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Nikki Grimes will be in Kalamazoo on May 9. She will visit local schools and will be at the Powell Branch at 6 pm that evening. Powell, Eastwood and Central will have Pizza and Pages book discussions for Tween/Teens in her honor. If you are interested come in and pick up your free books and get reading.
On April 13 at Powell at 4:30 the Pizza and Pages discussion will be on One Last Word. On April 26 at 6 pm the discussion over pizza will be on Bronx Masquerade at Eastwood. On May 4 at 4:30, Central will have Pizza and Pages and discuss the book Words withWings. The books are available now.
I hope to see you at one of our Pizza and Pages or at Powell on May 9 for Nikki Grimes' visit.]]>
Brainspace is a Parents' Choice Gold Award winner that blends print and digital content. I downloaded the free Blippar app on to my device and scanned an image from the magazine. The video content (making and demonstrating Oobleck) loaded and displayed in the app as if it was playing in the magazine where the still image is. What a cool way to utilize augmented reality to expand upon an index of great content (the print magazine itself).
Check out some of the resources available from Talk, Read and Sing!
You can develop your own recipes by experimenting with what happens if you add another teaspoon of lemon juice. Kids learn about measurement, cause and effect, procedure, cooking skills, and much more. And who knows, this fun project might become a family heirloom. Keep it simple, give it a try, and have fun!]]>
Your library's picture book collections are now organized into Picture Book Neighborhoods. If you're looking for books about cars, trucks, boats, etc, you'll find them all together in the Things that Go neighborhood with a red spine label. Books with yellow spine labels are Concept books. They're all about letters, numbers, opposites, and other basic concepts. Other neighborhoods are:
Come visit our neighborhoods at any Kalamazoo Public Library location!
photo by Judi Rambow]]>
Come by and visit the Alma Powell Branch to view this great show.
Each of the twenty original fables is one page with an accompanying illustration.We still have a few copies available so come in to the Central Library, sign up for Bookworms and get a copy of the book, and then join us to discuss on Thursday, July 23rd.
Sonya Hollins, who had helped Deacon Ryan get his book published, joined the group. Sonya talked about the self-publishing. She encouraged everyone to think about telling his or her story. Sonya says that everyone has a story inside.]]>
We have all heard of the benefits of being stress free, but now organizations and employers are becoming more aware of the rewards of a stress free environment. The improvements in productivity, being more focused, health benefits, less absenteeism and fewer distractions are all incentives for mindfulness in the workplace.
Mr. Nelson talked about being focused, attentive and more disciplined and controlled; being emotionally balanced; and understanding negative emotions. He took us through a Three Step Breathing Space and other mindfulness training exercises.
I greatly appreciated learning ways to set aside just a few moments or minutes to focus and bring balance to my work day. Thanks to ONEplace@kpl.
This new event for 6th-8th graders set the bar high for the future with near perfect scores and contagious reading enthusiasm. Teen Services would like to thank the Friends of KPL for providing a mini grant opportunity to sponsor this event. Each team received a set of books to keep, Jones Soda and a Bookbug gift card to fuel their love of reading.
Congratulations go out to our final battle teams:
Plans are already underway for the 2015 Three Book Battle. Thank you KPL Teen Services, the Friends of KPL, TBB participants and the audience for making our first Three Book Battle one for the record books!
Our intent is for kids to have fun reading the books and participating in a team activity. The ten books are carefully chosen to reflect our diverse world and to show characters successfully solving problems, contributing to their communities, and learning that people are more alike than they are different.
The first Challenge, in 1994, featured 19 teams from Lincoln, North Christian, and MLK Westwood; the winning team was the "Bookworm Warriors" from MLK Westwood. This year we had 129 teams from 17 schools! The District Final Challenge featured teams from Edison, Arcadia, Prairie Ridge, Spring Valley, and Northglade. The champion was the "Crazy Cougars" team from Prairie Ridge. Thanks to the students, parents, teachers, principals, and coaches for another successful year of books and reading!
Over this summer, librarians will be reading and choosing the books for the 2015 Global Reading Challenge. Team applications will be accepted in October and the book titles will be announced in December.
This all happened at KPL in Kalamazoo, Michigan before the civil rights movement. As a black female Mrs. Powell was a pioneer and Kalamazoo Public Library was a trailblazer. And we keep right on blazing because this year KPL will be the first library in Michigan to have its own antiracism team. We have begun selecting a team and we will begin training and working towards institutional equality.
Yes, as I said, it is truly an honor to be a part of this historical establishment.
As more dads take on caregiver responsibilities, we are glad to see more parenting books written just for them. A Dad's Guide to Childcare is one that I like. It's practical, has clear photos that illustrate step-by-step processes, and even addresses difficult situations that may come up.
As part of the renovation of the Central Library Children's Room, we've added some more Parenting books to our shelves. If you're looking for books about parenting children from birth to 5 years, you can now find those books in the Children's Room. We'd be glad to help you find the books that are just right for your family.
A parent asked me if the books she reads to her child for 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten need to be library books. They do not. While Kalamazoo Public Library certainly has many thousands of books we can all share together with our preschool aged children, you might find yourself reading a book aloud to your child that you found at the Friends bookstore or that was passed along to you or purchased elsewhere. Of course this is just great! And the way you read the books is also completely up to you. Some books are made to be sung to your child. Other books benefit from the animal sounds you supply. There is a whole world of fun to be had reading to our children.
It's easy to sign up at the any KPL location. Learn more about 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten at KPL and continue down the road to Kindergarten. And if you're in the mood for a fun read aloud that will help you think ahead to Springtime, check out 999 Frogs Wake Up.
We're in the brand new Story Place this morning,
We're reading stories and we're having fun,
We're glad you came to Story Time this morning,
I hope that you will want to sing along!
Our collection isn't accessible at the moment, but don't forget that all the genealogy databases can be accessed from any of the computers in the Central Library and the branches, and there are many wonderful local history and genealogy books available in the circulating collection.
September is National Library Card Sign-up Month! Check out the local businesses supporting our efforts to spread the word about the most powerful card in your wallet - your library card!
Save the Date
Library-Con: Friday, October 4 at Central. You won't want to miss this! Have you heard of Comic-Con? Come check out our spin on it at Library-Con, a one-day convention where you can dress up as your favorite character from popular media (books, movies, music, etc.) Stop by KPL Central in costume anytime between 11 am and 7 pm and get your very own Geek photo taken. Photos will be posted online for public voting October 7-9. For the little ones, the Children's Room is offering mask-making fun. It's also Art Hop night!
Fall Reading
If you haven't heard the news, KPL released the book titles for 2014 Reading Together. Nope, that's not a typo, for the first time in the history of Reading Together, two books by two authors have been chosen for discussion, and they are sure to whet your appetite! Pick up your copies of The American Way of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields, and the Dinner Table by Tracie McMillan and Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer by Novella Carpenter today, and get prepared for the best Reading Together yet!
Save a Life - Give Blood
KPL is hosting a blood drive with the American Red Cross on Tuesday, September 3.
Used Book Sale!
Don't miss the fantastic bargains at the Friends Annual Fall Bag-of-Books sale! Saturday, September 14, 9 am - 3:30 pm.
September Program & Event Highlights
For the Adults
Calling all music lovers, September is your month! Join us for the musical talents of Chris Richards + the Subtractions on Friday, September 18. Feeling a little luck of the Irish? Come for an enchanting evening of Irish music and story telling at O'Duffy's Irish Pub with authors Erin Hart & Paddy O'Brien on Thursday, September 10. GLAMA jama your string instruments on Friday, September 4 then GLAMA jama your vocal chords with a community sing along on Thursday, September 10.
For our bookworms and history buffs, delve into the tragedy of the 1950 crash of NWA flight 2501 in Lake Michigan with Valerie Van Heest, director of the Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates and the award winning author of Fatal Crossing: Solving the Mystery of NWA Flight 2501 on Friday, September 11.
Like birds? Explore our feathered friends via poetry with Robert Haight on Thursday, September 17 at Central.
Veg out with KPL and Vegan Gal Jill Ovnik on Thursday, September 24 at Eastwood. Ovnik will share her recipes for a happy and healthy life! Includes a cooking demo, recipe sharing and of course, taste testing!
Kiddy Korner
Gourdness gracious, the Lord of the Gourd is returning to KPL to share his jaunty jack-o-lantern designs with his hands-on, how-to presentations. Join us September 16-18.
LEGO your creativity at LEGO at the Library September 3, 7, 18 & 21st. We provide the LEGO's, you provide the design. Kids and their adults are welcome.
Celebrate back to school at Eastwood on Thursday, September 17, 5:30-7:30 pm. Robin Nott and friends will get toes tapping and hands clapping with great music and entertainment, while the Fresh Food Fairy brings fun with food. Refreshments will be provided.
Tween & Teen Tidbits
Got a tween or teen who is less than thrilled about returning to school? Curb the complaining and have them cartoon with Kenjji, create some fun projects with Washi, duct and packing tape at Tape It or plan programs and projects at T.A.B.
It's also never too early for them to begin thinking about college and how to prepare for it. Join us at one of the many sessions offered of Think College this September. The Kalamazoo Area College Action Network (KACAN) will share their insight on accessing information and preparing for college.
Calling all Ally Condie fans! Meet the author of the New York Times bestselling series Matched. Mark your calendars for November 7 at 6:30 pm at our Central location. Book signing and refreshments included. Book sales courtesy of Bookbug.
This is only a taste of what's to come this fall, for more fun @KPL, visit our calendar. We look forward to seeing you!
September is Library Card Sign-up Month - a time when the American Library Association and libraries across the country remind parents and caregivers that a library card is the most important school supply of all.
Since 1987, Library Card Sign-up Month has been held each September to mark the beginning of the school year. For students, a library card is their most essential school supply. A library card proides access to e-books, online homework help and a multitude of online research tools and resources for their studies. A library card at KPL also means access to computers and free Internet access. For those without Internet access at home, a library card may mean the difference between failing and having a successful school year.
Library Card Sign-up Month is also a great time to share your first library card story with friends, family and colleagues who don't have their own library card. Share with them the true value of libraries, and tell them what your library means to you! More than just books, today's libraries offer DVDs, CDs, e-books, music downloads, free Internet access and computer use as well as access to hundreds of online resources.
If you don't have a library card, what are you waiting for? Get signed up today!
What is your first library card story? Share it with us in the comments below, and we may feature your story on the homepage of our website during the month of September!
What makes a Family Place Library special? Here are the core components:
Here at KPL, we're just getting started on implementing Family Place Libraries. One of the most exciting projects is expanding the space in Children's Room at Central Library so that we have more room to play! Soon, you'll see a brand-new Activity Room open, the Story Room will lose one of its walls, and some things will be re-arranged. We're excited about this time of growth and hope that you'll be a part of our development as a Family Place Library!
Speaking of dust, on the first floor you may hear some construction noises coming from the staff areas. In preparation for the expansion of the Children's Room, we are moving things around and consolidating spaces. Advances in technology and process improvements have helped use less space to circulate more materials. This frees up some square footage adjacent to the Children's Room, which can be annexed to provide more activity space for children. So those noises you hear will become a fun new space in just a few months. Stay tuned.]]>
Using links like these, which are all vetted by the American Library Association, is one way for parents to sort through the immensity of the internet in search of quality sites for kids. Take a look at some of these and let us know what you think.]]>
Have you seen very many Monarch butterflies this summer? I have not. I'm told Monarchs have had a difficult time migrating northward. Maybe you'll come to the library to check in on the chrysalis and borrow some books about butterflies.
Here's the website: http://childrensbookalmanac.com.]]>
If you're a urban fiction lover or like teen books that are full of life challenges then please join us to meet and hear from our guest Earl Sewell.
We know that playing with music can be a powerful and enjoyable tool to learn about the world and to develop reading readiness skills. All children's programs at KPL incorporate music in accessible ways. Musical Storytime at KPL features a special musical guest every month. Kalamazoo Public Library has lots of recorded music for children available to borrow as well and additional resources if you would like more ideas about playing with music with your children.
What are you doing to celebrate Earth Day?
Join us for the next Musical Storytime on Monday, April 8, at 6:30 pm.
Staff from many departments helped out: Spanish-language help from several library staff members, a great visual display of photos created by Local History staff, Facilities Management crews who set up, tore down, and cleaned up everything at the end of the night. Staff at the public desks did a great job giving directional assistance and helping families feel welcome here.
