Wollondilly Library

Romance Readers Competition Winner!

2012-02-20T09:00:00.000+11:00

Kylie and Ron

The winner of our Romance Readers Competition was one happy lady! So much so that she sent us this wonderful letter.

Many thanks goes to Gail Dunn, the whole team at Wollondilly Shire Library and Wollondilly Shire Council for the lovely prize I won in the Romance Readers Competition.

Last Saturday night, my partner and I enjoyed a lovely three course meal and drinks at Cello's Restaurant, Sydney, for the Australian Romance Readers Awards Night. It was a great event held at a very romantic venue and so close to Valentines Day it was really appreciated. Having been together for 22 years, Rod and I know that quality time together, is very important for our relationship. Also as an avid romance novel reader and aspiring writer I was blessed with two published Romance Authors, at our table. Both ladies happily answered my many questions about the life of a romance author. There was a very lively discussion about the field of romance literature and it was great to see the support for this in Australia. Author Paula Roe gave a funny and enlightening talk about herself as a romance novel reader and reminded us that all authors are readers first. So thank you once again for this amazing opportunity, it was greatly appreciated.

Kylie Savidge
Local and loving it!

Thank you for sharing your special night with us Kylie.

Gail

2012-02-14T12:53:00.000+11:00

So, the 54th Annual Grammy awards, the musical industry night of nights, is over again for another year. On a night that was, as expected, very much tempered by the death of singing superstar Whitney Houston, this years’ Grammys was still very much a celebration of the music industry, its talents and its successes.

Of course the big winner was Adele taking home 6 Grammys, tying her with Beyoncé for the most awards won by a female artist in one night.

Adele won:

Album Of The Year for 21
Best Pop Vocal Album for 21,
Record Of The Year for Rolling in the Deep
Song Of The Year for Rolling in the Deep
Best Short Form Music Video for Rolling in the Deep
Best Pop Solo Performance for Someone Like You.

The Foo Fighters were the other big winners on the night taking home five Grammys, including Best Rock Album for Wasting Light and Best Rock Performance for Walk.

Want to check out how good those albums are for yourself? Both 21 by Adele and Wasting Light by the Foo Fighters are available from Picton Library. Click on the images below to reserve your copy.

Thanks and happy listening

George J

Todhunter (yes it's one word) Literary Award

2012-02-07T15:35:00.000+11:00

An Invitation to Write

Here's your chance to make some money from all those stories and plays you have written and now sit in drawers and boxes throughout the house. Well they're not going to be discovered sitting in there are they? Enter the Todhunter Literary Award writing competition and win some pretty impressive prize money.

About the entry
Your entry may be a short story, an essay like a well written newspaper article or a small cast, one act play.

The topic is..

Commonplace people

The prize money

The first prize is $2,000 and the total prize money is $4,000

For an entry form email patchtheatre@mysoul.com.au

The closing date for entries is Wednesday 1st August 2012

Good luck and happy writing!

Gail

For the love of dogs

2012-01-25T14:41:00.002+11:00

Having brought home our first puppy a year ago I am constantly amazed by her degree of loyalty and unquestioning love. With an endless supply of energy and an innate sense of silliness she has quickly become an integral member of our family. Influenced by this new relationship I have been encouraged to read some wonderful dog stories, both fact and fiction that we have here in the library. I’ll share a few…….

Sophie: dog overboard by Emma Pearse

Follow the extraordinary story of a dog’s journey back to her family after falling from a boat into the waters of the Great Barrier Reef. After swimming six miles to a nearby island, the three-year old Australian Blue Heeler survives for five months unassisted to the amazement of her heartbroken family.

The Magic of Myron by Raquel Eyley Wood

This is an uplifting story about a blind pup who overcomes life’s adversities.

The art of racing in the rain (fiction) by Garth Stein

A heart-wrenching but deeply funny story told from the perspective of the family dog. Pack the tissues; it’s a bit of a tear jerker.

Marley and me by John Grogan

From Baghdad, with love by Lieutenant Colonel Jay Kopelman

Holidaying with dogs

Blue Paws by Matt McCredie

Merle's Door: lessons from a freethinking dog by Ted Kerasote

A man may smile and bid you hail

Yet wish you to the devil;

But when a good dog wags his tail,

You know he’s on the level.

Author Unknown

Lisa

The Cousins' War by Philippa Gregory

2012-01-22T11:20:00.001+11:00

We are excited to tell you about our recent purchase of the new series by Philippa Gregory : The Cousins’ War.
Fans of Gregory will know that as an established historian and writer, she discovered an interest in the Tudor period and wrote the novel The Other Boleyn Girl. After great success and acclaim with a further six novels from the Tudor period, Gregory has turned her eye to the family that preceded the Tudors: the magnificent Plantagenet’s, a family of complex rivalries, loves, and hatreds.
This riveting new series focuses on the strong, female characters from this rich period of history and fans of Gregory will not be disappointed.
Gregory has most recently published, with fellow historians David Baldwin and Michael Jones, a non-fiction biography of The Women of The Cousins’ War. Using original documents, site visits and even archaeology, Gregory creates this fascinating biography for those who wish to find out the facts behind the historical fiction.
Click on the titles below to reserve your copy.
Happy reading,
George :-)

Internet sites on strike!

