Get Lost in the Forest of Your Imagination

Library week is a great way to celebrate libraries and what they represent. We support and encourage literacy and literature by all means so we are offering our patrons special treats throughout the week. The theme this year is ‘Get Lost in the Forest of Your Imagination’.

Bring your overdue books back during our happy hours happening from 12 - 1pm and 5 - 6pm daily as there is sure to be a surprise for you. Spot prizes are available throughout the week also.

Kyle Mewburn, author of Old Huhu and Hill and Hole, is visiting for the Southland big read on Wednesday 17 August at 10.30am. He will be reading a few of his great picture books in the Childrens’ Services Story Room, so make sure you bring your books along for him to sign.

To go along with the theme we would love people to dress up on Friday 19 August as a forest dweller and join us for a forest puppet show for the littlies at 6pm, and then a Spooky Story time for the tweens at 7pm.

Kirsty G.

One very old book

The bible is the one book that has probably had more impact on our modern society than any other. You can not tell the history of New Zealand or any other western country without talking about the bible. It has been translated into almost every language. I have it in Maori at home while my mother has a copy in Bislama (How many of you can tell me where they speak Bislama?)

The most famous version of the bible however is possibly the King James Bible and this year is the four hundredth year of the King James Bibles long publication history. To celebrate the Invercargill Bible society are holding a Bible read-athon in the library between 1 & 4 pm this Sunday.

I personally think the bible is one of those books that everybody should have read. Even if your not religious it's a book that contains masses of stories, histories and philosophy. From love stories to blood and gore, the bible has it all.

If your interested the library also holds books on the history of the bible. One specific to the King James is David Norton's 'The King James Bible : a short history from Tyndale to today'

So if your in any way interested in this weekend's event come along to the library this Sunday or contact Diane (216 3622) for more information or to volunteer.

On this month

Just a couple of upcoming events this month which you might find interesting. First the 2011 Dan Davin Literary Foundation Short Story Writing Competition is now underway. Entry costs $5 each and is open to all. There are 3 great prizes are up for grabs: $250 for first place, $150 for second, and $100 for third. Entry forms with full conditions of entry are available at the Library. Entries close 5pm Friday 22 July.

If your in town on Wednesday June 15 at 6.45pm come along and meet Linda at Information Services. Linda is the manager of Information Services and she'll be introducing people to family research. Find out what resources the library has and how we can help you get started on the search for your ancestors. Later you are welcome to join the Southland Society of Genealogists at their monthly meeting in the meeting room.

Lastly just a quick note. If you are placing a hold on an item from home, please select only “Invercargill Library” or “Bluff Library” as the “Pickup at” location, even if the item is held in Storage or Archives. Remember that Storage and Archive are staff only areas so you will not be able to pick up your book from there. We'll move it to Invercargill or Bluff for you to pick up.

Adults’ Book Group

The next meeting of the adults’ book group will be held on Thursday 12 May at 5:30pm in the Library Meeting Room on the first floor and your all in for a bonus this month. Kirsty is away so I’ll be hosting the book club this time (she may never leave me in charge again).
Please note the change in meeting time from 6:30pm to 5:30pm.
To celebrate NZ Music Month, the theme this month is music: read a musician’s biography, or any other music-related book. If you can’t make it don’t let that stop you joining in. Leave a comment here about your favorite music related book. Send us a review of it if you can.

Awards on the horizon

The New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards festival week kicks off on 9 May, culminating in the Awards dinner and winners’ announcements on 18 May.

Ever-popular NZ author and Young Adult Fiction Finalist Fleur Beale will be in town during awards week (9-17 May). Fleur will be holding a workshop for school students on Friday 13 May (9am to midday in the Library Meeting Room). Places are strictly limited for this free workshop and registration is essential; please contact Kirsty Graham at the Library for further information (211 1444 or kirsty.graham@ilibrary.co.nz ).

Fleur will then be off to Southland Boys’ High School for a lecture for school children at 2pm. Again, this free event has limited spaces, so any teachers interested in taking a class along should contact Kirsty Graham at the Library ASAP (211 1444 or kirsty.graham@ilibrary.co.nz ).

