"I can hear the insects buzz..."

walk across the courtyard, towards the library.
i can hear the insects buzz and the leaves 'neath my feet...

ramble up the stairwell, into the hall of books...
since we got the interweb these hardly get used.

I heard the new song, Librarian, by My Morning Jacket this weekend on the WXPN. The above opening lyrics seem so appropriate as we continue to make plans for our new courtyard. The top soil has been delivered and seed will go down soon. Vic Lance took me around Feeney's Nursery on Friday and showed me various plants which we can consider throughout the area. Soon we will draw up the plans for the first landscape installment.
If all goes as planned, we will have plants in bloom outside our library by this coming Spring as well as patio seating.

New for 2008-2009

As hard as it is to say good-bye to summer, many great things are lined-up for our 2008-2009 school year. I just posted a list of events and and new items on my library wiki. Of the many things to look forward to, one of the events I'm most looking forward to is a lunch-time book club, giving students and staff an opportunity to share what we're reading. Have you done much reading this summer? Hope you all managed to read some good books in addition to your required reading.
Here are the books I enjoyed this summer:

• Before I Die by Jenny Dowham: a real tear-jerker, but none-the-less entertaining (it's one of this year's Reading Olympics books)
• In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez: Wow - what a powerful book! My first Julia Alvarez book and definitely not my last! (also a Reading Olympics book)
• The Lost Painting by Jonathan Harr - a true story about the missing Caravaggio painting, The Taking of Christ; quite interesting stuff
• The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein - another tear-jerker, but a book with a message of the self-fulfilling prophecy: life is what you make of it!
• Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer - An apocalyptic book which will get you thinking about how fragile our little plant really is (also a Reading Olympics book)
• American Born Chinese by Gene Yang - a graphic novel which looks at Asian cultures as well as the desire to fit in (yet another Reading Olympics book!)
• Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum - a heart-wrenching, mesmerizing novel about a young German woman during World War II. We've read much about the awful, unimaginable suffering of Jews. What were German citizens thinking and doing while these innocent people were being tortured and murdered? This book is not for the soft-hearted! It's a difficult, painful read, but beautifully told.
• And Then You Die by Iris Johansen - because every summer deserves one light book which requires little from your mind. :-)

Enjoy the last weeks! See you in September!

Countdown to Twilight

I'm looking forward to picking up the fourth and final novel in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, Breaking Dawn. Anyone out there who went to the midnight release Friday?

Something else to look forward to is our school book discussions which lead up to the release of the movie, Twilight on December 12. We will be having after school book discussions on 10/28, 11/18, and 12/9.

I recently came across Sunday's New York Times article, Literacy Debate: Online, R U Really Reading? Actually, it is the beginning of a series of articles on the " Internet and other technological and social forces are changing the way people read". This first article discusses the differences between reading a book and reading online. Of course, each has its merits and downfalls. Reading a book, to me, feels much like visiting a friend for a few days - I get the opportunity to really get to know them, learn from them, and am often sorry to say goodbye. Whereas when I read online, I feel like I'm in a room full of people with all different interests and viewpoints. I find myself drawn into one interesting conversation, but then am distracted by something else being discussed that also piques my interest. So, although I am offered a plethora of information and ideas, mingling through all this information takes patience and time...and it takes much effort to stay focused!

When you think about it, Web 2.0 tools are also kind of like being in that room of people: there are so many worthwhile, valuable ideas out there, but keeping your undivided attention on one for any length of time isn't easy. As our students are offered more and more online learning opportunities, they are placed in the same scenario. Does that mean that we keep closing the door to that room so that our students stay focused on just books and classroom learning? Of course not. Actually, our jobs as librarians have taken a very important shift: it's vital that we guide our students through all this information and show them how to get the most value from it all.

Y.A. is Definitely O.K.!

It was interesting to read Margo Rabb's article in yesterday's New York Times Book Review, I'm Y.A., and I'm O.K. She describes the disappointment that many writers experience when their novel, intended for an adult audience, is marketed towards the young adult audience. So I say, what is so bad about that? Mind you, this is a reaction of a high school librarian who enjoys so many young adult novels - often more so than some of the "adult" titles. As Rabb contends, the crossover from YA to Adult can be fairly transparent and perhaps the answer is to ease-up on categorizing them as such.
Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, Before I Die by Jenny Dowham and Tamar by Mal Peet are just a few of the recent " YA" titles which I've read, and which I would certainly recommend to adult friends. Likewise, just take a glance at this year's Alex Awards and you will find a wonderful selection of "adult" books which are very appropriate reads for high school students.

Courtyard Update

So...last week I met with local landscaper, Vic Lance and our Operations Director, Dave Hansel. A plan is in progress! Vic will begin to clean out the area of over growth and pruning the two existing trees. Top soil will be brought in and seeding will be done in late summer. Vic will also take care of resurfacing and staining the patio once a shade has been selected. Of course, I have all the fun jobs such as choosing the patio stain and selecting patio and garden seating. Luckily, I'll be getting some great assistance from project mentor, Rosanne Hansel of the Education Fund Committee.
As far as plants and flowers - why not ask the community to donate plants from their own gardens? What a great way to involve the New Hope community and make them a part of our little garden haven.

I was very surprised to stumble across a WikiREADia article on How to Create a Reading Garden-an initiative from the 2008 National Year of Reading. Should be a very helpful resource for us!

Good things to Come!

A picture of our courtyard as it looks now.

Students will soon have a relaxing, quiet place to read, reflect and gather together in the high school library courtyard! Thanks to the NHS Education Fund, a proposal has been accepted to have this area majorly spruced-up. Renovations will include patio restorations, flowers, plants and shrubs, garden décor, and comfortable patio seating. Student artwork will adorn the park-like setting in the form of wall murals, mosaics and sculptures. The new courtyard will provide a perfect setting for getting lost in a good book, creating “en plein air” art or hosting small class discussions.

But that's not all! The Education Fund has also accepted a proposal for hosting diverse, inspiring speakers to our school next year. We are so, so fortunate to have this committee of community members working to improve and enhance our students' education!