Fun Fantasy

Tue, 09/12/2006 - 12:15pm by ryanikoglu

Are you about 10 years old and like to read Fantasy? Guess what? I REALLY liked the following titles so I'm letting you know!!
Brainboy And The Deathmaster by Tor Seidler, follows Darryl, a twelve-year-old techno-genius, who finds himself the star of his very own life-threatening video game. YIKES!
The Skull Of Truth by Bruce Coville, follows Charlie, a sixth-grader with a compulsion to tell lies. Charlie acquires a mysterious skull that forces its owner to tell only the truth. Hoo BOY!
You might like 'em too!

ACT / SAT Test Practice 10:30-Noon Saturday, September 30

Fri, 09/08/2006 - 5:56pm by K.C.

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Signed up to take the SAT and/or the ACT soon? There’s an online library database, LearningExpress Library, that can help you get ready. Join us in the Pittsfield Computer Training Center to take a practice test that will be scored and tell you how you did.

Need test taking tips? The library has helpful books like Zen in the Art of the SAT: How to Think, Focus, and Achieve Your Highest Score.

Fabulous Fiction Firsts #32

Tue, 09/05/2006 - 7:01pm by muffy

Playwright and actress Pamela Gien was commissioned by Random House to turn her 2001 Obie-Award for Best Play The Syringa Tree into a novel.

Set in her homeland of South Africa during the turbulent 1960s, Gien tells the story of 6 year-old Lizzie, a child of privilege, her Xhosa nanny, Salamina, and their fierce devotion to each other. As the meaning of apartheid unfolds, Lizzie takes her worries to sit in the welcoming arms of the large lilac-blooming syringa tree in her backyard, trying to make sense of the violence, the injustice and racism amidst the intoxicating beauty of the land.

Moving and illuminating, it will interest readers of social issues and modern history.

Fabulous Fiction Firsts #31

Tue, 09/05/2006 - 6:56pm by muffy

Theodore "Teddy" Ruzak of Knoxville, TN is the bumbling but determined detective in Richard Yancey's entertaining mystery series debut The Highly Effective Detective.

Overweight and unschooled, Teddy quits his job as a night watchman to set up his own detective agency with a small inheritance. For his first case, Teddy is hired to track down a hit-and-run goose-killer. Before long, however, the case turns decidedly homicidal.

Endearing and colorful characters, suspenseful plots twists and witty dialogues make for a fun read. Highly recommended. Starred review in Publishers' Weekly. Definitely for fans of Monk and Columbo series.

Time for a couple short stories before SCHOOL starts

Sat, 09/02/2006 - 7:57am by Bertha

Treat yourself to a couple short stories before the school assigned book list comes your way. Every Man for Himself: Ten Short Stories, with 'Jump Away' by Rene Saldana, Jr. is a good place to start. In this story, a bully rounds up half-a-dozen outsiders, weak targets, whatever you want to call them, to jump off Jenson's Bridge just because Mike, the bully, says so. The hero of the story does some thinking when he's poised ready to jump from the bridge. What he comes up with is brilliant! A few other authors in the collection are ones you'll know, Walter Dean Myers, David Lubar, and a graphic-comic in the mix by Craig Thompson.

Munch Masterpieces Found by Police

Thu, 08/31/2006 - 4:51pm by K.C.

Police believe they have recovered The Scream and Madonna, two modern masterpieces, by artist Edvard Munch stolen from the Munch Museum in August, 2004. Both paintings were in better-than-expected condition, police said at a news conference.

“The pictures came into our hands this afternoon after a successful police action,” said Iver Stensrud, head of the police investigation. “All that remains is an expert examination to confirm with 100 percent certainty, that these are the original paintings. We believe these are the originals,” Stensrud said. Read the rest of the AP story Police recover stolen Munch masterpieces.

Sign up for September Book Group (Gr. 9-12)

Thu, 08/31/2006 - 4:01pm by K.C.

Call 327-8301 to register for the September 11 book group and receive a free copy of Next Door Lived a Girl by Stefan Kiesbye. Read the book and meet on the 11th from 6:30-8 p.m. in the 4th floor conference room of the Downtown Library. Refreshments will be served. Meet the author, Stefan Kiesbye, 7 p.m. Tuesday, September 12 at the 2nd Tuesday presentation in the 4th Floor Board Room of the Downtown Library.

NOTE: This is the first in a series of monthly author events and related book discussions. You can receive Community Resource credits from the Ann Arbor Public Schools for participating – contact Jeff Kass at jeff@neutral-zone.org for more details.

ArmChair Travels - Sicily

Wed, 08/23/2006 - 11:49am by ryanikoglu

What a way to travel and never leave the comforts of home! Every chapter in The Stone Boudoir: Travels Through the Hidden Villages of Sicily by Theresa Maggio can be read as a short story about a different village on the island of Sicily. The villages are unique from each other and the residents are memorably "alive". My favorite "visit" was to an ancient (and still inhabited) home built into granite walls with stone ledge balconies overlooking the valley below. Of course, the boudoir was in stone. I swear I felt the Medite

ArmChair Travels - Pakistan

Wed, 08/23/2006 - 11:45am by ryanikoglu

Schools for Girls in remote Pakistan and Afghanistan? Built and thriving with the full support of village leaders? For more than the past fifteen years? Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin is the gripping true story of how this project started and continues in spite of wars, illiteracy, devastation and poverty in the region. Read more about Mortenson's efforts at Mortenson's official website. Mortenson was in Pakistan when his driver/bodyguard reported "A village called New York" had just been bombed. The historic event of 9/11 plays a part in this hopeful story of fundamental humanity and survival.

AADL-GT Round 1 Results: TORTURIS EXUVIAS EUNT

Tue, 08/22/2006 - 9:16pm by eli

This past weekend's tournaments included the AADL-GT 2006 Season Opener, and to the Turtles did go the spoils as the Savage Brothers and Turtle Clan flew to the top of the season leadboard, with [gtplayer:143] taking first place in both the single-player and team Mario Kart events, [gtplayer:146] making his way to the finals 3 times, and both of them leading their Clan to victory in the first ever Clan Battle. Read on for full details.