Adults’ rearrangement

You may have noticed we have made some small alterations to the entrance area in the Adults’ Department. The catalogue computers have been moved back to create more room and the new non-fiction books have been given more room. We’ve also changed the position of the playpen to the other side of the door.

Now I think these changes make the place look more open and inviting. What do you think?
The placement of the playpen lets parents see their kids better when they are at the desk.
So come in have a look and tell me what you think of the layout. If you want to get creative go further and give us suggestions on anything else you think we could improve.

Remember it’s your library you should have a say in how you want the place to look.

My impression of an infomercial

Are you sick an tired of plastic bags that just don't hold your library books?

Studies show that the average old shopping bag is designed to hold four loaves of bread. This makes it totally inadequate for your modern library needs. Add to this the thousands of plastic shopping bags that litter our road sides and fill our land fills every year.

Well here at the Invercargill Public library we have the answer. Reusable book bags made from recycled materials. Each bag will hold not 1, not 2, but up to 8 hardback novels*. Bags are available in a glorious purple/blue colour and you'll pay no more than $2 for this stunning addition to your library experience.

*Results may very due to size and shape of actual books.

Do you like books but have trouble reading? Do you want audio-books but don't like having to change tape or CD twenty time a book?

Well the Invercargill Public library has the answer to all your prayers. We now stock Playaway audio-books in both our children's and adult's libraries.

“But what is a Playaway?” I hear you ask. A Playaway is a small device which sits in the palm of your hand and, using MP3 technology, contains a whole audio-book. All you need to do is find a pair of ear phones (If you don't have any you can buy them from us at the low low price of $2) press Play, and sit back and be entertained. Playaways are issued for four weeks and are free to borrow. We supply two rechargeable batteries (one in the unit and another as backup) which must be returned with the unit.

Interested?

Of course you are. All you need to do is go to our catalogue and type “Playaway” into the keyword phrase search (that's the one that shows when you open the catalogue). This will bring up a full list of the Playaway audio-books we have in stock. After that you'll find them located in the spoken word collections of our adult's and children's libraries.
Don't hesitate.
Check one out now.

Terror's Reach

Tom Bale

This is only Bale's second novel, but I will be reading more. Set on a tiny island off the English coast which is home to a handful of multimillionaires, a ruthless plot to take hostage and rob the wealthy inhabitants unfolds. After a bust gone wrong which lost him his entire family, former undercover cop Joe Clayton is laying low, employed as a bodyguard to successful businessman Valentin Nasenko's young wife Cassie. It falls to Joe to try to work out what's really going on and to rescue the innocents involved. The action moves swiftly with enough unforeseen plot twists to keep the reader riveted. Fans of Lee Child would probably enjoy this easy, "sit back and enetertained" read.

(Reviewed by Angela.)

$500 dollars worth of books

In addition to New zealand book month which I mentioned a wee while ago the finalists for this years New Zealand Post Children's book awards have been announced. You can go to http://www.booksellers.co.nz/awards/new-zealand-post-childrens-book-awards if you're interested in learning more about the awards but I'm more interested in the finalists themselves;

Picture books

Baa Baa Smart Sheep Mark & Rowan Sommerset

A Dog Like That! Janene Cooper & Evie Kemp

Hill & Hole Kyle Mewburn & Vasanti Unka

Marmaduke Duck and the Marmalade Jam Juliette MacIver & Sarah Davis

The Moon & Farmer McPhee Margaret Mahy & David Elliot

Non-fiction

The Kiwi Fossil Hunter's Handbook James Crampton & Marianna Terezow

The life cycle of the Pukeko Betty Brownlie

Sensational Survivors Sandra Morris

Who's Cooking Tonight? Claire Gourley & Glenda Gourley

Zero Hour: The Anzacs on the Western Front Leon Davidson

Junior fiction

Finnigan & the Pirates Sherryl Jordan

The Haystack Jack Lasenby

Hollie Chips Anna Gowan

Shadow of the Boyd Diana Menefy

Tussock Elizabeth Pulford

Young Adult

Ebony Hill Anna Mackenzie

Fierce September Fleur Beale

Guardian of the Dead Karen Healey

The Limping Man Maurice Gee

Smiling Jack Ken Catran

Some of the ones that catch my attention are Baa Baa Smart Sheep, a wonderfully irreverent story in the style of The Mole who knew it wasn't any of his business and The Moon & Farmer McPhee for those of a more contemplative mind. I can't let the opportunity go by to recommend Maurice Gee's The Limping Man. It's the last book in a great trilogy and Gee has got to be my favourite NZ author. Feel free to let me know who you think would win and when winners are drawn I'll let you all know if the majority of people in our library agree with the judges.

If you want to make a more formal vote there is a children's choice award where you can get in on the action. If you vote for the children's choice award you go into the draw to win $500 dollars of book tokens for yourself and another $500 for your school (voters must be of school age). So come into the library and grab a voting form. They're free post so it will cost you nothing and could win you $500 dollars worth of books. Voting closes 5pm on the 29^th of April.