I know that an event like this can seem disruptive in a library, but it really does help us introduce new families to KPL so that they see the library as a place that has some relevance for them. It's also an opportunity for us to strengthen our connections to the principal and teachers at a school. We had a great time last night and are already making plans for next year's event.
Here's how the entry ages will gradually change over the next few years:
• 2013-2014 School Year – at least 5 years of age on November 1, 2013.
• 2014-2015 School Year - at least 5 years of age on October 1, 2013.
• 2015-2016 School Year - at least 5 years of age on September 1, 2013.
Your library has lots of cookbooks for children and their adults to use together. Some popular favorites include the Green Eggs and Ham Cookbook, the Little House Cookbook, the Around the World Cookbook, and Vegan Lunch Box among many others. Chop Chop is an excellent magazine about cooking for kids and families. Share kitchen tasks with the kids for memorable times in the kitchen and an even more delicious dinner.
As for many families, our family computer has become a center for listening to music. It can be difficult not to be distracted by the screen when it's time for an impromptu dance party. I like to turn the screen off or, for a more festive effect, drape a tapestry over the screen. Dance parties with kids work better when the music is heard, not seen.
It's always a good time for a dance party! Moving with music as a family is a stress buster and a brain boost at the same time. While I don't actually know that dancing with your kids in the living room boosts brain power, I do know that you can connect your child to music that's important to you - like your favorite dad rock on Freegal - and beat the winter blahs. When you and your kids are dancing to music together, you're enjoying music, movement, and each other's company.
Reading with our children is something we know that we should do to help them become great readers. But it's not always evident how best to go about it. As parents we often hear the message to read to our babies but if we are new to parenting, we might wonder what reading to a baby should look like and what benefit it is to the child or the parent. Over the next few weeks, I want to give a few tips for reading to young children, especially the things that helped me as a new parent. This will be a series of posts on six pre-reading skills children need to develop with some tips on how to practice each skill at home with babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.
Our strategic priority is "Creating Young Readers" at KPL and we want parents and caregivers to have the tools they need to be their child's first and best teacher! Stay tuned for more early literacy resources from our library staff!
In researching for the trip, I used many library resources. I studied Spanish through the help of the Pimsleur Method, an excellent process for learning a language. (Carve out 30 minutes a day to 'escuchar y repetir' – listen and repeat – perhaps during your daily commute. After several days, you have the beginnings of a new language under your belt!) I also checked out a few Spanish language instruction books, so I could begin to recognize the words I was learning to say. MeLCat came through, for me. When I was ready to move on to a different Pimsleur level, I requested my next set of CDs via interlibrary-loan through MeLCat.
I watched movies about South America or set in Ecuador and practiced listening to Spanish, while viewing the gorgeous scenery. I devoured books about the Galapagos Islands. The Friends of the Library bookstore was my friend, too. There I purchased a gently-used Frommers Guide to South America, at a bargain basement price.
I also gathered information about the people and culture of Ecuador through the CultureGrams online database. (Note: anyone with a KPL library card may access this from home. Please ask at the Reference Desk, 553-7801, for more information.)
Using the Value Calculator, I figure the library saved me around $200 for this process alone. What trip would you like to plan? How can KPL help you save while you research your next travel experience?
Thursday, December 27
Yummy New Year's Hats
Kawanzaa Celebration
Friday, December 28
Duct Tape DIY
Wednesday, January 2
Winter Crafts
Candy Craze
Winter Warm Up - drop in
Reading with Bailey
Thursday, January 3
Thumbprint Art Class
Fit Families
Make a Calendar
Saturday, January 5
LEGO @ the Library
First Saturday at the Library
We hope to continue to meet with authors virtually at KPL programs! It's a great way to connect with authors and perhaps bring more to Kalamazoo than we otherwise could. The next chance to participate in a virtual author visit will be October 18,when Kazu Kibuishi, author of the very popular Amulet series "visits" the Van Deusen room!
How do we use the Local Organization Directory at the library? We refer patrons to local services, share contact info from organizations, create lists of places in town that offer certain services, and more.
To access the directory, click Local Information from the Popular section on our home page, and choose "Search Local Organizations." Do a keyword search, or search by Name, Subject or Nonprofit Status. Note that there are several underlined subjects in each record. Click on one of those subjects to view all the other records with the same subject and find more services in the area.
If you're affiliated with a nonprofit organization, check out the ONEplace @ KPL web page to learn more about resources for nonprofits available at KPL.
Finally, if your organization isn't included in the directory, but you would like it to appear, please email me.
John has provided us with some great portraits as well as some scenic ones. This exhibit will be showing until late September.
Members of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society will be at the Oshtemo Library on Monday, July 16 at 3pm to talk with the public about the telescope, astronomy, and KAS. At 6pm they'll teach you how to use a variety of telescopes, including the library's Orion Star Blast. If you have an old telescope collecting dust, bring it in and they'll teach you how to use it! Then, on August 8, they'll host an observation session outside the Oshtemo Library.
Beginning Tuesday, July 17, the telescope may be checked out at the Oshtemo Branch Library for up to two weeks. You may place a hold on the telescope, but it can only be picked up at and returned to the Oshtemo Branch.
While anyone may attend the telescope workshop and observation session, please be aware that the telescope is available to Kalamazoo Public Library resident borrowers in good standing, who are at least 18 years old and have a valid license.
In this video, Michael German, senior policy counsel for national security and privacy for the ACLU's Washington Legislative Office, talks about the government's utilization of data mining for surveillance purposes.
Please visit Privacy Revolution to learn more about what you can do to protect your privacy.
The Kalamazoo Public Library is committed to protecting your privacy. The library does not release or disclose your personal information or library records without your written consent, or a court order. Please refer to the library's policy on the disclosure of registration and circulation records for more detailed information. As always, you may contact a librarian to learn more about this issue.
Why is privacy important to you? Who do you trust with your information?
Baby Talk meets weekly from 1:30 to 3:30 every Wednesday as well. We invite families with babies up to one year old to join Connie to network with other Moms and share the joys and trials of caring for a new baby. Again storytimes are offered on the third Wednesday of the month.
Come join us for some good old fashioned fun!
I first learned about Book Spine Poetry from the blog of another librarian who works with children in Michigan. You can view a gallery of poems on his website here. What a creative way to celebrate poetry and have fun with books! Stop in and give it a try or try it at home and take a picture! Let me know what you come up with!
Vicki Fischer refers to herself as a story quilter. Her textile art quilts have been exhibited in galleries in Salt Lake City, Utah. She talked about what inspires her and the techniques used such as pin weaving. Inspiration for four of her quilts came from her experiences in Edo State Nigeria.
Bette Boulding, a former public school teacher is a utilitarian quilter. She shared with the enthusiastic audience an assortment of quilts such as tee shirts, recycled denim jeans, colorful African fabric prints and pictorial quilts. Her love and expertise in recycling items from dollies to men's suits and ties to create beautiful functional quilts was warmly received.
During the month of December, volunteers from the Oshtemo Grange bring a Mitten Tree to the Library with the thought that our patrons will decorate the tree with donations of mittens, gloves, hats and scarves which they then donate to local schools. Just as in past years our mitten tree was loaded with items. This year alone Oshtemo patrons donated 59 hats; 26 scarves; 120 pairs of mittens, 16 hat and mitten sets plus other warm items for a total of 227 pieces! Oshtemo Branch Library patrons pride themselves on knitting for the tree throughout the year and their beautiful handiwork adds to the special beauty of the Mitten Tree.
This year a Daisy Troop visited the Oshtemo Branch Library for a tour and storytime. We of course had fun reading mitten stories and I shared two of my very favorite ones. Everyone should enjoy Knitty Kitty by David Elliott and The Missing Mitten Mystery by Steven Kellogg. The highlight of the visit was when each Daisy member decorated the Mitten Tree by adding their mitten donations.
What a wonderful tradition to carry on by the partnering with the Library and the Grange. We look forward to next December.
On March 27 we will be diving into our next book Gunz and Roses by Keisha Ervin.
Please join us at 6:00 for good discussion, fellowship and refreshments.
The Mickeys team took the audience (including Mom and Dad Mickey!) through a sixteen-song set, which included plenty of original material from their first two CDs (Finding Our Way and Walk Along), plus a sample from a soon to be released third. Great stuff! They included a cover of Tom Petty's "Wildflower," but their super-strong original material was definitely the highlight. Learn more about the Mickeys on their website and hear some samples of their recordings on Facebook and MySpace. Of course you'll also find their complete KPL performance linked on our Concert Archives page.
Going back a month, KPL capped off another amazing year of concerts with a December 14th appearance by award-winning singer/songwriter Shelagh Brown. Shelagh is quickly making a name for herself as an up-and-coming country star. She not only earned a Readers' Choice Award from the Kalamazoo Gazette in 2011, but won a nationwide contest to sing a duet with country star Josh Gracin on his latest release. Shelagh's set at KPL featured highlights of her own work, plus a timely version of "Let it Snow." Catch highlights of her KPL performance in our Concert Archives, and watch for more great things from Shelagh in the very near future.
Coming up next… be SURE to catch our February concert, featuring Jerome Holloway, he's an AMAZING vocalist and musician. If you like his contemporaries like say Ben Harper or Jack Johnson, you're going to love this concert. Jerome's voice is smooth as silk and his songwriting is superb. Visit his website and listen to a few samples (very generously, you can download more than a half-dozen complete songs!), you won't be disappointed!
Hope to see you there!
My new favorite is Chop Chop. It's a family magazine filled with kid-friendly tips and articles for healthy cooking and eating. I love to cook and have already started sharing kitchen time with my young daughter. She is so interested in everything we are doing right now that it only makes sense to involve her in one of our favorite family activities. Chop Chop gives me simple and fresh ideas in each issue!
http://www.catalog.kpl.gov/uhtbin/cgisirsi/x/0/0/5?searchdata1=chop+chop{PER}&library=BRANCHES&language=ANY&format=ANY&item_type=ANY&location=ANY&match_on=KEYWORD&item_1cat=ANY&item_2cat=ANY&sort_by=-PBYR ]]>
In case you missed them the first time around, we're holding both of these programs again in January. The hands-on eReader program will be at the Central library on Thursday, January 5 at 6:30. The eBook downloading how-to program will be at the Oshtemo branch on Tuesday, January 10 at 6:00.
If you'd like some one-on-one assistance with the downloading process, stop by the eBook Help Desk at the Central library.
While anyone may attend these programs, please be aware that KPL's eBooks are available only to KPL Resident Area borrowers.
The highlight of Summer Reading was of course KPL's amazing end-of-summer concert featuring The Verve Pipe. What a show! The band gave a terrific all-ages performance in Bronson Park on August 28th, and played a bunch of tunes from The Family Album, with a couple of classics thrown in for good measure. I'm honestly not sure who had more fun, the band or the crowd! If you missed it, the band was kind enough to let us post the entire show on our Concert Archives page!
Back in the Van Deusen Room, Joe Wang and the Test Pilots pulled off a great show in September with a full set of originals and a couple of cool covers. (When was the last time you heard a live band play a Vapors tune?!) Typically an electric band, the library setting allowed "Joe" (Peter George, Tom Cross, Mark Kalinowski, Tony Nuismer) to stretch out with a rare acoustic set that let their excellent songwriting abilities shine through. As the JWTP Twitter feed says, "The KPL gig has been immortalized on YouTube.. there's no denying it." You can see and hear the entire show via our Concert Archives page! …And if you get a chance to see them play live, do it—you won't be disappointed.
Midnight Cattle Callers
One of my favorite shows of the series was an October performance by Gifts or Creatures. You might remember that Brandon and Bethany Foote were a highlight of KPL's Earth Week Celebration at the Oshtemo Branch Library last April. For our 55th live show, the husband-wife duo returned to the Van Deusen Room with some help from good friends Joshua Keller, Ty Forquer, and Ian Gorman. They worked their way through more than a dozen homespun originals, before label-mates Laurel Premo and Michael Beauchamp (Red Tail Ring) added vocal harmonies to the set-ending version of "I Shall Be Released." If you like truly inspired Michigan-rooted songwriting, Brandon and Bethany are two of the best! See and hear the full performance on our Concert Archives page.
