Roar for TEEN READ WEEK

Welcome to Library Lions special edition celebrating TEEN READ WEEK. This year’s theme “Picture It.” What R U doing for TRW?

Here at Library Lions we’re Roaring for YALSA = Young Adult Library Services Association. Swing by their site and see what YALSA says about TEEN READ WEEK

“Teen Read Week is an initiative of the YALSA. Teen Read Week started in 1998. This year's theme is Books with Beat @ your library®. YALSA encourages teens to read poetry, audiobooks, books about music, and more. Libraries across the world celebrate Teen Read Week with a variety of special events and programs”
Announcing this year’s Top Ten list of books for Young Adults!



Congratulations to the Teens Top Ten!!
Teens from selected libraries across the U.S. read and voted for the Top Ten list.

Special thanks to YALSA's Teens' Top Ten Committee is Chair Jennifer Barnes, Rebecca Jackman, Amy Fiske, Carrie Kausch, Rachel Kitzmann, and Lisa Martinez.

Best-selling author, Jay Asher is the spokesperson for 2011 Teen Read Week this year
More about what Jay’s doing for Teen Read Week here

We’re also roaring the 25 nominees this year:
•Bachorz, Pam. Drought. Egmont USA. 2011.
•Beam, Cris. I Am J. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. 2011.
•Beaudoin, Sean. You Killed Wesley Payne. 2011. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
•Black, Holly and Justine Larbalestier. Zombies vs. Unicorns. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry Books. 2010.
•Card, Orson Scott. The Lost Gate. Tor Books. 2011.
•Clare, Cassandra. The Clockwork Angel. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry. 2010
•Collins, Suzanne. Mockingjay. Scholastic. 2010.
•Collins, Yvonne. Love, Inc. Disney/Hyperion. 2011.
•Condie, Ally. Matched. 2010. Penguin/Dutton.
•Cremer, Andrea. Nightshade. Penguin/Philomel. 2010.
•Fitzpatrick, Becca. Crescendo. Simon & Schuster Children’s. 2010.
•Grant, Michael. Lies. 2010. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books.
•Hawkins, Rachel. Demonglass. Disney/Hyperion. 2011.
•Hakwins, Rachel. Hex Hall. Disney/Hyperion. 2010.
•Kagawa, Julie. The Iron King. 2010. Harlequin.
•Lore, Pittacus. I Am Number Four. HarperCollins. 2010.
•Moore, Peter. Red Moon Rising. Disney/Hyperion. 2011.
•Nelson, Jandy. The Sky is Everywhere. 2010. Penguin/Dial Books for Young Readers.
•Oliver, Lauren. Before I Fall. HarperCollins/HarperTeen. 2010.
•O’Neal, Ellis. The False Princess. Egmont USA. 2011.
•Patterson, James. Angel: A Maximum Ride Novel. Little, Brown & Company. 2011.
•Pearce, Jackson. Sisters Red. Little, Brown and Company. 2010.
•Smith, Cynthia Leitich. Blessed. Candlewick Press. 2011.
•Westerfeld, Scott. Behemoth. Simon Pulse. 2010.
•White, Kiersten. Paranormalcy. HarperCollins/HarperTeen. 2010.

More ways Library Lions can celebrate:

1. Join readergirlz The cutting edge literacy and social media project for teens, awarded the National Book Award for Innovations in Reading. Support readergirlz and keep up with the latest great book news.

2. Free your inner teen and read an excellent book from the Top Ten or from the nomination list this year.

3. RIP Read In Public



RIP on the subway, bus, in the park, in the grocery store line – join those of us who RIP!

ROAR REDMOND ELEMENTARY LIBRARY

Also, the picture you’re adding and the —who is absolutely wonderful. J

Welcome to Library Lions interviews. Raising a Roar for Libraries across the U.S. Please Roar today’s guest School Librarian Carol Matheson!


(Pictures of Carol by Redmond Elm. PTSA President, Elena Savage)

Carol is a Teacher Librarian at Redmond Elementary in Redmond WA.



I met Carol last year on one of my Read Across America school visits and knew at once I wanted to interview her for Library Lions. Welcome Carol!

Thanks, Janet.

Roar for Lion Cubs
Last year on my visit I noticed that your students are Very involved in the library. Can you tell us about that, Carol?

