The Mysteries of Angkor Wat by Richard Sobol

My rating: 5 of http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif5 stars


I loved this quick visit to an ancient temple. The author gives the reader some great facts about the history of Cambodia, as well as giving us a glimpse of it's future in his young tour guides, the children he meets on the grounds of the famous temple.



click here to check out this book.
View all my reviews

The Cat in the Hat | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons

The Cat in the Hat | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons
Hey kids, join us on December 7 @ 10:30 AM for a Cat In The Hat Party. We'll have games, snacks, stories and crafts for ages 2.5 to 5. Call to register today.

Heart of a Shepherd by Rosanne Parry

My rating: 4 of 5 stars






View all my reviews

Rave Reviews: Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons

Hamilton's story is truly remarkable. There were so many things about him I didn't know. He was born in the West Indies, rather than the American Colonies, and lost both his mother and father at a very young age. The story of his rise from these humble beginnings to become a founding father is a great read. Click the title above to find this title in our catalog.

Rave Reviews: The Mistaken Masterpiece

The Mistaken Masterpiece | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons
"The Mistaken Masterpiece" by Michael Beil is the third book in The Red Blazer Girls mystery series. The clues are there; can you figure out how to prove that the painting belonging to Father Julian's family is valuable before Sophie and her friends can? This book has suspense, humor, and interesting, intelligent characters. Review by CCBaker

Rave Reviews: The Great Wall of Lucy Wu

The Great Wall of Lucy Wu | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons
This book I loved reading like no other. It captures the reader with a subject of importance, an eleven-year-old girl. She faced life's problems with "ideas". She always refuses to give up. FIVE STARS. Review by Hannah.

Comment on this review or post your own review and win prizes in our Rave Reviews Program.

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As usual, I am fascinated that books in poetry form, when done well, seem to be able to convey twice the emotional punch with less than half the text. The story of a young girl's experiences during the fall of Saigon, and her family's immigration to America has a lot of punch, even though she seems to be on the fringe of events. You may need to insert your own historical knowledge into the story, as the protagonist is sometimes unaware of what is happening. Still, the books brings a great perspective to a piece of history whose ultimate outcomes are often missed.



View all my reviews

Comment on this review, and join the discussion today.

Rave Reviews

Ever want to be a book critic? Or want to spread the word about an awesome book you have read? Or maybe a terrible one? The whole family can participate in this new easy program with a great prize!

1. Pick a book from our Juvenile Fiction Section that was published in 2011 and read it, either by yourself, with a parent or together as a family.
2. Post a review here as a comment to this post, OR you can e-mail your review to me at chrissybraun@newtonfalls.org, OR stop by the children's room and fill out a form and we will post your comment for you. Your review will be moved to its own post so others can comment on it.
3. Keep reading. For every 2011 book you and/or your family reviews or posts about, we will enter your family in a drawing for a grand prize. (To be eligible for prizes, you name and contact information must be included in your review. This information will NOT be posted on this blog, even if you include it in your comment.)
4. Keep following the discussion. Defend your favorites, comment on other reviews and campaign for your picks. (This blog's comments are moderated, so inappropriate or mean comments will NOT be posted.)
5. Attend our wrap up party on December 15th and vote for your favorite book of the year.
   

Harvest Season

The library garden is producing more and more vegetables every day. So far, we have delivered 18 pounds of produce to the Church Mouse Food Pantry. Our members have also taken quite a bit of produce home to taste as well.

More Harvest

Our garden is now producing yellow zucchini, green peppers, and our very first tomato. Happy summer days!

How our garden grows

The Library Sprouts met today to weed their garden and harvest their radishes. The garden has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few weeks, and it is keeping our gardeners hard at work.

To join us for garden club, contact the library today, and check back here for more pictures and updates in the coming weeks.

Energy Island: How one community harnessed the wind and changed their world by Allan Drummond

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Join a young guide on a tour of the world's first island that is completely dedicated to renewable energy. This true story about an island in Denmark that took on the challenge of freeing themselves from nonrenewable energy. The emphasis is on how big and small things made a difference once everyone took part. See what you can do to change your own island, no matter its size.



View all my reviews

First Harvest

While the gardening has not been great this year, (too much rain and weird weather), we have harvested our first veggies from the garden.










A few radishes and some mixed greens. Check back and see how our garden is growing.

