Christmas Greetings

All of us here at Leeton Library would like to wish everybody a happy and peace-filled Christmas.
We will be closing early on Christmas Eve - at 4 pm, and will reopen at 10 am on Monday January 4.
So come in and stock up on reading material or DVDs for the Christmas/New Year break.

New books for teens

Good news for our younger readers...
we have lots of new books for you. We have been building up our Junior Fiction and Young adult collections lately so come in and have a browse. You're sure to find something you'll like.
Here are a few of the new books we have for the teens :

Vampires, fantasy and science fiction

Melissa de la Cruz Revelations : a Blue Bloods novel
When one of the Gates of Hell is breached by Silver Bloods in Rio de Janeiro, the Blue Bloods need Schuyler Van Alen on their side, even though they question her blood legacy.

Christine Hinwood Bloodflower
Caught between duty and desire, between farm and castle, between the comradeship of men and the love of women, Cam struggles to find where he belongs while others strive to win his restless heart. A timeless story of conflict, identity and love in all its guises.

Kirsty Murray Vulture's gate
One girl - could she be the last girl alive? One boy, pursued by reckless men who have kidnapped him from his fathers. Bo and Callum go in search of a safe haven, a place to call home. But where can they turn and who can they trust? When every stranger is a threat, does their only hope lie in reaching Vulture's Gate? They must discover how to survive alongside runaway boys and crazed religious terrorists, in a world with an uncertain future.

…and these series:

Vampire academy by Richelle Mead
Blood promise
Just days before graduating from St. Vladimir's Academy, guardian-in-training Rose travels to Siberia to drive a stake into the heart of the boy she loves, the monstrous vampire Dimitri.
FrostbiteWhile on a school skiing trip, guardian-in-training Rose faces everything from misunderstandings between friends to fights among factions of Moroi as reports of horrific Strigoi attacks raise tensions, ultimately leading Rose and some of those closest to her into a battle that teaches her much about life, death, and love.
Shadow kissWhile Rose is coping with the darker effects of being shadow-kissed, her relationship with Dimitri is finally taking off, and when he disappears during a Strigoi attack on St. Vladimir's Academy, she must make a terrible choice.

The mysteries of the Septagram by Paul Bryers
Avatar Jade is the Avatar. Snatched from her home and plunged into a world of snow, mystery and virtual reality. But what is real and what is imagined? And what if she no longer knows who she really is?

Mirrorscape trilogy by Mike Wilks.
Mirrorscape - Book 1
MirrorStorm - Book 2

Horror High by Caroline B. Cooney.
Toxic beauty book 1
Killer instinct - book 2

Girl Stuff

Meg Cabot Airhead
Sixteen-year-old Emerson Watts, an advanced placement student with a disdain for fashion, is the recipient of a "whole body transplant" and finds herself transformed into one of the world's most famous teen supermodels.

Isabelle Merlin Cupid's arrow
It's been a while since 16-year-old Fleur Griffon has had one of the weird and scary dreams that used to plague her childhood. So when she and her bookseller mother travel to Bellerive Manor, near the ancient French town of Avallon where she meets a handsome, mysterious boy called Remy Gomert it seems to be love at first sight, beautiful as a dream. But Fleur's nightmare is just about to begin...

Liz Rettig My dating disasters diary by Kelly Ann
Kelly Ann is a total tomboy. She loves football and computer games and has no idea why anyone would want to bother with soppy romantic stuff and stupid crushes on boys. Her best mate is Chris, the boy next door, and he's not into that stuff either, is he?

…and these series:

A year in girl hell by Meredith Costain.
Dumped
Burned
Crushed

Girlfriend fiction
Mo Johnson Something more Penni Russon Little bird
Thalia Kalkipsakis What supergirl did next
Melaina Faranda Big sky
Kate Constable Winter of grace

A message from our Road Safety Officer

Some of you may be planning a trip over the long weekend.

Unfortunately, the state crash statistics are already well up this year and about a third of crashes on state roads are being attributed to fatigue.

Therefore please plan your trips and take regular breaks.

Driver reviver sites operating in the state over the long weekend can be found at the link below so please plan ahead, take a break, and travel safely.