I like to involve the students in decisions about our school library. I have a suggestion box for kids to recommend good books they’ve read that aren’t in the Library. I buy as many of the suggestions as I can and the kids love it. They’re listened to. They’re part of the Library. I also periodically do a survey asking kids what they like about the Library and what they would change. We’ve changed a lot including
~ How many books they can check out
~ How long they can check them out
~ When they can check out (almost any time they want to—recesses, before and after
school, etc.)
~ They wanted the Library to be brighter so we added posters to the wall which they
picked out

I work very hard to make sure that what I teach is meaningful to our students. In primary I focus on introducing them to a wide variety of picture books—we read Classics, Folklore from around the world, books reflecting Lifeskills (which is a big focus in the classroom for primary students), and even books demonstrating the 6-Traits of Writing. In intermediate we focus on research skills from doing a research project on birds to an extensive unit on what resources to use (and trust) for different kinds of projects.



The Skinny: Briefly, what do you love most about your work?
I love the kids. I love getting to know them, teaching them, encouraging them to read, encouraging them to be the best person they can be. Some of my kids face big challenges: some are homeless, some don’t have enough to eat, some move frequently, and some have behavior and/or learning challenges. I’m amazed some of these kids can even make it out of bed in the morning and yet they come to school to learn, make friends and start believing in themselves.



I also love the people I work with. They are an amazing group who try to help the student who struggles with everything and challenge the student that everything comes easy to. They are compassionate, hard-working, caring people with good senses of humor!

I feel like I do one of the most important jobs in the world. It’s hard. I put in long hours and go home much more tired than I did in the business world (I was in marketing for 15 years before becoming a teacher). But, I know what I do makes a difference and the rewards are big: An “AH HA” moment, a hug, a smile from a face that came in sad, a junior high or high school student that still stops by to say hi . . . .

Library Laughs
We are the Redmond Hawks so above the check-out desk the students chose to have pictures of Hawks. One of them is a beautiful photo of a Sharp-Shinned Hawk. I have a 6th Grader who loves turtles and insists that this hawk looks like a turtle. He takes polls of everybody who walks through the Library. We have now banned the dreaded “t” word during class because it was causing a bit too much disruption but it can be discussed during check-out time. It has made a very fun bond between me and the kids in that class, especially with the turtle lover.

Turtle or Hawk??? Kids check the photo out.


A Lion’s Pride of Programs
We have a wonderful program at this school which was started by a 5/6th Grade teacher who enlisted me. It’s called Hawks Read.


(Artwork by Paula Randolph)

The 6th Graders (and the 5/6 Split) read to the Kindergartners and First Graders every Friday at 1:00, right after lunch recess. The Library supplies the books (pulled by a student volunteer in the morning). The teacher got the idea from a reading program sponsored by Target. Our kids weren’t eligible for the Target program because they were too young so we contacted Target and explained what we were doing. They were amazingly generous with a big celebration about reading last year to help kick the program off and money for books in the Library. They gave us another grant this year.

We also have another program call Donuts for Dads and Muffins for Moms.



Once a month we have donuts, muffins, fruit, juice, etc. and kids come in with their families to read books. We have people in every corner of the Library eating and reading (despite the fact we tell kids not to read and eat at the same time). It is very fun and much loved. We’re fortunate to have the PTSA and the Neighborhood School House help sponsor this.



Readers Roar: (Let’s hear from the kids!)
~ I like coming to the Library to read at recess sometimes because it’s calm and quiet.~ Varsha, Grade 4:

~ I love to read all the fantasy and adventure books. Mrs. Matheson even lets me come in after school almost every day to check out books. ~ Alex, Grade 4:

~ I like Mrs. Matheson because she is really nice. I come to the Library because of her and I really like to read a lot.~ Jared, Grade 6:

Book Brag: What three books are hot this year? Why?
I’d love to tell you about a wonderful award winning book that I can’t keep on the shelf but . . . at least they’re excited about reading.

~ Graphic Novels—it doesn’t matter which one. My section was decimated the first week of school and I’ve been working hard to add as many books to that section as possible.

~ Harry Potter—the last movie set off another year of checking every one of those books out.

~ The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series—Given the competition for these books when they’re actually in the Library, I’m amazed how well the kids peacefully work out who gets what and nobody complains!