2012-01-17T14:46:00.000+11:00

There's some interesting news making the rounds this morning. Did you know that some internet sites will be on strike later this week?

There is a bill before the US congress called SOPA [The Senate version of the House's Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). In the Senate the bill is called the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA).] A large number of US based internet companies and clients are protesting against the bills.

Why does this affect Australia and Australian libraries?

Some of the websites that will be participating in the strike are ones we direct clients to everyday including Wikipedia, which is going dark for 24 hours) http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/16/idUS178605270520120116
and a long list of others (see http://sopastrike.com/ - scroll down the page)

The strike will be for 12-24 hours on 18 January which is Thursday 19 January for Australia. It is not entirely clear to what extent that the strike may affect access to websites in countries outside the US, but we will soon see, or rather, not see!

Gail

Which book will represent NSW?

2012-01-09T11:43:00.003+11:00

It's 2012 and the National Year of Reading has officially begun. Last year you were asked to choose the book you felt best represented Australia or what it means to be Australian from a selection of six books.

Bereft by Chris Womersley
Torn Apart by Peter Corris
Sydney Harbour: a history by Ian Hoskins
Lilian's Story by Kate Grenville
Idea of Home by John Hughes
The Harp in the South by Ruth Parkes

Voting closed on the 6th January and the winner will be announced on the 14th February so you still have time to read all the books on the list even if it's just for the pure pleasure of it. For those of you who voted it will be interesting to find out if the book you selected will wear the proverbial coat of arms.

Gail

HSC Finished? Now What?

2011-12-19T16:01:00.001+11:00

With the HSC results out last week, I thought it might be a good time to mention that the library has many resources that can assist the young (and the not so young) with their career choices. So, if you perhaps didn’t get the results you were hoping for, or you are looking to find out what your next career move should be or perhaps you are looking to change your career path, you might want to check out our Career FAQ’s series.

This series is a great Australian resource that provides information about real jobs from real people about their own experiences within that career. Some of the topics covered include what qualities you would need, what the earning opportunities are and what qualifications would be required.
Titles available include:

Of course the library also assists job seekers by providing word processing and printing facilities for you to type up your resume, internet access for you to access on-line employment websites and resource books on interview and resume techniques.

Happy job hunting!
George

Summer = Cricket.

2011-12-12T15:15:00.004+11:00

If for you, the season to be joyous and merry means squeezing in every possible ball, statistic, replay and wicket then we've got you covered.

Why not read up on your favourite cricket player and get to know them a little better (if - God forbid - you have time because of rain). You can also reserve one of these biographies below just by clicking on the book cover or go to our catalogue and see what other cricketing treats await...

Anjana

It's Begining to look a lot like Christmas!

2011-12-06T10:08:00.002+11:00

If you're looking for ideas on how to make Christmas special this year then look no further than your library, basically. A whole library of inspirational ideas will get you creating a beautiful Christmas for your family and friends. In the kitchen you'll never be short of ideas with The Twelve days of Christmas There's fabulous food for the big three days: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve, but there's also food for the days in between. We all have leftovers on Boxing Day and here are the recipes for using them in interesting and delicious ways.

Or there's 4 Ingredience Christmas by Kim Mccosker which is overflowing with simple but stylish Christmas recipes designed to impress your guests throughout the day. Create the illusion you have worked endlessly in your kitchen anticipating your guests' arrival. 4 Ingredients Christmas is a must have in all kitchens to effortlessly create the best in festive fare.

There are a lot more to discover. Just search the library catalogue or browse the shelves in Picton or the Mobile Library.

Gail

Christmas at the library

2011-11-28T13:14:00.000+11:00

The commercials have started on TV, the carols are playing in the shops and there are sparkly lights and tinsel everywhere you look. Hard to believe it comes round so fast but, yes, Christmas is again almost upon us.

As I am lucky enough to work with young children the joy and excitement of Christmas makes this my favourite time of year. We have some great activities planned for the little ones in the run up to Christmas - check out our website for details.

But how can the library help you with your Christmas preparations? We have a vast range of resources, books, magazines and DVD’s to help you get ready to celebrate the festive season.

If you want to:

We have it all here for you to borrow for free from Picton Library.

Merry Christmas,

George J

Be cyber smart

2011-11-21T12:44:00.000+11:00

In an era of constant connectivity, cyberbullying, sexting and safeguarding your digital reputation are just some of the issues you may be faced with. Our ethical, social and personal responsibilities apply to online interactions in the same way as they apply to real world social settings.

Tagged is a short film developed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority's Cybersmart program. The film explores cyberbullying, sexting, digital reputation and personal responsibility. These issues are crucial for teenagers to understand in order to maintain positive online behaviour and experiences into adulthood. Read more...

