Kent District Library (MI)'s Blog, page 96

Time’s Running Out: Enter Now and Win Big!

Just a friendly reminder that our Connect with Happiness Contest ends on November 1. You don’t want to miss out on this great opportunity to win a $50 gift certificate to Schuler Books & Music! Pick up a copy of our Fall Kaleidoscope at your local branch or read it online. Check out page 4 for the contest details. Basically, we are sending you on a simple word search with a really awesome prize!

Happy searching!

 

Our Trophy Case (and My Gratitude) Runneth Over

Mind if I take a moment to give a huge shout-out to those who work at KDL?

KDL received the State Librarian’s Citation of Excellence during last week’s Michigan Library Association annual conference. We were one of two libraries to receive this award (the other was Lakeview High School in Battle Creek), which acknowledges excellence in library service and stands as a testament to the hard work of every staff member in the KDL family.

Needless to say, this accolade — as with our prior awards and recognitions — belongs to them. Their service is an inspiration not only to me, but to libraries across the state. Congratulations!

Great Michigan Read: Annie’s Ghosts

Several KDL branches are hosting book discussions as part of the 2013–14 Great Michigan Read, featuring the book Annie’s Ghosts: A Journey into a Family Secret by Steve Luxenberg. The book has been called “equal parts memoir, social history and riveting detective story” and “a remarkable journey to the very center of a secret.”

Here are a few upcoming events:

Thursday, October 24, 2013, 6:30 PM – Byron Township branch

Thursday, November 14, 2013, 6:45 PM – Krause Memorial branch

Thursday, January 9, 2014, 6:30 PM – Grandville branch

Tuesday, January 21, 2014, 6:30 PM – Wyoming branch

Monday, January 27, 2014, 1:00 PM — Gaines Township branch

Thursday, February 13, 2014, 1:00 PM – Plainfield Township branch

Our Caledonia Township branch also plans to host a book discussion in the spring. Details to come!

For maps to all our branches, click here.

The Great Michigan Read is presented by the Michigan Humanities Council with support from Meijer and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

                                                            

 

Early Lit Bits: App Review — Hickory Dickory Dock

Music and action come together in the simple and entertaining app Hickory Dickory Dock by Mindshapes. As you and your child interact with the app, a catchy variation of the classic nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock introduces 12 interactive mini games, one for each hour on a clock. To begin each game, move the clock hands or tap the arrows to choose the time. Tap on the number to introduce another part of the game as you solve puzzles, pop bubbles or make music and dance! As well as being amusing and beautifully illustrated, this app helps to learn numbers, introduces the clock face and problem solving skills. Play and sing with your child as you use this free app, available for iPad and iPhone.

– Julie R. at KDL’s Caledonia Township 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.

 

Scary Reads for School-Age Boys

So, do you think you’re brave enough to handle some extra spooky reads just in time for Halloween? If so, check out these great picks for boys (and possibly brave young girls as well):

 

The Haunted Playground, by Shaun Tan

Gavin is obsessed with hunting for treasure with his metal detector. He finds the perfect spot–a huge, sandy playground. Then he meets a bunch of kids who have a mysterious treasure hunt of their own. Gavin gets the feeling they want him to stay . . . forever.

 

 

 

 

 

The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch, by Joseph Delaney

For years, Old Gregory has been the Spook for the county, ridding the local villages of evil. Now his time is coming to an end. But who will take over for him? Twenty-nine apprentices have tried—some floundered, some fled, some failed to stay alive. Only Thomas Ward is left. He’s the last hope, the last apprentice.

This is the first book in the fantastic Last Apprentice series.

 

 

 

The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman

Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy—an ancient Indigo Man, a gateway to the abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, he will be in danger from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family.

 

 

 

Monsters (The Unexplained), by Judith Herbst

Explores such “”monsters”" as the Yeti, zombies, and the Loch Ness monster, debunking many of these fantastic stories. But what creatures might yet be lurking out there just waiting to be discovered? A great read for curious minds.

 

 

 

 

Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery, by Deborah and James Howe

BEWARE THE HARE! Is he or isn’t he a vampire?

Before it’s too late, Harold the dog and Chester the cat must find out the truth about the newest pet in the Monroe household — a suspicious-looking bunny with unusual habits…and fangs! A horrific (yet humorous) read.

The first book in the Bunnicula series.

 

 

 

 

Of course, for a sure bet you can always try the ever-popular Goosebumps or American/Michigan Chillers series:

 

 

Enjoy these books and many more by visiting your local KDL branch library today!

 

KDL Top Ten – 10/18/2013

View 10 of the most popular Teen Graphic Novel series this month at KDL – click on the link to the KDL Top Ten List!

Celebrate Teen Read Week, October 13–19!

New Job Searching Resource

ReferenceUSA, an extensive database of corporate and residential contact information, now includes a new jobs and internships section with 2.5 million job postings. Users can search for jobs by job type, company and location and link to ReferenceUSA company profiles to research hiring companies. In addition, state-of-the-art mapping tools can pinpoint openings in specific geographic areas, making job searching in rural areas much more effective. And this is all FREE with your KDL library card – try it today!