November brought even more amazing talent to KPL. West Michigan-based Midnight Cattle Callers (another personal favorite!) provided an evening of old-time, country, bluegrass, jazz and swing on November 16th. The following weekend, KPL participated in the Michigan Festival of Sacred Music, with inspired music and conversation by flutists Michael Chikuzen Gould (Japanese shakuhachi) and Juan Manuel Cruz (Native American flute). Art Hop on December 2nd featured a wonderful set by classical guitarist Jeff Dwarshuis.
Michael Chikuzen Gould
So what's next? Well... KPL's December concert, #59 in the series and our 20th this year (but who's counting?!) will be Kalamazoo's own up-and-coming country singer Shelagh Brown. Shelagh received an honorable mention in the 2011 Gazette Readers' Choice Awards, and won a nationwide contest to sing a duet with country superstar Josh Gracin. She has an amazing voice! Don't miss Shelagh's special KPL concert in the Van Deusen Room on Wednesday, December 14th!
And speaking of the holiday season, here's an idea... the works produced by these or any of our other fine local artists would make great gifts for anyone on your list! Think global, buy local!
Ho Ho Ho! Happy listening!
If you attended, you saw the wide array of artistic interpretations of the six banned or challenged books and heard emotional readings from all six of them. I heard several attendees whisper that they were surprised at the books, surprised that someone in some community had challenged that particular book.
Banned Books Art Contest Winners
The winners are listed on our website, the books are available in our collection... they aren't banned in Kalamazoo.
This annual event gives us pause to celebrate the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.
The word "reptile" produces many emotions in people. To say that most of these are not very positive would be an understatement. Young and old alike are fearful of most reptiles, but especially so of snakes, lizards, and alligators due to the perceived inherent danger that they present. In the extreme, some folks are even afraid of looking at color photos of some reptilians, and making them do so produces visible anxiety. However, a lot of these negative feelings are irrational and based on misconceptions.
Hoping to dispel some of the inaccuracies surrounding this class of cold-blooded beasties, the Eastwood Branch Library recently hosted a program titled "What is a Reptile?" It was presented by Jason Preslar from Naturally Wild; a reptile rescue group. Jason, his wife Lindsay, and their young daughter were on hand to show the 120 plus people in attendance some very cool reptile exemplars including a red-eared slider turtle, a savannah monitor from Africa, a young American alligator, an alligator snapping turtle
(which can grow up to a hefty 200 lbs. and live 150 to 200 years), a terrestrial continental tortoise, and a Columbian red tailed boa constrictor. Participants were encouraged to touch most of the animals using the two-finger method, and while some did, a few found the idea to be a little too close and personal. Nonetheless, everyone found the program to be fun, educational and very enjoyable.
"A huge thank you to the 100+ people that joined us for hands-on learning at the Eastwood Branch Library in Kalamazoo! What a fun afternoon to end the month of July!" — Naturally Wild
The second animal program took place in early August. "Animal Adaptations" was presented by Dale Smart from the Cranbrook Institute of Science Organization for Bat Conservation in Bloomfield Hills, MI. He started out by explaining that just about everything about an animal is some form of adaptation, designed to increase the chances of that animal's survival.
He then treated participants to some live animal examples. First was Mr. Ed, a 10 year old mega bat who sees in color, has a nose shaped oddly like that seen on horses with a bright yellow neck to boot! This particular bat is sensitive to noise, does not use echolocation , and is the largest bat to come from Africa. For contrast, Dale also brought along a big brown bat from Michigan, who does use sound waves to locate prey, hibernates 5 - 6 months out of the year and lives up to 40 years.
Next came Rocky, a very shy flying squirrel which can glide up to 200 ft. from tree to tree.
And finally, there was Autumn, the Great Horned Owl. She turned out to be a particular favorite of the audience; a gorgeous Michigan native species despite the fact that she was handicapped at an early age after contracting West Nile virus.
Since all these animals have an ability to fly (or glide as in Rocky's case), it's not surprising that time just flew by. The program came to an end and everyone departed enriched by what they had learned and satisfied by what they had seen.
Need more? Next Wednesday, August 24th, Graham Parsons hosts a singer/songwriter showcase with Michael Beauchamp at The Strutt during the Boogie Records Revival. Graham and the Go-Rounds are back at The Strutt on September 22nd. Check The Strutt website for details.
And speaking of The Strutt… if seeing the band play live isn't enough, you'll find recordings by Graham Parsons (with and without the Go-Rounds) and lots of other great local artists on the venue's own record label—not surprising since Go-Round Andy Catlin manages the Strutt Records studio in the basement of the café. You'll find Graham's peaceful "Migration" on The Strutt's "350" compilation, plus a full length release on Strutt Records entitled "Farmhand." Graham and the Go Rounds' have released a "Triple A-Side" single and a self-titled live album.
As for KPL's concert series, the fun continues in August when The Verve Pipe puts on a special family friendly concert in Bronson Park in support of their aptly titled new Family Album. Then back to Central Library for Joe Wang and the Test Pilots in September, Gifts or Creatures in October, and Midnight Cattle Callers in November. Stay tuned.
Everyone is looking forward to Powell's next Pizza and Pages!
Joe performed lots of songs from his new CD Let's Go Outside! including one, "Dreams of Flying", inspired by the Caldecott Honor book Hawk You're My Brother by Byrd Baylor.
Catch Joe Reilly the next time he's in town. You'll be glad you did!
After Bonnie acknowledged many of the people in the audience who contributed to the book in some way or another, the evening started with a reading of the first chapter which introduced the main protagonist of the novel, Margo. She is a character who possesses a tremendous amount of spirit and adventure that can only be found in the citizens of southwest Michigan. The reading was followed up with an informative and entertaining Q&A. Bonnie answered a variety of questions about the writing process as well as inspiration for the book. The over 160 in the crowd were treated to an education!
Most in the crowd agree that Once Upon A River deserves similar, if not more accolades than her previous book the National Book Award Finalist, American Salvage. If this novel is not on multiple "Best of 2011" lists I will be shocked! I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy of Once Upon A River in the mail a few months ago. After reading the first 50 pages, I turned to my wife and stated that it was the best books I had read in years. I then proceeded to neglect my family and friends until I finished the book. Check out a copy or place one on hold, but be sure to prepare your family for your absence because you will be floating down the river lost in an amazing book.
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Krumping is a highly popular inner city activity and, as you can see in this video, it does take talent.
The KonQuerors allowed the audience to participate in a dance routine. The kids loved it! They got up and moved. This was a great Family Program and we're hoping to have them back again!
Opening the show from the back of the room, Fischer belted out an a cappella adaptation of Mance Lipscomb's "Captain, Captain," which then led nicely into a Fischerized version of Howlin' Wolf's "Goin' Down Slow." Other standouts included covers of Blind Willie McTell's "Statesboro Blues" (made famous by the Allman Brothers), Taj Mahal's "Leaving Trunk," and Ray Charles' "Drown in My Own Tears." As a friend of mine in the audience said just before the show, "this place should be SRO... these guys are amazing!" I couldn't agree more.
Last February, The BMF Band participated in the 2011 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, and is currently working on a new recording, while looking at a full summer of touring throughout all corners of West Michigan. Check the band's website for full details, and be sure to catch them if you can – you won't be disappointed.
On July 20, KPL's 50th free concert will feature the return of Steppin' In It—the very same band that began the series for us back in 2008. And the fun certainly does not stop there… August includes performances by Joe Reilly, Graham Parsons & The Go Rounds, and a special summer-topping concert by The Verve Pipe! Check the KPL Concerts page for full details. Happy summer!
Highlighted was Adelaide the kookaburra, an exotic bird specimen from Australia. Considering that this was this feathered vocalist's first presentation outside zoo confines, she did wonderfully well, and everyone was appropriately impressed by her plumage and exceptionally calm demeanor. No stage fright here!
Also featured was a red-kneed tarantula from Central America, which evoked many "Ooh's" and "Aah's," as well as an occasional shriek, coming noticeably from a few of the younger attendees.
A Central African pancake tortoise named Flap Jack, as well as Scooter, a cute African pygmy hedgehog came next on the roster of Binder Park offerings.
And finally to wrap up the show, there was a special appearance by a striped boa constrictor which also hails from Central Africa. Program listeners were allowed to touch this one, and more than a few actually dared do so!
To sum up, this was a great program that was educational, entertaining and pleasing to both young and old.
P.S. Many more animal programs are scheduled at the Eastwood Branch Library this coming July and August for the entire family to enjoy. Please check them out on the online calendar. They're fun, free and make the library the happening summer place it's meant to be. See you there!
In 1990, Madcat joined guitarist and singer Shari Kane, "the most dangerous fingerstyle blues guitarist north of the Yazoo," to form Madcat & Kane. Since then, the Ann Arbor-based couple has toured extensively, playing at some of the most prestigious blues venues in the country. Then add two of Michigan's most versatile musicians to the mix, Mark Schrock and Mike Shimmin, and you have Madcat, Kane & Maxwell Street, an acoustic quartet of considerable power and finesse.
To be able to witness talent like this in our own fair city is a treat in and of itself, but to see them at the library—free of charge nonetheless—made last Friday an Art Hop to remember. The fast-paced set opened with a Charley Patton standard from the 1930s, "Moon Goin' Down," and rolled on through more than ninety minutes of Delta blues standards, trains songs and "Mississippi party music" by the likes of Furry Lewis, Walter Davis, Blind Boy Fuller, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, and others. "We like to dig deep, deep down," Ruth noted, "and find some of those old acoustic blues things that kinda' got lost and no one's doing them anymore… keep 'em goin'."
You can find lots of what they played at KPL on the quartet's latest CD, Madcat, Kane & Maxwell Street Live at the Creole Gallery, and you can download a podcast of the Art Hop show in the KPL Concert Archives.
"This is a gorgeous library," Shari adds. "I love Ann Arbor, but it was such a treat to come here… it's such a jewel of a city that you have here." Thanks, Shari, we think so, too—please come back and see us any time!
Kim then led an interactive drawing workshop wherein everyone had the opportunity to learn and practice some great drawing skills. Kids especially enjoyed this part - essentially a a small intro to drawing class for nearly fifty! Lots of nice drawings emerged from the Van Deusen room.
Kim created the art for The Juice Box Bully based on Kalamazoo's Woodward School for Technology and Research. Listen to Kim discuss how that real-life school influenced her illustrations.
For those of us who relish the instrumental side of Celtic-world fusion, this show was indeed a real treat. The four members seamlessly wove traditional Irish reels, an dro dance tunes (an dro is a traditional form of folk dance from Brittany), floating European and Middle Eastern influenced melodies and inspired originals into a dozen pieces to fill a gorgeous 90 minute set. The crowd of more than a hundred rewarded the group with a well-deserved standing ovation at the end. If you missed the show (shame on you) or you would like to relive part or all, you'll find audio, video, and photo souvenirs on our Concert Archives page.
Over the summer, you'll find An Dro performing at the Buttermilk Jamboree near Yankee Springs on June 12, and elsewhere throughout West Michigan. Check the band's calendar for details.
Coming up at KPL, don't miss a special Art Hop Concert on June 3 with special guests Madcat, Kane & Maxwell Street, and on June 15, be sure to catch the amazing Brian Michael Fischer and the BMF band. And Summer @ kpl is just getting started…
The Raptor Resource Project (a 501(c)(3) non-profit) directly manages more than thirty falcon, owl and eagle nesting sites across the US, while advocating preservation and research through lectures, education programs and its own website.
Perched some eighty feet above the ground on private property near the fish hatchery in Decorah, Iowa, the nest itself is massive; nearly six feet across, four feet deep, and weighing roughly half-a-ton. This same nest was featured in American Eagle, a 2008 PBS documentary by Emmy-winning cinematographer Neil Rettig, the first-ever HD feature about bald eagles.
Last October, a team of experts installed two treetop cameras overlooking the nest. The main camera is mounted about five feet above the nest and streams live 24/7, while the other has pan-tilt-zoom capability and is operated remotely whenever there is significant activity. Infrared night vision (invisible to the eagles) allows for nighttime viewing. The live stream has been surprisingly captivating to watch—I occasionally keep it open in a small window on my desktop. (The accompanying live audio stream even makes a great natural soundscape!)
In late February, their work began to pay off as a nesting female laid her first egg, while the male dutifully kept the nest supplied with food. The second egg came along three days later on February 26, and a third on March 2.
The pair took turns tending to the eggs while the other left the nest, only to return a short time later with something fresh to eat—usually a fish or small animal. At times, the birds battled seemingly insurmountable odds; heavy show, bitter winds and torrential rain.
