What are the neighbors saying?

Recently I started reading Fort Wayne Observed*, a local blog edited by city councilman Mitch Harper, because I wanted to read about the goings-on around Fort Wayne. Why, just today I found out about a monthly bike ride called Critical Mass, which happens the last Friday of every month at 6:30 pm and seeks to make people aware of bicyclists on the roads.

I was pleased to find a huge list of blogs written by Fort Wayne residents, starting about halfway down the left side of the page. Want to know what the neighbors are saying? Whether you like to read political opinions, personal stories, news, or anything else, you’ll find some interesting reading!

Get to know your neighbors. They have a lot to say!

*This post is for informational purposes and does not imply agreement with or support of the blog editor’s opinions.

-Melissa, Technology Librarian

Summer Reading!

If you are reading this summer be sure to sign up for the summer reading program! (Note: if you are reading this blog post, you ARE reading – this counts!) The ACPL has a summer reading program for everyone this summer.

Kids – Catch the Reading Bug! Sign up online or at any location of the ACPL. Read to earn great gifts like a Rocking Rhymes CD or a packet of marigold seeds, a reusable bookbag and books. Check out the puppet show, magic show, recycled art, and more. See a complete listing of programs here. Babies can sign up too!

Teens – Metamorphosis @ your Library. Sign up online and read to earn destination passes, books, a chance to win a laptop and a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Borders or Best Buy. Attend programs like Extreme Metamorphic Cars, Chocolate Art, Shrinky Dinks, Sculpey Bugs and more. See a complete listing of programs here.

Adults – Relax, Renew, Read! Sign up at any location of the ACPL and read to earn a booklight, a reusable bookbag, a gift certificate to Twice Sold Tales and a chance to win a rocker-recliner. Count time that you spend reading blogs (or anything else online), the newspaper, books, or whatever you like to read. You can also count the time that you spend listening to books on mp3/tape/CD AND the time that you spend reading aloud to your family!

Don’t miss the fun this summer

Heather, Children’s Services

Another great site to keep track of your reading

Worldcat.org is a tool to search the catalogs of libraries everywhere, but they’ve added this function that lets you create an account and make & share lists of books that you create. It’s really easy to use: you just search for a book, click Save to, then choose a list: Book I Recommend, Books I Own, Books to Check Out, or create a new list. You can keep your list private or make it public and share it with others. The best part is, that when you view a book in your list, you can link to your library’s catalog (based on the zip code you enter in your profile) where you can then place a hold on it. Give it a try!

‘Never After’ by Rebecca Lickiss

“And, since he hadn’t known which one was the sleeping princess, he’d kissed hundreds of unconscious women. To no avail.”

Princesses are in short supply in Rebecca Lickiss’ playful reinterpretation of fairytales. Prince Athelstan is having a truly difficult time finding a proper princess to marry—the scarcity of princesses is also making things difficult for his tomboyish cousin Vevila—as one of the few available princesses above the age of 2, she’s quite sought after, regardless of her wishes. Accompanied by a trio of wizards, Athelstan and Vevila set off on a quest that will poke gentle fun at a collection of fairytales from Cinderella to Rumplestiltskin.

Vevila is the scene-stealer in this light, humorous read. She’s clever, resourceful and sassy—and she knows that her ‘happily ever after’ means being true to herself.

Becky, Interdepartmental Librarian

Military Symposium

The staff of the Genealogy Center, with the assistance of David DuVall, Craig Baumgardner, Nick Leach and Mike Clay, local Civil War re-enactors with the 44^th Indiana, has created two public service announcements to publicize the Center’s Military Symposium on Friday and Saturday, September 26^th and 27^th, 2008. Our first forays into cinema dramatize our plucky soldiers’ search for genealogical and historical records, and how the Symposium can help. We all had a lot of fun producing this extravaganza and hope that everyone will take a minute or two to view them.

During the symposium, featured speaker Marie Varrelman Melchiori will give three lectures: “Using Records at the National Archives: A Researcher’s View,” “If Grandpa Wore Blue: Union Records in the National Archives,” and “If Grandpa Wore Gray: Confederate Records in the National Archives,” and Genealogy Center Manager, Curt Witcher will discuss The Genealogy Center’s “Our Military Heritage” website. Dinner Friday night, individual consultations with the experts on Saturday afternoon, and the Genealogy Center’s renowned collection will complete the two-day conference.

So take a minute to view the videos and consider attending the Military Symposium in September.

Delia Bourne and Melissa Shimkus, Genealogy Librarians

Keep track of your books

Photo by Michael Casey

The Internet is a wonderful thing, you may have heard. We agree, if you’re a book lover! There are so many ways to keep track of your reading list. On the Keep Track of Your Books page at our new blog, The Reading Room, you’ll find lots of ideas for organizing your reading.

Bo Diddley: 1928 – 2008

Influential singer and guitarist Bo Diddley suffered a stroke about a year ago (while on tour), and died today of heart failure at his home in Florida. Watching him on a Youtube video while writing this, I’m reminded of the time that David Letterman and Paul Shaffer posed the question “What’s up with old guys and enormous glasses?” So I think it’s fairly clear that they’re trying to channel their inner rock star. It may be that Dave and Paul offered that as one potential answer – I don’t remember the spot very clearly … hmmm, might be time for some bigger glasses …