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"

Bleepity bleep bleep...

...bleep bleep bleepin computers!!

I'm feeling mildly frustrated with them today!

Oh, it's on...

Read this link, then see below:

http://gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090227/NEWS/702279942/1002/NEWS

I am appalled and disgusted by this story. I am even more appalled and disgusted by such poor journalism. I cannot believe that this story is being reported as "vindication" for a woman who was charged (per Iowa Code) with 5th degree theft for failure to return a library book. Are you freakin kidding me?! Vindication?! This woman was completely and totally irresponsible!

According the article, Gruwell said "the book is about changing lives for the better." Here's a thought, if you're going to change your life for the better, how about starting with being accountable for your actions. This woman is not the victim she is being portrayed to be. This is a person who needs to be held liable for their misdeeds.

The Jesup Public Library was well within their legal rights to pursue a theft charge. Not once has Ms. Koontz apologized for not returning the book. Not once has she taken responsiblity for her lack of action to the notices sent by the library. Not once.

Instead, she says she's a "hard-working, proud woman" who works "the third-shift." Your point Ms. Koontz? You are no different than hundreds of thousands of other women around this country who do the same thing everyday. But this also does not give you an exemption from your responsiblities as a library card holder. You signed for the card, you take responsiblity for the materials checked out on that card. You don't return the material, you suffer the consequences. It's pretty cut and dry.

Yes, the gloves are off for this fight, I'm done being nice and politically correct. I am furious that we as public libraries are taking the bad rap for one woman's irresponsible behavior. Furthermore, I am angry at the journalists who have inaccurately portrayed this story and who continue to view this woman as a martyr. There is no martyr here. But yes, there are victims who need to be vindicated. And those victims are the employees of the Jesup Public Library who were simply doing their jobs.

Winter sucks

Enough said.