 

“The Locket”: An Intriguing New DVD

I was going to review a couple movies for this new entry, but having seen “The Locket,” I decided there was more than enough to write about with this one movie. Not to be confused with another “Locket” of the same name, this 1946 noir thriller has one of the most deliciously complicated plot structures I have seen in a long time. For those familiar with this genre, you’ll know that flashbacks are not unusual as a means of storytelling (check out, for instance, “Out of the Past” or “Mildred Pierce,” movies made around the same time). But “The Locket” takes this device and raises it to new heights.

It begins with a wedding which is about to take place at the house of a wealthy family. We see the bride and groom, and just before the ceremony is to begin, a stranger summons the groom for a private conversation about the woman the latter is about to marry. The news from the stranger is not good—in fact, it’s downright disturbing.  Naturally, the groom is suspicious—who is this guy barging into my house?—but soon finds out that the stranger does know something about the bride. He tells his story, and thus begins the first of three flashbacks, each one inside the previous one, as if each story is a box with a smaller one inside it. This structure works in tandem with the psychological aspect of the film, in which the main character, Nancy (played by Lorraine Day), who had a traumatic experience as a child, is covering up this trauma and its aftereffects for the sake of her relationship with three different men. Robert Mitchum is outstanding as an artist who falls for Day, and it’s fascinating to watch his transformation from bohemian painter to someone who’ll hobnob with the wealthy in order to sell his work. Brian Aherne is also great as the somewhat haughty, but well-intentioned Dr. Blair. And of course Day carries the movie as the girl who lost her locket.

“The Locket” pulls us in by its deft use of flashback to keep us guessing about what will happen next, and in the same way, it ends without compromising what has been told up till then. The final scenes give us answers but also questions, questions that the viewer will have to provide for himself—a certain amount of open-endedness that I found immensely satisfying.  And while its psychological underpinnings are certainly speculative at best, it also presents us with a world of uncertainty, in which the narrators pass on a chain of information that the viewer must be willing to believe in order for the story to continue to be believed. Without getting too philosophical about it all (for more of that, see this article, for which I am indebted for the previous statement), I want to recommend “The Locket” for its rich visual look, its complex plotting involving a femme fatale, and its economy of storytelling that packs so much in a mere 86 minutes of film.

 

“The Locket”: an intriguing new DVD

I was going to review a couple movies for this new entry, but having seen “The Locket”, I decided there was more than enough to write about with this one movie. Not to be confused with another “Locket” of the same name, this 1946 noir thriller has one of the most deliciously complicated plot structures I have seen in a long time. For those familiar with this genre, you’ll know that flashbacks are not unusual as a means of storytelling (check out, for instance, “Out of the Past” or “Mildred Pierce”, movies made around the same time). But “The Locket” takes this device and raises it to new heights.

It begins with a wedding which is about to take place at the house of a wealthy family. We see the bride and groom, and just before the ceremony is to begin, a stranger summons the groom for a private conversation about the woman the latter is about to marry. The news from the stranger is not good—in fact, it’s downright disturbing.  Naturally, the groom is suspicious—who is this guy barging into my house?—but soon finds out that the stranger does know something about the bride. He tells his story, and thus begins the first of three flashbacks, each one inside the previous one, as if each story is a box with a smaller one inside it. This structure works in tandem with the psychological aspect of the film, in which the main character, Nancy (played by Lorraine Day), who had a traumatic experience as a child, is covering up this trauma and its aftereffects for the sake of her relationship with three different men. Robert Mitchum is outstanding as an artist who falls for Day, and it’s fascinating to watch his transformation from bohemian painter to someone who’ll hobnob with the wealthy in order to sell his work.  Brian Aherne is also great as the somewhat haughty, but well-intentioned Dr. Blair. And of course Day carries the movie as the girl who lost her locket.

“The Locket” pulls us in by its deft use of flashback to keep us guessing about what will happen next, and in the same way, it ends without compromising what has been told up till then. The final scenes give us answers but also questions, questions that the viewer will have to provide for himself—a certain amount of open-endedness that I found immensely satisfying.  And while its psychological underpinnings are certainly speculative at best, it also presents us with a world of uncertainty, in which the narrators pass on a chain of information that the viewer must be willing to believe in order for the story to continue to be believed. Without getting too philosophical about it all (for more of that, see this article, for which I am indebted for the previous statement), I want to recommend “The Locket” for its rich visual look, its complex plotting involving a femme fatale, and its economy of storytelling that packs so much in a mere 86 minutes of film.

Phone Service Issues

UPDATE: All network issues have been resolved and our phones are working properly again. Thanks for your patience!

The KDL Service Center is currently experiencing network connection issues. Phone calls to our main customer service number (616-784-2007) may experience poor audio quality or may be disconnected. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and hope to have this issue resolved soon.