Library Lion’s Roar: ONE LAST BIG ROAR
I’d like to roar about my PTSA. Given this is a school with almost half of our students on free and reduced lunch, our PTSA performs miracles. They have been amazingly supportive of the Library program and have worked with me to fund wonderful new books which have helped almost double our circulation since I came five years ago. A roar to all those wonderful people who put hours into supporting our teaching, making sure all of our kids get to participate in special programs and helping our school be an even better place.

Thank you, Carol for your terrific interview!

Love Libraries? School libraries need your support. Give a Roar in “Comments” below.

Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview.

BANNED BOOKS WEEK!

Welcome to Library Lions special edition Banned Books Week.



Lesley James, librarian at Douglass-Truth Branch of the Seattle Public Library is here to Roar for Banned Books Week. Welcome Lesley!



The Skinny: First tell us a little about yourself and your library



We have an awesome after-school Homework Help program at my branch, thanks to the amazing volunteers who spend two to four hours each week helping students of all ages. The students deserve a lot of credit, too, for wanting to learn and for helping each other. I keep things bubbling along by orienting the volunteers, organizing the schedule, etc.

I’ve been a librarian for eleven years. One of my favorite things to do is visit schools to do presentations on information literacy and the research process. Sometimes classes of English Language Learners or special education students visit the branch for a presentation on “How the Library Is Organized.” I also love doing good old-fashioned booktalks and enjoyed working with a nearby school where I taught students how to do their own booktalks so they could share their favorites with their classmates.

Douglass-Truth Library interior


For many years, several branches worked together to hold a “Reading Marathon” that pitted four middle schools against each other to see which could log the most reading time in a six-hour period. Because of budget cuts and staff reorganizations, this year the competition was between the three grades from one middle school and held at just my branch, but the participants still had a great time eating snacks, winning raffle prizes, and, of course, reading.

Tell us about Banned Books Week:



Banned Books Week is that special time of the year when librarians get together and ban as many books as possible…just kidding! (Although teens are sometimes confused by the name.) The serious fact is that every year books are removed from the shelves of libraries when library staff responds to patrons’ official complaints by choosing to censor. Librarians and other educators who consider themselves staunch supporters of the First Amendment want to bring this to the attention of the public so they can appreciate their Freedom To Read. It’s also a great opportunity to examine the issues and emotions that prompt those complaints and the prices we sometimes pay for having the freedom.



It surprises some students to learn that there are books I hate—but I make it clear that I’ll defend the rights of those books to be on the shelves of the library with my last breath. That’s what makes the Freedom To Read so powerful: it’s not a simple or easy thing to defend, but it’s worth it.



Learn more at the American Library Association site:

Can you showcase some more displays for us?
There are great displays at every branch of The Seattle Public Library system.









What do you do to spread the word about Banned Books Week and Intellectual Freedom Issues?
When teachers invite me to do a presentation on intellectual freedom for their classes, I do a lesson on the “competing goods” of the Freedom To Read. I start by showing the students the text of the First Amendment and then I show them a newspaper photograph and tell them this is a picture of the First Amendment in action. We discuss what’s going on in the photograph: an African-American woman is crouched defensively over a white man who became the target of a group of violently angry people who turned up to protest a Ku Klux Klan march. Why would this woman protect a Klan member whose speech is filled with such hate for her race? Because she believes in his right to speak, no matter what he’s saying. The protesters have an equal right to voice their opinion, but not to silence his. It’s a compelling image that helps students understand the gravity of defending free speech, even when you completely disagree with it.

Next, we do an activity that involves small groups of students looking at children’s picture books that have been challenged in the past and guessing what the challengers objected to. We use picture books because they’re easier to flip through than young adult novels, they lead to a later discussion about age restrictions, and they elicit cries of, “But I love the Lorax!” By the way, I want to give credit to the Multnomah County Library System librarians—I observed a version of this activity led by them at a conference and adapted it.
PHOTO cover The Lorax

Some of the reasons for challenging seem silly to the students (such as the bottle of wine in Little Red Riding Hood’s basket for her grandmother leading to alcoholism) but others are more serious (such as the use of racial slurs in Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry). The important thing I want students to understand is that they all represent someone’s personal values. Whatever their personal values are, the students always bring up the point that it’s good to have books that represent different opinions. If we removed every book that offended someone, there would be no books left on the shelves! The students also agree that that depicting a particular behavior doesn’t necessarily condone it and that it’s better to show reality as it is, rather than trying to shield readers from harsh truths.
We do a couple of other activities during this lesson and I’d be happy to share them, as well as details about the activities described above.

