What would YOU write?

I 've started listening to audio books in the car. It's half an hour from my home to the library and I thought this would be a smart way to get ahead at reviewing materials for our YA collection. (After all, I can only read so fast, and there are so many books, you wouldn't even believe.)

I thought I would skim the books, skipping chapters, listening just enough to get a feel for the quality of the writing, the general plot, the moral (if there is one) and the ending --in other words, the stuff a librarian would need to know in order to decide whether a book is 'good' for kids to read. A great time-saver, I thought.

So now I'm in the midst of Inkspell, which I am listening to only because I simply had to know what happened after Inkheart, which I listened to last month. (You can see how this is not working out so well as a time-saving tool. 13 hours of listening to Lynn Redgrave read me the first book was more than enough to determine that Cornelia Funke is an author well worth reading. And I haven't skipped a single word, never mind an entire chapter.)

Today I got to the part where Meggie and Farid find Fenoglio in the Inkworld after Meggie has read the two of them there so that they can warn Dustfinger about Basta.

I was relieved that there seems to be a way for Meggie to get home (assuming of course that Fenoglio can find write the right words), but more than that, I found myself shaking my head in wonderment at the scope of this story and the patience of its teller. When you think about it, she has done much more than Fenoglio, for she has created two worlds for her readers. Amazing, really.

Can you imagine what it would be like to start with a blank sheet of paper and have it turn out to be a book read by millions? Where does that first idea come from?

And wouldn't it be a grand and glorious thing to give the world a story that lasts forever?

But I am not a writer, and over the years I have managed to make my peace with this, telling myself that readers play just as important a role. After all, what value is the story if it never gets read?

Of course I've never asked Cornelia Funke, but I imagine the reason she has such patience for telling Meggie's story is that it's precisely the sort of story she would most like to be told -- a story so rich and full of detail that it's hard to believe it's not real.

This got me thinking about what kind of story I would write --I mean, if I ever could. What type of story do I like most to hear? Coming at it from that direction, maybe I could write something someday. Who knows? Anything's possible, right?

And then, not surprisingly, all of this thinking about stories led me to wondering about you.

If you could give the world just one story to last forever, what would YOU write?

UMD's

Some libraries in our system now have UMD's (Universal Media Discs). These optical discs are for use with PlayStation Portable. Go to http://www.westchesterlibraries.org/ and search by keyword 'UMD' to find out which games, movies and TV shows are available. Choose what you'd like and order it through inter-library loan. It'll be here in a few days' time.

Virtual Library System

Did you know you can access your library account via the internet?

Just go the the homepage: http://www.westchesterlibraries.org/ and click on 'Reserve/Renew'.

From there, click on 'My Card & Renew Items', enter your library card number and you'll be able to review your account record.

Look up the status of items you have checked out and renew before you get fines!

You can also search the catalog and place holds to reserve items. You'll get a phone message when your items are ready to pick up.

Today in History

On the morning of December 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright took turns piloting and monitoring their flying machine in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. Orville piloted the first flight that lasted just twelve seconds. On the fourth and final flight of the day, Wilbur traveled 852 feet, remaining airborne for 57 seconds. That morning the brothers became the first people to demonstrate sustained flight of a heavier-than-air machine under the complete control of the pilot.

The Library of Congress website has many interesting features like this one. The link is posted over in the right sidebar, toward the bottom.

This Just In!

In the right sidebar you'll find a list of new YA materials received. Click on the title to learn more about the book and the author.

Local Success Story

Coming this summer to bookstores (and libraries!) everywhere is a new novel for teens co-authored by Bedford resident, Lynn Biederman.

Lynn visited our library recently to read from the book and to share with us a little about the process of getting it published. It surely is a long way from creative story idea to finished product on the shelf, but Lynn's perseverance definitely paid off.

It was great hearing Lynn read aloud, but she left me hanging. I wonder how (if?) Amanda finally manages to stop her life from unraveling. Maybe she finds the answer inside a fortune cookie. Or inside her own heart. Or maybe a little of both. I guess I'll have to wait until July to find out for sure.

Check out Lynn's website for more information as the release date draws near: http://www.lynnbiederman.com/

All About Snow

Now that we've had the first snowfall of the season, here's a great website to explore: http://www.nsidc.org/snow/

And did you know that Former Vice President Al Gore was awarded a Nobel Prize? Check it out here:

http://www.nsidc.org/news/press/20071015_IPCCreport.html

Updating Audio Book Collection

We're in the midst of updating our collection -- upgrading many titles from audio cassette to compact disc as well as expanding to include new titles. This is a perfect time for making requests. What can't you find on our shelves that you need? What do we have that you could do without?

Whether you use them to catch up on required reading or choose something fun to listen to as a group during a holiday road trip, audio books make great traveling companions.

Fine-Forgiveness

Now that you know a little about me, I'd like to know more about you and the ways you utilize the library.

Visit the YA room, pick up a survey, complete it and turn in to any staff member and receive your $2.00 fine-forgiveness coupon.

Meet "The New Girl"

(a.k.a. Julie Rockefeller, The New YA Librarian)


When people ask me where I'm from, I always take a deep breath before responding. Here is a chronological listing of the places I have lived: Ohio, Alaska, Florida, Ohio, Germany, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Indiana, California, Germany, Massachusetts, New York.

My dad was in the military so we moved around a lot. (Just for the record, moving is much different than traveling.) I went to eight different schools, not including college. I was always 'The New Girl'. There was always a new town, new school, new church, always new friendships to be formed -- and then inevitably all of that to be left behind...again. After a while I sort of felt like why bother, if you know what I mean. :-(

But libraries were different.

You know how you can log on from anywhere to check your email and it always looks the same, no matter what? Well, long ago before there was such a thing as the World Wide Web (if you can even imagine such a void) that's what going to the library was for me. I could always find my way around and the books I loved were right where they belonged, seemingly just waiting for me to show up to find them again. Like old friends that somehow moved whenever I moved. It was the only place I felt like myself rather than just some new girl.

I spent so much time in libraries that I took for granted that I would go to college (naturally spending most of my time studying in the library) and move forward effortlessly into a contented lifetime of library work. But somehow that's not what actually happened.

People are always saying things like, "Life is a journey, not a destination." Trite as it may sound, I have to acknowledge the truth of it. Twenty-seven years passed between my graduation from high school and my first day of work at the Bedford Free Library. A long and circuitous journey, indeed. But look! Somehow I made it.

It just goes to show that you never can tell what's going to happen next. :-)

I look forward to seeing you 'round the library!