The first egg hatched on April 2, the second and third followed just days later. Three tiny bundles of helpless fuzz that within a few short weeks, have since grown to become clumbsy yet capable young eaglets, now able to stand, stretch, and move freely around the nest. When the adults are absent, the youngsters often sit near the edge of the nest and peer over, perhaps wondering when and from where lunchtime will arrive. By the end of June (after roughly 11-12 weeks), the young birds will learn to fly and leave the nest on their own. The cycle then begins again.
So next time you're on the Kids & Parents page, drop in on our new friends. And you won't be alone. Since it began, the Decorah Eagles website has received a whopping 98.3+ million views, with several tens of thousands of viewers watching at any given time!
While the younger members of the audience danced in the sunshine and adorned the parking lot with artistic sidewalk chalk creations, a crowd of more than 300 filled the tent and library garden area to enjoy an afternoon's worth of music from some of the finest singers, songwriters and musicians Michigan has to offer. Yes, these folks are really that good.
Seth Bernard acted as MC for the afternoon and welcomed to the stage an amazing lineup of friends and family for a variety of captivating original tunes and timely "Earth-friendly" covers. Seth joined his longtime performing companion May Erlewine, the extended "Davis Family" (Rachael Davis with Joshua Davis and Dominic John Davis of Steppin' In It and honorary Davis-for-a-day, Michael Shimmin "Davis"), Sam Corbin & Jen Sygit, Brandon and Bethany Foote (known collectively as Gifts or Creatures), Laurel Premo and Michael Beauchamp (known collectively as Red Tail Ring), and Josh Keller of Who Hit John? fame for some truly inspirational music in honor of the big blue ball. And there were several surprises along the way—from a glimpse of an upcoming Josh Davis solo project to an inspired sing-along of a timeless Woody Guthrie classic. KPL's Kevin King kept the youngsters occupied with a reading of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss during intermission. You'll find audio, video, photos and more from this event and others in KPL's Concert Archives.
This was 46th show in KPL's ongoing series of free live concerts, and (thankfully) there's no end in sight. Upcoming shows include a May 18th appearance by An Dro, A special June 3rd Art Hop with Madcat, Kane & Maxwell Street, high octane blues from the BMF Band on June 15, and to celebrate our 50th show, a special July return performance by Steppin' In It, the very group that started the live music series back in June 2008! And that's just a start. Watch for more details coming soon!
Western Dance Project director and dance professor David Curwen told us about how dance works and even taught us some moves in between the dances. We're glad Western Dance Project made a stop at the library and we look forward to having the Western Dance Project back again!
"No, no. The very real, very alive, flying around type of bats!"
"You mean like bats in some belfry?"
"Well, yes, sometimes they're found in literature belfries. But in this case, it's bats at the library - the Eastwood Branch of the Kalamazoo Public Library to be exact!"
Bats are the only mammals that can fly. They gorge themselves on thousands of night-time insects during six-hour feeding flight frenzies since lucky for them, (but not so much for the insects being consumed) both are nocturnal. To accomplish this feat they use echolocation; an ability to emit and detect high-pitched sound waves, to target their prey.
Dale Smart of the Organization for Bat Conservation at Cranbrook Institute of Science (otherwise known as the Michigan Batman) visited the Eastwood Branch Library on April 4th. He is a bat specialist and the main "go-to" guy who promotes the bat cause through the educational programs he delivers to groups around the state. And he did a fantastic job at Eastwood explaining bats, their lives and behavior, the need for their conservation, as well as dispelling some of the misleading, negative myths surrounding the species.
To illustrate his points, he brought along four of his best, very webby friends; a shy, dog-faced bat named Kisser from the Philippine Islands, Gandolph the fruit bat from Egypt who can discern colors, (and who by the way also looks exactly like Stellaluna, from that book by Janell Cannon), Luciana, a Michigan brown bat, and of course, little Bob, a diminutive Jamaican native who weighs a mere 1½ lbs.
Both young and old in the audience of 150 were captivated by Dale's presentation of these spectacular animals, and all pledged to be Bat Buddies for life!
Thank you, Dale! And of course, thanks to your untethered-to-feathers, fine flying friends!
Turns out it's a barred owl. The owl is just one of the feathered "super heroes from the sky" that recently visited Washington Square Branch Library, as part of a program presented by the Kalamazoo Nature Center. Children and adults alike were fascinated to see raptors up close, and to learn about the birds from knowledgeable Nature Center staff.
Check out library programs for all ages online at our KPL website, or pick up a printed schedule at any of our library locations. We have something for everyone!
Join us for word-making fun and great prizes! All event proceeds will support adult literacy education in Kalamazoo County. Contact Andrea Enyedi, Ready to Read Program Coordinator for more information.
Many thanks go to Carol and her crew of volunteers who moved, arranged and rearranged, and sold the many volumes of books. They are so good at what they do best – supporting the Kalamazoo Public Library.
Please remember that the Friends have a continuous book sale at their store located on the lower level of the Central Library.
These events and more at Kalamazoo Public Library are listed on the KPL calendar!
In a recent Chinese New Year program in the Van Deusen Auditorium, families who visited Kalamazoo Public Library enjoyed a story and performance by the Lion Dance Troupe from the Chinese Association of Greater Kalamazoo. We learned about the Chinese zodiac and everyone had the opportunity to meet the dancers, see the costumes up close, and even play the percussion instruments. That was fun!
Directly exposed to Suruga Bay with an expansive sweeping shoreline (one of the largest in Japan), the city of Numazu has taken extreme measures to protect its inhabitants by constructing a retaining wall and a massive anti-tsunami barrier at the entrance to its harbor area.
According to Scott Donald, an English speaking writer and author who publishes a blog called Numazu Traveler, the city "appears to be fairly safe so far." They are dealing with intermittent power outages (designed to divert power to the Sendai area), but Scott tells us that "all is fine" in Numazu after the Sendai quake. "(While) we did feel the earthquake," Scott says, "there were no reported damages in our area." He then adds, "Oh and a friend told me that the port's tsunami gate worked like a dream."
On Wednesday, March 16, Shizouka was awakened by yet another earthquake (magnitude 6.4). A tsunami warning was issued, but again, no major damage was reported.
Radiation levels in Numazu appear to be their biggest concern. "According to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan," Scott writes, "radiation levels in the Shizuoka, while higher than average, are currently not a risk. Levels (on March 16) for Shizuoka were reported to be between 0.089 μGy/h (millirems per hour) and 0.062 μGy/h with an average of o.o62 μGy/h, slightly above the US occupational limit." Scott then adds, "…you would need to be exposed to that every day for a year before you would be over the US limit. There is no indication to suggest that this level of exposure will continue over a prolonged period of time. So everything appears to be fairly safe so far."
Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those who are affected by the disaster in Japan. If you wish to help, please contact the American Red Cross.
The book sale will be on Friday, March 11th and Saturday, March 12th from 10 am to 4 pm each day. The Friends will be selling children's, teen and adult books both fiction and nonfiction. They also have a variety of paperbacks and hardcovers. Books are priced at 50¢ a piece or 3 for $1.00. You can't go wrong with those prices. The sale will take place in the community room.
While you are here shopping for books, please take the time to visit the library. We have done some rearranging of materials and think that you will find it easier to browse our DVD and CD collections. We also have a great selection of DVD Hot Picks, and new books for all ages.
The Friends of the Kalamazoo Public Library and the staff at the Oshtemo Branch look forward to seeing you this Friday and Saturday.
Happy shopping!
Jim Gill leaves people feeling like they attended something more than a concert. With wordplay and movement opportunities, Jim leads families in playing together with music and movement. He has a unique ability to get everyone in the room participating in songs and musical movement games. Videos of more concerts at KPL are available in the Live Concert Archive.
Take a look at upcoming events for children and families at the KPL children's program calendar.
Thanks, Sid, for sharing your time and outstanding talent with us.
The set included both originals (The band is going into the studio in a few weeks to record a new CD!) and covers from Led Zeppelin and The White Stripes. I cannot say enough great things about our 39th consecutive free concert at KPL. The Micaela Kingslight Band show has been the best pre-Christmas present this year!
Other speakers at the seminar were Beth Amidon and Maria Perez-Stable from Western Michigan University, Gillian Engberg, from the American Library Association's "Booklist" journal, and Debbie Reese from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. The seminar was wonderful . . . with much thoughtful discussion about books and kids and reading!
After the visit to Kalamazoo, both Cynthia and Debbie posted blogs on their websites: www.cynthialeitichsmith.com and www.americanindiansinchildrensliterature.net/.
We had a great time last week with this group of very talented writers and scholars. If you'd like to be added to the mailing list for information about next November's seminar, contact Mary Knowles. See more photos of the 2010 Youth Literature Seminar on KPL's Flickr photostream.
In November, members of the Ballet Arts Ensemble performed some of their own pieces after Youth Services librarian Karen read the classic Grimm's fairy tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses. The show was a preview of the Ballet Arts Ensemble's 12 Dancing Princesses performances at Chenery Audtorium on November 20th and 21st with the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra performing original music.
Kalamazoo Public Library's calendar of children's events has more programs. Mark your calendar for upcoming events now!
The Powell branch is getting excited about the next Nintendo Wii dance competition video game being released November 23, 2010… Michael Jackson: The Experience.
There really are lots of great programs for all ages at your library. Take a look at the calendar and sign up for Summer Reading Games! There's a game for everyone from birth through adults.
There are lots of great programs at your library. Take a look at our calendar and don't forget to sign up for Summer Reading Games! There's a game for everyone from birth through adults.
"Kalamazoo was visited last Saturday night with a tornado that did considerable damage. It struck Kalamazoo county first in the township of Texas and did considerable damage, blowing down trees, fences and barns. South west of Kalamazoo three or four miles the wind was especially heavy. The large grain barn of Wm. Gibbs was blown down and scattered in every direction. The barn of Wm. Brownell was served in like manner and a farmer, capable of judging, says that three thousand dollars will not make good the fences blown down in that neighborhood... Other sheds and stables were unroofed and warped and the boards carried rods away... Out houses were blown over and trees uprooted in numerous instances... From the effects of the storm, it looks as though it must have been a whirl wind, for the earth appears to have been struck in spots."
—Kalamazoo Gazette, 11 May 1880
To commemorate and document the 1980 storm, Blake Naftel's Kalamazoo Tornado Project promises to reveal some interesting material, including newly remastered video footage, newspaper articles, and recently documented personal accounts. Read the Gazette story about the project.
In addition, KPL has added a new photo gallery to the website with photos of local damage contributed from various sources. It, too, is an ongoing project, so if you have photos you'd like to share, please contact the Local History staff.
Speaking of photos, the one shown at the top of this page is the oldest known photograph of a tornado, taken in South Dakota in 1884. It comes from NOAA's National Weather Service Collection.
Llamas are members of the camel family and are domesticated pack animals native to South America. They have two-toed feet, and walk on leathery pads which give them superb traction in mountainous terrain. As you may have heard, llamas can spit. But normally this is intended for other llamas who provoke anger or a disturbance. Of course, the llamas visiting Eastwood were relatively at ease and quite calm, so "No Spitting" was the rule of the day.
Paco and Paint-Your-Wagon live with Brian and Judy along with about 25 other llamas on a farm in Three Rivers. Judy regularly combs their substantial coats. She uses the harvested fibers to make rugs, purses, and sweaters, selling these at craft shows throughout Southwest and Mid-Michigan.
It's all at your library. Have a wonderful Spring Break!
The program featured "The Art of Conversation: Seven Dialogues for String Quartet" written by Karim Al-Zand who introduced his composition and answered questions. Al-Zand wrote the piece for string quartet, which he explained is the "quintessential ensemble" for chamber music (two violins, a viola and a cello). Comprised of "agile instruments" producing "homogeneity of sound," a string quartet "always looks like a conversation" as it performs, Al-Zand said.
Inspired by this idea of a conversation, Al-Zand composed seven dialogues, all resembling conversations among friends. The first dialogue is an idealized gathering in which everyone is lively and engaged. The other dialogues proceed in various combinations of dominance and engagement – idiosyncratic with one dominant; two conversations at once; three in sync while one speaks in nonsequitors; recitations in unison. The sixth dialogue was the equivalent of four people talking on a cell phone, with each instrument's part was taken from other dialogues.
