Books Plus Chocolate= A Very Happy Camper!

I have come to the conclusion that nearly all people who love to read also love chocolate. Need a gift for a book-lover? Chocolate is WAY up on the list. There are some exceptions, of course, but I'm not one of them!

What about the people who love to read about chocolate? I give you...chocablog. Granted, these dedicated chocolate bloggers are not in America, but we can still experience the chocolate they write about so lovingly...thanks to the internet.

Chocablog has expanded my chocolate horizons. Visit it at http://www.chocablog.com/ .

The Future of Reading

This article is rated "most shared" this week from the New York Times website. It's a real eye-opener.

The Future of Reading
In Web Age, Library Job Gets Update
By MOTOKO RICH
Published: February 16, 2009
School librarians are increasingly teaching digital skills, but they often become the first casualties of budget crunches.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/16/books/16libr.html

Schmoop! (There it is!)

"Schmoop" is a real word; it's a Yiddish term that means to move forward. And it's also the name of a new website of

summaries,
analysis,
links,
audio,
video,
and photos on US history, literature and poetry.

Schmoop is in beta, so it's still growing, but it's definitely worth exploring, whether you are a public or homeschooling student, teacher, or a person who loves to learn.

I picked a random entry: Edgar Allan Poe, "The Telltale Heart." I learned a lot in a very short amount of time. Here's an example, from a section called "Why Should I Care?":

<"If you like stories that test and sharpen your analytical skills, while scaring you with portrayals of the extremes of human behavior, this is the tale for you. It's also only ten paragraphs long, so you can read it in one sitting, which is what Edgar Allan Poe had in mind. He believed that if a story isn't read through in one sitting, much of the impact is lost (source).

This story is an attempt to create an extremely brief piece packed with as much information as possible, though perhaps not the kind of information we get in many stories. No names. No locations. It's as if the narrator meets you, by chance, in a dark café and tells you his darkest secrets, knowing he will never see you again...

Since it's fiction, you can look at it objectively and learn more about your own feelings concerning murder, confession, and related topics. If you have to think about these things, why not use a guy like Poe, who apparently thought about them most of the time, to help get you thinking?"

<


This is what I call edutainment. I spent about twenty enjoyable minutes rummaging around in Schmoop. My take on it is: it needs to offer a LOT more books, but the information is easy to access, well-researched and interestingly presented, and links are provided to similarly well-researched, credible sources, so that you can get a deeper understanding if you want it.


To visit Schmoop, go to http://www.shmoop.com/ .

Powell's Books Wants Your Two Cents

I know you. You like to talk about books with me. Every time you come to the Library, we share what we've read lately, and why we liked or did not like particular books.
Well, I just discovered that Powell's Books will PAY us to do the same on their website:
http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/contest/dailydose_contest
They're fiendishly clever. Each day, they pick a regular person's comment about one of the books Powell's sells, feature that comment on their website, and that person gets a $20 gift certificate for books from Powell's. Hmm. I think I might actually try it. Let me know if you win. I'll let you know if I win, too! Twenty bucks isn't bad for a 30-second book blurb.
(and no, I don't own stock in Powell's Books. I just like to win stuff...and I know you like to win stuff too. I'm talking to you, Mary Ann! Yes, and Susan too! And Marina! And Richard! And at least forty other people I don't have space to type in here! But you know who you are. Do it now!!!)

Thank you, Melissa Marr!

Several weeks ago, while scouring the internet in my never-ending quest for all things fascinating and wonderful in the land of books, I discovered that New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr was offering a small number of copies of her books to schools and libraries, first come, first served. So, I sent her an email request. She responded very kindly and positively, and today...she visited the Library to present the Young Adult section with autographed copies of her books Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange, and also a copy of Love Is Hell, a book of short stories by Melissa Marr, Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, Gabrielle Zevin, and Laurie Faria Stolarz. Melissa even donated three T-shirts, and Ink Exchange temporary tattoos. Such generosity!

Wicked Lovely spent 11 weeks as a New York Times Bestseller, (going up to #2), was an LA Times fiction bestseller, and is on Amazon's "Best Books of the Year So Far" list (one of only TEN in the children/teen category).

I was completely surprised that she visited in person (I had thought that she would probably mail the books to us), but not too surprised to grab the nearest Melissa Marr fan and take a picture for this blog!
(l-r: Melissa Marr, Keira Richardson (holding the Library's new copy of Ink Exchange.)

Melissa is from this area. She grew up in Hollidaysburg and frequently visited our local libraries, and in her own words, "H-burg Library gave me hours of joy growing up."

You can visit Melissa Marr's website at www.melissa-marr.com. Her next book, Fragile Eternity, is coming out in April.

Tea Merchant 101

This picture is from the last time Mr. Joe Doyle, proprietor of Tea Merchant 101, visited the Library. He brought lots and lots of beautiful teamaking supplies.

I liked the blue teapot.

Mr. Doyle explained the history of tea and the various ways in which it is prepared. Then we tried tea samples. (and we had cookies and fruit to help the samples go down nicely.) Each participant in this program received a gift certificate to Tea Merchant 101!

Joe Doyle can be contacted at teamerchant101@aol.com .

Remember your first library card?

Here at the Hollidaysburg Area Public Library, you need to be at least 5 years old or in kindergarten to be eligible for a library card. If you are a grownup (age 18 and up), in order to receive a library card, you need to be able to prove who you are and where you live (for most people, just show your current PA driver's license). You can learn more about our library cards at http://www.hollidaysburglibrary.org/services.html .