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/roadsafety/fatigue/driverreviverstops/october09.html

School holidays are almost here

Not long now till the kids are on their October break and we have managed to get organised well in advance for a change.
Leeton Show will be on over the middle weekend so our first session will be especially for that.
So make sure you book your kids in early for our holiday activities. Each session only costs $5, starts at 2 pm and will last around an hour.
We are having:

• Decorated Boots on Wednesday October 7 - bring along an old boot or shoe to decorate and we will enter them in the children's section of the show.
• Lawn Bowls on Tuesday October 13 - have a go at this popular game. We'll have experienced bowlers on hand to show the kids the basics. Kids must wear rubber thongs.

Aarrghh!!!

There were young pirates everywhere in the library last Thursday evening - 23 of them in fact. They had all come along to sign up for our new Kids Klub which will be a monthly activity in the library for primary school kids. Lots of them came in costume and signed up with their new pirate name. Then off they went to listen to pirate stories, go on a treasure hunt around the library and play some pirate games. Of course there were jugs of 'blood' to drink and lots of pirate goodies to eat. What pirate doesn't love a chocolate chip cookie??
Every little pirate went home with a handful of gold coins from the treasure hunt and a library bag of goodies. Lets hope they all turn up again in October for our first official 'meeting'.

That's it for another year!

It's all over for another year - that week of madness that comes around very quickly sending us all into a frenzy of preparation for a couple of weeks beforehand.
More than 1 000 children, teachers, parents and carers completed the journey with us to the deep, dark cave where a bear was lurking. There were lots of screams but it was all in fun before we concluded with stories and jokes and a hunt around the library to find the shortlisted books which had been taken by the teddy bears.
Many thanks to the boys from the depot and our engineering department for helping with the courtyard. There wouldn't have been a river of stones to cross without their help. And a very big thank you to all the schools and parents who came along to ensure that this year's Book Week celebration was yet another big success for the library.
Now we need to get our thinking caps on for next year.....

There are some more photos from the week here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24515188@N08/

Children's Book week 2009

The library is now well into Book week for another year. This year's theme "Book Safari" has led us on a bear hunt - and we're not scared!
We have had to crunch our way through a river of stones, push through the long grass, squelch through soft mud, make our way through a swirling snowstorm and a dense forest to the deep, dark cave where the bear is hiding. He has stories to read and jokes to tell before we set off again on another bear hunt to find the shortlisted books which have been taken by other bears to read in the library.
Nearly all children in the shire will be visiting us this week for half an hour of fun. Others have produced fabulous posters to decorate the library for this special week.
We would especially like to thank the council engineering department for the stones which have been a big hit. They were a bit tricky to organise and we were very grateful to the boys and their shovels when that truck arrived.

Bob the Builder Storytime

A great success! Many thanks to all the Roads boys who came down with their big machines to help us out. The little kids were very excited and especially loved having a 'drive' of the trucks and graders etc. We took a few photos so if you see any you would like contact us at the library and we can email a copy to you.
Check them out here....

Where were we when man landed on the moon?

Last week saw the 40th anniversary of man's first footsteps on the moon. The library celebrated this momentous event with a small display and an invitation to our patrons to tell us what they were doing on that day. Here are some of the responses that were posted on our wall:

With both my parents in the lounge of the family home in Liverpool eating a chocolate paddle pop. I was actually "scared" something would go wrong - and the world was over.

In a school room in Dapto, Wollongong watching with lots of
other students.

I was in year 6 and we got sent home to watch the landing on TV.

Raising babies - listening on radio.

Watched it on TV with babies. Took a photo slide of it which I still have.

Was at college football training when announced over PA -"if you want to see the moon landing go to the TV room now!"

At work, no TV - but someone brought a radio. We all kept congregating in the office when exciting bits happened. Watched it later that night.

Crowded into a small school hall with the entire school watching the event on a tiny TV for hours waiting for something to happen . Better than the classroom though!

Changing a nappy...

I was in working in Amco Jeans Plant at Yennora NSW and heard about it on the radio.

I was in the Transport Dept. in darwin listening to the radio with 30 other people. (No TV in darwin till 1970)

I was sitting in my lounge room in front of an Astor TV with my family when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.

Mr Magic came to the library

Leeton's kids were treated to an hour of magic and fun with Mr Magic at the library at our first school holiday activity for the July break. A big group turned up for the show and were well entertained by Mr Magic and his friends Sooty and Pinky. Coloured lemonade, cakes in hats and disappearing rabbits were all part of the fun at this very successful afternoon.

We have a few photos on Flickr. Click on the link below to check them out....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24515188@N08/sets/72157621359872367/

Where were you when man landed on the moon?

