Kent District Library (MI)'s Blog, page 57
June 24, 2014
Da Na Na Na Na Na Na Na… Batman
Tim Burton’s rendition of Batman was released on June 23, 1989 starring Michael Keaton as Batman and Jack Nicholson as the Joker. The movie was a huge success, making $100 million in the first 10 days – a summer blockbuster that year. It was so successful they decided to make a sequel called Batman Returns.
KDL has the DVD version of Tim Burton’s Batman and many other Batman-related books and materials including the newer Batman DVDs starring Christian Bale, such as Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises. So if you are like me and you just cannot get enough Batman, be sure to place a couple holds.
June 23, 2014
New Adult Booklists for Summer Reading
Plenty of new booklists for adults are here to enjoy throughout Summer Reading @ KDL. Check out the links below to see what titles are available:
Comedic Memoirs
Firebrands
Green Cleaning
Science Biographies
Science Fiction for Adults
Spectacular Travel Destinations
Start Your Engine
To find other great booklists from Kent District Library, click on the Books and More link on the top of the library’s website.
June 22, 2014
Early Lit Bits: Learning with Crafts — Starry Sky Craft
One of the joys of summer in West Michigan is experiencing the great outdoors. It gets dark later here on the Western edge of the Eastern time zone, but if little ones manage to stay up after dark they have a wonderful opportunity to learn about the beauty of the night sky. Talk about the concepts of day and night with your child. Observe the phases of the moon and the patterns of constellations. Can you can find the Big Dipper in the night sky? Check out a book about stars from the library such as Stars by Mary Lyn Ray and Marla Frazee or Zoo in the Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations by Jacqueline Mitton. When you are finished learning about the night sky, challenge children to make their own constellations using the materials below.
Materials
glow-in-the-dark star stickers or foil star stickers
black paper
white colored pencil or white chalk
mini marshmallows
toothpicks
Directions
Arrange the star stickers on the black paper to form a pattern.
Use the chalk or colored pencil to connect the stars to form a constellation.
Use the marshmallows as stars and connect them together with the toothpicks to form a constellation.
Name your constellation and make up a story about how the constellation formed.
–Anjie G. at KDL’s Walker Branch
This article originally appeared in our Early Lit Bits eNewsletter. Read the most recent issue online or sign up to receive this monthly update highlighting early literacy tips and resources for parents and caregivers.
Video Library Love Bombs: Julie and Katie
Julie and her daughter Katie are ginormous fans of KDL. The awesome pair kicked it news-style recently while at the Comstock Park Branch to proclaim their love for all things library. What’s your library story? Upload a short video of your own to our Facebook page!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eraodSpJe5Y
June 21, 2014
Michigan Thumbs Up! Announces Winners
The votes have been tallied and a winner has been selected for the annual Michigan Thumbs Up! Award. The winner of the 2014 Thumbs Up! Award goes to Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell! This touching coming-of-age novel features two misfit teens who develop a friendship and love despite the challenges of peer pressure and family.
Three honor books were selected as well:
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys
June 20, 2014
KDL Top Ten — Canning and Preserving
This week’s Top Ten gives you a taste of KDL’s hottest books on canning and preserving. Our COOKING CAN Nonfiction section is full of wonderful resources for all experience levels. And if you’re interested in this booklist, don’t miss one of our classes on The Art and Science of Canning!
BOGO Whitecaps Tickets
Attention KDL cardholders: Show your library card at the box office at the West Michigan Whitecaps baseball game taking place on Monday, June 30 at 12:00 PM and enjoy buy one-get one free admission on reserved seating. Katie L., our mascot, will be walking the concourse for photos with the kids and we’ll have an information table with fun stuff to share and summer reading program information. Just one more way having a KDL card is a major home run!
June 19, 2014
Great Books on WWII and the Holocaust
If you enjoy history, check out these great books at KDL:
50 Children: One Ordinary American Couple’s Extraordinary Rescue Mission into the Heart of Nazi Germany by Steven Pressman
Based on the acclaimed HBO documentary, the astonishing true story of how one American couple, Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus, transported 50 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Austria to America in 1939.
The Auschwitz Escape by Joel C. Rosenberg
A terrible darkness has fallen upon Jacob Weisz’s beloved Germany. The Nazi regime, under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, has surged to power and now holds Germany by the throat. All non-Aryans—especially Jews like Jacob and his family—are treated like dogs.
Hidden Like Anne Frank: True Stories of Survival by Marcel Prins and Peter Henk Steenhuis
Fourteen unforgettable true stories of children hidden away during World War II.
June 16, 2014
Ignite Happiness: Summer Reading Booklists for Children
Ignite happiness this summer with these amazing booklists. The librarians of KDL work hard to connect young readers with the right books to ignite a love of reading that will last a lifetime. Check out these booklists for children of all ages.
Great Board Books
Great Books for Toddlers
Great Books for Preschoolers
Great Books for Kindergarteners
Great Books for First Graders
Great Books for Second Graders
Great Books for Third Graders
Great Books for Fourth Graders
Great Books for Fifth Graders
Author and Illustrator Eric Hill Has Died at Age 86
Well-known author and illustrator of the Spot the Dog series Eric Hill died last week at the age of 86. Eric Hill started drawing as a teenager and went on to draw comic strips and worked as a designer. He started making up puppy stories for his young son, publishing his first Where’s Spot? book in 1980.
The series has continued to grow over the years and has been translated into 60 languages. Spot also has his own animated series.
Check out all Eric Hill’s books here!
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