Get Ready to Get Wimpy This Spring

The middle schooler everyone loves to hate is coming to the big screen in April. The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney is sure to be a hit. Get a sneek peek.

Thirsty for Facts?

The word is out! Facts can be fun! For many years I have noticed some of our eager young patrons trolling the shelves for “The Guinness Book of World Records” as well as various themed children’s almanacs. And why wouldn’t they want to read these books? If the truth is stranger than fiction shouldn’t that make it at least just as much fun?

Jumping on this bandwagon I thought it might be fun to adorn the columns of our fair Children’s Room with a series of “lift the flap fun facts”. Who wants to know exactly how long New York’s famous Broadway is? You may be astounded by the truth. Can you guess where Hershey Kisses get their name? The answer is a sweet surprise.

What’s even better? Once you have soaked up all of these facts you may never look at everyday things the same again. So come on in and show some love for random reference. We will try to keep fresh facts on rotation seasonally and we promise there will always be something new and fun beneath the flaps.

Posted by Jessikah

Books, Books, Books!

Mo Willems, Judi Barrett, Nick Bruel, and Victoria Kann were just a few of the more than 200 authors on hand this past Sunday at the 4th Annual Brooklyn Book Festival, a huge, free public event presenting an array of literary stars and emerging authors who represent the exciting world of literature today. Fellow Children's Librarian Nadine and I had the opportunity to attend this event and we had a great time!

The very animated Mo Willems treated us all to a reading of Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed and he even gave us a sneak peak at the hilarious and soon-to-be released Pigs Make Me Sneeze! Classic picture book Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was read by Judi Barrett (and mark your calendars because it will also be released as a motion picture this Friday, September 18th). Nick Bruel delighted the crowd with readings from Bad Kitty and his newest book, Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty; while kids gathered around to hear Victoria Kann read her wildly popular book, Goldilicious.

It was a fun-filled day and I encourage you all to check it out next year.

Posted by Amy

Happy Birthday Tomie DePaola!

Celebrating author and illustrator Tomie DePaola's birthday with a blog tribute! Visit his website or blog to see more of what we love Tomie for.

A Book Lover's Dream

Jeff Kinney, Lois Lowry, Kadir Nelson, Jacqueline Woodson, Judy Blume, Mo Willems... All of these fantastic authors (and many many more) will be on the National Mall in Washington DC on September 26th for the National Book Fest sponsored by the Library of Congress. There will be author presentations, book signings, and the official launch of read.gov. This event is free and open to the public. Check out the website for the complete list of showcased authors (children, teens, and adult).

Here in the Children's Room, we are gearing up for our exciting fall programs. Storytimes, baby and toddler programs, Lego club, Reader's Theater, and Creative Journaling are just a few of the many programs starting in the next few months. Limited registration begins next week, so be sure to check our event calendar. We are thrilled to begin another wonderful season with you and your children. We look forward to seeing you.

From The Staff - What We Loved About Summer Reading...

Here in the Children's Room we have been slightly saddened to see summer reading come to an end. We have so many wonderful memories of the exciting events, of the many cheerful faces at our desk, and of the pure excitment of reaching reading milestones the last eight weeks. Therefore we would like to take this opportunity to share with you our personal favorite memories:

"The Monster Hunt was so much fun; it was wonderful to see the children so enthusiastic in the library, working with each other and using the library's resources to find clues and decipher codes to ultimately track down the hidden monster. It was a great start to summer!" - Sue Ann

"My favorite memory was making indoor s'mores at the Campfire Tales program. With everyone bringing their flashlisghts and towels to hear the scary stories, the s'mores topped off the evening and proved you don't need a fire to enjoy that camping feeling." - Jessikah

"My favorite summer memory was when the kids came in for their weekly reading prizes. They were all so excited to write their books on the summer reading logs! It was very cute." - Josephine

"My favorite summer memory was when I unexpectedly became part of the Chip Bryant Listening With Your Eyes closing program. It was so much fun to be up on stage looking out at all the laughing, smiling children and their parents while dancing and clowning with Chip. As with every year, I also really enjoyed getting to know all of the kids and their names as they came in weekly to fill out their Summer Reading Club records and see their joyful reactions to getting their prizes. I can't wait until next summer!" - Amy

"Summer reading went fast in the Children's Room. I'd have to say that my fondest memory this summer is watching the Lego Club participants work together by encouraging, helping, and sharing with one another. I looked forward to that hour on Wednesday afternoons where there was a room full of smiling faces, creative energy and teamwork." - Nadine