Reverend W. Awdry

Today is the anniversary of the Reverend Wilbert V. Awdry’s death (March 21, 1997). Reverence Awdry was the creator of the beloved Railway Series, featuring Thomas the Tank engine and his friends. In his youth, Awdry lived near train tracks and could hear the trains at night, chugging up a steep grade. The first of the Railway Stories was created in 1943 when his son was sick at home. Awdry created the story to entertain his son, and continued writing new stories afterwards (a total of 26 stories, before Awdry stopped writing in 1972). For more information about Awdry, please check out the wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbert_Vere_Awdry

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Looking for a Good Read?

 There are so many, many good books published each year. How do you choose? You could ask friends, read the latest reviews, browse the new books. Or, you could use my favorite database, NoveList Plus, available through the Alameda County Library.

NoveList logo of boy reading under tree

Lately, I’ve become a fan of historical fiction, where I can immerse myself in past worlds and times. Currently, I’m traveling to ancient Egypt in the 18^th dynasty, thanks to NoveList’s recommendation. Nick Drake has written an outstanding trilogy:  “Nefertiti: The Book of the Dead;” “Tutankhamun: The Book of Shadows;” and finally, “Egypt: The Book of Chaos.” Drake’s writing style is “richly detailed,” something I appreciate. I also like mysteries so I get to meet a new detective from this series, Rai Rahotep, a “Seeker of Mysteries,” who investigates.

NoveList lets you search by genre: you can choose from more than 20 lists of historical fiction ranging from Ancient Worlds to World War II.

Or, you can choose titles from other genres such as mystery, fantasy, horror, science fiction, fantasy. And you’re not limited to fiction; you can explore non-fiction too.

In addition, you can search by type of writing style: “richly detailed,” “compelling,” “engaging,” for example. Other searches include tone and storyline.

When you find a title you might like, you’ll also get a short description – and information about the writing style, tone, pace, and storyline.

If you’re logging on from home, you’ll need to have your library card ready in order to log in. Here’s the navigation: Our library Home page > Research > A – Z Resources > N > NoveList +.

With NoveList, you’ll always have something to read, tailored to your tastes.

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Tween Page Turners

Are you in grades 6-8? Do you like to read books and discuss what you’ve read (and have a lot of fun?) Consider joining Tween Page Turners. We meet once a month (the last Wednesday of the month) from 4-5 pm in conference Room A. We read a different book each month, and sometimes we read Advanced Reader’s Copies (books that are not yet published) and review them for the library. We currently are about half full, and are looking for new tweens to join us! If you are interested, please stop by the Children’s Desk to pick up a copy of the bookfor the next month’s meeting.

If you would like any further information, or have any questions, please email Mary Ayers at mcayers@aclibrary.org.

Some of the recent titles we’ve read:

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

The Secret of Platform 13 by Iva Ibbotson

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd

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top ten fiction books at Fremont

Which  have  you  read?

1		Fifty shades of Grey / (James, E. L)
2		Where we belong / (Giffin, Emily)
3		Fifty shades darker / (James, E. L)
4		Gone girl : (Flynn, Gillian)
5		The tombs / (Cussler, Clive)
6		Winter of the world / (Follett, Ken)
7		The innocent / (Baldacci, David)
8		Fifty shades freed / (James, E. L)
9		Zoo / (Patterson, James)
10		The litigators / (Grisham, John)

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Preschool Storytime

Preschool storytime is beginning for the fall session next week! There are 6 different sessions to choose from, on different days and times. Storytime begins on September 24th and ends on November 9th. These storytimes are designed for children ages 3-5 years old that are not in Kindergarten. There is no registration – just drop in! We read a variety of stories, do fingerplays and action rhymes, listen to music, tell felt board stories and more.

 

Mondays: 2 pm (9/24-11/5)

Tuesdays: 7 pm (9/25-11/6)

Wednesdays: 12:15 pm (9/26-11/7)

Wednesdays: 4:30 pm (9/26-11/7) –> this session is bilingual, Japanese & English

Thursdays: 4:30 pm (9/27-11/8) –> this session is bilingual, English & Mandarin

Fridays: 11:30 am (9/28-11/9)

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Read to a Dog

Yes, you read that title correctly. Come join us once a month and let your child(ren) read to a real live dog! We have between 3-7 dogs each month, eager to listen to a story (and receive lots of love and attention!) Each session lasts 15 minutes, beginning at 6:30 and ending at 7:30. Pick up your free tickets at the Children’s Desk beginning right at 6:30 pm the day of the program. Our next session will be held on Tuesday, March 27th.

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Dancing – with books

Just  for  fun

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HEALTH BENEFITS OF MEDITATION

It was a great talk by Dr. Zaslove on Saturday, September 10th.  The talk was based on the book ‘Inner and Outer Peace Through Meditation’ by Rajinder Singh, which we have copies of in our collection:

http://tinyurl.com/3h8p5gh

Below are some of the key points:

• Meditation equals concentrated attention and total physical relaxation.
• Meditation is science, is mainstream, and should be free of charge.
• Meditation is NOT a religion NOR a cult.
• We withdraw the attention from outside and go within– Everything you are seeking outside is inside you.
• Meditation is about stopping of the mind.  It calms and stills the mind.
• Meditate through the Inner Eye, aka, Single Eye or Third Eye
• All religions meditate.

 

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HEALTH BENEFITS OF MEDITATION

Come learn about the benefits at the Fukaya Room in the Fremont Main Library on Saturday, September 10th, 11:00 pm- 1:00 pm.

We will explore the latest and most astonishing discoveries into the preventive, healing, and pain-relieving effects of meditation with a physician/researcher with 38 years of meditation experience.  Dr. Marshall Zaslove has lived in the San Francisco Bay area since 1969.  He has been practicing meditation daily for over 30 years.  This workshop is based on ‘Inner and Outer Peace Through Meditation’ by Rajinder Singh.

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Children’s Books for Autumn

It’s almost that time again. Kids are heading back to school and the days are sadly getting shorter. Check out one of these books about school and autumn to get you in the mood for fall!

 The Busy Little Squirrel: JPB Tafuri

 Animals in Fall: JE 578.43 Rustad

 Autumn: an alphabet acrostic: JPB Schnur

  Autumn Leaves: J581.48 Robbins

 Clifford’s First Autumn: JPB Bridwell

 It’s Fall, Dear Dragon: JE Hillert

 Fall: JE 508.2 Smith

 Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf: JPB Ehlert

 Mouse’s First Fall: JPB Thompson

 I’m Telling You, Dex, Kindergarten Rocks!: JPB Davis

 Splat the Cat: JPB Scotton

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