Anjana

The Mitchell Library Collection online at Flickr

2011-11-14T15:29:00.002+11:00

I could literally spend hours trawling through the hundreds of old photographs in the Mitchell Library Collection. The photograph below is just an example of the treasures you will find while flicking through Flickr. This extraordinary collection is seeing the light of 'virtual' day thanks to online social sites such as Flickr. The State Library also has a vast collection of Manuscripts and Oral Histories just waiting for you to discover at http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/SimpleSearch.aspx

The oldest known surviving photograph taken in Australia

Dr William Bland, an ex-convict, was a prominent surgeon, humanitarian, social reformer and inventor. This daguerreotype is the earliest known surviving photograph taken in Australia. It is probably that mentioned in the Sydney Morning Herald 14/1/1845, p.2, top column 5

From the collections of the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales www.sl.nsw.gov.au

Information about photographic collections of the State Library of New South Wales acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/SimpleSearch.aspx

Gail

Speech Pathology Australia - Book of the year awards 2011

2011-11-01T13:51:00.000+11:00

Speech Pathology Australia have annouced the winners of their Book of the Year Awards for 2011.

The intention of Book of the Year Awards is to:

Enhance people’s awareness of the role speech pathologists play in literacy development.
Gradually develop a nationally recognised pool of books that speech pathologists can recommend for the development of oral language and speech and/or sound awareness.
Promote the Association with the Book of the Year Awards ceremony.

Each year, the awards recognise four Australian authors with the “Best Book for Language & Literacy Development” in the categories:

Young Children
Lower Primary
Upper Primary
Indigenous Children

Each award is based on the book’s appeal to children, interactive quality and ability to assist speech pathologists in communication and literacy development. For more information, and a full list of the shortlisted titles, please visit the Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards website.

Wollondilly Library and Information Service hold a number of the shortlisted titles in our collection, please visit our catalogue to borrow or reserve your titles.

Thanks
George

For lovers of all things bookish...

2011-10-24T11:46:00.001+11:00

38th Australian Antiquarian Book Fair, 10 - 12 November

The 38th Australian Antiquarian Book Fair is taking place from the 10th – 12th November within the splendid heritage galleries of the State Library of New South Wales. The Fair is being officially opened by Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO, Governor of New South Wales, and features over twenty of Australia’s finest antiquarian booksellers as well as special guest exhibitors from New York and Switzerland. The material offered for sale covers every branch of collecting in the field of rare and out of print books, maps, prints, ephemera, artworks and poster’s, at prices to suit all budgets. Whether you are interested in colonial history, artists books, militaria, natural history, children’s books, or are simply curious to learn more about collecting, the Australian Antiquarian Book Fair is a must visit event showcasing the very best items from across the nation.

Anjana

Love2read Reading Group

2011-10-19T14:34:00.001+11:00

Next year libraries across Australia will be promoting the joys of reading in many different ways. If you are a book lover like me, I think you'll find that one of your favorite things to do when you have just finished that amazing book is to talk to other people about it. Or maybe it was complete rubbish but you still want to complain about about it to somebody. That's where book groups have found their niche. If you've ever joined a book group you'll know how very therapeutic it is to talk to other people just as obsessed with being heard as you are. Does it get any better than this? Yes it does! I've discovered an online reading group and it kicks off in January 2012!

This is their blurb on what it's all about.........

'To celebrate the joys of reading, each month in 2012 readers will be reading around a particular theme. As well as discussing what they are reading in book groups, at their local library and with friends and family, some readers will also be tweeting about their reading.
To be involved in this reading group, you don’t have to tweet – you can just read along each month if you like. But if you tweet about what you are reading by tagging your posts with #NYR12, other people will see what you are reading and might start conversations with you.
We see this as a really exciting way to take conversations into public spaces where reading communities can share and collaborate.
If you would like to tweet what you are reading, check the theme for each month of 2012 using the links on the right side of this blog – and when you tweet, add the twitter hashtag #NYR12 to your posts.
You might also like to use the monthly themes for your face to face reading groups. You might select one title each month which suits the theme, or you might like to use the theme and see what reading people bring along to talk about.'

http://love2read2012.wordpress.com/

Happy reading!

Gail

Interesting records...

2011-10-12T11:13:00.006+11:00

Are you interested in researching the past but don't know where to start? You will be amazed at what is available at your fingertips. Here a few websites to whet your appetite...

The Research Centre at the Australian War Memorial holds official records, private records and published collections that tell the story of the Australian experience of war. These collections form a valuable resource for any research into Australian military history. The Research Centre has an ongoing digitisation program to make historically significant and heavily used collections available to the public on the Memorial’s website.

The NSW State Archives is for anyone wanting to research and explore the official archives of the State of New South Wales. Access catalogues, guides and information leaflets, search indexes of names and places, browse online galleries, find out about our events and activities, and much more.

Like to see something more local? Then have a look at Picture Wollondilly. This site contains a unique collection of images of the Wollondilly Shire from early times to the present day. It shows the physical growth of the area, the people who made it happen and their life styles at work and play.

Anjana

Young Carers - Dilly in the Kitchen

2011-10-06T12:09:00.001+11:00

Are you a Young Carer?
You might be one and not know - ABS statistics show that there are over 100,000 young carers in NSW (aged 25 or under) but currently only 3233 have been formally recognised as carers.
If you are aged 25 or under and help care for someone in your family with a chronic illness, disability, mental illness, drug or alcohol problem and you live in NSW you should contact Young Carers NSW.
The Young Carer Program at Carers NSW was developed to make a positive difference to the lives of young carers and their families. The aims of the Young Carer Program includes promoting the issues and needs of young carers, developing support networks and coordinating a variety of support activities. The program supports young carers by providing newsletters, counselling, referral and information services.
As part of the activities run to support young carers, South West Sydney Young Carers Program in partnership with The Haven Project and Wollondilly Shire Council ran "Dilly in the Kitchen" - a Cooking Master Class with Janelle Bloom from Ready Steady Cook during the holidays to provide young carers living in Wollondilly and Wingecarribie region the opportunity to get together and learn some great new cooking skills (and eat what they made).
Wollondilly Library and Information Service was able to support this fantastic event by providing great new cooking books and resources for the participants to borrow on the day and advise participants of the services that the library can offer them such as free tutoring, homework and assignment assistance and recreational resources.