The seventh dialogue was a fugue — a single melody or subject passed from instrument to instrument, with each expounding on the subject. Just as with a conversation among friends, the music spiraled up, then wound down to small moments of silence before resuming to a crescendo. After a few more thoughts were added, the conversation ended harmoniously with everyone in agreement.
The seven dialogues were written especially for the Enso String Quartet, which is dedicated to performing the work of contemporary composers. It is a rare pleasure to hear a composer discuss his work and to hear a work performed by the ensemble for whom it was written.
Jumping the Broom was a marriage practice used by couples during slavery. Many times the slaves' owners would not give permission for couples to wed. Jumping the Broom became a practice that allowed couples to unite without their owners' knowledge. Today, this tradition has become popular as a cultural heritage ceremony.
During our event the kids took turns reading from the book Jumping the Broom written by Courtni Wright. This story is about a young slave girl, Lettie, whose sister, Tillie, is planning a Jumping the Broom ceremony. Courtni Wright tells how slave families worked together to prepare for the ceremony. The women spent their days working on a quilt to keep the young couple warm. They prepared food for the ceremony. The men built furniture and caught fish to salt for the winter. Everyone pitched in.
At our event Erika and Hari dressed the part of a couple in a pretend ceremony; we decorated miniature brooms, ate homemade wedding cake and drank homemade Jamaican-style ginger soda. We talked about other ceremonies and the quilt making custom.
Thanks to the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo we had a fantastic quilt display exhibited in the Barnabee Gallery! These quilts were done by a group of African American women of Southwest Michigan. It brought the Barnabee Gallery alive with African American heritage and history.
Harriette Cole's book Jumping the broom: The African-American Wedding Planner is not only historical but is a modern-day guide for couples wanting to tie the knot. Ms. Cole offers anecdotes, traditions and choices for blending today's culture with elements of the past.
What is Capoeira? Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines dance, music and acrobatics all in one.
With February being Black History Month we wanted to learn some of the history behind the fine art of this Afro-Brazilian defense technique.
Capoeira was first developed between the 16th and 19th centuries by African slaves brought to Brazil during the slave trade. It was illegal for slaves to learn or practice self-defense. So they camouflaged their martial arts practice with music, acrobatics and games.
Their program included:
With more than 80 people in attendance we learned about their instruments, songs and how to participate with the Cordão di Ouro: West Michigan. The kids loved it! They tumbled, flipped and danced along with the performers. Fun was had by all.
We had a great time reading books, singing songs about a man made out of food, and playing with the parachute.
The adrenaline of the evening helped me hold up well last night, but now I am feeling the effects of closing a very happy chapter in my life.
I would like to thank all the families in the community for your wonderful support during my years as a children's librarian and for allowing me to be a part of your children's lives.
KPL wishes to help keep the Olympic flame stoked with a display of Olympics related books in the rotunda at the central library, along with links to all things sports (including the Olympics) in our Sports Topic Guide. Citius, Altius, Fortius!
Lead singer Laurie Laing's expertly slipped between the raucous beat of a bar ballad to the slow jam sound of an R&B tune. The band was very personable and made the audience feel like we were all sharing a pint together somewhere in Ireland. Belfast Gin was the perfect antidote to a cold January day because they chased away the winter blues with a ton of green!
Tax Forms: Though more and more people prefer to e-file for faster return on their tax refund, many others still ask us about paper tax forms. This year, all library locations will distribute basic paper tax forms and instructions, free of charge, while they last. Look for the federal forms to be available by the middle of January; state forms will be available in early February.
Tax Preparation Help: The Central and Oshtemo locations will again be hosting tax preparation in 2010 for people with household incomes under $49,000, starting January 30. You will need an appointment; to sign up, call 211, as of January 15, 2010.
Bookmark our Tax Information topic guide for regular access to more tax-related details. During tax season, you can also use the "Tax Forms/Free Tax Help" icon from our home page. Be sure to scroll down to the websites for forms, instructions and much more.
A temporary circulation desk has been set up by the curving stairs to the second floor. Materials being held for patrons are available for self pick-up on the magazine shelving.
There are three check out units available for patrons to use, identical to the ones in the children's room and at Oshtemo Branch. During this transition, staff are stationed by the check out units to help patrons as needed.
Another change is online registration for a library card from any computer, at home or in the library, or from the dedicated one at the end of the temporary circulation desk.
The target completion date is the end of January. Look at the progress as you visit Central Library and we'll continue to post updates on our website.
SCORE Kalamazoo Chapter
Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center
Kalamazoo Regional Chamber of Commerce
Michigan Business One Stop
NFP is federally funded but requires a local/MI match, and for months the future of Kalamazoo County's NFP has been in jeopardy. Thanks to some money released from a reserve held by Kalamazoo County and a grant from the Kellogg Foundation, the NFP is secure for another year. Through the library's Ready to Read early childhood literacy program, we provide books for the nearly 200 babies and moms served by the NFP. The NFP nurses deliver the books and promote family reading during their frequent home visits. Thanks to the Nurse Family Partnership and its dedicated staff, KPL has found another important way to extend its reach into the community.
We're glad to have this opportunity to help young mothers get started reading aloud to their children early and often!
Headphones are available for sale to the public at a cost of $2.75 each. The Reference Desk also has 256MB flash drives available at a cost of just $5.00 per drive.
A "public" flash drive is available at the desk for assisting with temporary storage or transfer issues, but this will give our patrons the option of purchasing a drive for their personal use at a reasonable price.
Many ordinances are just that, difficult to enforce and so it is the obligation of the citizenry to make sure that they are following the law so that their fellow citizens, many of whom have disabilities or are elderly, are able to access cleared away sidewalks. For those who are caught and cited, there are penalties. How many of us while driving are shocked and angered to find persons walking in the street, many of whom would surely find the comforts and safety of the sidewalk more appealing if more of their fellow citizens made an effort in complying with the ordinance. Of course, there are those who will stubbornly choose to endanger both drivers and themselves by walking in the street during inclement weather regardless of the sidewalk's condition or the sturdiness of their footwear. As far as I know, stubbornness has yet to be outlawed. The City of Kalamazoo's snow removal laws are 33-18, 33-19 and 33-20 and can be read here.
Staff training will begin this week with hopes that we can make self checkout available to patrons next week. Staff members will be available to help patrons with the self-check as needed.
Note: Workers encountered a small snafu on Tuesday while installing the kiosk. Hopefully, it will be up and running by Wednesday and available for patrons to begin using next week.
You may also have noticed a temporary circulation desk located under the stairs. Soon the circulation staff will begin moving into the space to make sure there are no interruptions to service. We will also be moving patron holds out from behind the desk, so you can retrieve them yourself. All of these changes are happening to not only take advantage of new technologies, but to also find efficiencies and save money.
The changes are coming quickly, so check back often to find out what else KPL is doing to improve service.
All of these condiments are made with ingredients readily found at the supermarket. And, while many ketchup recipes call for long, slow cooking of tomatoes, Julie showed us a shortcut involving canned tomato paste.
And what about taste? We sampled these creations and confirmed that homemade does indeed taste better. For instance, there's no comparison between ranch dressing from a bottle and one you whisk up from scratch with sour cream, buttermilk and fresh herbs.
Download and print Julie's recipes from the program PDF
Use the season's cooler weather and longer nights to rediscover the kitchen. Homemade foods make special gifts or memorable accents to any family gathering. For some ideas, browse KPL's vast collection of cookery books.
We had built in about six weeks of "overlap", that is, time when we would have the checkout kiosk up and running AND the current circ desk still in operation. We will shorten that time to one to two weeks and still be close to the target completion date of the end of December.
We have decided to take down the wooden partitions in the meantime and they are being taken down this morning. We had previously planned for the first floor desk staffing to end tomorrow, Oct 31, expecting the checkout units would be in place. We will hold to that timing and the first floor desk will be removed next week; we just have a delay on the checkout units.
With the wooden partitions down but the kiosk not yet in place, there are some electrical plates on the floor where the kiosk will be that could become a trip hazard in the meantime. To avoid that happening, we'll move some furniture there. This means you may see some furniture, plants, whatever, sitting there that looks a bit out of place. We'll do our best to prevent a trip hazard and make it look at least OK! That seems better than bright orange cones for several weeks!
But last Wednesday's performance at Central Library – show number seventeen in KPL's ongoing Live Music series – was a unique chapter in this versatile band's history. With equipment stripped to the bare essentials – share n' hi-hat, acoustic guitars, piano and all, Blue Moon gave the crowd of sixty or so a chance to hear some band favorites, unique covers and homegrown originals in a more intimate than usual setting. For many of us, this was also the first opportunity to witness the band with its new lead vocalist, Bryan Michael Fischer. What a treat! These guys have grown from an adequate cover band into a true performance powerhouse. WMUK's Mark Sahlgren (Grass Roots) summed the show up in one word… "Wow!"
Highlights included some rippin' cover tunes like "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie" (Clarence Smith), "My Babe" (Willie Dixon), "Bring It On Home To Me" (Sam Cooke), and a blistering version of B.B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone." The show also featured several band originals, including public debut of the brand new, somewhat Santana-esque "Heart Has Turned to Stone" - a very cool tune. And of course, they dedicated "Miss Ann" to our library director!
"Thanks so much and please tell everyone at the library that we were honored to perform there and we had an awesome time!" – Bill LaValley, Blue Moon Blues Band
Check out Blue Moon CDs from the KPL catalog, and visit the band's MySpace page for some recent pix and tasty song samples. Be sure to catch the band's final performance (sniff...) on November 14 at Bell's Eccentric Café.
And… there's plenty more music coming at KPL, too… don't miss a special performance by Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart on November 1st, and be sure to visit (and bookmark) KPL's music page for highlights of past shows and more terrific upcoming performances.
The interview was set-up to resemble the popular television show Inside the Actor's Studio, which provided David with a casual atmosphere to discuss Stitches. He answered a variety of questions about his life growing up in 1950's Detroit with a family that could hardly be described as tightly knit.
The presentation also included some fabulous animated videos of the books, shots of sketches, and panel by panel storyboards. David was candid about both the physical and emotional wounds which took years to finally stitch together into a memoir that will touch many lives.
A second David Small visit is being planned for 2010, so please check the website often for more details.
Listen to David Small's presentation (44:52)
Download David Small's presentation as a podcast (MP3 audio file)
Watch David's complete presentation in the series of videos below.
Over the coming two weeks, workers will pull wire for power and data lines, install the new checkout kiosk and the 3M Library Systems' selfcheck equipment. Patrons may be able to use the new check out service by early November.
Want to try out this new service before then? Visit Oshtemo Branch Library or use the checkout kiosk in Central Library's Children's Room.
The first step is to install new tiles to the spiral staircase. Currently the tile simply ends (think Shel Silverstein) but upon completion it will lead directly to the bottom step. This move paves the way for the Checkout Kiosk, which will allow patrons to check out their own materials.
If you have a question, do not hesitate to contact me.
Professor Code shared four different instruments with us: the Swedish nyckelharpa (keyed fiddle), the Norwegian hardingfele (Harding fiddle), the Norwegian seljefløyta (willow flute) and the munnharpa (mouth harp).
He also broke our bean bag balance record, balancing 13 bean bags on his head while counting in Norwegian!
Join us for books, rhymes, crafts, parachute games, and a surprise special guest at the next Storytime with Mr. Steve & Friends on Monday, October 26 at 6:30 pm at the Central Library.
Bruce Shultz, a long-time gardener and volunteer with Fair Food Matters, spoke at Oshtemo on Sept. 14 sharing tips for how to put the garden to bed. At this time of year, we should clean up debris from annual plants, but leave parts from perennials in place. Add amendments to the soil — compost, fertilizers, leaves, lime or the like — so these nutrients have time to settle in over the winter. Autumn is the time to plant cover crops or relocate bulbs and spring flowering perennials. Pruning, too, can be accomplished now.
But Shultz also encouraged us to think about gardening year-round, not as an activity between Memorial Day and Labor Day. "Why put the garden to bed at all?" he asked.
Extend the growing season with protection. Row covers, cold frames, tunnels, cloches and straw can give you an early start in spring and fend off autumn frosts. Another way to extend the growing season is to bring it indoors. Shultz starts his garden by planting seeds and letting them get a good start under grow lights. He's out planting peas in March as soon as the soil is soft. When the weather turns cool, in comes the large potted rosemary shrub. And, they may be old-fashioned, but they definitely work: root cellars. They store produce at a cool but not freezing temperature.
