News Blog @ Wellington City Libraries

Wellington City Libraries congratulates all the 2009 Montana New Zealand Prize winners, especially Emily Perkins winner of the Montana Medal for Fiction for her novel titled, Novel About My Wife.  Also Wellington writers Jill Trevelyan, winner of the top non-fiction prize for her biography, Rita Angus: An Artist’s Life , Kate De Goldi with the readers’ choice prize for The 10 PM Question, and Jenny Bornholdt, for winning the poetry prize for her collection, The Rocky Shore.  More information, past and present, on the New Zealand Montana Book Awards can be found on the New Zealand Book Council website.

Kei te whakanuia te Wiki o te Reo Māori e Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui, mā te pakiwaitara reo-rua a te kaikōrero rongonui nei, kaituhi rongonui, kairotarota, kaiako hoki a Moira Wairama.

Ka hāngai tēnei kaupapa kore utu ki te wā pakiwaitara kōhungahunga o ia wiki, ā, he paku waiata hoki.

11.45am-12.15pm
Rāhoroi, 1 o Akuhata
Whare Pukapuka, 65 Tiriti o Wikitōria
Nau mai haere mai.

Wellington City Libraries is celebrating te Wiki o te Reo Māori with a special bi-lingual story time by Moira Wairama a well known storyteller, award winning writer, poet and teacher.

This free session follows the regular pre-school story time and includes some simple waiata.

This month we have a neat selection of non-fiction books to recommend to our customers. Appetite for self-destruction relates how the record industry failed to keep up with the digital age. Berlin to Bond and beyond retraces the steps of UK foreign correspondent Anthony Terry. You can learn more about conspiracy theories with David Icke’s book: …and the truth shall set you free. Based on previously closed archives, The unknown gulag deals with Stalin’s ruthless repression of Muzhik in the 1930s. And if you want to know how to live debt free, learn about Google, how to survive cancer, and what it is like to be part of gangs, check out this month’s Popular Non-Fiction Recent Picks.

We have the best of New Zealand literature for you this month! First you can experience what it is like to be a dad alongside Graham Lowe in Me and my little blokes. You can travel with Gareth Morgan from one pole to the other and follow his investigation as he looks into global warming. In a series of previously unpublished material, discover what Anna Kavan really thought about New Zealand. And if you are interested in early childhood, Ruth Jones and New Zealand short-stories, check out this month’s New Zealand Recent Picks.

This month you can glimpse a facet of history that you have never seen before! Our selection deals with America’s First Ladies and their antiques and the history of French explorers in Sydney. Also featured is the peculiar story of the county Mayo librarian. Set in Ireland, this is the true story of a protestant woman whose appointment as a librarian in a predominantly catholic area caused a stir. Other items include the front pages of the New York times from 1851 till 2008 and Kiwi companeros or New Zealanders’ involvement in the Spanish civil war. And if you are interested by the true story of the men who perished in the Perfect Storm or the history of the Takaka Hill, check out our History Recent Picks.

Do you think our selection of DVDs this month could rival with the International Film Festival! Well the only way to find out is to have a closer look: Milk, Waltz with Bashir, Revolutionary Roads, and Benjamin Button are but a few titles that are available to you. If you are into more light-hearted movies, check out Marley & Me, He’s not that into you, or the latest Dylan Moran live show. Other DVDs we have available deal with female agents during WWII, a housewife getting strange premonitions, and a reporter being visited by a ghost. Finally, if you are a Jeff Buckley fan and an avid follower of the Who do you think you are? UK series, check out this month’s DVD Recent Pick.

In her entertaining book I loved, I lost, I made spaghetti, Giulia Melucci recounts how Italian pasta have  been the perfect side dishes to her relationships, good and bad. Other books in our monthly selection include items dealing with the best of British pub recipes and culinary traits, what tantalizing food you can produce with basic ingredients, and how one recipe can be declined into three different flavors. Sophie Dahl shows you how a former model turned writer can enjoy and share her food, and how you can save money while feeding your family scrumptious dishes. And if you want to cook like a chef, make perfect birthday cakes, cupcakes and breads; check out this month’s Cooking Recent Picks.

For an increasing number of people, bread is a food that must be avoided to prevent health problems, from the mild to the severe. Gluten-intolerant physician Stephen Wangen has written Healthier without wheat: a new understanding of wheat allergies, Celiac Disease, and non-Celiac gluten intolerance from two angles – the medical and the personal. He discusses the difference between the conditions, highlights the importance of correct diagnosis and most importantly advises on what to do if symptoms are not improving.

David Kessler is a former Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and his book The end of over-eating: taking control of the insatiable American appetite takes an in-depth look at the ways in which we have been conditioned to over-eat. Through research, personal stories and the examination of specific foods he explains how the desire to eat is stimulated in the brain by salt, fat and sugar.

Read more about these books and others for example the use of OCD, psychiatric drugs, how God changes the brain, shock treatment and Reiki in this month’s Recent Health Picks.

To celebrate Bastille Day, we’re sharing with you Serge Gainsbourg’s reggae version of the Marseillaise which was hugely polemical at the time!

Historically the decision-making process has been considered either a rational or an emotional one – with our head or with our heart. Following extensive research author Joanh Lehrer disputes this and in his book The decisive moment: how the brain makes up its mind he supports a combination of both. The study of “interesting” decision makers – ranging from politicians, investors, poker players to serial killers helps to answer two main questions – how the human mind makes decisions and how we can make them better.

With the increasing pressure of family, work and finances the concept of work/life balance seems a long way away. Many think or talk about it but put it in the too hard basket. James O’Loghlin’s How to balance your life: practical ways to achieve work/life balance gives a step-by-step guide to actually achieving it – the result – a life of your choice.

Jilted at the altar and having to take his pre-paid honeymoon with his brother inspired author Franz Wisner to write How the world makes love: and what it taught a jilted groom, sharing his thoughts on love. He’s not sure if he has the answers or even the right questions but his experiences trying to find love makes for a light-hearted read from a male perspective.

Enjoy these books and look at others including how to unclutter your life, how to manage mothers and why French women don’t sleep alone via this month’s Recent Personal Development Picks.