September Books to Film, Part 2

Wed, 09/15/2010 - 7:25pm by muffy

The highly acclaimed novel Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro has been adapted into film, to be released September 15.

Kathy (Carey Mulligan), Tommy (Andrew Garfield) and Ruth (Keira Knightley) live in a world and a time that feel familiar to us, but are not quite like anything we know. They spend their childhood at Hailsham, a seemingly idyllic English boarding school. When they leave the shelter of the school and the terrible truth of their fate is revealed to them, they must also confront the deep feelings of love, jealousy and betrayal that threaten to pull them apart.

Kazuo Ishiguro created a remarkable story of love, loss and hidden truths. In it he posed the fundamental question: What makes us human?

The Town is based on Chuck Hogan's Prince of Thieves.

Doug MacRay is an unrepentant criminal, leader of a group of ruthless bank robbers who pride themselves in stealing what they want. With no real attachments, Doug never has to fear losing anyone close to him. But that all changed on the gang’s latest job, when they briefly took a hostage --- bank manager Claire Keesey. Then Claire meets an unassuming and rather charming man named Doug, not realizing that he is the same man who only days earlier had terrorized her. The instant attraction between them gradually turns into a passionate romance that threatens to take them both down a dangerous, and potentially deadly, path.

Cast includes: Ben Affleck, Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner, and Blake Lively. In select theaters September 17.

Kid Bits - "F" is for Fair

Wed, 09/15/2010 - 11:01am by ryanikoglu

COUNTY FAIR – County Fairs begin harvest season.
Harvest season highlights farms and fairs.
To begin Preschool Storytime this week, Ms. Rachel presented
Farmer Doogie,
Fabulous Fair Alphabet and
Golly Gump Swallowed A Fly.
To extend the theme try the following titles:
I Know An Old Lady Who swallowed a Fly, the song that Golly Gump’s story evolved from.
Old MacDonald Had A Wood Shop collects the sounds of tools rather than animal sounds ... a new twist on the old familiar song.
Click, Clack, Moo, an original farm story of collective bargaining.
Farmyard Tales Treasury offers stories and simple craft activities to create “a farm” at home.
One Too Many, a farm counting book that adds picture puzzle, and visual humor to the challenge. All animals have black and white fur. As they are added, you must look closely to find the different species to count.

Michigan Weather: Why so crazy?

Mon, 09/13/2010 - 2:16pm by annevm

Many of us who have lived in Michigan for a while know the old saying, "If you don't like the weather, just wait 10 minutes and it will change." But do we know how it all happens, Michigan weather? I know I don't, which is why I'm intrigued by the author event coming up 7:30-9 p.m. Sept. 14 (Tuesday) at U-M Hatcher Library. Paul Gross, author of Extreme Michigan Weather: The Wild World of the Great Lakes State will explain our oppressive heat, harsh snowstorms, and fickle tornadoes. Gross is meteorologist and executive producer of weather at the NBC affiliate WDIV-TV in Detroit, and also consults with Michigan lawyers as a meteorology expert. His book was published by University of Michigan Press.

Bird Hills and Kuebler Langford Nature Areas

Mon, 09/13/2010 - 12:18pm by Caser

Bird Hills Nature Area is the 161-acre wooded haven for some of the most beautiful hiking trails in Ann Arbor. It is also a well loved sanctuary for myriad creatures and plants, and it's only a mile north of the downtown area. This place is spectacular in the fall. Dozens of fellow runners and hikers explore these trails every day, though they might not know about the smaller but equally varied terrain of Kuebler Langford Park, which borders Bird Hills to the east of the Beechwood Drive entrance.

Kuebler Langford Nature Area is marked by a creek-cut ravine that runs down the middle of the park, with trails heading up either side. The trails are hard packed dirt with a few picnic areas along the way where cleared out woods make for magical little harbors. On the M-14 side of the park, the soil changes to loose sand and prairie-like vegetation, which provides a wholly different experience just a few hundred feet from the woods. You'll find plenty of hills on your hike, though none too steep to climb with an ordinary pair of running shoes or hiking boots. Enjoy!