Any Banned Books you would like to highlight?
I’d like to highlight some hometown heroes. Three local (Seattle or Seattle-adjacent) authors of books for teens are represented in the American Library Association’s “Books Banned or Challenged in 2009-2010” booklet: Sherman Alexie, Brent Hartinger, and Richelle Mead. Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian was challenged but retained on a school summer reading list. (It’s important to note that many challenges fail to lead to a banning.) The objections focused on “vulgar and racist” language. So many teens, especially boys, have read and loved this book.



You could have a great discussion about the difference between being racist and depicting racism with these readers. Hartinger’s Geography Club was retained at a public library despite complaints that it was “obscene or child pornography.” (In 2005, it was banned and then reinstated by a nearby school district, although the focus that time was a scene in which the protagonist arranged to see someone he met online.) This book also provides a great opportunity to talk about the difference between gratuitous sex scenes and sex scenes as an important part of the plot—or, in this case, books in which characters think about sex but don’t actually have it but are still considered “pornography.”



Mead’s entire Vampire Academy series was banned at a junior high school for “sexual content or nudity,” including books which have not yet been written. It’s true that schools don’t have the same responsibilities as public libraries to protect the freedom to read, but that doesn’t mean they should go ahead and ban books without reading them first!

What can Library Lions readers do to roar for Banned Books Week?
Support your local public library! We love our volunteers and appreciate every penny that’s donated, but most of our essential functions can only be funded by the city or county government’s budget. When times get tough (as they are right now), tough decisions have to be made about those budgets. It’s crucial that city and county governments know that public libraries are a vital service to their communities.

Yes, a lot of people get their information online these days, but where do people go when they don’t have computers or the skills to navigate the increasingly complex world of online information? The library, of course. We are actually more needed than ever. Our buildings are bursting with job-seekers, recent immigrants, and students of all ages who need help with their homework. They may be the only places where children hear stories read to them, elderly people figure out how to use a computer mouse, or someone who’s having a bad day sees a smile. And our local governments need to know all this so they don’t put us in the same pile as the parks and the art projects that are awesome but tend to lose their funding more rapidly than the police and fire departments.

One More Library Lion’s Roar:
I’d also like to put in a plug for the profession of librarianship, which seems especially relevant at a time when we’re celebrating the First Amendment. It’s true you don’t need a master’s degree to do a lot of the things we do these days (if I had a dollar for every printer I’ve un-jammed, I could have retired by now) and that what we bring to our work is somewhat intangible. But intangible doesn’t mean unimportant. Librarians hold back the forces of censorship with one hand and welcome everyone—and I mean everyone—into the library with the other. Without us, freedoms would get chipped away, both the freedom of ideas to enter the public space and the freedom to gain access to those ideas, regardless of your skills or resources. Interest in those ideals led me to library school and by the time I left, they were tattooed on my soul.

Let’s Link!Teen

Blog: http://blog.spl.org/yablog/

Adult Blog: http://shelftalk.spl.org/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeattlePublicLibrary?ref=ts
Thank you, Lesley for your terrific interview!

Love Libraries? Give a Roar in “Comments” below.

Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview slot.

Author Kirby Larson Shares her Library Love

Welcome to Library Lions interviews special Author Edition. Please roar our guest award-winning author KIRBY LARSON!



Kirby is here today to share her Library Love with us.She went from history-phobe to history fanatic while writing the 2007 Newbery Honor Book, Hattie Big Sky.


(She is currently at work on a sequel to Hattie Big Sky.)

Her passion for historical fiction is reflected in The Fences Between Us (Scholastic, September 2010)



And her newest book, The Friendship Doll (Delacorte; May 2011).



In 2006, Kirby began a collaboration with her good friend, Mary Nethery, which has resulted in two award-winning nonfiction picture books: Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship and Survival (illustrated by Jean Cassels)



And Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle. They have their eyes peeled for another project to tackle together.



A Leo through and through, Kirby won't rest until she's shared her love of writing with as many people as possible. She's made over 200 presentations, traveling to twenty states and as far away as Germany, Lebanon and Qatar. Kirby lives in Kenmore, Washington with her husband, Neil. When she’s not reading, writing, or walking Winston the Wonder Dog, Kirby enjoys gardening, bird watching, traveling, or drinking lattés with friends.