An Afternoon in Summer

Kathy Giuffre

The subtitle for this book sums it up really – My year on a South Sea Island, doing nothing, gaining everything & falling in love. Author Kathy Giuffre travels to Rarotonga with her two young boys. Her mission is to write a book about art in the Pacific, but it is also a means to escape a failed relationship. A mix-up with her accommodation leaves Giuffre with no option but to share a home with an elderly woman (Emily), some “ghosts”, a couple of missionaries and briefly, a bizarre couple from Eastern Europe. Giuffre’s year-long sabbatical enabled her to focus on her children and reassess her life. And in the process, she is seduced by the Island, it’s people and a way of life. A lovely, light, holiday read with a happy ending.

(Reviewed by Jill)

Heath and Wellness Resource Centre

No I’m not hinting that you are all unwell – merely pointing out another one of our databases for you to check out!

Important note:

Something that is very important to remember when using this site: it is not intended to replace any medical specialist or to self-diagnose; it is simply an information tool.

This database is well laid out with an easy to see bright green search box. There are nine tabs across the top of the web page: Home, Diseases & Conditions, Alternative Medicine, Drugs & Herbal Remedies, Directories, Dictionary, Trusted Sites, Health Assessment, and Advanced Search. The web page is then divided into six sections for ease of information finding; Diseases and Conditions, Search, Find Drugs and Herbal Remedies, Topics in the News, Search Directories and Health Highlights. Diseases and Conditions will allow you to choose from a selected list or choose from an A-Z.

The Search box allows you to select Keyword, Subject or Entire Document and also Full Text Articles, Consumer Health and Refereed Publications, also en Español if you so desire. The search results are then listed with further option tabs to narrow down the result list – Books & Fact Sheets, Magazines & Journals, Drugs & Herbal Remedies, Pamphlets, Video and News. When you have selected an article, for example, you then have the option of printing, emailing or downloading it.

The Dictionary tab will take you to Mosby's Medical, Nursing and Allied Health Dictionary. The Trusted Sites tab has links to numerous useful, “trusted”, external websites, including: Medline Plus Australian and New Zealand medical websites Clinical trials Evidence-based medicine Government databases and websites Medical information in foreign languages The Health Assessment tab is a collection of calculators and risk assessment tools that enable you to collate relevant data across many health areas – but remember that this is an exercise only and to take a commonsense approach to the results. Overall as an information tool, this is an easy to use and interesting database. So give it a go – remember there is 24/7 access to it with your Library card number.

Vanessa

Being Human

This is a story of a vampire (Mitchell) a werewolf (George) and a ghost (Annie) who are all living in a flat together in Bristol trying to "Be Human".

The best character by far is George the dorky werewolf. Mitchell is good as an on-the-wagon blood junkie and Annie who thinks she has to stay as a ghost as she has unfinished business on earth. The bad guys were all nasty and loathsome, which was great.

The first episode was slow, but stick with it! I love the supernatural theme and the under lying stories behind these characters that will make you think about what’s out there and do they truly exist and live in the fringes of our society. The story flicks back and forward between the past and the present. We get to see how they became what they are and how this haunts them.

The library has series 1 & series 2. Series 3 is currently screening now in England so we should be seeing it here sometime this year.

(Reviewed by Michelle A)

What's your favourite New Zealand book?

New Zealand book month has come around again so it's time to think all things Kiwi.

Go to www.nzbookmonth.co.nz to see how you can get your hands on one of the 4 million $5.00 book vouchers being distributed around the country.

While your there click on find a book under the get involved tab. There you will find book lists covering just about every topic you could think of. The lists been created from results of a nationwide on-line vote for readers’ favourite books which took place in October 2010.

It's reassuring to find I agree with most the picks on the lists I've looked at. I think I might have to work my way through one or two of these lists as well. Let's just say I thought I knew my New Zealand books but there's a couple there I haven't heard of.

Here in town the Dan Davin Literary Foundation are celebrating NZ Book Month with workshops by New Zealand speculative fiction author Helen Lowe.

Helen is an award-winning novelist, broadcaster and poet who is published internationally. Her first novel, the Young Adult fantasy Thornspell, was published to critical acclaim in 2008 and her second novel, The heir of night (the first in a four book adult series), has recently been published here and overseas.

The workshops are free but are open only to Year 12 and 13 students who live in or attend school in Southland. To register, talk to your English Head of Department at school, or contact Rebecca Amundsen for further information: dandavin@xtra.co.nz or 027 2252 664. Times and places are listed below.

Tues 22 March: Wakatipu High School, Queenstown, 9am-3pm

Wed 23 March: St Peters College, Gore, 9am-3pm

Fri 25 March: Invercargill Public Library, Invercargill, 9am-3pm

Sat 26 March: Community Trust of Southland, Don Street, Invercargill, 9am-3pm

So the challenge is to read at least 1 New Zealand book this month. If your year 12 or 13 and study in Southland sign up for a workshop. When your done drop leave a comment let me know what you did for New Zealand book month. Come on I dare you to.

The confession

John Grisham

In Texas, an innocent young man is set to be executed in a matter of days for a murder he did not commit. Miles away, a man dying of a brain tumour walks into a church and confesses to the minister there that he committed the murder. Can a guilty man save an innocent one from death at the last minute? John Grisham is well-known for his anti-death penalty stance and with this novel, you can understand why: justice is not always done. I feel John Grisham is back to his best with this powerful, fast-paced and gripping novel. The events leave every character involved in the book changed in some way, and maybe the reader too.

(Reviewed by Angela.)