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What's new @ Brooklyn?

Community Spotlight

This month : The Brooklyn Writers' Walk...

Q: Where did the idea for the 'Brooklyn School Writers Walk' come from? How did it develop?

A: In term one our whole class went down to the waterfront to study the Wellington writers walk. When we got back to school Mr Brandon (Teacher) told us to start thinking of big questions for a topic. So I (Louis) went to Mr Brandon with the idea and asked for his help to form the big question. Could we have a writers walk in Brooklyn? Then it developed into different groups working on the different tasks.

Q: How is Brooklyn library going to be involved?

A:We hope to use the library to help promote it and to get people interested and looking at the poems. (Laminated copies have been placed around Brooklyn library.) At the same time it shows that the library is also interested in and supports literacy related activities at Brooklyn School.

Q: How did you select the poetry and who contributed to the Writers Walk poems?

A: From the very beginning the poem's group decided to hold a competition. Then we decided on how many would qualify from the different groups. For all the people we asked we gave criteria, the poems:

Had to be about Brooklyn.
Had to make sense.
Sound good read aloud.
Have good flow.
Have poetic devices.

A:Where have you placed the poems and how did you decide where to place them?

A:We have placed the poems in not only Brooklyn School but also the community. There is a map available if you contact Brooklyn school. While we were asking for sponsors from the shops in Brooklyn we also asked if they would like to have a poem in their shop window. We were very successful and many prominent Brooklyn places offered to have a poem. The poems had to flow around Brooklyn!

Storytime

• Storytime is every Tuesday at Brooklyn Library at 10:30am in the children's area
• Storytime runs for about half an hour, with stories and songs
• Pre-school storytimes are fun and free - there's no charge, and you don't have to book
• Storytime is aimed at pre-school age children (three and four years old) - but younger siblings are always welcome!

New displays...

DVDs: Look to the Stars!

This month at Brooklyn Library we're encouraging you to look to the stars. There has been the Matariki celebration, and astronomy reigns supreme at Wellington City Libraries, so we've bought in a selection of films to encourage you to look up and wonder. There's space exploration and cosmic documentaries, philosophical wanderings and no doubt some deadly alien invaders.

African Artists: CDs

World music has never been more popular and Brooklyn Library is doing it's bit to highlight some magnificent artists from Africa. We have a selection of cd's covering all genres from acoustic balladeers to reggae superstars, from acclaimed desert blues renegades to deep bass rough and ready electronic blasters. There's something for everyone with albums from individual artists to solid compilations. Enjoy!

Staff recommend

Movies:

P.S. I love you (DVD)
Finally!!! Hilary Swank has a role where she isn't required to kill or be killed. Her character still deals with heavy emotional issues but this time the end is uplifting. --Violetta

CDs:

Remember that I love you, Kimya Dawson (CD)
This is folk for those that are anti-folk. Kimya Dawson (made mainstream for her sweet tunes on the soundtrack for Juno), has released another gem. Dawson does what many songstresses aim for and engenders herself to the listener as "the girl next door". If only all neighbours were really so humorous, talented and darn right charming. --Lucy

Books:

In Search of Ancient New Zealand
By Hamish Campbell.
My interest in this topic was the result of a recent visit to the Chatham Islands when I was told that the Chatham Islands were the eastern most point of the sunken Continent of Zelandia, the other parts above water being the rest of New Zealand. The book uses readable English to decode the science of geology by understanding the process of reading the history of Earth through its soil and rocks and to understand the massive changes that have taken place on Earth over millions of years. The book is lavishly illustrated with photos and diagrams. The captions and photos are numbered for easy cross referencing and the book is in a format that can be read from cover to cover or dipped into topic by topic. --Marg

For parents:

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (DVD)
Funny, playful, entertaining. --Violetta

Jazz for kids sing, clap, wiggle and shake
I don't usually like jazz. I don't usually like kids' music either. This compilation album "Jazz for Kids: Sing, Clap, Wiggle and Shake", combines both in such an appealing way even I can appreciate the catchy tunes."Jazz for Kids" is a clever pairing of famous singers like Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong with songs that kids know and love like "Old MacDonald"and "The Muffin Man". This is one CD that parents will not mind listening to again and again and again.
If you enjoy listening to "Jazz for Kids" you may want to try the three "For the Kids" compilations we have at the library. These compilations are also well known kids' songs but rehashed by contemporary folk rock/pop artists. Also, if you have wee ones, another good end of the day option are the Rockabye Baby! albums with lullaby renditions of favorite rock bands like Nirvana and Led Zeppelin.
--Lucy