Summer reading fun

We at the Invercargill City Libraries endeavour to ensure that we are providing services and support for those children and young adults who are enthusiastic about reading.

We have implemented two fantastic progammes that promote active minds while away from school during the Summer holidays from 1 December 2011 through to 28 January 2012.
As you may already know, the Children’s Summer Reading Programme has been running for a number of years now with fabulous success. Last year we introduced a new component to the
mix and offered a reading programme for teens over the summer holidays. The young adults’ programme will be open to anyone in Year 9 through to 20 years of age. The Children’s Reading Programme is open to those from Year 0 to year 8. In doing so we are covering all children interested in taking part.

The Children’s Summer Reading Programme and the Young Adults’ Programme will be coordinated slightly differently to accommodate the two different styles of reading. Children’s participants will be monitored by their parents and/or guardians to ensure they are reading the recommended 20 minutes per day over the set period of time. Once these times have been recorded in the log book provided, children are eligible to collect prizes.

The teen programme, however, will be independently focused with the participants reviewing the material read in order to gain points. Once a certain amount of points have been reached they will go into the draw to win prizes that are desirable and appropriate to the age group.

Registrations open on 1 December for both programmes and will remain open until all places are filled. Online registrations will also be available via www.ilibrary.co.nz We officially invite anyone who is interested in taking part to register as soon as possible and be in to win some amazing prizes.

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.

The Drowning Girl

Kirsty and I went out shopping the other day for minor prizes for the Pursue 100 reading competition so I thought I'd take a few pictures to let [people know the sort of things they can win. As well as the 3 major prizes (The iPad, The Ipod touch and the Ipod Nano) we've got a whole heap of books, CDs, DVDs, and Itunes vouchers.

Just for a bit of fun we've got a few things like these little flash drives (I like the fish).

Remember you need to give us at least 1 review to win some of these things so if you haven't yet send one in. Something like the one below would be perfect.

The Drowning Girl

Margaret Leroy

This book is about a single mother’s struggle to understand what is wrong with her young daughter. Young Sylvie has violent tantrums, doesn’t relate well to others at all and it deathly afraid of water. Her mother Grace takes her to children psychiatrists but when money is tight she begins to feel like there is nothing she can do. It isn’t until Adam Winters begins to take interest that everything begins to become clearer in a journey that takes the three of them to Ireland in the hopes they can work out what is wrong with Sylvie.

This book started off really good. It begins with the most interesting prologue I have read, confusing but interesting, really making me want to read more. It then goes in to Grace and Sylvie’s lives; with Sylvie’s tantrums and issues quickly coming to play. As soon as it showed Sylvie’s fear of water I knew it had something to do with drowning, or near drowning. When Grace says about how she feels like her daughter isn’t really her daughter sometimes I was massively confused. All until the characters start to suspect Sylvie isn’t Sylvie, but another girl. This is when I predicted that she was another girl, one who had drowned years before and was now recalling her past life. Ordinarily I would think it a bit weird, but I was right on the dot. The annoying thing was the characters, Grace and Adam, didn’t seem to think as fast as I did and I then had to keep reading as they slowly...very slowly...worked it out. The time-line was a little slow, but then, the characters didn’t read the prologue like I did. The prologue where Grace was wondering what it felt like to drown. Good prologue, my favourite bit because it was so mysterious. This book definitely had the mystery element down, which definitely made me read right to the end and have the whole mystery solved. I so wanted to know if Sylvie ever came right (and she did).

(Reviewed by Toni)

A Bite to Remember

Lynsay Sands

Set in L.A. ‘A Bite to Remember’ is an ingenious novel based on the story that immortals/vampires originated from Atlantis. Atlantis was so advanced that they combined nano-technology and bio-engineering to create healing nanos that repair damage and keep the body in peak condition. In this novel an immortal, Vincent Argeneau, is being sabotaged by another unknown immortal and so he calls in Jackie Morrisey, a mortal P.I., to catch the saboteur. As the attacks escalate from property damage to bodily harm Vincent and Jackie discover they are life mates. But when the saboteur kills Vincent’s employees and kidnaps Jackie after she becomes immortal with the intent of killing her in a twisted irrational bid for revenge the race is on for Vincent to save her.

The character I most admire is Jackie because even though she has bad experiences with immortals she overcomes it in order to find her destiny. I would recommend this book to mature teens and rate it 8/10.

(Reviewed by Samantha)

The Undomestic Goddess

Happy new year everybody. It's time for another review from our teen summer reading competition. This ones a bit of chick lit, perfect for summer reading;

The Undomestic Goddess
Sophie Kinsella

Samantha is a high powered lawyer that is on the verge of being offered a partnership with her company until the most unfortunate thing happens, she loses her company $160 million dollars because she didn’t notice a note. She rushes to the bus station in shock and gets on a bus heading towards a small township. Trish greets her and thinks she is the new housekeeper. Unfortunately for Samantha, she doesn’t know the first thing about cooking or cleaning. Everything is great until she realizes that she had been set up.
This is a hugely hilarious book about Samantha and keeping her secret of being a top lawyer, it all goes fine until the press find out where she is and what she is now doing. To find out whether she keeps her job as a housekeeper or goes back to London you will have to read The Undomestic Goddess.
Samantha is a twitchy, jumpy person when she is in London, but when she is a housekeeper she becomes a happier, freer person. You wouldn’t want to work in the live of a person whos life is spilt up into 6 minute segments. Throughout this book as Samantha comes to understand what a different lifestyle is available you come to understand how horrid her old job was, Samantha also becomes a happier, freer person.
I would recommend this book to any girl who likes a light reading book that is a comedy and slightly romantic. It is a good book to read on a wet and cold day inside out of the weather.

(Reviewed by Stephanie)

Juno Of Taris

As I may have mentioned we are running a summer reading competition for teenagers aged 15 – 18 this year. They have to send us a review for each of the books they've read over the summer and at the end they could win themselves some cool prizes. See the post “Win an iPad and other Apple products by simply reading a few books” for more information. Anyway because we've got reviews coming in I though it would be good to put one or two of them up for the world to see. The reviews you will see here have been chosen randomly by me for the worlds viewing pleasure. If you like any reviews leave a comment to tell us and the library member who left it. This first one I've picked because it was the first review we received for the competition. So read and enjoy.

Warning, may contain spoilers.

Juno Of Taris

Fleur Beale

This book is set in the 23rd century, on an island in the middle of the Southern ocean covered in artificial dome that protects the island, gives it it's own climate and was created by people in the 21st century, so that if people on earth perished, Taris and the people carefully chosen to live there could survive. The lead character in this novel is Juno, a descendent from one of the first settlers 200 years ago...or so she thought. Juno and the other inhabitants of Taris were lied to by their leaders, who created a false history that stated that Taris was 200 years old and that humanity on earth had self destructed due to pollution and pandemics that wiped out most of earth's population. when really, Taris is only 32 years old and the government companions have been trying to keep Taris inhabitants isolated from the outside world, which is slowly becoming functional again.

I really enjoyed this book and was really happy about the sequel 'Fierce September' I loved how Juno never stopped questioning the motives of the government companions and how she refused to comply when she knew that what she was being asked to do was wrong.

(Reviewed by Aliesha)

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.