Numbers

Here are some numbers to take in:

Last month our circulation at the Hiawatha Public Library was 30,000 items. Last year during the same time period (even with the flood shutting us down for almost a week) our circulation was 22,000 items.

We have 10 people on staff here at the library. Last summer we generally had at least 2 if not 3 extra staff from Cedar Rapids working with us.

We had 11,918 people through our doors in the month of June. That's an average of almost 400 people per day!

So what exactly do these numbers all equate to???

Some very worn out staff!!

Heck yeah!

We are officially half way through summer reading program here at Hiawatha!

Get your read on kids, time is running out!

I'm plotting...

and scheming about what new adult programs to bring to Hiawatha Public Library. Beware...it could be the best free fun you'll ever have! Bwahahaha!

AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! IT'S HERE!!!!!!!!

SUMMER READING PROGRAMS!!!!

We have reading programs for everyone this summer at Hiawatha Public Library! We have a number of exciting prizes, programs to participate in and of course the joy that reading brings! Read on further to learn a little more about each program and how to sign up!

The theme for this year's Children's Summer Reading Program is "Get Creative @ Your Library". This program is designated for children entering preschool through 5th grade. Children are rewarded for every level they complete. There are five levels in total and to complete each level, children are encouraged to read for roughly an hour to fill in each space. There will even be a grand prize drawing for a bike!

The theme for this year's Teen Summer Reading Program is called "Express Yourself @ Your Library." This program is for students entering sixth grade through twelfth grade. Similar to the children's program, for each level completed teens bring in their reading packets and recieve prizes. There will also be a grand prize drawing for some wicked cool gift certificates at the end of the summer!
And finally, we have our Adult Summer Reading Program called "Master the Art of Reading". Adults 18 and over are able to participate in the program. For every book read this summer, participants will fill out a drawing slip and drop it in our handy dandy trash bin. We will do weekly drawings for wonderful prizes that include tickets to local theatre productions and restaurants.

So there you have it kids, all the fun you can pack into 8 weeks of summer!

Yes, yes, it's been awhile...

HELLLOOOO!!! Ah yes, it has been awhile, hasn't it?? Well, first things first, I do have to share with you a link to a segment that aired on the ABC Nightly News last night. It is about a banker who helped a mama duck get her little ducklings down from a ledge and out to the nearby pond. This story absolutely warmed my heart, and I hope that it does yours too!

Here's the link:
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=7622622

Let's see...I had the wonderful opportunity to have dinner with Lan Samantha Chang who is the director of the famous (or infamous, whichever way you choose to look at it!) Iowa Writer's Workshop. She spoke at the Theatre Cedar Rapids-Lindale as a part of our Out Loud Author Series. She was an engaging speaker and a delightful dinner guest! Be sure to mark your calanders: mystery writer extraordinaire Lawrence Block is our next author to visit for the series. He will be here on Thursday, May 21st at 7pm.

On a personal note...I am moving *again*. This time it will be into a house with one of my close friends and her lovely German Shepherd. So if I'm complaining of back pain or that I can't move, it's because of that.

That's all I've got for now!

For the record:

I don't get paid to babysit. Enough said.

Favorite Book Titles

Obviously I see a lot of books in the thirty hours that I spend at the library every week. But every week I also see some hilarious book titles...here are a few of my favorites:

"Enlightenment for Idiots"

"Elephants on Acid: and Other Bizarre Experiments"

"Food, Sex, and Salmonella"

"A Leaky Tent is a Piece of Paradise"

"Getting Stoned With Savages: A Trip Through the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu"

"The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific"

"Sand in My Bra: and Other Misadventures"