Thanks
George :-)

Australian Poetry Slam!

2011-09-26T09:00:00.011+10:00

If you have ever considered yourself a bit of a poetry talent then this might be the competition which will showcase your rising star and better still, win some cash. We need Wollondilly represented!

Speak, scream, howl, whisper even sing your poems, Stories, Lyrics, And Monologues in the Australian Poetry Slam 2011 – a live literary performance competition where the audience is the judge!

All heat contestants are given a microphone, a live audience and just two minutes to impress the judges (selected at random at each heat) with their original spoken word, poetry, hip hop, monologues and stories.

Slam heats are currently being held in city and regional venues across

Australia

until mid- November 2011.

State Winners will receive $500 cash prize and the State Runner-Up $100 cash prize -and a spot in the National Finals at the Sydney theatre Company on Sunday December 5th.

The next heat will be held at:

Sydney - Liverpool
Friday 21st October, 6pm
The Street University
1 Speed Street

Contact: David Kopycinski and L-FRESH The LION
david.kopycinski@gmail.com and bhogals@noffs.org.au
02 8785 8000

Need more info? Then visit the website http://australianpoetryslam.com

Gail

Get Reading!

2011-09-19T12:21:00.002+10:00

Get Reading! – Australia’s Largest Celebration of Books and Reading – Celebrates its Biggest Year Yet!

Get Reading! is a government initiative, developed through the Australia Council for the Arts. Previously called Books Alive, Get Reading! runs from August 29 until September 30 and encourages all Australians to pick up a book and get reading.

Central to the initiative is the free 50 Books You Can’t Put Down Guide, which lists 50 of the year’s best books. The guide is available during September at www.getreading.com.au . Check out our library catalogue for titles from the guide. Also, you can a review a title on the catalogue and share your thoughts, here's how to Add a Review.

Anjana

Book Week 2011 - One World, Many Stories @ Wollondilly Schools

2011-09-11T07:00:00.005+10:00

To celebrate Children's Book Week, we took our Book Week Fun and Games to eleven schools and over 2,500 students throughout the Wollondilly Shire.

We entertained students and teachers alike with our skits of the shortlisted books The Deep End by Ursula Dubosarsky, Noni the Pony by Alison Lester and Maudie and Bear by Jan Omerod. Students learnt all about the shortlisted books, played games, learnt some aboriginal language of the Baardi people, participated in readers’ theatre and circular story activities.

It was a pleasure to see the students have so much fun and get excited about the shortlisted award winning Australian books. It’s great as this is followed up with students coming into the library to see our displays relating to their school visit and borrowing the shortlisted titles.

Book Week is the longest running children's festival in Australia, celebrating its 66th birthday in 2011.

Each year, many schools and public libraries from all over Australia spend a week celebrating books and Australian authors and illustrators. Classroom teachers, teacher librarians and public librarians develop activities, offer competitions and tell stories relating to a theme to highlight the importance of reading.

All shortlisted books are available to borrow or reserve from Wollondilly Library and Information Service.

George :-)

Adult Literacy Collection

2011-09-05T12:43:00.001+10:00

It's Adult Learner's Week this week, the perfect time to launch our new adult literacy collection. The collection consists of a selection of adult fiction and non-fiction books which includes a cd of the book so you can listen to the story as you read it. The adult literacy collection aims to support people who want to develop their literacy skills. The books are quick reads, nothing too lengthy, and the font is easy on the eyes. I think the selection of titles will suit most tastes too.

So......

Who can use literacy resources?
Any member of the library is welcome to use the collection.

Gail

Technology

2011-08-31T13:28:00.003+10:00

New technologies have had a profound effect on the way we live, communicate and do business globally - particularly in the last 10 years…We may be living through a Digital Revolution, but trying to understand many of the new technologies available can be daunting.

The ABC Technology Explained initiative aims to dispel the myths around new technologies and devices, and explore the kinds of journeys and possibilities they can and will take us on in an ever-changing, technology driven world.

Cheers, Anjana

Borrowed a magazine lately?

2011-08-23T11:03:00.003+10:00

If you haven't seen our re-vamped magazine collection then you're missing out! We have many new titles as well as your old favourites. Come in and have a browse or see a full list of titles here.

Enjoy, Anjana.

Children's Book Council of Australia - Book Week 2011

2011-08-16T10:09:00.003+10:00

One World, Many Stories

Children's Book Council of Australia - Book of the Year is the longest running children's festival in Australia celebrating Australian books, authors and illustrators. It's also when the Book of the Year is announced in each category, here are the shortlisted titles for 2011:

Wollondilly Library and Information Service purchase the shortlisted titles and promote them to young people within the Shire by visiting local schools and presenting these great Australian books. We promote the shortlist to students with games, activities, readers theatre and skits that help bring the books to life. Shortlisted titles can be borrowed or reserved from 31st August 2011.

