We’re Making Changes!

Hi all, it’s been a long time since we’ve posted anything. Our brilliant Becca has left us for California, but don’t worry, she’s doing fine! In her place we have Jessi Finnie, and she’s here to stay. Come by and visit, and please be patient with our changes to this site.

Accio Books!

Accio Books

It’s Becca here, reference librarian extraordinaire. I recently got the opportunity to go to New York City and work at a photo booth for the after party of the NYC screening of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. It was an amazing experience! Check out my YouTube vlog about it here:

And don’t forget to subscribe to our channel!
http://www.youtube.com/whitmanpubliclibrary

Also remember that you can check out not only the Harry Potter books, but also the audiobooks, literary criticism, and Wizard Rock, bands who make music based on the series.

(Remember our Wizard Rock show we had here at the library back in February? Well one of the attendees uploaded videos of almost every song they played! Check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/user/karenswrockvideos)

Hope to see you in our corridors soon, and don’t forget to practice your charms spells!

Starship Adventure

Our wonderful Youth Services Librarian, Joanne, has arranged some excellent youth programs this summer in conjunction with the outer-space themed summer reading program, Starship Adventure.

Joanne talks about the program with the special help of our resident Alien Librarian, Becca:

Registration begins June 22. Anyone who is reading independently or being read to and entering grades k-6 in September may participate.

The Planets Magic Show – Monday, June 29 at 6 pm
Ages: 4-10
No registration!
The planets are having a retirement party for Pluto and everyone is invited! Young audiences will have great fun helping Debbie O’Carroll plan a magical party for the former planet Pluto as they learn about our amazing solar system. The “Planets Magic Show” has colorful costumes, mystifying magic and a captivating story line to delight the children.

Rockets: There and Back Again – Thursday, July 23.
There will be two sessions for this program: 11-11:40 am and 11:50 am-12:30 pm
Presented by the Museum of Science
Limited telephone and in-person registration begins Thursday, July 9. Because each workshop is limited to 25 participants (children and parents of children 10 and under), we ask that only one parent sign up with a child 10 and under.
There will be 3 activity areas:
-Building and testing latex balloon rockets that run on a wire track.
-A developing activity about travel space.
-Testing the best reentry design in a vertical wind tube.
This workshop is hands-on! Participants will visit each activity area together and be guided through the activity by the Museum’s educator.

Go for the Stars! – Monday, August 10 at 6 pm
All ages
No registration!
Lift-off to learning with a hands-on demonstration and experiments; audience participation; spacecraft props.
Find out about The International Space Station; spacecraft; planetary and satellite orbits; living and working in microgravity (eating, exercising, sleeping, etc.); the Space Shuttle Orbiter; future spacecraft; space hotels and the latest space news!
Meet “Robo” the friendly robot who talks, moves and interacts with the audience!
Join Gary Pozzato, Aerospace Educator, for an exciting and educational look at the space program.

Flea Circus – Monday, August 24 at 6 pm
All ages
No registration!
Ed Popielarczyk’s flea circus is an entire big top circus in miniature. You will be thrilled and amazed at Ed’s trained fleas. Watch as his fleas:
-Perform on the flying trapeze.
-Walk the always dangerous high wire.
-Spring off a diving board and land with a splash into a pool of water.
-Get shot out of a cannon and land on a marshmallow held by an audience helper.

Jen Reviews Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Jen got her hands on an Advance Readers Copy of the sequel to Hunger Games
by Suzanne Collins called Catching Fire. Check out her YouTube review
here:

Crazy Love

I recently read this memoir by Leslie Morgan Steiner that details her tumultuous and abusive relationship with her first husband. It’s very sad. One of the great things about the book, though, is that the author includes resources to help those who need it. Domestic violence is unfortunately prevalent in our society, so any resource that helps people get out of bad situations is welcome.

I was struck by one part of the book: the author visits her local library to get information about domestic violence, and she was nervous to talk to the reference librarian. She noticed that she was treated with respect and with privacy, which is something we always try to do with ANY reference concern. Please keep this in mind when you visit the Whitman Public Library. We’re trained to help find information and to keep your concerns private. This is what we do.

Come and Eat Cake!

Celebrate the last days of National Library Week with snacks today at the Whitman Public Library. It’s good stuff!

Think Your Books Are Overdue?

Check out this one from today’s Boston Globe!

Spring Cleaning Swap Meet

Got stuff you don’t need anymore, but other people can use?

Need something but don’t want to buy anything?

Drop off the stuff you don’t need on April 29, 30, and May 1, and come to the swap on May 2.

Get stuff free if you bring stuff, pay a small entrance fee (per family) to pick stuff up without donating.

More info is available on our programming calendar.

Suzanne Collins

Check out Jen’s latest YouTube video in which she reviews the Young Adult novels Gregor the Overlander and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

While you’re at it, subscribe to our YouTube channel!

Wizard Rock Revisited

YouTube finally decided to play nice and post a video I’ve been trying for days to upload! This is from the Wizard Rock show we had here at our library on February 20. It was sponsored by a Teen Services grant provided by EqualAccess Libraries, Libraries for the Future, and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.

Check out our YouTube channel here!

The musicians from left to right are:
Justin Finch Fletchley and the Sugar Quills
The Whomping Willows
and one half of Draco and the Malfoys