To read more about gardening year round, check out these books by Eliot Coleman.
We are hoping that many people from the Powell community will stop in and tell us what the Sudan: land of blood says to them. What is its message? What does it symbolize?
The Powell Branch would like to thank Fred Zemlick for showing his work in our Barnabee Gallery and giving us this valued piece of art for our branch. Fred's next showing will be at the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Portage. And in October he will be at the new Midtown Gallery on the Mall.
On July 22nd, Zadoorian visited KPL to provide the background to this hilarious and touching novel. It gave all who attended insight on how true love can survive sickness, roadside diners, and lack of air-conditioning in Texas.
The guest stars — five hens of various breeds — were charming and tolerant.
Co-sponsored by Fair Food Matters, the program featured Lori Evesque who shared her experiences in raising chickens from downy chicks to egg-laying adulthood.
Not all communities are chicken-friendly, said attorney Suzanne Klein who explained that statutes and ordinances vary according to where you live. Curious whether your community allows chickens in the yard? Pay a visit to KPL's Law Library.
If you'd like to read more about raising chickens, here are two selections to check out:
Keeping Chickens: The Essential Guide to Enjoying and Getting the Best from Chickens by J.C. Jeremy Hobson and How to Raise Chickens: Everything You Need to Know by Christine Heinrichs.
With more than a dozen participants registered, the program was highly successful. Here are a few follow-up notes from the program facilitator that shed light on the scope of the workshop...
"After a general discussion about why we, in particular, write and then, in general, why writers write, I introduced the participants to the concept of poetry's 'abiding image,'" said Ms. Wiley, "and they did a multi-stepped exercise resulting in them establishing an 'abiding image' for themselves. Using their responses to the exercise, I then introduced development strategies for poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction. I offered them the option of developing a poem at home and mailing it to me for feedback, if they'd like."
A full-time instructor at Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business, Jo Wiley was the recipient of the 2009 Community Literary Award for Adult Poetry, an annual competition sponsored by the Kalamazoo Gazette, Kalamazoo Public Library and Portage District Library.
"With poetry," she added, "we talked a lot about language and structure; fiction we reviewed the 'seven basic plots,' and then creative nonfiction we talked mostly about the differences between CNF and fiction and when and why writers chose one over the other. I ended the workshop with some information and discussion on 'the writer's life' and publishing."
With a primary interest in creative nonfiction, the same group plans to meet later in the month to focus on essay writing.
Shout Sister Shout was formed in 2006 by the band Steppin' In It and the singer Rachael Davis, all of whom are well known in the folk scene and who have played double-bills on many occasions. It was their mutual love for old instruments, old radio and old-time jazz that led to Shout Sister Shout (named for a song by Sister Rosetta Sharpe).
This marked the one-year anniversary of concerts at KPL. We kicked off the series in 2008 with Steppin' In It; Rachael (with Jesse Lee Mason) followed soon after in August, and we're glad to welcome all of them back. Take a look at recordings from previous concerts in our monthly series. You'll also find a great collection of photos from the KPL show on the official Shout Sister Shout website!
Home preserving yields delicious results, gives the cook more confidence in knowing where the food came from, and — if done in large quantities — can be more economical than store-bought.
Home preserving also can be the center of beloved family traditions. Co-presenter Heidi Butler spent her childhood learning how to can and freeze. Two things her family wouldn't be without: home canned tomato soup and applesauce, the preparation of which continues to involve multiple generations. Labor Day is spent making tomato soup.
"We've been doing it forever," Butler says. "It's just something I know will happen." Her young daughter now is involved and is learning how to select good fruit.
Summer's harvests have just begun. Why not save some a bit of summer for next winter? Take a look at KPL's book collection for recipes and instructions. And here are a couple websites: National Center for Home Food Preservation and MSU Extension.
Not just any comic books, but a pulpy breed with a mean streak that turned the notion of comic book hero inside out. Not only were these books filled with violence, but the protagonist often was a perpetrator of it. Readers had voracious appetites for these stories, which crossed boundaries of gender and class. In those days, some 60 to 100 million comic books were sold each week. Reading comic books and trading them with friends was the most popular form of entertainment.
As this new breed of comics came to the forefront, kids seemed to change and parents took notice, Hajdu said. Then came "the clash" and the comics controversy was caught up in the larger Post-War "red scare." The details of these times are captured in Hajdu's book The Ten Cent Plague: The Great Comics Scare and How it Changed America.
Listed on many of 2008's "best books" lists, The Ten Cent Plague is the third book for David Hajdu, music critic for The New Republic and a professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Hajdu says he is drawn to untold stories.
The untold story in Hajdu's first book Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn, was about the composer and arranger of jazz who worked with Duke Ellington for some 30 years. You may think "Ellington" when you hear "Take the 'A' Train," but you should also think "Billy Strayhorn." Strayhorn was pure genius, but the glory went to Ellington.
After compiling this history of jazz musicians in Harlem and Paris, Hajdu went on to explore another facet of American music: the folk scene of early 1960s Greenwich Village. Positively 4th Street: The Lives and Times of Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Mimi Baez Fariña and Richard Fariña dishes on these musicians and their contributions and examines how Dylan became Dylan.
Check out Hajdu's books, all of which are in KPL's collections, and read his music columns in The New Republic.
Millish's unique style of music gives the listener a sense of traveling in a place where the best sounds of music throughout the world all merges together.
Check out out the video to see what I am talking about!
Kalamazoo Public Schools encourages its elementary students to read twenty (20) minutes EACH day of their summer vacation. As librarians, we, as well as educators, can point to any number of studies that indicate the fact that a child who doesn't read much or at all over a long vacation actually "forgets" how to read and has to re-learn the skill in the fall. So, Kalamazoo Public Library, in cooperation with the schools, has incorporated the "twenty (20) minutes a day" into its summer reading program for children entering grades 1-4 this fall.
Built around the theme, "Be Creative @Your Library", the Kalamazoo Public Library is offering reading games for people of all ages, beginning on June 11th. Check the library's website (www.kpl.gov/kids) for more information, or give us a call at 553-7804.
Our Open House included fantastic food, music and the presentation of a plaque honoring Walden Baskerville.
We could not have been more pleased with our turnout or the delight this recognition brought. The branch saw many familiar faces there to honor Walden and to celebrate this anniversary year with the Alma Powell Library Branch.
The Alma Powell Library Branch would like to thank The Friends of the Library and The Dulcets Club for helping us to make this library's triple anniversary celebration so extraordinary.
Johnston and Percy write these plays together. Often one will start and hand off to the other. Absolute trust in your partner is required, they said.
These short plays are snippets of couples caught in the act of life. Johnston and Percy begin with the everyday: waiting for a client to appear, arguing over marriage counseling, climbing a monument. When two people know each other well, multiple conversations are carried on in just one sentence and the dialog reflects that intimacy of communication. As the issues of here and now are bandied about, there's always a subtext or two. Johnston and Percy layer all that witty situational banter with the deeper issues confronted in relationships — agreements, confessions, trespasses, questions.
We hosted the authors at KPL on May 6 for a reading and book signing. Give a listen as they read from "A Pet of Temperance."
Yesterday, I learned from the campaign leaders that May 1, among other distinctions, is Global Love Day! In the spirit of international harmony, I'm happy to share this amazing video from the "Playing for Change: Song Around the World" project.
Tune in to real live fun right here in your community. And if you're not looking for alternatives to screen media, Kalamazoo Public Library has lots of movies and video games as well as internet access and even downloadable DVD quality programming from MyLibraryDV. These services and more are available just like always and they're always free of charge.
When we were planning Reading Together activities, we wanted to be sure that there was a concert of music with a Southern accent. One cannot form a complete picture of Rick Bragg's rural South without a soundtrack. After all, there is a reason they call it country music.
The South's relative isolation allowed cultural traditions of its settlers to remain alive. What did immigrants bring with them? Maybe a fiddle or guitar — or maybe only words and melodies remembered and rehearsed and handed down. That's a challenge in any case, but for instrumental music, even more so. How did the fiddler avoid mixing up one waltz with another? The guitar accompanist likely learned chord changes without ever knowing what guitar tablature looked like. (There was little formal training except perhaps at the hand of the Baptist preacher's wife who also taught piano lessons and made sure every girl learned how accompany hymns.)
And that guitar might have been a cheaply made instrument bought from a Sears Roebuck catalog, or Montgomery Ward. On such instruments, the strings were so far from the fretboard that the new musician had to endure a painful ordeal until thick callouses were developed on the fingertips. Most people hadn't played finely made expensive instruments and thus no one knew it could be better. Life was hard. Why wouldn't there be a trial to achieve moments of pleasure?
Many of the songs from the South are about hardship. You can't think about hardships without also thinking about faith and religion. In Chapter 9 of All Over But the Shoutin', Rick Bragg recalls the influence of religion and retells some of his churchgoing experiences. He titles that chapter On the Wings of a Great Speckled Bird. That line is from what may be one of the greatest songs of country music, "The Great Speckled Bird."
What a beautiful thought I am thinking,
Concerning a great speckled bird.
Remember her name is recorded,
On the pages of God's Holy Word.
The words of this gospel song are attributed to Rev Guy Smith. Recorded in 1936 by Roy Acuff, the song is about remaining righteous amidst the trials of life. The phrase "great speckled bird" comes from a Bible passage, Jer 12:8-9. (For more about the meaning of the song, here's an interesting discussion.)
I know people have ridiculed country music because of its bounty of songs about hardship, particularly drinking and infidelity. I guess there's a reason for the stereotypes. Likker, relationships and religion were not insignificant themes.
And that's why "The Great Speckled Bird" is so emblematic of country music. The irony is that its melody is shared by a song from the 1920s, "I Am Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes." The same melody was later used in the 1952 country hit "The Wild Side of Life," sung by Hank Thompson (about a wife that strays) and the loud retort from Kitty Wells: "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky-Tonk Angels."
In addition to the great music, Sahlgren shared with the audience a stage filled with Gibson guitars, including several specifically crafted during the Depression which ties directly to the Bragg books. After hearing the sweet sounds of Caron, Wilkin, and Sahlgren the audience was encouraged to sing along to the final song!
If you haven't attended a discussion and would like to share your thoughts about the books, you can fill out a reply postcard. If you didn't get one of these cards when you purchased or borrowed your book, stop by your library or bookstore and fill one out.
Here is a sampling of what some of our readers have written:
"It was interesting reading, told in a way that held your interest. Also telling of the possibilities one can achieve if one really wants to – a certain amount of good fortune does help."
—Anonymous reader
"Fascinating story. Great author. Anxious to read the rest of the trilogy."
—A member of the Y Read Book Group/Kalamazoo County Family YMCA
"Excellent. Easy to read. Draws you in to the family, setting, society."
—Anonymous reader
"I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of Rick's remembering his childhood, learning of his father. Great writing, without degrading it by profanity, etc."
—Anonymous reader
"Delicious. I was so taken with it that I bought a copy for a friend who is in cancer treatment. He, too, is a newspaper "guy" and grew up in Maryland mountains, one of 9 children. The book also made me understand the feelings of people in the community in which I grew up in East Tennessee."
—A reader in Richland
"It was an excellent book. At first I thought it was another memoir written by another journalist writing about growing up in hard times. It was much more than that. I cried when he won the Pulitzer and how he and everyone else congratulated his mother. It was very moving. The book was very honest and made me look back at my own childhood."
—A reader in Schoolcraft
"Loved the descriptive humor of personalities in Southern vernacular. Appreciated the honest examination of character encased in wit."
—A reader in Kalamazoo
"So much feeling it was hard to put down. I'm the middle of three sons and have relatives in Georgia, so the pages came alive."
—A reader in Kalamazoo
—Three readers from Kalamazoo
We practiced stomping in puddles while I read The Rain Stomper by Addie Boswell and found out what happened to Millie the cow who likes to hide and scare the mail carrier in Millie Waits for the Mail by Alexander Steffensmeier.
After some dancing, we pretended to hike up the Alps (with the help of a cable car halfway through) to a beautiful mountain meadow and lake where we all found alphorns to play.
We finished the evening with some parachute games and then making kites since this weekend kicks off National Kite Month.
Join us for the next Storytime with Mr. Steve & Friends on Thursday, May 14 at 6:30 pm.
