AliceBakerBlog

Ten Books

The best books in the modern literary canon?  That's easy--there are tons of lists and opinions on those. But here's something different: a list of books you might want to fire OUT OF a cannon.

Haven't read any of them?  That's no excuse.

Kettle Moraine Days 2009

The Kettle Moraine Days Parade, Sunday, June 28, 2009.  The library float, ably staffed by Alli Chase, Library Director, Barbara Jamieson, and Dave Traver, Library Board Members, and assorted kids.

This is the best part of small-town living--participating in community life on a beautiful summer day.

Dave Traver and his winning smile.

The town's number one library booster, Mabel Finney.

The library float, in all its glory.

 

"Jodi Picoult and the Anxious Parent"

The middle class child in peril, lots of different kinds of peril: mining this theme has been hugely successful for author Jodi Picoult. Sunday's New York Times profiled Picoult and her particular brand of literary melodrama. This article, a thoughtful and analytical look at Picoult's topics and their relevance to today's philosophies of protective parenting, looks the author's background and artistic journey. 

It also looks at children as treated in notable fiction in decades past--not always sympathetically, in any sense of the word.

"It was not always the case that the imperiled child was at the center of American popular culture. In the ’50s, the best-selling novel “The Bad Seed,” which later became a Broadway play and then a movie, made the argument that severe behavioral problems in children were attributable to genetic bad luck rather than parental ineptitude. It is unfathomable now in an era of such fervent concern about children’s safety, and particularly their sexual safety, to consider that in 1964, Margaret Millar, a well-regarded crime writer (her 1955 book, “Beast in View,” beat out Patricia Highsmith’s “Talented Mr. Ripley” for an Edgar Award), wrote a novel, “The Fiend,” about a child molester in which the reader’s sympathies are directed not at the 9-year-old victim but rather at the pedophile who believes he is in love with her."

Read more...

"Libraries Raised Me..."

Author Ray Bradbury is nearly 90 now, author of dozens of books, short stories, and screenplays.  He's spending his time these days visiting libraries across California, pitching his idea that libraries are vital to communities and culture.  His home library in Ventura County, CA, is in danger of being closed due to budget cuts.  Bradbury takes an over-my-dead-body approach.

“Libraries raised me,” Mr. Bradbury said. “I don’t believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries."

Read more...

We've Been Waiting for This News...

Just in time for summer travels and activities: OverDrive is now iPod compatible!  For iPod users who were disappointed at OverDrive's PC-only usefulness, this is sensational news indeed. 

Check out the details, download (or upgrade) your OverDrive Media Console, and grab a book or two for the weekend. 

Kids' Summer Reading

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ran a great article this morning on the benefits of encouraging kids to read this summer.  We couldn't agree more.

Get Creative at Your Library!

Yippee!  Summer Library Programming is in full swing.  This year's theme is Get Creative at Your Library--our programs and events are designed to bring out that creative spark lurking in everyone.  Any time is a good time to sign up and get started--the program runs through the end of July.

We're offering reading incentive programs for all ages--kids, teens, and adults.  They're low-stress ways to add spice and variety to your reading and maybe score some prizes too.

The library will offer a great lineup of special events for everyone--three Lunch Bunch picnics, each followed by special entertainment, knitting classes, a Writers' Workshop with special guest writer/leaders, Storytimes, Family Movies, and much more. 

Schedules are available at the library and are also posted on our website--kid, teen, and adult activities.

Animalspeak Around the World

Here's a fun site--a listing of animal sounds and commands as they're vocalized in different languages.  French dogs say "ouah ouah"-- "woof woof" in English.  Finnish birds don't chirp, they say "piip piip".  In Japan, baby chicks say "piyo piyo" instead of "cheep cheep".  Fun!

Chat Acronyms

It's like a bewildering foreign language. Unless there's a teenager in the house, or you're unusually Internet-savvy, you can be totally perplexed by the current avalanche of internet terminology, acronyms, and chat-speak fast becoming common parlance.

This isn't formal English, and of course is best kept out of business situations, but it's gaining ground in everyday usage.

PLZ check it out.  (Warning--some questionable language...)

Reading Wisconsin

Ever since the days of August Derleth, Aldo Leopold, and Zona Gale, Wisconsin has produced talented writers who have taken their place on the national scene. 

Thursday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ran a feature on current Wisconsin authors with newly published books.  There are new titles from some well-known authors such as Elizabeth Berg, A. Manette Ansay, and Michael Perry, and also books by first-time authors sounding worthy of exploration.  Fiction or non-fiction--take your pick.