Thursday 16th July is the 40th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 Mission.

The Apollo 11 mission was launched on July 16, 1969, it carried Mission Commander Neil Alden Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michael Collins and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin Eugene 'Buzz' Aldrin, Jr. On July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the Moon.

What were you doing that day? Did you watch the landing? Were you even born then? Tell us about it.

Attention all genealogists

We now subscribe to the library edition of the popular Ancestry.com to give you access to a wide range of unique resources for genealogical and historical research. With more than 1.5 billion names in over 4000 databases Ancestry Library Edition includes records from Australian electoral rolls, passenger lists, vital and church records, British and US Census, land and probate records and much more.
Come into the library to access this great collection from any of our public access computers.

July Storytime celebrates Naidoc week.

The theme for storytime in July at the Library is 'The Rainbow Serpent' which we are running in cooperation with the Leeton & district Local Aboriginal LAnd Council as part of the celebrations for Naidoc Week 2009.
This year Naidoc Week runs from July 5th - 12th with the theme 'Honouring our Elders, Nurturing our Youth". To embrace this theme we have invited a local Aboriginal community representative to read at our storytime with related storis and craft.

Impact - a changing land

"Throughout the history of European settlement in Australia, there have been people who cared for, and worked to protect, the land. Their actions form a long, encouraging thread through the story of our relationship with the environment. This exhibition shows some of the history that has led to the current state of the environment in New South Wales, and in other parts of Australia. Human impact is demonstrated here in four places: City, Coast, River and Island."
State Library of NSW website as at 3/12/07.

We have this new display in the library. Come in to the foyer and have a look.

Take a brochure and watch the DVD presentation for more information.

Book Sale

The Friends of Leeton Library book sale was a great success. Hundreds of books, videos, hear a books and at least one thousand magazines ( or maybe it only seemed like that many!) were sold to happy customers. All the Charles Dickens went early but L. Ron Hubbard failed to move at all. Lots of children came in with their parents and went away happily with armloads of books. Having the sale over 2 days in 2 meeting rooms was a good idea as everyone had plenty of time and room to browse. The Friends are to be commended for all their hard work preparing the books for sale and carrying and stacking and pricing and selling and packing up the few tatty left overs for recycling. They are having a break from fundraising for now and are moving on to sponsor our winter reading programme. More about the programme in a later post.

We have new MP3 talking books

The library now has just purchased a number of new talking books in MP3 format. They can be played on a PC, Mac, MP3 compatible CD player and most MP3 players.
Great for long trips in the car, when you're doing the ironing, going for a walk or jog or anywhere, anytime....

Deaver, Jeffery. The bone collector

Penney, Stef. The tenderness of wolves

Evanovich, Janet. Lean mean thirteen

Pratchett, Terry. Making money

Cole, Martina. Faces

Patterson, James. Double cross

Roberts, Nora. High noon

Francome, John. Dark horse

Cussler, Clive. The chase

Leather, Stephen. Dead men

Patterson, Richard North. The race

Hayder, Mo. Ritual

Brett, Simon. Blood at the bookies

Patterson, James. Sundays at Tiffany's

MacBride, Stuart. Flesh house

Cussler, Clive. Plague ship

Hill, Reginald. Death of a dormouse

Patterson, James. Sail

Rose, Karen. Scream for me

Kellerman, Jonathan. Compulsion

Bourne, Sam. The final reckoning

Roberts, Nora. Tribute

Gregory, Philippa. The other queen

Friends of Leeton Library Book Sale

The monster book sale is underway at the Leeton Library. We had an early rush through the door but now it's settled down to a constant stream of bargain hunters. It's on all day today and tomorrow morning at the library. Don't miss out!!

Leeton Library Book Group

The library book group is currently reading " Lunch with Mussolini" by Derek Hansen. If you were thinking of joining the group, I think the June meeting is going to be very lively and interesting. The feedback from book club memebers who have read this fairly long book has been quite positive so far. The June meeting is in the library on Friday June 5th at 10.30. Please come and join us for a coffee and a chat

New Talking Books

The library now has lots of new talking books on CD. Here is a sample to whet your appetite....

Reginald Hill - Death of a dormouse

The policeman on Trudi Adamson's doorstep brought the worst news possible - her husband Trent has been burned to death in a freak car accident. Suddenly a widow after years of marriage, Trudi finds herself alone, unprovided for and increasingly aware of her ignorance of her late husband's world. Why had he resigned from his job without telling her? Where was all his money? And more terrifyingly still - is he really dead? As Trudi experiences shock after shock, she is forced to re-examine her belief in Trent, and ultimately herself. Compelled to leave the cosy nest of her old life, she is out in the open and fighting for her very survival.

