Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 29, 2013

This week at Montclair Library

Photo by Mauro Cateb via Flickr

Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Teen Jewelry-Making Workshop – 3:00pm
Make your own unique jewelry with found materials with the help of the artists from the Rock, Paper, Scissors Collective.

Thursday, May 2, 2013
Toddler Storytime – 10:15am
Baby Bounce – 11:30am

Saturday, May 4, 2013
LIBRARY CLOSED
No furlough day on Saturday after all – the library will be open as usual. Yay!

Bookmaking Workshop – 1:00pm
This 90-minute workshop for kids ages 9-15 will teach you to make 2 surprising books: one made from a single sheet of paper and one that can be read in many ways (you’ll see!). We’ll make both books and then fill the books using our imagination and the supplies at hand. Everyone will go home with 2 books and the knowledge to make more. No experience required; materials provided.

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 24, 2013

Fresh off the press

Montclair Library tote bag

Our Montclair Library tote bags are now available for sale at the library! $10 gets you a sturdy cotton canvas tote featuring the 4 wise owls from the library’s sign, silkscreened in dark brown water-based ink right here in Oakland by Forward Printing. It’s big enough to hold lots of books (shown here: Robot Zot and The Dangerous Book for Boys), or groceries, or a picnic, or lots of other things you might need to cart around. All profits directly benefit the Montclair branch. They’re available for purchase at the library front desk and will also be available at our June 1st book sale.

The branch also has a few bar-coded loaner bags available for you to check out, if you find yourself with an armful of books and nothing to carry them in. Ask at the front desk for details.

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 22, 2013

This week at Montclair Library

Thursday, April 25, 2013
Toddler Storytime – 10:15am
Baby Bounce – 11:30am

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 18, 2013

Poem in Your Pocket Day

Poem in Your Pocket

Today is the Academy of American Poets’ Poem in Your Pocket Day! Carry a favorite poem with you to share with friends and family. Need a poem? The AAP has some great selections for both kids and adults ready to print here.

How about “How to Read a Poem: A Beginner’s Manual” by Pamela Spiro Wagner? Or Emily Dickinson’s “There is no frigate like a book“?

And, of course since this is the digital age, you can also share your selected poem on Twitter by using the hashtag #pocketpoem, or sign up to receive a daily poem via email.

What poem will you carry? Mine is Adrienne Rich’s “Orion.”

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 15, 2013

This week at Montclair Library

Poetry image by blowfishsoup via Flickr
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
National Poetry Month reading/open mic – 6:00pm
Join us at the Montclair Library for National Poetry Month! Celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Local poets will read, and there will be an open mic afterward. No advance sign-up necessary. MC’ed by Linda Brown, California Writers Club.

Thursday, April 18, 2013
Poem in Your Pocket Day
Toddler Storytime – 10:15am
Baby Bounce – 11:30am

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 14, 2013

National Library Week

National Library Week from the ALA

April 14-20, 2013 is National Library Week! Come check out some books, attend a poetry reading, bring the kids to storytime, use the computer, read a periodical you don’t subscribe to at home, borrow a movie or CD, get help with a reference question, and use your library! What do you love most about the library?

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 12, 2013

Our sister library

You may know that the Montclair branch library’s construction in 1930 was funded by wealthy benefactor Chauncey W. Gibson. But did you know that Middletown, in Lake County, also has a Gibson library?

Check out this article by Jan Cook for the Lake County News for the complete back story, including some interesting history about Gibson, who made his fortune in “banking, soap and carbon dioxide.” The Middletown library is relocating to a new, larger building today, leaving the future of the Gibson building undecided.

Fun fact: In the early days of the Middletown library the librarian lived in the library. There’s no evidence that the same thing was true in Montclair, but with the fireplace and big front windows it could have been a cozy little abode.

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 11, 2013

UNBOUND winners

Drumroll, please! We’re ready to announce the winners in our UNBOUND Book Art & Craft Contest! We received some amazing entries, and each of them used a book in unique and interesting ways. Click on any of the photos below to see bigger versions, or see our Pinterest board. Congratulations to everyone! And special thanks to City Councilmember Libby Schaaf for being our celebrity judge!

First up, our Youth division winner Katie N., whose Book Clutch Purse repurposed a hard-cover book into a sweet little blue purse with a recycled bead and ribbon closure. Our judges especially liked that the inside pocket flap is made from a page from “The Elements of Style.”

Book Clutch Purse by Katie N. Book Clutch Purse by Katie N.

In the Teen division, Mollie S. took top honors with her mobile titled “The Flight of Words,” featuring gilded paper cranes folded from book pages, hanging from the book body along with solar-powered string lights. Our judges liked the lights and the fact that the cranes are peace symbols folded from a book about war (“The Guns of Navarone”).

The Flight of Words by Mollie S. The Flight of Words by Mollie S.

In the Adult division, first place went to Kamni Vijay, who built her piece, “Log Cabin,” using quilled book pages to represent logs and the book’s cover as the roof. Inside, the the walls are papered with the book’s endpapers and the floor is the title page. Our judges loved that she used almost every part of the book, and the sweet little bird peeking out the front window. It looks like someplace Johanna Spyri’s Heidi would feel at home.

Log Cabin by Kamni Vijay log-cabin-interior-web Log Cabin by Kamni Vijay

Allyson Rickard‘s piece, “So Journs: Adventures in Books” took second place for adults. Allyson collaged and altered a children’s board book to represent childhood stories with an adult twist. Judges loved the rich layers of details and images she included.

So Journs by Allyson Rickard So Journs by Allyson Rickard

Third place for adults went to Ruth Terashima, who created a Babar-themed Plant Pot decoupaged with Babar images, recycled gift wrap and glass gems. Judges liked that the piece was fun and useful, and even included a live plant.

Babar-themed plant pot by Ruth Terashima Babar-themed plant pot by Ruth Terashima

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 11, 2013

Automated haiku

Sample haiku from the NY Times haiku generator.

Sample haiku from the NY Times haiku generator.

In honor of National Poetry Month, the New York Times has created software that browses articles on the NYTimes.com homepage and turns them into haiku.

An example from a Q&A with “Game of Thrones” creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss:

But we’re working off
a detailed road map and we
know where we’re going.

Read more about the project here, or check out the results on the Times‘ Tumblr page.

Posted by: montclairlibrary | April 8, 2013

This week at Montclair Library

Screenprinting
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Teen Screen-Printing Workshop 3:00-4:30pm
Create your own unique screen-printed T-shirt with help from the artists at the Rock, Paper, Scissors Collective.

Thursday, April 11, 2013
Toddler Storytime – 10:15am
Baby Bounce – 11:30am

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