Also, don't miss "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" performed by the Kalamazoo Junior Dance Company on Tuesday, April 21 at 6:30 pm.
See you soon.
Sid shared humorous stories about Anansi the spider, the king of the jungle, a hippo, an elephant and other jungle creatures. The adults and kids of all ages enjoyed Sid's performance.
Thanks Sid, for a great show!
Visit the KPL Flickr photostream for more photos of this and other library events.
On February 18th, Peter and his friends shared stories from their past. They talked about being children during a war that brought tragedies and opportunities.
And on February 25 Peter told the audience of how he fled Sudan. Peter talked about running for his life when he was barely old enough to walk, he talked about becoming a refugee in Ethiopia, and he told us about forgiveness and opportunities. Not many have experienced the true tragedies of war nor can we see the losses it brings as a time to grow in faith and mercy. These are the concepts Peter shared with us.
Check out our books and DVDs about the Lost Boys of Sudan.
Almost 500 attended the event, but even if you missed it you can check out the video below. Don't miss our next Art Hop event on June 5th.
A National Book Award finalist and multiple award-winning, novel, short-story and nonfiction writer, Prose's ability as a writer is without question. But to hear her read a newly completed short story, Prose admitted to finishing the story only a week earlier, about a jeweler in Nazi Germany and his weird and fascinating encounter with a cross-dressing, morphine addicted Hermann Göring, Nazi leader and commander of the Luftwaffe (German Air Force), in her own voice and with the intended pace was truly special.
The story was strange, satirical, haunting and contained such a well constructed plot twist that it nearly gave every one of the 100 people in the audience whiplash. What a treat it was to hear Francine Prose read and what an honor it was for the Kalamazoo Public Library to host her.
We hosted two Mississippi natives for the program. Miller Green, now living in Chicago, was arrested in a Jackson bus station. Eric Etheridge is an author whose book is Breach of Peace: Portraits of the 1961 Mississippi Freedom Riders.
Late in 1960, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling outlawed segregation in interstate bus terminals. On May 4, 1961, there were 13 people who made the first Freedom Ride to test the compliance of bus stations with the ruling. This, and subsequent rides, encountered increasingly violent resistance. Though there were Freedom Rides across the South, the campaign's primary focus became Jackson, Mississippi. More than 300 Riders were arrested there, photographed, and convicted of breach of peace.
In 2004, journalist Eric Etheridge, a Mississippi native, ran across the mug shots of some 328 Freedom Riders arrested in Jackson. Etheridge decided to publish the photographs and, where possible, include new photos and stories of the Riders.
Green shared stories of his arrest on July 6, 1961 at the Trailways terminal in Jackson, and his harrowing experiences in jail. After his release, Green worked on voter registration and civil rights issues in Mississippi, and moved to Chicago where he has lived since 1963.
He also talked about his childhood friend, Bobby Joe, a white boy. Miller and Bobby Joe were the only children in their Yazoo City neighborhood, and played together constantly. "We were in each other's houses, eating at each other's tables, together all the time," he said. One day, when the boys were around 6 years old, Bobby Joe's mother received an anonymous letter criticizing the parents for allowing the boys to play together. At this point, both families agreed it would be too dangerous to let them continue playing.
From that point on, the boys would stand across from each other, on opposite sites of the street, and talk. Each boy would play alone, imagining the other was with him. "It left a scar," Miller said, putting his hand on his chest.
See also: Authors@Google: Eric Etheridge, June 24, 2008
The kids danced like fairies in a forest, stomped around like giants, and looked for cozy places to hibernate, pretending they were bears just like I used to do in my living room along with my brothers and sisters.
Ms. Lisa also proved adept at balancing bean bags on her head, but fell one short of tying Ms. Waneta's record of 12 set last month.
In addition to the dancing, I read
We sang songs and once again broke out the giant parachute. This time we pretended that we were looking for a bear as we circled with the parachute, crossing a river on stepping stones and hiking around mountains. Finally, imagining the parachute was a cave, all the kids scampered like bears under the chute.
For our craft time, everyone got to decorate a set of fairy wings to take home for more imaginative play until we meet again on Tuesday, March 24 at 6:30 pm at the Central Library.
The 90+ minute show featured Mulvey's signature guitar playing, humorous storytelling and beautiful songs. The audience was also lucky to hear a sneak preview of his upcoming CD release which features spoken letters to his seventeen nieces and nephews!
As with past concerts at KPL, many folks entered as strangers but left as friends.
The display also includes information about the "Battle of Honey Hill" that took place on November 30, 1864, in support of General William T. Sherman's march to the sea in South Carolina. My great-grandfather John Conner, his brother William Frank Conner, who was the sergeant of his troop, and their two brother-in-laws, Himebrick Tyler and Joseph Seaton fought bravely in this battle.
Music & Make Believe is one of my favorite programs we do here at the library and I am so happy to be part of something that gives children a chance to experience top quality live music for free. We schedule Music & Make Believe programs twice a year: in the Fall around September or October and in the Winter around February or March. These are programs you need to register for so keep your eyes open for the next set of programs. It's really an opportunity you shouldn't miss.
These dishes don't usually come to mind when one thinks of New Orleans, but the aforementioned Ghanaian, Vietnamese and German specialties are certainly what you'll find in some Crescent City kitchens.
Just ask Elsa Hahne. This Swedish immigrant who made New Orleans her home in 2002 interviewed more than a hundred home cooks to find out what's really cooking. Some of the results were compiled into You Are Where You Eat: Stories and Recipes from the Neighborhoods of New Orleans.
Elsa visited KPL on January 28 to read from and sign her books. Hear what she had to say in this video interview.
Strangely, up until Ms. Waneta's record setting night, all of my visiting friends have faltered when I added the ninth bean bag to the pile on their heads. Ms. Waneta calmly balanced 12 bean bags, even taking a risk and asking me what the record was while she was already balancing 8 bean bags on her head. The vibrations from just the slightest movement of the mouth can topple a bid for a record, but Ms. Waneta had no problem.
All the families that gathered that night enjoyed readings of:
We also played some games with our giant, colorful parachute and created some streamer hoops for dancing. After creating the streamer hoops, many of my friends enjoyed dancing to the Putumayo Kids presents Reggae Playground CD by Johnny Dread.
Storytime with Mr. Steve & Friends is for kids of all ages and no registration is required. So join us on Wednesday, February 25 at 6:30 pm at the Central Library for our next program. You never know who will show up and what records will be broken.
The next show will featured critically acclaimed singer-songwriter, Peter Mulvey, on February 18th at 7:00 pm. Don't miss the artist Rolling Stone called "A voice lush and hushed that occasionally sinks into a whisper... surrealistic beauty."
View the complete inauguration and address here
On December 17th we had a blast decoupaging sparkling gift boxes some to give away and some to keep. It was amazing to see the personalities that came out on boxes full of eyes and lips and floral arrangements. What is decoupage? "Decoupage comes from the French word decouper, meaning to cut out."
On December 23rd we had lots of fun decorating holiday cookies. We made all kinds of gooey cookies. Some made chocolate on top of chocolate cookies. Some made vanilla crème with sprinkles. Now we are off to a new year with lots of plans for winter fun!
I met some members of the Aerial Angels in Bronson Park about four years ago as we were wrapping up our Ready to Read sponsored Party in the Park. They were starting to attach ropes and other things to the trees to practice their acrobatic skills which caught my attention.
As children's programming librarian, I was curious and I must have looked most curious to them, too, since I was still in costume as the character from the classic children's book, Caps for Sale, balancing a stack of 17 hats on my head. I think it took a few minutes before we took each other seriously.
I found out the Aerial Angels are a group of female acrobats that perform all over the world and just happen to be based in Kalamazoo. I know they perform all over the world, because in the process of booking them the last three years, I have sent emails to Dubai, Singapore, Australia, and Alaska. They were performing in Barcelona just ten days before the show at KPL this year. Having a show during winter break at the libary works out great for everyone.
The Angels enjoy having a show close to home during the holidays, the library enjoys having the crowds arrive for the program and then stay to take advantage of the other great materials the library offers, and Kalamazoo Public Library patrons like to have something so unique and exciting to do during the break. After the first year they performed, the Angels also mentioned how great it was to perform in a space where people were at their eye level and even above them, instead of just being down below them.
We hope to have the Aerial Angels back again in the library next winter break, so if you have never made it to one of their shows at the library, don't miss this spectacular event next year.
In February we will be talking about The Known World by Edward Jones and then in March will be discussing A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. All discussions are held at the Central Library at 7p.m.
Classics Revisited on January 15th will be reading Robinson Crusoe.
Come join us in sharing literature with others.
We were pleased to see a national news story on this very topic….increase in usage, tighter budgets for libraries.
Usage at KPL mirrors this national trend. So far, for our year which just began on July 1, our circulation of all materials across all our locations is up 10%. This reflects an increase of 6% for print materials, 23% for nonprint materials. Our reference questions are up 9%, patron assistance of all types up 22%. Our equipment use, primarily of public computers, is up a staggering 54%.
Most of our FREE computer classes are filled and attendance at our programs for adults, teens, children, and families has increased.
Come visit soon! I'm confident we will have a book, an AV item, a program, a class, a computer that will help you in one way or another during these challenging economic times.
Check out these photos and see what you missed!]]>
Check out these videos and photos from the show.
Prime Time is the Alma Powell branch Monday night Family Reading Program for children ages 6 to 10. The program ran for 6 weeks. After dinner educators Ruth Heinig and Robin Nott led a book discussion. We heard stories, kids told stories, Ruth and Robin provided puppet shows and we had weekly sing-a-longs. Babysitting was provided for children under six.
We are all looking forward to the spring session of Prime Time!
A one-stop resource for more than 440,000 comprehensive narrative biographies of more than 340,000 people from around the world and throughout history and across all reference and journal disciplines. The intuitive interface makes accessing the comprehensive reference and journal content — easy and delivers viable results instantly.
To further enhance Biography Resource Center, the company has announced the launch of the Lives & Perspectives Collection. This optional new module offers more than 160,000 biographies drawn from a range of highly respected academic reference titles such as American Men & Women of Science, Governments of the World, Encyclopedia of African-American Culture & History and the Dartmouth Medal-winning Encyclopaedia Judaica.
Start exploring unique profiles of notable individuals in history, science, religion, government and more at your KPL online resources and Biography Topic Guide.
Check out exclusive videos from the show.
It's the vision of Ready to Read that all children in Kalamazoo County arrive at kindergarten prepared for learning. Research shows that children who are read to regularly start school with an advantage. Ready to Read encourages families to enjoy books together and enables children to have their own books. This wild and crazy spelling bee raises serious money for the program.
Borgess ProMed Pediatrics won first place in the lighthearted spelling competition followed by the Kalamazoo Gazette and WMU. Best costumes, most creative cheer, and most enthusiastic team were also recognized.
Catch the event on cable access OR, better yet, come next year. And in the meantime, keep reading to all the children in your life.
Engaging and informative, he shared numerous examples and answered the audience's many questions. Ron's can-do attitude and positive outlook for the economic future of Kalamazoo speaks volumes about his commitment to Kalamazoo. If you missed Ron's program, check out his book in the KPL catalog and take a look at the Southwest Michigan First Life Science Fund, a key factor in the economic development of early stage life science career opportunities in the Kalamazoo community!
Besides the school visits, Mr. Nelson spoke to an audience at Eastwood Branch Library and was the keynote speaker at the Mary Calletto Rife Children's Literature Seminar on Friday. Throughout all of his presentations, Kadir Nelson focused on the importance of education as the constant in achieving goals. Every days he uses not only his artistic skills, but also the research skills he learned in high school to create the beautiful (and accurate) paintings that illustrate his books.
If you missed Kadir Nelson's visit, take a look at his books in the library's collection.
On February 4th the "This Old Building" series will continue with another local landmark, the Kalamazoo State Hospital Water Tower, to be presented by Kalamazoo's historic preservation coordinator, Sharon Ferraro.
Watch Dr. Carlson's complete presentation...
The multigenerational crowd was treated to one of the best shows ever at KPL! Young and old danced, stomped, and sang along with one of the shining starts of the Kalamazoo folk scene.
If you missed the show check out some exclusive pix below, or watch the entire show.
KPL was especially pleased to host the all-conference reception at the Central Library. Just like gatherings at home, we worked hard to get the library looking great! Recarpeting of Central Library was finished, some chairs were reupholstered, displays of new materials were refreshed, and our Facilities Management staff did an extra thorough cleaning. All of this was in the works, but having a deadline to be ready for the reception gave us a "due date!"
