School Visit

To promote the summer library program, I am in the process of visiting each of the schools in my city to talk to all of the kids about all of the awesome stuff happening at the library this summer. The first set of presentations was today, and it was a great success! Everyone was very excited about this summer's activities.

When I asked if they had any questions, one boy (who I'm pretty sure was in the 4th grade) raised his hand. When I called on him he eagerly stated:

"I didn't know that reading could be so much fun!"

Why yes, young man, that's kind of the point. Score one for the library!

Reactions

I generally pride myself on being up to date on online goodies. But last night I discovered something awesome: Blogger's "Stats" tab. It had been right under my nose for ages, yet I'd never given it much thought until now. I had no idea that Blogger kept such detailed statistics! I get very few comments on my individual blog posts, but all things considering this little thing gets a respectable amount of traffic. For example, did you know that my lovely little corner of the web has 126 total page views in Slovenia? And that 54 of these views are from this month alone? And that my most popular post was my review last summer of the awesome book, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda with 197 views? Yes, I know that this kind of traffic isn't amazing in the grand scheme of things, but it's still a lot more than I had imagined.

Despite the traffic, this blog gets very few comments. Ah well. Not everyone wants to put themselves out there on someone else's blog. And composing a comment does require a certain amount of effort. I totally get that; I do quite a bit of lurking myself. But a girl likes to have feedback, so I've added a little something to this blog: Reactions. This feature has been around Blogger for ages but I've never bothered with it until now. But at the bottom of each post you'll be able to click an appropriate response to whatever it was you were reading. Painless and anonymous for readers, gratifying for me. Everybody wins!

Another new feature can also be found at the bottom of each blog post. If you are so compelled to share something I've written here with a friend/colleagues/everyone you know, you can share a post on Twitter, Facebook, via e-mail and more with the click of a button .

To all of my readers, whether or not I know who you are: Thanks for stopping in.

The Chaos Before SLP

Things are a bit crazy here in library-land. The month of May is quickly flying by, and the end of the school year isn't far behind. For children's librarians across the country, this means spending our working hours gearing up for the summer library program.

SLP is a big deal. This year will be the first time that I'm the person in charge of this massive 8-week program, so I'll admit that I'm a tad nervous. The children's department is also quite chaotic at the moment as dozens of small projects are strewn about (several only half finished) as they wait for the big day arrive so that all can be unveiled to the public. Don't even get me started on the state of my office, which is far too embarrassing to share.

Here are a few pictures of the back counter, where most of the summer paraphernalia are currently stored:




It's much more massive in person than the photos indicate.

And guess how many photocopies I've made so far. Just take a stab at it.

3,868! Plus, most of these copies were double-sided. That's a lot of paper and toner. It's also a lot of cutting, folding, and stapling. The scary thing is, this number reflects the fact that I work in a small-ish community. Imagine the amount of paper that a large library goes through during the summer!

I, for one, will be very glad when all of the planning is over and the fun of summer programs can begin.

The Hidden Gallery

Alexander, Beowulf, and Cassiopia are unique children under the guardianship of Lord and Lady Ashton who are commonly referred to as the Incorrigibles. The three children seem to have been raised by wolves and sometimes have trouble adapting to polite British society. With the help and understanding of their governess, Penelope Lumley, the Incorrigibles have greatly improved themselves. Unfortunately, the disastrous Christmas ball has left their home at Ashton Place in shambles. While repais are being made, Lord and Lady Ashton have decided that the entire household should temporarily relocate to London. Miss Lumley is doubly thrilled at this prospect since not only will London provide the Incorrigibles with a number of unique educational opportunities, but Miss Lumley's old headmistress has also requested to meet her for lunch in London. But strange things are happening to Miss Lumley and the Incorrigibles. The guidebook that Penelope's headmistress sends does not seem to provide very useful information about London at all, and yet it is nearly stolen from her on the train. A gypsy gives the children a dire warning about an approaching hunt. Judge Quinzy seems as disconcerting as ever. But still, Penelope and the Incorrigibles are filled with enough pluck to weather any challenge.

The Hidden Gallery, written by Maryrose Wood is the sequel to last year's delight, The Mysterious Howling. When I read the first book in this series I was enchanted by the characters and the book's language, but wasn't entirely sure how well the series would hold up. Fortunately, the sequel is even more charming than the first volume. We still don't have a lot of answers to any of the questions raised, but we do have a lot more clues. As the mystery builds readers will continue to be delighted with the plucky cast of character and a whimsical writing style that will inevitably remind readers of Lemony Snicket. This book is a delightful romp, and I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Overall Grade: A

Inside Out & Back Again

The year Hà turns ten turns out to be a tumultuous one. It is 1975 and the Vietnam War rages on. As the fighting draws closer to her home in Saigon, Hà's family must decide if they will stay in the home they have always known or attempt to flea to a safer location where Hà's missing father may never find them. In the end the family packs a few meager belongings and leaves everything they have ever known. The journey is long and difficult, but after several months of living on a cramped ship and in tent villages they finally are welcomed to the United States by an American sponsor from Alabama. Though no longer facing the violent dangers of war, Hà has a whole new set of challenges to tackle as she goes from being a very smart, happy girl to feeling stupid because she can't speak English. Her frustration builds as she endures relentless teasing from her American classmates. But with the help of her family and compassionate neighbor Mrs. Washington, Hà slowing begins to find joy in her new surroundings.

Inside Out and Back Again is a heartfelt story. Told in verse, the pages of this novel turn quickly while getting right to the heart of of Hà's experiences and giving them plenty of emotional power. Readers are invited to get inside Hà's head and experience all of her joy, sorrow and frustration with her. It is worth noting that author Thanhha Lai drew from many of her own childhood experiences to write this novel, and this authenticity certainly adds to the emotional impact of Hà's story. But this isn't your typical immigration story. Hà certainly goes through a number of trials, but she does so with plenty of spunk. This fiestiness adds depth to the story and keeps the concept fresh.

Overall Grade: A

Edit 1/23/12: Congratulations to Thanhha Lai for winning a 2012 Newbery Honor for Inside Out and Back Again. Lai also was awarded the 2011 National Book Award for Young People's Literature for this lovely book.