Thanks, George

Your own private tutor

2011-08-08T10:31:00.004+10:00

It's a new school term and the library service is doing everything we can to support your studies. One of the best support services I think we can offer is yourtutor online homework help. Yourtutor is available from 4pm to 8pm weekdays and you can access the service from home, all you need is Internet access. Yourtutor creates an online classroom where students are connected to qualified, expert tutors for one- to - one help with homework, assignments, exam preparation and study questions.

Help is immediate, professional and secure and it’s free to library members. Students in Years 4-12, simply log on to the library’s website and click on the link to access the program. Tutors are certified teachers, professional tutors, post graduates and advanced undergraduates from Australian universities. They can review specific homework and assignment questions with students on line, using features like controlled chat, an interactive white board and shared web browsing.

Students can now communicate with tutors the way they love to learn – via the Internet- which makes the experience enjoyable as well as educational. We have had great feedback from parents saying the service provides assistance without providing the answer. Please let us know what you think.

Find out more here

Gail

Sharing the migrant experience

2011-07-30T16:26:00.025+10:00

The success of Anh Do’s biography, The Happiest Refugee, which recently won book of the year, newcomer of the year and biography of the year at the Australian Book Industry Awards shows that Australians are very much interested in hearing the migrant story.

Anh Do is one of Australia’s best loved and most talented comedians. The Happiest Refugee is the incredible, uplifting and inspiring story of the Do family’s journey from Vietnam to

Australia

and the challenges faced by a new migrant family. This book touches the hearts (and funny bones) of all who read it.

Staff and students from Picton High School had their own brush with an Australian author re-telling his migrant experience when we were privileged to spend time with award winning author and poet Peter Skrzynecki, at a recent talk he gave to HSC students on his book Immigrant Chronicle.

Immigrant Chronicle is a collection of poems by Skrzynecki, remembering the experiences of his family as they migrated from post-war Poland to Australia and his upbringing in suburban Sydney.

Skrzynecki and his parents, were in transit for over two years from 1949–51 (either physically travelling, or in a migrant hostel) before they were allowed to begin their new life in Australia.

Immigrant Chronicle is a prescribed poetry text for the NSW HSC Area of Study – Belonging. It was an informative and emotional talk that gave us an insight into his poetry, his migrant experience and how it relates to the NSW HSC Area of Study - Belonging.

The Happiest Refugee and Immigrant Chronicle are available to loan or reserve from Wollondilly Library and Information Service.

George

Introducing the flipback

2011-07-16T10:06:00.002+10:00

The flipback is an exciting new book format, giving book lovers a real reading experience with the portability of a mobile phone.

The flipback is a new kind of book, which opens top to bottom and has sideways-pirnted text, so you get a full length novel in little more than the size of an iPhone.

Flipbacks are coming to Wollondilly Library this week.
Anjana

Want to save power and money at home?

2011-07-11T17:04:00.002+10:00

Saving energy is equal to saving money these days so if you can cut down on how much energy you use in your home that's money in the bank for sure. As everyone knows libraries are more than just books so now you can borrow a Save Power Kit free of charge from the library which can be picked up from the Picton branch.

It's a fun and educational way for you and your household to learn more about the power you use and how to reduce your power bills. The Save Power Kits provide tools, information and a guidebook to help you make your home more energy efficient.

The Save Power Kits can:

show you what uses the most power in your home, and
give you ideas and some easy steps you can take to save money, power and reduce our impact on the environment.

The library has five kits and they are in heavy demand so make sure you reserve your kit soon.

Gail

Shaun Tan answers interview with illustrations

2011-07-02T07:00:00.012+10:00

Congratulations to Australian author and illustrator Shaun Tan who has won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for 2011. This prestigious international award (occasionally referred to as the 'Nobel prize of childrens literature') is awarded annually and is presented in recognition of the creators contruibution to children's literature.

The award is presented with the intention of raising the profile of books for young people and to inspire authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and those who are active in the promotion of reading.

Tan was interviewed by SPIEGEL after being awarded the prize and replied to all the interview questions with an illustration!
You can 'read' the full interview at SPIEGEL.

Tan is not unfamiliar with success, his beloved Graphic Novel The Lost Thing won an OSCAR this year for its animated short film adaptation.

George

Attention Vintage fashion lovers!

2011-06-14T14:22:00.001+10:00

Love vintage fashion and want it from the source?

You can get digital copies of the Australian Womans Weekly from the 1930s to the early 1980s all for free from Trove.

You can browse by covers which is great fun looking at the changes in style and presentation or search via year published.

Wollondilly is updating our magazine collection. Starting July 1 there will be lots of new titles including delicious, O Magazine and Practical Parenting.

Happy reading.

Melissa

Learn another language

2011-06-06T16:18:00.003+10:00

Has this been on your "to do" list forever? Well it is now easier (and cheaper) to achieve than ever before. There are a multitude of internet sites on offer that allow you to learn at your own pace and in your own space, and many of them are free. For starters you could try:

http://www.livemocha.com/
http://www.busuu.com/
www.bbc.co.uk/languages

Also don't forget to check out the library catalogue, we have many language resources - also for free!