Discover some of the other outdoor gems in Ann Arbor by checking out Riverwalks Ann Arbor, Along the Huron, or Footloose in Washtenaw, or see our Events page for the Take A Hike! events through the AADL.

Kid Bits - Animal Rescue

Mon, 09/13/2010 - 11:35am by ryanikoglu

Susan Stauffacher, who wrote two of my all-time favorite stories Donuthead and Donutheart, is writing a delightful new series that involves animal rescue. This series will likely appeal to kids in grades 2-5.
The Animal Rescue Team is three generations of mixed cultures, who respond to the needs of wildlife getting mixed up in an urban setting.
You learn detailed information about wildlife rescue. Stauffacher is a natural storyteller with a knack for folding complex feelings and information into natural stories.
For those who enjoy the Animal Ark series, and are ready for more “meat” in the tales. Titles available are:
Animal Rescue Team: Gator On The Loose!, and
Animal Rescue Team: Special Delivery!.
Both stories are read aloud in recorded version Animal Rescue Team Collection. Vol. 1.

Literacy Series -- Nature Literacy

Fri, 09/10/2010 - 5:50pm by MariaK

Naturalistic Intelligence is the most recently identified of Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences. A rather under-appreciated form of intelligence in our technological modern world, Naturalistic Intelligence consists of the ability to recognize patterns, relationships and categories in nature, essentially, the ability to “read” nature and be “nature literate.”

Today, we tend to live farther and farther from nature, although research suggests that access to nature, and even dirt itself may be vital to human health and happiness. Few would argue that nature is essential to human survival -- and we need nature literate people to give us more balanced ways of living on earth.

So what can you do to foster nature literacy? Here are some easy (and fun!) suggestions:

1. Visit a natural history museum: U of M’s Exhibit Museum of Natural History is a great local resource – and guess what? We have a Museum Adventure Pass!

2. Go on a nature walk: Ann Arbor has many excellent parks available for this purpose – Matthei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum for example. And look! We have a Museum Adventure Pass for them. Also, if you act fast, you can take a hike at Greenview Park with us on September 13th.

3. Feed the birds: What better way to observe wildlife than in the comfort of your own backyard? Check out The Bird Lover's Ultimate How-To Guide for some bird feeding and watching tips. To see more birds, and other types of wildlife, too, check out the Howell Nature Center. Oh yeah, and we have a Museum Adventure Pass for them, too.

4. Read about famous naturalists: Like Jane Goodall, George Washington Carver, Rachel Carson, John Muir and Charles Darwin, to name a few.

5. Explore nature yourself!
Try these books for tips:
Hands on Nature
Sharing Nature With Children
Teaching Kids to Love the Earth

Author Birthdays: Oliver, Diamond

Fri, 09/10/2010 - 5:16pm by marshd

September 10th marks the birthday of two American writers: Mary Oliver and Jared Diamond.

Mary Oliver is an American poet, now 75 years old and still writing. She has written many books of poems, including American Primitive, which won her a Pulitzer Prize in 1984. Parts of her collection The Leaf and the Cloud were included in The Best American Poetry books of 1999 and 2000.

The collection she published in 2006, called Thirst, has been praised by many reviews, including one from Booklist, which stated: "Oliver, one of the country's most popular and highly awarded poets, presents her credo at the outset of her newest collection: My work is loving the world. The poems that follow are what readers expect from Oliver, beautifully tempered lyrics celebrating the splendor of the living world."

Author Jared Diamond is a scientist, currently at UCLA. He has won many awards for some of his books, including the dual-winning The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution And Future Of The Human Animal. This book focuses on inter-species domination (like humans over chimpanzees), as well as humans domination over other humans.