Tell us About Your Library Love When You Were A Cub



In third grade, my dad took me to the downtown Bellingham public library. I was intrigued by a book called Gulliver’s Travels – full of giants and odd beings and adventures – and wanted to check it out. The librarian was hesitant – “She won’t understand it,” she told my dad. But he told her to go ahead and let me check it out. Of course, the librarian was right – most of the book went right over my head. However, the feeling that two adults agreed I could handle a big book like that was better than being granted three wishes.

Author’s Roar Funding for libraries, especially school libraries, is currently under threat. As an author, what are your thoughts about that?
When I was a kid, I was the new girl in school nearly every year. This was in a time when folks didn’t move around a lot so that made me a real oddball. There were some pretty rough first weeks of school – lots of teasing and excluding. I quickly learned that no matter where I went, I would find a friend – between the covers of a book, in the school library. I would not have grown into the person I am without the salvation of those libraries and am heartsick that it would ever seem like a good choice to cut funding for them. On the other hand, I did serve two terms on our local school board and I am fully aware of the financial pressures facing schools. The bottom line is that we say we value kids and education but our actions as communities belie our words. I honestly don’t know what to do about this societal flaw. What I can do is vote to support school and library levies, which I do, and I also donate books to several local schools.

Hooray for ALA!
My ALA experience in New Orleans was too much fun this year! What's the best part?
Catching up with librarian friends.


My buddy from Bowling Green, Alecia Marcum


Adrienne Yorinks and Jeanette Larson share my love for hummingbirds

Sampling some of the Big Easy's best eating (thanks to my driver for the recommendation of the Ernest Cafe and to Dianne de Las Casas for suggesting Ramblas where my agent and I enjoyed the most amazing scallops served in a cigar box)?

Or being on a panel with super-star Children's Lit prof, Sandy Imdieke and two Silver Sisters, Jenni Holm and Ingrid Law. If they ever tire of writing for children, those two could make a killing as stand-up comedians.

Though there is something overwhelming about the exhibit floor, there is something exhilarating too. All. Those. Books. And all those people who love books. Some love them too much. I saw more than one librarian doggedly dragging heavy bags of books off the exhibit floor and onto the shuttle buses. Some enterprising teens could make a killing hiring out as book caddies during the conference!

A Lion’s Pride of Programs
My energies in the past few years have been focused on school visits, and I have been hosted by some of the most amazing librarians around. I’ve read in a milk jug igloo in Bowling Green Kentucky


Milk jug igloo at Alecia Marcum's school -- I don't generally wear jeans to school visits but my bag had been lost by the airlines!

I've spoken to 850 middle schoolers at a pop in Birmingham, and to the combined student bodies of three rural schools in central Montana; I’ve visited the school just up the street from me, as well as international schools in Qatar



And Lebanon


And Department of Defense schools in Germany. I wouldn’t have had the chance to make these amazing connections without the support of savvy librarians, who not only invited me but also helped prepare their students so that my visit could be as successful as possible. By that, I don’t mean that my every whim was catered to (though librarians do spoil us authors rotten). What I mean is, that kids were so familiar with my work that my presentations truly enhanced and underscored the school’s reading and writing curriculum. I can’t tell you what it means to me to have an adult comment, after one of my presentations, that the student asking the most questions was one who didn’t like to write. And when I get a letter from a student telling me how my visit inspired them to read a book, or to try their own hand at a story or poem – well, there is no joy like that!

Library Lion’s ONE LAST BIG ROAR!
As you know, my passion is historical fiction and I rely heavily on libraries and librarians for my research. I can’t even count the number of books I’ve had access to through interlibrary loan – books I wouldn’t have been able to read without that amazing service. A research librarian in Great Falls, Montana taught me about Sanborn maps so I could see what the cities I place my characters in looked like in 1918 or 1941 or whenever.

My local library systems (King County and Seattle) subscribe to on-line services – like the historical newspaper index, or the Oxford English Dictionary – that I certainly couldn’t afford on my own.


Kenmore Library

And no matter what nutty question I have – I once needed to find out when waterwings were invented!-- some research librarian takes it seriously and helps me track down an answer. My books would not exist without libraries and librarians – which is why I want to roar about how great they are!

Lets Link Up
~Kirby's Blog: www.kirbyslane.blogspot.com

~Website: http://www.kirbylarson.com (readers can sign up at this site for my semi-monthly e-newsletter)

Thanks again Kirby for the terrific interview! You are now an official Library Lioness!

