Alaska being utilized by the racers. This photo kind of warms my heart.:)

Ladybug Picture Book Award Nominees 2010

The Ladybug Picture Book Award, a project of the Center for the Book at the New Hampshire State Library, is designed to promote early literacy and honor the best in recent children's picture books. This year's committee (children's librarians from around New Hampshire) has selected the 10 nominees for 2010. During Children's Book Week in November, New Hampshire children from preschoolers to those in third grade will vote to select the award winner.

The nominees for 2010 are:

All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon

Bad Boys Get Henpecked by Margie Palatini

Birds by Kevin Henkes

The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen

Creaky Old House: A topsy-turvy tale of a real fixer-upper by Linda Ashman

The Hair of Zoe Fleefenbacher Goes to School by Laurie Halse Anderson

Otis by Loren Long

Princess Hyacinth (the surprising story of a girl who floated) by Florence Parry Heide

Sleep, Big Bear, Sleep! by Maureen Wright

Under the Snow by Melissa Stewart & Constance R. Bergum

Check them out and let us know your favorite!

An Invitation to Young Poets

We are pleased to announced the commencement of the Dover Public Library's 8th Annual Poetry Contest. Eight years--I can't believe it! The contest is for kids in grades k-12 that either have a Dover Public Library card or go to a Dover school (this includes private schools). Prizes will be awarded in 6 different grade categories. Pick up a contest rules sheet at the Dover Public Library, at your Dover School Library, or on our website. Deadline for submission is April 12.

Good luck to all.

A Trend I Could Do Without

It all started with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Graham-Smith. It seemed like a clever idea at the time, why not mix up classic literary novels with monsters. It was quickly followed by Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Ben Winters and spawned a whole new genre known as literary mashups. Now Mansfield Parks is mixed up with mummies, Anna Karenina has an android, and Mr. Darcy is a vampire. Enough already. I say to these authors create your own characters and settings; leave the classics alone.

What do you think? Is this a legitimate new genre or a fad that needs to go away?

You Can't Get There From Here

The carpet guys are going to be tearing up carpet in the magazine and reading area today so that area is closed off. This area should re-open on Saturday, if all goes as planned.
The Children's Room hopes to re-open on Saturday for browsing. You will need to check out any materials upstairs. Currently we have book carts of children's books and DVDs across from the Circulation Desk so even though the Children's Room is closed kids can still find something to read. We also have reserved items from the Children's Room at the Circulation Desk so if you are notified that an item has come in for you, come upstairs to pick it up.

This schedule is tentative. Please ask for help getting finding library materials, we will do what we can to help you find what you need. Thanks so much for your patience!

Getting Back to Normal

The Teen Corner is open for business once again! The Children's Room is still closed, but will hopefully be open by weeks end. Come in and check out the new carpeting--we think it looks pretty good.

Thank Goodness for the Library

The small town I live in is still powerless. I am lucky enough to have a small generator which allows us to keep the fridge cool, light three rooms, and run water. One of the rooms has the TV, but cable is also out. The Library's resources have allowed my family to stay entertained. We check out DVDs to play and books to read, passing the night happily. When I get to the Library I have access to the Internet again allowing me to check out PSNH's twitter feed and news update page. I have access to the local papers to see what is going on. I was even able to charge up my cell phone! The Library has made being powerless a little easier.