Diamond won a Pulitzer for his book Guns, Germs, and Steel: the Fates of Human Societies, which discusses Eurasian civilizations' abilities to conquer through the advantages of geography rather than biology; the book was also made into a documentary by National Geographic. Almost all of his books focus on domination in some way, except for Why Is Sex Fun?: The Evolution Of Human Sexuality, which explains the seemingly peculiar aspects and evolution of human sexuality.

Hidden Gems: Books Unjustly Dusty #7

Thu, 09/09/2010 - 2:40pm by cecile

A new Titanic expedition organized by RMS Titanic Inc. and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is taking place right now. They plan to map the 3-mile long debris field, inventory the thousands of artifacts remaining on the sea floor and build highly-detailed 3D maps of the hulk. You can follow their tweets at Twitter-RMS Titanic.

The new expedition happens just in time to renew interest in these classics that have become just a bit dusty.

Titanic: An Illustrated History is a beautifully done book that takes you from the construction of the Titanic at Belfast’s shipyard of Harland & Wolff to the eerie photographs of the tragic wreckage 13,000 feet below on the Atlantic floor.

Titanic: The Last Great Images which Robert Ballard describes as a book with the "cleanest, clearest images... all in high definition."

This unjustly dusty entry Titanic is a bit of an oddity. Filmed in 1943 it is a German World War II propaganda retelling of the sinking of the Titanic.

Reading in Silence: Deaf Memoirs

Wed, 09/08/2010 - 11:20am by darla

This month's Library Journal magazine shares an idea that I'd like to share with you, our AADL blog readers. Check out the following titles for a glimpse inside the world of the deaf:
What's That Pig Outdoors? : A Memoir of Deafness, written by retired Chicago Sun-Times book editor Henry Kisor, recalls his life of reliance on lip-reading for communication (including his son's question "What's that big loud noise?" which he misread as "What's that pig outdoors?").
Hands of My Father : A Hearing Boy, His Deaf Parents, and The Language of Love, by Myron Uhlberg, recalls his experience growing up in 1940s Brooklyn, NY and the challenges he faced as translator for his family.
The Unheard : A Memoir of Deafness and Africa, written by Josh Swiller, describes his experience as a deaf Peace Corps volunteer in Zambia.
Winning Sounds Like This : A Season with the Women's Basketball Team at Gallaudet, the World's Only University for the Deaf follows the 1999-2000 Washington D.C. team, who define themselves as athletes first and deaf second, as they made history by defeating the country's top team.

September Books to Film

Tue, 09/07/2010 - 5:46pm by muffy

The American is adapted from Martin Booth's A Very Private Gentleman.

As an assassin, Jack (George Clooney) is constantly on the move and always alone. After a job in Sweden ends badly, Jack holes up in a small medieval town nestled in the mountains of Abruzzo. While there, Jack takes on an assignment to construct a weapon for a mysterious buyer, accepts the friendship of a local priest, and pursues a torrid liaison with a beautiful prostitute, Clara.

Julia Roberts stars in this big-budget, glossy, Hollywood adaptation of Elizabeth Gilbert's runaway bestseller Eat, Pray, Love : one woman's search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia. It traces the author's decision to quit her job and travel the world for a year after suffering a midlife crisis and divorce - a journey that took her to three places in her quest to explore her own nature and learn the art of spiritual balance.

Flipped is the deligthful adaptation of Wendelin Van Draanen's teen romantic comedy of errors, told in alternating chapters by two fresh, funny new voices.

The first time she saw him, she flipped. The first time he saw her, he ran. That was the second grade, but not much has changed by the seventh. She says: “My Bryce. Still walking around with my first kiss.” He says: “It’s been six years of strategic avoidance and social discomfort.” But in the eighth grade everything gets turned upside down. And just as he’s thinking there’s more to her than meets the eye, she’s thinking that he’s not quite all he seemed.