Children are being invited to create and decorate their own fossil to enter in our “Make a Fossil” competition. Instructions on how to make a fossil are available from Children’s Services and entries close Friday 6 May. Prizes for the best and most creative fossils are up for grabs. This activity is inspired by the award-nominated book The Kiwi fossil hunter’s handbook by J S Crampton.

We will be having giveaways and spot prizes for children throughout NZ Post Children's Book Awards festival week, so make sure you bring your kids in to be in to win.

Southland Festival of the Arts

It is Southland Festival of the Arts time again, and Invercargill City Libraries have teamed with the Dan Davin Literary Foundation (with support from the Community Trust of Southland and the Invercargill Licensing Trust) to present Readers and Writers Alive! , a literary programme which has something to interest nearly everyone. Pick up a programme from the Library for detailed information and start planning your timetable of events now. Events with Library involvement are highlighted below.

WORKSHOPS:

Writing different worlds with Tim Jones

Saturday 30 April, 10am-2:30pm, Invercargill Public Library Meeting Room, $25.00 (or $40.00 if attending both workshops)

Reading for writing with Joanna Preston

Sunday 1 May, 10am-2pm, Invercargill Public Library Meeting Room, $25.00 (or $40.00 if attending both workshops) Open to adults and secondary students. Numbers are strictly limited and pre-payment is required to secure your place in the workshops. Tickets are available from Information Services on the first floor of the Invercargill Public Library. For further information, pick up a registration form from the Library or contact Rebecca on 027 2252 664 or dandavin@xtra.co.nz or Kirsty on 211 1763.

FOR ADULTS:

Book Lovers’ Dinner with Jenny Pattrick

Thursday 12 May, 7pm, The Cabbage Tree, $40.00 Enjoy a two-course meal at The Cabbage Tree with bestselling New Zealand historical fiction author Jenny Pattrick. Tickets are available from Information Services on the first floor of the Invercargill Public Library.

Poetry in the Stack

Friday 29 April, 6pm, Library Meeting

Room, $5.00 door sales Enjoy an evening of poetry and wine with poets Lynley Dear, Tim Jones, Kay McKenzie Cooke, and Joanna Preston.

Joy Cowley talks about writing for children

Saturday 7 May, 1 : 3 0 pm, L i b r a r y Meeting Room, $5 door sales Lynley Dear talks to Joy Cowley about her career as a writer.

FOR KIDS:

Storytime with Joy Cowley & the Dreamweaver, Liz Miller

Saturday 7 May, 10:30am, Library Meeting Room, gold coin donation

Story & Song: The very important godwit

Friday 13 May, 10:30am, gold coin donation The Pattricks will share the story and songs from their recent picture book.

Poetry Wall

The ever-popular Poetry Wall will again be making an appearance in the Library Foyer for the month of April. Submit your original poems (limit 3 per poet, no more than 1 A4 page in size) to the Adults’ Help Desk.

Entries in the Children’s, Teens and Adults sections will be judged by Joanna Preston who is taking a reading for writing workshop on 1 May.

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.

Many reached their goal

The first annual Pursue 100 reading challenge wound up last week with the Three major prizes drawn in the library on Thursday afternoon. We were really impressed by both the quantity and especially the quality of all the reviews we received over the summer. Most of those who tried reached the goal of 100 points which put them in the draw for an apple iPad.

I can now reveal the big winners;

Our third prize, an iPod Nano went to Georgina Kennedy.

The second prize of an iPod Touch was won by Bonnie Mcleish.

And congratulations to Israel Christie who won first prize, an apple iPad.

As well as the major prizes everybody who sent in a review over the summer won at least one minor prize. These consisted of books, DVDs, CDs, vouchers and some other toys. I've posted pictures below of a selection of our prizes including the big three.

If you missed out this year don't panic we hope to hold the challenge again next summer and think we can make it bigger and better. So keep watching this space and we'll let you know all the details.

Win an iPad and other Apple products by simply reading a few books

Here at the library we have had a summer reading progam for children for quite a few years now.
“But what about those of us too old for the children's summer reading program?” we hear you say....
Well this year the Invercargill City Libraries is providing a fun and interactive summer reading challenge for young adults aged 15 – 18 years.
We did our homework and found something we think will encourage you to read more over the summer holidays. We're going to give away an Apple iPad and some other apple products.
We've set it up as a reading challenge. The more you read the better the prizes you could win.
If you want to know more visit our website or follow the link on the logo below.