* * *

Love Libraries? Give a Roar in “Comments” below.

Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview slot.

Bilingual Biblioburro & Summer Reading

Welcome to Library Lions interviews. We Raise a Roar for Libraries and the outstanding Youth Librarians in Schools and Public Libraries across the U.S. Please Roar today’s guest, Angela Morris!



Angela is Children’s Services Manager North Central Regional Library system. The headquarters are in Wenatchee WA, but the system has 28 branches in five counties.



Tell us about yourself
I was recently the project lead for a grant awarded by the Foundation for Early Learning to do early literacy education to underserved families. We hosted a literacy fair where we presented parent education, offered literacy activities and gave away free books to children that attend the local Head Start preschool.



I plan and execute our very successful Teen Read program every fall where popular authors do school visits and public events - we reach thousands of teens with this program. Last year we had Gordon Korman, this year Avi is coming!

Gordon Korman

Library Love
I love my job because every day is different and I get to do a huge variety of tasks that promote the love of reading to kids and families in our library district. I love helping and supporting the branch librarians with youth services, working with community agencies on early literacy, doing book selection, planning and organizing programs and crafts for the summer reading program, interacting with authors, and a million other things.

Library Laughs
Storytime lends itself to lots of potential for funny moments. I’ve done storytimes where a child asks an awkward question where you have to think quickly or there is one kid that seems to have a comment about everything (these are the smart, verbal ones, so you gotta love em!). I think one of my most embarrassing moments was when I mispronounced a word so badly that the word that came out was the name of a body part that we usually don’t discuss in polite company!

A Lion’s Pride of Programs I am especially proud of our early literacy curriculum we use in our storytimes that we call Links to Literacy. We model ways of reading to kids that emphasizes early literacy skills for the parents and at the same time the kids are having a great time singing, listening to stories and doing activities. Please check out this video to hear me describing Links to Literacy storytimes. http://www.ncrl.org/kids.htm



I also want people to know about our Online Summer Reading Program that we launched this summer. It has been extremely fun and successful with over 11,000 reading hours logged so far this summer (we have 2 more weeks to go). We still offer the in-library summer reading program, but the online version is accessible to kids who live in very rural areas and for older kids. Look for more good things on our Online Summer Reading Program next summer.

Library Lion Cubs
We have a wonderful volunteer who works in the children’s department at Wenatchee Public Library – her name is Sabrina and she is 11 almost 12 and is going into the 7th grade. She works twenty hours per week! Which is amazing. She helps organize book carts, looks for request books on the shelf, keeps things tidy and assists with programs for the younger kids. She loves to be at the library and is following in the footsteps of her older sister who has worked there as a page for several years.


Sabrina

She loves getting the first opportunity to check out new books, observing what books patrons choose and she can’t seem to stop herself from checking out way too many books. Of course she loves to read and her favorites are: Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Little Women and the Mother-Daughter Bookclub series. When she grows up she wants to be a pastry chef and teacher. She loves school and has discovered that the more she reads for fun, the easier her schoolwork is (if only all kids learned this valuable lesson!).

Library Lioness on Wheels
Deborah McVay has been traveling all over our district doing bilingual programs. Her biblioburro is pictured with her below!



What’s hot this summer and why?
The sizzling hot books at North Central Regional Library this summer are:

~Pinkalicious series by Victoria Kann – because every little girl wants to look like a princess and have “attitude”.

~Dork Diaries series by Rachel Renee Russell because kids love a funny underdog – and it is sort of a girl’s version of The Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

~I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore – teenagers with superpowers? What’s not to like? The movie version likely pushed this book over the top for kids in this area.

Author! Author!
The perfect author’s visit actually happened here a couple years ago when Lois Lowry came to do several programs around our library district. I spent several days driving her to her various venues, so I had the opportunity to really enjoy listening to her impressions of our area, observations on life and descriptions of what she plans to write in the future. Her programs were insightful, moving and just good storytelling. I never got tired of hearing her speak. One never knows what it will be like to interact with an author – you are hopeful that they will be pleasant and not too demanding, but Lois Lowry was professional, candid and a wonderful conversationalist. I feel lucky and honored to have had this time with her. And of course the kids and adults who heard her speak loved her too!

