Friday, October 17, 2003

Meet author Janet Wong

Janet Wong, award-winning author and poet, will be at the San Marino Public Library on Saturday, November 15th at 3:30 pm. Ms. Wong has recently published two new books, Minn and Jake, a story about friendship, and Knock on Wood: Poems About Superstitions.

Ms. Wong is a native of Los Angeles who now lives in the Seattle area. She has appeared on the Oprah show, at the White House Easter Egg Roll and at the National Book Festival. A graduate of Yale Law School, she left her career as a lawyer to write for children and teens. Some of her award-winning books are, Buzz (an LA Times Best Book of the Year), Apple Pie 4th of July (Charlotte Zolotow Award), and Behind the Wheel: Poems About Driving (an ALA/YALSO Quick Pick for Reluctant YA Readers).

During her one-hour library program, Ms. Wong will talk about her two newest books, and she will also talk about writing for publication. The program is suitable for ages 5 and up. Ms. Wong will be available to autograph books after her presentation, and some of her books will be on sale at the library. Refreshments will be served after the program. So come join us at the library for a wonderful family event!

Thursday, October 16, 2003

City Leaders to Attend Oct. 28 Bond Meeting

The California Public Library Construction and Renovation Board will meet in Sacramento on Tuesday, October 28, 2003, to deliberate and make grant award decisions for the second cycle Library Bond Act applications. If San Marino's application is approved, the State will award nearly $7 million dollars toward the library building fund. The San Marino City Council, City Manager, School District Superintendent, Library Trustees and the City Librarian will all travel to Sacramento to attend the meeting.

Monday, October 13, 2003

Spooky Magic at the San Marino Public Library

Can't wait for Halloween? Well the San Marino Public library has something for you: A frightful night of "Spooky Magic" with magician Mark H. Wurst. Join us on Wednesday, October 22nd at 6:30 p.m. for an evening of creepy crawly tales and fearsome feats of magic. All ages are welcome to the free event sponsored by the Friends of the San Marino Public Library. Children may also wear their Halloween costume, if they dare!!! For information on this frightening program or any other activities in the Girls & Boys Department, please call (626) 300-0777.

Food for Thought Reading Program

Monday, October 13th marked the beginning of the In-N-Out "Food for Thought" reading program. This program will run through November 22nd and is designed to get children 2 through 12 into their local library to check out and read more books. For every 5 books read and recorded on a reading log, received from the public library, a child may earn an "Achievement Award". This award can be redeemed for a free hamburger or cheeseburger at In-N-Out. To participate, a child or a parent needs to come into the library to fill out a registration card and pick up a reading log. Children too young to read may participate by having a parent or guardian read to them. Each child may earn up to three award certificates during the program, while supplies last. For more information on this program, please contact the Girls and Boys Department at the San Marino Public Library.

Celebrate the New Artemis Fowl

The San Marino Public Library will be actively recruiting human intelligence agents for the Lower Elements Police (LEP), an elite band of Fairy police. New agents are urgently needed to keep a lookout for Artemis Fowl, the 12-year-old criminal mastermind and subject of a best-selling series of books by author Eoin Colfer.

Fowl's latest exploits are recounted in the best seller Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code. In order to better understand his ruthless mind and monitor his actions in the San Marino area, we need many more aboveground intelligence agents. All recruits will participate in Fowl knowledge training, including Fairy code translation, and will be eligible to receive a grand prize which incorporates Fairy technology. Sign-ups will begin on October 27, and Recruitment Day will be on Tuesday November 4, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the San Marino Public Library.

Teen Advisory Board

On October 1, 1999 the San Marino Public Library's Teen Advisory Board was launched on a wing and a prayer. The task at hand for the fourteen attendees of that first meeting was to come up with an official name for the newly consolidated and upgraded Young Adult area, so that a neon sign could be fabricated in time for the dedication of the area two weeks later. This they did, and "The Corner" has been a focal point for the needs and interests of Middle School and High School students ever since.

When asked for suggestions, they came up with thirty different ideas, some workable-some not. At that first meeting it became clear that the main skill called for in running the board would be, to listen.

The current board, now in its 5th year of existence boasts 30 members. We still meet every other Friday in the library auditorium and, given their busy schedules, typically 15 to 18 young people attend any given meeting.

Four of the original attendees from 1999 are still active members, as well as younger brothers and sisters of several long time members. Many others are in their third year of service. Currently, there are 12 High School seniors, three 7th graders, and just about everything in between. Interests vary widely, but everyone has something to say.

In addition to recommending books, magazines, videos and DVDs to be purchased, board members plan and implement programs, and do special volunteer projects. In 2000-2001 they were able to take advantage of grant money available through the California State Library to fund a series of programs and to produce a brochure of Favorite Teen Books at the San Marino Public Library. They have written letters of support for the new building, drawn up plans for their "ideal' homework center, provided labor for Book Shoppe sales and patiently filled out innumerable surveys. They are bright, passionate, opinionated, and always good for a reality check before we commit to purchasing materials teens supposedly will like. Young adult circulation has continued to rise significantly each year since the board was founded.

From Print into Film

This fall, over a dozen new feature films will be released that are based on books available for check out at your San Marino Public Library.

September saw the premier of Under the Tuscan Sun, based on the book by Frances Mayes. Now Mystic River, from the novel by Dennis Lehane, is in theaters.

Before the end of the year, be sure to see Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World directed by Peter Weir, based on the Jack Aubrey stories by Patrick O'Brian. Girl With A Pearl Earring, taken from Tracy Chevalier's novel, is set for an autumn release as are films adapted from John Grisham's Runaway Jury, Cold Mountain by Charles Frasier, Timeline by Michael Crichton, House of Sand And Fog by Andre Dubus, and Big Fish by Daniel Wallace. Brian Moore's book The Statement will be released to the big screen soon as will adaptations of A Home at the End of the World by Michael Cunningham and The Human Stain by Philip Roth.

At Thanksgiving, feast on The Cat in the Hat based on the story by Dr. Seuss. And on December 17, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, the final film in Peter Jackson's epic dramatic trilogy based on the books by J.R.R. Tolkien, opens in theaters.

Visit the library today to read your favorite films!