Ciao, Anjana

The Wiggles & ALIA - Making Australia a Reading Nation

2011-05-30T07:00:00.005+10:00

Do your kids love The Wiggles? Right now libraries all over Australia are pretty in love with them too!

The Wiggles & the Australian Library and Information Association have teamed up to urge parents to 'Make Australia a Reading Nation’ by launching two Community Service Announcements.

One for Early Childhood

One for School Starters

The superstar group has thrown their support behind the cause of literacy, fun times and sharing books to encourage children to get into the reading habit.

We'd love for you to help make Australia a reading nation too. You can help by visiting our Picton or Mobile Library, borrowing some of our Picture Books, Talking Books or Board Books, or coming along to Storytime.

See you there,
George

{ Library: / hack / }

2011-05-23T09:00:00.003+10:00

Are mashups and apps your thing?

If you've got a talent for making innovating and creative digital applications then { Library: / hack/ } is the competition for you.

National and state libraries of Australia and New Zealand are releasing thousands of items from their vast collections of books, newspapers, music, photographs, maps and oral histories for the competition including:

- It's unrivalled First Fleet collection of maps, letters, journals and the earliest visual records of the new colony.
- Over 40,000 photographs, including pre 1885 photographs of Sydney and 3,500 photographs of goldfield towns in NSW and Victoria
- Rare and fascinating maps, including survey maps of Sydney city block plans, 1919 - 1940

So join in in making this amazing cultural content accessable to everyone, there's over $20,000 in cash and prizes up for grabs.

Melissa.

Not just a pretty picture...

2011-05-16T14:20:00.003+10:00

Have you noticed that when you search for a book in our catalogue, the book covers are displayed in your results. Have you ever tried clicking on these covers? If you have, then you will know about the little bundle of goodies there for you.

If you haven't used this feature before, just click on the cover image and then click on the links to get all the background info on your book! Make sure you allow pop-ups in your browser for this feature to work.

Anjana

Childrens Book Council - 2011 Short List Announced!

2011-05-08T11:41:00.005+10:00

The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) have announced their shortlist of books for 2011. The final winning and honour books in each of the six categories will be announced during Book Week (August 20-26). Book Week is the longest running children's festival in Australia, celebrating its 66th birthday in 2011. Each year a theme is chosen, this year being "One World, Many Stories".

Wollondilly Library and Information Service will again be celebrating Book Week this year by visiting primary schools right across our Shire and getting the students excited about these great books and the other resources the library has to offer. Our very successful Book Week presentations consist of games, skits, reader's theatre and booktalks.

The shortlisted titles will be available for young and the young at heart to borrow after August. Go to our on-line catalogue and be one of the first to reserve your favourites.

George

The Library Project in East Timor

2011-05-03T14:49:00.005+10:00

Being a Librarian is one of the best occupations in the world! That’s how I feel right now after spending two weeks in East Timor training the staff to run their newly opened library in Gleno.

Libraries are a new concept in Timor so this is the first public library to be established in this district. The National Library is still in the early stages of being established. The new Ermera Library’s goal is to improve literacy for the people in the Ermera District because literacy will lead to greater economic growth and better life outcomes for the people.

A great goal and don’t we all deserve the same opportunities in life?

I had the privilege to work with five of the most committed people I have ever met, who want to make a difference and play a major role in the development to their country’s future. One of the early literacy programs that has been implemented involves teaching mother’s who can’t read to ‘read’ to their children. How do you do that? Through singing and rhymes and play and lots of books in their spoken language, Tetun. As there are very few books written in Tetun, this is another challenge for the library staff. The cycle of reading needs to start somewhere and it is the aim of these sessions to ignite the love of reading in these children which will be passed on to their children.

We have the luxury in this country to have our pick of libraries to visit and trawl through the vast amounts of information and stories collected on shelves in many different formats. Libraries provide us with endless freedom of information to enhance the quality of our lives and we can share these experiences with our children. Sharing the skills of my profession with this community will forever be marked in my memory, proof that one person can make a difference to the lives of others.

Gail

Weeding's not just for the garden!

2011-04-19T12:07:00.001+10:00

How can you be confident that when you take a book off the shelf in the Library that it is going to be relevant for your informational & recreational needs?

There is a lot more to putting an item on the shelf than buying it and covering it with contact. Library staff select resources based on criteria such as content, where it was published, if the information is easily found, the physical structure of the book particularly if it will withstand repeated use in a public Library, if it is of general interest for the intended community & what level the book is aimed at e.g. primary school students etc. Once all that criteria has been met it then is purchased, processed and put on the shelf.

That, however, is not the end of the story. A resource that fits all of the criteria today may not do so in 3, 5 or 10 years. This is the reason that all Libraries; public, school, academic, & specialist evaluate their collections regularly and "weed" out items that are no longer satisfying the criteria necessary to be a good resource.

Once an item leaves the Library shelf it is then disposed of if it is no longer useful e.g. damaged. However, most items go on to provide further enjoyment and information outside of the Library to customers of the Library Booksale.

Melissa

Working in a Library

2011-04-06T11:58:00.001+10:00

My name is Sydney Richardson, I’m in year 10, and I did work experience at the Wollondilly Library in Picton for one week. During this time, I learned a lot of new things and I now have a great experience that I can talk about and remember.