Well, I thought the library did look great... a compliment to our staff, but more importantly, to our community. Over 400 MLA members from around the state attended. Our board president, Valerie Wright, and I, along with the MLA officials, greeted attendees. KPL staff were in departments to give tours and explain our services, and games from our Teen Services activities were set up in the auditorium.
It was a good party! Comments from our colleagues around the state were all complimentary.... many about our building, but also about the wide range of services we offer, many of which are a model for other libraries.
Visits from preschool centers like the YWCA and the Learning Village and Head Start classrooms don't show up on the library's kid's events calendar, so you may not realize how many young children experience the library in this way. Each month during the school year, 25 - 35 preschool groups (450 - 500 children) visit one of KPL's five libraries for a story time tailored to their age level. They listen to stories, sing, dance, do a craft and make friends with their local librarians. Field trips to the library are just one of many ways KPL connects children and books at an early age!
Check out the video clips from the concert!
The show on October 22nd is not to be missed. Another local act, The Corn Fed Girls will be performing beginning at 7:00 pm. Check out their newest release Cornstar from the library to prepare yourself for the show.
As an American citizen, you have the right to decide for yourself what to read, listen to or view. Since 1982, libraries, booksellers, and publishers have reminded us not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted during Banned Books Week, the last week of September each year, from September 27–October 4 in 2008. Learn more on MySpace and Facebook. The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan will Celebrate Free Speech with an event on September 30, 7:00 pm, at the First Baptist Church in Kalamazoo.
The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom received a total of 420 challenges last year. A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint, filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness. According to Judith F. Krug, director of the Office for Intellectual Freedom, the number of challenges reflects only incidents reported, and for each reported, four or five remain unreported.
Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell's award-winning And Tango Makes Three, about two male penguins parenting an egg from a mixed-sex penguin couple, again tops the list of most challenged books by parents and administrators, due to the issues of homosexuality. Off the list this year are two books by author Toni Morrison. The Bluest Eye and Beloved, both challenged for sexual content and offensive language.
The 10 Most Challenged Books of 2007 reflect a range of themes, and consist of the following titles:
The most frequently challenged authors of 2007 include:
Bruce Schultz, a board member of Fair Food Matters, was the featured speaker for "Sleep Tight, Sweet Garden" at Oshtemo on September 26. We learned how to extend the growing season, such as using row covers and cold frames. One of the most interesting techniques he shared was how to use microclimates to your advantage. Here's one way: Plant a sun-loving climber such as cucumber on a vertical trellis and use the shady area behind the trellis for sun-sensitive veggies such as lettuce and spinach.
Schultz, a board member of Fair Food Matters, is involved with the organization's Growing Matters Garden, an urban educational gardening program that provides hands-on opportunities for youth.
Summer may be over, but it's not too soon to be thinking about next year's harvest. Take a look at these resources from KPL.
The audience was treated to a display of Henderson artifacts, a history of the Henderson family and the amazing home that they built, and a photo tour of the castle and its grounds.
Read more about the history of Henderson Castle and the Henderson-Ames Company.
Visit the library's Flickr photostream to see more photos of this event.
Don't miss the next "This Old Building" program on November 12 – The Ladies Library Association.
We offer Live Homework Help online every day from 4:00 to 10:00 pm, from real tutors, real people! The service offers free tutoring in math, science, social studies, and English for students in grades 4 – 12. Students log in with their KPL library card number. Links are available in the Kids, Tweens and Teens sections of our website.
En Espanol is also available.
There are other Homework Helpers on our website too (see our Topic Guides), plus Homework Websites in the teen section.
It's been said that the dazzling diversity of fresh produce and food products in southwest Michigan is unsurpassed by any other region in the Midwest. That's an appetizing thought.
This month the partners of Eat Local, Kalamazoo are highlighting the delicious, economic, and social benefits of eating close to home with a whole month's worth of activities.
Kalamazoo Public Library is a partner in Eat Local, Kalamazoo and we'll be hosting a few tasty programs ourselves:
The Eat Local Challenge Kick-Off & The Eat Local Experience
6:30 PM Thursday, September 4, Central
Begin the month with taste-testing local food prepared by local chefs. Enjoy a conversation regarding the challenges, solutions and experiences of eating locally.
Edible Forest Gardens, Meet Dave Jacke
6:30 PM Thursday September 11, Central
Dave Jacke designs diverse, high-yield gardens mimicking natural ecosystems and forges mutually beneficial relationships.
The Burgeoning Green Economy
6:30 PM Wednesday September 24, Central
Join Tim Young of Food for Thought and learn about the economic benefits of developing a business that helps sustain and preserve our natural world.
Sleep Tight, Sweet Garden
12:30 PM Friday September 26, Oshtemo
Experts from Fair Food Matters will offer advice on how to put your garden to bed for the winter.
These are just a few of the events scheduled for September. See the whole bountiful calendar by visiting Fair Food Matters.
Eat Local, Kalamazoo! is a coalition comprised of Fair Food Matters, Bronson Hospital, Kalamazoo College, Food Dance, People's Food Co-Op, Southwest Michigan Community Harvest Fest, Kalamazoo Public Library and Water Street Coffee Joint.
Following the impromptu story time, Congressman Upton presented every child with a gift book. "Now, I want all parents to cover their ears" he instructed the adults in the room. When he proceeded to tell the children to ask their parents to share the book with them at home, they all eagerly agreed.
To conclude his visit, Congress Upton chatted with staff in the Pediatric Department and W.I.C. Program about their involvement in Ready to Read. Family Health Center pediatricians discuss early literacy development and distribute gift books to families at well-child exams between birth and five years of age. W.I.C. nutritionists also recommend early reading experiences to client families and present Ready to Read gift books to families. "Reading is so important" Congressman Upton said. "I'm a big supporter of this program."
The Family Heath Center is just one of thirty-eight community sites that partner with the library to promote early childhood literacy through Ready to Read's Rx Reading program component.
View more photos of Congressman Upton's visit on the KPL Flickr photostream.
Those are "conversion" stations and we are adding RFID tags to all our materials…. books and AV items. These tags have been called "the new barcode" and combine materials identification and security. We will soon get new security gates for the entrance / exit area and different "work pads" at the circulation desk which will allow a stack of materials to be checked out all at one time, rather than one-by-one.
Early in 2009, we plan to add a self checkout option for patrons who prefer the do-it-yourself route. We'll then replace our current circulation desk and information desk with a combined one to provide better service to our patrons.
First we replaced the worn carpet on the two main staircases with tile. It will last a lifetime and be easier to maintain. Then we started replacing the carpet throughout the building. The second and third floors and adult areas on the first floor are completed. The lower level is in process and the final area on the first floor….the children's room….will be done in September after the completion of summer reading, our high traffic time of year there. By late September / early October we will have new carpet throughout the central library. Stop in; I'm confident you will like it as much as we do!
We'll take a break from carpeting, then turn attention to our four branches later in the year.
It was only a few decades ago that summertime didn't mean leisurely days by the lake. For many families, summer meant work -- a time to harvest and process fruit and vegetables for the winter to come. Commercially canned products were simply too expensive.
Judging by the crowd at our program on Aug. 19, there's a renewed interest in food preserving. The enthusiasm could be due to the economic downtown, an increased concern for food safety or a desire to eat more locally grown foods.
At our program on Aug. 19, we heard about the basics of canning and freezing from Diana Fair of the St. Joseph County Extension office. Diana brought in a cart laden with canning tools, from funnels to pressure canners, and told us how to use them. One important thing I learned is that with water bath canning, acidity is your friend. Acidity prevents the formation of harmful bacteria. That's why it's critical to add a bit of lemon juice to each jar of tomatoes.
We also learned about Kalamazoo's Community Kitchen project from Lucy Bland of Fair Food Matters. Right now there's a mobile, licensed kitchen out at the Kalamazoo County Fairgrounds that can be rented to prepare foods for sale at festivals or other public events. It also can be used as an incubator for food-based businesses. Perhaps someone has a delicious idea for preserving zucchini?
Indeed, opening a jar of home-canned tomatoes in the middle of a January freeze is a special kind of pleasure. For recipe ideas and canning guidelines, check out KPL's books on canning and preserving, most of which can be found under Dewey 641.4.]]>
Don't miss Michael Beauchamp on September 17th.
See more of John Lacko's photos of Rachel's performance on KPL's Flickr photostream.
As promised, here are several video clips from her performance - enjoy!
KPL director Ann Rohrbaugh provided the details that fans love: how cookbooks have changed over the years and how she goes about selecting which one to acquire for the library. If cookbooks have increased in price, she said, it's likely due to the addition of color photography. There are narrower subject categories than ever before – not just ethnic cuisine, but books devoted to such subjects as number of ingredients, kitchen appliances, weight loss, disease, celebrities and celebrity chefs.
Along with the ever-growing population of cookbooks are two emerging related genres. Food memoirs are biographical and categorized the 921s (My Life in France by Julia Child comes to mind). Food fiction, such as Like Water for Chocolate or Chili con Corpses, will be shelved by author's last name.
While KPL's collection of cookery books is vast, it's a mere drop compared to the some 24,000 cookbooks published each year. Ann uses book reviews and a dash of intuition to make selections which includes award winners and other highly praised titles. And if there's something we don't have, we'd love to hear your suggestion. For those times when you're in the mood to watch instead of read, KPL also offers cookery videos in DVD and VHS formats.
Last night's program was a tasty discussion that whetted our appetites. Some headed to a restaurant for dinner. I went home and baked a batch of scones.
Determine if a particular foundation is the right match for your nonprofit by inquiring about their funding emphases and their organizational mission and role within the philanthropic community. Our Meet the Grantmaker program on October 21st will give those who work for 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations the opportunity to learn about the Irving S. Gilmore Foundation from an insider's perspective. Engage in a discussion about the philanthropic activities of this well known, local foundation, what sort of programs they fund and how to establish strong relationships with local funders. Call the nonprofit librarian at 553-7844 to register for this program or to obtain more information.
At last night's program, Julie Stanley held up a massive and misshapen tomato declaring that it tastes better than the uniform and pretty variety that's been bred for looks and long shelf life. Julie Stanley knows her veggies. As owner and executive chef of Food Dance Café (now in its 15th year), she's been a proponent of farmers and local foods for decades. You won't catch her serving winter tomatoes. "Why would you want your food to taste bad?" she said.
Julie shared tips for spotting the good stuff at a farmers market, and caring for those precious goods when we get home. "Ask questions," she urged. Farmers will readily talk about their produce. Beware of vivid yellow squash (tough skin) and oversized zucchini (bitter). Corn, she says, should be firm, cold and even slightly wet – clues that the farmer kept it chilled overnight. If the blueberries don't have a frosty cast, they've been handled too much. And don't even think about keeping those fragile raspberries for more than a day.
At his reading here yesterday, John Rybicki recited several poems from memory. And that got me to thinking about 8th grade when Mrs. Garrett made all of us learn and recite from memory her favorite poem, The House by the Side of the Road. Do students do that these days? Can you recite a poem from memory?
One opponent urged commissioners to think about the challenges and barriers facing some of the people who would be affected by the ordinance's time restrictions. He commented that for people without permanent housing, there aren't a lot of options in our town. At "the library," for example, "their time is limited." This comment prompted me to clarify a couple of the library's policies.
As long as visitors are using the library—reading, studying, using library materials or facilities or engaging in library-related activities—and abide by the library's rules of conduct, there is no time restriction. Two hours of computer use is provided for patrons with a valid library card during any 24-hour period. Individuals without permanent addresses will be issued a free, renewable one-month card if they present a letter from a social service agency stating that he/she is in contact with that agency and resides in Kalamazoo. The library has long-standing, cooperative relationships with agencies such as Ministry with Community, the Kalamazoo Gospel Mission, Housing Resources, Inc. etc. We do our best to provide a welcoming environment for all citizens.]]>
Need to catch up a little? Here's an interesting video that was put together by a Kansas State University professor of cultural anthropology, attempting to sum up Web 2.0 in just under five minutes.
On Friday, July 11th, Jennifer Cornell, KPL's technology trainer, will delve into the world of sharing and organizing on the web with a special educational event called Web 2.0 Topics - Blogging. Don't miss this unique one-off session!]]>