One Last Roar!
The summer reading program theme this year - “One World, Many Stories” was awesome. It gave endless opportunities for highlighting all of our great books on cultures, food, geography, animals of the world and on and on. Typically our branches give out inexpensive incentives for reading prizes and this summer to celebrate world cultures, many of them introduced a program in which their Friend’s group donated money to Heifer International for every hour that the kids read. This was a great way to increase awareness for how other kids in the world live. The "prayer flag craft" is an example of one of the crafts we did this summer that goes with the theme "One World, Many Stories".



Let’s Link

Library Website www.ncrl.org

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/NorthCentralRegionalLibrary Thank you, Angela for your terrific interview!

Love Libraries? Give a Roar in “Comments” below. Note to

Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview slot.

Roar For Children's Lit Fests!

Welcome to this Library Lions Special Edition. This week we’re highlighting the terrific Children’s Literature Festival at Truman State University, MO!


Host Campus Truman State University Kirksville, Missouri

Daisy Rearick, Reference Librarian/Periodicals/Microforms at Pickler Memorial Library, Kirksville, Missouri, is here to tell us about the Lit Fest! Daisy grew up in Mexico. She loves children’s books. Welcome Daisy.



Share Your Dream with Us.
The purpose of the Children’s Literature Festival is to stimulate an interest in reading and literature among young students. The festival provides an opportunity for children from the northeast Missouri region in grades 4-6 to meet and interact with authors and illustrators from around the country.


Francisco Alarcon's workshop 2011

We lost the Festival for a few years. What Happened?
The Children’s Literature Festival was an annual event for 21 years until 2004 when it was discontinued due to severe budget cuts. In 2007, a Children’s Literature Festival Fund was created in an effort to bring the festival back, and two years later, the event began taking place once again. For the past two years, the Festival has also received grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Missouri State Library, a Division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

We're Happy to be back up and running now!


2011 Festival Presenters

Tell the LL readers what happens on the Festival Day.
During the festival, the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade students have an opportunity to meet with three authors and ask them how their work was created and came to be published. The authors present fun workshops inspiring students' love for literature, encouraging them to explore their own writing and drawing projects in school and out.

The 2011 festival highlighted the work of 10 authors:
Francisco Alarcon, Darleen Bailey Beard, Carmen Bernier-Grand, Janet Lee Carey, Dianne Gray, Lynne Jonell, A. LaFaye, Laurie Lawlor, Anna Myers and N. A. Nelson. Ard Hoyt, an illustrator, also participated in the event.


Mary Amato's workshop



Janet Lee Carey's workshop 2011


We also have a book signing


Ard Hoyt at the book signing

Cheers for the Children’s Literature Festival at Truman University!

~ “Lots of kids don’t enjoy reading and this [festival] is another tool to encourage them to make it “cool”. Many students from Northeast Missouri don’t get an opportunity to travel and hear speakers other than school trips, so they are that much more engaged.” From a teacher.

~ “I cannot think of any other chance I have had as a student, and can think of few occasions I will have as a professional, that will provide me with such a unique chance to connect with so many different types of professionals all so concerned with literacy.” From an MAE student

~ “Thank you so much for inviting me! The young people were wonderful, and I hope that a few went away inspired. And the committee - I applaud all of you. Through your hard work and organization, the Festival ran seamlessly.” From an author who presented


Anna Meyers's workshop 2011

Readers Roar. Let’s hear from the kids!
~ “It has inspired me to want to try to write a short story.” Anne – Grade 4

~ “at the lit festival, I feel so inspired to read more books and learn more about authors.” Ben – Grade 6

~“[the festival] tempts me to read different kinds of books” Jennifer – Grade 5


N.A. Nelson's workshop 2011

~ “[I have changed how I feel about reading] because authors get their ideas from real events, and it makes me wonder what things go on in the world.” Student

~ “it changed how I feel about reading or books or authors because I learned to always have a problem.” Student


Darleen Bailey-Beard's workshop 2011

Library Lion’s Roar: ONE LAST BIG ROAR
We already have seven of our authors lined up for the 2012 Literature Festival, and we are thrilled to once again have a state grant to help us out with the expenses!

Let’s Link
Library Website: http://library.truman.edu/

Children’s Literature Festival website: http://library.truman.edu/Children'sLiteratureFestival.asp

Thanks again for the terrific interview, Daisy!

Love Libraries? Give a Roar in “Comments” below.

Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview slot.