Organising and maintaining a library isn’t as simple as hiring one librarian to scan people’s books and library cards. It’s not just a matter of putting contact on a book and sticking a few letters on the spine.

The Wollondilly Library has a whole other floor up top, where a bunch of clever and creative people work on the libraries website, design crafts for little kids to do during story time, check the books everyday to make sure they’re in order and easy for you to access and find, plan and host small events for all ages of the community, and research the present and past of Wollondilly and other nearby places in preparation for people of later or future generations who may inquire into a topic we people today may otherwise not appreciate. Even their “incredibly boring” staff meetings are fun to watch.

And despite popular belief due to the exaggerations on TV, librarians aren’t cranky old grannies. They do possess vocabularies that extend far out from the word, “Shh,” and the Wollondilly ones are great, funny and totally nice! I’ve had a great time meeting all of them. Each of them has their own invaluable personalities and I’ve felt very comfortable being around them.

I chose to do my work experience at Wollondilly Library because I love to read, and truthfully I expected that all I’d be doing was putting books back on shelves. But, I was wrong! I’ve had the opportunity to be involved in research, view the ways that the library chooses the books they’re offered to buy—my opinion was even taken into account!—and I was able to sit down and watch Story Time, which was so cute!

I was shown inside the mobile library, which is a large van filled with shelved books, magazines, DVD’s and audio-books. The mobile library drives around Wollondilly, stopping at a specific town for most of the day, giving members of towns with no library the opportunity to borrow books.

The amount of community work the staff of the library are involved in and their efforts to make many people happy really is elevating, and I’m very glad I had the opportunity to do work experience here. I’ve done many things, I’ve never sat around wondering what to do with myself, but most importantly, I had fun.

Old Razorback Road : life on The Great Southern Road between Camden and Picton 1830-1930

2011-04-06T10:35:00.001+10:00

Local author, Elizabeth Villy, launched her new book on 2nd April, 2011.

A book of interest and detail, both a local history and a microcosm of events in Australia that were seminal to the development of this country. History brought alive through people and their lives, from the early bullockies to latter day truckies, settlers, convicts, travellers and politicians.

The Great South Road was built to allow the distribution of wool, tallow, hides and other products to Sydney docks from Campbelltown and Picton and beyond. The route chosen was over the Razorback Range, a jagged range with steep cliffs and rocky spurs, an unstable, porous sandstone base that shifts and lurches with heavy rain. A nightmare for the convicts who built it and the travellers forced to endure its horrors for a hundred years. These are the stories of the people who travelled and worked or lived on a small section of this road -- migrants, teamsters, tramps, gold escorts, toiling convicts and bushrangers who terrorised settlers and travellers alike. Desperate wars between Aborigines and settlers. Stagnant years after the railway came to Picton, revival with a rush of cars in the early 20th century and a new national capital that demanded a safe, modern highway.

It is history brought to life over a century of endeavour. Impressive research concealed beneath a light and engaging style. Atmospheric and timeless, the past brought to life with freshness and adventure. Reserve your copy of Old Razorback Road today. Anjana

Feeling hungry?

2011-04-01T12:06:00.001+11:00

I am excited about our upcoming Pizza Eating Competition as part of our Youth Week 2011 "Own It" activities and to whet our appetites I thought I'd do a little eating comp research.

Competitve Eating or Speed Eating has been around for a while, traditionally eating contests (usually involving pies) were events held at Country Fairs in the United States. The popularity of eating competitions has grown substantially in recent years, partially due to the ESPN's live television coverage of Nathans Hot Dog Eating Contest an annual event since 1916 at Coney Island.

Competitive Eating is big business, professional eaters participating in the Major League Eating circuit can win prizes in excess of $10,000 per comp. The current World #1 Champion is Joey Chesnut a trim looking 27 year old from San Jose.

Pies, hot dogs, hamburgers and pizzas are the most commonly consumed foods in competition but there are extreme eating comps that require you to wolf down such delightful delicacies as earth worms, cockroaches and cow brains! You Tube is littered with the wierd and wonderful world of competitive eating but if you wanna see a guy get owned check out Man vs Dog.

Bon Apetite!
George

Readit 2011

2011-03-18T16:31:00.002+11:00

Each month in 2011 Librarians and Library customers will be reading books around a particular theme. As well as discussing what they are reading in the library, some readers will also be tweeting about their reading.

To be involved in this reading group, you don’t have to tweat you can just read along each month if you like. But if you tweet about what you are reading and tag your posts with each month’s hashtag, other people will see what you are reading too, and might start conversations with you.

We see this as a really exciting way to take conversations about reading outside of the library and into a more public space where a reading community can share and collaborate.

For the month of March discover fantasy and other speculative fiction. Immerse yourself in a fantasy novel or gradually segue into this imaginary realm with crossover titles that have elements of fantasy (such as in magic realism and paranormal titles). You may even take this opportunity to explore fairy tales or enter the beguiling world of children’s fantasy fiction.