Clive Cussler - Plague ship

The Oregon, a covert ship completely dilapidated on the outside but on the inside packed with sophisticated weaponry and intelligence-gathering equipment, is captained by the rakish, one-legged Juan Cabrillo and manned by a crew of former military and spy personnel. It is a private enterprise, available for any government agency that can afford it. Having just completed a top secret mission against Iran in the Persian Gulf, the Oregon comes across a cruise ship adrift at sea. Hundreds of bodies litter its deck, and, as Cabrillo tries to determine what happened, explosions rack the length of the ship. Barely able to escape with his own life and that of the liner's sole survivor, Cabrillo finds himself plunged into a mystery as intricate - and as perilous - as any he has ever known.

Terry Pratchett - Wintersmith

Tiffany Aching put one foot wrong, made one little mistake...and now the spirit of winter is in love with her. He gives her roses and icebergs, says it with avalanches and showers her with Tiffany-shaped snowflakes. And just because the Wintersmith wants to marry you is no excuse for neglecting the chores. So Tiffany must look after Miss Treason, learn the secret of Boffo, catch Horace the cheese and stop the gods from seeing her in the bath. With the help of Granny Weatherwax and the Nac Mac Feegles, Tiffany must work everything out. If she doesn't, there will never be another springtime.

John Francome - Tip off

"The best tipster in the country" is how the newspapers describe Toby Brown. Having picked 15 winners from the last 17 selections, he's set every racing tongue wagging. Then his dead body is found, and Simon Jeffries - who'd been asked by the Jockey Club to look into Toby's activities - discovers that there is more to his success rate than just a lucky run.

Alexander McCall Smith - The unbearable lightness of scones

The story of Bertie and his dysfunctional family continues in this fifth instalment, alongside the familiar cast of favourites - Big Lou, Domenica, Angus Lordie, Cyril and others - in their daily pursuit of a little happiness. With customary charm and deftness, Alexander McCall Smith has again given us a clever, witty and utterly delightful new novel.

Sharon Owens - Revenge of the wedding planner

Mags Grimsdale and Julie Sultana are wedding planners. They rub along well but are as different as chalk and cheese. Mags is married to the love of her life, has four kids and a complicated extended family. Julie is impossibly glamorous, and doesn't remotely believe in love or marriage. When Julie embarks on a life crisis, involving a hair-raisingly sexy fling with a much younger man, it is Mags who is left to pick up the pieces. Add to the mix their most high-profile celebrity clients yet, and the biggest, most ambitious wedding they have ever organised, and the fireworks really begin.

Patrick Bishop - A good war

Adam Tomaszewski is a Polish airman, flying Hurricanes alongside British pilots as the Battle of Britain rages in the summer skies over Kent and Sussex." "Facing death daily and far from his friends and family, Adam finds himself drawn to a maverick Irish soldier called Gerry Cunningham." "'You're out of luck, brother,' are the first words Gerry says when they meet in the crush of men competing for the few women at a dance in a seaside hotel, but when Gerry betrays his lover Moira, Adam's fortunes seem to have changed." "For the next four years, Adam's life and Gerry's are intertwined like good luck and bad, love and loss, life and death, their paths crossing at various points on Adam's perilous journey from the ruins of Poland to the rolling English countryside, from Egypt to Occupied France.

Book Group

The library book group will be reading " Lunch with Mussolini" by Derek Hansen during May. It's hoped (particularly by Sandra) that this book will prove more popular and readable than the 2 novels that we've already discussed this year namely " Slow Man " by Coetzee and " Emotionally Weird" by Kate Atkinson. Both those novels received scathing reviews by most members of the group. On the positive side you could say that at least a lively discussion was had by all! New members are most welcome to this group which meets on the first Friday of the month at Leeton Library at 10.30am

Kids News

The school holiday activities for kids are going well. A great group of our knitting ladies came last week to share their expertise with the children. The girls - and boys - got totake home their sample to keep on practising.

A large group has already booked in for floral art this week. It will be chaotic but we're sure there will be some lovely creations produced as an early Mother's Day surprise for their Mums.