Summer Reading Is Here!

It's time again for Summer Reading Fun and Games.

Programs are available for children of all ages, and reading levels. You can pick up a reading passport and check in anytime to win a weekly prize, or attend our scheduled Wednesday programs.

Babies and toddlers can begin reading readiness activities with our Read-To-Me prize program, and they can also enjoy fun activities with other children in Baby Bugs or Sunshine Babies.

We are welcoming back some of our best loved visitors including Holly Carine from Geauge-Trumbull Solid Waste Management District, and the KSU Trumbull Children's Theater. In addition, we are pleased to present both the author, Jeanne Bryner, and illustrator, Wanda Kover, of a new children's book. We are holding a wedding reception for The Wedding of Miss Meredith Mouse on June 18. Check out the calendar and program descriptions below to plan your summer fun.

Planting Day

The first round of vegetables have been planted in the library garden. Today the kids and I planted tomatoes, zucchini, peas and radishes.










More seeds will go in when the garden dries out from the recent rains. Each child took home a pepper or tomato plant. The remaining plants will be given away during our Garden Celebration on June 4 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM. Stop by and see how the garden is growing, taste some yummy treats, take home a free plant, and get some good garden info. There will be activities for children and adults.

Library Sprouts

The Library Sprouts, Children's Garden Club is getting ready for summer. Our plants are growing well indoors,

Here are our peppers and tomatoes.

On May 21st kids ages 5-12 are invited to help us plant our garden. Call anytime to register.

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Odd is not named for being different from others in his village, but for the tip of a blade. Odd is, however, very odd. He has a smile that baffles everyone, and a bad leg that doesn't seem to bother him much. When his step-family and fellow villagers become restless at the end of a very long winter, Odd sets out on an adventure that will take him all the way to Asgard and to the rescue of the Gods who live there. An excellent fairy tale with an excellent hero who we hope will be back in future books.



View all my reviews

Griff Carver, Hallway Patrol by Jim Krieg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


If you took Law and Order, most buddy cop movies you've seen and dragnet and crammed it all into middle school, you'd have Griff Carver. All the usual suspects are there, the hard boiled cop (safety patrol officer), the scrappy journalist, the eager young partner, and even the crooked politician (who's running for class president). Add in a ring of fake hall pass pushers, a principal who is only interested in quiet well-behaved cops, and even a nervous snitch and you've got a great story told through incident reports, recorded interviews with the guidance councilor and entries from a diary...no wait, journal. Never call it a diary.



View all my reviews

First Baseball Scores

Welcome to another season of NFPL Fantasy Baseball. This year we have 18 teams who will be playing in a head-to-head round robin tournament all summer. Here are our first week's scores:

Points	Team	vs	Team	Points
129	The B G's	vs	Monster Town	190
162	Souvenir City Sluggers	vs	Remax Ravens	219
135	The Poptarts	vs	The Lumber Company	230
184	Union Army	vs	Hard Hitters	116
212	Newton Falls Monsters	vs	Stooges	211
221	Nutleys-at-bat	vs	Ducks on the Pond	233
190	Double Play Divas	vs	Pinstripe Punchout	215
211	Pokemon Hero's	vs	Hook 17	219
243	Dad's Yankees	vs	Ohio State Tigers	154

And here are next week's match-ups

The B G's VS Remax Ravens
Monster Town VS The Lumber Company
Souvenir City Sluggers VS Hard Hitters
The Poptarts VS Stooges
Union Army VS Ducks on the Pond
Newton Falls Monsters VS Pinstripe Punchout
Nutleys-at-bat VS Hook 17
Double Play Divas VS Ohio State Tigers
Pokemon Hero's VS Dad's Yankees

I am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to Be Your Class President by Josh Lieb

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Oliver Watson is the dorkiest kid in school. He always eats lunch by himself, and never has any friends, but he's not complaining. It's the perfect cover for an evil genius. Oliver is actually the head of a vast evil empire through which he can manipulate anything from revolutions in small foreign countries to what is on your local PBS station. But can Oliver control his school election?



View all my reviews

A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story by Linda Sue Park

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the story of two African journeys, one a scary flight from war and death, the other a daily walk to fetch water for the family. The way Park pulls the two stories together makes the book both readable and interesting. A great way for American students to understand some of the controversy surrounding the country of Sudan.



View all my reviews