Melissa

The Land of the Painted Caves

2011-03-14T08:55:00.001+11:00

The wait is nearly over...the highly anticipated sixth book of Jean Auel’s Earth’s Children® series, The Land of Painted Caves, is the culmination fans have been waiting for. Continuing the story of Ayla and Jondalar, Auel combines her brilliant narrative skills and appealing characters with a remarkable re-creation of the way life was lived more than 25,000 years ago.
The Land of Painted Caves is an exquisite achievement by one of the world’s most beloved authors.

Arriving at your library in April - reserve your copy now and if you really can't wait read the extract here.

Anjana

Poetry & Place

2011-03-10T16:45:00.001+11:00

Picton Library was filled with the sound of the spoken word on Saturday with the successful Poetry & Place event. Published poets read from their works and we were even treated to some new unheard poems.

We had a great response to the open mike session with lots of audience members sharing their poetry and thoughts of Wollondilly with us. This Poetry & Place event is part of the bigger project Poetry: The Indelable Poetry which will be run in conjunction with Southern Tablelands Arts.

Poetry: The Indelible Stencil is a poetry as public art project to be implemented across the STARTS region. Up to five different small commissioned poems fabricated in steel will be installed in one town in each of the eight Local Government Areas in the region. The concept takes its inspiration from the stencil plates woolgrowers use to stencil their property names on wool packs.

If you weren't at the event or were and have more to say leave a comment on our blog!

Gleno Biblioteka - (Gleno Library)

2011-03-07T11:01:00.000+11:00

Well by the time you read this blog I will be in Gleno, East Timor. Why will I be in East Timor you may ask? Well I’ll be there training the staff of the new Gleno Biblioteka (Library) how to run a library. For about 12 months now I have been providing professional support to two wonderful Project Managers from Volunteering International Development Australia (VIDA) in all things Library related. They have two years in which to build a library and have it running successfully by the local people and then they have to leave.

Now that the building is about to be completed I need to be there in order to start training the five new staff members. The library is sort of operating from a small room at the moment while they wait for the new building to be completed. There will be a few challenges though. There is no power so I’ll be resurrecting the old card catalogue system and English is way down the list of languages spoken. Tetun is the official language, with Portuguese and Indonesian next on the list. But OH the joy that I feel when I think of how much this library is going to help the community. I believe that libraries change lives. In an area where literacy levels are extremely low, the library will be an investment in their future.

I wouldn’t be able leave my hair dryer at home for anything less!!

One group of children were so excited by the opening of the temporary library they made up a song. It's to the tune of Frere Jacques and goes like this:

Biblioteka, Biblioteka (Library)

Loke tiha ona, Loke tiha ona (Has opened already)

Segunda ho Kinta, Segunda ho Kinta (Mondays and Thursdays)

Mai ita lee, Mai ita lee (Come let's read)

Gail

Shaun Tan wins an Oscar

2011-02-28T17:09:00.000+11:00

While out collecting bottle tops at the beach, a boy discovers an enormous, bizarre and lonely creature that nobody else appears to notice. Feeling a sorry for it, he decides to find a home for this new friend, even as others warn that ‘some things don’t belong anywhere’. But is this really true? Can a thing be just plain lost?

Shaun Tan's beloved graphic novel, The lost thing, has just won an Oscar for its animated short film adaption.

Congratulations Shaun!

George

Poetry & Place

2011-02-23T15:05:00.000+11:00

Hear award winning established and new poets Jane Baker (Yass), Richard Bell (Bargo), Russell Erwin (Bannister) and Lizz Murphy (Binalong) on Poetry & Place and other themes at Picton Library.

Jane Baker, Richard Bell, Russell Erwin and Lizz Murphy are part of a team of poets who describe the places they journey to, who explore our place in the world and who are writing about place in the poetry as public art project in progress, Poetry: The Indelible Stencil (completion about July).

Poetry & Place will include a brief open mike session, bring a short poem on place or a short anecdote about the Wollondilly or another favourite part of the region.

Electronic Swatchbook

2011-02-15T13:07:00.006+11:00

Love fabric designs? Feeling the need to be creative or just want to be inspired? Then browse fashionable fabric designs in the Electronic Swatchbook.

Featuring fabric ranging from the 1830s to the 1920s, which you can use in your own creations. This fantastic resource is freely available courtsey of the Powerhouse Museum.

Anjana

Summer Reading Program Prize Presentation

2011-02-11T16:29:00.003+11:00

What a fantastic Summer Reading Program we’ve had! This year has been our most successful ever with 340 young people registering to participate. All together we read 3,190 books over the holidays with some people reading over 100 books each!

Lucky winners were presented with their prizes by our Mayor, Cr Banasik. 26 prizes were awarded this year ranging from toys and games for our youngest readers to movie tickets, JB HiFi and Borders vouchers for our more advanced readers and of course all prize winners were awarded a brand new book to keep them reading into the school term.

Congratulations!

Summer Fun

2011-02-10T16:34:00.003+11:00

We've had a great time over Summer. Thanks so much to all the young people who came along to our activities.

Lego Robotics

We had a great time at Lego Robotics Workshop using laptops to program their robots. Great results guys!

Library Bag Craft Day

Crafty fun was had at the library when Lisa and friends decorated their very own library bags. Don't they look great?

Throw it, catch it, tag it!

We played some of our favourite games such as Poison Ball, Rob the Nest and Tag Ball as well as some new ones like Bombard and End Zone with staff from the NSW Department of Sport and Rec.

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