Kids haven't been forgotten at this year's Farm Fair. The Leeton Shire tent will have craft kits from the library to give the Mums and dads a break and keep the kids amused for a few minutes. We also have some goodies from the library included in the Council's 'show bags'.

Learn to use the internet at the library

The library conducts free one hourly classes on the internet before the library opens. These free classes are very popular and are tailored to meet individual needs. You might know someone who needs to learn the very basics of internet searching or may have very specific questions about email, ebay , or facebook etc. The library staff will attempt to help. Bookings are essential for these lessons. We recommend a maximum of 3 people at each lesson so everyone gets assistance.

Chance to win a prize...

Tell us what you think...
have you been to our website and used any of the features found in the Homework and Study Help, Encyclopaedias or Online Databases sections?
Did you find them helpful? Or not?
Post a comment below as an anonymous user and sign your post with your Leeton Library card number to go in the draw for a prize.
Do not enter any personal details including your name - only your number.
The draw will take place at the end of Term 2.

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Open 4pm till 8 pm Monday to Friday
Click on the logo above then simply use your Leeton Shire library card number as a log in.

Heritage Week

Leeton's heritage advisor Noel Thomson will be talking on housing styles in Leeton on Thursday April 9 from 10.30 - 11.30 am at the library. All are welcome.

School Holiday Activities

The library is running two holiday activities in the Easter break:

“ Learn to Knit” on Friday April 17th at 11am.

and

“ Flower Arranging for Children” on Wednesday April 22nd at 2pm.

These activities are suitable for ages 5-18. There is a charge of $5.00 per child for each activity and all materials are supplied. We have outside experts coming to the library to run these classes. The classes will be approximately one hour in length. Bookings are essential on 69530945

Author Talk

Location: Leeton Library

Date: Friday 17th April

Time: 10 am

Don Tate, author of the “The War Within” - one of the most “extraordinary” memoirs ever published in Australia – will be speaking at our library. Please book at the library or phone us on 69530945

Book Group at the library

On the first Friday of every month a group of about 10 people meet at the library at 10.30 to discuss an agreed book title and to talk about other interesting books they have been reading. Last year some really indepth chats were had about various titles including “ The Kite Runner”, “ The Unknown Terrorist”, and “ The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox”.

This year we are starting with the title “ Slow Man” by JM Coetzee. Coetzee won the Nobel prize for literature and the Booker prize twice. Does this make him an entertaining and inspiring writer? Come along on the first Friday in April (this week) and find out what our book group thinks. All welcome, whether or not you’ve read this title.

Knitting at the Library

Leeton Library has been hosting a successful knitting group for the past year. Originally this group met in the winter of 2008 to knit squares for the charity “Wrap With Love”. As a result of much feverish knitting 141 squares and 11 completed rugs were sent to the Sydney charity to be sent on around the world.

The ladies who came in the winter to knit and chat were keen to continue meeting and so have continued to come to the library every Thursday morning ever since, ( except for a 2 week break in the hottest part of summer!)

If you can knit or if you would like to learn to knit then this group would welcome you. Judging by the amount of laughing that we can hear from the library circulation desk this group is as much about friendship and relaxation as it is about knitting.

Please come along it’s free and fun 10.30 every Thursday at the library.

New kids books

Learning about grammar and nouns and verbs and such is really boring. Right? Not any more…
We now have a new children’s series Words Are Categorical by Brian P. Cleary which takes the pain out of learning the parts of speech by presenting them in a creative and colourful way with rhymes and illustrations.
Find them in the children’s area in the ‘C’ carriage of the train. Check them out soon.

New adult books in the library

We have recently added a number of new adult fiction titles to our collection. The following list should have something to appeal to most readers :

Cathy Kelly - Once in a lifetime

Alafair Burke - City of fear

Scott Sigler - Contagious

Linda Jaivin - A Most immoral woman

Robert G. Barrett - High noon in Nimbin

J.D. Robb - Salvation in death

Karen Rose - Kill for me

Wendy Holden - Beautiful people

Clemency Burton-Hill - Other side of the stars

Alexander McCall Smith - Tea time for the traditionally built

John Grisham - Associate

James Patterson - Run for your life

Erica Spindler - Breakneck

John Flanagan - Storm peak

Welcome to Leeton Shire Library's news

Welcome to our new blog which we hope will keep you up to date with any library 'happenings', new books or special events.
Feel free to comment or add suggestions - we would love to hear from you.

This week in the library:

Thursday - Cuddle Up & Read for babies and their grown ups 0 - 18 months.